whew! and here they are...

The two blondes and their tall raven-feathered sisters are into treats in a big way. This is the second day I've taken out some finely diced patty pan squash. Today they got a quarter of a red bell pepper that was too limp to cook with, along with it. The pan's going to take a beating. I have yet to name these kids. Unfortunately, the rhode island reds are camera shy. It's not easily visible, but they're tucked behind the black australorp to the right. They're definitely the runts of the lot, and at the bottom of the pecking order, but they're very lovable in their own dinosaur chick sort of way. It's a trip, because I was expecting the buff orpingtons to be the picked-on runts. That's what most of the chicken sites I perused opined on the topic of breeds and such.

Anyway, their coop is posh. The perch is a branch from a tree we trimmed in the yard, and I figured out how to install it so it can be removed easily for coop-cleaning, which is to say, so I don't knock my head on it constantly when I go in there to scrape poop off of surfaces.

Here's one where you can actually see the red girls. They slip behind that 2x4 when I open up the hatch to say 'hi' and chit-chat, and to check the level in their waterer. Which is hysterical because they charge me for attention when I open up the door on the left side for access to the water and the feeder.

Any thoughts on names? I was thinking to go with old-fashioned spinster aunt sort of names that I remember from my family's genealogy charts: Maude, Mabel, Myrtle, Edwardina, Theodora, Winifred... And then I got an itch to name them after folkies. Joan and Mimi. Mary and Holly. June and Maybelle. Hmmm.

Oh, and here's a gratuitous shot of Lucy spying and yawning at the same time, when she realized I was going to catch her on film. She probably thinks she looks ferocious.

I'll be watering baby plants on my work table and feel like I'm being watched. Sure enough, this kid's at the door looking out.

It's time for my nap. I'll try to get more pics post tomorrow. These feathered girls are a real adventure. Tomorrow we'll finish the outside enclosure so they'll get recess outside without having to worry about predators. More so I don't have to worry about them running off and being impossible to catch, actually. I saw a neighborhood cat fly like a bat out of hell after going up and sniffing the coop from the side this morning, and hearing a squawk in response :)

sourcing Cistus, and others

This is a plant I always find in 4-inch pots when I'm looking for other perennials. I usually find it when I'm looking for lavenders, for example.

Anyway, there were two local nurseries where I could find Cistus ladanifer as of last month. And now it's nowhere to be found. Nary a purpurea, either. Man...

The local sources for patchouli seem to have dried up as well. Not sure what to make of that, if I should just not try to grow it in my side yard (it would go near the hops), or if I just have to keep looking.

Then there was the elusive Camelia sinensis var. assamica I had a chance to order in March, but didn't.

holy cow, so today is the day!

At around 5pm, I'll be picking out two buff orpingtons, two rhode island reds, and two black australorps, and bringing them home :)

There's still a little to do on the coop, but as long as I can shut the thing so they don't break out and so no varmints get into it, they'll be spending their first night in the wilds of Pittsburg. I was calling the neighborhood Chihuahua Meadows because of all the high-strung barking, but might have to change that to El Camino De Los Gatos, given how many cats there are in a 1 block radius.

Lucy and Daisy have no clue what is going to happen in a few hours. They just know I've been in and out, and that I'm busy getting things ready. For something.

Right now I'm thinking about what to call the little girls. And I'm wondering how quickly I'll find myself in over my head.

Orange Julius sits across the yard from the coop, and surveys it, when I see him in the yard. The first day the base was up, he and one of his girlfriends (luckily, she's been fixed) were sitting under it, just matter-of-fact in a 'we're going to hang out here, so you might as well just find someplace else to work for now' sort of way. Looks like he's been sleeping on the compost again, there was a small cat indentation in the top of the weeds on top of it this morning when I went out there to water plants.

Anway, I hope to be posting pictures and posting about the chicks in the next couple days :)