Friday 31 August 2018

August Winds Down

This morning felt like Fall. We've had rain and cooler nights and last night daughter made ginger molasses cookies to take to work because of how it "feels" right now. However, I had a look at the weekly forecast and the heat (with more rain) will be back soon enough.

A colleague whose husband is a farmer quoted him by saying, "If you have livestock, you're going to have deadstock." And that's what we had. As you know, we got chickens again after a five year break. Of the four young ones we started with, we now have only three of those. The smallest one had been picked on relentlessly. We gave her a couple of "safe havens" both in the coop and outside in the run. I even separated her completely in a cage, but she fussed and squawked so much wanting to return to her "peeps" that I put her back. I noticed she was spending more time just in the coop and then started to have that "hunched chicken" look about her  (any readers who have chickens will likely know what I mean). I bought water soluable antibiotics from the local feed supply store. Our other chicken we have named  Bruce because we suspect she might be a he, was sounding rattley (also NOT a good thing when it comes to chickens), so a round of antibiotics would be a good thing in that case, too. If you hear one rattley chicken, it's good to treat everyone (we won't use the eggs during this time). Anyway, long story short, even after isolating her completely and bringing her into the mudroom in the cat cage and literally eye dropping antibiotic laced water down her little beak, the little black chicken died. Yes, it happens. Her antibiotics cost more than she did and I feel bad, but the truth of the matter is that sometimes you just can't save a chicken.

Other news, the garden is a scary mess. The weeds have taken over completely. This didn't happen by magic, although the heat and rain have certainly contributed, but you know how you just don't want to keep up with your vegetable gardening chores at the end of the season and you stop weeding? Well, that's exactly what I did. I stopped weeding. And it shows. However, there are some lovely tomatoes and I will be digging my FIRST new potatoes for tonight's supper and we've had green beans and I don't even care about the cucumbers any more. How many cucumbers can one family eat? I only planted two plants!! Tonight we are planning on 'springing Nana from the home' and having her here for a visit and supper, so she will enjoy the fresh garden produce, no doubt.

Eighteen year old son bought his first car a little while ago. He got a great deal because it is a standard (manual) and the man who sold it to him has bad knees and can't drive it anymore (thinking of Joanne's post now). It's an older Mustang (don't even ask me what year, don't remember, don't care) and it is bright yellow with black striping. I'll know it's him on the road! It needed some work done on it to be certified, which wonderful husband did for him and yesterday it was taken to our local garage where certification was completed. Today is licensing and all those finalities and finally he will be able to drive it. Mind you, he needs some lessons in driving a stick shift, but he's a smart kid and will be fine (says I, who does NOT drive a stick shift). I swear our property now looks like a used car lot!

I binge watched some Netflix recently, watching a series called Marcella (British crime detective...). I enjoyed it, but not as much as some others I have watched like Broadchurch, Hinterland, River, or Shetland. I did watch some new episodes of Happy Valley which were pretty good as well. Why is it we have so many channels (although, not the full package) to watch on tv and I am loath to watch about 95% of what's on right now? Honestly, I'll watch a rerun of Mash rather than some ridiculous Housewives of Somewhere show. Ughhh, I'll be so happy when the trend of "reality tv" is over, hopefully replaced by something more intelligent and entertaining.

We are approaching our Labour Day weekend here. School begins the day after labour day, so Tuesday of this coming week. We currently have no plans, but I would like to perhaps do a little local road trip, try a new place to eat, maybe take in a fall fair somewhere. The end of August is such a turning point. Even if we still have a heat wave after this, it's now considered a Fall heat wave, not a summer one regardless of the fact that the first official day of Autumn is September 23rd this year.

Well that's my rambling done. No doubt the rest of you are feeling the Autumn change? I'm going to read what the rest of you are up to now.

23 comments:

  1. Our garden is full of weeds too because I'm the main weeder and it's just been too hot for me to deal with it. I drive a stick, always have, as does my husband and our daughter did when she had a car. He'll love it once he gets use to it.
    I'm ready for summer to be over, soon I hope.

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  2. it's cooler these last couple of days but the heat is due to return nect week just in time for the kidlets to be back in school.....
    TV???? colour me exasperated.

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  3. Be still my heart; a manual transmission. I drove stick ALL my life, until I became a full time weaver and switched to an extended van, to carry my stock. My last car was a five speed Chrysler with dual stainless steel exhaust something else I cannot remember. Overdrive? Anyway, I gave it to my daughter and SIL at about 100,000 miles, and SIL drove it to about 250, when its original exhaust overheated and burned through the floor of the trunk. James extinguished the fire with a handy bottle of soda, drove it home from New York to Ohio and scrapped it. Yeah for a standard; he'll love it.

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  4. Have you watched Wentworth on Netflix? Watch 3 or. 4 episodes befor you say you don’t like it. If you do like it I will see you in a 2 weeks because you will be binge watching it.

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  5. Second season of Ozark starts today. If you haven't seen the first season, it is good. I love binge watching on Netflix. An old timer told me she put a few drops of iodine in their drinking water every day to keep her chicks healthy. We always lost our favorite ones.

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  6. Can you believe it's the 31st August today!!!
    The year has whizzed by too quickly.
    Only four more months to 2019 …
    Let's make the most of the coming months, Autumn (Fall) is an especially lovely season.

    All the best Jan

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  7. Yes, it does indeed begin to have an Autumnal feel in the air.

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  8. So sorry to hear of your chicken woes. Hopefully, they will all feel better if it's getting cooler.
    No break in the heat here yet. I have to admit, I'm kind of looking forward to a killing frost. It's too hot and the weeds are far too big!

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  9. Ah, reading about the little chicken makes me sad but such is life.

    This time of year we are all battling weeds. We have our fair share too!

    How exciting that your son got a Mustang! Our son's first car was a Mustang too. I don't think he loved it as much as I did. :)

    Have a great weekend!

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  10. It could have been that your lost chicken was sick even before you knew it and that was why the others chose to pick on it. They do that, attack one of their kind if it shows signs of weakness of illness. (Darn birds.)

    I know what you mean about losing incentive to keep up with the weeds in the garden this time of year. BUT I did give it my all last week and was amazed at how good even the remaining plants look now that I've spruced things up. At least I won't be going into winter with a bunch of weeds haunting me until the snow covers them up!

    I learned to drive on a stick shift (there weren't a whole lot of manuals around then!) and have always been glad of it because I know I can drive (and have driven) most anything out there including farm equipment. A stick shift is just the thing for a guy your son's age!

    Our weather was on the cool(er) side last week and we got a bit of needed rain. But, just like you, we're facing more hot weather in the upcoming week. Labor Day Weekend signals the end of summer, even though Mother Nature may not be acknowledging it yet!

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  11. Love a stick. It is truly the definition of driving in my mind. I did get an auto on my truck as we needed to buy something "then" no waiting on making up your own package. I miss my last stick had a ton of fun on road trips in it.

    So sorry about the chicklet. But as you said "it happens". And I agree with Mama Pea. Chickens can be the worst at abusing their own when they are down. You may have had a sick chick from the start and the stress of changing homes was enough to push it to the forefront.

    I was thinking about driving up the mountain to Mt. Lassen and hiking on Sunday then had the newsflash "nope it is Labor Day". Not dealing with the excess of both vehicles and people that brings. Will perhaps try it in a bit.

    We have had some lovely cooler days and nicely cooler nights. Apparently someone turned the heat on for the holiday weekend. Our days will be a few degrees warmer but thankfully the nights will stay cool. At any rate we are now in the land of "long shadows" as my Daddy called it and even when the digits go up a few degrees it is doesn't peak until late afternoon and last for about an hour if that and then begins to drop. Much better the hours of it daily in summer proper.

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  12. Jenn about the loss of one of your flock. There is certainly an "air" of change about. I'm liking the cooler nights & having the windows flung wide open, it's seeing those maples changing now that worries me. Climate Canada says cold & snowy winter :( September always has felt like a type of new year, time for new pens, new bookmarks & new journals & new underwear! Hope your Labour Day weekend is fabulous. ... Mary-Lou =^..^=

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  13. I'm so sorry about your chicken. I know, it happens but still, sorry.

    We're getting cooler temps and had terrible thunderstorms and wind. It might be warming up now. I'm not ready to let go of summer.

    I know exactly what you mean about TV. With all the channels I have, I usually watch only two or three -- a news channel, PBS and history. Sometimes movies. On occasion something else. But netflix -- I'm catching up on all the Midsomers I never saw, Miss Fisher and will start Happy Valley soon. I'm glad to know Shetland is good. It's on my list but hadn't started. All good!

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  14. Happy September! That is sad about the loss. The cycle of life.

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  15. The 'hunched chicken' look - I know just what you mean! Over the years I've spent a fair amount of time on small lost causes, shrews, hedgehogs and the like. There comes a point when you know you've lost the battle.
    I'm currently enjoying the new series of Vanity Fair on ITV. It's very well done, great acting and a visual delight.

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  16. I learned to drive on a manual transmission VW beetle and never looked back. In all my driving career, I have only had an automatic transmission once - and it was stolen! I like to think my cars never get stolen because no thief could drive it. I did the same thing, vis a vis weeding. Of course, now I am paying for it as I have do dig out the garlic bed so I can plant next year's crop. Hope you had a fun holiday weekend.

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  17. Oh no poor baby chicken!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's so sad, it's so hard to see a little critter die.

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  18. Your son won't need to worry about his car being stolen. A manual transmission is the perfect millennial anti theft device! You should have seen my students when one of hens got hurt and the others started picking on her. The nursing students put her in seclusion and nursed her back to health. Then we snuck her in after dark and left a cabbage out for them to play with in the morning. It worked like a charm.

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  19. You are right. The end of August is a turning point, even if there is another week or 10 days of a heat wave. Even with that, we know that Colorado will have the first snow this month. Never fails.

    So sorry about the little chicken. Poor thing.

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  20. I remember during our 4-H days losing a few chickens here and there. Antibiotics never seemed to help. Cooler weather on the way....hopefully.

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  21. Catching up on blog reading now after our road trip, Jen. Sorry sorry to read about the loss of the chickens despite all you did to try and save them. Your son must be very excited about his "new" wheels and undoubtedly you will also be a little nervous at first. Cooler weather has arrived here in New Hampshire after the recent last summer holiday weekend. I am thankful for fall, always.

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  22. Hi Jenn :)

    I'm so sorry about the chicken loss, that must be hard. :(
    I'm in the middle of the potato harvest too! Nearly 100 to date :)))

    Autumn is definitely in the air, but we are still in a bit of a heat wave, which I love! :)

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  23. First time visiting your blog and I am just scrolling through, reading the most recent posts. You paint such vivid pictures of your surroundings that I can just feel what the weather is like where you are! I agree about t.v. choices - so many more than ever before and yet there are times when I can't find anything to watch. I thought in the second season of Marcella that the main character took such a turn to the dark side, shall we say. I can only imagine what the next season will be like. I concur with loving all your other suggestions, but am not familiar with "River". I will have to research that one. Shetland, oh my, could they make more episodes and faster?

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