Finding Humor

I love to read and am spending (too) much time doing it these days. It is my learning time, vacation experience, and entertainment. This past week I picked up a book at the library called The $64 Tomato by William Alexander, and am laughing my head off at the way the author describes his experience gardening on his very own 3 acres in New York. I was laughing so much Chloe couldn't stand not knowing what was so funny.

Which brings me to Aggie, the hen who has been sitting on the (empty) nest for a month now. She is lethargic and her feathers are shiny and stick up all over, and she's no longer smooth and pretty like the other girls. So, I decided, after inspiration from Bill's experience, to do an intervention. I came to the conclusion she must be isolated and nestless until she is over her propensity to sit around all day in the little house. (I do understand her desire to do so, since there is nothing I love more than sitting around all day in my own little house.)

At 8:45 PM last night I began my Save Aggie quest. I filled food and water dishes and put them at the end of the pen. I cut wire and fencing and began lacing the chicken wire at one end to keep the little girlie from the relative freedom of the pen and house. I tossed her into her new quarters and began lacing the other side of the fencing, struggling with the dusky light and bifocals and gardening gloves. Just as I was finishing she amazingly slipped under the fence. Dang! It was too dark to tack the fence down, and I was getting tired. "Hey, I know," I thought. "I'll just block off the entrance to the little house and she can roost overnight with her sisters." I (thought I) prevented entry with a board over the walkway. Not so! Aggie pushed right through. Hens can be very determined, I now know. I changed the position of the board so that there was no way to wedge in an avian head, and then body. "Dream on," Aggie seemed to say as I watched her head back for the nest.

There comes a point when, as a human being, pride takes over. I don't generally want or need to feel like a man, but I sure did last night. "You are going DOWN little lady!" I got another board and crossed it over the first one. A huge rock I nearly had to drag from the yard topped the boards. When I came in at almost 10:00 there were 3 red hens roosting just where they were meant to, and that's where they were when I left for my walk this morning.