Crows

One day, several weeks ago, I awoke to the sound of BANG flap flap flap BANG flap flap flap BANG flap flap flap...

Wondering what the hell was going on, I blundered sleepily downstairs and opened the living room door, to find a crow sitting on the back of the armchair. It took one look at me and tried to fly through what it thought was the window. BANG. It hit the floor, and flapped around, having failed to break through the mirror on the wall opposite the window. Then it saw the real window and headed for that. BANG flap flap flap (the window was closed).

I tried to open the window and realised the window locks were... locked. And I had no key. And all the while, BANG flap flap flap was going on, with Mr Crow getting more and more agitated.

I dashed off to find my pliers, hoping it didn't have a heart attack in the meantime. Mr Crow tried to hide under the sofa at this point, failed and tried to hide under the (then empty - this was pre Puffin) dog basket.

Eventually I managed to open both sides of the window, and after a couple more BANG flap flap flaps - between the closed pane of glass in the middle of the two open windows and the mirror - he flew out and off.

Phew!

The only possible way he could have got there was down the chimney - it's an open fire place although I don't use it, as my landlords had said it was blocked.

I thought no more of it until I returned home from a couple of days away, about a week or so later, to hear shuffling sounds coming from the living room... hang on a minute, I thought, I know that noise. God knows how long this one had been there. (It was dark by this point). But I got the windows open, threw a blanket over him, and out he went.

This has now happened 6 times. Maybe it's the same daft crow every time - I don't know. But while it was getting a bit spooky around the third crow, I'm now a dab hand at getting them out in record time. Not a skill I ever thought I would have or need, but there you go. So if you ever find a crow in your living room, give me a shout.