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Recent Posts
- Life is Full of Mystery February 27, 2021
- Walking Through a Poem February 14, 2021
- The Trip Home February 9, 2021
- Pandemic Skies February 3, 2021
- Never a Dry Moment January 30, 2021
- Red Sky at Dawn and Dusk January 20, 2021
- More Marvelous Than Fairy Tales January 18, 2021
- Red Dawn January 14, 2021
- Is It Still Winter? January 12, 2021
- Winter Skies January 4, 2021
- Happy New Year! January 1, 2021
- Stories Untold December 28, 2020
- Blink and You’ve Missed It December 22, 2020
- Chatty Mud Birds December 20, 2020
- Getting the Mail December 10, 2020
- Soothing is Good December 5, 2020
- When Life Returns to Normal, I’ll Miss Blue Skies December 1, 2020
- Blue Skies in November November 21, 2020
- Sunshine Is Just Beyond the Clouds November 17, 2020
- Winter Returns to the Hills November 14, 2020
- A Squirrel’s Fate November 8, 2020
- November at Last November 3, 2020
- November 1 and No Swans November 1, 2020
- First Frost October 23, 2020
- Too Wet to Burn October 18, 2020
- Eyes Wide Shut October 13, 2020
- The End of Flowers October 11, 2020
- 20201010 October 10, 2020
- Am I Growing the Wrong Grapes? October 6, 2020
- Fog and Less Fog October 5, 2020
- First Blush of Fall September 29, 2020
- A Perfect Fall Day September 27, 2020
- Blue Sky to Rain to Shaggy Parasol September 26, 2020
- Six Short Weeks September 24, 2020
- 317 Days for a Miracle September 23, 2020
- We Can Breathe Again September 22, 2020
- You Can’t Help But Be Sad September 13, 2020
- Duck Serenity September 6, 2020
- August is Coming to an End August 28, 2020
- It’s Easier with Another August 21, 2020
- Hottest Day of the Year August 16, 2020
- Morning Surprise August 12, 2020
- After the Rains August 8, 2020
- An August Morning August 2, 2020
- August Evening August 1, 2020
- When You Are Insane July 21, 2020
- Summer Is Here July 18, 2020
- It Blooms, It Dies July 15, 2020
- A Cool Start to Summer July 7, 2020
- Each Flower Has Its Own Strategy June 29, 2020
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Monthly Archives: October 2014
On the 4th Day
On Japanese news today, the weather reporter pointed out that in the fall, mountains are said to get all dressed up, referring to the forests on the mountains turning brilliant with fall colors. In the winter they are said to … Continue reading
The Magic Number is Eight
The magic number is eight. Peach brought her chicks out into the chicken yard today. She has eight, fluffy, healthy, perky, excited chicks. The chicks started hatching on the 27th. Of the ten eggs she was sitting on, nine hatched. … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
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How Many?
Peach and her new chicks are doing fine. How many does she have? At least seven, maybe more. They started hatching yesterday, and she’s keeping them in the nest today. Another day, and they will be itching to explore. Ruby’s … Continue reading
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New Life – Pure Joy
New life! Chicks are hatching today. No matter how many times I see new chicks peaking out from under their mother’s feathers for the first time, it is pure joy. And in about two weeks, if all goes well, a … Continue reading
The Last Of …
We picked the last of the apples today. Once these and the other bucket of apples we picked recently are gone, that is the last of the fresh apples. These days, hardly anyone thinks about there being a first and … Continue reading
Posted in How Things Grow
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Backyard Kabuki
Dressed as flamboyantly as Kabuki actors, these young roosters put on a short, but elaborate performance. They are six months old now and turning into young men. Their combat isn’t serious yet, but in a few months it will be … Continue reading
Eggs Are Not a Commodity
I love Hazel’s eggs. Hers have speckles and a distinctive point. (See Hazel, Hazel’s Egg, More Hazel, Laying an Egg) Each hen lays a slightly different egg. And every time they lay an egg, it is never the exact same … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
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Celebrating Greens
Picking fresh greens so others can enjoy them is something I look forward to. Today’s picking starts with Ruby Streaks. The dark, red mustard leaves liven any salad. Mustards, like Ruby Streaks, provide benefits besides making exciting salads. Eventually, I’ll … Continue reading
Posted in How Things Grow
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Rain is for Chard
The Swiss Chard thrives in the cool, fall drizzle. It’s one of those productive vegetables, which keeps sending up luscious leaves, no matter how many times you cut it. A ten foot row of Swiss Chard will feed a family … Continue reading
Stormy Night Ahead
An approaching storm is a good reason to make an apple pie. Chickens come in handy when making an apple pie. I have a bowl of apple peels and cores, and bits of pie crust left over after weaving a … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Happiness
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Love Is Not Human
Love is not human, love is universal. I spend many hours a day with other animals, and their lives are as dependent on love as ours. Baby chicks are bathed in love from the moment they are hatched until their … Continue reading
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MiAsa 美朝 Gets Some eggs
It’s another fiery autumn day. A perfect day to put some eggs under MiAsa 美朝, a feisty hen who has been sitting on some wooden eggs for a few days. I’ve written 9s on the eggs as they should hatch … Continue reading
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Green and Gold
This is why Washington is called the Evergreen state. Green and blue are the predominate colors here. “Shades of Green” would make a fitting title for a novel which takes place here. Though this time of year, especially when there … Continue reading
Posted in Reflections
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An Egg Makes a Point
Eggs don’t always come as ovals. Sometimes they can be quite pointed. The most interesting ones stay here. That’s the privilege of having your own eggs. The “boring” ones go off to market. Though, none of the chickens at a … Continue reading
Mossland
I don’t need to travel all the way to Nanzen-ji to view a beautiful garden. I found an exquisite moss garden much closer to home. The moss is soft and plump from the cool autumn rains. This time of year, … Continue reading
It’s Summer Again
It’s summer again … for one fantastic day. Resting and sleeping in the warm sunshine is pure bliss for my chickens. Often, the only view you have of a chicken is their butt. Much of the day, they have their … Continue reading
Posted in Happiness
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Importance of Dirt
When you’re picking beans or leafy greens or fruit from a tree, it’s easy to forget the importance of dirt. You can’t escape dirt when you’re digging up potatoes. Digging up potatoes on a wet, windy day can be downright … Continue reading
Svenda
Svenda, a Swedish Flower Chicken hen, is over a year old now. He brother, Sven, is king of the flock. The two are such a wild mix of colors. Sven’s been a busy rooster this year, and many of the … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
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Garlic Planting
It’s time to plant garlic. Breaking apart the garlic bulbs to separate the cloves, leaves behind a mountain of paper-like garlic skins. They are beautiful on their own. These are destined for the compost pile, but if you do some … Continue reading
Posted in How Things Grow
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Clustered Woodlover
It’s impossible to walk even a short distance in the woods without seeing something remarkable. I’m guessing these are clustered woodlovers (Hypholoma fasciculare), also known as sulpher tuft. As cute as they are, they aren’t edible. Evidently they are bitter … Continue reading
Posted in How Things Grow
Tagged clustered woodlover, Hypholoma fasciculare, sulpher tuft
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