Eastern bluebird.
Many days—maybe most days—as I’m climbing Beech Hill I have in my head some kind of song. A march, usually. Or a march-like series of measures based loosely on a tune I’ve just heard on the radio driving over. I don’t know why. It’s walking. Marching, in a way. Usually the song is just “Yankee Doodle” or something damn thing like that. And it’s not just in my head: I’ve noticed I often shape my mouth so that I sort of hear the sound of the notes in my breathing. (Know what I mean?) But sometimes this song gets complex or creative.
Berry buds.
Today, for the first time ever, the song in my head was “Funeral March of a Marionette,” by French composer Charles Gounod (1818–1893), a short piece whose claim to fame in these parts was its use as the theme song of the old Alfred Hitchcock Presents TV show. As a teenager, I taught myself this composition on piano—and can still even pound out a few bars, I’m pretty sure—but it surprised me today to realize what song I was marching along to. And it’s definitely a march. Step, step, step, step. Kind of like “Walk Like a Man,” performed by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons.
(On returning home, I had to google the composer. Charles Gounod was an accomplished 19th century music man. Interesting.)
But it was an ironic choice of music, because today was anything but funereal. Blue-blue sky, warming temps (a high of about 52 degrees (F) here), little wind. I had breakfast, took dog out (jays, downy woodpecker), worked a little, then couldn’t resist a nice bike ride. Pedaled about 18 miles, to Rockland then Camden and back, and heard a bunch of singing birds. Song sparrows, chickadees, titmice, house sparrows, juncos, goldfinches, cardinals. A big flock of Canada geese was poking about in the Belted Galloway pasture between Lily Pond at Aldermere Farm.
Grandmother maple, today.
Back home, I ate a quick lunch then hauled Jack off to Beech Hill. We marched up the wooded trail, meeting no one but hearing more birds—and seeing a solitary bluebird perched in the same tree where I saw the shrike a few days ago. My hooded sweatshirt was a mite warm, actually.
But tomorrow’s supposed to be warmer still. Clear. Light winds. No doubt I’ll ride my bike again. And it’ll be interesting to discover what music I’ll have in my head on the Beech Hill trail.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 3:15 p.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Hairy woodpecker
2. American crow
3. Purple finch
4. Northern cardinal
5. Eastern bluebird
6. Black-capped chickadee
Elsewhere
7. Downy woodpecker
8. House finch
9. Blue jay
10. Tufted titmouse
11. Herring gull
12. House sparrow
13. Rock pigeon
14. Song sparrow
15. Dark-eyed junco*
16. American goldfinch
17. Golden-crowned kinglet
18. Canada goose
19. Mourning dove
* First-of-year bird
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, dark-eyed junco, downy woodpecker, golden-crowned kinglet, hairy woodpecker, herring gull, house finch, house sparrow, mourning dove, northern cardinal, purple finch, rock pigeon, song sparrow, tufted titmouse
