The Defective Rooster

I guess that should be the rooster who defected, but really the defective rooster has more appeal. We have 5 chickens 3 hens, Grace, Guinney, and Rachel and 2 roosters, Spot and Zeke. Zeke is the dominant roo.  The roo's aren't necessary to get eggs, the hens lay without a roo. We only have 2 because you had to buy 5 chicks and they only had 3 female chicks left. Roos are kind of a pain, they feel the "need to breed" constantly. They are annoying to the hens, and if they perceive you as a chicken, then they feel the need to challenge you as another roo. This entails grabbing your leg with theirs and flogging you with their head. And at our house the attempt to do this is met with a kick in the bum or head. (plus some choice names said at the roo.)

 I'll grant you they are protective of the girls and they will get between them and a hawk or a possum, I have seen both things happen. But that is where their endearing qualities end.

After being locked up together in the chicken house for most of the winter, it is finally nice enough for the chickens to free range the yard, Spot, whom already had an inferiority complex, has decided to go live with the ducks down the hill. We rent a bit of our pasture to a man who has ducks and a few hens. Spot has decided to claim these girls as his harem and live with them. He's gone to visit before but has always been home at lock down time, no more. He has not come home all week, since Monday. And I have decided not to go chasing after him. I'm a bad chicken keeper aren't I? Oh well.

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House Keeping ADD

So, I started cleaning out the bathroom closet this week, on Monday, I think.. I have way too much stuff, soap, lotion and the like. What prompted this cleaning was my sister is looking to replace the discontinued lipstick she likes the best. So I was looking to see if I had that color or anything close that I don't wear.. and I wear so little make-up that if I have something she likes chances are that I don't use it. (That seems grammatically incorrect, but I don't know why) Not to mention I just jumped ship from regular makeup to BareMinerals. Need to weed out the stuff I wont use.

At any rate, we live in an older house, built in the 1850's and it is far from critter proof. There have been mice in the massive bathroom closet. there are trails in there... Ew. They are such disgusting little creatures, pooping on everything. Ew, ew, ew.  And my word, they have eaten enough soap that the little fiends should be pooping bubbles. Apparently Ivory is their soap of choice, but Dial must be what they eat only in desperation. And Sandlewood!, it must be a "fine after dinner soap", as they have eaten the entire little decorative soap, leaving the barest few crumbs and plastic wrapper.

Ew. So I'm trying to get rid of the things they like, get it out of the house use it up, whatever. but I'm tired of cleaning the closet from hell.very tired. So I moved on to the kitchen. I don't have the will to return to the bathroom closet yet.

And now the kitchen is a mess too... Maybe I'll clean off the dining room table.

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What's Your True Color?

as seen on maura_ea's vox

You're green, the color of growth and vigor. Good-hearted and giving, you have a knack for finding and bringing out the best in people. Green is the most down-to-earth color in the spectrum — reliable and trustworthy. People know they can count on you to be around in times of need, since your concern for people is genuine and sincere. You take pride in being a good friend. For you, success is measured in terms of personal achievement and growth, not by status or position. Rare as emeralds, greens are wonderful, natural people. It truly is your color!

What's your true Color?

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a little lost...

My kids have been gone all week.

They went to Walt Disney World with my parents.

You might think the lack of children would be reasons for rejoicing. And really it has had its bight spots, The bathroom stayed clean all week, there is no tooth paste on the sink, no urine on my toilet seat, and no mysterious puddles on my floor.  However, all week, I have felt discombobulated. The first to days the kids where absent I did some major cleaning and tidying so I could have a PartyLite party on Saturday night.  On Sunday Hubby, Neighbor J and I went out to the west side of the property to fix the fence, (On Monday, 2 of the horses got out and Neighbor J's neighbor  put them back in the wrong pasture) We needed to fix the fence so the beasties could go to the right pasture. We came inside watched a movie and had dinner.

Since then I have been alone all week. Quiet is nice. I have been going through piles of magazines so I can throw away and pass along, and declutter my house. I haven't gotten very far. But I have realized how long it takes to really read a magazine and glean out any useful info. Magazines are a time sucker. I dont know that I want to keep going through the pile and just toss the whole pile out. (Or pass them on)  I feel like I accomplished something. But I actually did very little. Maybe I accomplished more by fueling my desire to declutter my life, than by the actual work I did this week.

I want the house to be cleaner, I want to be able to have people over without fear the house will swallow them whole. I want my kids to be able to have friends over. I want our house to be a restful haven, not a chaotic mess.

And I am ready for my tornadoes to come home. :) I'm ready for my cuddles.

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QotD: Staying Organized

How do you stay organized? 
Submitted by devillibrarian. 

Stay Organized.. lol.. I'm not organized at all. But I do have the Alarm clock in my phone set for various times of the day so I am usually on time. Usually, but not always.

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Oh Mother Nature why are your knickers in such a knot?

It was 50F when I took the kids to school this morning, and now we are under a wind advisory and a blizzard warning. There is a big storm moving across Iowa, only 2-4 inches of snow expected, but, winds of 25 - 45 miles an hour are beating a path this way.

The house is cold. The wind comes right through the wall of my bedroom, and up through floors in the kitchen and dining room. I'm not thrilled by this, but such is life in a 150 year old house. What I dread is the possibility of a power outage. Hubby is on his way to get a load in Texas, and I cannot start the generator.I cant start anything with a pull cord. Never once have I made that happen. I hope the power stays on.

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zoom Zoom ZOOM

On Sunday we bought a wireless card for my computer. I have been in the dark ages of dial-up now for two years. This means I have not gotten to see any of the videos people post or send me, they dont load on dial-up. All those informative news blurbs.. I dont get to see them.  I have had my Mom send me pictures I needed to have to make the photo tiles, that I make. But I usually have to make 2 or 3 attemps to download each picture so I get the whole file. And all the free digital scrapbooking goodies out there? forget it.  I'm so excited, I have been making a list of things for Hubby to download for me, but now I can do it myself!!! YEAH!!!

It is rough to not be able to utilize so much information out there because you are basically walking a dirtroad rather than riding the super-highway.

I'm so excited I have so much to catch up on..  knitting patterns to download, cnn news bits to watch, digital scap freebies to get,

AND!!!!   pictures to upload!!! I have not been able to upload a decent size picture to vox or flickr in so long!!

I need to go take a picture just so I can upload it here!!!!!

But first I need to feed the beasties.

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