And so it begins....

Happy New Year and Welcome to Odd Birds In. 
A blog about..well, anything I want.
Mostly birds but I'm sure I'll wander off into uncharted airspace.
I've been a poster to NJ Birds for many, many years and will continue to do so but I feel a need to begin my own blog dedicated to the Odd things we encounter while out and about.
I invite You to join me.
I am a recreational birder which essentially means my Passions far exceed my skill sets and I probably will never make a dime from Birding.
What I have made is friends and as the credit card company says "Priceless".
In the past few years I've carried a camera along and find that drives me more than listing.
I was a lister...
I went to counseling and am doing much better now.
I couldn't tell you my Life list, Year list, or any other totals except the ones I've loaded into eBird. (Minus the ones that haven't been accepted)
My mantra when it comes to reporting is very simple:
No Pic...No Tick
I did break that rule this past Fall with Bell's Vireo but the reviewers held me to my own mantra and
 the report wasn't accepted.
If I wasn't very good at Finding birds this would probably upset me, but I will find another BEVI and hopefully my camera and I are speaking to one another that day.
A good birder friend of mine describes my ID technique as follows;
Most birders when looking at an Odd bird will start with the ID's that  are "closest" to the local birds. I on the other hand will start way out and often need someone to reel me back in.
It makes the purists crazy but has served me well.
Besides it's more Fun that way.
I make mistakes, outrageous ID's, but I never make shit up.
I am in it for the FUN and anyone who has birded w/ me will concur.
I'm off birding.........looking for Fun and the
Odd Birds In