Name update.

So, the twosome chicks that I asked for names about a few days ago. 

We have two votes for Chairo and Scuro.

We have two votes for Sunshine and Midnight.

And a vote for Positive and Negative.

And I will be nice to the ones who won't leave comments, but there were THREE votes for Salt and Pepper, which was soooo  obvious, and I totally missed.

So, I introduce to you,  Salt and Pepper.  (EVENTUALLY with photos.  Sigh.)

Salt now has little feathers on wings and tail.  Pepper, it's funny, has wing feathers, but still has a fuzzy baby chick butt, no feathers... But they are growing like crazy, and I have found out they LOVE themselves some blackberries!  Mom would cluck, and drop the berry, and zzzip, Pepper would grab it and run, Salt chasing after, until Mom would show that there was another berry.  Salt would then grab it, and run.  Whereupon, Pepper would run over and grab Salt's berry.  Salt then would run after Pepper, until realizing that Pepper hadn't eaten the first berry, grabs it, and runs to the far end while Pepper stays by Mom, eating the 'stolen goods'. 

So, they are doing well, and I will have more tales of chickling adventure in the near future. 

Short armed, pickin', purple berry eater...

The berries are in full swing here.  I went out and picked, first, in the chicken yard, then in back of our  pole barn. 

The chickens were curious, as they usually are, when I am in the yard.  Then... I dropped a berry.  The race was on!  They do know what those are!  I made a point of picking (and tossing) a few berries as I went along.  I dropped a couple, too, that I hadn't intended to, but they didn't last long enough to worry about...  I use a #10 coffee can for picking, and it was nearly half full by the time I finished in the chicken area.  The chickens would have been quite happy to have me continue to pick, if I had kept up with the random tossing of fresh berries.

I went to the pole barn, and worked there.  I might bug Husband, depending on how much I get finished, that I would like a ladder.  I was able to finish off my can, but there were some lovely berries, just much higher than what I could reach.  I took the full can in, and started mashing berries for jelly/syrup.  Husband had been cleaning out the freezer for me, I have found that my hands just ache after I clean the freezer.  I use big mitts, but that makes it very hard to pick things up.  I had been asking Husband if he could get some of the jelly out of the freezer, when he picks up a big juice container I had in there. 

What's this?

I laughed.  It's berry juice I didn't get to last year.  So, I have two big bowls of berry juice.  One will be jelly, the other, blackberry syrup.  I really enjoy maple syrup, but this is a close second.  And it goes over ice cream well, too...

And the chickens?  They were given the "sludge" (the seeds and skins, etc., that were left after I mashed the berries), and they nearly were climbing over one another to get at the stuff!  I have to skim the top of the berry juice, and they will, once again, have a fine bit of feasting...

And boy, does it make the next time I clean the chicken house unique...

Gratefulness.

So, I have started a little thing where I try and list 10 things I am grateful for each day. 

Oddly, I remember it starting because I read something to the effect that you should be grateful for so many things, what if they weren't there, because you weren't grateful for them?  Sort of way out there, philosophically... But I figure, yes, you can be happy for the big stuff, but how many daily things can I be happy for?  Little stuff.

Wow, it was... Not hard, exactly, but coming up with ten items can be sort of taxing.  Especially when you are trying to put NEW things in, not re-hashing the same items each day.  Not that it's a bad thing, I just figure, there is a lot to be thankful for, let's try and 'broaden the horizons'.

It started out with the biggies, I suppose, just to get started, good Husband, good family, good house, lovable pets, you know, the big things.  Then I started with, I am happy I am healthy.  Hmm.

That's general.  I am happy that... I can blink.  Geez, that's silly. 

Then I remembered something I'd seen on a show about Leprosy.  People lose the ability to blink, and then lose sight, because they eyeball dries out, so they have to be reminded, actually TAUGHT, to blink again. 

Ok, maybe not so silly. 

I am glad for... pillows.  Gah. 

But, wait, no, that's fair.  I have a chair that I love, but if I don't use a pillow, my legs fall asleep.  And it is NOT fun doing a near face plant into the table when you stand!

Blackberry bushes.  Invasive little nasty thorn covered things!

BUT... The berries.  After picking in the early morning, crushing, and then making jelly?  Yeah, that qualifies.

I am glad for spiders, NO I AM NOT. 

Sigh, well, the spiders in the garden have been really helpful, they have kept the nasty plant eating bugs down... Ok, yeah, I guess.  Begrudgingly...

Music, walking, seeing the neighbors go by, smell, colors, even just the fact the cats have whiskers... Really, they can be entertaining, just watching the twitches and wiggles... I suppose the cats would consider whiskers a bit more important than "twitches and wiggles", but it's my list.  And so on, and on, and on. 

I have learned, the little things can add up, too!