Birdie

A Phone Call Story

The phone rang as it did most every Friday at this time. Rachel smiled, knowing who was on the other end.

Picking up the phone she started to say hello when she heard a strange female voice: "Oh, Starsky! I love how you're doing that! Oh Starsky! Do that again!" the voice rose in excitement and Rachel wondered if this was a wrong number…until…

"Hey ma!" came the excited voice of her eldest son. Now Rachel was wondering what was going on.

"David, are you all right? Who is that woman's voice I heard?"

A split second of embarrassed silence fell, "Um, you heard that Ma?" Starsky asked sheepishly.

"Yes son, I did, every word. Do you have a lady friend with you? If so, do you really think you should be talking to your mother right now?" she said in a stern voice tinged slightly with laughter.

"Oh no, ma, it's not what you think. That's Birdie, you heard Birdie talking."

"Birdie? You girlfriend's name is Birdie? She, um, sounds, um nice." Rachel stammered out, still trying to figure out why her son would be calling with a girl in his apartment.

Exasperated, Starsky explained further. "No Ma, Birdie is a bird, a parrot, a talking parrot. Ya see a friend of mine is gone for a couple of weeks and she asked me to watch it while she was away."

Suddenly, Birdie squawked and started up again, parroting Starsky's voice, "Hutch, you know that ing Crawford! He made ing bail again! I can't …" and a string of epithets came flowing from Birdie's beak.

"Hutch" Starsky called out to his partner, "take that damn bird into my room. Ma's on the phone and she's hearing everything it says!"

Rachel heard the rattling of the cage and Hutch mumbling something about crazy birds and crazy partners.

"Hutch take that damn bird…" Rachel also heard the bird say as Hutch whisked it away.

"David Michael Starsky, is that bird repeating words that you've said? You should be ashamed young man! I taught you better, you know not to say those kinds of words! Why, if you were here, I'd be washing your mouth out with soap right now!"

"I know Ma, I'm sorry. It's just that Hutch and I worked hard to get the guy in jail, and he bailed out. It was just damn…oh…darn irritating!"

"Well, is he still out?" Rachel asked sternly.

"No ma'am, we caught him the next day dealing, which revoked his bail. He's back in now and won't be out for a long time."

"That's good to hear, son. I know the way the system works can be frustrating at times, especially when you've worked so hard to arrest someone. I do understand David, I do."

She did understand, remembering those nights so long ago when her husband and Henry Reagan would stand in the back yard with a beer fussing and cussing over life and work. Rachel didn't like it, but she understood they needed the release so they could face another day.

Quietly Starsky replied, "Thanks Ma, I appreciate that."

Hutch's voice in the background signaled the call was about to end. It was time for her two boys to go to work and make their small part of the world safe.

"Go on David. Be careful, please, both of you."

"We will Ma, thanks." More muffled words from Hutch and Starsky was back. "Hutch sends his love."

"My love back to him darling, and to you, too. Now go, scoot, catch some bad guys."

"Bye, Ma love you, call you soon."

And, as Starsky was hanging up the phone Rachel heard, "Ohhh Starsky…ohhhh Starsky…"

"Shut up Birdie!" was Starsky's reply.

He never heard the loud and raucous laughter of his mother on the other end.