This is what stands between me and the door I have to enter every thursday. A Magpie. An australian spring time savage, vicious magpie.
As you can see it looks like the sort of nest a small flying nesting dinosaur might use.
The magpie who owns this currently sits on the telephone wires sharpening its beak in anticipation of frightening attacks. I was going to say I'd rather be attacked by a shark than a magpie. But when it came down to it, that may not be true. Much less chance of it happening though considering I can't swim.
My mother once told me a story about a woman playing golf who was attacked by a magpie. Apparently the claws became caught in her hair and it FREAKED OUT and kept pulling trying to get away and she FREAKED OUT and was screaming. And it's a vision that has stayed with me.
And is there anything more frightening (and australian) than the sound of that beak clacking around your ears and the flapping of wings as it swoops. And they come from nowhere. And I know people always say to keep your eye on them and they won't attack but I'm always scared of getting my eye pecked out!
Lets just say I don't walk much in spring. But its always funny to drive past the primary schools during magpie season and seeing the little kids running around with icecream buckets on their heads.
another aimless blog 