I went back to work today - more and more people are hearing that they no longer have employment. I heard someone describe the situation spot on today and I haven't been able to let go of the description. It comes from the scene in the Tom Hanks movie "A League of Their Own" where the girls are in their locker room and someone comes in with a letter from the war department that will say that one of their husband's has been killed. That same sense of who is it going to be made the air thick with tension at work today. It is strange to see students react as they hear that their favorite teacher will not be around to see them graduate...I got lots of hugs. I actually did very well until the middle of the day. My superior came to talk to me...let's just say that I've decided to nick name him the "scab picker" - he had to come and hurt what was just in the beginning stage of healing...why are some people the way they are? I suppose even though the conversation brought tons of tears on my part, it was refreshing to have a tiny chance to speak freely - I don't have much to lose right now if you know what I mean. All along I have not felt "heard" - so I'm not going to try to convince myself that it was any different today, but at least it made me feel better. It was hard to recover from the tears in a matter of 12 minutes before I had to teach my next class. I found a colleague to talk to - and I was able to pull myself together (barely) in time.
I just need a little more space and time to have some perspective about all of this...it's been a rough couple of days! Deep breath!
Now for a nice change of subject - here are my two babies doing what they love most when we spent the day in the garden together. Bambino loves to chew on pieces of wood that he finds. I honestly don't know how he doesn't have tons of splinters in his mouth. It's a cheap "toy" though, and seeing as how we're making cut backs these days, I'm glad he finds pieces of wood in the yard to be fun toys. I guess if he does injest wood that it's a good source of dietary fiber?!
And here's my (not so) little Figaro - he has always preferred a warmer climate - he hates going outside on cold or rainy days and he absolutely detests snow. So a cozy nap in the greenhouse is his ideal way to spend an afternoon. I have to remember to leave the door cracked for him so he can leave when he wants to. I like having him there because it seems to keep other creatures out - I have never had an encounter with a field mouse in there and I want to keep it that way.
By the way, the soda bottles and juice containers in the bottom of the picture are my mini green houses - I have been able to get my seeds to sprout very quickly using them as extra layer of insulation. I have to survive one more day before the weekend - then I plan to relax and unwind in a major way. The weather report says rain so that will make for perfect days to spend in my sewing room...
Today the trim was painted white and roofing completed (My little chicks are going to be living in style and security - their roof is rated to last 30 years!) 
A recent development to the coop was that it also was wired for a light to be used during the dark winter months - hopefully to keep the ladies a'layin' all through the cold months.
All is well here, yesterday was rainy in the morning and I woke up with a cold. All worked out well though because yesterday ended up being a good day for indoor chores and I also had a hair appointment up in Mt. Vernon with my favorite hair dresser, Michelle. Today has been a gorgeous Pacific Northwest day - sunny with temperatures around 65. After returning from church we spent the day out in the garden, lots of little projects and one big one - with a nice break for Trader Joe's strawberry popcycles.
Another project we worked on today was putting up wire on the posts surrounding the garden - the husband had put the posts into the ground using the post-hold-digger on his tractor earlier this week. 
At first it was a little hard to get the wire stretched out properly, but after several posts we figured out a system. 
It is not quite done yet, there is still another section of the garden that needs to be fenced. The tops of the posts will also be trimed off.
Well enough chicken talk for now, have a fabulous week, I hope there is lots of sunny, wonderful gardening weather where ever you may be!
Okay, so here is their coop - courtesy of their loving papa. He has worked hard already on it - there are still a few things left to do, but this is my W.I.P. sneak preview. The metal trays are actually industrial sized cookie sheets - they are about 18''x24'' each, we found them at a restaurant supply store. They will have drawer pulls attached so they can be pulled out from the side of the coop. There will be a floor of small box wire over the trays. The sectioned areas are the nesting boxes. 
The wall behind the nesting boxes is actually two doors that slide open. These doors will allow me to be able to reach in to gather eggs easily.
The front wall still needs to be attached - it will have a chicken entrance in the center. There will be a ramp coming up to the entrance for them to come up to their house from ground level. The ground level will be wired in to make a run which will be under the house as well as out several feet in front of the house. Inside there is going to be a roosting pole - made from a dowl that will go from the back wall to the front wall.
Stuff at work is still on the down slide - I'm playing the waiting game to find out if I'm going to be RIFed (basically pink slipped) from my teaching job. In many ways this is a very insecure and stressful time. It's the not knowing that makes it the worst...being unsure if I should begin to look for other employment. Legally I have to be informed by May 15th, but I've been told it will be sooner. Staying positive is a bit rough, but I'm definately thinking more strategically. The purse in the picture below is one I made about a month ago...what could I sell this for? Pretty soon I need to get my act together for this summer - I want to sell my handmade goods at a farmer's market. The next few weeks will be busy! 
This picture cracks me up...he is so determined!
They are now set up in their little chickie condo...complete with fresh sugar water (they get this their first day only), cozy pine shaving bedding, a toasty heat lamp, and a good supply of chick feed (the feed is not in this picture because for their first hour they are supposed to only get their sugar water). 
So here are my eight little girl hens...six have lighter coloring, two are "brunettes". I don't know how I'm going to be able to tell all of them apart, maybe when they get older their looks will be different? I have decided they are going to be named for places that I've lived or lived close to...so here are the names: San Jose, Los Gatos, Fremont, San Luis Obispo (San Luis for short), Castro Valley (Castro for short), Pleasanton, Berkeley, and Stanwood.
They will live in this smaller area for the next month or so, then they will be moved out to a still-to-be-built coop and run. For now they are hanging out in Bambino's kennel - he is sleeping in his closed crate in the kennel...well at least trying to sleep, the chicks seem to be a bit nocturnal, they've been cheeping since the sun went down. So Bambino may not get tons of sleep, but I guess that's his karma since he has kept us up many nights with his barking - mostly in the first weeks we had him when he was a little pup. It will be good bonding time for him with his eight new little "sisters".
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