Gloria.. Salsa and the WHUSHHH Noise!

Gloria Gloria, I wonder how she is getting on?

Some of you who know ME well, have heard me make the WHUSHHH noise and have said to HER "What a curious noise, why does GeeGee make such such a funny sound", well, you can tell THEY'RE not very domesticated, can't you? Do YOU, Dear Reader, know what WHUSHHH means? YOU don't, well, here is the Tale of WHUSHHH.

Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin. Back in the last decade, SHE was very busy working and had clients dropping in at all times to deliver poor sick lamps or to pick up happy mended ones. As the joint, EXCUSE ME, place had to be immaculate at all times, SHE had someone come in once a week and dust, hoover and polish so that everything shone. They also used to do any mending / sewing and generally kept HER clothes sponged and pressed, much better for clothes than the dreaded dry cleaning.

SHE started off with Irena, a charming Polish woman who was ultra efficient and very nice, then Irena left, she left because of guilt, guilt becaused she caused the most dreadful thing to happen which was the death of Dagga-the-Parrot... Another Tale, it makes me SO sad to think of the anguish, heartbreak and sorrow that it caused HER and his Human friends, of whom he had many, HIS lovely Vet, who has known HER since the mid 60's wrote a lovely note to HER when he heard, such a nice man.

One day, Gloria who lived next door to HER, asked HER if she knew anyone who wanted someone for a few hours every week. "Why, yes I do" said HER, "I do", so Gloria came into HER life and Gloria was WONDERFUL, SHE had thought Irena was a good housekeeper, Gloria was special, she was magical and did it in half the time Irena took.

Then I came to live with HER and it was LURVE at first sight, I loved Gloria and Gloria loved me, it was the Original Mutual Admiration Society.

SHE went out when Gloria was here so Gloria could and DID just get on with it! Which was perfect... Because Gloria and I had a secret.. Mama used to leave the radio on for Gloria but what SHE didn't know was that when Gloria had set up the ironing board and had got everything together, spray water bottle + the starch etc, etc, she would switch the radio switch to cd player, slip in one of her cd's, and call me into the room, I'd zoom in, land on top of the door, she'd press start and we would buggie and salsa to our heart's content, her performing miracles with Steam Iron and ME a-flapping-and-a-prancing up and down on the top of the door... and with many high-speed zoom-a-zooms-zooms around the room screaming my lungs out with delight.. thank goodness there's nobody living behind us, as they would have surely called for the padded wagon that takes away crazy folk! But, oh heavens-to-Betsy, WE had such fun!

There's the clue, you have got it, haven't you? For "WHUSHHH" is the voice of Steam Iron that chatted to US as it made HER sheets all crisp and flat.

Put the pointed hat on your head and go and sit in the Dunce's corner if you didn't get it before the last sentence... This is NO place for Dummies or Slackers!

But all great things have a nasty habit of coming to an end.. And one day Gloria came to MY mama with tears streaming down her beautiful face and clutching a letter, her mama was very ill and "please would Gloria come home to Columbia". What else could she do? Of course she had to, she left her fantastically well paid job with the family who adored her, she left US, she left London and all of her friends and she went back. About 3 months later WE got a card saying that she had arrived home to find her mother dying, that she had died and now Gloria had to take her place and bring up the younger children...

She told us that she missed everyone but especially ME. That she had taken some of the money her mother had left her and that she had bought a baby Orange Winged Amazon Parrot, (WE know one called Douglas, he lives with Elaine and they are very cute), that she had looked for an African Grey but that they were just too much money and it seemed crazy when there were, literally, 100's of little Amazon Parrots all wanting a good home.

She sent us her love and a photo of her with the baby Amazon, WE got the odd card about once or twice a year for several years but have not received anything for about a year....

Gloria if you, or if anyone who knows Gloria, is reading MY Blog 'Parrot Tales by GeeGee', please write to us and tell us how you are. WE still live in the same place that YOU used to keep so beautifully for US..

Adios y Vayo con Dios Guapa.

GeeGee Parrot.
January 4th, 2012.