A Day In The Life - a Twitter style diary

I got exhausted just reading this. (4.00 / 6)

My sweetie and I talk about getting some chickens, maybe a goat or two, but I SO love not being tied down to farm animals.

As a kid, I never got to go anywhere, hold a job off the family farm, etc. As an adult, I made my husband take me to all the places other kids went that I never got to experience. He was very understanding about it all, and he reminds me of it every time we start discussing farming animals.

It's easy to find people to cat and dog sit, chicken/goat/cow sitting is another matter. . .and his work frequently takes us to far away cities. (He's a jazz musician.)

Love the white sharks moniker, too. Chickens are a bit like sharks, aren't they?

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by: zic @ Fri Apr 03, 2009 at 01:46:45 AM UTC

Chickens are like sharks, little land sharks.... (4.00 / 7)

Ours are constantly on the prowl. Even though they have feed in the coop, they like nothing more than foraging for bugs, grazing, etc. And don't pick up or over turn anything without expecting a hen running up to see if there's anything to grab.

I hear ya on being tied down. In 18 years, I've left just a few times. 3 times to go elk hunting, and a couple on business. Everytime I leave and have someone else take care of the animals something's happened. One time a horse didn't get fed or watered for a day, another time the water got left on for a couple of days, once the only key we had to the front and garage doors got lost (had to change the locks that time so we could get back in after locking the doors), and another time a pheasant I had on breeding loan got out and lost (this was a bird out of San Diego Zoo stock and very valuable). Fortunately, the guy who lost the bird was also her owner....

I've pretty much given up taking a vacation. I just cruze along and take a day off here and there in the winter, except for feeding and watering.

Regarding locavores as elitists - explain to me how supporting local business is elitist....

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by: Joanne Rigutto @ Fri Apr 03, 2009 at 03:01:00 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

There's nothing else in my life that's given me the sense of reward (4.00 / 3)

to balance the pull of care, though. Not even my own children.

I distinctly recall being about 14, and walking through the muck of a dark morning, with just a hint of daylight in the sky as I fetched the cows in for milking, knowing that what I did mattered to people. And I felt good about it, proud of myself in a way I think few 14-year-olds ever get to feel, now. I'm sure it was rare then, back in 1974.

There is balance to being tied down, but anyone considering farming should think this aspect of it through very carefully; for animals need to be cared for rather you feel like caring for them or not.

Thank you, Joanne. I'm hoping for more pictures of your animals soon.

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by: zic @ Fri Apr 03, 2009 at 13:06:31 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Oh, chickens (4.00 / 3)

I live in a (smallish) city now.  But when my elderly father was still alive, I lived with him after his roommate died.

And I drove to work, back then.

Just past the intersection of Farmersville Road East-West and Farmersville Road North-South (I kid you not: it was the main intersection in Farmersville...those Amish & Mennonites are so inventive!) there is a house with free-range hens.  Free-range hens.  White picket fence.  Street out front with cars trying to do 50 mph in a 35 mph zone.

The chickens, bless their clucking little hearts, seemed to know better than to venture onto the street...but every time I drove past there I was terrified one of them would try to cross the road in front of me (& I was doing less than 35 mph, partly because of the chickens & partly because I needed to make the turn from Farmersville Rd. E-W to F. Rd. N-S.)

Those chickens just seemed to LOVE the grass between the roadway and the white picket fence, even though they had a large yard to roam in.

The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been found. -- Calvin Trillin

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by: Youffraita @ Fri Apr 03, 2009 at 07:40:06 AM UTC

They did that... (4.00 / 3)

just to mess with you...

;-P

Much like cats in that way - they're just out for a reaction.

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Fri Apr 03, 2009 at 11:34:18 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Ours haven't gone out onto the highway yet, knock on wood (4.00 / 5)

We're right on  the main highway into Oregon City - 45 mph but cars actually go closer to 55 mph - and a LOT of traffic. I forget what the ODOT stats are for our stretch of highway, but it's almost high enough to qualify for a signal at the school. Our neighbors, on the other hand, used to have ducks and they lost every single one of them to traffic. Go figure.

Way back when we first moved out here I had upland gamebirds and ornamental pheasants. I used to hand rear them - you don't know what fun is untill you have a 20# wild turkey land on your outstreached wrist ;-)

Anyway, I had this melanistic male ringneck pheasant I raised. He was beautiful, all purple and dark green. He got the run of the farm, and would get on the highest spot he could find to crow about every 15 minutes all day long. Anyway, he got into the habbit of patroling the side of the road and would chase - I kid you not - any tractor/trailer rig on his side of the highway. When people would come onto the property he would escort them down the driveway if they used the north drive. That was about 16 years ago and people still remember that bird. His name? Mad Max of course because he was the Road Warrior.

Regarding locavores as elitists - explain to me how supporting local business is elitist....

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by: Joanne Rigutto @ Fri Apr 03, 2009 at 12:32:38 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Your Mad Max sounds (4.00 / 3)

like quite a character.  Thanks for the laughs...I can just see him "escorting" people down the driveway.

About 5 or 6 years ago I was out in the county...in a friend's car...and we got stuck because some geese were crossing the road.

All fifty of them.  But they couldn't quite decide whether they wanted to cross, or not.

I love geese.  They are beautiful.  But they are also delicious -- and as these kept wandering in front of the car, I kept thinking about dinner.  Heh.

The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been found. -- Calvin Trillin

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by: Youffraita @ Sat Apr 04, 2009 at 02:57:19 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

they also make great watch 'dogs.' (4.00 / 2)

And a grown gander has enough strength in his beak to break you arm if he can get ahold of it. So make sure you use the car, don't try to catch them by hand next time you find yourself with such delicious potential.

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by: zic @ Sun Apr 05, 2009 at 02:01:21 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Related to your comment about ganders, (4.00 / 3)

I learned a long time ago, if a full grown wild turkey jumps up in front of you to spur you, DON'T grab him by the neck. I liked to got my belly opened up! and I did wind up black and blue from my waist to my head....

Regarding locavores as elitists - explain to me how supporting local business is elitist....

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by: Joanne Rigutto @ Sun Apr 05, 2009 at 04:02:15 AM UTC

[ Parent ]