This is it, friends.
The coldest cold has arrived.
Never before during my time here on the farm has it been this cold.
Early this morning, as I do the morning chores, we are to have -30F
(which is -34C) windchill temperatures.
The days activities will include...feed, feed, feed, break the ice in the heated water buckets and refill with warm water....repeat....repeat....repeat....and so on until the day is done.
It's a great day to watch the birds on the feeders (which have to be refilled twice daily)
from the window of our warm log cabin...
a fire roaring inside.
The feeders are a frenzy of goldfinches with their drab winter attire...
with cardinals....Mr.....
and Mrs.....
bluejays,
woodpeckers,
dark-eyed juncos,
white throated sparrows,
at least a hundred of these finches...
and many others flitting from bush to tree to ground to feeder to bush.
It seems that everyone needs extra fuel to burn to keep warm in this brutal weather!
It's also a great day to reminisce about some of the crazy birds
who have added to the personality of the farm over the years...
Who could forget our dearly departed Edith,
who kept Tom and Chuck on their toes,
and who had a habit of making a nest in the first fairy garden...
(and why not?)
luckily it was early and Spring and the garden had not yet been planted!
There was Babbs, who would come to my feet and stand there waiting to be picked up...
And Amelia Earhart who had a bad habit of flying the coop...
a bad habit that caused her demise
to be by the talon of an owl.
There was handsome Elvis, who would croon so sweetly every morning as I did the chores...
Dear sweet Ivanka, the Transylvanian Naked Necked chicken
(modelling the latest in neck-warmers)...
who lived the last year of her life in the barn,
sleeping each night nestled up to Moll (one of the barn kitties)
Rod Stewart...
who bore a striking resemblance to his namesake...
Most unforgettable was Hank,
the attack rooster.
Believe me, we tried everything to keep this rooster from attacking...
resorting to carrying a SuperSoaker around with us at chore time,
so that we could use water to keep him away!
Sadly, Hank eventually met his demise at the end of a lethal injection.
(I am always opposed to the killing of animals, however Hank attacked anyone who happened to
walk across the barnyard...usually drawing blood. With children around, we cannot have an attack rooster.)
Birds add a lot to our life on the farm.
And like humans, they each have their own personality.
PS: I've had a few questions about the deer and our garden.
We have an 8 foot deer fence around the perimeter of our big garden...
so we have never had problems with deer nibbling in the garden.
I also have a smaller fence around the pumpkin patch...and luckily, no deer have been in there either.
I think the presence of the farm animals helps to keep the deer in the woods
and off the main property.
Comments
Have a wonderful week- I hope it warms up there. xo Diana
And the pet ones (except maybe the attack rooster) all are so interesting!!
I have a pet finch and he has quite a personality as well!
He only bites me when he is in a bad mood, but I am glad he is only a little finch! Ouch!
Glad to hear the deer don't get inside to your yummy veggies! ;)
And I just love Ivanka's neck warmer and must not forget the bird that looks like Rod Stewart! How funny was that.. Stay warm, talk about COLD! burrrrrrrrrrrrrrr