Gone to the Birds

Can I blame my lack of regular posting around here on the fact that I'm embarrassed to post another bird-related topic already? Fine, I give up - gotta get this out of my system.

On one my recent (and all too frequent) TJ Maxx trips, I came across this handsome guy:


I was immediately smitten, but very nearly left him sitting there lonely on the store shelf. I have already confessed to a bird-collecting problem - do I really need a foot-and-a-half tall ceramic owl, the intended use of which is unclear? But, I kept circling back to check on him while I browsed the kitchen wares. And I did that look-over-your-shoulder thing you do when you're shopping and you're worried another savvy shopper is going to come and snatch up that unique item right before your eyes. So, I brought him home with me. At a very reasonable price, for this level of cuteness, I think:



Once home, he found a comfy spot at the top of my stairs, holding some decorative sticks, where he has hung out happily greeting visitors for the past few months:


And then, in some innocent blog browsing recently, I came across his picture and clicked on the link, hoping to learn more about my orphan owl's origins, and saw this.

Yowza! One-hundred and forty bones for a ceramic owl umbrella stand!?! Obviously, my little guy is an imitation, but a pretty good one, and he came home with me at a price I was quite comfortable with. I'm going to refrain from using "knock-off" here and cut myself a little slack that I didn't know any better when I bought him. And I'm giving myself a little pat on the back for recognizing high style when I see it!