Sometimes I forget that I'm on a island. Then, I'll hear the familiar squawking of the seagulls or see one of them swoop down to steal food. My Sifu said that he watched one take an entire chicken breast from a person's plate at a restaurant on the beach! Seagulls are really big here. I threw some old bread into the garden, and they quickly chased away the smaller birds who saw it first. I see now why my neighbor chases them away from her yard. Poor little birds don't have a chance. They were trying to quickly grab pieces and hide in the shrubs to eat. Anyway, to give you some perspective on the size of the beasts, that's a deflated soccer ball in the yard. Oh and picture this: As I looked out to see what the seagulls were doing, I noticed one of them was standing with his beak wide open. He was stretching his neck out as far as he could and then withdrawing it pumping back and forth with his head. After a moment, I realized that he was choking on a piece of bread. Stupid seagull tried to swallow a very large piece instead of picking it apart like the smaller birds. Don't worry, he didn't drop dead in my garden; he managed to finish what he started... the eating bit, not the choking.
Just for fun:
Towns such as Peterculter are pronounced "Peter-cooter," but the area of Cults is pronounced as it is spelled.
Nicely written :-)
ReplyDeleteI am a foreigner as well and was surprised to hear how Peterculter is pronounced.