Dancing with Grackles

Lois likes to leave notes around the house to remind herself (and me) of necessary tasks. I’m learning their value, but often ignore them. I would be a better person if I paid more attention to them. 

Today I saw a note with two instructions that I couldn’t ignore: “Dance”, and “Scare grackles”. Now, I understand both notes. Take the first. Some years ago Lois persuaded me to take dancing lessons. (Is there another word, like “blackmailed”, I could use, without any colour coding?) We went, and learned, and practiced, and I found I enjoyed dancing as much as she did. 

I remember taking lessons—Lois loves the swing dances, fast and rhythmic. She was less fond of the slow waltz, whispering “Boring!” in my ear as we stepped, “One, two three.” From our three years of lessons one set of swing steps has stuck. We use that set to slow music and fast music, to swing music and to the loud booming that passes for music when young people gather. It has served us well! 

Recently she suggested we make sure to dance each evening for a few minutes to help us keep some semblance of fitness. Well that’s good. I like dancing with Lois! (I tried dancing with my sister, which worked for a while, but foundered on the sweetheart wrap.)

But grackles! Well, those silly annoying grackles are back now that spring is here, and we want to chase them early and often. They nest in tall evergreens behind our house. I wish I could bounce high enough to scare them in their nests. They make a mess in the yard. They scare other birds away and take all the bird seed. Last year they broke into the kitchen via that kitchen fan vent (a story told here). 

So “Scare grackles” is a most sensible idea. But the two reminders written one above the other? I wonder if it means that our dancing scares grackles better than anything else does. Or that the grackles would be scared if they knew we were dancing while they are nesting. Or that we are to dance around the backyard throwing stones while doing the swing. 

Or they could just be two notes on one paper.