I’ve been searching through the bird books, but I haven’t found anything that looks like the bird I saw the other morning. Ok, I was half asleep and only had a brief look at it as it flew in front of the car. But I do remember that long, streaming tail.

The closest I’ve been able to come so far is:

(1) Barn swallow — tail too short and color a bit off.

(2) Scissor-tailed flycatcher — this is most like what I saw. Oregon is way out of its normal range, although apparently the bird has been sighted along the coast on rare occasions.

(3) Something truly exotic, like a whydah or quetzal, that has escaped from its aviary.

(4) I hallucinated. #1 Son, after all, did not see this bird.

The other question, of course, is what in the hell is living in my chimney? Last night as I watched TV in the family room, I kept hearing a noise like scratching on metal. I muted the TV, listened, and determined that the noise was coming from the chimney flue. I pondered the situation for a bit, and eventually decided that discretion was the better part of valor. I really didn’t want whatever is living in there loose in my family room — although the cats would probably enjoy it. It was 86 today, so I’m not likely to need a fire for a few months.

Note to self: Have chimney cleaned before the bad weather sets in this fall.