Those Crazy birds

October 9, 2001 10:43 AM

Those Crazy birds The birdwatchers of Ireland were atwitter Tuesday after spotting a Baltimore oriole in a seaside village named Baltimore.
posted by aj100 (7 comments total)

what does that bird know that we dont...?
posted by Voyageman at 11:03 AM on October 9, 2001

I ran like the clappers?
posted by aj100 at 11:10 AM on October 9, 2001

I would like to take this opportunity to say "atwitter."
posted by Tacodog at 11:21 AM on October 9, 2001

More evidence that interleague play is getting out of hand. I guess I didn't realize baseball was so popular in Ireland.

And shouldn't it be "crappers"?
posted by groundhog at 12:48 PM on October 9, 2001

God bless you, Cal Ripken Jr.
posted by Trampas at 1:37 PM on October 9, 2001

Naaa ... they do mean 'clappers', no idea where the phrase originates from tho...
posted by MintSauce at 3:54 PM on October 9, 2001

About 50 birdwatchers have spent the past few days monitoring the bird's movements in and about Baltimore. Among them is a carload of Britons who caught a ferry from Wales 400 miles to the east once they'd heard about the sighting.
''I ran like the clappers when I heard someone shout up the hill they'd seen the wee fella,'' said Coombes, who stayed overnight in Baltimore. ''We got some magnificent views when he came out to feed on blackthorn berries. The oohing and ahhing going on was something else."

That's marvelous.

By the way, to "go like the clappers" is to go very fast. The origin is uncertain.
posted by pracowity at 1:01 AM on October 10, 2001