Put the word “house” in front of something, and it somehow reduces any punch the next word has. “House cat” means a tame tabby, no tiger. A house fly is a citified pest. When ordering a drink, house bourbon is redeye, not the good stuff. Grandma used to wear a house coat, whatever the hell that is. House means, what? Tame? Mundane? Everyday?
But c’mon, those dull vibes are unfair and unwelcome when it comes to the House Finch you just saw in June sunlight today. The bird caught your eye because of its bright red face and chest. Its cool brown side-streaks. Its spunk as it hopped—nowhere near a bird house, but in wild pines.
These birds avoid bird houses and rarely nest in them. Once again, avian name gurus screwed up and chose wrong.
Still—put that aside for a moment—this was a cool sighting, and unexpected. Sure, you’ve seen countless House Finches in a life of birdwatching. But not recently, and then there was that sun hitting this bird’s bright red! You remember reading somewhere that girl House Finches prefer to mate with the reddest males they find. Cool.
That was today’s Daily Sighting. When the day started, we had no idea a House Finch would brighten it. And grousing about the bird’s bad name just made it a little more fun. Hope you see a House Finch, too. They’re everywhere. Except near a bird house, of course.
Brings to mind The Red-Headed League by Arthur Conan Doyle. Maybe the House Finch should be renamed The Holmes Finch.
In any casino, the House has an edge. Bad folks go to the Big House. A drink on the House is a Freebee. A House of Cards is doomed to collapse. And a House Dick is the guy who makes sure you’re not doing anything illegal in your hotel room.
I am laughing! That happened after I read it once. Then I read it again, and found I still laughed. 🙂