Yesterday I got a lot done on the farm because I got angry – I call it the Little Red Hen Syndrome.
I see Red. (I cannot tell you why that happened yesterday) but when I get angry I seldom speak out I just get to work super fast. I use anger as a tool – as a fuel. And it is rocket fuel if correctly channelled.
I launched into digging out Wai’s house – this is still a WIP – I worked until my shoulders hurt as the muscles get stronger. I don’t over do it though – I need these muscles in work mode not recovery mode.
I roared about on my tractor digging out and disposing of the old straw. I watered and transplanted and swept mad(ly). And I frightened FreeBee by jumping over his gate without warning him – he ran away barking and I felt so bad. FreeBee gets frights – I know this and it was a good reminder. The best way to get bitten by a hog is to give them a fright. Plus when they blindly run like that there is potential for injury.
He came back fast though once he realised it was me and I had a apple for him.
Chicken and Chicks
I contacted my chick provider and have been added to the list to receive any leftover layer chicks. This way, I can save them from being euthanised and they can pop them in the box with my first order. I have been instructed to call back on Monday, which is hatch day. If any of the layer varieties produce more chicks than expected or if there are any order cancellations, I will have layer chicks delivered to me as well.
If they offer me too many I am thinking I will take them all and sell some as Point of Lay chickens in the spring. But that is wishful thinking as they are sold out of layers for months ahead. And I am sure I am not at the top of the list!
The brooder is cleaned out and ready for the chicks.
It is perfect weather for chicken transport. They come on the mail truck that is not climate controlled. So I prefer not to order them in the heat or the cold. But this is the latest month I have started chicks so I hope they grow well. I have a plan if it gets too cold.
They have some fantastic clover in the field! I will move them through the wheat fields right outside the study window.
We are still collecting prepping scraps and waste veges from the restaurant down the road. The chooks see the car arrive with the buckets in the afternoon and chase it up the drive.
The skies
No rain – just clouds.
Quacker the Lone Duck
Quacker spends all day with a black rooster and his barn flock. He sleeps in amongst them in the day and bathes in their water and is much quieter and more content now.
Some evenings he pops down to his pond rock. Just to check, in case another duck might be there but there never is one. So he never sleeps on the pond.
There are a lot of fish in the pond though. I will plug in the pond heater when it gets cold – and hopefully this will keep the fish alive. Though fish live in the big pond over at the big house on the big farm year after year with no care at all and this pond is pretty deep.
Off out to work again for me. Wai is waiting at the bottom of the steps for his breakfast.
What is on your agenda today?
Celi
PS I am writing and recording my weekend Substack Podcast this afternoon. So stand by for that!
The Kitchen's Garden 
36 responses to “Furiously Leaning Into the Day”
Amazing skies!
After a couple of very busy weeks, we have nothing planned for the weekend!
That sounds glorious!! Hope you get to just sit in the garden with a glass of something lovely!
Funny you should say that…
Mom would order chicks every spring and they would come in the mail. She would pick them up and bring them home in the back of the pick-up truck. We were so excited as she opened the box. There would always be a few dead chicks which made me cry. Mom said it was OK as they always added a few extra just in case. I felt that just wasn’t the point.
It is pretty hit and miss – (in the old days when i was a kid they came in hexagonal boxes to avoid crushing) but if they are too cold they crowd together and if it is too hot they simply expire which is why I like to bring them in late in the summer when the weather is cooling and settled. (For the layers) If I raise them as fall chicks then they start to lay in the spring which I find more efficient. Though we have had so many chicks hatch on the property these last few years that I have not needed to buy any.!
Thanks for the reminder of the hexagonal boxes. Mom would get them in the spring so it wouldn’t be too hot or too cold. But we would invariably get a late cold snap and she would run around looking for heaters and blankets etc. to keep them warm. The chickens were her domain and she got to keep the revenue they brought in. One way to get a new pair of shoes!
Ha ha – I got angry yesterday too! I put my bike in for a service on Wednesday and was told it would be ready by Friday. I called several times about picking it up and was told it would be ready, but I’d heard nothing by 6pm and called again. This time they said it wouldn’t be ready. I got politely furious and told them I was coming to pick up the bike regardless. When I got there they were working on it and I took it home fully serviced!
I don’t think you need a pond heater, even the domestic Koi Carp here are happy in cold weather. Their motabolism slows down and they hardly move.
What is that saying about the squeaky wheel very apt for you yesterday! And Politely Furious is quite my favorite. In fact you can tell when I am angry as I sound terribly British! Well you know how cold it gets here – do you think they will be OK? It appears this big school is Blue Gills.
I’ve just seen an article online about ice fishing for Bluegill, so I would imagine they’d be OK. They are local fish so I assume they will be OK. Aparently they are the State Fish of Illinoise!
Really? The state fish! Huh!!
So they say! The only things I’d worry about are oxygenation of the water – running water creating bubbles and the number of fish in the pond.
Hope you don’t mind me jumping in on this conversation. I know here in SW Minnesota the lakes with fish are allowed to freeze over until mid-January and then they aerate them, giving the fish a large section that opens up. The ice fisherpeople give it a wide berth and everyone is happy. Just thought I’d mention that- if it’s any help!
Sounds like good information to me 😉
So sorry to read that something made you so angry, a rare event l’m sure. Still a good productive by product. That funny old Quaker, obviously does still remember it’s a duck despite accepting it’s a chicken most of the time. Poor Freebee, but realising it was you and a bonus apple obviously helped. Hope you are feeling calmer now.
I am feeling calmer – I know that I am not in charge of others actions (or non actions) I can only be fully in charge of myself but sometimes I just want to hit people with sticks! Though as you say – this is a rare occurrence and all over today. Though I got a hell of a lot achieved yesterday which may have something to do with my present contentment. Hope all is well with you Andy!
I certainly understand that sentiment! All good thank you. Especially since you’ve sussed l’m Andy( never been an Andrea)!!
Yes!
Sorry to hear you’re working angry Celi (been there myself many times and totally get it… :/) I just find the (multiple format) exhaustion afterward is never worth it, no matter how much gets accomplished at the time – but especially as it doesn’t seem to help eradicate or fix what caused that state in the first place. Hugs Deb
WOW! Very lucky chooks to get such a luscious-looking bucket of berries And best of luck with your chicks! ❤️
I actually feel immensely satisfied if I channel anger into work – way less destructive to relationships. Thank you for the hugs, Deb! They always work!
Lucky chickens with all those leftovers! I will just be happy for them and disregard all the food waste in those buckets… sigh. I would love to live under those open skies for a time although when the first tornado starts twirling that would be enough and I would run back to my valley and normal mountain thunderstorms 😉
The skies are the best of the plains. We don’t get tornadoes up this far or should I say historically we have not had tornadoes touch down here. The farm itself is at a very low point and swirling winds don’t tend to follow the land down. The old codger lived here for over 100 years and very saw one. Though I should not say this too loudly! Right?
Bad omens now C 😉 But knowing that information is reassuring I think and makes it all the more desirous to spend time under those skies!
Indeed.
Fall colours are bursting forth in central and off to the west in Alberta. So today holds a country drive to take in the colours in the mountains and lunch in a small Alberta town. Have a lovely weekend farmyard friends!
Mom always had a bunch of chickens. Chicks were delivered by the mailman on his rural route. They were put into the brooder house to grow and fatten up. At some point, she rounded up a lot of them for butchering. She would grab each one by the neck and ring it around. Afterward, Dad dipped them into boiling water to defeather them. Then, he held them over an open flame to singe the remaining feathers off. They were then passed along to several others to be cut up. It was a graphic thing to watch for a young boy. As you can see, I still have vivid memories of it.
As to FreeBee and scaring pigs, I came around the corner of the barn with my younger brother one Saturday evening. We startled two pigs who ran away and headlong into a fence. One got up and ran off. The other broke its neck and died in front of us. Dad was not pleased. They were being held in that lot for eventual butchering, but not on a Saturday evening. The guy at the locker in town said he would take it in and package it for us in the freezer if we did the job. He wasn’t going to come out to our farm that evening. I got a firsthand lesson in pig anatomy.
You learned sone incredible lessons as a wee nipper. And your memories are pretty graphic of that time too. Your parents sound like no nonsense people.
It is pretty important for young people to know where their food comes from
– personally I think it builds respect for our food. If we have respect for our food we do not tend to over indulge.
Do you agree or do you think that those lessons were harsh.
I agree very much. My parents were good about teaching lessons about things we did. They weren’t harsh or mean. They knew we were willing learners. As you know, farm life teaches a lot about the way nature works. We need to try to fit into the plan.
Yes! I sense that these lessons encouraged you to keep learning as opposed to closing doors. We do need to fit in with nature as opposed to the other way round. For many many reasons.
When clicking on link to continue reading on an email it doesn’t work. Just thought you would want to know Celi
Hmm. I am not sure why. I wonder if anyone rude has experienced this?
Pond princess here with my two fish cents. As long as your pond does not freeze solid to the bottom your Bluegill should be fine. They obviously live through the winter there in natural places..although those natural ponds, lakes, etc. may be much deeper than yours. Fish will go in to a semi dormancy during the winter months and also shouldn’t be fed when the water temp drops. Ok, that was more than two cents but there you have it. 🙂
Lovely – thank you! Always good to note those tips!
I knew a guy who got a huge amount of fencing done on his farm whenever he was angry. Good for you for turning it into action while keeping an eye on the muscles.
Morning Juliet! And yes! Anger well directed can be a useful energy. Step number one (for me) is the leave the space – fencing sounds like just the right distance!
I do the same thing when I get mad. I like the idea of calling it the Red Hen Syndrome. I don’t get mad often anymore. The last time was in June when the said they might not be willing to go after my cancer because of my lungs. My house was spotless and then I talked them into fixing me. 🙂 You have some wondrous looking clouds out there. We are just starting to cool this next week. It will likely head your way. What a relief after the oven we’ve been in all summer. You have so much more room to work off the red that it must dissipate quickly.
Yes! It does dissipate quickly and then I remember that everyone has a choice! Glad you went back to talk to the medical professionals again. Sometimes they need reminding that they are dealing with real people.
It was cool this morning here. I might have to rustle up another quilt!