On a lot of mornings, I like to sit outside with a cup of coffee and watch the birds in my yard. On Monday I was outside for over an hour and saw quite a few birds of several species. Shortly after I went out, this eastern towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) started calling. At first the calls were quite a ways away, but over time they got closer and closer until it sounded like he was right next to me. Several times I got a small glance at him, but not even really enough for an ID without the call. In the meantime I saw and photographed some northern cardinals, some tufted titmice, a couple of crows, and a bunch of Carolina chickadees among others. All the while I was keeping an eye out for a chance to see the towhee, but to no avail. Finally, my stomach was grumbling and the coffee was gone, so I decided to call it a day. The towhee was still calling from some place close, but I couldn’t see him. As I got up to head inside I turned around, and there he was up in a tree about ten feet from me singing away. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear he was chuckling to himself. At least he was gracious enough to stay put while I took a few shots before he stretched, and was off again. Still calling, but now getting more distant.