March 5th Mardi Gras

It's Mardi Gras again.

Fat Tuesday.

Everywhere else, it's just plain old Tuesday.

It's also 31 degrees.

I'm not a fan of crowds nor freezing temperatures,

so I'll watch some of the frivolities from

the comfort of my couch.

Last evening I was primed for Jeopardy (I really love

that show!) and I

was relegated to watching the meeting of the courts of

Zulu and Rex at Woldenberg Park,

complete with fireworks.

It was a spectacle.

However, it was misting rain and low temperatures,

so, again, I watched from the couch.

I could have turned the channel, but

I was glued to the pomp and circumstance

that is New Orleans "royalty".

I also got a sense of pride knowing that this was our

unique tradition that no one

else, regardless of where, within the state,

or  wherever this holiday is celebrated,

can claim.

As lifelong residents of the area,

we sometimes take this for granted.

From the King Cakes and babies, the parades,

the bands and marchers, the bead trees

to the ubiquitous purple green and gold,

we love this season.

We love a chance to let loose with inhibitions,

and loose some stress along the way.

There's always a fair, a fest, a parade or some other reason

to celebrate.... anything at all,

from cultures, to seasons, to food.

There's so many reasons that I love this city.

We have a totally different mind set here.

The Big Easy.

It's a laid back way of life.

 

******************************************

 Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.

The first day of Lent.

It begins the six weeks of penitence before Easter.

We get ashes in the shape of a cross on our foreheads

to symbolize that we are dust

and to dust we shall return.

As a kid, getting ashes was a study in patience.

We were admonished by nuns and parents alike

to NEVER remove the ashes!

But, c'mon....

we were kids!

The priest usually had no concept of how

to actually draw a cross on our heads,

it always came out as an amorphous dirty blob.

He seemed also to never be sure of 

the amount of ashes it took to

draw said cross.

As a result, every time you wrinkled your forehead,

ashes rained onto eyelashes or in

 eyes and mouths.

Also, it itched!

Sometimes, accidentally,

(wink, wink!)

We'd swipe our arms across our foreheads

and remove most of the ashes!

The horror!

The other Lenten thing is fasting.

In New Orleans,

since it is mostly Catholic,

we choose to adhere to the meatless meals of fasting.

We do not consider seafood meat.

Meat is red blooded.

So,

 on Ash Wednesday and Fridays in Lent,

we eat seafood.

It's time for crawfish, fried catfish,

shrimp cooked in innumerable ways

that I won't go into for fear of

sounding like Bubba,

and a host of other meatless dishes.

Doesn't feel much like fasting to me.....

But,

it's not all glutinous,

unhinged jaw,

all you can eat buffets,

or

crawfish boils.......

in the vein of penitence,

we do give up something for the six weeks,

something that we love.....

like candy,

chocolate,

or maybe ice cream,

cussing, Coke......

(alliteration!)

You name it.

Different people have different vices.

So,

the usual question around these parts is:

"What did you give up for Lent?"

***************************************

 

The chicken girls are chatting with me.

I was harvesting some lettuce and they

followed me around the yard.

 

Nugget.

 

The entire cadre of hens are clustering

around my chair.

They are enjoying a snack of

dried mealworms.

Yum!

-------------

The girls didn't sit on the duck egg.

It had been too long without the warmth

of a mama's butt,

so the CEO tossed it.

I had envisioned a baby duck waddling after

the girls

but,

sadly nothing came of it.

 

******************************

 

 

The aloe plant.

The flowers were orange and opened

on the end to let the stamen poke out.

I removed some of the leaves in the pot and

noticed all the new babies.

So glad to see that the aloe is

blooming and reproducing.

This is where a bigger leaf was knocked off.

It looks like several more are taking its place.

----------------

We've been planting potatoes, tomatoes,

onions, kale, beets, cucumbers.

And

we're harvesting broccoli, bell peppers, onions

and lettuce.

As usual,

most of our plants are rescues or discards from

friends or nurseries.

Hopefully our small farm produces well this year.

Well,

nothing more to report yet,

 

 

so,

The End!

 

Shake a Tail Feather!

It's Mardi Gras!

February 28th addendum

Mother Aloe

She's had several babies so far and

now she's about to bloom!

Can't wait to see the color of the flowers.

They range from yellows and oranges to reds.

This plant was a rescue.

We specialize in Lazarus plants.

You'd be surprised what stores and people

discard, thinking the plant died.

This is our paperwhite lilies.

Aren't they beautiful?

 

 

Citronella

We've got several of these.

Two flank the front door and

a couple are near the patio.

Its our natural mosquito repellant.

Smells just like the candles.

You can break off a leaf, rub it on yourself

and it is a natural bug repellant.

They can grow really large,

but if they are trimmed periodically,

the bush they become is very pretty.

I love the shape of their leaves.

 

Just wanted to share a few more garden picks.

Thanks to all who

take the time to

read my musings.

I love ya!

 

February 28th

It's been rainy most of the month but,

a couple of mornings ago,

when the early morning sun

 was streaming in the kitchen window,

I noticed how the light enhanced the bowl of pears.

Since I got a new phone that takes better pictures,

I couldn't help but snap this shot.

 

Well,

now I'll address what bugs me about this month.

The way the name of it is spelled and pronounced.

It would roll off the tongue better if

spelled 'Feb-u-ary'.

But,

it's not an English word, it's Latin.

Back in Roman times, they decided to name

this month after the term

"februum",

It means purification.

They did these purification rituals on the full

moon in this month to prepare for spring,

the new beginning.

And because of that,

it used to be the last month in the year

so they could add another day if needed, for leap year.

But, in 450BC they decided to make it the second month

because......

Emperor Pompilius added January and February.

These 60 or so days were previously unnamed because,

Romans considered winter a monthless, desolate period.

Dontcha love learning something new!

 

*******************************

This is not a chicken egg.

It is an orphaned Mallard egg.

One of our neighbors found it in his backyard

and gave it to us.

The CEO and I thought the girls might jump

on the idea of hatching an egg.

They originally did sit on it for a bit,

taking turns, but eventually gave up on the idea.

Hens will usually "mother" other species,

especially if they have a brood of chicks,

which sadly, our girls never had.

But, our girls get "broody" at times

and that's what we were hoping for.

A Mallard egg typically hatches in 28 days,

a chicken egg is usually 21 days.

Sadly, we had to throw the egg away.

The embryo isn't viable if it isn't kept warm.

A mama duck lays her egg clutch in "installments".

A few at a time. Same as a hen.

She'll leave only for food and water then she's back to sit.

So, the fertilized egg could be left in the cold

for a day or so, but not this long.

This 'cross species' experiment failed.

Maybe next time.....

 

***************************

I don't know if this problem is only me or is universal,

but I can't open things!

Why can't manufacturers make easy open items???

Just this past week I couldn't get the top off a pickle jar,

a cap off a bottle of water and this carton opened.

I hadda jam a butter knife into it to get my

fingers in there and then I ripped the opening!

Now, I'm sporting a cut on my finger.

Annnnd, since I can't re-close the damned box,

the Goldfish are in a plastic container!

C'mon....

we put a man on the moon.

We put remote vehicles on Mars.

(well, they kinda broke down, but still!)

They make gadgets that help you open things,

and videos about hacks to assist with opening,

but wouldn't it be easier to just make

the cockadoodie items simpler to open??

I feel like a Neanderthal when I'm sweating

and grunting trying to twist a cap

or using my teeth to rip open the

"easy open", "reclosable" packages.

That's why we have opposable thumbs!

Then, I saw an octopus opening a jar.

Seriously?

How did that slippery animal do that?

He doesn't even have hands!

I have hands!

I have thumbs!

But,

they don't work like the 'Manufacturer' said.

 

**************************

And...

We are all so happy for my granddaughter

and grandniece!

Their basketball team won the championship in an

undefeated season.

It is their last year in grade school

and how fitting that

they'll go on to high school

with this wonderful memory.

Love them to pieces!

 

 

 

February 16th

A few marigolds are blooming.

 

 

Today is National Do A Grouch A Favor Day.
What's that you ask?
I had no idea......
Turns out its just basically doing a good deed for a grouchy person,
that'll make them less grouchy.
That's a great idea unless the grouchy person is me.
In which case I might prefer to remain grouchy, who knows?
There are many times I can identify with Oscar.
Today, however, isn't one of those times.
February is also National Bird Feeding Month.
In northern states this is a tough time for the birds that have
to eat when their food supplies are dwindling,
but in the south, its not as big of a problem.
The wild birds near us are live the high life.
They eat the chicken feed left overs.
As soon as the hens get their fill, the sparrows, wrens and
mourning doves fly in for second breakfast.
We haven't seen the owls or hawks recently, but
I'm reasonably sure they are there circling around.

Hens are messy eaters, as are all birds.

They pick out the tasty morsels first and

push the rest out of the way. They usually

come back to munch on the rest later on, but

that's when the wild birds swoop down to eat.

The girls tolerate them for the most part.

This is Nugget. She was digging in the garden

dirt for worms till I walked out of the door.

Now all she wants to do was grab a selfie.

Nugget, Ethel, Pepper and Hazel

just love to get their picture taken.

 

Getting the garden ready for spring.

It's a bit harder than normal trying to till

around curious hens.

We have 5 blueberry bushes.

Not sure if it is obvious, but this one

is covered in small buds.

We've been eating salad from this small garden,

for a few weeks now. 

Cabbage and Broccoli

Broccoli.

We should have harvested last week because

the florets are beginning to blossom.

That's the small yellow flowers.

They are still edible though.

It may become part of a salad or a side dish tonight.

 

*********************

A couple observations.....

I was watching Dr. Pimple Popper.

A man came in with a lump.

Not a normal small lump,

but an incredibly LARGE lump on his arm!

When questioned, he'd had it for 20 years.

Yes, 20 years!

That's beyond comprehension.

Why would he ignore it for that long???

Then he says that its caused him embarrassment.

Then why in hell wait half his life to remove it???

I have questions....

Did he wait for his 5 minutes of fame?

Did it "grow" on him,

(pun intended) or is he just a couple

beads short of a rosary??

Why, when right handed people try to write

with their left hand, does it look as though

a chimpanzee took a pen an is attempting

to compose a letter?

Inquiring minds want to know!

 

*************

Geraniums

 

And remember,

Always hugs!

 

 

Groundhog Day February 2nd

I can never remember if the ground hog sees his shadow,

is winter 6 weeks longer or shorter??

So, I looked it up.

Seems, that this year, good old Punxsutawney Phil

wasn't able to see his shadow so the

prediction is for an early spring.

I think that's probably good news if anyone has

experienced 2019's polar vortex.

As for me, my Groundhog Day formal education

is solely limited to the movie with Bill Murray.

And as you can guess, it's on several channels today.

In the deep south, the groundhogs' predictions don't

hold much in the way of tradition.

As a matter of fact, our local predictor,

T-Boy the Audubon Park nutria,

did see his shadow.

So in deference to his cousin in the north,

he disagreed with his prediction.

Personally, I don't mind the southern winters.

It certainly beats the oppressive humidity and heat of the summer!

Thank goodness for our mild winters and

wonderful springs and autumns!

 

The CEO and I have been going to the gym

at least 3 times per week.

Hopefully, we both keep this up.

The good thing is that we both go.

(and he's very competitive!)

The selling point of that gym was the

large amounts of "seniors".

My "Baby Boomer" generation is quite formidable.

Yay, us!

 

**************************

The egg production is doing just fine.

Every one of the girls is all in.

Finally!

Pepper is still laying her eggs on the bag of

hay outside the coop.

No idea why.

Hazel is the first to lay her egg in the morning.

Henny, Sandy, Ethel, Lucy and Nugget lay

theirs later in the morning.

But,

we still average 4or 5 eggs per day.

As I type this, I'm watching the girls patrol the yard.

They maintain the flock patrol.

By that, I mean, they stay together while looking

for bugs and tidbits in the grass.

 

While the CEO and I were driving past our local park

which has ducks, birds, rabbits and chickens,

we noticed how thin the chickens were.

Our girls are plump, healthy and very well fed.

And.....

they are pampered pets!

 

************************************

A general commentary...

The state of our country is in turmoil.

Really, the state of the world is in turmoil.

We, as adults, have lived through times such as these

many times before.

We have to make sure that this chaos doesn't

affect our children.

We need to make sure they have coping skills

to deal with the injustices in this world.

We need to love more, have faith in people and God,

have more patience and realize that

no matter what you do,

you can't change someone's mind

but you can change yourself

and how you react to others.

In essence just live by the Golden Rule.

and don't forget to smell the roses!

 

Just a few observations from me....

 

 

Thanks to my loving friends and family

who read my musings.

💋

 

(the picture is of my New Orleans courtyard painting on slate)

January 26th

An old picture, but a view I'm seeing as I type.

 

 

Yes, my phone is still acting up.
No, I haven't purchased another one yet.
So, my old pictures are my "go to" for another post.
I'm working on it with my son.

January is almost over.
The CEO and I have been in recovery mode.
He is the one recovering, and I'm the one nursing.
A role I'm all too familiar with, except not at home.
Thank goodness he's on the mend and doing better every day.
Our backyard farm is in need of his expertise.
I was batting clean up, but I needed my partner.
Ours is a real co-op farm.

This year we've made a few resolutions.
Yes, I know.
I'm not a resolutions kinda gal, but there comes a time
when they might just be necessary.
With the CEO being "benched" for almost two months,
he became deconditioned.
He resolved to change that and he's dragging me into it too!
So, we joined a gym.
I must confess, this is our Senior Citizen approach to fitness.
Meaning that, we're doing the treadmill and maybe the elliptical bike.
So far we've been 4 times.
I know that sounds like a ridiculously small amount,
but we have to start slow.
He can't do much at a time per Doctor's orders.
But he's willing and eager to try, so that's what its all about.

*****************************************
All of our girls are finally laying!
Hazel always takes the longest to get back in her groove,
but she's finally in production.

The chore of getting them out of the coop and getting them
clean water and food in the morning was the CEO's job.
But since his accident, it fell to me to do it.
Now that he's feeling better, he is gradually easing back in.
I think the girls missed him.
I swear, as soon as they heard his voice, they came running!
Chickens are way more intelligent than we give them credit for.
And
of course, they ignored me!
Little witches!
Anyway......
It struck me how our little flock of seven,
was like The Godfather,
But, I'll call it Godfeather.....
We've got the Don - that's Pepper.
They all defer to her. She's first to eat and first outta the coop.
Then we have the Consigliere, or underboss - Lucy
She too eats immediately after Pepper and pecks at anyone who
doesn't get with the organization.
Next is the Caporegime or the enforcers.
That's Nugget, Henny and Sandy.
And lastly we have the soldiers, Ethel and Hazel.
I'm telling you, they run a smooth organization!
It runs like a well oiled machine.
And in the evening they "go to the mattresses" - literally!
They're not above a bit of extortion by begging for dried worms or treats,
Or...........
sending their enemies (food items like lizards, frogs and earthworms)
to "sleep with the fishes".

Now that the egg production is back in the groove,
its scrambled eggs, pancakes and biscuits for breakfast,
or baking cakes and muffins.
Our girls lay the tastiest eggs!
Thanks Ladies!

***************************************
Just a few words....
Disappointment is the word for the past Saints season.
There's nothing to be done for the outcome,
as regretful as it was but,
in the eyes of this city and their fans they are winners.
New Orleans isn't like any other city.
We embrace the crazy, the unwanted, the marginalized and
most of all our own.
Whether that means you're a native or a transplant, you are family.
There is something intangible about life here.
We laugh, cry, celebrate and restore ourselves.
We are loyal and never back down.
The Saints have been a part of us since '67
and we've seen how completely awesome they can be.
I think Mr. Benson is waving that umbrella in his heavenly
Second Line along with Louis Armstrong and proud of his guys.
So, I'd like to thank them too,
And.......
there's always next year!

******************************
Remember the words of Louis Armstrong......
"And I think to myself,
What a wonderful world

January 12th 2019

Just an old picture of Lucy

that I got creative with.

The first entry of the new year.
I've been preoccupied with the ongoing issues with the CEO.
He is improving, but slower than he'd like.
He's to undergo a procedure in a week that, hopefully, will get
him back to his old self.


2019!
Wow!
Now is the time to make resolutions that will utterly fail in a couple months.
So, I think I'll abstain from that, but...
All I wanna know about in this 21st century is....
Where are the flying cars?
I saw on TV where someone was trying to develop a realistic model
for everyday people to use.
Well, not me! Nope!
But,
Morris Bart had better get more attorneys on the payroll!
Buckle our respective seat belts, we're in for some bumpy rides!
What'll they call it instead of  "road rage"?
"Sky Rage"?
And just think, no more parallel parking.
I just want to see more "George Jetson" type stuff.
Don't you?
I'd like to be teleported to and from places, no commute problems.
No traffic to make you late for anything.
The Jetsons also had a device they stepped into, to shower, dry off, and dress.
I want one of those!
(I think theirs was on the fritz because they seemed to wear the same clothes all the time!)
I really wasn't a fan of their family vehicle.
That glass dome and cramped circular design weren't cool.
(and I don't remember the kids eating snacks and getting crumbs on the back seat)
Back in the '50's and '60's we were fed this hype about
"THE FUTURE!"
And, I guess the future is now.
I mean, what would we do without our smart cell phones?
Don't get me wrong, a lot of the predictions have come to pass,
and some have far exceeded our expectations,
but.....
some seem a tad shaky to me.
Like the new and improved ways to subvert our privacy like
DNA testing kits and Alexa, just to name two,
strike me as invasive.
In fact, similar items have been the subjects of
post apocalyptic novels and movies.
Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking have consistently warned
of the dangers of artificial intelligence on human civilization.
I might sound as though I'm anti new fangled technology
but I'm actually not.
I'm just reminded of the scene in "2001 A Space Odyssey"
where the onboard omnipresent/omnipotent computer HAL
won't allow Dave to shut it down.
It became sentient.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Dave."
Creeps me out...

************************************

Back at the backyard farm........
Since the CEO has been injured, I have been
assuming his backyard farm duties.
I don't mind but the weather wasn't cooperating.
We had almost 2 solid weeks of rain.
A fortnight.
Not Biblical rain,
just enough to make everything soggy and mushy.
Yuck!
Chickens are messy if you don't keep ahead of them.
He did an outstanding job of keeping on top of that.
Me, not so much.

I did notice a few things about the girls......
Whenever the CEO is at the kitchen table when I'm
outside, they try to look in the window or peck at the back door.
I guess it's their chicken way of getting his attention and them missing him.
And this,
Nugget has taken to putting small twigs and pieces
of dead grass and straw on her back.
No clue what it is or why she has this behavior.
So,
I looked it up.
According to animal behaviorists, they do this to
camouflage themselves.
It's part of the flock mentality too.
Protection. Blending in.
They may put the straw or grass behind their wings
or simply lay it on their backs.
They will also lay items on the backs of other chickens.
I noticed it the other day while I was puttering around in the yard.
She was walking around with the stuff on her when
I brushed it off.
She stopped following me to replace all of it.
Weird.
Odd
You bet.
All I can say is....
Chickens are funny.

The best dog in the whole world is blind.
Not a new thing. The three of us are senior citizens,
the dog, CEO and myself.
But,
it's just kinda funny at meal times.
She walks from one person to the other waiting for a handout.
Reminds me of another movie.
"The Miracle Worker",
about the early life of Helen Keller.
Being blind and deaf,she walked around her family's' table
while they were eating and ate sloppily from their plates,
as they did nothing to stop her.
Actually, Leia is much better behaved, but she does
walk from one of us to the other and simply waits.....
If you haven't seen it, Google the dinner scene.
So,
now,
Leia's nickname is "Helen"!

**************************
Sadly,
This post is without any new pictures.
My phones' camera won't work.
In fact, several things aren't working on the phone.
Also, not a new thing.
I can't even get new screen shots to cross over to the blog.
My "tech support" (son) is aware.
Hopefully,
I'll be posting pictures soon
And
doing so with a new phone.
(if I ever get the time....)

***************************

Always hugs!
Love to everyone,
Thanks for reading my humble blog
💋