Monday in the garden

Okay, okay. I don't really have a garden, but this past weekend, I stayed home and got lots of projects done; one being to mow the lawn and work on the chicken coop. So the back yard looks a lot better, but there's plywood and 1x2's all over the place. I've got big plans to start another compost pile (heat provided by dog poop :-) and plant this fancy grass seed I got last year. It's supposed to wild grasses and flowers and you don't have to mow it (more sustainable, eh?).

A friend helped me with the coop on Sunday. We rat-proofed the back fence with hardware cloth nailed to the fence and buried about 4-6 inches into the ground. But really, if a rat wanted to get into the coop, he could....

my friend is 48, in good physical shape (martial arts) and takes care of himself. Never-the-less, he had a full-blown (type 1) diabetes reaction (paramedics came, or he could have died). I was calm, cool and collected the whole time, but now I feel a bit un-nerved. I watched his personality change (from obsessing over a concrete strut near the fence) to walking unsteadily to arguing, falling down, knocking things over and generally acting drunk and strange. For instance, he didn't want to give the paramedics his finger for a blood poke. They said sometimes people get combative and they have to hold them down. Eventually, he did give up a finger....later, he was docile and cooperative. It's rough being out-of-control. You try to keep control any way you can. Anyways, his blood sugar was 27!, but he drank sugar water til it came back up to 107. Then the paramedics left.

Anyways, it's been my dream to sit in the back yard and relax since last winter!!! Now I'm really doing it. Yay!!! And the little chickies are happily eating small rocks. Did you know that because chickens don't have teeth, they swallow rocks into their "crop" where muscles rub the food and rocks together. Something like that.

This afternoon, a bunch of crows or something flew over my backyard several times. But they weren't crows because they had reddish-orangish wings. Hummmmm. The first chicken class I took said wild animals learn where to find their favorite meals, just like we do (i.e. the closest Big Mac). Hummmmm.

Bailey has been very calm with the birds, but....one flew a few feet today and she chased chomping her teeth. I heard her teeth bite together. She can't be fully trusted yet (or ever). In the meantime, the Golden (April) continues to chase Ernie. He's a wimp! But the RIR (May) is defending herself againt April. Humm? Who will be the top chicken? Must go in now. It's after 8:00pm and the chickens will want to sleep. Can't wait for this weekend. Gonna put the sides on the coop. Then, I need to build a door.