Monday, May 18, 2009

Kipling in My Life


In Just-So Stories, I first read about bulbuls,  annoying little birds that loved to mind other people's business. Birds are not my favorite thing so I didn't give these much thought, except for their somewhat comic name.

A half-century later, in my Bangkok yard, I became enchanted with a couple of noisy, brazen little birds, who have sharp crested heads and tails like fans and a wide range of chirps and battlecries--especially when cats venture into the yard.

These little dudes have no fear and will divebomb a feline as though they were falcons. I have become quite fond of them, except when they begin their pre-dawn warbling inches away from my bedroom window, and have wondered occasionally what they are called.

Wandering around the internet is a serendiptous pursuit, and when I was looking for online reviews of Tone Deaf, I ran into a familiar face--yes, the birds in my yard are bulbuls and somehow I am not surprised. They are much as I always imagined--only lots smaller. (They are not the same color as the one in the photo, but the shape and size are right.)

3 comments:

Katia said...

Hello Janet,

I'm not much into birds myself either, but my husband is. I'll ask him if he knows these bulbuls.

And I FINALLY posted my comments about Tone Deaf in Thailand on my blog !

http://katianovetsaintlot.blogspot.com/2009/05/my-global-bookshelf-tone-deaf-in.html

Take care,
Katia

Anonymous said...

hi janet,

i received Tone Deaf in Bangkok in the mail yesterday afternoon...i've almost finished reading the whole thing and only just put it down to look you up. glad to have found you! thought you should know. it's now official, i got to get back to s.e.a. a.s.a.p.

thank you for the stories,
hana

Janet Brown said...

Thank you, Hana!
Where are you now?