feeding frenzy

i came upstairs a little while ago to do some machine quilting. since it's a totally gorgeous day _ blue sky, sunshiny, cool, crisp - i had some of the windows open getting some fresh air.. when i sat down i noticed big huge clusters of what looked like big fat dark blue/purple grapes hanging in bunches in the trees, and thought to myself i should take a picture of them, and figured i would in a bit... i also thought that i had never noticed them before....

well, now i know why! unless i happened to be here right before the frenzy i never would have seen them that big and plump and plentiful... as i was stitching i started hearing bird sounds, glanced outside and saw a flock of something, and went back to stitching. a few minutes later, i heard a loud thud as one of them hit the window, but kept stitching.... then i started hearing a Very Loud Fluttering of wings which finally made me stop and Look.

it was a scene right out of the old alfred hitchcock movie The Birds.... (or what i imagined a scene would have looked like cus i was a total weenie and never could watch the thing way back when so all i've ever seen of it is clips). there must have been hundreds of them! i finally stopped stitching, and got my camera and started snapping. there were so many it didn't matter where you pointed: there were birds everywhere!

after they had gorged themselves they were having a little drink in, of all things, my rust containers! which struck me as particularly funny as i had just gone to the iron overload web site the other day looking up which tests i needed to have done... my dad had hemachromatosis, which necessitates frequent testing for me... it is the most common genetic disease (they say 1 in 200-300 have it).

anyway, i digress...

i have NO idea what kind of bird this is. it doesn't look familiar. they must be passing through? if anyone can identify them please let me know!

meantime, i'm going to get back to stitching....(deadline) and i will remember to wear shoes next time i go outside!