This was one of many U.S. flags at our favorite beach. Many of the homes fly them daily.

Remembering 9/11:

I was getting my kids ready for school. Our son was in third grade and our daughter in kindergarten. They were in their Catholic school uniforms of khaki shorts and a white polo for our son and a forest green plaid skirt and polo for our daughter. I was glancing at the TV in our bedroom, waiting for them to brush their teeth when I saw the first plane crash into a tower. I had no idea what was going on. I thought it was an accident.

Then the second tower was hit. I didn’t know if I should keep my kids home from school that day. I was scared to drop them off. But in the end I decided to try to keep the day “normal” as possible for them and not interrupt their routines.

My husband worked for Merrill Lynch in Palm Springs at the time. We had a close friend, who was his former boss, who worked in an office next door to the Twin Towers when it was bombed in 1993. My husband knew many people that he talked with daily who worked on Wall Street and in the Twin Towers. September 11 was a scary day while he tried to account for people he knew.

We soon learned a parish member from our church was aboard the plane from Boston.

I see a divide in my life before and after 9/11. Our world would never be the same. My heart goes out to everyone who lost family members on that tragic day or from the results of health issues caused by the terrorist attack.

Red Update:

Before we left for our beach vacation, I noticed a few changes in Red’s appearance. I wrote about the black spot on his head HERE.

We got back from vacation and Red was in the back yard singing to me. I was thrilled of course, but you can imagine my surprise when I saw Red looking like this:

It’s called molting. Red is losing his feathers and growing new ones. He needs a high protein diet so I’m feeding him his favorite peanuts and sunflower mix.

Another strange thing I noticed was Red hanging out with a juvenile bird. I used my zoom lens and saw that it was NOT one of his fledglings. It was a Bronzed Cowbird! Why was he feeding a species of bird that was not his?

I read that Cowbirds are “parasitic breeders” and they don’t build their own nests, but lay eggs in other birds’ nests including Cardinals. A brood parasite is an animal or bird that tricks a host parent into incubating and raising its young. The Cowbird lays it’s eggs in a Cardinal’s nest because they are similar in size and color.

Red’s juvenile Cowbird. Not only is Red a delight to listen to and see, he’s a generous adoptive dad. I remember an odd looking baby cardinal. At first Red and Mrs. had two babies, then a third one appeared that didn’t match the others.

What are your memories of September 11, 2001?