The sun shone boldly in a cloudless blue sky, the air sharp and clean, and it might have seemed like a day in April instead of a day in October were it not for the stunning silence and the absence of song; with some birds having already left for warmer lands, others now seek food in back yard refuges away from the exposed apartment blocks and their threat of diminished shelter. It was a day split down the middle between our continued couple’s projects and a rollicking video game night with my friends.