Aside from playing piano, we all have hobbies. Wheather its playing a sport, some kind of arts and crafts activity, or just as simple as playing a game (or possibly a combintaion of these or other categories). We all have things that we like to do when we are not playing the piano. (Oh yeah, also discludes posting here. We are worse than making a hobby of that. We are addicted. Admit it, you are). Anyways, here is a list of things that I like to do when I am away from the piano:

Bowling
Biking
Swimming
Walk in the park
Walk through downtown (and empty all pocket change to the homeless on the way, and if I'm out of change, I get out the dollars)
Camping
Fishing (catch and release. I don't keep the fish. I just get a picture if its a big one. 1. I hate sea food. and 2. I don't like killing things, which means that I absolutly hate hunting above just about everything).
Hiking
Go to the beach
Golf and mini golf
Go to a movie
And the list could just go on and on. I almost never do these things without a friend with me. Anyways, I just wanted to know what the rest of you like to do in your spare time.

Ok, here are mine:
Horses
Horses
Horses
Horses

Gardening

Gee, I wonder if Jodi likes horses? :p

Jgoo, what an outdoorsman!

Mine:
the stock market (because I don't do it professionally, though it sounds strange to call it a hobby)
reading
movies!!!! I'm even having an Oscars party
collecting panda christmas ornaments (OK, I guess this is one confession I'll never live down!)
shopping (deep discounts only, must go for the kill)

and cooking, cooking, cooking (but this is now a semi-profession for me).

penny

I love literature!
I also like philosophy and sometimes I take some english lessons.
Nowadays I'm reading about The history of Philosophy.

Reading. I generally have 3 or 4 books going at a time. Currently I'm reading "The Fellowship of the Ring", "Catholicism" and "Wild Blue" (non-fiction account of bomber pilots in WWII)

Cross-stitching although I haven't done anything since I had my baby in October.

Debating. I'm fairly active on an internet Current Debates board.

Movies. I particularly adore ones from the '30's and '40's. Give me a screwball comedy with Cary Grant any time over most of the garbage coming out of Hollywood these days.

Lily

The hobby (aside from piano) I am pursuing most right now is backpacking. I am heading out to the Appalachian Trail this weekend for a 25-mile hike. Love to be outdoors!

(If anyone is particularly bored today, you can see pics of my most recent trip here. )

I also enjoy writing, have written some poetry and a short story. All for my own enjoyment. Or therapy.

Of course, I like listening to music, all kinds. Drives my kids nuts (which is, come to think of it, another hobby of mine!)

I love to read but don't read much. Listen to tapes (audio-books) in the car during my long commute.

I like to surf the net and participate in discussion groups like this one. (I usually have a little more to contribute!)

(BTW, lily, where is the Debate group you referred to?)

Mostly, though, I am a family man. I have five children in a variety of activities, and I just run around like a nut trying to keep up with them all, and keep them all healthy and happy.

My hobbies are:

running (5 miles every day)
auto racing
auto modification
skiing
fishing
hunting (please don't beat me up over this)
computers

Derick

P.S. Some nice scenary pictures Fritz!

I used to have a long list of interesting hobbies. Then I had twins. Now, my hobbies are:

- Being goofy with my kids
- Trying to get enough sleep.

Here's my pre-kids list (most of which I don't have the time to live up to right now):

- Music: Piano, singing, arranging, composition
- Martial arts: Expert level in Thai Kick Boxing, Filipino stick fighting (1986 world heavyweight champ), Jun Fan Gung Fu, Jujutsu, Silat (warfare-based S.E. Asian marial art)
- Weight training (competition level power lifter)
- Running (my wife and my dog both kick my tail)
- Cooking Thai food
- International Internetworking standards (contributor)

[ March 06, 2002: Message edited by: T2 ]

T2,

I have five children, including twin boys who are just about to turn nine.

I have accepted the fact that I will catch up on my sleep when I die, and probably not before.

Sports:
Golf (a am about an 8 handicap. I also make my own clubs),
Tennis (I was on my HS team, but I suck now)
Fitness (I get to the weightroom once a week, I don't like running much)
Skiing and Skindiving (less frequently as they require travel. As I get older I also find the warm beach and tropical waters is becoming more appealing than freezing on the chairlift!)
Cooking (but not baking)
Watercolor Painting
Stunt Kites

Well, playing piano is I guess a hobby for me, but besides that, we have two Golden Retrievers who keep us busy, I play and coach soccer, and I'm a man with a broom - I curl!

I'm also getting back into photography after a hiatus of a few years. Our family also spends alot of time camping; We have a pop-up tent camper that we take to the road virtually every chance we can get in the summer.

Jamie

Fritz:

Amen!

I only have two but they're in enough activities for 5.

Jamie - you curl? Kewl!

And, Fritz - those are fantastic pictures of your hike. You are quite the photographer. Was this hike like one of our forum get togethers? You all met on some message board and went somewhere and hiked for three days? Wow - that must've been some adventure! Jodi

Hobbies - avid reader (100+ a year), hunter, archery, gardening - primarily vegetables, around an acre's worth, firearms (all aspects) - including some amateur gunsmithing, exterior ballistics,and wildcatting. No need to call the FBI, they know who I am and my prints are on file! Some woodworking, although I never seem to have the right tool.


I would have added cooking to the list, but down here that is a form of religion!

What with full-time work and the piano there isn't time for much of anything else. But you could consider the following my other hobbies: gardening (flowers and small shrubs), my landlord lets me tend a small plot in the back yard; birds: I have 3 lovebirds and 5 parakeets. They are not caged and the parakeet's home-base is a corner of the kitchen next to the window where they have nest boxes up on the wall, a tree branch attached to the wall with a flag-pole holder, and various swings. The love bird's homebase is a corner of the dining room where they have a similar set-up. They all spend most of their time at home base. Only the love birds occasionally fly into the living room or bathroom. It is hard for me to imagine life without birds. I've had birds for about 12 years.

If I had more time, let me re-phrase that: if I were independently wealthy, (ha!), I'd have a house (not far from the city) that would have a big conservatory filled with gorgeous flowers and many beautiful birds and I'd have wonderful perennial gardens and arbors and roses and small animals ... and ... probably a Steinway (ha ha!)

Hobbies are something that you do on a regular basis. I can't even get to the piano to practice on a regular basis. However, stuff that I like to do whenever the opportunity arises (even if only once a year): skiing, sailing, boogey boarding/body surfing, camping, travel.

I would love to have a house with a back yard for a vegetable and flower garden, and a retirement to leave me enough time to garden at will!

You all are amazing. What an interesting group of people here. I also used to have hobbies before I had kids. Now I have piano and, well, the kids can be pretty entertaining, too!

Ok, here's my list:

piano
biking
taking a walk
inline skating
reading
playing parlour games with friends
gardening

Horse riding was on top of my hobby list as long as I stayed with my parents. They have a house in a suburb and the neighbours had a couple of horses which I were allowed to ride. I haven't been on horseback since I married nearly 10 years ago because since then I live in the city center. Not an ideal place to keep a horse.

But with a full-time job, the thing I do most for a hobby is actually piano playing. Not enough time for all favourite activities

Hmmmm. My hobbies seem to change with the phase of the moon.

But when I'm not in the lab (or playing the piano), here's what I like to do:

karate/kobudo/jiu-jitsu
singing in the choir
knitting
crocheting
cooking/baking/other kitchen activities
bowling
biking
hiking
photography (expensive hobby though)

.... and the list goes on.

We're moving to our retirement home in a couple of months. 1.6 acres, after swearing that we will have no more large yards. The front yard's okay. Back yard has been inhabited by 2 beagles & is totally bare except for an ugly tool barn. After I'm finished using all the HGTV whimsy (hate that word now)I can muster, it'll be adorable. We have to kill the weeds & START ALL OVER. I'm excited about being able to create a garden from scratch. So that will be my biggest hobby. Will also see the USA & visit grandkids who are too far away.

For all you folks who said your twins are your hobby, I raised a set & they turned out to be our best creation so far.

Ich verstehe. Aber, Sie mussen denken, dass Leben aber lang ist und wir haben ja viele Zeit viele Dinge zu tun. Auch denken Sie, dass Sie sich ueber Musik freuen. Es ist so schade, dass zuviele Leute kein Lust dafuer haben.

Wo in Deutschland wohnen Sie?

Bitte Entschuldigung Sie, dass mein deutsch so schlecht ist...ich habe diese Sprache nur seit zwei Jarhren gesprochen.

(For everyone:

I understand. But, you must think that life is long and we really have a lot of time to do many things. Also think about how music pleases you. It is so unfortunate that too many people have no interest in it.

Where do you live in Germany?

Please forgive my horrible German...I've only spoken this language for two years)

My hobbies:
Deutsch
(Just started learning Japanese also to accomodate the missus...SO HARD)

Computers - hardware, assembly, some light programming

I just started a regular workout program back in September also (even though it has waned a little in the past month :D)

Traveling - going to spend about a month in Italy this summer and then maybe some time in Japan afterwards.

Reading - Kurt Vonnegut, Oscar Wilde, Poe, H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen King, and music-geek stuff such as composer bios and analytical works.

Brendan and all,

first let me say that your German is rather good especially if you've spoken the language for two years only! My English was still a complete mess after the first two years of learning the language
Ah, and you can say DU zu mir

Yes sure, life is long and there is still a lot of time to do all the things one likes to do later. It's just that I could do with a bit more outdoor activities. Sitting in front of a computer day in day out is not that kind of thing that keeps you healthy and fit
But when I have to decide between piano playing and sports I always choose piano playing. Making music has, especially since I work full-time, become the most comforting and relaxing activity in my life.

I live on the edge of the Ruhrgebiet (That's the region along the river Ruhr. Cities in this area you may have heard of are Essen, Dortmund and Bochum). The city where I actually live is rather medium sized, it's called Wuppertal.
[If anyone finds this name funny he/she is herewith invited to a good laugh because everybody does laugh about it, though I can't figure out why ]

Brendan, if you like to use your German more often, feel free to email me privately.

what an interesting group of people! fritz, how do you get in those long hikes with five kids at home? i see that you are accustomed to the type of backpacking trip that you have planned for montana. good luck! conditions are a little different out here.... mostly due to elevation and extreme weather any time of year, not to mention some very rugged terrain. but hey, sometimes the most memorable trips are the most arduous ones.

what i spend my time doing when i'm not hanging out on piano world (and i'm definitely thinking i need to take some cold turkey time off):

walking, grooming, training my dog
looking for puppies
cuddling the cat
talking to the vet or the breeder
fixing up this old house from the '30s--i renovated the living room before the piano got here.
gardening--we have a huge yard filled with roses and tulips and native plants and a dozen mature lilac trees, and i got my master gardener certification a few years ago.
cross country skiing
backpacking (the mountains are my life)
listening to music
reading--currently reading "fearless creating" but also read good fiction and junky magazines. this is an antidote to the TONS of reading i have to do for work.
surfing the 'net
working out at the health club
long walks with friends
potluck suppers with friends
piano parties with my fellow piano students
road trips and movies and date nights with the hubster
vacations to warm places with nice coral reefs!
mentoring the young people in my life

whew. no wonder i am always behind on my work!

Hi,
Horses, horses and more horses. However, I have down-sized considerably....to just 4 from a high of 16. Also, when there's time, I love reading, tennis, movies, swimming and boating. And won of my biggest hobbies (yes, I do it regularly) is to daydream of Arizona. I love visiting there; plus I have some of my relatives there. (I've got 54 first cousins!)
I do have a new litter of puppies in the barn. A stray came and had eight! Boy are they ever CUTE! BTW Jodi, when will she come in heat...like how much time do I have before spaying her? She's a neat dog; and I've decided to keep her. None of my neighbors knew anything about her. She must have been dumped. I'm keeping one puppy. I'm also going to breed my paint mare next month. I'm going to use cool shipped semen. Wish me luck. Bye....

Ich studierte Deutsch and die Universitaet, aber habe ich fast alles vergessen.

[ March 08, 2002: Message edited by: T2 ]

Eldon, Eldon - I SLEPT through small animal medicine and surgery. I remember next to NOTHING about small animal reproduction. But I'll look it up for you. Good luck with your mare - are you breeding her to a Paint? There is a lovely warmblood stallion in North Idaho (he stands at Kruger Ranch in Rathdrum) that gets bred to lots of paints - He is huge - 17-2 hands, jet black with chrome. His babies are really nice. Jodi

in general, bitches come into heat every six months, though individuals do vary in this.
dog gestation is 63 days, give or take, so you can extrapolate from her whelping date when she was last in heat.

ask your vet to be sure, but you can probably spay your new friend as soon as the pups have gone to their new homes (which should not be any sooner than when they are six weeks old, and seven or eight weeks old is even better).

Prima! Es gibt viele Leute heir, die deutsch sprechen!

Hast du deutsch studiert oder nur gelernt?

Pique
Thanks the info. I knew the gestation period; and when you said every 6 months, it all came back to me. Yes, I will spay her as soon as the puppies are weaned. She's a neat dog and great mother. The puppies are now just 4 weeks old. I gave them some baked chicken tonight. They sounded like this rowdy bunch of tuffys. I just don't know how ANYONE can drop a dog off in the country. I think it happens more than anyone realizes. BTW, what breed is your LARGE dog?

Jodi,
I'm breeding to The Two Timing Kid, he's a quarter in Alabama.

Eldon:

Funny, I spend my time dreaming of Illinois :rolleyes: (just kidding). Actually hubby was being recruited for a job at UofI-Champaign/Urbana but pulled his name out just a few weeks ago. If you're ever visiting in Arizona let me know and we can go on a piano jaunt!

I'd have to say my hobbies now are: gardening, birdwatching, native desert plants and goofing around with the kids. If we had more land, my hobbies would absolutely include horses and dogs. As a kid (still in Arizona, a MUCH different place then!) I had my own horse and spent hours riding every day, 4H clubs, etc. My favorite was endurance trail riding. My dad was and is an amateur obedience dog trainer, so we also had several impeccably behaved dogs hanging around. A great childhood!

I'm jealous of Jodi and Pique...

Nina

my dog's an english mastiff. i don't know how to insert one of my own pictures so i'll try inserting a web picture of a mastiff:



this is a very famous mastiff named hollesley medicine man. i hope it comes out.

ha ha! it worked. fyi: mastiffs are the grotrians of the dog world

[ March 10, 2002: Message edited by: pique ]

I was born and raised in Champaign/Urbana. Cornfields. Soybeans. Papa Del's Pizza. Jodi

Hobbies, eh? I don't spend nearly as much time on them as I used to but here goes:

• Gardening, like lots of you folks (is there a connection with the piano?)
• Computers. Well, actually, that's my job, too, but I play around with 'em at home too.
• Languages. Yes, I'm a certifiable foreign language junkie. So far I'm passable in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese and can fake my way through some Italian.
• Cooking. But few of my original creations will ever leave my kitchen. (For which fact gastronomes worldwide breathe a heavy sigh of relief!)

I also used to go hiking and camping when I was younger, but haven't been in so long, I can't remember if I enjoy it.

[ March 10, 2002: Message edited by: Matt G. ]

Pique:

Wow, mastiffs! I love large dogs, would love to live in a climate where we could own a Bernese Mountain Dog or two, get 'em to plow the lower 40...

My dad swears by Golden Retrievers and Labradors and I must admit, his dogs have always been delightful, if a little on the petite side.

Nina

Right now the hobby that is at the forefront is gardening. Roses, vegetables, citrus, and lately a meditation garden on the side of the house. Spring is here and there is lots to do. I just finished building some shade structures and the planting around them is almost complete. Tomatos are in and I got my first rose yesterday!

In the winter I like the desert. Time was when I would spend my whole time there riding dirtbikes as fast as I could. I still ride, but these days I am just as happy to sit around and chat. There is something about the desert that lifts my spirit. I used to roadrace streetbikes, but decided that is no sport for an old married guy like me.

I also cook - mostly bake - but not as much as I used to. Two kids fill up the rest of my time - watch for my son in the major league baseball draft this year. He is generating some interest from the pro scouts.

Reading is big with me, as are architecture and design. This house is done (finally!), although SWMBO might not agree with that statement. Before we had kids we used to buy houses for renovation and resale and may go back to that in a couple of years when they are both out of the house.

As usual, the only real limitation is time.....

Damn! Roses and tomatoes. It's still cold as hell here. I don't wanna hear anymore! :rolleyes:

Fact is, the ONLY heat outside at my house is in the manure pile. I scooped up several buckets with the tractor...for a guy's garden. It was sure steaming. :rolleyes:

it really seems that gardening and piano have a connection! Maybe both helps you to relax and give your brain a break.
I hardly can wait until the weather becomes warmer and I can start planting flowers for the summer. Last summer I built a small garden pond and I am looking forward to put in the first water lily.
Besides gardening and playing the piano I like travelling. Luckily my job sometimes gives me the opportunity to make short trips to different European countries.
In April I will be going to Vietnam for a holiday - anybody here who has already visited the country??
Gruss an Brendan und T2 - Nici und ich würden gerne einmal ein "Klavier-Treffen" in Deutschland machen - vielleicht gibt es noch mehr Leute im Forum, die Deutsch sprechen oder manchmal in Deutschland sind...

Ruth

Grusse an Ihnen auch!

Natuerlich wuerde es aber schoen sein, wenn wir alle treffen konnte. Im sommer fahre ich nach Italien (ungefaerlich fuenf Wochen von Juni bis Juli). Vielleicht ist es moeglich nach Deutschland zu fahren, sobald dass das Operfest fertig ist. In Avril oder Mai weiss ich mehr ueber die Reise.

Dann koennen Sie alle hoeren was fuer ein schlechtes Klavierspieler bin ich!

maybe you guys need to go start a german-speaking thread in the coffee room? :rolleyes:

Given the discussions we've had on English grammar and their resulting fallout, I'd suggest that adding another language would only aggravate the situation. There's always Esperanto or does that term belong in Larry's little test thread.

Brenden surely while spending 5 weeks in Italy this summer, you'll be able to find time to meet Nici...and I doubt that any of us would consider you a bad pianist.

Come on, now, pique...I didn't say anything about your dog posts, even though they don't interest me.

I did, however, laugh out loud at one of your posts because I wasn't aware of the context.

sorry to all non-german speakers - I'll stick to English now - helps me to - hopefully - improve my language skills.
Brendan, if you'll make it to Germany you're invited. I live in the Rhein area as well as Nici. Not far from her city, at least for US standards ;).
Which opera festival are you going to visit and where exactly?

Regards
Ruth

It's going to be at Lucca, near Florence (I believe). I had planned on going to Japan afterwards, but lately I've been thinking that I'd like to trek through Europe for another week or two.

I've often thought that Mastiffs looked pretty Groti. Of all my dogs, my favorite was a gelded Dachshundorfer but when he died, I had to settle for a Baldwin.

WELL!
Every good horseman (and hopefully equine vets) :rolleyes: knows that Quarter Horses are the Steinways AND Bechsteins of the horse world!

Sorry, Eldon.

Quarter Horse = Yamaha (it's a cowpony, for pete's sake)
Thoroughbred = Charles Walter (elegant, refined)
Warmblood = Steinway (WAY overpriced)

Jodi (and, you do know that I am teasing you, right?)

[ March 11, 2002: Message edited by: jodi ]

ROFLOL!!

Matt G. wrote:


"TUNING in to nature" ... "In HARMONY with nature" ... "The RHYTHM of life's cycles" ... hm ...

Plus, they both take patience and perseverance.

[ March 11, 2002: Message edited by: Bernard ]

I think that the tie in may be that gardening, like piano, is a solitary pursuit. I don't suppose it has] to be a solitary pursuit, but around my place everyone disappears when the shovels come out.

I can design as I please, modify things each year and do it all in blessed silence - outdoors to boot.

Glorious!

hm. interesting thoughts.

playing the piano and gardening are both very contemplative pursuits. for me, they are both avenues into a dream-like state, they are both creative.

i prefer having company when i garden, though. i recruit my husband, or friends, to at least be in the yard with me. and if they aren't available, i like the feeling of the dog and the cat hanging out with me and following me around the flower beds.

i think both pursuits involve an appreciation of beauty as well.

Ok, no more German...

Brendan,
don't worry about being a bad pianist - I'm still a beginner and am pretty sure that this won't change in the near future.
Good or bad pianist aside: if you make it to Germany this summer that'll be great.

All,
does any of the other horse addicts around here actually own a horse (or maybe more)?
Just curious.

Ruth,

Vietnam is my homeland. I live in the US now. I left Vietnam in 1982 but came back to visit in 1995. I still have family and friends back there and hope to go back for a visit soon. How long are you going to be there? You can check out http://www.vietscape.com and http://www.vietnamtourism.com for Vietnam Landscapes.

Have fun,

To answer Nici's question - my daughters both ride (my oldest, 10, is a fanatic and wants to start jumping). We don't own a horse, but I'm sure getting a lot of pressure.

Nici - I retired my thoroughbred mare a couple of years ago, she was a hunter (jumping) and I did that for years, but for the past 6 years, I have really gotten into dressage. (not only does Germany make nice pianos, but they also have some of the best dressage riders/horses in the world :)) I am currently lucky enough to be able to work with some nice Swedish Warmbloods that belong to a friend of mine. Jodi

[ March 12, 2002: Message edited by: jodi ]

jodi,
will you be able to continue your horse passion after you move to washington?

to KimNgang,

I will meet a friend, living in Japan in Bangkok, then we both go on to Hanoi where we will visit a friend who works there. We will continue south by bus/train/maybe take a flight from Hanoi to Hue. We have no fixed schedule. I think you have to decide what is possible and where exactly to go when you're in the country. We only have 17 days, which is a bit short, but we really want to visit Vietnam and look forward to seeing some of the beautiful landscapes and get to know more about the country and its people. We will fly back home from Ho-Chi-Minh-City on 6th of May.
I guess a lot has changed there since you left Vietnam. It seems that the country is developing really fast.
Regards
Ruth

Ian,

oh yeah I can imagine that you get a lot of pressure from your daughter. I was the same at her age
I was pressing my father hard to buy that lovely Arab mare their neighbours owned and were willing to sell. But, to no avail. My father knew better than me that owning a horse is quite a commitment financially and timewise.
That's why I postponed buying a horse for a long time, precisely until I'm retired...

I agree on the connection between piano and gardening. I think its another chance to interpret, to make something of our very own. we are given a beethoven sonata, and we interpret it as we please, watching it grow and form under our fingers. We are given sunflower seeds, and we plant them where we wish in our gardens, and watch them grow under our care and watering. We pick out the weeds that grow around the sunflower, we fix the mistakes in our piano sonata. Can you see the parallels?

Since I mentioned my birds above, I thought I'd let everyone know that one of my parakeets hatched a baby over the weekend. It's happened many times before and it's still as exciting as ever.

The first day or so, there's just a barely audible little peep from the nest box but already, just 3-4 days old the peeps are getting stronger. It's a minor miracle that the tiny little things survive, the are soooo small when they're born.

Bernard:

Congratulations! Hubby is a huge bird lover, and we've raised Goffin's ****atoos and a variety of waxbill finches. Never tried parakeets, although my daughter has a hand-raised one that is delightful to have around.

Is there nothing uglier than a newly hatched parakeet, unless it's a parrot? AND I mean that in an endearing way. It's so exciting when they're born.

Do you have a single breeding pair? What is their setup?

Nina

[Doggone autocensor! Perhaps I should have said we've raised Goffin's smallish white hookbill parrots native to the southern Pacific???]

[ March 16, 2002: Message edited by: Nina ]

My favorite horse breeds are Arabians (having grown up in Scottsdale, it's practically required) and Morgans. I'm trying to figure out where they belong in this hierarchy...

Morgan = Schimmel (a real workhorse, well-built)

Arabian = Seiler (beautiful, gorgeous and exotic)

Nina

Nina,
Ha! Ha! I just couldn't ever bring myself to say Schimmel and Morgan in the same breath! :rolleyes:

Eldon:

Why not?

Cluelessly
Nina

Nina,
I'm just kidding. I just like Schimmels LOTS better than Morgans! But paints and quarters are my favs. I'd take anything over any Warmblood.

Hi, Eldon:

No problem, I just thought it was a joke I wasn't getting (wouldn't be the first time).

My all-time favorite horse was a wonderful black Morgan mare; I would have ridden her anywhere and I believe she would have safely taken me down the side of a cliff if need be. But I've seen others that were pretty dense.

Arabians are lovely to look at but, IMHO, have been overbred for a particular show look for way too long now. They've always been a small breed but now I know the breeders are becoming nervous that they have gotten too small. Imagine putting down mega-thousands for a stud fee, only to have your next potential champion max out at 13.5 hands, too small for the ring! (but beautiful, nonetheless...)

Probably the best would be a half-Arab half-Morgan for me!

Nina

Nina, Thanks for the note. I'm sad to say that disaster struck last Wednesday. I went into the kitchen around 11 pm and lo! the mother keet was on the floor dead! I couldn't believe it, this has never happened to me before. So I panicked because I didn't know how to take care of the 4 day old. Well, I took it out of the nest box and kept it with me in bed all night to keep it warm (needless to say I didn't get any sleep for fear of crushing the helpless little thing). I made some oatmeal and fed it some of the pasty-like fluid that forms around the oat kernels. I had no idea if that was a good idea or bad idea but I couldn't reach anyone at that time of night so I took a chance. It survived the night and Thrusday morning a receptionist at my vet's said she would love to hand feed it and raise it. So I bought some substitute mother's milk for birds on the way and she is now taking care of it. Whew. I've had birds die on me before but none has ever left me with a baby the size of a half-dollar. You're right about appearance, but after spending the night with the scrawny little thing it really grew on me, big time.

As of last week I had one breeding pair--of course now I don't have any. I've had about 3 different breeding pairs at different times over the years. I have some nest boxes hanging on the wall near the ceiling (high ceilings: 10').

About 4 years ago, I had a love bird pair that bred and produced a lovely little bird that I still have. The father past on last year (which made me very sad--he was the most adorable little bird) but the mother (Venus) is still alive and has a new lover (Niro).

Hi, Bernard:

Why, that little hussy of a love bird!

Sorry to hear about your parakeet, it's amazing how quickly they can fall ill and die. I've never had to hand-raise such a tiny bird myself, when we've done it we usually leave it to the parents until they're much older. Someone will get a wonderful pet out of the arrangement, though!

I assume your birds are inside? We've never had success until we built a large outdoor aviary, but our climate (particularly in the winter) is a lot more favorable than yours. I think our birds, particularly the finches, really needed a lot more quiet and privacy than we were able to provide indoors.

Good luck on matchmaking for a replacement 'keet.

Nina