The Funny Farm - Meet the Chicks

Since we moved to our quaint little mobile home surrounded by well-manicured acres of raised-bed agricultural fields and have only carrots for neighbors, it seems fitting that we have cultivated our own little Funny Farm in the mere 6 weeks that I have been here.

I kept telling Tim I wanted chickens. But I didn't know much about chickens. His coworker, who keeps about 40, raved about how simple it was. In fact, many of his coworkers have chickens. It's no big deal; it's like having dogs or cats - totally normal. Remember, I am from Detroit. Chickens have NEVER been a normal part of my life. Though, at least I did own numerous birds - cockatiels, canaries, budgies, and zebra finches - so it can't be that different, right??

Tim wasn't as enthusiastic as I was. He never said no, though he would be the one to care for my girls while I am at the Academy and away on fires. So once he brought home a Murray McMurray catalog and I started looking at all these crazy looking chickens, I felt inspired. I asked the lady at the feed shop about them. I realized that these babies were going to live indoors for probably 2-3 months before they were even moved outside; once outside, if I come up with a clever coop design, I wouldn't even have to "tuck them in" and close the coop at night. Feed and water bowls hold food for a few days. If they were totally fenced in, I wouldn't have to worry about predators.

So when I saw the "Baby chicks have arrived" sign at the feed shop, I stopped. Not totally impulsively - I went ahead and bought a heat lamp and chicken feed, "just in case". I went into the feed shop alone and came out... a farmer?? Or, at least, as a momma hen. :)  All for less than $38 - $8 for feed, $2.25 per chick, and the rest was for a cheap thermometer and the infrared heating lamp. You can even apparently just use a regular light bulb (Tim's boss just keeps a candle lit in a mason jar) but I figure they wouldn't want bright light 24-7.

In the feed shop was a low round metal bin with a large heat lamp and uncountable numbers of fluffy chicken nuggets. Most were not all yellow - some were reddish, some were all black, some had black and grey stripes, some had yellow and black stripes, and some had reddish and black stripes. I thought the ones with racing stripes looked pretty cool, so I grabbed two feisty chicks that were eating heartily and peeping loudly. Alas, as they had all just arrived from Arizona, some chicks were fading fast and on their way to the big barnyard in the sky. Mine seemed tough and spunky. The shop employee had no idea what type they were. That's ok, I like surprises... as long as they are female and make me breakfast!

The 30 minute drive home actually seemed to stress them - they need to be at around 95 degrees heat their first week. Each subsequent week, you reduce the heat by 5 degrees (more or less; just watch the chicks, they will be obviously hot or cold and it's pretty intuitive). So they were a little chilled despite cranking the heat so high that Logan and I were both panting.

I set them up in a cardboard box with pine shavings and one peanut butter jar lid of water, one pickle lid full of food. They peeped loudly. Apparently loud peeping means chicks aren't happy. Eventually we worked out the height of the heat lamp and bought a better waterer that keeps the water cleaner. At a good temperature they make chickee noises but not loud peeping. Plus, they got used to being away from their 100+ fellow chicks.

Day 2

Day 3

The first night, I was nervous. Nugget (the reddish/black racing stripe one) seemed listless and fading. She was laying down but putting her head on the ground. Um, birds aren't supposed to do that right? I didn't think she'd make it, but I resisted the urge to stress her more by messing with her. I saw her eat and drink, all I could do is hope that she could recover. I was so happy to see her scratching about the next morning! And ever since, these babies just keep growing and growing!

When I got them, they didn't have "real" wing feathers, just fluffy down. Then, real feathers started popping out. Soon, they had beautiful patterned primary and secondary feathers - like what you collected when you were a kid, "real" feathers - that helped me figure out what breed they might be. Peeps - Wyandotte. Nugget - Ameraucana, aka the Easter Egger.  They quickly started acting like real chickens - scratching, pecking, preening. They are messy eaters and instead of pecking, they peck at the food and then toss it right out of the lid. They eat constantly. I went from one handful of food the first day or two, to two handfuls of feed... now it's like 3-4 or more.

Day 7??

Then, their nubby tails started sprouting something almost resembling feathers. Ugly spires with little feathery strands here and there. They are beginning to look better. Every day, more down is lost and more feathers sprout up. Their feet are huge! (Picture is of 1st appearance of feathers on the chicken butts)

Best of all, Logan LOVES them. He watches them. He sniffs them. He wants to check on them with me when I go into the other room. It is the cutest thing ever!

So as of today, they are approximately 11 days old and at least doubled in size. They now can perch on my finger and flap their wings. I don't know how much longer I can get away with a cardboard box. Feed store lady keeps her chicks in a dog cage until they are old enough to go outside. Other people use cardboard boxes the entire time. They poop a lot but if it gets too dirty, cardboard boxes are free. Maybe when they are 5 months old, they will start popping out eggs!

I'm sure more people are excited about the puppy... yes, I love puppy. But, I didn't want to go out of order. This is how funny farm started. Logan, then our two chicks. This whole time, we kept watching petfinder.com and visiting the shelter...

 

Tim and his little girl, in the next entry!

Racking up the miles on the ol' truck...

I have now been in California for just over a month... and this is the first journal entry I am writing? LAME.

It's probably not even worth it, but here's a reader's digest version of the past 2 months.

I MOVED TO CALI.

Now if you care to indulge in more details, read on. Which at this point the only people who would want to trudge through the details are my mom, my sisters, and maybe Bruce and Kerry. ;)  December was a stressful blur of final exams, term papers, packing, moving and truck repairs. Somehow I made it through and had a little work get-together at the Rock one night, which was as close to a going away party as I needed or had time for! I was so happy my friend Kim and her boyfriend were in town to visit from Portland literally during my last few days in Estes. Although I was up to my @ss in alligators (homework, packing, broken truck), Kim always cheers me up and helps me relax and have fun! This included an awesome night at Jerry's cabin for the most unique White Elephant exchange I have ever seen and too many margaritas at Ed's, and of course hanging out at the Rock. I ended up leaving a day later than I had hoped (which was a week later than I originally planned... stupid final exam schedule), with Kind Coffee in my mug and after a big hug from Kim. I walked around in the snow, looking at the Rocky Mountains and enjoying the high altitude air... Really really miss it there, 5 years in Estes! Miss the town, miss my friends, miss Bruce and Kerry and the Rock where so many good times were had... But, time to move on to the next stage in life ya know?!

I left Estes and drove not West, but East... all the way to Detroit to see the family for the holidays. This would be the last time I was within semi-reasonable driving distance from my family, so I wanted to bring Logan, have a car to drive during the day (otherwise I'd be stuck at their house!) and be able to bring some things to my family, as well as take home x-mas presents. I was incredibly busy visiting family and friends, as well as taking plenty of time to decompress from the whirlwind month of December. Stephanie (friend from Estes) was on a road trip of her own, from Texas to the east coast to Niagara Falls, through Detroit and up to Wisconsin, and she and her boyfriend stopped by for a night. Neat to see a Colorado friend in Detroit, that's never happened before! It was good to be apart of our huge 50+ person family X-mas eve party, gotta love it when the families all get together to exchange dollar store gifts, eat lots of Polish food and cheese fondue, drink Kahlua mudslides and tease each other. It just was not the same without my 29 yr old cousin Greg, who died in October. The presentation of an engraved stone bench in Greg's honor to his parents and wife touched us all; but he was there in spirit with us and we will always remember him. On the other side of the family, they had their own sorrow - my dad and stepmom's dog was dying on X-mas day. So Christmas was a little sad but it's always good to be with those you love.

Saw lots of friends here as well, Amadeo's birthday party and sushi with the Gole sisters, one on one with many of my BFFs like Beth and Donna, the Mount Family, Jeff's party... I can't even remember everything I did! But one of the highlights was going to the Red Wings/Colorado Avalanche hockey game on New Years Eve with my sisters and brother! Despite the Wings taking a dive in success this season, they still beat the Avs - nice coincidence that, considering the 2 teams play only a few times a year, I was in Detroit at the same time as the Avs. GO WINGS! I think my brother was a little embarassed by his hootin' and hollerin' sisters, but he takes it in good stride. ;)

Skipping lots of stuff because I have ADHD and bore myself easily. Ha ha!

After the New Year, hit the road right away to drive in the completely opposite direction, back to Estes. I put all my stuff in storage and had to swing back up to get the essentials to take with me to Cali. The rest of it, well.... we will see when I have the time and money to get a uhaul. I want my motorcycle BAD though! These sweet twisty roads and warm temperatures are taunting me! Anyway, I digress. Blew through Estes after a quick bite at the Rock and from then on, it was Cali or Bust!

Uneventful drive west, took about 18 hours from Estes to Greenfield, where I sit now. Tim moved from right outside Pinnacles National Monument to this mobile home - it was cheap compared to everywhere else, allows dogs, and is owned by his boss. Unfortunately, he now has an hour commute...but at least it's a nice drive!

We still don't really have furniture - 2 camp chairs, storage containers used as tables, and a bed. ;)  It would be nice to have a futon or couch, but hey we are making it work. Our mobile home isn't pretty but we are on a plot of land with a nice empty home that belongs to our landlord's aunt. Other than that, as I told my mom, our only neighbors are carrots! Surrounded on all sides by agricultural fields. Which I just found out isn't very good for our well water quality, don't worry we bought a filter (which doesn't do much for the nitrates but I try not to think about it). It is actually quite windy in Greenfield, which is part of the large valley extending north and south, bordered on both the east and west by mountains. Weather has been 60-70 degrees almost every day, with incredible amounts of rain at times. Amazingly, there is snow in the mountains to our West, which probably aren't more than 3-4,000 ft tall. Apparently that is NOT normal and locals have told me I must have brought it with me from Colorado. ;)

I was in culture shock for a couple days until I began nesting in the weird way that I do - I leave home and explore the towns nearby. Tim takes care of the home stuff... I explore the "new frontier". :)  I hit the visitor welcome centers and find the coffee shops. I try to find the best, most eco-friendly, charismatic locally owned cafe... I'm still not impressed with my options compared to Kind Coffee! Unfortunately, up until this week we didn't have internet at home so I had to drive 1 hr roundtrip just to get to a cafe with internet (which is important because I am in online courses to finish my masters degree). After AT&T providing the worst customer service EVER for a month, canceling orders or getting them wrong, putting me on hold for 2 hours and disconnecting me... They tell me they don't offer DSL at our house. My head almost exploded when they told me that, after a month of telling me they DO have it. Our ONLY option was satellite (which has a 2 YEAR contract and is expensive and not that fast) or this wireless broadband which is working out pretty well. Life is so much easier now that I can look up stores and businesses and get directions at home, as well as doing homework whenever I want without interruption!

Salinas is actually a pretty decent city with a nice old downtown and I've found the places I need in my life - the gym (still working on those physical fitness requirements for work...3 pull ups down, 2 more to go minimum!), the pet shop, and internet cafes. I LOVE going to the ocean in Monterey or Carmel, but finding parking for the cafes in Monterey is a nightmare!

Our weekly treat is taking Logan to the dog-friendly beach in Carmel. Hundreds of dogs running free along the coast! He was scared at first, running from the surf as it washed in and out. Now, he finds the biggest driftwood he can carry and retrieves it from the crashing waves until he is exhausted! He is usually one of the biggest dogs on the beach and has been THE largest German Shepherd (and there are SO MANY shepherds out here!).

In a few weeks I will start work 4 hours away, up in the mountains near Arnold. I have free housing in the bunkhouse, but am checking out a sweet 900 sq ft A-frame cabin with wood stove up in Dorrington next weekend. It would be great to have my own place so people can actually visit me (not allowed in dorms) and I can have Logan. I'm kindof over the whole "living in a small room with bunkbeds and sleeping/working with coworkers 24-7" thing, like my space and my privacy as well as my visitors and pets!

My official date for the academy is April 4th, which means I will be stuck in Sacramento/McClellan for my birthday. Required to live there but if I get this cabin, Tim can bring Logan up and we can stay in the cabin on weekends.

I left tons out but I'm long winded and this is long enough. NEXT ENTRY: CHICKENS! And... Tim's new puppy?! WTF?! PUPPY?! 

Oh yes. And we just might name her another X-Men name. BWA HA HA.

As my mom would say, "Welcome to the funny farm!" (Though I know she's excited to have grand-chicks and grand-puppies on her grand-farm... since there won't be any grand BABIES any time soon!)