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Ripping up the road
Administrator
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
- Joined
- 4/15/10
- Messages
- 51,022
- Real Name
- Matthew
Our "Mayor of the Avenue" award is presented to a member who exhibits the qualities that distinguish them to be an upstanding credit to the Avenue, a loving, informed, conscientious and caring bird parront and an all around good neighbor.
I am happy to announce that Respect is June's Mayor of the Month.
I enjoyed reading your interview, and am sure that everyone else will as well!
1. What kind of birds do you have (age, species and names)?
I have a one-year-old green cheek conure named Buddy! No plans for any other flock members in the near future.
2. What got you interested in birds?
While procrastinating my coursework and scrolling through YouTube Shorts, I came across a video of Apollo the african grey. I was amazed by his abilities! But because I watched the whole video, the algorithm started giving me more and more parrot-related videos. I began to get interested in them and wanted to know more, as I had no idea how people even went about caring for parrots. From there, I got obsessed with learning to identify different species, and learning about general care for solo birds.
3. What have your birds brought to your life?
Buddy brings a lot of joy into my life; but also a lot of fear. What if I mess things up? What if something happens to him and it’s my fault? What If I can’t care for him anymore? It’s scary to think about.
I also struggle a lot to manage my time with him; but in a way, he’s inspiring me to improve on my habits and optimize how I go about my day. In general, parrots in particular always amaze me, and I always love when I get to meet new ones and hear their story.
4. What have you learned from sharing your life with your birds?
Surprisingly, I learned how to better manage my allergies. I’ve had bad allergies year-round due to developing a moderate cat allergy a few years ago. However, after preparing for Buddy, I noticed my allergies got a lot better. I’m thinking it’s a combination of the air purifiers, the daily vacuuming, and the fact that I cleaned the carpet and curtains for the first time in who knows how long…
I also wonder if eliminating air fresheners helped me as well, as I’ve learned that some people can be sensitive to scented products.
5. What's one birdie memory that will stay with you forever?
I’ll always remember the first time I met and held a parrot up close. His name is Skittles, and he’s a patagonian conure. He lives at the same pet store I got Buddy from, and he used to be allowed to roam free. When I first met him, he waddled over to me and looked straight up at me; I crouched down and put my hand on the floor. He stepped right up, and after a couple of minutes he was letting me scratch the back of his head! It was fun… until he started screaming to be put back down! He really scared me for a minute. He also really likes my mom, and he used to climb up on her shoulder and give her kisses on her cheek. I visited him often, but nowadays it seems like he’s always locked up in his cage in the back office. I wonder if something happened?
6. Where is your birds main living area?
Buddy’s cage is in the center room of our house. He sees a decent amount of back-and-forth during the day, and in the evening he has plenty of company while we watch TV and eat dinner. There’s lots of room for him to fly around, and a couple of other play areas for him to check out when he’s out of his cage.
7. Did you change things in your home to accommodate your birds and if so what kinds of things did you change?
Yes! The first order of business was to axe all of the air fresheners and essential oils. Right before getting Buddy, I also got two air purifiers, a set of ceramic cookware, and I busted my butt deep cleaning Buddy’s half of the house. I also had to find new spots for some of Bucky’s toys. Later on I bought a humidifier, and this spring we got all new air conditioners (the old ones got moldy). Most recently, I’ve had to tape up a bunch of our picture frames to stop him from chewing on them
8. Are you involved in any kind of bird related group or activities?
I try to go to most of the fundraising events for my nearest parrot rescue. Some of the volunteers and staff even recognize me now! Last time I went on a tour, I got to show some of them pictures of Buddy. I would totally volunteer if I could drive or if I lived closer.
9. What is the one luxury item you would love to have for your bird(s)?
A room-sized aviary full of toys!
…Or, more realistically, a stainless steel cage. Buddy’s current cage is a little small, and there are a few spots of rust towards the bottom. I’m hoping to buy him a new one soon, but I’m sure that one will chip and rust in a few years as well. I’m hoping the next one will hold him over until I can save up enough to get him a stainless steel cage!
10. Is there any bird that you dream of owning and if so why?
I have a big soft spot for the large white cockatoos. I would’ve loved to adopt one if I had the time, money, and space. I think they can be hilarious and sweet, but also highly intelligent and challenging to manage.
11. Describe a typical day with you at home with your birds.
Wake up. Let Buddy out and feed him his morning chop. Take care of Bucky. Take care of myself. Wash the previous day’s dishes. Hang out with Buddy for a bit. Put Buddy back in his cage and give him his pellets. Take a nap. Wake up. Let Buddy back out. Do the rest of the cleaning I have to do for the day, whilst taking breaks to play with him. By the end of it all, it’s usually time for bed.
I’m currently trying to work on my time management and sleep issues so that I can have more time to get back into my hobbies. Once in a while when I do have free time, I take Buddy into my room in his travel cage. He plays or relaxes while I play video games
12. What have you learned about owning birds that you would like to share?
I thought I’d have plenty of time to keep up with my hobbies while still caring for a bird and a sick cat… I was so wrong! If you want to bring a bird into your life and still have time to do your own thing, you have to have a lot of energy and time management skills.
13. If you knew then what you know now about birds, what would you do differently?
Despite my struggles with time management, I don’t think I’d do anything differently. If I didn’t have Buddy, I might be less stressed, but I’d also be unsatisfied.
14. What other hobbies do you have?
Most of my hobbies revolve around the Touhou Project series of video games. When I’m not playing the games themselves; I’m playing fan-made video games, reading the official comics and books, listening to the games’ soundtracks and fan-made arrangements, or editing the fan-made wiki.
I also do art as a hobby. I mainly do digital illustration, but I’ve also dabbled in painting with acrylics, and I enjoy coloring books and cross-stitch kits. I actually used to take commissions for illustrations, but I found it difficult to stay motivated that way. Now I just make art whenever I feel like it, and I think I’m a little bit better because of it.
I also enjoy tinkering with electronics when I can get my hands on them. Two of my projects for this summer are setting up a home media server on my Raspberri Pi, and re-painting and re-assembling an old BlackBerry smartphone I got at a flea market.
15. Anything else you would like to share?
Cats are just as awesome and complex as parrots, in my opinion. There’s a lot to love about them too, and I wish more people took their care seriously!
I am happy to announce that Respect is June's Mayor of the Month.
I enjoyed reading your interview, and am sure that everyone else will as well!
1. What kind of birds do you have (age, species and names)?
I have a one-year-old green cheek conure named Buddy! No plans for any other flock members in the near future.
2. What got you interested in birds?
While procrastinating my coursework and scrolling through YouTube Shorts, I came across a video of Apollo the african grey. I was amazed by his abilities! But because I watched the whole video, the algorithm started giving me more and more parrot-related videos. I began to get interested in them and wanted to know more, as I had no idea how people even went about caring for parrots. From there, I got obsessed with learning to identify different species, and learning about general care for solo birds.
3. What have your birds brought to your life?
Buddy brings a lot of joy into my life; but also a lot of fear. What if I mess things up? What if something happens to him and it’s my fault? What If I can’t care for him anymore? It’s scary to think about.
I also struggle a lot to manage my time with him; but in a way, he’s inspiring me to improve on my habits and optimize how I go about my day. In general, parrots in particular always amaze me, and I always love when I get to meet new ones and hear their story.
4. What have you learned from sharing your life with your birds?
Surprisingly, I learned how to better manage my allergies. I’ve had bad allergies year-round due to developing a moderate cat allergy a few years ago. However, after preparing for Buddy, I noticed my allergies got a lot better. I’m thinking it’s a combination of the air purifiers, the daily vacuuming, and the fact that I cleaned the carpet and curtains for the first time in who knows how long…
I also wonder if eliminating air fresheners helped me as well, as I’ve learned that some people can be sensitive to scented products.
5. What's one birdie memory that will stay with you forever?
I’ll always remember the first time I met and held a parrot up close. His name is Skittles, and he’s a patagonian conure. He lives at the same pet store I got Buddy from, and he used to be allowed to roam free. When I first met him, he waddled over to me and looked straight up at me; I crouched down and put my hand on the floor. He stepped right up, and after a couple of minutes he was letting me scratch the back of his head! It was fun… until he started screaming to be put back down! He really scared me for a minute. He also really likes my mom, and he used to climb up on her shoulder and give her kisses on her cheek. I visited him often, but nowadays it seems like he’s always locked up in his cage in the back office. I wonder if something happened?
6. Where is your birds main living area?
Buddy’s cage is in the center room of our house. He sees a decent amount of back-and-forth during the day, and in the evening he has plenty of company while we watch TV and eat dinner. There’s lots of room for him to fly around, and a couple of other play areas for him to check out when he’s out of his cage.
7. Did you change things in your home to accommodate your birds and if so what kinds of things did you change?
Yes! The first order of business was to axe all of the air fresheners and essential oils. Right before getting Buddy, I also got two air purifiers, a set of ceramic cookware, and I busted my butt deep cleaning Buddy’s half of the house. I also had to find new spots for some of Bucky’s toys. Later on I bought a humidifier, and this spring we got all new air conditioners (the old ones got moldy). Most recently, I’ve had to tape up a bunch of our picture frames to stop him from chewing on them
8. Are you involved in any kind of bird related group or activities?
I try to go to most of the fundraising events for my nearest parrot rescue. Some of the volunteers and staff even recognize me now! Last time I went on a tour, I got to show some of them pictures of Buddy. I would totally volunteer if I could drive or if I lived closer.
9. What is the one luxury item you would love to have for your bird(s)?
A room-sized aviary full of toys!
…Or, more realistically, a stainless steel cage. Buddy’s current cage is a little small, and there are a few spots of rust towards the bottom. I’m hoping to buy him a new one soon, but I’m sure that one will chip and rust in a few years as well. I’m hoping the next one will hold him over until I can save up enough to get him a stainless steel cage!
10. Is there any bird that you dream of owning and if so why?
I have a big soft spot for the large white cockatoos. I would’ve loved to adopt one if I had the time, money, and space. I think they can be hilarious and sweet, but also highly intelligent and challenging to manage.
11. Describe a typical day with you at home with your birds.
Wake up. Let Buddy out and feed him his morning chop. Take care of Bucky. Take care of myself. Wash the previous day’s dishes. Hang out with Buddy for a bit. Put Buddy back in his cage and give him his pellets. Take a nap. Wake up. Let Buddy back out. Do the rest of the cleaning I have to do for the day, whilst taking breaks to play with him. By the end of it all, it’s usually time for bed.
I’m currently trying to work on my time management and sleep issues so that I can have more time to get back into my hobbies. Once in a while when I do have free time, I take Buddy into my room in his travel cage. He plays or relaxes while I play video games
12. What have you learned about owning birds that you would like to share?
I thought I’d have plenty of time to keep up with my hobbies while still caring for a bird and a sick cat… I was so wrong! If you want to bring a bird into your life and still have time to do your own thing, you have to have a lot of energy and time management skills.
13. If you knew then what you know now about birds, what would you do differently?
Despite my struggles with time management, I don’t think I’d do anything differently. If I didn’t have Buddy, I might be less stressed, but I’d also be unsatisfied.
14. What other hobbies do you have?
Most of my hobbies revolve around the Touhou Project series of video games. When I’m not playing the games themselves; I’m playing fan-made video games, reading the official comics and books, listening to the games’ soundtracks and fan-made arrangements, or editing the fan-made wiki.
I also do art as a hobby. I mainly do digital illustration, but I’ve also dabbled in painting with acrylics, and I enjoy coloring books and cross-stitch kits. I actually used to take commissions for illustrations, but I found it difficult to stay motivated that way. Now I just make art whenever I feel like it, and I think I’m a little bit better because of it.
I also enjoy tinkering with electronics when I can get my hands on them. Two of my projects for this summer are setting up a home media server on my Raspberri Pi, and re-painting and re-assembling an old BlackBerry smartphone I got at a flea market.
15. Anything else you would like to share?
Cats are just as awesome and complex as parrots, in my opinion. There’s a lot to love about them too, and I wish more people took their care seriously!
Congratulations!
