Doug

I keep a closely trimmed van dyke 90% of the time (because I feel it is the best fit for the shape of my face), but I get bored...

Ellie likes it that I am just as gray as she is...

Lord Douglesworth and his faithful companion, Ellie Birdington I usually grow a beard for a month or so each winter. My favorite part is getting rid of it... I only keep the transitional styling for a day or two, simply to avoid TOO much marital strife. (My daughter, Keira, said that she would not acknowledge that she was related to me. She said she would claim that I was her mother's new boyfriend...) Lord Douglesworth and his faithful companion, Ellie Birdington by shyzaboy, on Flickr

Here's a shot of the underside. The "coffee table" portion is plywood with a wood rim. The "legs" of the top section go into the main legs. None of the PVC is glued. Ellie spends a LOT of time getting peanuts out of the "foraging toy". The table/rim catches MOST of the shells. The dogs get the rest. (I guess they need roughage...)

Cool! I'm glad Bella likes it! What did you use for the bottom? (The picture is too tiny!) How old is Bella? Ellie is only 7 months old and entirely too adventurous for her own good, so she doesn't stay on the perch for very long before she's flying somewhere. Anywhere.

Ah, the world is so complicated. All my little bird wants to do is sit on my shoulder and bite the shit out of my ear if I move suddenly...

I was a bit surprised when I saw that my wife had painted that room such a bright color, but it has grown on me... According to this site, willow is safe.

Magnolia is also a good branch for playing for the same reasons as sycamore. The only problem with magnolia is that it is very lightweight. You can see the magnolia's twists and turns in these pictures...

Ellie's tail is nearly the same dark gray as her wings. I'm very interested to see what happens after her first molt! Ellie really had no interest in the "play top" until I put the sticks up. So much more to do! Of course, she'll only hang out there for a short while before flying into the next room to be with people... I'm looking for a sycamore with low branches that I can raid (I have a saw in the back of my car - just in case...) Sycamore branches have such lovely changes-of-direction. All twisty and full of right angles. Perfect for parrots! I'd like to make a tall playstand using only branches.

She has red on her thighs and just above her tail: I have no idea whether she'll keep them after her first molt!

Ellie is still young enough that she takes to a new toy immediately. But her enthusiasm may or may not be sustained... And, Judy, I wish I could've made it to the Christmas meeting, but I had to look after my mother-in-law while Kel was out and about with the kids... Such is life.

I have to take twenty pictures to get ONE where Elegua isn't staring at the camera, wondering what I'm doing and if she should help me out by biting the lens or climbing on my shoulder... Bring that camera just a LITTLE closer, Doug...

We (and by "we" I mean my wife) get carried away on Christmas. Not only do we have an insane about of "good" presents, Kel also wraps up anything she can think to purchase. (In addition to my new Canon 15-85 mm lens, I also received wrapped measuring cups, underwear, cutting board, a scrub brush for glassware, socks, etc.) The presents barely fit into our living room. Even the pets get a gift or two. But Kel didn't buy anything for Ellie. Luckily, I did. She was a bit hesitant at first: But, of course, as much as she likes ripping paper, she got into it: Finally, I had to help her a bit and then I attached it to her playstand... She's not as fond of it as I had hoped, but still played with it...

I can see a posibility that the water level switch gets jammed (especially with hard water) and the element is on with no water. Can that get hot enough to cause issues? I don't know.

Nancy, Umm... what? I have nothing to teach. I bought a baby (15 weeks) that was handled a lot. She lets me handle her. She's not so comfortable with other people. (Even though I've been gone more than I've been home since I brought her home. Business trips have really stacked up recently...) My wife tries, but she's not a bird person. (She texted me tonight, while I am away, "Your bird is an ungrateful bitch!". I assume that there was biting involved...) This is a situation. Not something that can be trained! It is not luck. I paid extra for a baby that has been hand-raised. Other people (with wisdom!) are adopting birds with difficult histories. They are the ones with knowledge to share. They can teach. I can only count my (paid-for) blessings...

Judy, Supply me with some quality craft beer and I'll build it for you...

I still don't know what I should buy. I'm guessing that the risk is low for the teflon-coated heating elements (since it is unlikely that they will be scratched or abraided), but... BUT!!! I haven't found a product that meets all of the "requirements". Sigh. Who knew that a pet could be so complicated...

Yep. Ellie's efforts have resulted in a sadder-looking version... I've made a few others since then. Less wood pieces and more other stuff... Once I move my office, I'm gonna spend an afternoon redoing the "office" playstand. I'll post some pictures of that. I've been traveling so much the past month that I haven't had an opportunity to post any Ellie pix (though I've taken a few). Apparently, she's not grateful to my wife for taking care of her while I'm gone. "Your bird is an ungrateful bitch." Oops.

I sent this picture to my wife to prove that I am relatively sane in the stuff I do for my bird....

The suction cups were from Lowes. http://www.lowes.com/pd_168540-695-17689_0__?productId=3071827 I'm sure there are a lot of alternatives, but that seemed the strongest of the ones that Lowes was selling. And I wanted to make it RIGHT THEN NO WAITING!!

Don't you get a lot of bits of this and that between the edges of the stack and the "wall" of the tray?

I could easily build something like that. My wife might shoot me, though... But, maybe I have to screen in our smaller deck - for us humans...

Absolutely no correlation. My wife has only used scented candles once since we brought Ellie home and that was the day before yesterday. In the basement (and Ellie is on the main floor).

Is it really that obvious? While I have been in sales (drive/control systems for port cranes) for many years, I have a masters in electrical engineering. Data, confirmed sources, etc. There are some things (onions) where I can easily say, "Better safe than sorry". I may or may not be able to eliminate some of the other supposed dangers. As such, it is key to understand the severity, the timing, the mechanism AND the mitigation (if any) of the dangerous item/substance. Speaking of which, "Better safe than sorry" is the least useful answer on this forum (and other similar forums). It provides no information. All it does is take up space and show that the poster is still alive. (Although a spambot could do it just as easily...) Ugh... Any way, back to onions... Since I use onions HEAVILY in my cooking, it is a concern for me. I have to avoid giving Ellie any of the food that I prepare, such as tomato sauce. (I make up a big batch of tomato sauce and pressure "can" it.) Now I have to worry if substantial amounts of n-propyl disulfide get in the air. (I'm assuming that this is the substance that brings tears to our eyes while chopping, so it obviously gets airborne.) Will it have the same effect if breathed in? Should I keep Ellie out of the kitchen when I'm cooking? Sigh. This is so much more complicated than dogs...