Raising Canaries

It all started when a friend gave me a canary which accidentally flew into her balcony apartment. I heard it making the sound, " eek, eek," and I thought it was singing. My friend told me that only male canaries could sing, so I assumed that my canary was a male canary.

Off to the pet store I went and bought a female canary. The duo, which I named Lucky(the male) and Corky (the female) were soon housed in an enclosed balcony ... free as birds... to fly and mess around.

I placed a big nest ( a discarded handwoven handicraft) into the wall, and soon, the two canaries were to be found sleeping in the nest. And then, I started to find little eggs. And then, I started to see both canaries sitting on the eggs.
Fine, I said, they are trying to hatch the eggs. But as weeks passed, nothing happened. The little eggs did not turn into other canaries.

Observing the two canarie further, I soon discovered that both were laying eggs. Only then did I learn that both were female canaries!

So, off to the pet store I went again, and purchased a "mule male canary," a yellow canary with black patches on its feathers.

As the fall season progressed, I housed the three canaries in a cage which I could cover at night, to protect them from the cold. Then one day in February, Lucky's four little eggs, became four little canaries. Three were purely yellow and one with a bit of black streak on top of its head.

Soon, the other canary, Corky, laid four (again) eggs, and were hatched successfuly. Three were yellow with some dark spots, and one was a mule, just like Daddy Max.

So this is how I started raising canaries.

This is the bloodline:
Lucky (female), Corky (female) Max (male)

Lucky's four canaries were all males. Corky's four canaries were two male and two females.

Corky's male offspring (Jr Max) paired off with one of his siblings (Mother Neg) , and produced two females, (Baby Neg and Mula). The other two ( Dickey and Trixie) paired off as well, and gave us another male canary, (Micky).

Jr Max and Mother Neg had two more, but one was not able to survive.

The greatest joy in raising canaries is hearing the males sing. My canaries sing throughout the day. They are a bunch of happy canaries.

Another pleasure is watching how a baby canary ( at 2 days after hatching, it looks like a tiny piece of cotton) turn into a full grown canary. The mother canary feeds her baby canary non-stop. She will only rest at night.

Batting Average

One morning, I found myself in the batter's box. Anxious, yet having the time in my hands. Bored but excited at the chance of putting my foot at the base. Ready to unleash, yet coiled... then ....uncoiled - from within.

It is what I call a job hunter's dilemma. One has been put in the batter's box to hit the ball, not knowing where it will land. You have a strategy, yes. But the crowd, the coach are screaming.
You can hit a foul ball. You can hit a homer.

Losing a job means a lot of things. You fumbled. You missed the base. You were the star of the team and the others resented it. You had your own strategy. You were working hard to win and the owner simply coasted the game.

In my lifetime, there were several memorable moments when I found myself looking for work: First was when I just finished my university studies and was out hunting for my first real job. Second time was when I left the Philippines and was applying for any job in the snobbish financial community of Wall Street in New York. Third time was when I landed in Toronto at a time when an economic slump was taking place in Canada.

There were two instances in my life when I worked for a not-for-profit. One was in a semi-government research think tank in Manila. The other was in a community-based agency which helped new immigrants to Canada.

I also worked for private corporations. One, in an advertising and PR firm with some international clientele. At another, a magazine with international roots. And at a third, in a prestigious law firm with a Manhattan address.

Now, back to the batter's box. Sometimes it gets lonely. Sometimes, it gets exciting. Sometimes, it gets challenging. A lot of times, it gets insecured.

A lot of employment counsellors tell job searchers that in a person's lifetime, one will have to switch careers at least five times. In my case, I switched careers four times. Each time I switched, I found it was a rewarding strategy. Because with each new job came a new learning experience which no university degree can give you.

Now back to the batter's box. The crowd is starting to cheer/jeer. The coach within me is telling me a game play. I can see the bases are still empty.

But I have a firm grasp of the bat, and a clear view of the ball.