Comings and goings

I sent Steve off to the market this morning with chickens and ducklings; I need to reduce the number of mouths we are feeding.  We have 21 ducklings and more on the way.  And I had way more chickens than I needed.  Since the young hens are starting to lay I sent 5 older ones off to market along with the oldest big rooster and 2 banty roosters, and 4 half grown frizzle chicks.  I managed to catch 6 ducklings to send also. 

Steve likes to do the market part, sitting outside the stockyard with the tailgate down talking to all the old guys.  I am not so hot on that.  I spent an hour this morning just catching birds.  I went out last night after dark and shut the coop door on the chickens but it was still a lot of work chasing them from one end of the coop to the other just to get the ones I sent.  Even the ducklings were hard to catch.  I thought I would just throw some bread down and be able to catch them but they must have heard me catching the chickens and were real wary.

A few days ago someone stopped when Steve was outside and asked him if he could buy the guineas and a turkey or 2.  He is supposed to come back today but I don’t know if I am going to be able to catch those guineas easily, although I am willing to sell them.  I am also willing to sell all the young turkeys except the white tom, which I think will be our Thanksgiving meal.  The problem is the turkeys and guineas roost outside and no- you can’t catch them in the dark with a flashlight- at least after you catch the first one.  Darkness doesn’t make them as frozen as it does chickens; they fly off in the dark and are gone.  They do go in the barn to eat from their dish and my best bet would be to trap them in there, but it will be when there is an opportunity not necessarily when someone wants them.

 We had more silkie/frizzle chicks hatch yesterday, I don’t know how many and two more little hens are sitting.  I have two ducks sitting still.  No matter what we sell the population keeps on rising.  I do know that I will be collecting all the silky/frizzle eggs after this last bunch hatches until about next March.  And no more duck nests either.  The only thing I would possible allow to reproduce would be the porcelain banties.

 The granddaughters were up here yesterday.  They got to hold baby ducks and see a newly hatched silky chick.  They helped me feed last night.  And we had a good supper.  I hope I gave them some good memories for the day since they were going home to some unpleasant happenings.  Their other grandmother, who lives with them, had passed away just before they left and they didn’t know it yet.  Their mom found her in bed- it was unexpected- just before they were to leave and she told my son to go on ahead with the girls who were eager to get up here to see us.  All the police and medical examiner stuff were done and the body removed to a funeral home by the time the girls left here.  Sad, for my poor daughter in law but probably the best way for the girls.

I guess that’s what life is about, the comings and the goings.