Quick updates

No time to write a full post, but some interesting stuff that I have to share a la bullet points:

1. First off, Modern Family.  Has to be the funniest show on TV currently.  If you are not watching it, you need to.
2. There are four main types of clowns:  The Whiteface, Auguste, Character and Tramp.  Look it up on wikipedia here.  (Kudos to Modern Family for bringing it to my attention)
3. Lighters + fireplaces = bad idea.  The lighter will explode sooner or later.  It was sitting on the hearth, pretty far away from the fire, but after a couple of hours exploded and a piece of the shrapnel hit Whitney.  She clawed her way over Nate and I to get to safety in .4 seconds.  I guess when it comes down to survival; she will fuck up anyone in her way.
4. Snow.  In Sacramento?  Whhhhaaaa???!!!  Yup.  For sure.  Colder than a witch’s nipple right now.
5. Chickens are little laying machines, through snow, rain and freezing temperatures.  They have laid 10 eggs so far with Fifi being the dependable one of laying an egg a day (sans Sunday).  I had a delicious breakfast with the first eggs, but that deserves its own post.
6. Doctors can suck.  Especially when they admit their cluelessness and don’t offer reassuring words of comfort to people.  They should have a mandatory customer service class.  Leaving people hanging when they are at their most vulnerable is not cool.

/end post

One Egg, Two Egg

Brown Egg, Green Egg.

The first two!  Woo Hoo!  Whitney called me today while I was at work and told me that something was wrong.  She said that the chickens had been making the most horrendous sounds for the better part of the morning (Oh man, I should have recorded Whitney’s impersonation when she reenacted the sounds later on that night).  At my prompting she got closer to investigate and she exclaimed, “I think they’re laying EGGS!!!  I see something tan where Britany is sitting!”  A huge grin came across my face and I started beaming like a proud chicken-father.  I’m such a jackass!  Ha!

And so it was so.  But the chickens, in their haste to become productive members of the family could not wait any longer for my procrastinating ass.  They have no nesting box to lay in, (I haven’t found the time to build one) so they laid in the next best thing…  The compost pile.  Yup.  The compost pile.  Dug themselves a nice little depository and went to work…  Right into the decomposing vegetable scraps, trimmings and leaves.  Eggs a la compost.  Sounds appetizing huh?

Well none the less we have eggage!  First task this weekend is to complete some minor modifications to the chicken coop and build said nesting box.  The Ameraucuana, Fifi, laid the green one and Britany laid the brown one.  They are both not “usual” size eggs and unfortunately you can’t see the difference as well through pictures.  Fifi’s egg is a beautiful mossy green and in all shapes and appearances looks pretty normal.  Just smaller than a “normal” large chicken egg.  Britany’s on the other hand is the prerequisite Rhodie brown, but in shape it is extremely skinny and long and not really egg-shaped at all but rather quite oblong (I’m telling you, these pictures just don’t capture it!).  Size comparison below to a normal chicken egg (Much wider and taller than the homegrown).

White egg, green egg, brown egg.  Now the hard decision of what to make with the first eggs?

Chicken update… Yeah me!

I can tell the Rhodies apart!  Finally the poor chickens will no longer have to suffer the humiliation and obscurity of not being able to be told apart.  A couple of days ago, I noticed their combs and waddles changed color and have stayed like that ever since.  One of them has a big, bright red comb and waddles and the other has smaller, more of a pinky/rose color.  The one with the pink comb is already named, Britany, but I have to come up with another name for ‘Chicken One’.  Actually Whitney and I came up with the best name ever…  But we forgot it.  =(   So the biggest, fluffiest, chicken; who actually likes to be held and petted, is still without a name.  No way to treat a favorite!  The Ameracuana (FiFi, short for Phoenix because of her kickass plummage) is a complete bitch (What happenend to her?!).  She is the top chicken and she lets it be known constantly.  She even pecks at Nate sometimes.  If she doesn’t earn her keep by producing enough eggs…  She will be the first on the chopping block.  Literally. 

Oh and still no eggs…  Since egg production requires massive amounts of energy, I think that the girls are trying to keep warm and in tip top shape since it has been so damn cold lately.  So I guess I am going to have to keep waiting…

Chicken 'One' hopefully named so only for the time being. Notice the full, red comb and waddles.

 

And Britany with the pink, smaller comb and waddles.