A new addition (minus a cottontail).

{Agatha in her home yet to be furnished with leaves, twigs and seeds.}

One hot afternoon, in a pet shop near to the South Melbourne Market, I met, and, so it followed, fell for (Sparkling) Agatha Cyanide.

Agatha is a classic budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus, a parrot to you) with green and yellow plumage and two beautiful splodges on her feathered cheeks. Older than the juveniles in the cage, she scuttled left and right on the main perch, shielding the others from view. As the younger, leaner budgies, some green, some white and blue, busied themselves with climbing the aviary walls, using their beaks to grip hold of the wire, Agatha, as she would come to be named by us, raised her bird shoulders and aired her armpits. She tilted her head left to right and was the most personable, intelligent bird I’ve ever met. We picked her, or rather, she, as all animal lovers will attest, picked us.

So Agatha Cyanide it is, a new addition to the house.

Agatha is an early Easter present from my parents. Not a foil-wrapped chocolate bunny, but an ever so handsome, puff-chested, real live budgie. She reminds me of Bertie Wooster’s Aunt Agatha Gregson (“Would you kindly stop parroting my every word, Bertie?”… I’ll have her saying this in no time).

The budgerigar is, thanks to its ancestry, obsessed with the eucalypt. I plan to find her some tomorrow, on Good Friday. I plan to wet them and place them in her green cage.

{1, 2, 3... Omar is about to transform into a rabbit.}

To those of you celebrating Easter be it religiously or with a chocolate bilby in hand, and to those who don’t, I wish you well. I’ll be back in this space sometime next week.

++ The photography of Joakim Eskildsen... Nordic Signs and The Roma Journeys - Hungary, India, Greece, Romania, France, Russia, Finland. Link found via the ever-inspiring Anne (Strandgut)... thank you.

Comments

[fliss]

G... have a wonderful easter weekend whatever you get up too!!
Love you new friend Agatha Cyanide :) I tagged you with a photo...check out my last post and feel free to do it or not, i don't mind. xx

[julie]

Agatha is a beauty! Im sure you will enjoy living with your new feathered house-mate.
Wishing you a happy Easter dear Gracia xxx

[lotte]

I just LOVE Agatha Cyanide...
Reminds me of my "Birdy"..."Sky" and "Sylvester"...Have had 3 budgerigar in my time...("Sky" was in blue colours though)...
Did not have him for long...:(
"Birdy" I named after the movie "Birdy"... She ones layed 3 eggs...could not fly...but said; BirdyBirdyBirdy...all the time
Sylvester always "picked" and talked to my earrings and nose...
Such cute and funny birds...
Wups, sorry! got carried away...:D

Have to say, you make SO cool things :D Like it a lot...

[Kris]

I love Agatha,I have the same budgie and she's completely crazy!

[shari]

oh hi agatha! what a lovely bird. :) what do omar and olive think? also, please tell omar that i find him very handsome; the bunny ears suit him. happy easter gracia. xox

[anne]

have a lovely easter gracia! i'm glad you like joachim eskildsen. the roma journeys deserve really a lot of praise, that book is a stunner.
thanks for the mention!

[comfies]

welcome agatha!

and grache, i'm coming to sydney in april! i'm not sure where you and louise live in australia (sydney or melbourne? i can't seem to remember) but i'd love to hear about your favorite shops/markets/boutiques/art galleries....

[esti]

What a sweet bird! I love her color. I also wish you well, this easter and on and on. :)

[wendy]

oh agatha is awesome!

[maria]

Agatha is cute! Great to have your own little bird:) Happy Easter to you!

[sabine Brandt]

· { happy easter xxoo } ·

[Marieke]

Hope you had a great Easter, with Agatha too! xoxo

[mrs. french]

Oh I am so jealous...I want a sweet little bird so badly. Unfortunately, my husband is bird phobic.

[Andrea Tachezy]

Agatha is lovely. We had this small friend too, when I was a child. His name was Pepi and he talked a lot.

[Veronica TM]

agatha is beautiful! congratulations!
i hope you had a wonderful easter, gracia.

[amisha]

agatha is lovely! congratulations on this new addition to the family :) and love that photo of omar. heehee. xox

[cruststation]

Hope you had a wonderful Easter, nice to meet Agatha (what a pretty name).

[andrea (scout)]

i must say that agatha cyanide strikes the most regal pose of any budgie i have ever laid eyes on.:)

(and thank you for sharing the captivating 'nordic signs'!)

[austen]

Eee, how great! She's beautiful! Hope you had a lovely Easter.

[cdm]

Oh my goodness I adore budgies, I had tham as a child, in fact one looked just like your Agatha - Jimmy who was Charlie's husband and father to Jackie...