Orioles 3, Bluejays 0

Keith's photos of a hooded oriole who visited us about one week ago.

Early spring brings many of my favorite things in life:  flowers and warm weather, fresh greenery on shrubs and trees, and...baseball.  I've loved baseball since I was a little girl growing up with my maternal grandparents.  My grandfather Zepp, to whom we referred as "Daddy Mel" was an enthusiastic fan of the stick and ball game.  To this day, whenever I hear the cheers of a stadium crowd, accompanied by the crack of the bat, and an organist version of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," I think of Daddy Mel.  He and my grandmother (who wanted me as her first grandchild to call her "Grammy," unfortunately my version came out "Mammie" and it stuck!) helped mold me into the person I am today.  They were truly good people with generous hearts, and they loved their grandchildren.  Their acts of kindness, wisdom, and zest for life continue to live in my fondest memories. 

 

Bullock's Oriole, photo by Kevin Cole, free image from Wikipedia

I smile when I consider how seemingly unrelated things can make me to think about my grandparents.  For example, another cherished gift of spring is migration.  Beginning in late March, we start to see southern migrant birds make their journey back north.  Broad-billed, broad-tailed, black-chinned, and rufous hummingbirds kick off the season.  They are followed by white-winged doves, warblers, turkey buzzards, and grosbeaks.  But the birds that make me think of "Daddy Mel" are the orioles.

Daddy Mel was a fan of the Baltimore Orioles baseball team.  I remember watching "battle of the birds" games with him in which Baltimore attempted to best the Toronto Blue Jays or St. Louis Cardinals.  Of course, I became a fan of the O's.

I don't get to see Northern (Baltimore) orioles fly by here in the Sonoran Desert, but I am enchanted by three other species:  hooded, Bullock's, and Scott's.  So far this year, two species have made stops at their spring training grounds in the Tucson area.  I never tire of seeing the flamboyant hooded oriole with its bright orange body and head and its black face and throat.   It pays us a visit every year and we always look forward to seeing the Icterid's beautiful plumage.  The Bullock's peeked at me through our bedroom window when it arrived to check out our hummingbird nectar.  The Scott's hasn't been by yet, but I expect to see the yellow and black bird any day.

 

Funny, what can trigger our memories and bring such pleasure.  My grandfather would have loved these birds.

Keith's photos of our Scott's oriole.