Buck Buck Buck

The label on the feed sack said "Deer Corn," but apparently the deer don't know this product exists.  So basically we're shelling out the dough to feed our free range chickens.  I don't think a mounted chicken head would have the same effect that a 12 point Boone and Crockett would...even if it were a rooster...with a freak comb.  

Under the Whether or Not?

I can't decide whether or not I am sick. On one hand my eyeballs feel like they are rolling around in a sandbox, on the other they can still see the world around me. On one hand my nose feels like a leaky faucet, on the other I can still breathe through it. I have felt better, but I have definitely felt much much worse. It is hard to give in to the sniffles because, while they certainly tend to wear down our bodies, they don't completely debilitate us. We all know that there are far worse illnesses from which to suffer. There is just something about the common cold; although we can still get up and go to work, we'd really like to stay in bed and drop tissues over the side of our bed while commandeering the remote. But, having a cold is really not being sick enough. We always feel like we have to be really sick to justify staying home from work. Whether or not we feel like it a cold is something that reminds us that we are fortunate that we aren't that sick and that we should be grateful for our otherwise healthy daily existence.

Just Add Fire

I have concrete flooring inside a house made out of stone. This combo makes for some chilly down time in the winter. This mixture also prompts us to make roaring fires...which I thoroughly love. There is something enticing about having fire in your house. I have always loved the flicker of light set off by candles and I burn numerous candles as often as I can...mainly so that I can see the dancing amber shadows illuminated throughout my house. It gives me the sense that there is something "alive" and that I have company. When a fire is burning you get the cracks and pops that go along with it...more hints that something "alive" is in the house with you. All of us gravitate toward its heat, sitting on the hearth as we eat a snack or watch a show. There are marshmallows to burn and papers to ignite; there are logs to add and ashes to shovel. All of these things tend to happen without thought. While a fire must be maintained it is not like washing the dishes...you seem to get more out of it. I am grateful that there are always large stacks of cut wood that mysteriously appear at my back door. I never have to wield a chain saw. In a pinch I have been seen gathering kindling in flannel pjs stuffed into cowboy boots, but other than that I have a husband and a son who gladly do the gathering.