Some stories are better told in person. This may be one of them.
Sometime around age 5 or 6 I became fascinated with birds of prey: eagles and falcons and the like. I even tried to change my name to Hawk. We lived in a small house plastered up against a steep hillside- it was cozy and cramped but had a majestic porch that afforded a sweeping view of the city and the distant mountains. There was a tall, solitary tree, not far off in the distance, that resembled a lower case f, with its top lazily flopped over and two long limbs flanking each side at the same point midway.
The great thing about this tree was that occasionally large birds would perch there to spy on smaller birds and mice and maybe even an occasional cat. Watch out, Smokey! When this happened, the balcony was the place to be. One afternoon, a new face in the neighborhood called up to me from the street below. Nino was visiting from Cincinnati or somewhere exotic - his grandma lived across the street from us. I'm watching a hawk, I tell him. Without an invitation he races up the stairs to join me on the balcony. We'd only met once since his arrival, but this kid puts all his cards on the table, revealing halfway up: "I can talk to them!"
This news rocks my little world. I remember actually stepping back from the railing as if to make room for this child sorcerer. He wastes no time with reintroductions, he doesn't even look at me. He pushes to the railing, squinting. Gazing out into the distance, stoic, he extends his arm, flexed and rigid, before beckoning the bird to him. Nino's eyes grow large and wild and then... he lets out an impossibly loud and seemingly endless screech, a ghastly, grating prehistoric yawp. It is raw and painful and unrelenting. His high-pitched cries echo and cascade. My amazement quickly transitions to confusion, and then, ultimately, to something resembling concern. Not nearly so soon as I'd wish, it was over.
Nino shakes his head, more in disapproval than disappointment.
"That one must be deaf", Nino says.
Tonight at OAKLAND YARD: Thursday Night Flights! ITALIAN Whites and Reds. Nino is calling- come join the fun and see what the ruckus is about. Flights $12 from 4-8pm.
SATURDAY 10/6: Whites from AUSTRALIA and NEW ZEALAND! New arrivals from down under and new wines by the glass. Tasting Flights from 2-6 and glasses until 9pm.
SUNDAY 10/7 Wines of GREECE. Red and White Tasting Flights and Wine Club Pick Up Party (all are welcome to join!). Flights from 2-6 and wines by the glass until 8pm.
See you soon,
Daniel