The lonely lives of Owls

 

I used to work grave yard shift at a gas station in boundary bay. It was a shit job but there were some perks. Namely i got a like 5 hours to read books, i could listen to music or talk radio all night, and there was a Barn Owl who would do a nightly fly around the gas station.
I looked forward to that Owl every night, and even wrote a song about it called "the lonely lives of owls"  I sometimes play that song with my band the Godspot,

Being an outsider of the birding community, when I chose to do a big year, I knew it would entail reaching out to people more so than I ever would have in the past. The surprising part to me is how people have reached out to me to offer help, when I never expected or asked for it. Its changed my perspective on birders, atleast a bit. Its not all just politics and egocentric eccentric posturing on message boards, and rude looks in the field.

Anyways, This post is basically a thank you to someone who gave me directions to see a lifer. And not just a lifer but one of the beautiful and haunting birds of the forest. Because of the sensitivity of the subject the location cannot be given. But here are some pictures of a Great Gray Owl family I had the pleasure of enjoying for an hour.