Help for your bird in the hardware store.

I’ve been wondering for a while, if birds cry. My parakeet almost moans when he’s afraid, or gives a little shriek, but what about sadness? Google being what it is, I found this WikiHow article instead:
How to Use Clothespins for Your Canary Cage

I mean, who would have thought writing such an article was necessary? I don’t have any clothespins, do you? Does anyone? Nevertheless, I’ll read anything about canaries, and I was fascinated by the title.

Here were the 2 suggestions I think would be helpful if you have both clothespins AND a canary:

• Start using your clothespins daily. Whenever you open the cage door to handle your canary or to clean the cage, have the clothespins handy to keep the cage door open. (Well, maybe not the first sentence. And in my cage, the doors stay open on their own, but many cages do have spring doors.)
• Clothespins can hold the canaries’ greens (leaves, stalks etc.) from the top of the cage. (I use metal clips for greens or treats, and some kind of clip is essential, so everything doesn’t flop to the bottom of the cage. Again, I don’t have any clothespins, but sure, they’d work.)

The suggestion I didn’t like is to use them as perches. I think they’re too short for the bird to feel comfortable and secure. Also, he would slip on the plastic ones.

But let’s not overlook the attractive design in the photo someone made with clothespins to illustrate the article! I like the yellow one at the top, the color of a canary. And it reminds me of the practice women used to follow when they made quilts: the idea that only God is perfect, so they would have one mismatching piece or color or stitch in every quilt.

Even, or maybe especially, in the strict Amish quilts.