Goodnight Ladies

I sing to the chickens every night... I know, it's stupid. STUPID AWESOME!!

Everynight I take my mega-watt flash-light out to the chicken coop. I whistle as I walk out through the brush because in my mind that will let the snakes know that I am coming. I've been whistling especially loud ever since we almost ran over a rattle snake in our driveway, a baby rattle snake at that. The babies are more deadly because they haven't learned how to budget venom yet. Not to mention baby snakes don't come from the stork, there's a mommy and daddy somewhere. Never the less I walk through the brush with my flashlight in one hand and a wire basket in the other. Now for the serenade of the chickens: Their beady little eyes stare at me from inside the coop, I lift up the ramp and lock them in safe from predators as I sing Lou Reed's "Goodnight ladies." Then I walk around to the nesting boxes,

Chick-a-dee

"Goodnight ladies, ladies goodnight"

Grab an egg or two

"It's time to say goooodbye"

Egg egg egg

"Aw we've been together for the loooongest time, but now it's time to get high, come on let's get high"

Egg egg

They cluck in approval and I leave with 12-17 eggs, the number of eggs is directly related to my performance the night before. Yesterday I got 18, I rule!

Wednesday's are flower days. Beth and I wander about the farm snipping perennials, annuals, wildflowers, wheat, basically anything that would look good in a bouquet. Then I drive the 12-20 arrangements, plus some eggs and beef, up to the haybale mansion at Wolf Gulch Farm. I'll tell you... the first little pig had the right idea, this house is amazing. I got there just in time for a watermelon fight between interns. Wolf Gulch is bogarting all of the interns, I think they have six.

So as it turns out, cows are pretty freaking cute and you should feel bad for eating them. Yesterday with my Bo-peep staff we herded the cows to a new field. The momma's would moo for their babies and the other little calf's would play chase all over the field. If you eat veal you're going to hell, it's true.

Now I must away, I am making yoghurt and I am covered in dirt. I look like I'm in camo or something. I've learned something working in the fields, if you think something is crawling on you... well it is. I have a fun assortment of bites and rashes. My feet are so dirty you would probably ask me to put my shoes on to come in your house. I'll leave you with a few tips:

1. Sugar is the best preservative for flowers, dump a teaspoon into your next vase full.

2. The more orange the yolk the fresher the eggs, the more yellow and runny then older.

3. The recent decline in bees has been linked to feeding them corn syrup instead of the honey they are used to, corn syrup has none of the minerals of honey. Wonder what it's doing to us as corn syrup is in almost everything we eat.

Peace