Pecker head!

The thing about having your computer workstation in the basement is that you can hear all manner of bizarre noises, the heartbeat of your home. Last weekend, I'm sitting where I am now, minding my own business, when all of a sudden this loud hammering noise pierces the quiet morning air. It sounded like one of those hammer drills. I'm thinking to myself, "Why would my neighbour be using an impact drill at 8 in the morning?"

He wasn't. I followed the sound, which would come and go every few seconds, into the furnace room. Now I'm thinking, "I wonder if there's something wrong with my furnace?" There isn't. I could tell where the sound was coming from as I got closer to the furnace. It was my chimney. I felt the chimney with my hand and every time the sound would come (very loud now that I was beside the chimney), the chimney would vibrate.

I ran outside to see what was going on on my roof and there, on top of the chimney cap, was a northern flicker (I'm guessing - based on my research since the first incident). Apparently they like to peck when they're mating. The louder the pecking, the better. Luckily, it's not just my chimney that this pecker is advertising its status on.