7:30 AM — It will start any minute now. Familiar rush. Six days I been held captive. Everyday when sunrise, they come and walk down aisles. I sit up here and watch from rafter. It safe up here. People not swat at me with broom from up here.
7:45 AM — Manager Kyle check watch and shift tie. He look up at me and scowl. He think grocery store no place for bird. I can’t say he wrong. I don’t belong. I know this.
8:00 AM — Manager Kyle turn open magic barrier. When it open, people come in. I want badly to use barrier. It look like outside but when I go near, I bonk head and need to lie down for a bit. They seem to have set barrier so it not work for me. They keep me prisoner.
9:00 AM — I will talk to Barry. Barry feed me bread sometime. Barry work in bakery. Barry haven’t seen kids in over year. He miss them and wish to see them soon. I feel kinship with Barry. When no one looking, Barry pick me up and stroke feathers. One time Barry kiss me on head and tell me I am good bird. I never felt like good bird until Barry said so.
9:15 AM — Bad news. No Bread. When I try to talk to Barry, manager Kyle swat at me and call me mean names like “noisy ass pidgeon” and “janky fuck.” This upset me. I fly up to rafters. Once again I am hungry and alone. I will nap until hunger pang stop.
12:17 PM — Nap was good. Hollow bones feel rested. I sometime use nap to make time go faster. It help but sometime just make me more sad when I open eyes.
1:05 PM — Little boy come into store and yell at mother to buy bread bun but she said no bread bun. Little boy upset at this. He plead louder for bread bun. He so mad that bread bun being withheld, he scream. I join him in mournful cry.
2:30 PM — Manager Kyle now out of office trying to trap me in net. He say I am source of embarrassment. He trying to get promotion and say I will cause him to fail inspection. He being selfish. Should be thinking about what I am going through. I am prisoner and he not even give food or water.
3:14 PM — Alone with thoughts, I think about darling Bonnie. Has been six long days since I last see her and our three boys. They all must be teenager by now. I miss them so much. I have missed so much.
4:45 PM — Number of teenage humans enter store. They enter together as flock. This make me miss own flock. I hope flock miss me too. I wonder have they tried to find me? Did Steve organize search party? Has Bonnie prayed for return?
4:50 PM — I swoop down to ask teenage flock if they think my flock will return. They respond to question with imitation of caws. This confuse me. I cock head to side. They mimic this and also cock head to side. They mock me and laugh. They take picture to humiliate me. I know they think it weird that bird inside when bird should be outside. With this I am in agreement.
6:27 PM — They mark cheese down to very few dollars. This bring joy to many people but also incite rudeness. They push each other and shove for limit of four bricks of markdown cheese. I do not like this behaviour. Cheese not even good. Not true delicacy like seed. I would understand if crowd flock to markdown seed.
6:32 PM — I would give anything for a bit of seed. Some people have cart full of food but still elbow for cheese when some do not have morsel of bread. This make me sad.
7:45 PM — Sun is setting. I will be stuck another day. I prepare for night. I try to build nest to have safe place to sleep. When I swoop down to apple display to get piece of straw, old woman squeal and point at me. This cause everyone else to scream and duck even though I not fly near them. I merely want straw for nest but even this too much to ask from captors.
8:24 PM — Manager Kyle come onto PA to announce store closing in half hour. Speaker make loud hissing noise that spook me and I lose control of bowels. All this in front of cashiers who look at me in disgust as they grab wipes and spray. This cause me shame. I bury face in wing.
9:00 PM — Everyone leave. I make loud caws pleading for liberation but no one help. They just pour salt in wound and say things like “shut up,” “enough already,” and “oh, look– a bird.”
9:15 PM — The last light now turned off. I feel warm from its glow but it starting to fade. It will be another cold night. I soothe self to sleep with sound of own coos. It feel less alone this way.