12/21/09 My brother Tim and I purchased the house we’re in back in ’06. We’ve never used the fireplace before and I thought it being “the darkest evening of the year” and all that tonight would be a good time to have our inaugural conflagration.  I opened up the chimney flu and down fell a bird carcass.

[Click on the photo to see how bright red it was. My blog often dilutes the color of my images, annoyingly.]

A really creepy looking mummified bird carcass. I could almost hear the sinister choir chanting Latin from The Omen soundtrack as I looked at it. He must have been trapped when the previous owner capped the top of the chimney most likely many years ago. Is it a crow? The beak seems long enough but he’s been dyed red by brick dust.

At first I thought I’d do with it what I do with every small critter my fierce dog Jenny kills and throw it in the neighbor’s yard but now I wonder should I put it in a shoebox and mail it off as an anonymous gift or hang it on the Christmas tree?