Blue Tear Drops

Tribute to my budgie named "Fat" who died :,( not long ago, and has left a terrible void.

Obituary for "Fat" (March 2001-23 April 2007)

What follows is an account of the life of Fat, his achievements, his character and the ones he loved.

This little fellow was born in 2001...probably around March but no one can remember...and arrived along with a fellow litter buddy (possibly his sister) late one night at our house. Chirping softly and sleepily they huddled together on their perch. Tiny light-blue balls of fluff with beady eyes and dark tails. Taking in their new surroundings in true budgie style, they soon became accustomed to our home.

The next morning I woke early to a strange sound...twittering! Bounding down the stairs, I had to check if it had all been a dream...did we really have pets? Yes...and there they were, as cute as they had been the night before!

They were oddly (but lovingly) named. Our budgies were sooo cute and fluffy...and in winter they'd puff themselves up to stay warm...so we named him "Fat" and called his lady friend "Fatter"...cos she was just a little bit bigger.

Before long Fat and Fatter took to expanding their budgie vocal chords, with a repertoire that only dad really understands. Soon he could tell if they were hungry, or wanting attention, or mad at the birds outside, or having a lover's tiff with each other, or whether they were content and sleepy.

As little chicks we soon learned that Fat and Fatter objected to being handled, Fatter being the more violent in her protests. So for most of their life we kept our hands out of the way of those cute beaks...except for when they were sleepy enough to let us have a little cuddle before bedtime.

They usually got along quite amicably...err except when Fatter wanted anything (I don't think budgies understand the concept of compromise). If she wanted to sit over there, and then changed her mind...Fat would soon find out with a sharp peck to his neck, or a tug to his tail. If she wanted a feed...if she wanted to play with their bell...if she wanted to get the best corner (to give herself a head massage)...well, let's just say she owned "girl power".

Like all teenagers Fat and Fatter soon developed crushes...on each other! One day over the seed bowl they looked deeply into each other's eyes and fell madly in love. They kissed and chortled to one another, and swore that they would be ever-true and ever-faithful. Soon they were seeing stars in each other's eyes, and having all night trysts. Moonlit rendezvous on the same swing, cracking open seeds which they swapped mouth-to-mouth. Oh the joys of young love!

My dad got to thinking 'how sweet it would be to have little chicks'. So one day a cardboard box nest appeared in their cage...unimpressed by this fragile shelter they chewed it to pieces. Fatter was not prepared to allow her eggs to nestle in any old thing! BudgieCo undertook an extensive building inspection and structural investigation of the sturdier installations dad tried;most were shredded and spat out through the bars. Finally a new model, the Wood100 met their stringent standards;or at least survived the attack of the beaks. And with that the happy couple moved in. Soon the heavily pregnant and buldging Fatter began her confinement;she banished Fat from her lofty nest high atop the cage and refused to budge. The anxious father-to-be, Fat, attended his bride; bringing her seeds which he would regurgitate. His attempted forays into the nest were only tolerated up to the entrance before Fatter gave Fat a sharp peck to send him on his way. Alas, none of the eggs ever hatched, and Project BirdieMultiply was abandoned.

Trouble was brewing in paradise, and soon, like many middle aged couples, Fat and Fatter took to sleeping on separate perches, and having increasingly ferocious arguments.

Things calmed down as they mellowed out with age, and Fat found himself shaking his head in disbelief at memories of his younger days; marvelling at the passionate impetuous energy of the youth. From his cage he was often found imparting his knowledge to the young wild (pun intended) birds who congregated outside the nearest window; instructing them on the ways of love, the Ten Commandments of BirdieLife, and the virtues of seed versus worms.

Then one day, a wise old budgie met his Maker;his soul soured free and high above this world.

An admirable budgie was he. Loved by all and sadly missed.