Chicken Boys

Chicks On The Way

2011-04-02T20:07:00.000-04:00

Well, things have been alright lately. Mike and I have been working hard to put away for a trip to Beeville, Texas this summer. Our stuff has been in storage for over 5 years. That's been too much money. So we're saving to get it all back. We've got some important stuff we can't get rid of. No specific dates yet. But we're working on it.

In the meantime, the birds are all doing great. We've got several hens sitting on eggs, all bantams. Well, one Black Australorp will be sitting soon I hope, too. I've also ordered 25 chicks from McMurray Hatchery. I ordered the rainbow layers, a variety of good laying hens. So it will be interesting to see what we get. They are due to ship on April 16th. I'm soooooo excited!!! I can't wait!

It's been nice chatting with some of you on Facebook! I'm on there regularly. If you're not my friend already, please stop by. www.facebook.com/ranman.pete

Hope you're you're all well!!

Facebook.com/ranman.pete

2011-03-06T15:01:00.000-05:00

Is it gonna work? Don't have a computer, so I'm trying from my cell phone again. I'm on Facebook. www.facebook.com/ranman.pete All is well. Mike and I are doing a bit of remodeling. We have 2 closets that were back to back. We knocked down the wall between the 2 to make a big one. We also moving the washer and dryer into there. Planted a Winesap Apple tree and a Bartlett Pear Tree. Haven't started the garden yet, but by months end it should be well on it's way. I've included the link to my facebook page if anyone wants to be friends. I'll try this again soon! See y'all around!!

Trying, But It's Just Not Working

2011-02-23T18:25:00.003-05:00

Missin' Y'all

2011-01-09T12:41:00.000-05:00

So I haven't been able to blog for a few months. I'm still alive and kicking. I don't have a computer now, thus no internet. Well, I do have internet on my phone, but I can't post on my blog. It just takes up too much memory and keeps timing out. I do get to view my blog, though. So I have seen everyone's comments. I was just laughing, wondering how many blog rolls I've been deleted from. Things are going pretty well. Driving the truck is alright. If I had to choose between the truck and the office, I'd pick the office any day. It was more predictable. It was pretty much 8-5 Monday through Friday. On the truck I may work late evenings or sometimes on weekends. But the pay was better on the truck. Of course, we still have chickens....and pigeons....and cats. And of course we still have Max and Minnine, our two little dogs. Mike is doing well. He's at home this weekend while I'm at my parents. I came to my nephews birthday party. He stayed home because he was working yesterday. I'm on my mom's computer updating to let you all know I'm good! I'm on Facebook if anyone wants to be my friend. I'm listed as Randy Peterson Jr. I have two accounts with the same name because I wasn't able to get into my old account. It's still there, but just won't let me log in. I'll try again and if I get in I'll just delete the old account.

We had a lovely holiday. Christmas and New Years were spent with my family. We had snow on a couple of occasions. And we're expecting more snow this week. I could do without the snow....and the cold. I just don't like the cold weather. I'm thinking of buying a winter home in the Carribbean or maybe Central America. Perhaps Costa Rica. I'd love to spend some time in the Rain Forest.

Anyway, just wanted to let you all know we're good. If you can't find me on FB, check with Tracey. I'm frieds with her and Amy and Anna and Kim and Joanna and others. See y'all around!!

The Belief Project

2010-10-07T13:38:00.000-04:00

Okay, so the title of this post is a bit strange, and probably not fitting. It's what popped into my head. You see, I have my cell phone service through U.S. Cellular. And they have been doing all these changes....new plans, new rules for phone trade-ins, new this, new that. They call it the Belief Project. I know very little about the details of these changes, really. But having a sister-in-law that works for U.S. Cellular, I have been informed that these changes, in an essence, do offer better service to customers, but also increase opportunities for the company to generate a great deal more revenue. The company advertised changes, but kept the details a bit hush-hush till the beginning of this month when the changes went into effect.

Well, I said all that to say this. My big changes are coming. I start my new position on Monday. Actually, I got a phone call this morning from my new boss. I have to drive to Charlotte Sunday night. I will have some training Monday and part of Tuesday. It's about a six hour drive, so I will have to get a motel room for a couple of nights. Of course, all this comes out of my pocket till I submit an expense report. Yeah!! Cough! Cough! I must say, I am a bit nervous. I haven't had a lot of details about this job, and I will be starting in a couple of days. I just got the call this morning about going to Charlotte first of next week. But I won't even have the details to where I need to go or what time till later this afternoon. I'm anxious, to say the least, but excited all the same. What if I hate this job? It's not like I can just walk back and take my old job back. There have already been 50+ applications. Oddly enough, many of them came through my office, so I've seen who some of the candidates for my replacement are. Some were impressive, over-qualified in my opinion, and some were, shall we say, completely unexperienced. But people need a job. And I'm sure there are ones out there desperate enough they will apply for any job. I'd probably do the same.

That's that. The chickens are doing great. I had three loosies. There were three Black Austrolorps that hatched out early this summer. I just let them free range from the time they hatched under their mama. I decided that it's time to wrangle them up since a neighbor complained about them scratching in his garden. I managed to catch two, but the third got wise and wouldn't come near me. I'll have to give it another shot this evening. I should have tried last night after the thing roosted, but I was too tired.

Not sure what the plans are for the weekend yet. Mike mentioned going out to Applebee's for dinner Friday night. My sister said she was taking her kids to the county fair Friday evening. She said Tony won't ride certain rides with her, and since she had her baby in July she wants to do all the stuff she couldn't do when she was pregnant. So, that's something else to consider. Other than that, that's the latest in a nut shell!

The Rain In Spain Falls Mainly On The Plain

2010-10-01T10:52:00.000-04:00

Is it really quitting today? This morning the weatherman said the rain was gone, except for a couple of pop-up showers along the Pitt County/Beaufort County lines. I promptly looked out the window to see it was raining still. I do NOT live along the Pitt/Beaufort county line. There's still a light mist outside. We really needed the rain, but this much rain was insane! I don't know the exact amount, but last I heard it was about 15 and a half inches over the last two days. I can't help but wonder if any of the cotton crops have been, or will be, ruined by this much rain. Jacksonville got several inches more, and I heard that Wilmington got well over 22 inches! My chickens weren't in standing water. The land is fairly high back there, but the poor things were certainly standing in mud. One of my roosters, a white silkie, died. No clue why, except I assume between the cool temps and the rain he may have gotten pneumonia or something to that effect. I'll have to check them again this evening. Mike will check them today.

I tried to get rid of a few of them. I put an ad in the Carolina Bargain Trader, but I only got one phone call. A lady called, who said her husband told her to call. She wanted to discuss it with him and call back. She never called back. I may have to feed them through the winter, then take them to auction. C'est la vie. Oh, and I just sent in another ad to find homes for these kittens. I have five that need homes. Otherwise, I'll have to take them to the pound and hope Saving Graces For Felines will pick them up.

Well, I start my new job on Monday, October 13th. At least I think I do. My new boss called me last Friday and offered me the job then went on vacation. To my knowledge he'll be returning to work on Monday. My current boss didn't give a counter offer. I really didn't think he would. It was just too big of a difference. My current position was posted in the company, and on the company web site (http://www.airgas.com/) and within two days I've heard that they've received over 40 applications. The position is posted for 10 days, so I can only imagine how many apps there will be!

So I will be working for Airgas National Carbonation.

I'm sort of looking forward to the change. Thanks for all the well-wishes. And thanks for the offer of a good meal, Jim. How can I get in touch? It's strange to think I will be driving a truck, especially for what they offered. No, I will NOT be getting rich. I don't even buy enough lottery tickets to get rich. In fact, playing the lottery for me is a rare occasion. But I digress. But the difference in pay was worth moving out of the office. At least, I think....I hope. (I'm gritting my teeth!)

Now this is not my truck. But I will have one similar to it. I know a couple of the guys I will be working with, and they're pretty cool. But for now, the suspense is killing me!!

A Sigh Of Relief or A Cringe In Fear

2010-09-24T15:17:00.001-04:00

As most, if not all of you know, I applied for a different job within the same company. I'm not totally convinced it's a step in the right direction, and my boss is not at all pleased. Of course, I work very hard for my boss, and this company, and I know my boss does not want to lose a valuable employee. I often handle a lot of different jobs that are not necessarily my job to do, and I try to have issues resolved by the time he gets word. I currently have a nice, cushy office job with my own office, a plant in the window, a large U-shaped desk, my own coffee pot....I share the fax, laser printer, and ticket printer, but they are in my office as well. And the pay really is quite fair, in my own personal opinion.

Now, this job that I have applied for is NOT in an air conditioned office, with a one hour lunch shared with co-workers in the break room. It is a field job, and involves more hours, most of which will be spent driving a truck all over eastern North Carolina. Most of my lunches will probably be spent in the truck or at the closest fast food joint. I will have to deal with hot summers and cold winters. And I will be on-call most evenings and every other weekend. It will not be an 8-5 job. HOWEVER, the pay increase is nothing to sneeze at. (I know, I ended the sentence with a preposition...get over it)

I was at a point where I was considering taking on a second job. I have done that in the past, and I thoroughly hated it. I worked (supposed-to-be) part time at a convenience store. I was getting home at 1 a.m. only to have to get right back up at 6 a.m. to get ready for work again. Plus, while I was working there, one of the employees on the 3rd shift was robbed and shot in the back of the head. He survived, but who wants to take that chance?! This new position eliminates the necessity for a second job.

Well, my interview was last Friday. Before the interview I felt confident about my chances. I applied for the same position two and a half years ago and was passed up. I knew they regreted it, as the person they chose over me had the job for one week and quit. Shortly after that I moved out of the warehouse into my current position. I got a call mid-week saying that there were two more interviews scheduled for Thursday, but I was certainly favored and would most likely get offered the position today. I got the call first thing this morning and e-mailed information the get the transfer started. I got the job. I accepted the job. If they could offer me the same to stay here, I would in a heart be....and I made that clear. But there has been no counter offer as of yet. So, it looks like I will be starting a new job in a couple of weeks. Ho hum, Y'all!!

Trapped

2010-09-17T11:29:00.001-04:00

I couldn't think of what to post about. My brain was getting fried from the thinkin'. But I was reading on other blogs about wanting fall to get here. And that got me to thinking. I thought about a number of things, but mostly why we are always in a hurry. Today, we are living in a "give-it-to-me-right-now" society.

As a kid, we only had a house phone. But today I can't make the short drive to work without seeing gads of people yakking on their cell phones. And it is my deepest belief that they make the roads more dangerous. What are they talking about, anyway, that can't wait till they get to a stopping point? Not that I am opposed to cell phones. Not by any means. I have one myself. I just don't use it when I am driving. If I think it's important I pull over.

As a kid I recall having only four channels. We had ABC, NBC, CBS, and if we were lucky we had PBS. And usually we had to go outside to adjust the antenna just to get a somewhat clear picture. Now, everyone has to have the works. Full cable with all 58 of the movie channels. I saw a commercial the other day for a sattelite tv provider advertising over 200 channels, plus all the movie channels free from some period of time. I have cable tv, but it's just basic tv. No DVR, no special channel to show you what's coming on at 3 a.m. Just about 50 or 60 channels. And the funny thing is there's rarely anything worth watching. Some channels even play daily marathons of sitcoms and other programs I never even cared for anyway. And what's with paying for channels I don't EVER watch. I don't watch Spanish channels. I know a little Spanish, but not nearly enough to understand a tv program. Give me the good old days when after school meant going outside to play till dinner time. Then settling down to watch a good family movie together. Cartoons were for Saturday morning only. Now, there's 24 hour cartoon channels, albeit, some of them are a bit racey for kids in my opinion.

And what's up with microwaves? We have one. We use it for popcorn, warming water for tea and such, reheating leftovers. But who wants an entire meal that's been pre-cooked and frozed, then thawed and recooked in a micorwave? I used to eat them. But that was when I had a job that only gave me 30 minutes for lunch. Is it so important that you rush a crazy meal together like that so you can go watch a program you're not really that interested in?

Do people ever have family time any more? We didn't really eat at the dining room table when I was a kid. But there's a good reason. It wasn't big enough. Dinner was usually at my grandparent's house, as the lived less than a mile away. So dinner was usually for aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents. So we got our plates and ate where we plopped. But it was never alone in front of a tv or in the bed room. It was often we family in the living room, maybe with a football game on. Or on the porch with cousins. But family interaction was key. I know of a family nearby me that rarely even spends time together. The two children, late teens maybe early 20's, are wrapped up in their own goings-on, the wife has a second part time job and is often not home till 9 p.m. and the husband works full time, but runs around on his free time with "his" projects. I thought "HOW SAD!"

Some times Mike and I will play with the dogs in the yard, mess with the chickens on weekends, have a cigarette on the porch in the evening with drinks. With all of today's technology we stuck in a speed trap. I was (am) a big fan of the country group Alabama. One of my fav songs of theirs goes something like this:

I'm in a hurry to get things done

I rush and rush till life's no fun

All I gotta do is live and die

But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

I love the summer time. It's my favorite season. I enjoy spring and fall, as well. I'm not big on winter, but I still see the wonders and beauty of that cold, short-day season. The snow is beautiful and the cold restarts life. This morning as I was backing out of the drive way I noticed the little maple tree I planted last year was just starting to turn red. Maples are so pretty this time of year. I bet Joanna @ Boonedocks Wilcox is getting a beautiful show right about now. It won't be long before there's frost on the pumpkin. Why not take a look around. See the wonders of what God has given us. Tell your spouse, partner, children, parents, you love them. Take a moment before you leave for work or school to breathe in the cool, crisp morning air. Do some cloud watching. Plant some flowers or a tree. Savor the taste or your coffee, your meal, your dessert. Bake a cake. Make life fun.

A Nest Box Giveaway And A Job

2010-09-14T16:41:00.001-04:00

Well, I had a nice little visit with my aunt. Last time I saw her she was in the hospital. She just had surgery and was a bit out of it. She just celebrated her 80th birthday! She looks great for 80, too! She left Monday to fly to New York to visit friends.

I rounded up the little chicks yesterday evening and put them in cages. Man, that was hard! Those things can move! And they kept running into a little grove of trees half grown with shrubbery. It took about 45 minutes to catch seven of the buggers. I caught them because there were nearly 15 or so of them, but they kept disappearing one by one. I figured predators have had enough of my chickens. Altogether I have 16 little ones wating to find a home. NO, make that 19 of them. I forgot the Black Austrolorps. Got three of them. Got an ad in the Bargain Trader coming out tomorrow. We will see how it goes, I guess.

I've heard nothing on the job. A friend who works in the CO2 department said they should be contacting me by week's end for an interview. As of Friday, there were 10 applicants, but my boss sent in another application today. And I don't know how many more may have applied on line. I will ceratainly keep you all posted.

AND NOW..... for all you chicken keepers out there! Pam over at Life On A Southern Farm is giving away a 3-HOLE CHICKEN NEST BOX!!

Ain't she a beaut!! And she can be yours! All you have to do is go over to her blog Nest Box Giveaway and post a comment! You also get extra entries for blogging and tweeting and all that jazz!! Good luck to all who enter!!

Much Ado About Nothing

2010-09-07T13:25:00.000-04:00

That's pretty much what I have to share. I've been my normal busy person, but nothing really worth mentioning. I'm still camera-less. But there really hasn't been much to photograph lately. I did go play a round of golf the other day with my cousin. It was only the second round of golf I've ever played in my life. I shot a 119. If you know nothing of golf, then know that that is one horrible score. If you are familiar with the sport, however, then that's quite an improvement from my original score of 135! I have an outdated Game Cube that I play Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2006 on. I LOVE that game. I have played it so much that I am now a better golfer than Tiger Woods, and I have more money than him! What a fantasy!

It was an uneventful Labor Day weekend. We did nothing special. Spent time around the house. Messed with the chickens. I have some half grown pullets that I want to put in with the egg layers. Mike has been buthering some of the older hens, so I am trying to replace them. But I know I can't just throw them in, as the other hens will peck them half to death. So I have a small coop set us adjacent to the larger one. That way they become familiar with each other. It worked before, so I'm giving it another go. I also have some small bitties that were getting too big for the little coop I had them in, so I moved them to a bigger one. My cousin, who works on the fishing boats, has been staying with us, as well. They haven't been fishing the last two weeks, so he's been staying with us, just chilling out. It's just been a weekend of visiting and resting.

No news on the job. They advertise jobs for 10 days, and September 10th will be the last day. So I may know by the end of the week, or it may be the first of next week. I will certainly let you know, though.

I made my blog rounds. I didn't comment of everyone, but I did read. What a conglomeration of posts! When you think of each post as a whole, it's quite funny to think of it all. I read of hair, illness, loneliness, luggage, regrets, hibiscus flowers, getting back to artsy-ness, regrets, home buying, and so much more. Altogether I think it would make a fabulous book! Have a great week everyone!

Catching Up A Bit

2010-09-03T14:19:00.000-04:00

Hey everybody! It's me, Randy! Remember me? Yeah, I'm still busy as usual. Hurricane Earl came by, but I didn't even notice, really. We had a little rain and a few good, hard gusty winds around 2 a.m. or so, but I slept right through it. Actually I got up around 1 a.m and again around 3 a.m., just my usual waking up. It drives me crazy, actually, but that's a whole other post. But I didn't really hear any rain or wind. The chickens were all fine this morning, and the three baby pigeons were okay. One of the pigeons has feathered out, and I think will be a pretty white color. The other two were born yesterday and the day before. They're still pretty tiny. But we survived Earl just fine. We were lucky, really. If that thing had come straight onto land, we'd have been hurting in a bad way. Hope you faired well, Linda, by the way.

I have also applied for another job, within the same company of course. I don't think it's the ideal job by any means. And it will certainly mean more hours, and being on call every other weekend. But it also means a good bit more money. My boss was NOT happy about it at all, either. But it was either this, or take a second job. I had a second job at one time. I was working 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., going home to change and maybe grab a bite to eat, then going to my second job to work from 6 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. I was getting home at 1 a.m. and getting back up at 6 a.m. to get ready for my day job. I felt like I was staying at a motel rather than my home. I really didn't want to do that again. I explained that to my boss, who incidentally, put in my annual review that he'd recommend me for a management job. But that sort of job may be available in 6 months or 10 years. It's a gamble really. I am hoping that he will make it worth my while to stay rather than change divisions. My new job would be delivering liquid carbon dioxide to customers. That's going from a cushy office job to working a truck in the field. Sounds pretty dumb, doesn't it? I think it does. I'm afraid it could be a dead end job. But my dad said it would be wise to go where the money is. And not to hesitate to take a job elsewhere if that was where the money was. But being a loyal employee and a hustler at getting the job done, even if it is more work than there's time for, it's a tough call. I haven't had my inteview yet, but I have heard from a couple of guys in the CO2 division that the job is mine if I want it. It certainly makes for restless nights. It also means that blogging could very well have to go away, at least for a while. I don't want that either, but I suppose we will have to see what comes of it all.

Anyhow, my aunt is coming to visit from Texas. She lives in Temple, Texas and is going to New York to visit some long time friends of hers. But she is stopping here in North Carolina to visit her sister for a few days. She'll be here on Wednesday, the 8th, through Monday the 13th. I'm taking Friday off to spend a three day weekend with her. She was like another grandmother to me growing up. She's my great aunt, my grandmother's sister. My grandmother passed away in 1998, so she's really the only "grandmother" I have now. I haven't seen her in five years, so it should be a nice visit.

I want to thank each of you for your words of encouragement on my last post. Sometimes life just gets a bit confusing. It reminds me of when I was driving a 18-wheeler with my brother. I think we were in Alabama or Arkansas when our directions said to "turn at the light". My brother got so angry and frustrated. Do we turn left or do we turn right? He turned left, and it was the wrong way. We then had to find a place to turn around and go the other direction. If you know anything about 18-wheelers, they are notorious for not being able to turn around very easily, especially in the city. I'm hoping that if I'm not going in the right direction I will be able to turn things around fairly easily. Hey Ho! as John would say.

I'm Not Dead! I Feel Fine!

2010-08-25T16:39:00.000-04:00

I'm not posting much these days, and I'm certainly not reading much, either. I'm sorry to those of you that think I should be doing other wise. It's just that I can't seem to find a moment to breathe. Work has been intense lately. I'm still trying to figure out how to do twice the work with half the workers. That seems to be common in today's economy. Of course, there's been plenty to do at home, as well. This past weekend we moved Bucky and China to a larger coop. Our nieghbor Dustin tried grabbing Bucky first. Then I gave it a shot. Finally Mike managed to grab the little bugger. He is the absolute meanest rooster I have ever seen! And the smallest! I guess he tried to make up for his size! He's put marks on both Mike and I before, and has even drawn blood! He's a pretty rooster. (see his pic in my last post) But I just assume not go near him if I can help it. Our swimming pool has been green for a month now. We've attempted to clean it, but each time we get close we get more rain, or get busy and skip a few days. So out of frustration, Mike has emptied it out. I guess it will go unused till next summer.

I still haven't put those chickens in the Bargain Trader. I don't think they are going to be so easy to sell this time of year, really. And all these little ones are certainly too small to eat.

Okay, so this pic is a couple of weeks old. But really, they aren't much bigger than that. It's funny, when I go out to feed them in the evening time, I always feed the chickens under the lean-to first. But all these little chicks are running around, so they come running to me to get some dinner. They are quite skiddish, though. For every time I take a step towards them they turn and run like I was a fox. It's the funniest thing, really. I have to let out a giggle when I see them do it, even when I am alone.

I am thinking of going back to school. Really, I'd like to go to nursing school. When I first went off to college I was a biology pre-med major. I wanted to be a doctor. But I thought it was more important to play volleyball in the sand pits than attend boring labs and lectures on microbiology and cellular morphology. They even sound boring! My grades starting slipping, so I ran off to Texas, finished my degree in ministry, then ran off into the army to pay off the sacks of loans I had taken out to pay for six years of college. Now, nursing school would be too hard to pull off, methinks. I'd have to attend labs and clinicals during the day time, and I'm not sure how I could work a job to pay my bills and go to classes like that at the same time. But lately, I have been thinking, maybe I should persue a Masters in Business Management. I like my current job, it pays fairly well, especially for this area, and a Masters degree could potentially open doors for major advancements. But of course, I've not really done any research. It's such an ambitious goal. Most of the time it seems unobtainable. Sometimes I think I really just need to simplify my life. But I can't think of too many things that I'd want to go.

Well, there's no rhyme or reason to today's post. I'm just typing as I think. Hope everyone is doing well. I apologize for not visiting much lately. I will be back to normal soon.

Back To Mormalcy?

2010-08-19T11:27:00.001-04:00

I love summer. I think summer is the most wonderful time of the year. Even from a kid I always enjoyed summer. I was very close to my great aunt. My great uncle passed away when I was four years old from cancer. My aunt remarried and moved from New Jersey to Texas. So from the ages of 8 to 18 I flew to Texas every summer to stay with her and her husband. I've also spent summers working on fishing boats, playing football in the fields, building forts in the woods...you know, all that boy stuff boys do when they are young. From the time I can remember, my summers have always been busy. This summer, really, has been no exception. It's been one thing after another.

Of course, I was a pall bearer at my cousin's funeral last weekend. That's not an activity anyone wants to attend during the summer, or any other time of the year for that matter. My poor aunt told me that she was holding up okay, but the hard part was going to be after all the people were gone. She has a 21 year old son with Down Syndrome. Her son was her support line. I told her that her other sons would help look after her, but she said it was different with Charley. She said they looked after each other. She's still gonna be in need of good thoughts and prayers.

My great aunt that moved to Texas is coming to visit next month. They are on their was to visit friends in New York, but they are stopping by here in Greenville to give my mom a break. She has been living with my other great aunt (sisters) who is 91 years old. She has broken her hip twice and is not mentally or physically able to care for herself any longer. I'm gonna try to take a day off to visit her for the weekend while she is here.

We are once again in possession of too many chickens. We've had a good hatch or two this year, and we have lots of young chicks. Since I am completely unable to sex a chicken at hatch I often wait to see if it's gonna be a cockrel or hen before getting rid of it. I try to keep some of the hens to replace to older hens that are no longer laying. The older hens end up in chicken and pastry like the one we had last night. In fact, I'm having leftovers for lunch today. My two biggest daddies are Perogi and Bucky.

That's Bucky on top. He's my mixed bantam and Perogi on bottom. He's RI Red, but I'm sure he's got something else in him because he's got a pea comb. But I've got other daddies, too. I've got a couple of silkie roosters that mated with white bantam hens. So I've got some bantam chicks running around with feathered feet and five toes. But I need to get rid of some of them, so I will be putting an ad in the Carolina Bargain Trader to sell some of them off.

Oh, I also got another pigeon chick born! My white pair has laid on eggs three times this year to no avail. Finally, yesterday, a single white chick hatched! I'm so hoping it lives. My black pair has hatched two chicks this year. Four actually, but only one gets the needed attention, I guess. So only two have survived. She is now sitting on another egg or two. Here's to hoping!

Still Here

2010-08-12T10:19:00.000-04:00

Just to let you know I'm still here. Filling in for our inside sales guy, who is out on vacation this week. Also, my cousin passed away this week. He was only 35 years old, in good health, didn't smoke or drink, and he had a stroke. His family has had a rough go of it. His father drowned a few years ago. His younger brother has Down Syndrome. And his older brother hurt his leg bad at work a couple of years ago, and still has trouble with it. If you're a praying person, please remember the family of "Charley". I'll be back later.

If You Can Read This, Thank A Teacher

2010-08-05T16:09:00.001-04:00

I was thinking today about my English teacher from high school. She, I think, was the coolest teacher I ever had. She made learning fun. We read Shakespeare in high school. Now for the average young teenager, Shakespeare is no where near the top of any reading list, if there absolutely has to be one. But she actually made it interesting. She would give us the play version. Then students were assigned parts to read. One might be Othello, one might be Iago, one might be Hamlet and so forth. THEN, if the weather was nice, we would go outside on the lawn to read the play whilst sitting on blankets. But not by any ordinary means. We would, instead of using the conventional door, exit through her classroom window. AND THAT'S NOT ALL....after simply reading the play, we would then take an excerpt from the play, put on make-shift costumes, go to the auditorium and act out the play...on film.

Sometimes she would let us order burgers and fries from Keech's Grill just down the road from the school. Instead of the regular school lunch of vegetable beef soup from a giant can we would eat unhealtily in her classroom. She had a giant inflatable gorilla that sat in the corner of the classroom. She had a little bear on a unicycle that would ride a string across the ceiling. Instead of student desks we had dinner style tables with students facing each other. We had REAL round table discussions. And we could write anything (but perverse) things on the table with markers. When the table was full, we'd paint it and start over. She pushed her books and things up and down the halls in a grocery buggy. To say the least, Mrs. Annie Cutler was the most amazing teacher I ever had. And I spent six years in college.

However, she was NOT an easy teacher. Her tests were often open-ended questions that required a paragraph or two. And they often were detailed enough that you had to do some major thinking and material recall to answer correctly. But in the end it was all worth all the work. When we had papers to write with a certain word count, we were not allowed to count words such as a, and, the, but, nor, for, and so. We were also required to keep a journal that we had to write in at least three times a week. We could write about anything we wanted to with the understanding that she would be reading and grading what we wrote. It was really a way to get good grades to counter act her often difficult tests. I once wrote an entire page using all the words I was not allowed to count in my papers. I got an A for originality. Really.

I was scanning the net looking for information on her. I found a site called "Rate My Teacher". Ratings were from one to five with one being bad and five being great. For easiness her rating was a 2.7. As I said before, she wasn't easy, but she was fun. But for helpfulness and clarity she had gotten 5.0 in both categories. Here is a quote I found about her on the same site.

"She has PASSION and instills it in us for learning. She uses learning styles to the advantage of ALL!"

She also hosted parties at her home for her students. Not the crazy-go-get-drunk-teenager type parties. She'd grill hot dogs and hamburgers. Each student would bring a side, a drink, or a dessert. And on occasion we'd roast marshmallows over a camp fire. She had her bathroom painted to look like meadow with a white picket fence around the wall and a tree painted up the wall and branches extended across the ceiling. Many thought she wore the same clothes every day. But that wasn't the case. She would find a shirt or skirt she liked on sale and would buy 5 or 6 of the exact same thing. I know this for a fact, as she brought her students into her room to have a look in her closet!

I had heard that she had passed away. To my extreme dismay I found her obituary on line. I'm not sure what the cause was, but she passed away on March 7, 2009 at the age of sixty-three. That's not the sort of news you want to hear about a hero. Mrs. Annie Cutler was a great teacher and an amazing person. I'll never forget her khaki skirts with blue or pink blouses and the signature sweater tied around her shoulders. And for whatever reason I was thinking of her today, I thought it would be a great tribute to memorialize her in a blog post. Teachers are wonderful resources that carry on throughout our lives. I think that the get far too little credit (and pay) for all they do for us and our children. SO........

THANK YOU MRS. ANNIE CUTLER

You Left A Legacy!!

A Cry Baby?

2010-08-02T13:50:00.000-04:00

Well, the weekend came and went, a bit uneventful. We went to the folks and tried a little fishing, but the weather was uncooperative. The rain we weren't suppose to get came on Saturday afternoon, and again on Sunday. The weatherman, or liarman, as I prefer to call him, said it was going to be partly cloudy with temps lower than they have been. They seem to do well on the temps, but they have a hard time "guessing" at the actual weather. I should have been a guesserologist. You get paid to guess at the weather! Anyway, it's Monday, and back to the salt mines.

I appreciate all the well wishes I got last week. But looking at all of that I must have made myself sound like some sort of cry baby! I would be lying if I said I was never a cry baby. I'm an awful patient! When I get sick I need a "mom" to bring me chicken noodle soup, check my fever regularly, bring me cold, wet rags...well, you get the idea. A BIG BABY!! I get a bit fussy when people break plans for less than satisfactory reasons, too. But, for the most part I keep my mouth shut when I need to, and often when it needs to be open. I do tend to make a lot of plans for myself to get this or that done with a timeline. But if I say I'm gonna do something, then that is my intention. And occasionally I overbook myself. I might cross a deadline or two, but I'll get the job done. Besides, I'm happier when I'm busy. I prefer to be a constructive type of person. There's always something to do. Laundry, mow the grass, paint the shed, a new roof for the pigeon coop, move the bantams to a bigger coop, sell the bitties, paint the porches, replace the steps. Okay, most of these are really just examples, but things to get done nonetheless. Maybe you have different things to get done. I'm quite sure if you look around, it would not be that hard to find things to do.
From all of that rambling, I need to deduce that boredom is an excuse. I do not like to be bored, and it's a rarity if I ever am. I do find time to relax. I eat dinner slowly. I watch television. I eat ice cream in bed while watching "The First 48" or something on the History channel. The only REAL drawback I find to being busy, whether it's working or playing, is that it makes time go by so much faster. It astounds me that in less than a year I will be half of seventy. I have a feeling I'll be one of those guys that has some sort of mid-life crisis. Pityful me. But I don't want to be a cry baby. Life is good, isn't it? Sure, there are ups and downs. We lose friends, we disagree with family, we have financial hardships, we face illness. Those are facts of life. But we breathe, we see beautiful flowers, birds, mountains, we talk with people, we make new friends, we listen to music. Overall, if we stop and smell the roses, as clicheish as that may sound, we will realize that life, after all, really is pretty good.
Okay, my blubbering has gone on long enough. I'll leave you with a pic I took at the beach that I really love. Have a great week!!

Okay, I gotta laugh at myself. after proofreading before posting I realized I was whining to start with! I'm not a cry baby, though! Really!!

It's Been Long Enough, But I Got Some Awards...

2010-07-29T16:45:00.000-04:00

It's been a week since I last posted. I'm quite sure many of you are saying that's quite long enough. I couldn't agree more. But if you knew what my last week has been like.... But I'm not here to gripe or complain. I've read other blogs, and my issues are minute, no offense intended, indeed. I enjoy all the blogs I read, and any of you who are dealing with "things", I do hope you see better days soon. Myself, I have just been laiden with a plethera of "things" to get done.

Now, on to business. I received two...not one, but two awards today. Thank you so sweetly Marie Anne St Jean. Is that as in denim or French? Just wondering. You can find her at In The Garden With Sow-n-Sow. She was nice enough to bestow upon me two awards. They are as follows:

And

Now, for me to have these awards I must share seven things about myself.

1. I have a third nipple. Just kidding. But I do have a large scar on top of my head. When I was 10 I was doing back dives of the side of the swimming pool. I missed the water. It hurt.

2. I smoke pot. Just kidding again. Tried it a couple of times and so hated it. I coughed and choked and nearly puked. I do love plants, though. I have a handful of house plants and I'm working on the yard a little at a time as $ permits.

3. I have the body of an olympic gymnast. Not really. I WISH!! I could stand to lose 15 pounds or so from my belly.

4. My dream job is to be a traffic dirrector. NOT! I did have a temp job for 3 days once counting traffic at stop lights in town, though. When I was a kid I either wanted to be a zoo keeper or draw bridge operator. No joking about the bridge thing.

5. My favorite food is brussel sprouts. Gross! I hate them! HATE THEM!! I love Mexican food and chicken. And if you combine the two it's just about the best meal you can get. I know, I know. I raise chickens. How can I eat them? I just can. I won't kill my own, though. Someone else has to do that.

6. I used to be a preacher. No kidding. I have a bachelor's degree in pastoral ministries. I was a youth pastor for 5 years and was ordained. But I was sent off to Iraq and the church frowned upon certain aspects of my life (as I'm sure the military would have if they knew what the church knew). So I came home and moved on to a new life.

7. I once froze off a couple of warts with liquid nitrogen that I got from work. Really. We sell liquid nitrogen and liquid oxygen. It used to be my job to fill N2 and O2 cylinders. So I once used a little liquid nitrogen to freeze off a couple of warts on my finger. And it hurt. For days. Boys and girls, liquid nitrogen, liquid oxygen, liquid argon, or any other cryogenic liquid or dry ice are not something to play with. They are kinda neat though.

Now to share these awards with seven others. I usually try to share awards with new people I haven't given an award to, or at least someone I haven't given one to in a while. I would just say everyone, but then no one could pass it on! So here's my list.

http://www.gardenchickmusic.blogspot.com/
http://www.phillipoliver.blogspot.com/
http://www.3acrehomestead.blogspot.com/
http://www.jabacue.blogspot.com/
http://www.fromsophiesview.blogspot.com/
http://www.thatbritishwoman.blogspot.com/
http://www.lifeatfoxpawlodge.blogspot.com/

Thanks Marie Ann. That was very thoughtful of you. Hope you all have a pleasant evening!

My Home Town-Belhaven, North Carolina

2010-07-22T13:33:00.000-04:00

I thought I share a little about my home town, where I grew up. But first, I wanted to let you know about yesterday's pic. That was a pic of a Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphin. Several times a year they swim up in the creek behind my parents' house. They are chasing the plethera of speckled trout, mullets, and other tasty fish. They were actually partially breaching and blowing water, but my camera just wasn't fast enough to catch all that. They are nice to look at, but they ruin the fishing. You can forget catching anything when they show up.

I grew up in the small town of Belhaven, North Carolina. It's a lovely little town nestled right on the Pungo River. It is only 8 miles from the Pamlico Sound and sits at only seven feet above sea level.

I actually grew up at Pamlico Beach, a small waterfront community about 13 miles southeast of Belhaven. It is really country living, but quite the peaceful life. There's no hustle and bustle of city life. You won't find night clubs or twenty-four hour grocery stores. In fact, there's only one grocery store, Food Lion, in this quaint village of approxiamtely 2,000 inhabitants. The big industries are tourism, bed-and-breakfasts, and fishing.

One of the more popular bed-and-breakfasts is River Forest Manor. It is a beautful plantation type home converted into a B-N-B with a restaraunt.

My family occasionally visits for a seafood dinner after church on Sunday.

There are a few small shops downtown. Tourists can often be seen strolling down Main Street on golf carts seeing the sights and lovely homes along Water Street. There are a few small eateries, as well, in the area.

With any community so close to the rivers, sounds, and even the ocean, fishing for a living is quite common. I, myself, come from a long line of family members that fish or have fished for a living. My grandfather started with a small boat and a handful of crab pots when he was only 12 years old. He is 78 years old today and still fishes for a living. Of course, I have also made money at fishing, as has my dad, my mom's dad, my mom's grandfather, and many uncles, aunts, cousins, etc.

In fact, the first job I ever had was on a fishing boat. I was six months old. My mom put me in a fish box, and I sat in the wheel house watching the large steering wheel turn from side to side. My grandfather gave my mom $20.00 because I was on "wheel watch". I could do an entire blog on commercial fishing, so I will leave that topic here.

Living near the water means there are many opportunites for water sports. There is always fishing with a fishing pole. Speed boating and sailing are quite common, as well as water skiing, hydrosliding, and personal water crafts.

There's a history to Belhaven, along with some of the surrounding small towns. North Carolina is on the central eastern seaboard of the United States where many of the early settlements were. One of Belhaven's historic buildings is the town hall.

The town hall houses the police department, the town museum, and the town hall offices. There are nearby historic towns and districts, too, such as Bath, N.C., North Carolina's oldest town from 1789. It's roots go further back, but that is when it was recognized as a township.

All in all, Belhaven is a nice place to live, particularly is you like the peace and quite of a small town. There are drawbacks. It's about a 40 minute drive to the nearest Wal-Mart in Washington, N.C. As previously mentioned, there are no 24 hour stores. Some of the stores even close by 7 p.m. And where my parents live, it is a 20 minute drive into town. But that is a small price to pay for the peaceful, picturesque place to enjoy life.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-21T10:53:00.000-04:00

He's Here!!

2010-07-16T13:03:00.000-04:00

Actually, while I was posting yesterday, he was in the middle of being born! Tanner was born yesterday at 2:53 p.m. He was 7 lbs 13 oz and was 18 and a half inches long. I went straight to the hospital after work, and of course I forgot my camera! So no pics yet. He has a pointy upper lip and no chin! Renell, his mama, says he looks like a little turtle. She said once he started to come out it was an easy birth. She's getting tubal ligation today. He was supposed to get snip snip today, but he had a bit of a fever yesterday, so they are postponing it to make sure they can prevent infection. But all in all he's adorable! He can't cry for crap. He sounds like a little dog wimpering! But I'm sure that will change soon enough! Have a great weekend y'all!

Waiting On Tanner

2010-07-15T14:20:00.001-04:00

Well, my sister has been having contractions for a couple of days now. She went to the hospital day before yesterday...well, around 11:30 p.m. with contractions. They were 3-5 minutes apart, but only every other one was a hard contraction. So they sent her home and told her not to return till she could no longer stand the pain, and to take Tylenol for pain. She went back to the hospital this morning around 4:30 a.m. I was so smart as to leave my cell phone at home on the night stand beside the bed. So I called my mom mid morning. She said Renell had an epidural and was somewhat relaxed. Relaxed? I thought the idea was to be stressed in order to get that thing out!! Anyway, it's mid afternoon now, and I still haven't heard anything. I will call later to find out. But his name will be Tanner Lewis. I'll try to post tomorrow to let you all know about them.

Oddly Enough, I'm Glad To Be Back

2010-07-13T11:41:00.000-04:00

My vacation was pretty nice. I stayed on the beach in Rodanthe, North Carolina with my family. Lots of my family. I enjoy seeing my family, but there were nearly 30 of us. It didn't get as hairy as I thought it would. I'm sure many of you know what I mean. Family is family. You laugh at their weddings, cry at their funerals, but seeing them once or twice a year is enough. Still I love them and care about them. We spent most of our time chillin' on the beach or swimming in the pool. We stayed in a big, beautiful house.

It had a private pool that the kids really enjoyed.

We visited the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island.

We watched Kite Surfers ride the waves.

We watched the 4th of July Fireworks from the deck of the house, though my pics were quite blurry.

The beaches were lovely, but sand in the bathing suit is no fun.

Of course, I had to take a pic of the Atlantic Ocean. If you squint really hard, maybe you can see my friends over in Europe!

We did other things, too. We had a couple of shopping days. We went to the Wright Brothers Memorial. We had a couple of game nights, and had dinner in my uncle's seafood restaraunt. We did have a lot of fun!!

And I want to include this panoramic I took. The first morning I woke up, put on a pot of coffee, and went out on the deck for a ciggy ( I know, I'm trying to re-quit). No one else was awake, and it was so peaceful. I LOVED it. I thought it was about 8 or 8:30 a.m. But when I went back in and looked at the clock it was only 6:15 a.m.! You just don't get up that early on vacation. But check out this lovely view.

It was a nice

Beach Trip!!

2010-07-01T12:54:00.001-04:00

It is all set in stone. I have planned out my beach trip. Anyone gonna come along?

I will start with a comfy flight out.....

After the flight, it's just a short drive down to the water.....

I picked a nice, quiet little town by the beach.....

I also picked out a great spot down by the sea with an excellent view!!

And you can't go to the beach without playing in the sand.....

There are strict rules, so you must mind your P's and Q's. None of that stuff you usually do.....

You can't go to the beach without doing a little fishing, right?!

Or maybe you are looking for the big one.....

All that fun can get you thirsty. But you can't drink just anything....

But I'm sure you can find a good one somewhere close.....

I was gonna suggest a little ice cream in the summer heat, but that seems to be a bit of a sticky situation....

And before the ride home, dinner is a must. I'd suggest a good pasta meal....

If I don't get back around before vacation (I'm leaving Friday afternoon) I'll see you guys week after next!!

Post Script....Thanks for the idea Tracey!!

The Final Countdown

2010-06-28T15:32:00.001-04:00

My feelings are hurt. Was it something I said? Did I do something wrong? I lost a follower over the weekend. I had 62 on Friday, and today I am at 61 followers. Okay, I know I haven't been posting as frequently as I should. And certainly not as frequently as a good reader would like. And I apologize for that. I don't always post about chickens, but my life isn't just chickens. I love my chickens. I enjoy raising them. They are a lot of fun. In fact, two of my hens hatched out their littles broods yesterday. And lately, I haven't had any good pics. I, too, apologize for that. I've been without camera for a few weeks. I should have that remedied in another week or two. With all that being said, I can see how my blog may have become boring. I am sorry, and I hope you will come back.

Now, I have questions about being followed and following protocall. Sixty-one blogs is a lot to keep up with. I do try, however hard it may be. No, I don't just read the chicken blogs. Okay, I'd be lying if I said that I didn't have favs to read, but I still enjoy all of the blogs I read. Really, truly, and honestly, I do. I don't just read other chicken blogs. I read plant blogs, life blogs, garden blogs, local blogs, national blogs, international blogs. In fact, I have tried to follow every blog that follows me. It seems like the right thing to do. Wouldn't it be rude otherwise? Are you required to follow everyone who follows you? But I have seen blogs with 200, 300, or even over 1,000 followers! Not that I expect to have that many followers, but if I did, there's no way I could keep up with all of them. I did make a list over at dobbies.com . I am on the list of More Chicken Keeping Blogs We Love. Some of my followers and ones I follow are on that list, too! I think that is sooo cool! Congrats to you if you made the list! But I am sorry if I cause any of you to lose interest, get bored, or just tired of my ramblings. I hope that over the next weeks or so that may change.

Work has kept me busy, as usual. Sure there are good days and bad days. Anyone who never has a bad day at work is disillusioned. Even people who land dream jobs, like pro athletes, singing and movie stars, and CEO's still have bad days at work. You think the CEO of BP isn't having any bad days lately? But overall, I do enjoy my job. And I am aspiring to upper management. Yeah, I have goals. I'd be a fool not to have them. But starting today, I got my first raise in three years. Between getting bought out and facing a bad economy we just got passed by. No, it's not like my salary doubled or anything. But these days you take what you can get! I'm sure most of you know what I mean!

The weather has been AWFUL!! I do love my summertime. Our temps have been in the upper 90's F. (98F today) And that I can deal with....at least until I get older. But we haven't gotten any rain. And we really need it bad. My squash is all gone. I'm trying to save my butternut squash, but it's an up hill battle. So far so good with my watermelons and tomatoes. The corn is curled and the canteloupes and cucumbers and wilted. I try to keep water on the maters and melons, hoping I can at least have a melon or two to take to the beach next week. My Impatiens, Zinnias, and Morning Glories are well watered, but still wilt in the day with it being so hot. Just send me some rain. Poor Farmer. He's hurt his back and is laid out flat. His grandson and wife have been working the field and taking all the veggies to market. But Dustin says they will probably have to till in most of what's left. RAIN!!!!

I will post later this week on the chickens! Have a great day everyone! I am on the final countdown till vacation!

This and That and a GIVEAWAY

2010-06-21T11:44:00.001-04:00

What a week last week was! A co-worker's daughter was in a bad car accident a week ago yesterday. She was driving when she ran off the road. She over-corrected and rolled the Suburban 4 or 5 times. She was the only one badly injured. She's in a neck brace for at least 8 weeks and cannot take it off, even to shower. She shattered a vertebrae in her neck and was inches from paralysis. She went home from the hospital on Friday. She was qutie lucky, to say the least. But that put her dad out of work for all of last week. So I was doing my best to handle my job and his. He is our inside salesman, so I spent quite a bit of time on the phone with customers and outside salesmen. But we got through it. It's always rough at work when anyone is out, as we are at our limit with personnel.

I entered a giveaway this morning! Pam and Farm Man over at A Southern Farm are doing another nest box giveaway. I didn't enter the last couple cause I thought others deserved to get it. But I am entering this time. I may not win, but it's still fun, nonetheless. Maybe you are interested?! Go check it out!
http://georgiafarmwoman.blogspot.com/2010/06/henpals-3-hole-chicken-nesting-box.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LifeOnASouthernFarm+%28Life+on+a+Southern+Farm%29

I spent the weekend doing things around the house. We had a couple more chicks hatch this weekend. There were three actually, but I think the other hens got a hold of one. It was missing the next morning, and I found just a small tuft of downy feathers. I gathered the two remaining ones and put them in a brooder box. We've still got four more hens sitting on eggs. They should all start hatching soon, I think. I didn't really keep up when they started sitting. And sometimes it's hard to tell when they don't sit constantly. I had a hen hatch some out at nearly four weeks once cause she wouldn't stay on the eggs. I almost threw them out!

My Garden is looking okay. My corn is growing cobs now. I have watermelons I'm hoping will be ready for my vacation in two weeks. My crookneck squash is all dying, though. Same thing happened last year. These stuid little beetles eat holes in the base of the stalk, climb in, and eat my plants from the inside out! Makes me so mad I could spit!

Our baby pigeon is out and about now. He's still a bit ugly with his oversized beak, but I'm sure he will grow into it. The white pair keep laying eggs, but none ever hatch. She sits for maybe two weeks, then abandons the egg. I put a pigeon egg under a chicken yesterday, but I'm not sure how that will work. She may crush the poor thing.

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. It just seems I always have more to do than I really have time for! I'm going on vacation in a couple of weeks. My family is driving up from Beeville, Texas. They have rented a large house out at Rodanthe (Yes, the same place as the movie Nights in Rodanthe) for a week. So I will probably be out there with them. They rented the house a couple of years ago, but I didn't go then. I couldn't get off work. I hear it has a private in-ground pool, and is only a block from the beach! It will just be nice to see them all again.

Pigeons? Or Rats With Wings?

2010-06-15T10:38:00.001-04:00

I like our pigeons. We've lost more than we've kept. Quite a few flew off and never came back. I truly believe that they went right back to the man we bought them from. Of course, we asked. He said he'd keep an eye out for them, but we heard nothing back. Now, I'm convinced he's gotten my money and the birds. I only paid $5 USD a piece for them. Some I got for free. So I really shouldn't complain too much. But we were down to five birds. We had two females and three males. After being cooped up all winter and most of the spring, Mike thought it was time to let them fly. I knew that extra male wouldn't return. He would scrap with the other males on occasion, though nothing serious. He was more of a picked-on loner, really. I can't say I blame him for not coming back. On my drives to and from work I often see the power lines by the overpasses holding the weight of 20, 30, or more pigeons. There are even a few that hang around my work. I've I were a lone bachelor like him, I'd have done the same thing. Why hang around, when you can find the life you really want is out there waiting for you.

That left us with two pairs; one dark pair and one light pair. I haven't really named them, though I'm sure they will not end up on a dinner plate. I have flirted with a few names, but I haven't really stuck with anything. Somehow, I don't think they really care. As long as I keep giving them cracked grains and pellets.

I guess you are wondering if I've had any babies? Well, we have. The light pair started laying first.

This is the white pair. That's the female on the perch. The male is behind her in the nest box. He's more gray with brown bars on his wings. She's layed eggs three times. The first time she layed three. One got broken, one was pea sized, and the other she sat on, but nothing came of it. I thought it was still a bit early in the year, but then I thought of the pigeons in New York. The second set she sat on for a bit, but those two didn't hatch either. She is currently sitting on her third set of two eggs. I'm hoping it works out for her, as they are both dilligent parents. They take turns sitting on the eggs. You can tell from here, as the male is sitting on the eggs.

Then I have the dark pair. She sat on two eggs, and hatched out two babies. But one of them died. We had a few cool nights with rain early in the spring. I think the poor thing got too cold.

This is moma sitting on her baby. She puffed all up when I got too close. The baby was the ugliest little baby bird I had ever seen! At one point I thought something was wrong with it. It's neck was all puffed out. But it turned out his moma was just feeding him quite well. (I'm assuming it's a him. I can't tell them apart except for their cooing). Unfortunately, I don't have any pics of the baby. I just never got any. He's most grown up now, except for a few scraggly feathers on top of his heard. She and the male, both look pretty much the same, also take turns with the eggs.

They are in a new coop then last year. This one is sturdier. Some of you may remember, last year I lost a couple of pigeons to an owl attack. It was a very large owl with a four feet wing span. We built a stronger coop with a better area for nesting. Just before we did we had a Cooper's Hawk try to attack, but it was just about the time I was leaving for work. A shot from the .22 rifle sent him flying, and we haven't seen him since. The owl will never be returning.

Here's the five before our lone ranger left. That's him in the front.

What Do You Say?

2010-06-11T15:28:00.000-04:00

My birthday came and went. And another week is gone. Nothing special is happening. My dad had an appointment at the VA clinic this morning about his leg. Mike was supposed to watch my nephews and nieces, as they were staying with Grandma and Buddy. I haven't talked to any of them yet. I'm sure the kids went straight for the pool when they got there. William, our inside sales guy, and a friend, helped me process vendor invoices yesterday. We processed over $46,000.00 total. I'm hoping that's a good sign that we're having a good fiscal month.

The garden is coming along. I've already been picking squash, bush green beans, and cucumbers. I've got a few watermelons that are about baseball sized right now. Some of my corn is just starting to tassel out. I'm hoping to get some canteloupes, and I've got butternut squash growing this year. I've never grown that before. My okra all died, except 3 plants, and they are still only about 6 inches tall. My sweet potatoes are vining like crazy, but I've never grown them before, either.

I'v visited a few other blogs, and it seems all are busy. Some are going away, some need to go away (as in a trip, I mean). Some are like me, with bloggers block. What do you say, when you don't know what to say?

Mike's picking my up in a couple of hours, and we're going to my parent's again for the weekend. It seems to be the gathering spot for family. So, with that being said, I'll leave you with a good ENDING for the week while I spend the weekend searching for new blog ideas. Have a good weekend!!

Back to the Mines

2010-06-09T16:40:00.000-04:00

It was a lovely four-day weekend, though. Mike picked me up from work on Friday, and had my nephew and niece with him. I got home, did my afternoon chores...you know, feeding the chickens, gathering veggies....all the regular stuff. The kids were in the pool, and I joined them late evening. Saturday, and old friend came over to visit. My nephew and niece were there, so she called her daughter to bring over her grandson to play with them in the pool. The neighbor's son came over as well. Then another friend showed up as we getting all the grilling going. Mike had a couple of pork shoulders on the grill over oak wood since 8 a.m. that morning. So he brought his daughter over. Before long, it was a bit of a party. Sunday, another friend, who has a house in Chocowinity, on the Pamlico River invited us to join him. So we packed up a lunch of sandwiches and such and went fishing, swimming, and boating on the river. Monday I did odd things around the house, worked in the garden, played with the chickens. Our lady friend came over again, and we grilled again. Then, my acutal birthday, Tuesday, I spent a good part of the day chopping weeds in the garden. Oh, I also cleaned the big fish tank. The smaller one only had one fish in it, so I put it in a large jar with some plants rooting in it. I'm gonna clean the smaller one, and maybe put salt water fish in it. Or a lizard or spider or something. Mike and I had some smoked sausages for dinner and watch X-Men Origins-Wolverine. Just a relaxing evening at home. It was a busy weekend. Oh, I do have some pics of the river we went to. Mike took them a couple of weeks ago when he was there to help with some work.

Joel and Cheyanne in the pool

My other niece is at my parent's house (Grandma and Buddy) and called today to tell me happy birthday. Mom got on the phone and said they did think about me, but just didn't get around to calling. But they want to take Mike and I out to dinner Friday evening. All in all it was a nice birthday weekend. I need a few more of those....long weekends, not birthdays. I so hate getting older. But for now, it's back to work.

Birthday Break

2010-06-04T11:53:00.000-04:00

I'll be on the road this afternoon. I've gotta go to our Edenton store, pick up a truck and bring it back for servicing. Then I'll be away for a few days. My birthday is Tuesday, so I will be missing a few days from work....well deserved I might say, too. Wednesday's pick is of a sting ray that Mike and my nephew caught at my parent's house last weekend. Yes, that's what killed Steve Irwin, but it was much larger and still in the water. She had a baby come out when we pulled it out of the water. The baby was set free. The moma was cut up and used from blue crab bait in the crab pots. Hope you all have a pleasant weekend. See you next week!

Sky Watch Friday...Notice the Osprey (Sea Hawk nest on the channel marker!)

Wordless Wednesday

2010-06-02T16:59:00.000-04:00

Back for an Award

2010-06-01T14:06:00.000-04:00

I've had to be away for a while. I didn't go anywhere. I just wasn't able to be here. Well, I did go visit my parents' for Memorial Day weekend. There was fishing and barbecueing and swimming...all that good stuff. My birthday is next Tuesday, and I'm trying to get some of them to come to my house for my birthday. My brother couldn't believe I was planning my own birthday party. Of course, I asked who else was gonna do it? No volunteers. So I told everyone to bring their own meat for the grill. I'll set up a volley ball net. I have a pool. We might play some horse shoes. And we will grill out! I'm just not sure if I should buy my birthday cake, or make it myself. I haven't been using my camera lately. So I have no new pics to share. But I did get an award while I was away. My dear pole dancing friend Penny over at The Hen House gave me the versatile blog award. Thank you so much Penny!

That means I have to share about myself...again! Hmmm....let me think.

*I love to sing, but I sound like a dying mule.

*My biggest regret in life is not going to med school. I was a biology/pre-med major when I first started college.

*I have two brothers, and all three of us served in the military, but are no longer in. Me and one brother went to Iraq. My other brother went to Afghanistan.

*I'm growing tobacco in my garden by accident. A friend brought over a tray of seedlings he thought was collards, so I planted them. He found them on the side of the road. I soon found out that it was really toabacco.

*My driver license has an address I haven't lived at in four years.

*I recently got two fortunes from Chinese fortune cookies. One said, "God will give you everything you want." The other said, "Your income will increase." Neither one has happened.

Sometimes I pass these awards on, but I really hate to do that. How can I pick a few out of the blogs I read? I read them cause I enjoy them! So I am sending this award to all of you who read my blog and have not received it yet. Have a great day, and see ya around!

BRB...AFK

2010-05-25T14:21:00.001-04:00

Hey guys. I haven't been around this week. I gotta be away for a bit. No problems. I lost Elvis this week. He went missing for a few days, then I found him under the porch. I was heart broken. He was my Ki Ki. We also lost a kitten. Tiny Cat, as we named him, had health problems from birth. Poor thing didn't have a chance. If I have a chance I'll pop in soon. DON'T GO ANYWHERE! I'll be right back!

My Two Awards

2010-05-20T14:00:00.001-04:00

A couple of months ago I was given an award by Tracey at Crafty Scraps. I told her I would post it later, and I never did. I certainly was not ignoring her. I still have to award saved. I'd see it frequently, but I stay pretty busy, and just didn't get a round to it. I am sorry for that. But I am posting it today. I also got an award from Amy at At Home With Amy. So I decided to incorporate the two of them. I gotta name 10 things you didn't know about me. I may have shared some of this stuff. I can't remember. But I've gotten new followers since then anyway. I also have to name 5 things I hate. Then I have to nominate 10 people to do the same. A BIG, BIG THANK YOU to my wonderful friends Tracey and Amy.

From Tracey

From Amy

1. When Mike and I first talked about getting chickens it was a joke.

2. When I was a kid I put peanuts in my glass bottle coke.

3. I love to travel. I've been to 48 states and 7 other countries on 4 continents. But two of those countries were in Europe, and I only went to airports in Ireland and Holland.

4. When I was in 5th grade I punched a teacher and never got in trouble for it.

5. When I was 4 years old my family went to Mexico. I disappeared, and when they found me I was half way up a Mayan pyramid.

6. I used to bring dates to my Grandma's house to watch movies with her....but she was a cool-ass grandma!

7. When I was 10 years old I pulled a Greg Luganis while doing back dives in a pool in Florida. I missed the water, cracked my head on the concrete, filled the pool with blood, and I have to scar to prove it.

8. I love fried ice cream.

9. I love to be busy doing things outdoors.....in the country. I love the peace and quiet.

10. I still have three baby teeth.

I HATE...

1. Brussel Sprouts....Sorry Belgium

2. Shaving

3. People talking on the cell phone when they are driving

4. Cold Weather

5. Judgement out of Ignorance

That's me in a nut shell....how about you?

Joanne @ http://www.myrandominsanities.blogspot.com/

Renee @ http://www.oflemonsandhoney.blogspot.com/

Abby @ http://www.mutteringsfromthemoor.wordpress.com/

Kim @ http://www.lifeatgoldenpines.blogpsot.com/

Al @ http://www.houndini.worpress.com/

http://www.jabacue.blogpsot.com/

Joanna @ http://www.boonebockswilcox.blogspot.com/

Cat @ http://www.egginmypocket.blogspot.com/

Linda @ http://www.me-lindag.blogspot.com/

Toni @ http://www.gardenchickmusic.blogspot.com/

I know some of you aren't too keen on these sorts of things. And some may have already done it. But it keeps things interesting. Shine a little light in the corners of your life for us!

A Number of Things

2010-05-19T15:16:00.007-04:00

Okay, so I have a lot to post about. That seems to happen a lot, but I don't get around to all of it. Then it becomes old news. Then I end up not sharing some things because that happened three weeks ago. Who cares?! I'm gonna share a few things today, but still not all of it because it would be an insanely long post. Besides, it can become some boring details anyway.

Thanks for the thoughts of comfort on my Monday. I got up at 3:30 this morning to go pee, and it was raining again. Then at 6:30 this morning it was coming down in buckets, as the morning news anchor, Lynette Taylor, put it. I was glad the chicks were in the brooder. They are still outside, but they are under the shelter. Wanna see some pics of them? I got some before I scooped them up and some of them in the brooder box. The white ones came from this silkie rooster and white hen. You can see the black chickie in with her in the second pic, but none of the black chicks made it. I was gravely disappointed.

They were hatched in a nest box I got from Pam, over at Life On A Southern Farm

She and Farm Man make and sell nesting boxes for the hens. The have a web site called Hen Pals. Even if you don't have chickens they are certainly worth checking out. Excellent hand-made craftsmanship!

I also got these! A friend and co-worker was doing some spring cleaning and getting rid of a bunch of chicken stuff! I reminded him of my chicken adventures, and last Friday he brought me a big box of chicken stuff! Look at all the stuff he brought me!

Do you remember the pic of the nest I took with the bird tail sticking out of it? You can see it here. Turns out, it was a mama Robin. When she flew off I grabbed the ladder and my camera and climbed up to see what she had in my Magnolia tree. Guess what I found?! This!!

I have a flower that popped up in the middle of the back yard last year. Does anyone know what it is? I dug it up and moved it over by the mailbox.

I have more, but I will share later. I got two awards! One from Amy and one from Tracey. Actually, the one I got from Tracey I got a month or two ago and never posted about it. I'm a bad, bad boy and in need of a good spanking. I thank them dearly from the heart of my bottom, and I will share about that tomorrow, time willing.

An Unpleasant Chicken Day

2010-05-18T11:55:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was NOT cool. We went about two months without a dcent amount of rain. Jim Howard and Greg Armbrect said we were getting some, but we didn't. I'll bet Greg Fischal said we were, too. But very little rain came if any. Friday we were slated for a 60% chance on Monday, but by Sunday night it had jumped to 90%. And the rains came. My garden needed the rain, too. I was carrying 5 gallon buckets out to water my veggies one at a time. It's about a quarter acre, so my arms were a bit sore.

As most of you know I had chicks hatch last week. Some came Tuesday or Wednesday with more to follow Friday. I never got an exact number, but I believe it was around 18 or so. The bantam with the silkie rooster kept losing hers. She hatched out 8 in total, but they were dying one at a time. She still had 6 when we left on Friday. Dustin, our neighbor fed and watered for us. He's farmer's grandson. We got home late Sunday so the birds were left to sleep. I didn't have time to check them before work yesterday, but when I got home I changed and went out to see. It was still raining and all the birds were soaking wet. The two hens were huddled over their chicks. But the bantam/silkie only had 3 doing well with one squished in the mud! It was the last black one. I had to put it out of it's misery, and I was at the very brink of tears. I didn't make Mike do it. And I felt just awful! Mike did tell me he pulled one dead chick from her that morning, and two from Bucky and China. So I wrangled up the remaining chicks...three silkie/bantams and six from Bucky and China....nine in total. I put them in the brooder box with feed, water, and some wheat straw for warmth. Both hens clucked on calling their chicks, and the chicks peeped quite loudly from the box. I felt awful for that, as well. But I felt they would be safer that way. I do have a heat lamp for them, as well.

We also had a couple of pigeon squab hatch last week. I think one of them is dead, too. Mama was sitting on them and wouldn't let me check. But I know one is still living. I could see it moving. Got another pigeon sitting on two eggs. Baby pigeons are so UGLY! Their beaks are way to big! Glad they are pretty when they grow up.

I haven't been commenting as much lately. I've been busy as a bee in a clover field. But I still pop in to check on each of you. Just cause I don't say anything doesn't mean I'm not reading! I'll try to get some pics up in the next day or two. I have some, but they are still on the camera. Have a pleasant day, all.

They're Here!!

2010-05-12T16:39:00.000-04:00

We have all been waiting.

I had a hybrid bantam hen. She is all white, but I have both parents. They are both black with a tan or cream colored collar. She was by herself, so I put a white silkie rooster in with her. Well, they got busy, and she started sitting after laying about 15 or 16 eggs. It seemed like forever ago when she started sitting. We'll be away for the weekend, so I figured if they had not hatched by Friday, I was gonna throw out the eggs. Yesterday afternoon I saw a little white head poking out from under her, but I could still see eggs. She was still sitting, too. Then I check in on her this morning before leaving for work. I saw a black chick, but it wasn't moving. I think it might be dead. I told Mike just in case, so he can get it out if it is. But since she was still sitting I let her sit. I wll check back in this afternoon. I can't wait for her to get up. I'm curious as to how these chicks will turn out! I will post later when they are out and about with some pics!

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-07T15:53:00.000-04:00

Got my nephew and niece for the weekend. Hope all you ladies have a safe and wonderful Mother's Day, in or out of America!

Sky Watch Friday

Took this pic a few years ago a couple of miles from my parents.

Renee @ Of Lemons And Honey

2010-05-06T15:27:00.000-04:00

If you have not been by to see Renee lately or even at all you should go see her now. She is an amazing woman with a fantastic story to tell. Here is a sampling. When I read this, I was wondering if it was a real story. If so, was it her story? Well she says it is! It's a real nail biter! She has started a "book" and has gotten me hooked. And if you are like me, you want to know....the rest of the story. Visit Renee any time at her blog http://www.oflemonsandhoney.blogspot.com/

Moonday

2010-05-05T15:50:00.001-04:00

Whew! Been busy with work. Sometimes I think they are trying to kill me! Anyway, I'm not gonna use today's post as a complaining platform. I had some pics of the moon I've been saving to share, but it seems that's the blog theme lately. I've noticed several of you have been posting pics of the moon. Of course, mine are not as good as some of yours, but they were really experimental pics. I had to delete some because the moon looked more like a loaf of bread. So, without further adieu, here's my moon.

And that's my magnificent moon!

Thanks for the thoughts and concerns. All is okay, and I will keep you posted!!

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO! MARGARITAS ARE ON ME!!

Babies

2010-04-30T12:08:00.000-04:00

Thought I'd give you and update on the babies. They are getting big now.

Here are three RI Red/Black Sex Link mixed and one Black Austrolorp. The one in the front is gonna be a pretty bird. The Black Aussie (2nd from front) grew much faster and is a bit bigger than the others. The third from the front is about 10 days younger than the others, but holds his own. The one in the back has a bit of white on him that I'm convinced with turn out to be tan.

They didn't want to be still for the photo op! Busy little buggers, they are!

These two are also RIR/BSL mixed. I love the light colored one. But that's also the one who got picked on by the others. He had no feathers on his neck. I separated him, but gave him a small buddy to keep him company. He's started to heal, but keeps scratching the scabs, making it bleed again. He looks pitiful.

Just look at the poor guy's neck!

Sometimes when I get home from work I don't even go into the house. I go straight to the chickens and/or the garden. Last Friday I was in a horrible mood over an issue I still have to figure out. I went back to look at the birds, and this is what I found! She was sitting on two eggs, but only one hatched. He's so funny running around all by himself.

Here he is close up. I'll probably take him away this weekend, and put him with the others. He was always running around. He had no deisre to look at the camera.

And of course, I could not leave out these little guys! Aren't they just the cutest!

This cute little guy is the runt. He's half the size of the others. But when they are feeding on mama he's off curled up by himself sleeping!

Here's my last baby pic. Well, it's not really a baby. It's the mama. Not sure what kind of bird she is, but here nest is in our Magnolia tree. I'm sure the baby has hatched, though, as I found broken shell under the tree.

And finally.........

SKY WATCH FRIDAY!!

P.S. I don't know which of the baby chickens are hens or roosters. I just used the terms he/him as general terms.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Le Fleur

2010-04-27T13:40:00.002-04:00

Jim at The Gaudy Garden requested to see my roses, and since I only have two rose bushes I opted to make today a Flower Tuesday. Besides, I have a bush that I have no idea what it is, and I'm hoping for a little help in identifying it.

This is my Nearly Wild Rose

Nearly Wild Rose Buds

Nearly Wild Roses from the deck

My Something Rose. I don't remember what kind of rose this is, but it starts out red, then gets more yellow in it, before it fades to a pretty pink

A Something Bud

A fading something rose

My Something Rose Bush

Got this plant from a neighbor. He called it Sweet Betsy. It has these little brown pods that open up like flowers. They smell like strawberry wine coolers.

Then there's this bush. It looks like a rose bush, but it has no thorns. It was growing behind the shed when we moved in, so I dug it up and transplanted it.

A close up of the leaves

And these are the flowers. We've never seen it bloom. We transplanted it last spring and it didn't bloom. But this year it did. In fact, it just started blooming this past week. There are tiny buds all over. Does anyone have any idea what kind of plant this is? If it blooms all over like this it will be very pretty.

What A Week

2010-04-23T14:56:00.001-04:00

I am so ready for the entire week to be over with. Of course, we look for the weekend to escape from the problems of the week, but they don't go away. They sit right there and wait for you to return to them on Monday. I had some unpleasant news this week that has put me in a bit of a predicament, and I am left having to make a decision I really would rather avoid. I don't want to share any details right now, but I'd appreciate any thoughts and prayers I can get.

With that said, my weekend plans changed today. My sister had asked Mike and I to go to the Dogwood Festival with them in Farmville, NC on Saturday. There will be street vendors, live music, rides for the kids, and such. That was the plan for Saturday. But my mom didn't see my truck at work this morning when she drove by and thought I was out sick or something. She called Mike and said that all my brothers and sisters were taking their kids to the festival and it was gonna be pretty quiet at home (for a change). She asked if we'd like to come out for dinner, and maybe help her plant some flowers or something in the yard on Saturday. So that's what the plan may be after all.

The circle is the area where my parents live. That's the Pamlico River that empties into the Pamlico Sound, which in turn, empties into the Atlantic Ocean. We live an hour and a half west of them on the same river. But it changes names to the Tar River half way in.

Lost a chicken a few weeks ago. Mike and I left Saturday morning and return Sunday evening. I fed and watered the chickens well before we left, and when we returned we found our splash silkie dead. She only had one eye. The guy we got her from said she had Merek's as a chick, but had recovered well except for her eye. She was with a blue rooster named Blueberry.

They were camera shy. In fact, they were handled very little and any other type of living thing shy. But now he seems severely depressed. He only sits and refused to walk. He eats and drinks very little. I'm not sure if he will last through the weekend. I tried putting another hen with him, but she does her thing, and he ignores her. I've given him some antibiotics, but it all seems hopeless.

SKY WATCH FRIDAY

I got this rainbow out our back door one evening with my cell phone. That was before my sister gave us a nice camera.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

P.S. Found out where Stripey Cat was for three days. Farmer set out live traps to catch varmints around his chickens. Nosey little Stripey Cat wandered over to his place and got himself into a mess. But Farmer and his grandson realized he was a pet (but didn't know he was ours) and let him go. He's home safe and sound now.

Bad News, Good News, and Sky Watch Friday

2010-04-16T13:56:00.000-04:00

First, the bad news. I had a rough time sleeping last night. Mike has been sick. He's been coughing and moaning in his sleep. Of course, he's not been sleeping that well, either. But that's not the only reason I didn't sleep well. All the animals think they should be as comfortable as possible at bed time. That means they think they should all sleep with us. Except Prissy. She rarely ever gets on our bed. Elvis, who I named after Elvis Presley (A Little Less Conversation-remix), climbs right up my shoulder and puts his face in my face to sleep. Max (who Mike named with his ex before we met) gets in and out of bed all night. He's one of the nosiest dogs I've ever met. Thinks he's gotta know what's going on with everyone all the time. Minnie would rather be between us, but is forced to sleep at our feet. She doesn't move after she settles in....even if she's in your way. Then there's the bad part of the good news. Part of the reason I couldn't sleep well last night. It's hard to sleep with a cat...yes a cat....particularly a striped one named Stripey Cat thinks he's supposed to sleep on your face.

Mike called me yesterday to tell me that Stripey Cat came home. There are a number of kids that live down the street. I think maybe one of them tried to keep him. But if you open the door when he wants to go out he bolts before you can even say stop. I could be wrong, though. The important thing is the good news....Stripey Cat came home! Thanks everyone.

And finally, I wanna do a sky watch Friday. I got the idea from that Canadian woman over at That British Woman. I took these pics about a month ago and never down loaded them from my camera. I thought the second one looked like a volcano erupting. Perfect timing with the one erupting in Iceland. Hope all you European types are okay and not too ashy or smokey.

I took these pics right out my back door. Those trees are just on the other side of the field behind the house. Great sky, ain't it? Y'all have a fantastic weekend!

Where Is He?

2010-04-14T14:55:00.001-04:00

Where is Stripey? He's a great cat. Priscilla is a sweet cat, but she's not very affectionate and keeps to herself most of the time. Elvis is a lovey cat, but usually later at night when I'm watching tv in the dark or after I've gotten into bed. Stripey Cat would leap right into my lap and settle down for some good snuggling. We already lost Black Kitty this year when he was hit by a car. But Monday night Stripey Cat went outside and didn't come back. He's only spent one night outside since last September. He likes to stay out till bed time, but he always comes in at bed time. He's afraid he will miss a meal! If he doesn't come running, just shake the food dish. He'll be at your feet in a matter of seconds!

Elvis has disappeared a number of times. He's endured a lot. He's moved 5 times. And when Mike and I met I used to carry him to Austin, Texas on the weekends when I'd go visit him. We've had to pick him up from the pound in Harker Heights, Texas a few times when I lived there. It had even gotten to the point where they would call us to say he was there. He just wouldn't stay out of the feral cat traps. He even disappeared from where we live now for a whole week. He came home scrawny and sickly. But he's doing okay now.

Prissy was not supposed to be ours. Our landlord at our old place dropped her off and said he called the pound to come get her. (But they never showed up.) We had a guy staying with us for a while who was down on his luck. So we gave her to him. He took care of her, fed her, and everything. Then, one day, he went out, got back into the crack cocaine scene, and didn't come back. So we were sorta stuck with her. But we've grown to love her. She's not going anywhere right now. This is what she's got at home.

She's got four little kittens that are about 2 weeks old. Their eyes are just opening now. They are adorable, too. But where is Stripey Cat?! He IS a male. And he's right about the age where he should start getting curious. But still, it's not like him to miss a meal. If you're reading this Stripey Cat, please come home. We miss you!

A Mix of Stuff

2010-04-12T14:06:00.001-04:00

First things first. Now that all of you have thought less of me for what I posted Friday, I must say that it isn't what you were thinking. That guy in the pic with me is Mustafa (we just called him Steve). He was an Iraqi that worked as a translator for us. He also got us "things" from outside the walls. That is a hookah we are smoking....remember the caterpillar in Alice and Wonderland? We were NOT smoking weed, green, trees, mary jane, hashish, or anything of the sort. It was flavored tobacco. Strawberry if my memory serves me correctly. I wanted to bring one home, but they said customs wouldn't allow it. Then, when we were in Kuwait they said we could...it was too late, then. But we had fun on occasions while we were over there.

We had quite a busy weekend. We didn't go to the aution Saturday. There was just too much going on. I did meet my mom and sister with kids in tow for lunch at Zaxby's. Then Mom came back to the house for me to wash her car. She was gonna have it done professionally, but I offered it for free. Mike was working on our kitchen cabinets, stripping the paint. They are birch wood, so we decided to strip the white paint and lacquer the wood. Looks pretty nice.

We also had a successful rescue attempt on Saturday. We used to have Becky, a Quaker Parrot. She was quite noisy and drove Mike insane. So he gave her to our neighbor. However, our neighbor doesn't have the best track record for taking care of animals. And sure enough, he grew bored with Becky and let her go outside about a week ago. Since then we have either heard her talking and squawking, or seen her high in the trees. Saturday she landed in a tree in the back yard, then the top of the chicken coop, then back to the tree, then on top of the other neighbor's shed right up next to the fence between our yards. So I put a chair up by the fence and, wearing leather gloves cause she always would bite me, I called her. She hopped onto my finger, and I grabbed her little talons with my thumb. We put her in a 2nd stage brooder pen and I put in some water and chicken feed. A week without those and she was ready for them. She's okay now. My dad is gonna get her now. I just gotta find her a new cage. She's doing good right now, though.

Sunday was busier. I went shopping. And I did just what I complained about my mom doing. Though she was looking at clothes and shoes...ugh! I was shopping at Lowes! I was looking at the things I can't afford right now. And I was looking at the things I could afford, but had to choose this or the other. I almost bought a fig tree. I'd love to have a fig tree. Probably not this year, though. But I did buy seeds for the garden, plus a few started plants. I also bought some flower seeds to plant around the house, and some solar garden lights for the front of the house. Then I spent most the rest of Sunday afternoon planting the garden. I've got squash, watermelons, canteloupes, okra, bell peppers, egg plants, corn, jalapenos, mixed hot peppers, and Zinnias to sell as cut flowers. There's probably more, but I can't think of it all now.

Here's that motor cycle from Orange County Choppers that kept me so busy in March. (Don't know why blogger is squishing my pics all of a sudden. They don't look good that way)

I was looking for some papers in an old shoe box, and I didn't put it away. Stripey Cat decided to make a

bed out of the box!

Our Easter visitors. Not sure if they were wild or not, but I'm guessing half wild.

Here's our little chicks. They're actually about a month old now, with feathers and all. I don't have a recent pic. The four on the right are RI Red (pea comb rooster) and black sex link hen. The one on the left is full Black Australorp.

I got an award from Tracey last week (SEE I DIDN'T FORGET) I haven't had a chance to post on it yet. I gotta try to come up with things you don't know about me first! I'll try later today or tomorrow.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday (On Friday)

2010-04-09T15:46:00.000-04:00

Another busy week with a busy weekend to follow. Might be heading to the livestock auction tomorrow. Here's a pic for y'all to gossip about. Hmmmm....is that really what you are thinking?

Good Easter Weekend & A Big Thank You

2010-04-06T12:18:00.000-04:00

We had a pleasant weekend. We left Friday morning on the 1 1/2 hour drive to my folks. Of course, when we got there, my mom said she had to go pick up my sister and her kids who happen to live 10 minutes from me! If we had known that, we would have picked them up and brought them with us! But everything worked out anyway. We swung by my house to pick up my wallet and some eggs for Easter. Then we went to the mall to meet my other sister who was buying an Easter dress for my niece. I was not away of this when we left the house. I certainly would not have gone!!! You know, when a bunch of women get together to "buy a dress" it's going to be an all day affair....and it was. You can't buy a dress without buying shoes to go with it. Then the other women want to have "a look around", and will probably buy something for themselves....and they did. The best part was dinner at this new Mexican restaraunt. But we were gone from home for nearly 12 hours! I could have killed myself!!! Saturday was pretty uneventful, as my sister who met us at the mall went back home with her kids and my other sister's kids. But my brother and his wife came over Saturday evening after her family had visited them. That was a treat cause I got to see Jalyssa, my three month old niece, as well as Austin and Tyler, my nephews. Sunday the whole gang went to church while Mike and I worked on dinner and getting the house ready. We had a big dinner of baked ham, potato salad, baked beans, deviled eggs, and more. Then we had an egg hunt for the kids. Last year, as a joke, we put some dog food in plastic eggs. The kids thought it was so funny and my four year old nephew said," B member the eggs with dog food, Grandma?" So we did it again this year. Then we headed home Sunday evening with my oldest nephew who I have to take to meet his dad tonight.

I gotta send out a big thank you to several blogger friends. First, I don't think I ever gave Amy a proper thanks for the things she sent to me. I don't have any pics. But she sent me some delicious Buttons chocolate candy, adorable "salt and pepper pots" with a rooster and hen on them, and a Union Jack, who sits upon my television. Thank you so much, Amy over @ http://www.bubble-bubblesblog.blogspot.com/

Thank you very much Susan for the wonderful gifts I won in your giveaway, too. I got them in the mail yesterday! I got a white dream catcher, a shamrock amulet, and an angel in a heart! I'll try to post pics later. I'm pretty busy this week with work and other stuff. But, thank you so very much!! http://www.troubleink-craftycrafts.blogspot.com/

Then I gotta thank Joanna. I'm not sure who gave her my address. It may have been me. I can't remember. But I know I sent her package from work and used my work address. Maybe I put it in a note? Maybe someone else gave it to her. However she got it, thank you, Joanna, for my sign! She sent me an ASU-Applachian State University sign. I had a friend from high school that went to ASU. But I haven't spoken to him since then. But thank you, Joanna. http://www.boonedockswilcox.blogspot.com/

Have a great day, everyone!

We Ate Him!!

2010-04-01T13:38:00.000-04:00

I will be so glad when this day is over. These past two weeks have just been too jam packed with stuff to do. And it seems for everything I get done, three more things have been added. I am facing a three day weekend (after I wash the dogs tonight...Mike wants them clean for the trip to Mom and Dad's). Of course, Mike will probably cook something on the grill. It's supposed to be the best weekend so far this year, weather wise. I do need to clarify....I did NOT actually ride the motorcycle! We had a Ford dually with a trailer. I was driving the truck, towing the motor cycle. But if they had allowed me to ride that over-priced, misspent raise of mine, I'd have been all over that!

Mike has been complaining about having too many roosters lately. We had four young roosters that he killed a month or so ago, but we thought they were hens. They needed to go. But we also have a few roosters that we really haven't been using for breeding. And that's really all they are worth! Well, we partly kept them cause they were also good looking birds! One was Little Chicken, the first chick we ever hatched! Just look at him!

He is such a pretty bird. BUT.......

I came home yesterday to find out he was put into our dinner!!! Mike put him into a Mexican Chicken Lasagna! Don't get me wrong! He was quite delicious. Mike almost never makes a meal I don't like. But he had to feel bad for killing a chicken we raised. I know I did. But, isn't that what they are really for? He wasn't a pet. He and one other rooster got took, and one is in the freezer. R.I.P. Little Chicken!

Can I Breathe?

2010-03-31T15:26:00.000-04:00

These past two weeks have been a bit on the insane side of things. We had open house at our branch for work last Tuesday and again at our Edenton branch 1 1/2 hours away on Wednesday. So, that meant that I spent a good deal of Monday, and even some of the previous week, trying to prepare for all of it. My boss flew to New York (upstate) to pick up a motorcycle that belongs to the company. But it wasn't just any motorcycle. It was personally created for Airgas by Paul Sr. and Paul Jr. of Orange County Choppers (OCC). Tuesday we had a number of vendors here to sell their products (3M, Bosch, Metabo and others). We were giving out free hot dogs, chips, and drinks. The Hypertherm Rep even fired up a plasma cutter and let me give it a try! My boss asked me to come in at 6 a.m. Wednesday to drive the six-figure ( I don't know the exact amount but I'm told it is between $100,000 and $250,000) motor bike to Edenton, NC, help out while I was there, then drive the bike back to Greenville that afternoon. Then on Thursday, I had to drive the bike to Greensboro to meet someone who was taking it up to one of our stores in Kentucky. Friday we had full gas inventory. This week I have been trying to play catch-up from last week, plus it is month-end close out.

On top of all of this, we have had some chicks hatch, and Mike called me this morning to say that Prissy was having her third litter of kittens (and she's not even 2 years old yet). She's getting fixed soon. You better believe I'm taking a much needed break this weekend. Mike and I will be heading out to my parents Friday morning for the weekend. I have pics, but they will have to wait till later.
Hope you all have a wonderful Easter holiday!

Patience Please

2010-03-25T13:37:00.000-04:00

HELP!! It's one of those weeks, and I am insanely busy. I have work coming out of my ears all because of a motorcycle! Long story. I'll tell y'all about it later. But in the meantime, I probably won't post again till next week. I'm not caught with everyone, but I'll check in if time permits. Otherwise, feel free to e-mail me! mikenran@gmail.com (Take a deep breath. Pick a starting point. Take it one task at a time.)

Photo Tag

2010-03-18T14:49:00.000-04:00

I got tagged by Becca @ A Southern Garden by Becca. I gotta pic a photo to display and share the story behind it. The deal is, you gotta pic the 10th photo from your first set (or closest thing, thereof). So, here's what I got!

My sister gave me this camera last year. She had asked if I could come over and help her with some spring cleaning. She gave me this very nice camera while I was there. She had gotten a new one. Of course, there were a few pictures still on the camera, and I saved them for her. A possum had been getting into their garbage, so my then 11 year old nephew set a trap! And voila! This is the little critter he caught! I don't know the whereabouts of the possum, but being animal lovers, I'm sure they took him somewhere and let him go.

I have to tag five other people, so here goes:

Anna @ Chickens In The Basement

Odette @ A View From Above

Mal @ Hoe Hen Inn

Missy @ Little Messy Missy

Aerelonian @ Plant Zone

Of course, I understand that some people just don't like to participate in these sorts of things, and that's okay, too. But I'm sure you'll peak the curiosity of others! Have fun and have a great day!!

Time Flies

2010-03-17T13:54:00.000-04:00

Time flies when you are busy doing things you'd rather not be doing. That's not the entire case for me. I was out of town for the weekend. Mike and I went to visit my parents since it's been nearly three months. Shame, shame, we know. But it was a lovely visit. We went out Saturday morning and came home Sunday afternoon. We took our smoker, and when we got there Mike put on two pork butt roasts. I went to pick up my brother cause his wife was at work. His three month old daughter, he said, wasn't much for conversation, and his two sons were already at my parents. His wife brought home all the sides to go with the pork. We had pork smoked over oak wood, potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans. It was pretty good. We headed home Sunday around 4 p.m. with a rug that my mom gave us. She bought it for her living room, but little lint balls kept rolling up on it. I think it was just the newness, but it looks great in our living room.
When we got home Sunday evening we smelled something like an electrical fire in the kitchen. I could hear water running under the house. We discovered that our hot water heater went to pot! The thermostat was melted! There was no water damage, but it costed much more than it should have to replace to heater. Now the new one is not working properly! I'm not taking a cold bath....no way!! I've been heating pots of water on the stove and carrying them to the bathroom! Hopefully Mike and Pat will get it fixed today.
Aside from a good weekend, I've been pretty busy with work. There's just a lot going on right now. But I still wanted to share a few pics, so I'm sharing pics of the little coops that Mike built for the paired bantams and silkies! Aren't they great?!

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Everyone have a Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Giveaway At Trouble Ink Crafty Crafts

2010-03-11T16:37:00.001-05:00

Susan at TICC is doing a GIVEAWAY, as well! It's giveaway fever! She is giving away a dream catcher from her etsy shop and a clover amulet from her brother's etsy shop! They have some pretty cool things! You should check them out, and maybe even enter in the giveaway! (Not!) Seriously, though, do read their blogs! You can find Susan at: TICC
You can find her brother at: Whispering Woods

I was looking through their etsy shops and found some things that are pretty cool!

Here's one of her dream catchers;

Here's a beautiful box he made!

Go check them out! TICC and Whispering Woods!!

1st Runner Up Still Wins!!

2010-03-11T10:53:00.002-05:00

I really had no doubt that Joanna was going to claim her prize. My few followers are pretty faithful followers. They don't all comment on every post, but I suspect they are like me. I try to read every blog in my side bar and every post they post. Yeah, I miss one or two occasionally. But I still try to read them. But I don't comment on every one I read. I mean, that's a lot of daily reading, and I enjoy it, but I don't think I'd have the time to comment on every one as well. And so, Joanna did pop in and claim what was rightfully hers.

Now, here is the strange part. I picked a runner up for a "just-in-case" moment. Let's face it, that happens! But since Joanna claimed her prize and the runner up got stuck out, I've decided to offer a prize to the runner up anyway. I don't know what it is yet, and I'm not sending it right away. I've decided that when I reach 50 followers (and I'm only TWO away!) then I will send a parcel to the runner up. But I'm not sure everyone would believe who the runner up is! I honestly couldn't believe it. Really, I couldn't! This person made it clear that he never wins. And he was quite upset that he didn't win this time, either. But, strangely enough, I reached in that bowl yesterday, pulled out a second name, and there it was. John @ Going Gently was my runner up. So, if he wants a rush on his prize, whatever it may be, he'd be wise to convince a couple of people to follow my little blog! No lie! He really was the second name I pulled! So, a big congrats to John and Joanna!

The clouds over our house...just a pic for fun!

The Envelope Please...

2010-03-10T11:49:00.001-05:00

Wow. This was tough. I was going to be completely fair about this. I didn't want anyone to have an unfair advantage. Is there a fair advantage? I think that may be so. But I still wasn't sure how to calculate that. I was going to get Mike to pull the winner yesterday, but some things came up. We didn't even eat dinner till 10:30 p.m. and it was leftovers. It wasn't our fault. But the details are boring, and I should focus on the giveaway. So, I jotted down each person who was entering and their respective blogs on small pieces of paper. I double folded each piece of paper and placed them in a bowl. Then with out looking in the bowl I reached out and withdrew a single piece of paper. I didn't want to look because the small papers weren't cut squarely, and I was afraid I might recognize the shape of one. That might skew the results. Insanity, I'm sure. You're probably laughing at me right now. You're probably saying that I'm getting too scientific. No, you're probably saying that I need to just announce the winner and quit with all this mumbo jumbo. I say you are right. So without further ado, let me introduce you to my 100th Post Giveaway Winner:

Ladies and Gentlemen, say hello to...

JOANNA

http://boonedockswilcox.blogspot.com/

Thank you to each and everyone of you who read my blog and leave comments. I never thought I'd have this many followers or have as many as 43 countries visit me. Of course, I'm sure some of those were google searches looking for something else. But I got the exposure anyway! Maybe it won't be so far off before I can do another one! See y'all around in blogland!

~Randy

Chicken Out!

2010-03-09T12:09:00.000-05:00

I haven't done a chicken post in a while. Shame on me for that. So, I am going to try and make up for it today. It was such a lovely weekend. Saturday was a bit cool, but great weather. Sunday, I was wearing a t-shirt and chillin' in the sun! Of course, when we have days like this Mike and I spend it outdoors. Even if there is nothing to do, we still go outside and find little projects to do. This past weekend was no exception. The chickens got to spend a bit of time out of the coop, as well. I only took a few pics when they were still inside, though. But they were getting a good bit of sun there, too.

Mike's been buying crumbles instead of pellets because we get a better price. I throw out a few handfuls for them to scratch for, but I put the bulk of it in this feeding trough someone gave us. It works great, but they climb on top of each other to get to the feed.

This is Little Chicken, the first chicken we ever hatched. He's come of age and has been in with the hens. But he's gotten mean since we took those four other young roosters out. And since these eggs are for eating only, he got removed this weekend.

The big breasted gal in the box is one of my first. She was full grown when we got her last February, so I don't know how old she is. She's really a broiler, so we're not getting any eggs from these girls as of yet. They may get the chop-chop this year. The red headed girl is from one of the broilers and the RI Red rooster. She was hatched early last summer, so she should start laying soon. These girls don't have names yet. The white stuff is lime powder. We cleaned the "stuff" off the next boxes and sprinkled the lime to cut down on the smell. It ain't bad, but we don't want it to get that way, either.

Dana is our sorta pet chicken. She's got an enlarged left foot, and as far as I know, she's not layed an egg for us. She walks with a limp and always gives me a laugh when she tries to run. It's the funniest sight!

This was Stripey Cat's first encounter with a chicken. He plays out back behind the coop in the small grove of pines, but he rarely pays any attention to the birds. He just sniffed a few times then sprinted across the yard. His attention span is still about 15 seconds cause he's so young still. Heading out to my parent's this weekend. Haven't been out there since the new year. I'm sure I'll get scolded.

Today is the last day to get in on the give away! Leave a comment, make sure I have a way to get up with you! I'll announce tomorrow who the winner is! Stay tuned in!

Childhood Memories

2010-03-08T15:17:00.000-05:00

That's my mom holding my cousin, me kissing him, and my sister wrapping her arms around both of us.

I hated growing up. Life as a kid for me was so rich and free. I loved being a kid. I would spend my summers running through the yard barefoot with the water hose on. I would play in the woods climbing trees and playing capture the flag with friends. I would go swimming or fishing in the creek or go skinny dipping at midnight. I remember so many wonderful things about my childhood. I spent several weeks out of the summer in Texas with my great aunt, who was like another grandmother to me. But I always hated the idea of growing up. Most kids can't wait to get older. I can't wait to be six so I can go to school. I can't wait to be thirteen, cause I'll finally be a teen. I can't wait to be sixteen so I can get my driver's license. There's plenty more to fill in that list, I'm sure, and varies from kid to kid. But, as much as I wanted all these things and more, I would have gladly given it all up to stay a kid. I was a Peter Pan, of sorts, I suppose you could say. Seems a bit strange, doesn't it? No, I didn't live in a dream world. I didn't even really have an imaginary friend. My cousin did, and I only pretended to so we could play together. No, I was one of those adultish sort of kids who was older than I really should have been. Yeah, I would still so all that playing that the other kids did. I remember staying with a friend, and we would make up crazy horror stories and record them on cassette tape. Then we would stay up late to watch WWF (Now WWE) Wrestling, or Friday Night Videos or Nightmare on Elm Street marathon. But the thought of becoming an adult scared me. I was vaguely familiar with those pieces of mail called bills. I had heard of April 15th (U.S. taxes are due then) and I had heard of the IRS. I also remember hearing or seeing other family issues that were minor at the time, but seemed so major to me as a kid. I enjoyed a happy childhood. My family had a bit of money, and we traveled a lot for my dad's job. I was wanting for very little, but that Big R was a very scary thing. RESPONSIBILITY!

It's such an ugly word. All the things I didn't want to deal with are now part of my everyday life. I now have to work at a job for a minimum of five days a week. I now have utility bills, car payment, insurance. I get a W-2 at the end of the year so I can file taxes. I am expected to vote (and I do) I watch the news regularly, and I pay attention to politics. These are all the things adults deal with daily that I wanted no part of as a child. BUT.....

I am happy. I love my little life with Mike. We enjoy of little chicken farm, as Mike likes to call it. We spend our weekends enjoying ourselves at our Landlord's beach house when they invite us, at my parents' fishing, visiting, barbecuing. We eat very good meals and have company over infrequently. Friends are always welcomed in our home. We have our three cats and two dogs. I like being an adult. I love having a place that I can paint or build on to, a yard that I can garden in, and many more freedoms I didn't enjoy as a kid. I'm happy to be an adult. But if I could do it with out all that responsibility....Oh, how much happier I could be.

Don't forget the giveaway! I'm going to announce the winner on Wednesday! Some of you were vague about wether you wanted in, so I included you anyway! If you haven't already commented, do it today or tomorrow! Just make sure I have a way to get in touch with you! If you are overseas (over borders) I'll still ship. It just may take a little longer to get it to you.

100th Post Giveaway!!

2010-03-05T14:20:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week I posted my 100th post! That was just the coolest thing, as at one point I was considering discontinuing my blog. Back then I only had 20ish followers and it seemed I had little to say. Since then I have been posting about all this and that and I am pushing 50 followers! I want to thank everyone who has found my nonsense at least a little readable and somewhat entertaining. I wish I could send something to everyone of you! But, unfortunately, I cannot. Good news, though! I am going to give everyone a chance to enter to receive a gift package!!! I don't have pics, yet. I'll get them posted by early next week. BUT...
I can say that there will be a book, passed on to me by Missy over at Little Messy Missy. If you have a chance, go check her out! It will also include a jar of Mike's homemade Salsa! The best salsa you can get east of the Mississippi! There will be some other stuff that I'll share later! But, today is your first chance to enter! Just leave a comment with your name and blog address (or e-mail if you don't have your own blog).

Are You Kidding Me?!

2010-03-03T11:46:00.001-05:00

This is what I woke up to this morning! That stupid weather man said rain yesterday, turning to snow last night, then back to rain by this morning! Well, we got plenty of wind and rain yesterday, and there were a few tiny flurries when I went to bed. WITN-TV here in Greenville said we would get a trace to one inch. We got about three inches! Everything is covered in white! (This pic is from the last snow, but it pretty much looks the same). I thought I'd wake up to a few slushy spots, as the rain would have melted most of it, but no way! Roads to work weren't too bad as temps are hovering above freezing and rising. Slush in most places. But I am done with the snow! We are expecting temps to be up to 66F by Sunday. That's what I'm talking about. PLEASE! I'm begging now!

I didn't eat dinner last night. It wasn't because of what Mike cooked. I wasn't surprised when he told me. He's been talking about it for a week now. I had just gotten quite nauseous. I felt like vomiting...but I didn't. Mike killed and cleaned those four RI Red/Buff mixed roosters. They were only doing some minor sparring (no blood) and never messed with Little Chicken, who is twice their size. They were only six months old. They were, however, tormenting the hens with their raging hormones. And without any eggs, fertile or unfertile, they were just using up valuable food. So they got cleaned and put on the grill last night for dinner. I will have to try them for leftovers this evening. I've never eaten any of my own chickens. So I'll see how they taste. I still have a white silkie rooster that needs a new home. Maybe I'll put him in the Bragain Trader to see if I can find a good home for him. I actually have two white silkie roosters to go, but I haven't decided on one yet. He's with a mixed bantam hen. I'm trying to get her to sit on eggs. She's got 8 or 9 now, so we will see.

I still haven't figured out the giveaway yet. Not feeling well last night, I was just laying on the couch all evening. But I promise that it's coming this week.

100th Post Giveaway!!

2010-03-02T13:50:00.000-05:00

Everyone has been doing giveaways. And I have even been fortunate enough to be on the receiving end....which I am very grateful for. I have been wanting to do a giveaway of my own, but I didn't know what reason to give. Well, now I have one! Yesterday's post was my 100th post! How cool is that?! So I am going to do a giveaway! What am I giving away, you say? That's a very good question. Cause I haven't a clue! But, I am going to spend the next couple of days thinking about it, try to come up with something really cool, then post about it later! Keep tuned in this week! Tell your friends (Or don't if you want better chances at winning, I guess)! But later this week I'll post what I'll be giving and what you can do to enter! Thanks for reading my blog, friends.

~Randy

Five Years Later

2010-03-01T15:36:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe that this month makes five years since I returned from Iraq. I left Fort Hood, Texas on March 10, 2004 and returned on March 17, 2005. I don't think I was ever as excited as I was that day. When I saw Mike I couldn't even keep the big grin off my face. Of course, I had a few days to get back into the swing of things at home. So I thought I'd share a picture show of my homecoming.

Tons of laundry dropped by the door

Of course, I had to call everyone to say I was home. Max was glad to see me.

It was nice, warm, and sunny...too nice to stay indoors

Mike took me to a drive-thru safari..where we saw ostriches.......

and little ponies.....

Some sort of antelope thingies....

Different types of deer....

Even white deer....

....and babies.....(see us with the baby goats in the side bar!)

You can't forget Donkey....

Creatures with long tongues....

...and, of course, that camel.

We had a wonderful time that day. Of course, there was a lightning and thunder storm rolling in that day. You can see the dark clouds in the side bar pics. We also took a fishing trip for bass to a lake in North Texas, and a few weeks of travel to North Carolina to see my family and Mike's sister and family, who was living near Baltimore, Maryland at the time. I was so glad to be home.

*Note* I know I haven't been around much this past week. We've had end of year phyical inventory, and I prefer to call it Hell Week. I worked from 8 a.m. Friday to 10:30 p.m. Friday, and I still had to come in for half a day on Saturday. Of course, all my reports were due today. So, I have just been busier than a bee in a clover field. I got a few chicken pics over the weekend, but they weren't great. I will try to get some posted this week.

Better Day

2010-02-23T14:53:00.000-05:00

Today has been a bit better day. Last night was rough, though. I fell asleep around 9 p.m. with the tv on. Woke back up, clicked it off and went right back to sleep. But I woke again around midnight. I laid in bed (with Mike and three dogs, we were baby sitting my nieghbor's dog cause he had to go somewhere). I just couldn't go back to sleep. It was nearly 2 a.m., so I got up and watched Animal Planet. About 3 a.m. I went back to bed, but couldn't sleep still. It was around 4:30 a.m. when I finally dozed off, and had to get up at 6 a.m. for work. So I got very little sleep last night.

Got a call from SFC Cook today before lunch. I was gonna call her if she hadn't called after lunch. She had bad news and good news. The bad news is that there were too many people worried about rules and regs than good soldiers. So I am getting outprocessed from the Army Reserves. I was considering going back to my old part time job at a local gas station. Last time I worked there they got robbed, and one of my co-workers was shot in the back of the head point blank. (He lived) Plus, I'd be getting home around 1 a.m. and having to get up at 6 a.m. I'd certainly be able to make more money, but I'd be working every week as opposed to one weekend a month. There was good news, however. She said that once the paper work was processed (2-4 weeks) I could take that same paperwork right down to a recruiter and get right back in, and even got back to the same unit I was in. Of course, you know I argued the stupidity of that. It is a complete waste of time, money, personnel, and paperwork. But then again, we are talking about the government. So, I probably will not be participating in March's drill, which is okay, because it is a field experience with boring classes and running another range at Fort Bragg. I really was not looking foreward to it.

As far as my civilian job, it is quite a headache right now. We are doing a full annual inventory this weekend, which means late night Friday and all day Saturday at work. That should help because it means overtime. But it also means that I have to have everything I do for the whole district, including end-of-month reports done right away, and right. I'm finding crazy mistakes that are not necessarily ours, that date back as far as last August! That's part of why I was cranky yesterday. I know this will all spill into next week as well. I just want it to hurry and get over all ready!

AND......I was excited about my hens that we raised from last spring and summer starting to lay this year. But I got a huge disappointment this week! Four of the five RI/Buff hens are squaring off now and trying to become fathers! I now have four red-headed cockrels that I have no use for! Unless I can find them new homes, they will probably end up in the freezer. I just won't be the one to do the ugly deed. I simply cannot kill any animal that I have been feeding and taking care of in captivity. I'll probably give one of the chickens to a neighbor if they do the deed for me. I want February to just be over now!!

Good Weekend, Bad Monday

2010-02-22T16:24:00.002-05:00

We had a very nice weekend. It was sunny and fairly warm! Saturday, Mike made another little chicken coop. And I spent a good part of the day cleaning out the storage shed. It was so full that you could barely get inside the door. I cleared out tons of junk! There is so much space in there now!

Our friend, Les, had gotten a few roosters from us earlier this year. He ended up returning some. He returned two white silkie roosters because he didn't really have room for them. Then he returned a white mixed bantam rooster. The white bantam (which is a pretty bird) got put in with another bantam hen that just started laying her first eggs a couple of weeks ago. One of the silkie roosters also got put in with another bantam hen that just started laying. I didn't know if that would work, but he's topping her (that's what I call it anyway, to be mild). So we will see how that goes, eh?!

Then, my younger sister called to just say hi, and Mike told her to bring the kids over to spend the night. So she did. And it started out pleasant. But Saturday night didn't end well. Cheyanne is eight years old, and did quite well. Joel, who just celebrated his sixth birthday last month, had a big problem. First, a little history (in a nutshell). He's got a very short attention span and was recently diagnosed with ADD. He's now on medication that has changed him tremendously (mostly in a good way) and has also helped him in school. But just before dinner he said that his stomach was hurting. He ate very little dinner and only one bite of his ice cream sandwich. Then the nastiness began. It was diahrea all night long. He was laying in bed with Mike watching tv and fell asleep. When I went to move him it came from both ends. I stripped the bed and his clothes and put him in the bath. Clothes and bed sheets got thrown onto the porch till morning. It happened again, and we went through the same routine. I had no medicine for him, and his mom was not answering her cell phone. So we trudged through the night and he woke feeling better Sunday morning. He did throw up again late Sunday morning after jumping on the neighbor's trampoline and spent the rest of the time on the couch watching cartoons. His mom came to pick up JJ and Cheyanne just after lunch.

Mike and I just piddled around with odd jobs outside. The weather was just too nice to stay indoors. He put the wire on the breeding coop he made, and I moved around some chickens. We've got several roosters that have been alone most of the winter. No need to have hens getting roughed up if they're not laying. So, I grabbed a few hens and put them in with roosters. And Mike put an Omaha Steaks roast on the grill over some oak wood. It turned out very delicious! We had au jus that we dipped french fries into, and a spinach and tomato salad.

Then, I came to work this morning. It was not pleasant. I think I will spare those details, but I get e-mail updates that tell me about jobs that become available in the area. Still waiting on a call from SFC Cook about the reserves. She told me Friday that I'm probably getting the boot out the door. She was checking so regs for some way around (I don't really believe that) but she would let me know for sure today or tomorrow. The really stupid part is I can go see a recruiter and get right back in. That's the U.S. Government (not) hard at work. Whatever. I'm in a pissy mood today, and almost didn't post. I only did because I haven't since last Wednesday.

This and That

2010-02-17T13:08:00.000-05:00

Being sick really sucks, don't it? Mike got sick around the first of the year with a pretty bad cold. He got mostly better. He still had pressure in his head and started have bad dizzy spells. We were reluctant to go to the doctor, Cause there's no insurance on Mike. But we broke down and took him anyway, yesterday. He was worrried they were gonna say brain tumor or something outrageous like that. Of course, we both really agreed it was probably an ear infection causing fluid build-up in his ears. So, $125.00 later, the doc says it's an infection causing fluid build-up. How is that right? What did I give him that money for? A prescription? I still had to pay for that at the pharmacy! That was another $35 to add to it. He prescribed an antibiotic and a steroid. Strangely enough, my mom had given him that same antibiotic a week or so ago, and it didn't work. Doc says it's because he needed the steroid to go with it. We will have to see, eh?!

Thank you all for your kind words about Black Kitty. They were greatly appreciated. In fact, that was the most comments I have ever received on any post. Gotta head out this afternoon. Meeting with my career counselor for the army. We will have to see where things go, as tomorrow is supposed to be my last day with the army reserves. Don't wanna get out, but they gotta play the right cards, too. Wish me luck!

Rest In Peace Black Kitty

2010-02-15T14:17:00.002-05:00

Mike and I had a tragedy this weekend. Friday evening Black Kitty was outside playing. Around 7:30 p.m. it started to snow. Mike wanted the pets all inside because it was going to be another cold night, and with more snow on the ground this time. They usually come running when we call them, but Black Kitty didn't come. Of course, he'd only been outside about 20 minutes, and Mike thought he heard him meow. I walked the yard, checked the field, and even searched the nieghbor's yard a couple of times, but to no avail. Mike walked inside, but I thought I better walk the front yard. That's when I saw the lump on the road. In just a short amount of time some fool had hit and killed Black Kitty. The road I live on is less than a quarter of a mile, and it was a black cat against a white snow-covered road. How screwed up is that?! Mike was pretty upset because Black Kitty would curl up next to him on the bed to sleep at night. But Black Kitty is no longer with us. :(

On a lighter note, we had a nice V Day. Nothing special. There were no flowers, no chocolates, no cards. We didn't go out to dinner or even have anything fancy at home (breakfast for dinner). Instead, we spent Sunday afternoon finishing a chicken coop that Mike had built for the blue splash silkies. Their current home is the old duck pen, and it's starting to fall apart. It turned out pretty nice! I just forgot to take pictures. I'll get some this week to post later.

Most of the snow has melted, and it's pushing 50 degrees today. I'm hoping it's the last of the snow. Even if it doesn't warm up right away, I'm at least ready for daylight savings time.

John, the Sunshine Award is for you, too. :D http://disasterfilm.blogspot.com/

I'm Special

2010-02-12T14:10:00.000-05:00

I've been pretty busy lately. On top of that, nothing really noteworthy has occured, either. So I haven't really posted in a few days. But I got a double whammy today. And it's got me grinnin' from ear to ear.

Two separate people think we're cool enough to get an award! Renee and Odette have showered us with the Sunshine Award!

That's just the sweetest thing! Of course, yesterday was pretty chilly here, but at least the sun was shining. We're expecting snow again, for tonight and tomorrow. But I long for the warm spring days, and even those hot summer days with sweat dripping down my face while I sip cold iced tea in the veggie garden. I want to thank both of them for thinking so fondly of us. Our home ain't much, but friends are always welcome there.

I don't really care for picking out certain people because you all are good blog friends, but I will pick out a few in hopes that they will pass it on to all the others. If I did not list you, I still consider you a good friend, and I encourage you to consider this award yours, too....from me. Thanks everyone, and have a lovely Valentine's Day and weekend!

Matt http://www.foothillspoultry.blogspot.com/

Amy http://www.bubble-bubblesblog.blogspot.com/

Jim thegaudygarden.blogspot.com

Pam http://www.georgiafarmwoman.blogspot.com/

Becca http://www.beccasgardenspot.blogspot.com/

Debbie http://www.debbie-jeremiah3017.blogspot.com/

Missy http://www.reveau.blogspot.com/

And everyone else who frequents my blog ( I keep typing glob)

Army and Weather

2010-02-09T15:51:00.000-05:00

Not the best weekend. One of the computer systems was down at Fort Bragg, so there was no time for scenarios. So I only got to qualifiy with my M-16. I got 33 out of 40, so not too bad. I would've been happier with 36+. But a coupleI hit all of the 300 meter targets, though. It was all computerized (not like the real range we went to in November). It was still kinda cool, but I was so exhausted Saturday night, as I haven't been sleeping well lately. Sunday I took the PT (Physical Training) test....and failed miserably. Well, I failed the run by a little over 2 minutes. If I don't take it and pass by February 25th then I will be demoted, and my school appointment in New Jersey for March 4th will be cancelled. Bah! But once I do pass it, because I have so much time in service and time in grade, I will be re-promoted immediately. Go figure. I'll give it a shot. I just hate running alone. I enjoy running, but give me a running partner.
Work has gotten a little too busy. Things got pretty busy for a good spell there, and I have tons of paperwork to catch up on. I'm getting there. But our copier went kaput. Boss says he's requisitioned a new one, but for several thousand dollars it takes approval that corp. thinks we have time for. I did get a table top fax, scanner, copier, printer today. It's pretty nice, too. But I have about 1,500 pages that are awaiting copying, and I don't think a table top can handle that load. I may have to give it a go, though.
It's cold and rainy out AGAIN! I'm so sick of the rain! I pass by the airport sometimes, depending on the route I take, to and from work. Often there are several deer out grazing in the marshy area near the end of the tarmac. But the river is so engorged that it has overflowed it's banks and that entire area is completely under water. More rain is only making it worse. I have a couple of small lakes in my back yard. It's getting depressing. And the weatherman says the cold is here to stay for a little while. No snow. Just cold, wind, and rain. I might go stir crazy over it!

Cold Rain

2010-02-05T16:40:00.000-05:00

Well, it's 4:30 in the afternoon and the sky is dark with rain clouds. It's quite chilly out with the tempatures in the middle to upper 30's. Rain has been pouring down most of the day with very few breaks. It is suspected to continue into tonight. Our rivers are swollen to bank level and the ground is saturated. We don't need any more of this wet stuff for a while. The weekend is here, and once again I have drill. We are headed to Fayetteville, NC to Fort Bragg on Saturday. We will be using the simulators for some war games. It should be fun, methinks. PT (Physical Training) test on Sunday. So busier weekend, than I'd like. Have a great weekend all.

Oh, I almost forgot. Mike ain't 35. He's 36! I missed that one.

Words for Wednesday

2010-02-04T12:06:00.001-05:00

Wow. I just thought it was a cool picture. I thought everyone would just laugh. But now I guess I should explain what that was all about. No, we do not have a camel, though I think that was be just fine. I'd have one if I had a place for him. But we don't and I'm not going looking for one. This picture was taken when I got back from Iraq. While I was gone Mike found this drive-thru safari place, and wanted to take me there. You just drive through all this land and see all sorts of animals from Africa or Asia, or wherever they come from. And before you drive in you can buy little bags of feed to give to the animals. Well, obviously the animals come to expect these big metal things to reach out and feed them. The ostriches were the worst and would nearly peck your hand off....think of hand feeding a giant chicken. But the camel was just plain impatient. Mike placed the bag of feed between his legs and offered a handful of feed to the camel, who gobbled it up pretty quickly. And before he could get another handful the camel stuck his head right into the window, took a look around, then plunged his head right into Mike's lap! It was hilarious! I was lucky enough to snap this pic! We had so much fun that day.

Today is Mike's birthday....he's 35 years young.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-03T15:10:00.000-05:00

Just Some Cool Things

2010-02-02T12:02:00.001-05:00

I love this lamp we mounted on our front porch. It's an ocean bouy light that my dad caught in the ocean years ago. I've never weighed it, but I'm sure it weighs anywhere from 80 to 100 lbs. It got flooded from a past hurricane sitting in my folks garage. We brought it home, cleaned it up, painted it, put in a new light fixture, and mounted it on the porch!

This is a cool vase I picked up while serving in Iraq. I actually shipped it home. I stuffed it with a couple of pillows and wrapped it in blankets. I didn't know if it would make the trip in one piece, but it did. But when Mike went to pull out the pillows a few pieces broke off the top. We super-glued them and it looks just fine, barely noticeable.

The Chair. I don't know what else to call it. It's a cushioned rocker. My parents' got it before I was even born. So it's been around for a while. It's an ugly 70's green color, and it's not all that comfortable. And though it's old, it's probably worth nothing. But it has sentimental value. If I'm getting rid of anything I prefer to do it quickly. The longer I have it, the more it tends to have meaning. I want to replace it with a rocking recliner, but I have no intention of getting rid of it. But I have no other place for it. The recliner is on hold.

Snowy, Icy Weekend

2010-02-01T15:51:00.001-05:00

Very busy lately. Got a lot going on. Got snow, followed by ice, followed by rain this weekend. Just gonna post a few pics.

The Road We Live On

The Field Behind Our House Just Before Sunrise (Nearly Full Moon)

Ice on the Maple Tree I Planted This Summer

Max is Using The Back Porch

Snow In The Bird Bath

Mike Coming Out To Play In The Snow

Our Front Yard

Nudity, Breast Pumps, and Condoms

2010-01-29T16:23:00.001-05:00

Sometimes my days all seem to run together. I stay pretty busy at times, and I find myself trying to play catch-up on reading everyone's blogs. I don't have the longest Blog List compared to some others out there, but I'd say it's an extensive one nonetheless. So, this afternoon I was at my dashboard looking through everyone's most recent posts, and I discovered that I had still missed a few posts out there. I read through a few of the ones that I had missed and found that I had missed some very important posts!

* I missed John's nudity when the electricity men came to the door! (http://www.disasterfilm.blogspot.com/)

*I missed Anna's old Breast Pump! I wonder if it was used? (http://www.chickensinthebasement.blogspot.com/)

*And I missed Tracey's British Condom! I wonder if it was used, too? (http://www.tracey-craftyscraps.blogspot.com/)

Got you interested? Go check them out! Y'all have a great weekend, and if you live in the Eastern U.S. try to stay warm and off the icey roads!

My Orlando Pics

2010-01-28T13:18:00.000-05:00

The Rosen Centre Hotel

The Pool from my room window

Roller Coaster @ Sea World and a 5 story parking deck @ night

Night view from my window and a huge mural painted on a building down town

Shops and a foutain down town and Wonder Works museum (upside down building)

Picture of a city through the clouds taken from the airplane window

I took the pic at night when it was dark, but the light from the red eye reducer made it look like day time.

Back to the Salt Mines

2010-01-26T14:36:00.000-05:00

I had a great weekend in Orlando. But it didn't start out great. I was on the plane (small cramped type) ready for take-off when the captain announced we were delayed on the tarmac for an hour due to fog. Fortunately, my plane out of Charlotte was delayed, as well, for the same reason. I arrived and got checked into the hotel. I was staying at The Rosen Centre, a very ritzy hotel on International Drive. My room was on the 21st floor of 24 floors! I had a great view of Orlando. There was a lot I could have done (like visit Sea World) for free if I had known in time. Alas, I did not, however. Friday afternoon I went walking down I-Dr. with the intent of visiting Wonder Works. It was a museum down town. Before going I went across the street to Pizza Hut for some lunch/dinner, and asked the staff there about Wonder Works. They said it was a nice little place, but was really for middle aged kids. But Bobbi, the girl who was waiting on me, suggested I go see Avatar at the IMAX theatre just behind there. So, that's exactly what I did! Bad Ass!! I had been wanting to see Avatar (I enjoy those Sci-Fi types of movies) and in 3-D had to be the best way to see it. And it was! At one point I was swatting away bugs that were in my face. And I was gripping to seat when the dragons were flying! It was late evening when I got out of there, so I just walked up and down the strip looking at all the lights and touristy places. I called it an early night, as breakfast was being served at 6:30 a.m. I had classes on and off thru Saturday, but was fed a good lunch, as well. I was done with classes around 4:30 p.m. and spent a good hour just chatting it up with other soldiers I met while there. Whilst waiting around the pool area a man with a beard and a jacket with a Vietnam Veteran patch came around to everyone and invited them back that evening to free drinks on him!! I was all over that. I headed to the store for a couple of things, then to McDonald's for a quick dinner. Then I changed to my bathing suit and went back to the pool. I had a few drinks on this guy, whom I didn't even see that evening. The bar tender said he was good for it, though. Then had a few more as I chilled in the pool and hot tub. Just chatted and got to meet a few other soldiers and people who were guests at the hotel. I went to bed around 1:30 a.m. and didn't wake for breakfast on Sunday. But I had already completed the class scheduled for that Morning. Headed for the airport right after lunch. I hated the idea of leaving such warm temps. It was in the 80's while I was there! Nice and warm! And I received some valuable info on some of my benefits that are available as a Veteran of the War in Iraq (OIF). It was back to work Monday morning with rain and thunder storms and highs in the upper 50's. Ho hum. Got a few pics, but haven't had a chance to upload them yet. I'll try by the end of the week.

I'm Outty!

2010-01-21T15:06:00.000-05:00

This has been an ~~unpleasant~~ insane day at work. And it's only Thursday! Normally that would mean there is one more day to the work week, but in my case that is not the truth this week. You see, the U.S. Army has this program called the Yellow Ribbon Campaign. When a soldier returns from Iraq or Afghanistan he or she is supposed to attend a class on suicide prevention. I never did, and I got out. But, I went back into the Reserves before my original contract was up. So my name was still in the system. So, now I am required to attend this class. But the campaign is really more than just a suicide prevention class. The also have people who can give information about all sorts of Veterans Affairs benefits. Some examples are financing to assist with school, medical information, mental wellness information, and more. Therefore, I will be getting on a plane at 7 a.m. local time tomorrow morning to fly to beautiful, sunny Orlando, Florida! It is supposed to be 75 degrees there tomorrow! That's so much better than the mid-forties we have here today! Of course, I'll just be gone for the weekend, but that's okay. The whole trip is paid for, as well. With that, I must say a large thank you to our American tax payers. It is not wasted monies, as I know I will get useful information and assistance from this trip. I also thank you all for supporting the troops. American, British, Italian, French, Japanese, it matters not. You may not agree with the idea behind the war or how it is being handled. But I must say that whatever the reason, I served and am serving as a proud American who loves the FREEDOM the so many before me died for. Thanks and God bless. See you all next week!!

Born and Raised Right Here

2010-01-20T15:21:00.001-05:00

Click To Enlarge

All of these chickens were hatched by us except the bantams in the bottom right and bottom center. The bottom right were hatched by China, our bantam hen, and the bottom center was hatched by the neighbor's hen. Bottom left is Little Chicken, our soon-to-be mature rooster. The top six are all hens from Perogi, our RI Red rooster (pea comb) and/or White Cornish Rock or Buff Orpington.

Guess What Didn't Get Done!

2010-01-18T10:51:00.000-05:00

Laugh Out Loud! I didn't get half of my list done this weekend. Not by a mile! Not that it's all that surprising. It was such a lovely weekend. Saturday was mid-sixties, bright and sunny. I spent a good part of the day rearranging some of the chickens. Our newest buff pair got moved out from under the shed, as we needed the room. Bojangles got a bigger pen. Little Chicken and the black star that was with him got moved into the big pen with all the ladies. And, of course, Mike smoked the butt roast.

Now, to explain the butt roast. I can't believe all you pervs and sick-o's! See, here in the Carolina's we love our barbeque. It ain't Texas BBQ. They have brisket and beef ribs with red, tangy suace. Here in eastern NC we do pork. Pulled or chopped, on or off a bun, cole slaw, french fries, and the sweetest iced tea! The best part of the pig to use for such (though other parts can be used is a Boston Butt. It is a large hunk of meat that comes from the upper part of the shoulder. I don't know why it is called a butt, but it is perfect for smoking. We put it on the grill with oak or hickory wood chips (a few weeks ago we used apple wood). Mike soaked the wood in water to make it burn slowly, but hot. Our butt roast smoked for nine hours on Saturday! Then we used a blend of secret herbs and spices mixed in a gallon of apple cider vinegar to barbecue sauce. Mmmm...mmmm...mmmm...mmmm! Good stuff!

Sunday, Mike helped Pat clean and partially paint a trailer he bought to haul his lawn mower and other stuff around. That took up a good part of the day. I was working on the double-decker pen. Little Chicken was in the lower part of the dbl decker.

Isn't it amazing how big he's gotten! He's the first chicken we hatched in the incubator! He's RI Red (rooster with pea comb) and White Cornish Rock (meat hen) mixed. He's a gorgeous bird. He and the little black sex-link were moved in the all the other hens. We cut out part of the floor of the dbl decker to make it into a more sturdy pigeon coop. They need something better than what they are in, really.

It was a productive weekend. We ended it with my nephew, Joel's birthday part at Pizza Inn. While we were there a nasty thunderstorm blew in (because it was 72 degrees according to the weatherman). The wind blew at over 40 miles per hour. But it was a nice party Happy 6th Birthday JJ!

Got more pics for later this week. I got the camera back from Mom at the party.

Finally, the Weekend

2010-01-15T15:54:00.000-05:00

I am so glad it's Friday. I am really ready for the weekend. Nothing really major happened this week, but it has dragged out so much. It's just after 3:30 p.m. on a Friday afternoon, and I am exhausted. I wish I had a nap today. I'm guessing an early bed time tonight. It's gonna be a busy weekend. I haven't had much time at home the last few weekends. Three weeks ago was Christmas, two weeks ago was New Years. Christmas was at my parents', and I had planned to stay home for the new year, but went to take care of gimp Dad and sick Mom. Last weekend I had drill with the army reserves. So this weekend will be try-to-catch-up weekend. My nephew had a birthday last weekend I couldn't make it to because of drill. I ahve another nephew having a birthday this weekend. I'll be there because it will be at Pizza Inn just down the road from my house. But the list is long of things to get done. Mike is smoking a Boston butt roast for Saturday. I want to drain and clean the fish tanks. Max needs a hair cut. I will probably (try) to move a dresser and rearrange clothes this weekend. The list is endless. But next weekend I will be flying to Orlando, Florida for a Yellow Ribbon Campaign for the army. It's mainly a suicide prevention class, but they also hook up those who have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with resources for benefits, school, employment assistance, etc. If I pass this Physical Training test next month (that reminds me, I have to run tonight) I will probably be going to school in South Carolina at the end of next month. Wow! My plate is full!
Mike was talking to farmer last night. He was over visiting when I got home from work. They were discussing the up coming planting season and (what else) chickens. He's got Mike hyped about it all! He wants to make some sort of business out of it all. He wants to plant peppers for vinegar sauce, and other veggies to sell at the market. Not to mention, breeding chickens to sell. Oh, breathe........I need prayer! LOL
Well, got lots to do. I'll try to get my camera from my mom this weekend at the party. Everyone have a great weekend!

One More Thing

2010-01-13T13:25:00.001-05:00

I'M NOT JULIE ANDREWS! I also love a good football game, cold beer, my pick up truck, and fishing trips!

My Freebies

2010-01-13T12:22:00.000-05:00

I knew it was just a matter of time. I saw each of you posting about the things that you enjoy for free. I knew eventually someone would tag me, and I'd have to make a list of the things that I enjoy for free. So I started my list yesterday, while I was waiting. And Tracey has tagged me on her second go round. I am not going to tag anyone. Obviously, we all have free things that we enjoy. So, if you are reading this, and have a list of your own you'd like to post, please do feel free. Tagging is up to you. With out further adieu, the following is my list:

1. My Michael Wayne

2. 5 a.m Rooster Alarms

3. Nephews and Nieces and all my Family

4. Snuggles with my Cats and Dogs

5. Long Summer Days (great for fishing)

6. Hatching Baby Chicks

7. http://www.wralfm.com/

8. Finding money left in your coat pocket from last Spring

9. Fresh Flowers

10. Friends over for a visit

Update

2010-01-11T15:49:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone asking about my mom. She is much better and is back to work. Odd thing is she was down with the flu, but she had gotten her flu shot. Guess that flu shot isn't as great as they are saying it is. Mike is just now getting better. It's bad when he gets sick because it takes him forever to get better.

I had drill this past weekend. I really wasn't looking forward to it, as I had a PT test (Physical Training). I had to do so many push-ups and sit-ups for two minutes each. Then I had to run 2 miles. I didn't do so hot on the run. They are sending me to Orlando, Florida January 22-24 for a Yellow Ribbon Campaign. It's anti-suicide classes for those who have been to Iraq. I came back four years ago. I'd probably have done that by now if I were going to, but they say it's manditory, so off I go. Then they are telling me that I will take another PT test next month. This time I must pass the run. If I pass I will be going to WLC (Warrior Leadership Course) in South Carolina to get a promotion. If I fail the run, I get demoted. No pressure. A friend in my unit said he will pace me, but I have to lose at least five pounds in a month. I'm not over weight, but I could stand to lose 15 to 20 pounds. I've got my work cut out for me.

And something very important will be happening tomorrow night. If you are the fan I am, they you are gearing up for American Idol!! Yeeee-hawww!

I was in Iraq when I picked Carrie Underwood to win. I got home in March and voted for her like crazy.....and she won. But things will be a little different this year. We have said good-bye to Paula Abdul.

And we are welcoming Ellen Degeneres. I liked Paula, but she always seemed to be an emotional train wreck. I don't know what to think of Ellen. I'm not sure what credentials she's got that qualifies her to be a singing competition judge. But, nonetheless, I'm curious to see how this, the 9th season, will turn out. I understand that Ellen will not be on the first few shows (which are often the funniest as people make fools of themselves), but will show up at the judgement episodes. Time will tell. Let me see if I can pick the winner again! If there are any fans out there, check it out on FOX tomorrow night. Let me know who you think might be The Next American Idol!

Lacking the Visual Aids

2010-01-07T14:56:00.001-05:00

Well, Mike managed to leave the camera in my mom's car....which is now an hour and a half away. So I cannot take any new pics or down load the ones already on the camera. But I didn't want that to keep me from posting. So I am posting today without any pictures to show you guys. I have a number of hens that should be laying right now, even with the cold weather. A friend of mine that works for the same company as I do also has chickens. He is getting eggs from his, but I have not gotten a single egg since before Thanksgiving. That's about a month and a half without eggs. I have been feeding them well a mix of layer pellets and scratch grains. I know there's not a lot of day light now, but I should be getting something! Well, someone better start laying soon, or I will have farmer come over and dress a few for the dinner plate!

So with all that in mind, he (my friend) was asking how many hens I have that should be laying. I didn't have an accurate count, so I grabbed a note pad and tried to count them. If I'm not missing anyone I have counted 9 roosters and 35 hens. But some of the hens are not of laying age quite yet. I have 22 hens that should be of laying age, including 5 or 6 Black Sex Links (known good layers). With 22 hens of laying age, shouldn't I be getting a couple of eggs a day?

Here's about what I have:
Silkies: 1 white rooster; 1 white hen; 1 blue rooster; 1 blue hen (white hen lays, blue hen is one-eyed and may not lay)
Orpingtons: 1 buff rooster, 1 black rooster, 5 buff hens; 1 black hen (all laying age)
Sex Links: 6 black hens (laying age)
White Cornish Rocks: 5 white hens (laying age)
Rhode Island Red: 1 rooster (pea comb)
RI Red/ White Rocks: 5 hens; 1 rooster (Little Chicken)
RI Red/Buff: 5 hens (not laying age)
Dominique (I think): 1 rooster
Cuckoo Maran: 1 rooster (Bojangles)
Mixed Bantams: 1 rooster; 5 hens (2 laying age)

Who Didn't Pay The Bill?

2010-01-05T15:23:00.001-05:00

So Mike was gone last night. I spent the night alone, a rarity for me. It wasn't too bad. I stopped by Food Lion and bought a one skillet chicken meal and cooked for myself. I also bought some frozen things for lunch for the rest of the week instead of buying my lunch every day, plus a half gallon of caramel praline crunch ice cream because it was buy one get one free. I took down the tree and put it in the spare room. It's kinda lonely by myself. And boring. There was nothing on tv, so I spent the night surfing channels. I thought I was going to stretch out in bed, but that quickly got nipped in the bud. When I went to the bedroom I found Max already plopped right in the middle of the bed. Minnie was hot on my heels. And Elvis almost always sleeps with me....on my chest if he can help it. That's three. I had a bowl of ice cream in bed with me while I watched a little more tv before nodding off. Of course the dairy product attracted three more. Priscilla climbed up on the foot of the bed. Then Black Kitty and Stripey Cat raced, literally raced, up to ask for some ice cream. I was rude. I didn't share. But no one had any intention of getting out of bed, even as I got up to put my bowl in the sink. So I spent the night sleeping in a bed with two dogs and four cats. How romantic, eh?

My morning was entirely too cold! It was 21 degrees out! (For all you non-Americans that's -6!) I had to wonder who didn't pay the electir or gas bill that it has gotten so cold and is ~~not~~ refusing to warm up. I went to feed and water the birds before leaving for work to find all their water frozen. The water hose was frozen, too. So I had to carry about nine watering can fulls of hot water from the house to pour over the ice. It took me a while to do that, and I was a little late for work. It was all good, though. I talk about my chickens at work all the time.

Mike called and said my mom came to him in the middle of the night with cough syrup because he was coughing all night. LOL The sick caring for the sick! Don't know when he'll be home. I guess their house is turning into a leper colony! : D I'll call Mike later to find out when he'll be home.

A Busy Start

2010-01-04T16:00:00.000-05:00

My new year has not had a slow beginning. New Year's eve was end-of-month close out for work, so that meant reports out the wazoo, as usual. Mike had been sick all week and was in bed quite early New Years Eve. I was intending to stay up to watch the ball drop at Time Square, but I don't care for the musical na-na's of the shows they put on. So, as any old person would do, I watched the news channels...CNN, FOX News, etc. But laying on the couch does not help you stay awake. I fell asleep sometime around 11 p.m. I woke around 1:30 a.m., shut off the tv, lights, and fish tank lights, and headed off to bed. New Years Day was rainy and nasty out. It was quite unmemorable. House work and chores and such. Then Saturday morning my mom called around 8:30 a.m. just as I was waking up. (I slept in) She was crying and it scared me. I immediately thought there was some sort of accident and someone was hurt or worse. She told me her chest was hurting, she thought she had pneumonia and wanted me to come take care of her and my gimp dad. I jumped up, bathed, packed for the weekend and headed to their house. My grandfather took her to the ER when I arrived and a couple of hours later she arrived back home with the diagnosis of FLU. I asked if it was bird flu, swine flu, or human flu to which she replied, "Does it matter?" So Granddad went to town to get fried chicken from Hardee's for dinner while I did a little cleaning. I made some Christmas sugar cookies that evening, and Granddad steamed some oysters he brought home from Chinkoteague, VA where he's been fishing out of lately. My cousin Mike (not to be confused with my Mike) was over to visit, and we watched some college football...ECU needs a new kicker!!. Sunday was a little more cleaning and NFL football. I put on a roast in the slow cooker, and Granddad said he'd look in on it before he left to go back out fishing. I headed home to get myself ready for work today, and to tell Mike that Mom wanted him to come out to help some more. So my new year has not been slow. Mike's at the folks, and I'm spending a rare night alone. It might be fast food, but I might also stop by Food Lion for an easy and quick cook-for-yourself dinner. I'll have to see.

Out With The Old, In With The Soon To Be Old

2009-12-31T15:17:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone out there in blogland has a wonderful new year. Don't waste your time with resolutions. Either you are going to do it, or you are not...plain and simple. Dieting? Quitting a bad habit? Eating healthier? Spending more time with family and friends? Just do it.

But whatever you do this year, do it with gusto. Do it with umph. Do it with pride. Make 2010 a great year in spite of any obastacles that my lie ahead. I hope with all my heart that all of you have the happiest new year, at least for the first few days. It is what you make it!

2010: The Space Age?

2009-12-30T11:46:00.001-05:00

Well, Christmas is over, and the new year is only a day or so away. We are heading into 2010. It's funny to see it written down. I remember as a kid we couldn't wait for it go get here. We just knew that by 2010 we would be in the space age. Surely we would get to work via jet packs. There would be no more paved highways because cars would float in the air and could fly. And surely we would already have been in contact with beings form at least one other planet and/or solar system. We just knew that Star Trek or some variation there of would be a reality.

Of course, when I was ten years old Hailey's Comet zipped by us, not to return for about a hundred years. That was fuel for the fire. Today people ooh and aah over having telephones that can travel with us and access the internet. We have GPS systems that can pretty much tell us how to get anywhere from here. And we have blogs that we can post any message or picture to instantly and have people all around the world read our musings! Technology is amazing! But I still want to fly to work.

And To All A Good Night

2009-12-24T10:41:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

From the Chicken Boys and Gang

Randy and Mike

Elvis...does his own thing, but has gotten quite lovey in his later years

Minnie (a.k.a. Porkchop) A little shy girl..loves to sleep in a pile of clothes or pillows

Max...Never met a stranger...but likes to bark at cars when they drive by, or at a knock at the door, or at another animal in the yard, or at helicopters flying over...but is scared to death of a thunder and lightning storm.

Priscilla (a.k.a. Prissy) A little groucho at times, but can be a real lovey girl when she feels like it.

Black Kitty and Stripey Cat...both love to be held, and like to sleep in the bed. As soon as you pick them up the immediately go limp and start purring. I can love and kiss them or swing them all around and they are just as content. But they are mischevious at night and like to race the hall making noise like a herd of elephants....it got them put outside a time or two...LOL

And from the Chickens and Pigeons

We hope all of you out there have a wonderful holiday!

Christmas Is Here

2009-12-22T12:57:00.001-05:00

It's Christmas time! And my Christmas Cactus is in full bloom!! This is probably my last post til after Christmas. My pigeons got attacked by a small hawk the other morning, but he got none. He landed in the same pine tree as that owl. Mike shot at him with the .22 and he flew off. He has not returned after a week now. Something attacked my white silkie hen. Mike went out the other morning and her right wing was covered in blood. We moved her and her rooster into a better, drier coop, put some salve on her wing and put a next box in for her. She immediately started scratching and pecking as I threw her some feed. I later found out that a man's dog had gotten back there and attacked her. He came by to apologize and offer payment for her. We turned down the payment, but agreed to exchange fresh eggs in the spring for fresh bacon. She seems to be doing okay. Fingers crossed. I went holiday shopping with my mom this past Saturday. What a nightmare that turned out to be. It wasn't too bad, except my mom likes to shop for herself. She could spend hours in a store picking out all the things she wants only to put most of it back as she checks out. She did this on Saturday, as well. So neither of us finished out shopping. She was going to return on Sunday with my dad, but with his leg as bad as it is, I'm not sure how that turned out. I still have three nephews to buy for. I will probably stop to buy those tonight on my way home. I tried to get a pic of my new niece. She was born on Thursday, December 17, 2009. She was 7 pounds 1 ounce and 21 inches long. Her name is Jolissa Dawn. I haven't seen her yet, except a cell phone pic my brother sent to me. It's his third child, but only daughter. I will get pics at Christmas and post them!

Well, you all have a wonderful Christmas! Be blessed and I will see y'all after the holiday!!