I have yet to really embrace the verb "to bird." I grew up knowing it as bird watching because that's what Dad called it. Many bird enthusiasts have embraced the verb, as well as the noun "birder." I tolerated that for some time, but not now.
About twelve years ago I took the Master Birding course from my local chapter of Audubon. It was a great course, with the identification classes taught by Dennis Paulson, a nationally recognized authority on shorebirds. Upon finishing the course, I was officially a Master Birder. Cool.
About four years later I was meeting some neighbors of my in-laws. One of them found my being a Master Birder to be quite hilarious, due to the fact that the term sounds similar to an activity not usually discussed in polite company. I am no longer a Master Birder. Nor am I a Master Bird Watcher. I'm just a bird watcher.
Even though I completed a course which entitled me to the rating of master, I've never really felt like a master. Advanced intermediate maybe, but not master. Frankly, I don't know how some of my classmates have found the time in their lives to get the bird identification practice needed to become as proficient as some of them have. I'm more than just a little jealous!
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