THE REAL STAR OF THE SHOW
I’m starting to think I should have called the series the “Montezuma Shane” Mysteries. It’s a rare reviewer who doesn’t mention Ella and Tommy’s parrot, and at least a few people seem to like him better than Ella. Montezuma’s a lot of fun to write, and read…but you may be surprised to know that he’s also a very realistic pet.
People have been keeping parrots since Ancient Egypt, and they were quite popular in the Roman Empire. The Dark Ages weren’t great for parrots (or a lot of other folks!) but by the Renaissance, they were making a comeback: Henry VIII had one, and it probably had a happier life than any of his wives. By the time we get to the Victorian Era, even middle-class families could get an exotic bird, though Amazon parrots, among the largest and most talkative, were still special.
Montezuma certainly is. He, and his name – I suspect Ella and Tommy might have called him Brian Boru -- came with their townhouse in Washington Square. The old importer who owned the place was moving in with a fastidious daughter who didn’t want “that nasty bird” to come with her papa. Her loss.
It’s good luck for all, because parrots can live to age 75, and even though he’s not a spring chicken (c’mon, you had to know that was coming!) Montezuma is still very much in his prime. He’s also still very much able to pick up new tricks, as he’s happy to demonstrate when he bursts into one of the drinking songs Tommy’s sports writer friends taught him…or sings along with the melody line when Ella’s friend Marie visits.
He’s probably a lot better off with Tommy and Ella than tangling with the importer’s daughter anyway. Since he’s more than a bit of a diva in his own right, and prone to doing whatever he has to do to get attention, not to mention blessed with the impressively loud voice of his species, he wouldn’t fit in well with a quiet and respectable household. There’s a reason why you hear a lot more about Victorian ladies keeping cute little songbirds – and parrots tend to be the companions of pirates and eccentrics.
In some respects, Montezuma and his ilk are a bit like cats: intelligent, unpredictable, and determined that their humans shall pay appropriate tribute. No one should be too surprised that Montezuma bursts into a drinking song if the room is too quiet, or calls the Duke an “English stick” in exactly the tone Ella first said it, because she’s too interested in a human male instead of the avian who rightly owns her.
Montezuma also has the ability of every smart pet to appear absolutely adorable just when their humans are at the limit of their patience. That’s the main purpose of his favorite phrase: “Love the birdie!” It’s a reminder that Ella, Tommy – and the rest of us – do, indeed.
By the way, you’re probably wondering right about now if I’ve made up some of Montezuma’s antics. Not really. I have a good friend, a fellow writer, who belongs to two parrots, and they treat him very much the way Montezuma does Ella and Tommy: they adore him, and they push him around.
The only real difference between Montezuma and my friend’s parrots is that he doesn’t have a partner in crime, which is probably safer for Ella and Tommy…at least for now.
Got an idea for a Throwback Thursday post? Tell me in the comments!
People have been keeping parrots since Ancient Egypt, and they were quite popular in the Roman Empire. The Dark Ages weren’t great for parrots (or a lot of other folks!) but by the Renaissance, they were making a comeback: Henry VIII had one, and it probably had a happier life than any of his wives. By the time we get to the Victorian Era, even middle-class families could get an exotic bird, though Amazon parrots, among the largest and most talkative, were still special.
Montezuma certainly is. He, and his name – I suspect Ella and Tommy might have called him Brian Boru -- came with their townhouse in Washington Square. The old importer who owned the place was moving in with a fastidious daughter who didn’t want “that nasty bird” to come with her papa. Her loss.
It’s good luck for all, because parrots can live to age 75, and even though he’s not a spring chicken (c’mon, you had to know that was coming!) Montezuma is still very much in his prime. He’s also still very much able to pick up new tricks, as he’s happy to demonstrate when he bursts into one of the drinking songs Tommy’s sports writer friends taught him…or sings along with the melody line when Ella’s friend Marie visits.
He’s probably a lot better off with Tommy and Ella than tangling with the importer’s daughter anyway. Since he’s more than a bit of a diva in his own right, and prone to doing whatever he has to do to get attention, not to mention blessed with the impressively loud voice of his species, he wouldn’t fit in well with a quiet and respectable household. There’s a reason why you hear a lot more about Victorian ladies keeping cute little songbirds – and parrots tend to be the companions of pirates and eccentrics.
In some respects, Montezuma and his ilk are a bit like cats: intelligent, unpredictable, and determined that their humans shall pay appropriate tribute. No one should be too surprised that Montezuma bursts into a drinking song if the room is too quiet, or calls the Duke an “English stick” in exactly the tone Ella first said it, because she’s too interested in a human male instead of the avian who rightly owns her.
Montezuma also has the ability of every smart pet to appear absolutely adorable just when their humans are at the limit of their patience. That’s the main purpose of his favorite phrase: “Love the birdie!” It’s a reminder that Ella, Tommy – and the rest of us – do, indeed.
By the way, you’re probably wondering right about now if I’ve made up some of Montezuma’s antics. Not really. I have a good friend, a fellow writer, who belongs to two parrots, and they treat him very much the way Montezuma does Ella and Tommy: they adore him, and they push him around.
The only real difference between Montezuma and my friend’s parrots is that he doesn’t have a partner in crime, which is probably safer for Ella and Tommy…at least for now.
Got an idea for a Throwback Thursday post? Tell me in the comments!
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