Critters, Birds and Rice

It’s cold outside. We used to feed the ducks in New England with stale bits of bread. When we moved to Florida we went to the bakery for stale bread for the same purpose. But it wasn’t cold! We have an old container of rice that we don’t plan to use. So we decided to put it in little baggies and bring it with us on our morning walks. We went to Old Town Alexandria last week and walked along the waterfront. There they were - ducks, pigeons, crows, seagulls. All of them were waiting for a hand out. So we started throwing out morsels of rice and the the show began. The best part was watching the ducks make the sliding landing on the ice. All of the birds were hustling! I never knew ducks would go for these tiny grains of rice. When we were walking on the national mall we took another bag of rice and sprinkled the contents on the sidewalk by the American history museum. The birds went crazy. They didn’t want to take it out of my husband’s gloved hand though. The albino squirrel and the rest of them seemed interested, but not for long.  And in the neighborhood park we sprinkled more rice along the trail and on top of tree stumps. It didn’t seem like any one was interested - but perhaps whatever was would gulp it down on the stealth after we left. We still have a bit of rice to use up yet. It’s fun to watch the birds and critters - of any shape or form.