Girls of Dragon Valley

Edifice Rex

I hope Mama Hen does not mind I borrowed her photo to promote her calendar.
MamaHen, Thank you. 

Wednesday, as we came home from the doctor, I was surprised by a box by my back door. Even though exbf was waiting in the car, I had to open it.

It was a calendar by MamaHen, Girls of  Dragon Valley.

It had twelve pictures of beautiful hens. My Dominique named Dominique that I gave her last Fall was Ms. December. She is a very photogenic chicken and her shoot was tastefully done.

The post in the link also has a picture of Dominique at the bottom. She is a very fat hen.

12:15 until 3:00

That is how long it took to pump the water from the basement. It was as high inside the door as outside. The guy brought his son. It took both of them to carry the pump. It looked like a generator--huge and gasoline powered. I had to give them the last of my 100% gasoline. Well, I offered it and he used it.

Let me tell you the stagnant water was fetid! Yeah, the smell, oh, the smell! The whole backyard smells like a swamp. Some of the water ran under the fence where the eternal hole is. Whatever is underground is probably drowned.

The whole top of the water heater just "blew up" is how he described it, saying usually the bottom goes out. I bought this in 1989 or thereabouts. I will have no hot water for awhile. I still don't have enough money to keep electric and water one...sigh. Read carefully. I do have electricity. I don't have enough money for the exorbitant bill of $691.57 which keeps the utilities on. I received $150 in paypal and checks when I asked for help. Some of the comments are just bizarre since I do have electricity and water from city was never turned off. I asked them to turn it off at my meter.

But, I am happy. I have gone to the laundromat twice and was going this evening. I wash one load at a time because more than one load is more than I can do and still function.

Have you ever had everything happen at once? Well, I have been  needing the water pumped out and he came.  And, I have wanted to give away Dominique. Well, MamaHen from Edifice Rex came just after the water guy did! I was just sitting and watching water flow, so it all turned out great.

MamaHen gently caught Dominique and put her in a nice cage for the ride home. Dominique was so hot from the chase of getting caught that her mouth was open, trying to cool off. She will be in the cab of the truck with the ac going. So, she will cool off fine.

I had a pleasant visit with her and husband. I truly believe they will treat Dominique with kindness. She will have her own run and house for awhile. Mama Hen brought me a dozen fresh eggs, gathered yesterday and never washed, just like I like them.

A nap is calling my name along with the washing machine and dishwasher.  Nap wins.

Update: I awoke from a good nap to be greeted by bizarre comments and accusations that really depressed me. And, some of these were from people whose blog and decisions in their life I have supported. I was getting depressed reading the comments, so I deleted most of them and will just move forward. I am not angry, just trying to regain my very good mood today. If you have a question, just email me. If you have a negative comment, just email me.

Taverners Wine Gums & Stuff

These are another of the UK sweets--"Great British Sweets". The gums are different colors, shapes, and flavors. The only one I can eat are the diamond-shaped red ones. The rest start out okay, then the most putrid taste occurs. They taste like they are fermented and not a good fermentation. The citrus ones are horrid from the first chew because I am allergic to citrus and especially citrus flavored foods.

I am not sure if this is an acquired taste. If I drank wine that tasted like most of these, I would assume the wine had gone bad. I have had to spit these out. All the good ones are eaten, and the bad tasting ones are in an empty disposable cup where I deposited them mid second chew.

When I first put one these in my mouth, I have the sensation I am chewing on an eraser. The texture is not a bad thing, just surprising as I thought they would be like gummy bears. I eat few gummy candies, so maybe some are as tough as these.
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The guy who was coming Saturday evening to get the water out of the basement did not show up, and I have heard nothing today...sigh.
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Yesterday, I was so ill I could not get out to feed Dominique.  I could not risk another vine tripping me or not getting safely down and back up the stairs. This is not fair to her. So, I will find her a new home. This is not that the novelty wore off or I am not getting eggs. She needs to be fed regularly.  This is not the first time she has missed dinner lately.
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I have two afternoons to get the entries of dehydrated foods to the Fair--until 6 pm Wednesday. I hope I can walk steadily by then! Keep your fingers crossed!
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Summer is returning. September here for the most part is hot as August. I have had a daytime high in 50s. That is just not right. We have had record breaking low temps for the highs. It is now 70F or above for our nighttime temperatures. We will have 90 at least one day this week. That is much better! Has your normal September weather returned? Or, is it cool early and fine with you?

Your turn
Has anyone from the UK or anywhere had these Taverners Wine Gums? Do you like them? Have some of mine gone off?

The Heat!

The heat is so oppressive, that I cannot keep it cool enough indoors. Consequently, my chest hurts from the effects of breathing in this atmosphere. My small window ac is failing. It is trying hard, but it is old!

It is too hot to cook more chicken, even in the crockpot. In the freezer is bbq chicken, waiting to heat tomorrow. I will make coleslaw and thaw corn I cut from the cob when I got Peaches and Cream corn last week. Exbf is coming tomorrow; we will go to free lunch; I will go to the doctor to learn results of a test. So, cooking dinner is the last thing I want to do!

Thankfully, I have a low-maintenance pet. Dominique does not require much.  She does not seem to suffer from the heat like all my other chickens. I never see her panting or letting her wings hang to cool her body.

I finished a post and with one keystroke wiped out two-thirds of it. I just have not felt up to finishing it. Losing a post just demoralizes me!

Okay, several goals today: find an inhaler, buy milk, get refund at WM, color my hair, feed Dominique. Maybe, I can do dishes. I will make tuna salad and eat with whatever greens are in the refrigerator.

What are you doing today? Are you doing it in oppressive heat?

Dominique is Pouting

Today was uneventful. It might have been more eventful if I had not had three electric carts die on me in Walmart. The wait was excruciating and made me leave without what I went to get. Well, it is okay because it is only Monday. For some reason in the middle of the afternoon, I decided I had to buy the specials before tomorrow because the ads would go off on Wednesday. No, it is still Monday. I had no nap to fool me. But, I have tomorrow to shop for specials that go off on Wednesday. I just need to get there before storms hit.

I heated a piece of frozen cornbread for exbf last Friday and discovered it in the microwave on Saturday. So, I put it on a plate for Dominique. She got leftover mac and cheese that did not suit me and lots of Romaine. The first thing on the plate was chicken scraps.

She rushed and grabbed a hunk of cornbread and demolished it and started on the Romaine. I came inside and looked out the window. She was pacing and not eating. She didn't even find the chicken for her to eat. She must have realized there were no dry oats. This hen ignore oats for three days when I got her. Now, she must have her chicken crack.

There were lots of blueberries in the freezer and I uncovered a Ginger Evans blueberry muffin mix while cleaning out a shelf the other day. Those mixes never have blueberries in them. They are blue apple pieces. And, I have heard the blueberries added frozen did not turn the muffins blue. I had no desire to fill muffin cups, 6 I believe, as my back was hurting so. I put a piece of parchment paper in and 8x8 pan and poured the muffin mix in the center and popped it into the oven.

It was delicious. I didn't even notice it was not muffin shaped once I got it onto my mouth. I think a half cup of blueberries in that tiny mix was overkill, but who ever had too many real blueberries in a muffin? Ice cream would have been nice, but not until I find a2 ice cream. They do make it.

Your turn
Do naps ever fool you into thinking it is the next day? Then, you rush about? No nap fooled me! Do you have chickens or animals who just won't eat familiar and liked foods if the favorite food is not served? What goodies have you served from the freezer lately?