I'll go with Coopers too, in retrospect. Steve said "Kestrel" with such conviction that I just believed him without looking into it. It was definitely "big hawk" sized. I'm having a hard time understanding how he could have bumped into this window accidentally. You can't see it from this photo, but we have a rather overgrown red bud tree in this little interior corner of our house's exterior, so a bird has to land in the tree, turn around, and swoop down to reach it. He seemed very alert, and intermittently intent on attacking either Izzy's head, or his own reflection. (I couldn't be sure which.) He pecked at the glass with that beak and then flew against the glass with his talons extended. It was amazing to watch, and I was afraid he was going to shatter the glass. I watched him fly to a tree in our backyard afterwards. It did seem as though the bird was taunting the dog. And I burst out laughing the one time Izzy broke eye contact with it and glanced over her shoulder at me as if to say: "Shoot it! Shooooooooot it!" I've been out tonight, but Steve says Izzy's been patrolling the windows all evening. I swore I could smell the adrenaline surging through her during the encounter.

Birdsong: I can certainly understand why you feel the way you do. In fact, I agree with your views 100%. I am saddened that we are all in the position of losing our tempers because this issue is so near and dear to our hearts, and we always feel that we are losing the battle (especially when facing the approaching season of Chemlawn ads). I think I pointed out to Dil in one post why we all feel as strongly as we do: . . . I have often seen posts on this board seeking information on how to lure and feed deer, raccoons, etc. only to later see the same people here seeking a solution when the natural reaction has created a nuisance. . . . so you can see why people develop strong opinions about this issue. However, after spending a couple of years reading, I believe that we all have a unique opportunity here. This kind of board gives us the opportunity to debate these ideas online for many people to read. I like to think that there are other people out there, like Dil (and probably each one of us at one time or another), who are similarly fertile ground. I think that when we do lose our tempers and get sharper than we want to, our argument loses power. I'm as guilty as anyone of losing my temper in this thread, but the amazing thing about Dil is that he hung in there. I personally think that takes a pretty big person . . . not to mention that Dil has promised to try to explain his new understanding to his neighbors. He won't win them all over, but he may convince a few. What more can we ask for? Afterall, what we are asking for is a paradigm shift. Our culture values making money and personal enjoyment above and beyond all else. So, we are asking for deeply-rooted cultural ideals to change. That won't happen overnight. Maybe I'm being way too optimistic, but I think if people did understand the common sense of it, some of them wouldn't do the things they do. The only way to hope to change people's opinions is to debate them respectfully. So, while I understand where your anger comes from, I hope you will rethink your approach. You obviously understand the issue clearly and have some valuable insight to add.

Well here in NC, a bird that big I'd guess to be a red-tailed hawk because you see the most of them. I've got a hawk that keeps hunting in my yard, and despite having been very close to the thing, I still am not sure what it is because I'm so shocked each time I see it. One time I heard a commotion outside by the bird feeder and went over to that side of the yard. As soon as I went around the corner I found myself about 10 feet from a hawk on the ground with his back to me. It was brown thrashers mostly that were having a fit. I believe the hawk must have gotten one of their babies that was probably already on the ground, because when the hawk flew off away from me, the thrashers followed in hot pursuit, screaming furiously. I stood there stunned. The other closeup I got was yesterday. I just looked out the kitchen window, wondered what happened to all the birds, and on looking up into the tulip poplar, saw a huge dark bird. I first thought hawk, then wondered if it was an owl because it was so bulky, but decided it was indeed the hawk, and just then it flew off before I could take in any more details. I saw it land in a neighbor's tree, so I went out the front door just in time to see it swoop over the road, only about 2 feet off the ground and go into another neighbor's yard. The image I got was the huge width of the wings. Or would you call it depth? But not squared off like an owl's. I live in the suburbs with 1/4 to 1/3 -acre lots, so it's fun to see wildlife like this. We also recently saw 2 blue herons flying overhead when we were walking recently.

bpathome, I never used the Aux input before. But that's a good idea. I have a cable for it. I usually leave an audiobook on CD in the car for long drives. I find I like certain kinds as "car" books and others as "working around the house books". Lately it's been non-fiction in the car, or a really good author that needs more attention from a certain part of my brain. The earbuds while walking around are great. No wondering if you've missed something. The ones from my library come with neckcords. But I don't like the unit swinging. I wear something with a pocket, or put it in my phone holster at my waist. I wrap the middle of the wire of my earbuds around as much as needed, and clip it to my shirt with a binder clip, so I don't snag my wire on anything. That way I can bend over as needed, dig in the garden, etc. Check out your library. Mine is always getting new ones, and I can borrow from nearby libraries in the same system as well.