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| I'm feeling quite yucky today. I'm not bedridden, thank goodness, but my brain power is down (I could tell by how long it took me to figure out the easiest of puzzles on my video game last night). Today my joints ache, as well as the area across my shoulders. I've got a little sniffle going, and a slightly sore throat. No fever or chills, so don't know if it's a cold or flu. Thinking, by the timing, that I caught it when I went to town last Saturday to get groceries. It should mean that David won't be getting it, since I doubt I was contagious Monday morning when he left. I didn't actually start feeling it til Wednesday, when I ran to town again to stock up on easy to eat stuff and pulled in a bunch of firewood while I was able. I can still function (and if I worked would prolly go to work and thus infect all my coworkers) and mostly just feel blah and tired and achey. It's progressing very slowly, whatever it is. bleah
In other news, it's Firearm Deer Season, which means the dogs don't get to run free til December 1. I let them out after dark and they run around a bit then. Right now, any time I stand up, they leap to their feet thinking it must mean "out!" but it doesn't. It just means I'm thirsty or need to move or whatever. When I put my wool/polarfleece vest on this morning, Phoebe leaped up thinking, again, "out!". That was just me being cold, silly dog...
I wanted to knit a snowflake hat I had seen a pattern for - blue hat, big white snowflake - and now cannot for the life of me find it. So I ganked a couple snowflake cliparts from a site that wants you to buy them and will chart my own, once my head clears. Until then it's strictly mindless knitting. Sadly, I can't read a lot right now, and I'm only 1/3 of the way through Stephen's new book. It's more a people as horror story - what happens to a tiny town when it gets cut off by a big dome. Powertrips and horrors abound, with no repercussions as yet (the horrors are currently just building). It's almost hard to read because the people are being so very awful. Granted, they were awful to begin with, but getting cut off brings out the worst in the bad ones. It's also very interesting, so I go back and forth just now.
I wrote up my granny's Raw Apple Cake recipe for a decorated recipe card swap. Looking at it, I'm wondering if the 1/2 cup of oil could be redone as 1/2 cup of applesauce/butter? Would severely cut the calories and add even more apple flavor.
David may not be home for Thanksgiving. Fortunately, the neighbors have invited us over (I'm going to help cook), so even if he's not here, I won't be alone. That said, if I'm sicksicksick, I won't go over as both grandmothers are going to be there and that's the last thing they would need, you know? So right now, looks like not much holiday going on. I'll probably end up getting a turkey breast and making us a dinner if all that happens. If I end up feeling fine and David doesn't get home, I'll pack him some leftovers. And probably do the dinner thing later. Or at Christmas... who knows?
The chicks are funny little critters. They continue to flee when they see me. Yesterday I wanted them closer to the house and out of the woods, so I just stepped behind their mom and they ran en masse. The little ones resembled velociraptors in a group and made me laugh. It's a little funnier because Buffs and Ameraucanas run in different ways and these babies kinda combine the two styles.
Did you know that chickens are mini dinosaurs? They recently discovered blood vessels in dinosaur bones - springy lively tissue! The guy who wants to make dinosaurs from dino DNA was saying that much of the genetic code is in chickens still, so they may end up introducing dino DNA to chickens instead of trying to completely replicate it - Dino-chickens!!! I want to see that.
Not much else at the moment. Dogs are getting antsy on me. Trying to calm them with calm energy, which generally works. Sadie can go from 0-100 in 3 seconds, though. It can be harder to calm her. So now, a little more internetting, then to the couch, where my down comforter and some pillows await me. The library had the entire first season of Get Smart on DVD so I'm going to see if it's still funny to me now. :) 30 episodes! They knew how to make tv back then, you know? That said, the week that the new version of V came out, scyfy (as they now brand themselves) had a V retrospective and that was some BAD tv. bad tv, bad! ye, gods, bad soap opera acting, horrible 80s hair and make-up. The new one is shinier, but we aren't really convinced by the story at the moment. So glad for dvr because I can watch it when I feel like it, stop and come back if the need arises. I'll miss dvr when it's gone...thinking I don't like paying quite so much for tv when really, it's just a disruption. So when the contract is up in May, it may just have to leave. That or we're switching to Dish. We'll see.
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| It's a little chilly this morning in the house - 60 or so - but I'm not lighting a fire because there isn't enough wood in the house. *Someone* didn't bring in enough to ensure a morning fire. Of course, *someone* isn't around enough to get into the patterns well, so I guess I should just go get some and get the fire started...
He got home Thursday after less than a week out. He goes back out Monday, so we get a long weekend. Yesterday he painted barn trim and hung the doors - it looks all very barny now :) Yesterday evening I was dispatched to Home Depot (our only close DIY store) and purchased 20 2x4's and 15 sheets of 7/16's USB plywood. Today the chickens' room will be built. It will be insulated and have some windows. Once built, I believe Avery will be introduced to the flock...
Avery has laid her first eggs. The first was a tiny, pristine little thing. The next two she has laid while sitting on the side of her box, so they've both broken. grr. She also is getting more vocal in chicken-y ways, and quite loud. She'll always be my pet chicken, but it's time to let her live among her kind. Also, I am tired of sweeping sawdust all the time. :) I've taken her outside and the other chickens pretty much ignore her (except for the bantam boys who are just her size and get all "hey baby" on her). One of the Buff hens got a little attitude and Avery jumped on her, so I know she can stick up for herself.
The peeps are growing like crazy. They are getting their feathers in and currently have gold bodies like their father and barred brown wings like their mother. Their heads are still fluff, so I don't know how those brown stripes on their heads are going to turn out. It appears we have 5 boys and 5 girls. Since their mother hates me still, they are very wary. I figure once they live in the coop with the others (though that's a bit off yet, even though everyone gets along just fine) they'll learn. One cool thing is that Silkies make amazing broody moms, so Avery can do all the chick raising in the future and they'll love me. That will be nice. Since we actually have room and accomodations, in the spring (when it gets warm) I'm going to get some meat bird chicks and raise them just for that. We're thinking of getting the plans for a DIY chicken plucker as well.
I will have my internet this week so won't be so out of touch. I can read emails and most blogs on my BlackBerry but adding to my blogs is just not happening.
Not much else has been happening. Changed out the winter/summer clothes. Got all the firewood stacked finally yesterday. The weather has been amazingly unseasonable for her. Usually there's snow on the ground and temps in the day in the 30s. It's been 50s and 60s and sunny - just lovely. We did have an overnight snow on the 3rd, but it melted off soon enough. A number of the nights have been hard freezes but it warms back up. Oh, we did blow in some "green" insulation - 20 bales of it - into the attic. It seems to be keeping the inside temps a couple degrees warmer and also will help with ice dams when the snows come. That was an interesting job.
Interestingly, Volde*mart.com has been offering new books by best-selling authors (like my new Stephen King novel) for under $9 with free shipping. Amazon is offering them for the same price but with their normal buy $25 to get free shipping so that's not where I got it because while I could very easily rack up another book or two, my budget does not allow at this time. My book arrived the day after it dropped by FedEx, so I got it even though it was a mail holiday. I was very pleased. Amazon usually takes another week or so to get me my free shipping books...
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| At the Traverse library. Am internet-less at home until David's first paycheck, when I can get my TetherBerry. I believe I mentioned he got a new job. He is quite happy with it - sounds at ease when I talk to him and isn't worried about anything. That's a nice feeling.
Not much going on. I did meet someone new in Traverse yesterday. I had stopped at the yarn store and she was right behind me. She went up to the owner to ask if the owner knew of anyone selling a spinning wheel. I asked what kind she wanted, because my wheel and I do not get along. It just hogs up floor space. So I brought it up today and she bought it for $125, which was $25 more than I paid 5 years ago. It's a deal for me! As a result my printer now has ink again. Which is good because I need to reprint the cute little Moo-type cards I had made because I put the wrong blog address on them!!!! ack! It was brought to my attention yesterday. After I had handed out some already. gah! Felt like a huge dork. Anyway, I'll make new ones (I made a template in Photoshop, so no biggie) and all will be well...
I hate my mother chicken. She attacks me (not pecks, either, full on attack mode with feet out and kicking at me) when I go to feed her and the chicks. The chicks, as a result, are not seeing me as bringer of good things, which is not a good thing. This chicken keeps it up and she'll be chicken soup for sure...
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| On his way home from quitting that morning, David stopped in at a place he had done some work for before, through another company (when he was hauling produce). They snatched him right up, so he's employed again. He goes in Monday for orientation and gets his truck. He'll be heading out Tuesday. This company is highly rated, with new highly maintained trucks. One driver David spoke to had had one break-down in 7 years (while David had 12 in 10 weeks...). He is much happier and relaxed, which is a grand thing. I'll be much more happy and relaxed because he'll be home every week or so, even if it's only for 2 days (he was home 2 weeks this last time - of course, that's 2 weeks unpaid...).
The barn is clad and the roof is 1/3 shingled. The shingles are on the top, protecting the inside. It will definitely be done soon. If the weather would cooperate, we'd be working on it now, but it's raining raining raining. My dogs are getting stir crazy but refuse to actually go outside. gah!
The chicks are very cute. I have a new picture up of them over at the other blog. I updated again already! Yay me!
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| David called this morning. He was on his way to pick up some huge $800,000 boat outside of Cleveland. He left last night. While he was home, it was discovered the truck wouldn't start because one of the batteries was dead. He called his company last night (after finally getting the truck started) and they refused to service the truck. That was essentially the last straw for him. He's turning around, cleaning out the truck and asking them what they want him to do with it. He'll find another job asap. But he isn't letting them endanger him with this stupid ill-maintained truck any longer. He's also pretty much done with having to track down his pay every week. He says those are the two things a truck company should never do - mess with drivers' pay and not maintain their equipment. He had already broken a personal rule by going to work for a company with "express" in its name.
Poor dear.
In other news, we're building a barn! Pictures at the other blog. We've already purchased everything. Him being home just means it will actually get finished before the snow comes. Also, new chicks! My missing hen was sitting a nest and now has 11 fuzzy chicks under her. I moved them into the mini coop/chick run yesterday, after they all hatched. They are so very cute.
I think I'm happier than I should be about joblessness...
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