Compost

Here is cute Kristen in the beginnings of our ugly compost bin. In our defense, all of the components of our bin were cast offs, and therefore free. Free is good. We scavanged three pallets from around town and screwed them together with drywall screws. There was a lot of open space to let the junk fall out. Mom and Daddy had two old plastic roll up shades that were waiting for the trash pick up day. We figured it was a great way to line our compost bin to keep the stuff in and not have to worry about throwing something else into the landfill. So we fastened them in with a staple gun and started throwing our junk in.
Mom and I both have a 3 1/2 gallon bucket with a lid to put compostible material in - located in our kitchens. Kristen and Laura made a chart for her about what goes in and what does not. Today when we were there I tossed the pile and added some straw and our kitchen junk. It seems to be cooking along and does not smell. Good sign.

Chickens!

Pat and I had a road trip today to procure our new hens. At the advice of the wacky chicken lady, we got four different breeds. Her rationale was that if you get all the same, they all stop laying at the same time. I don't know if this is true, but we like the idea of four distinctly different birds.
Let me introduce you to our new flock. Starting at 12 o'clock is the Barnevelder, a breed from Holland, which Kristen will name when she meets her. At 2 o'clock is Goldmember, or Goldie, a Wellsummer, also from Holland. 6 o'clock is the Silver Penciled Wyandotte, named Wynona, an American Breed. 8 o'clock is the Marans, from France, named Charlene.
I have looked at pics of these hens when they are adult and all are beautiful in their own way. They all lay some shade of brown eggs.
When we got them home and released them into their new home, they seemed fine and went into the house. Lucy was very curious about them and I think, scared them to keep them in the house. I put the dog inside and we sat and waited for them to come out. (I wanted to make sure the birds were settled in before we left). They couldn't find their food, so Mom suggested I put some in the yard. I dribbled a trail from the house to the feeder and within about 30 seconds they were all pecking away at the feeder. They found their water too, and seemed to be settled in, so we headed home.
They are young, about eight weeks old, so they won't lay for a while, but we are looking forward to getting to know our new pets and having them supply us with fresh eggs. Oh yeah, the manure for the compost bin, too.

Chickens 'n stuff

Our compost bin has been started and we have procured a very cute chicken house. We have a house that's about 4'x4' with a little yard so the hens can go outside. It was very easy to put together and was an "event" for us and Mom and Daddy.
Tomorrow is our big day.... we get our hens! This house can hold 5 or 6 but we figure 4 is plenty for us. Pat and I will go up to Sonoma County tomorrow ( just north of SF) to get some eight week old pullets. Pullets are young hens that are not laying yet. I THINK we're going to get Barnevelders, which are a hardy breed from Holland. They are nice looking birds, easy going, and good layers. The woman who sells them sells rare and heritage breeds. We may end up with some other, too, but I don't want delicate or fussy hens. These are apparently pretty robust birds and I think they are very nice looking.
Stay tuned.... who knows what kind of hens we will end up with. I started out on this journey thinking I would only get Plymouth Barred Rock, but we may just have the Barnevelders.

Black Gold

No, not oil. I am going to start a compost heap. I've been reading up on it and like the idea of putting less stuff into a landfill and making the garden healthier for our veggies. Kristen said she'd help me with it and it will reside at my folks' house in "the back 40". We have procured two sides for it by foraging for pallets. We need a third one to make the third side. It'll be open in the front.
I currently have a bucket of "stuff" in my kitchen sink. It's rice that was old from the fridge, plus veggie scraps from last nights chili and some other stuff. I need to get a bucket with a lid to keep on the deck.
My compost book also has a section about keeping a worm bin, so I may do that, too. I know, I'm a freak.
Oh, chickens are also on my list. They are on my manana list. (I know how to get Norwegian letters, but where do I find a tilde?)

Bill Rant

I just got done paying some bills and feel the need to rant a bit. No, it's not the case of "too much month left at the end of the money". (not this month, anyway).

My gripe is the way certain bills are made. Paying bills for my family and my property management business, as well as being a bookkeeper for two other PM businesses in the past, I have paid and do pay a lot of bills.

Most bills are fine, you write the check, tear off the stub, stuff it in the envelope and away you send it. Not all are so easy.

So what's my beef? Invoices that don't fit into the provided envelope and are not perforated. Case in point, I paid a doctor bill this morning. After I wrote in the amount paid, I went to tear off the part you return with your check. Guess what? It wasn't perforated and I tore the hell out of it. It says in tiny print "cut here and return with payment". Sheesh. This invoice is printed on an 8 1/2 x 11" piece of paper and the envelope provided is miniscule. Not only did I have to fold the return stub several times, I had to fold a regular wallet size check.

I have found over the years that small operations are the worst - Doctors, small alarm companies and small HOAs. My advice? Get a decent billing software program.

Or I guess I could pay ALL of my bills online - yeah, that would work, too.

Wig Wam!

I promised some fun... here it is. While on a trip to SoCal, Pat and I stayed at the Wig Wam Motel, which is on the original Route 66 http://www.wigwammotel.com/

We first spotted the Wig Wam Motel while on a trip to SoCal for a niece's wedding. The freeway was under construction and while on a detour, we saw this place and had a good chuckle.

Flash forward - we were going to San Bernadino to attend the funeral of Past District President and his wife, who had died within about 48 hours of each other. Pat said "let's stay at the Wig Wam!" and we did.

This place, one of seven Wig Wam Motels, is on Route 66 in Rialto, CA (which is a total dog of a town, by the way). It has 19 30' teepees on the property. There are only three of these motels left. One in CA, one in AZ and one in KY. We were pleasantly surprised. Although built in 1949 and the bathroom is original, our wig wam was large inside, super clean and very comfortable. Oh, this place is operated by Indians, too...... the Patels, who were super nice.

So, I leave you with this classic picture. Me in my bunad in front of our wig wam. Yes, we were on our way to a funeral, but both Roy & Inger had a good sense of humor, so I know they would've had a laugh out of it. (If you click on the pics, they enlarge).