Dreaming of Spring Gardening in the Middle of a Wisconsin winter part 2

[jvls1942]

for a while any photo you receive from me will be a fluke. I really have to go round about to get one to pop up.
bad news. I did not capture mrs. houdini.
I say that because now mr houdini showed up.
we are three hundred feet across an open field to the woods. how do these critters find each other ?
I am making headway in the shop. electrical is done. I have a picture of that , that I have to figure out how to send.
GS finished Nursing Assistant school.
top of the class. they instantly gave him a job.
down side is he has to drive 44 miles to work.
He will work 3, 12 hour days, then get 4 days off. we are hoping he can do his Xray schooling on his off days..
yesterday I disassembled a router table that I built many years ago. never used it much.
when I build something, it is not meant to be disassembled. it took me a couple of hours.
I'm really glad that I did not glue any part of it
I had Chinese geese in my mixed flock.
they truly are the loudest.
a lone goose can easily be made into a pet.
you will not find a more alert watch animal.
my geese would tilt their heads and watch jets flying so high that they looked like a flea.
Ganders make good step fathers to baby geese and ducks..
adolescent geese will kill other small geese from different flocks/parents..
must be a survival instinct ?
today we are going out for chimichangas.
have reservations for 5PM. sinco de maio sp?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Love that cutting board Jim. Enjoy your chimichanga Jim.

I think I have 5 geese on order. 4 female embdem, and 1 pilgrim gander.

 

[Callender Girl]

And, the rain just keeps coming! I can't believe we're still technically in a drought! At least we didn't have a full-out storm last night, but there was plenty of rain and thunder.

Yesterday's rain didn't start until evening, so I was able to work a bit in the veg garden. Was going to plant a few tomatoes, but I'm driving over to Seed Savers on Friday and will wait and see what lovelies I find there before I fill all the garden space.

Congrats on finishing the electric in the shop, Jim. And on your grandson's new job, although the drive sounds daunting. For more than 20 years, my sister commuted 20 miles to work, five days a week and understandably HATED winter driving.

Lisa, what's the reason for only one Pilgrim gander? Do you have other Pilgrims or is there some other reason you want him? In any case, I'm a bit envious. Ever since my neighbor brought over that Chinese beauty, I've spent too much time trying to figure out how to add more geese.

I certainly don't need more pets. The outdoor kittens were 2 weeks old yesterday, so in addition to worrying about Calypso and the intact male cat, I now how to fret over six babies. Ozzie continues to live in my bathroom; his trips to the rest of the house end when big, blind George wants to get overly friendly.

Thanks to some aggressive mating, I have to take a runner duck to the vet today. This poor girl bleeds from the top of her head every single spring, the only one that gets roughed up that much. This year, it looks like there may be some damage to her eyes.

I gave her the rest of the antibiotics that I got for the runner duck whose wing was hurt by the same drake. Yes, Sheldon is a jerk, but he's the last of my original runner ducks. I had been keeping him separated from the other drake, and now my injured girl is away from him, too.

There's a rumor that it might not rain tomorrow. I am hopeful.

 

[jvls1942]

those ducks can be relentless. I once saw seven mallard drakes chasing one female on a lake. poor thing couldn't land in the water without being dunked.
I have been spending time in the shop each day. I never know what I am going to do, I just go out there and do something.
Yesterday I emptied out the half plastic barrel I was tossing scrap wood into. I completely filled the stove. next time I light it, it had better be really cold out there..lol
I finally had a chance to drive Ollie. first time since he came home.. the only thing different is that now he has super high oil pressure. I am happy about that.
Yesterday was the type of day you hate to see end. perfect temperature. and sunny.
Annie is busy picking up fallen sticks and branches.. those black walnut trees are as bad as the willows..
I tore my home made router table apart.
and yesterday I removed the extension table from the planer. I am going to repurpose it as a shelf under the stairs where I plan to put scrap lumber that is too good to burn. until I deem it a mess and then burn it. lol
It is a pleasure to be able to plug tools in withour running extension cords..
I still have a short run to make for the miter saw.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Barb the female pilgrims are too expensive. I had a male pilgrim a few years back. Very pretty, but he kept attacking a batch of young goslings. I decided to remove him, and regretted it ever since. I'm hoping if I get another I won't feel so bad.

So wet here too. Maybe I should be planting rice? Tomatoes have doubled in size. They are happy. Yesterday because it was warmer I put all my big goldfish out in the little pond. Now I'm worried about them. They are all still alive this morning, so they should be good for the summer now.

 

[Callender Girl]

Lisa, I don't know much about geese (except my darling American Buffs), so I looked up Pilgrims, and they sound like great geese. I knew they were pricey, but I looked at the McMurray catalog -- more than $68 for a female gosling?!? Wow!! Hope your new boy fits in well.

Speaking of attacks, the runner duck that keeps getting overly mated went to the vet yesterday because I was worried about her eyes and possible infection. Bad news: Mating has torn her eyelids at the corners. Good news: She can still keep her corneas moist and there's no infection. For the first time EVER, I left the vet without having to buy meds or spend days dosing (aka, torturing) a bird. She and the less-aggressive drake are now separated from the bully boy.

I'm on the verge of regretting that I didn't figure out a way to keep the Chinese Brown. But, again, I Don't Need More Pets! (Please remind me of that when I attend McMurray Fest next month and bring home chicks!!).

Outdoor kittens were 2 weeks old Monday and, I'm sure, will soon be scampering out of the safety of the little hay shed. Like I need more critter worries!

Congrats on the tomatoes and the goldfish (I'm a bit jealous of both!). I think I had ONE day where I could have planted and didn't. More rain predicted today; haven't had any since yesterday. Had my riding mower checked out yesterday. It's ready to go if and when the grass gets dry enough.

Jim, great making progress in the shop! I generally have a plan when I start working, then get sidetracked by a gazillion other things that I see along the way. I'm still dreaming of the day I can run the miter and table saws without having to use extension cords!

Although I haven't added the finishing touches (i.e. a sheet of plywood to support the thin metal roofing), my improvements to the Cochins' coop with the leaky roof worked -- all my feather-footed lovelies can now sleep in a dry coop. Maybe I can finish it up before today's rain?

 

[jvls1942]

I went to bed and slept like a normal person for a change. made it until 6o am
today I go to the dentist and have a temporary crown removed and a permanent one put in.
then I should be done with teeth work for a long time..
Barb, try to play with the new kitties to make them tame.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I went to bed and slept like a normal person for a change. made it until 6o am
today I go to the dentist and have a temporary crown removed and a permanent one put in.
then I should be done with teeth work for a long time..
Barb, try to play with the new kitties to make them tame.

I have to do that same exact thing next week!!!! Then I need a root canal after that at some point that I have to schedule. THEN I should be done till my cleaning in August.

 

[Callender Girl]

Best wishes with everyone's dental work!

But, Jim, if I tame the kittens, then they will also be "my cats" and I will worry more, pay more vet bills, get even crazier than I am now. I -- and the world at large -- are not ready for that!

 

[ShrekDawg]

Best wishes with everyone's dental work!

But, Jim, if I tame the kittens, then they will also be "my cats" and I will worry more, pay more vet bills, get even crazier than I am now. I -- and the world at large -- are not ready for that!

Thanks!!!!