Busy morning…

I forgot to bring the waterer in from the Fortress of Attitude last night, and so now it’s thawing in the sink. The Two Ladies still aren’t laying eggs, but they require the same amount of care. That usually only takes a few minutes though frozen chicken crap, being impossible to clean off the floor, doesn’t take any time at all.

Over to the Big Chickenhouse: Here the water is chunky but not completely frozen. But you know those little brass-and-plastic nipples for the bottoms of five-gallon buckets? Those freeze up every single night. So I keep a spare bucket upside-down in the sun in front of the building and just switch them every day. Looks like two of the Brahma hens are getting the idea, since I’m getting two non-Agnes eggs a day lately. Might not always be the same two, I don’t know.

The two remaining Brahma cocks, having discovered sex, were getting Christmas presents of their own this morning so I’d imagine those eggs are maybe fertilized. I’ve a feeling I’m going to have to ask Landlady for blanket permission to move or “process” one of the cocks, because they seem to forget all about peaceful coexistence when one of them is getting it on. Whichever one is getting some, the other one gets upset. We may start seeing fights. So far they don’t seem to be overtaxing the hens, but I’m going to keep an eye on the sitch. Like Paulo the Former Stallion from Hell, these guys seem to believe that candlelight and Barry White CDs are not only unnecessary, they’re positively inappropriate.

I brought the boys with me to shit-shoveling, since LB has stopped lunching on the gear shifter and the Jeep doesn’t get too hot. While I was back in the pasture I got a text from H saying I didn’t have to come today if I didn’t want to. I sent her back one of my own…

🙂 Too late.

Turns out J had Christmas carols cranked up loud and they didn’t hear the driveway alarm announce my arrival.

I had to go to D&L’s for some lifting chores (D is awaiting hernia surgery, L’s getting over back damage) and so wanted to drop the boys at the Lair. For only the second time in his life, Ghost fought the leash. There was something in the underbrush north of the Lair that badly needed to be chased away, in his opinion. I demanded that he come inside just so it was on record that I’d won the dispute, then let him go again. He silently blasted off into the bushes: I watched to make sure he didn’t need cover for a quick retreat, because he acted as if this was a more serious matter than just some uppity ravens. Ghost hates the ravens, and they appreciate the sport. He came back but seemed to consider the business handled, and came right inside when I invited him to cheese.

Then off to D&L’s. Strangely, their dog Butch has been refusing to go out of their house until hydraulic pressure forces him out. Seems he got spooked by some unusually big and/or aggressive predator. I wonder if that was the same thing Ghost was checking out? Both he and LB have been awfully barky the past couple of mornings. They take their territory very seriously.

In town yesterday D&L filled their pickup’s bed with 40-lb pellet sacks (they’re using pellet stoves for primary heat in their new house.) So we stacked those, then he wanted to put the big toolbox back in the pickup. We took it out a couple of months ago because he needed the room for building materials and appliances, but that’s done now. Then there were a bunch of pavers L wanted moved. I got lunch out of the deal.

A few days ago I did something I could kick myself for now: I converted most of my arsenic cap money into an Amazon order. Wanted a new pocket flashlight and some food buckets (The buckets are fairly cheap, but spin-on lids cost like Nifflheim,) and then I splurged on some books. I’ve got the latest Correia Grimnoir book coming. Wish I hadn’t spent the money, since now I have to raise more for eye surgery in a short time. But having done so, I may as well enjoy it. 🙂 So natch I have to re-read Hard Magic and Spellbound, and I’ll spend most of the afternoon getting busy with that.