Let me just say that I understand that my excitement about the Sandhill Cranes is different than Gandle's --- I don't get to see and hear millions en route to Northernly climes. I am the Northernly clime.

We welcome them back as a sign of spring and watch them (the ones that don't leave FL, that is) raise their young. They seem omnipresent near our house, yet I never tire of seeing them. So I was thrilled while I was in the lunchroom at work today when one of my coworkers ran in and said "You've all got to come see this or you won't believe me!"

She had heard a weird knocking on one of the side doors of our building and a went to answer it (expecting a delivery person) and was met by a pair of Sandhills violently knocking as if to be let in.

I got within feet of them and snapped a photo with my cell phone:

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They seemed to see me and be completely unafraid. As they proceeded around the side of our building, I followed them, taking pictures:

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One of my co-workers, a semi-retired farm boy who makes a habit of coming in at 4:00am and leaving by noon, told us that for the last couple weeks they've been knocking at the lunchroom door every morning. This tickles me beyond measure. They look so prehistoric and they make a sound that is heard not by your ears but by your spine! It's such a pleasure being in their company once again! Makes me wonder if they're fighting reflections in the glass (didn't seem so) or if they just wanted to come in and have lunch with us. I swear, I was so close to them that if I'd have opened the door, they'd have walked right in!