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Oh my gosh--still!!



Howdy!

Tuesday night I went to bed thinking about the wagtail and woke up
wondering if she would still be here, and if not, was she safe. The
excitement over the wagtail continued Wednesday, especially after Will
received David Sibley's comments. After receiving emails and phone calls
that she had not been seen, I left the house at 11 for my lunch
appointment and was without computer contact for 3 hours. When I arrived
to volunteer at the Triangle Land Conservancy office at 2, I had a
message waiting for me from Jill. I talked with Lena and Jill, who both
told me about Sibley's comment. May I repeat myself? OH MY GOSH!!!!
Tears from the possibility and excitement of a first North American bird
record (??) came down my face. To tell you the truth, my body has been
feeling tingly ever since we saw this bird, and I can't seem to relax!!!
Which explains why I'm writing this at 3 am Thursday morning! I didn't
get home until 8:30 tonight and was anxious to read the emails. I tried
to go to sleep, but got up so I could write down some of the thoughts
and emotions.

I'm totally excited, (still crying!), and feel so overwhelmed with this
huge responsibility since Jill and I first saw this bird. We're getting
tips on how to write a description for the records committee, because,
of course, we need to make sure it's done right!!

Tuesday I wrote how Joe and I left at 5:10. I didn't want to leave, but
we had appointments for massages at 5:45 in Raleigh, and I didn't have
the phone number with me to cancel! UGH! Now I have a larger list of
phone numbers in my purse. I was too excited to really relax because I
kept thinking and talking about the wagtail. Sorry I missed the
excitement with the Red-tailed Hawk and Merlin. So glad she escaped
harms way!

May I share some more birding excitement I've had recently? At the Wake
Audubon program this month, I learned the book "Birding in North
Carolina State Parks" (which includes Sandling Beach at Falls Lake!) was
included in the American Birding Association (ABA) Catalog. I had talked
with them and mailed a copy of the book in March for consideration in
the fall catalog, and was still waiting to hear from them. Funny how I
found out from someone else first, and then Josh posted it on
Carolinabirds before I did! Well, last week I received a purchase order
form from ABA and called to verify the order and address. Joe and I
still had not received OUR catalog at that point. It finally came in the
mail on Monday!

Another exciting moment: Some of you might remember I posted David
Sibley's appearance last week at Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, then
forwarded an email from Joseph a few days later about his appearance at
the NC Art Museum the same day. I replied to Joseph, saying I sent his
message to Carolinabirds, and by the way, what is David Sibley doing
between his appearances, and Joe and I would be happy to host him for
dinner. Well, the night before he arrived in Raleigh, the museum people
talked to David's people and it was set up that Joseph, Joe, and I would
have dinner with David Sibley!!! Oh my gosh, again!!! Since you all are
birders, you can understand the excitement about spending time with a
person like David Sibley, a talented, awesome birder I greatly admire!!
He is so nice and easy to talk with, and of course we talked about
birds. And now, the fact that he has seen the pictures of the wagtail
and given us his opinion, is totally awesome to me. He said he wished we
had seen the bird a few days earlier!

Makes you wonder how many rare birds are never seen by birders, doesn't
it? There are SO MANY questions about the wonderful world of birds we
LOVE so much!

Oh!! I hope she SAFE, wherever she is!! Happy birding! Karen Bearden
Raleigh, NC
chickadeebirders@earthlink.net