For my birthday Annie delivered a cute chicken feeder and waterer. Now most women would say "Thanks, you shouldn't have." But I said "Thanks...I LOVE them!" I'm not even going to use them practically. They're going to become displays in the studio, maybe my button cards or felt flower pins in the feeder and colorful yarn in the glass jar with my fused glass pins in the tray. My girlfriends and I share some unusual (but to us quite normal) gifts. For Annie's 50th I bought her a pair (why we say 'pair' since there is only one, I don't know!) of Carhartts overalls since hers were totally worn out. I had to get her boy sized ones cuz she's so tiny. I decorated them with old lady frilly hankies and lace with rose chintz fabric for the pockets and I think I even included a rhinestone pin on the collar. I told her she had to wear them for working the sheep and cows and not save them for 'dress up'. I think she totally wore them out in 2 years.
For Christmas one year I gave my friend, Ann, a chicken water heater. What every girl wants! I think it was her favorite gift that Christmas. And she brought over a huge bag and gave me big leather gloves to put on so I wouldn't hurt myself opening my gift. I carefully reached in wondering if this could be some wild animal with big teeth waiting to take a bite out of me. But it was a large (like 16" tall) star wrapped in rusty barbed wire. We both love barbed wire, don't know why, just do. The star was covered in photos of us on our many travels together out west. A truly made-just-for-me gift and well treasured.
Anyway, back to chicken stuff. Because of this oven temperature heat, I thought I'd put up an umbrella for the chickens. They like to take dirt baths, burrowing down in the dirt, attempting to stay cool. But with the sun beating down on them and the high temps, they were staying inside the coop where it was maybe a few degrees hotter than outside. I looked in on them one day hoping not to find 'fried chicken' and saw them with their wings held out from their hot little bodies, their beaks parted and they were panting. Who knew chickens panted!?
When I first put up the umbrella, they totally freaked out. All chickens flew around the coop in a frenzy, feathers flying and much squawking and fussing. I threw them some old popcorn and they slowly ventured out, not sure of the scary yellow and white thing above the run.
But they soon settled down and are now so happy with the shade and their new alfresco dining arrangement. More popcorn please!
4 comments:
Oh! Great gifts!! I think the best one I ever got was a 1954 Ford Tractor from my husband. The ladies in his office would just shake their heads when a Holiday came round. Water buckets, feeders, wheelbarrows, whatever. They would always ask "no jewelery?" Oh well one woman's trash is anothers treasure.
I think the poor chicks may have thought their sun blocking umbrella was a flying predator at first. Very nice, I am sure they love it - mine would.
How wonderful, the thoughtful gifts between you and your friends.
My chickens were scaring me, too, last week with their panting. One little chicken really began worrying me when she wouldn't leave the water dish and just drank and panted and drank and panted. I couldn't stand it anymore, so I cleared out the half-bath and brought her inside and locked her in there. With the a/c going, she cooled off and settled right down. I only heard occasional flapping. LOL I put her back in the coop with her sisters at bedtime and she went right to sleep. Poor little girl. She just didn't handle the heat very well. And, being that she is considered my little boy's chicken, she had to be treated like a pet. Right? Right. Can you tell I need reassurance? My husband came home and thought I'd lost my mind. ;)
Girls and their toys...gotta love it! So many things out there to lust after than aren't costly but are totally practical. Dalis, remember the time I gave you a big rock/tiny boulder for your birthday? I wanted to get a huge one, but I'm no good at estimating weights. I probably could have gotten one 4 times as large. But then there was the time I got a yard of mulch in the little pick- up truck... Not a good idea.
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