Peripheral blogging...

Remember, without photo's, your blog, for lack of a better word...sucks!!!

So, you learned a new term tonight...not "sucks", you already knew what that meant..."peripheral blogging" from the blogonary (I just made that up)...simply put, the ability to blog while doing something else...in this case, watching the Packers losing to the Bears at halftime...arghhhhhhh...who says a guy can't multi-task???

Well, we made some headway in "draft-proofing" Coop-de-Ville yesterday, and the resident's reported a "less than drafty" overnight!!! The second generation of Coop-de-Ville, "Coop-de-Condo" will begin next Spring when the renovation of the existing 10 x 12 garden shed takes shape!!! The resident's are already clucking with excitement over the news!!! I crack myself up...

More good news, we're getting three to four eggs per day!!! Pretty soon we'll have enough to share with the neighbors...

And finally, even BETTER news!!! Found the source of the "dead animal" stench in the garage (sorry no pictures), a field mouse had gotten inside and for whatever reason...decided to die and started stinking something fierce!!! It's surprising how such a small little shit of a rodent can stink SOOOOO bad!!! When we first moved in, I purchased a few of these electric devices you plug into the wall that emit sound waves that supposedly deter rodents from entering the building...Perhaps it kills them too...not sure, but who cares...one less rodent is a good thing!!!

Doorway framed in to prevent door drafts..."hopefully"

Shuttered window opened up (used attic window with glass on left, screen on right for ventilation)

Nice fit...should reduce, if not eliminate drafts through the window...

"Sponge Bob Egg Pants"...one of the girls dropped him during the night, landed on the "poop" tray...he literally feels like a sponge ball...

Before...

After...mmmmmm!!!

You talkin' to me???..YOU TALKIN' TO ME???

New camo tarp, it's vogue in the chicken community...

The "kids"...looks like they are up to somethin'

Wasp!!! They're the real deal man...not the White Anglo Saxon Protestant type...

Probably our last basket of veggies for the season...

Bucket of garden fresh chicken treats with "bugs on the side"...Lucky chicken's!!!

Sunflower seeds galore...

Nice melon's...no pun intended... ;-P

Peace...R Dean



Tomato Sandwich...

For any of you not familiar with how to prepare the most "ultimate" tomato sandwich...here is the recipe...it's quite simple, obviously...because it is coming from a man...

-Cut a ripe tomato (any large type will do) into thin slices, approximately 1/4" to 3/8" slices...approximately six to eight slices...

-Toast your bread (my favorite is Buttermilk)...

-After the bread is toasted, remove from the toaster and spread a couple teaspoon's of Miracle Whip onto the toast...

-Next, apply freshley cut tomato's, and for a bit of a bite, sprinkle pepper on the sandwich...

-Finally...enjoy!!!

Bon-appetit...

Sunday Morning Sunrises...

Got up early this Sunday morning...of course...because I needed to let the chick's out...thought I would share some sunrise pictures with you in case you slept in and missed "your" beautiful sunrise...

There is something to be said about a beautiful Sunday morning sunrise...wouldn't you say???

Enjoy...R Dean aka Sunrise "Sun-tastic"...

It's about time...

that I got off my lazy ass and posted something...So here it is...

1. We have consistently gotten one egg per day all week!!! Between the hours of 8am and 10am, (we can set our watches) one of the girls is routinely doing her job!!! And contrary to what I have read, the nesting boxes "aren't" tucked away in a dark corner and they still seem to be laying...Maybe our chicken's
are "renegade's", you know...the type that break "all the rules"...and that is just cool!!!

2. We have a chicken that continues to think it is okay to take a crap in the waterer...and that is just wrong!!!

3. Today, I took 3 computer monitor's, two CPU's and two coffee can's of "spent" batteries to our recycle center...I left the recycle center "minus" $62.10 from our checking account...are you f'ing kidding me??? I am all about recycling and feel it is definitely my obligation to do my part...even if it means driving 20 miles to do it, but come on!!! Apparently, my county has decided to turn a recycle center into a profit center too!!! Maybe I'm wrong, but I have a real hard time believing that they don't already make "something" when they turn it over to the recycler's that claim the "good" stuff from the computers and monitor's...and that is just "highway" robbery...I pay taxes...remember???

4. This week, we continued to get more tomato's...between giving more away to friends and freezing three bags of bad one's for the chicks, we still have a couple hour's worth of picking to do tomorrow, and then...we should be done...We even got four more good sized summer squash and a cuke today!!! and that is just awesome...

In closing, adding a few picture's to the blog, because according to my wife, who knows a lot about a lot, says that without picture's, my blog is, simply put..."boring"...hahaha...

Russell Crow and one of his "girls" partying til the sun comes up!!!

And the sun "DID" come up!!!

Nitschke found somewhere nice and soft to crash for the night...

No idea what type of spider this is...but it looks "NASSSSSSSTY"... If I was a betting man, I would bet this one bites...Fortunately...Jan took this picture "outside"...not "inside"!!!

Well, that is all I have to report for now...I know...I lead a boring life, but a happy one nonetheless!!! I'm off to eat a tomato sandwich with mayonaise on toast...and then go to bed!!! And by the way...did you know that nonetheless is just "one" word, and not three??? ;-)

Peace...R Dean

Egging 2 for 4...

Well...our average is going up...yeah!!!! Jan got another egg today (the non-cracked type...whew)!!! Thanks to all of your feedback, I have taken your advice and increased their oyster shell supplement so hopefully that will help out...

Here are some pics I hope you enjoy!!!

Peace R Dean...

Nitschke crashed...

Cool sky...

Okay...why you takin' a picture of ME???

Random flowers...

Mirror image...Maggy (left) and Molly (right)

I got my eye's closed...okay...where is my surprise???

There it is...!!!

Keepin' an eye on our power consumption...Frugal Maggy...

It's "play time" with da mama...

Snout "close-up"...

Molly girl...aka "da mama"...

Our first pumpkin...

Ah ha!!! Caught in the "act"...the infamous "waterer pooper"!!!

Egging 1 for 3...

If you know about batting averages in baseball, you know that the more hits you get per times at bat raises your batting average significantly, while in contrast, the less hits you get per times at bat lower's your batting average...Well, I'm feeling like we are heading for a slump (baseball lingo for not gettin' any hits or "eggs")...

Today Jan found another egg in the nesting box, only to discover it had cracked or had been cracked.....ARGHHHHHH!!!!

So now, we are "egging" 1 for 3, which is .333%....not really that impressive, unless you are playing in the Major League...

Well, hopefully tomorrow...better luck...and NO broken eggs...we have egg carton's just standing by to house fresh eggs...

Egging 1 for 2...

Went to the coop this morning and found this...

A cracked egg... :-(

It was laying beneath the roosting bars, so she layed it during the night...

Yesterday, I noticed the same nesting box where the first egg was layed had the pine shavings pushed around in it, so I figured that we would get another egg yesterday, but I thought maybe she had been startled and would go back later to finish the job...but unfortunately I was wrong...oh well, I'm sure the third one will be in the nesting box when I get home tonight...fingers crossed!!!

Have a great Monday...R Dean

Sunday morning blog...

Figured I would do a quick post...getting ready to head out to cut and trim the property, at least the former...trimming can take literally 2-1/2 to 3 hours for the entire property, so I break it into quadrants...will be doing the front quadrant "first" which is out front and on the sides leading up to the house...

Took some pics yesterday that I wanted to share...hope you enjoy them!!!

The first water melon from our garden...we're keeping half and sharing the other with our neighbor across the road...

A typical Fall "looking" day, even though it is not officially Fall yet...and it was in the mid 60's!!!

The resident's of Coop De Ville looking for a hand-out...

When are you going to let me go "outside"???

Someone mentioned or I read that when a Pullet is getting ready to lay, their comb gets more colorful...She has the most colorful comb to date...maybe she produced the first egg???

Here is a comparison of our first egg to one commercially purchased...

Only one of our three plum tree's has fruit this year...not sure why...need to read up on it!!!

Buck Elk grazing behind our property...Their rack's are "HUGE"!!!

Chickadee stopping to pose for a picture...

Hummingbird looking for something "sweet"...

Our FIRST EGG!!!

YEAH.....I went out to shut the chicken coop door tonight and VIOLA....our FIRST EGG!!!

I'm sooooooo....HAPPY!!!! Yes, they "are" egg layer's, Yes, they "will" use the nesting box!!!

I was getting very discouraged, even got down on my hand's and knee's tonight to look beneath the coop to find out if the girl's had layed eggs beneath the coop and not told me!!! What a relief they hadn't!!!

Egg #1 from Egg Engineering at Coop De Ville...

Now...who layed it???

R Dean...

Pumpkin, Melon's, Gourd's and More Chick Questions...

Check out our pumpkin, melon's and gourd's...our first attempt at the latter crop...keeping our fingers crossed they make it!!! Weather has been fabulous...high 60's, low 70's during the day, dropping down into the high 40's tonight...YEAH!!! Fall is just around the corner!!!

Future "Jack-O-Lantern"...

Nice melon's...

Beautiful specimen...larger juvenile than the one I found last night in the potato box...but I still don't know "what" type it is...

Finally...dinner of yellow squash and onion's in a tomato sauce over spaghetti...mmmmmm...

And last but not least...I came home to find the chicken's or "one" chicken had decided to "poop" in the large water container...he or she must have been sitting on top of it...wondering if they drink the water if that would cause them to get sick??? I hope not, but how do you prevent them from doing that. I have both water stations up on bricks...The smaller of the two was knocked completely over...maybe they were suffering separation anxiety today!!! hahaha...what do you think???