First and foremost, an update on the construction: it is ongoing and as annoying as ever. I took a vacation day on Friday to relax. Let's just say a relaxing day did not take place. By 10 a.m. I was running for cover. This is month four of the all-day, every-day (save the weekends) noise-fest. Aggravating to say the least.

Sometimes what you want and what you get end up being two totally different things. That's a general statement. Here's another one: sometimes this can be a good thing, and other times, not so good. Say, when you want a nice chocolate cake for your birthday but instead you get an ice cream cake. That's excellent. Other times you want to see a good superhero movie and you get Spiderman 3. That's not excellent.

What I wanted was a barbecue. As someone pretending to be a grown man, meat mastery is essential to my development. If I am to attain the Ron Swanson pyramid of greatness (and everyone should), meat mastery and wood working skills are a must. 

This summer started off the right way, a nice steak and crab leg cook out. Quite a delight. Shortly after this the barbecue went dormant and hasn't seen too much action since. We all know it isn't the weather that's the culprit. We've had a beautiful summer so far.

You see, despite wanting a barbecue, what the roommate and I ended up getting was a nice place for pigeons to nest. That's right, the pigeon problem has escalated. What started off as a mild annoyance has become a real issue. Instead of sharing my apartment with one guy, I'm also sharing it with two birds and their eggs. This a problem for a few reasons. Firstly, it's not a good situation for us or the pigeons. Meaning it's not sanitary for us and the pigeons cannot stay. Secondly, there's the moral issue of what to do with the nest. I don't want to perturb the pigeons or their eggs, but I'm not too sure   what my options are. Thirdly, it looks like my roommate and I will have to pigeon-proof our balcony, possibly with a fake owl. Owls frighten me, but I must face those fears head on. Like Bruce Wayne becoming Batman.

Alas, the barbecue has not been what I hoped it to be. I hope one day the pigeons and I can reach an agreement that works out for the both of us. For now, I will continue to be startled by pigeons fleeing from under the barbecue cover every time I walk out onto my balcony.

Also, I don't want to do anything to upset the pigeons. Perhaps Google will help me out. Or at least show me videos of kittens falling asleep to take my mind off of my problems.

Awww...kittens. I feel a little better already.