Doubles

If you've come here (or if I've come to you via you Following me!) for art, today you will be disappointed. I have an egg picture and that's it! Had a couple of the brown egg layers lay double yolk eggs and one of the chocolate egg layers is finally laying! So I have that one pic to share with you today.

I've had quite a few emails asking me how my NEW JOB training is going. And I'm taking the lazy man's way out and blog posting about it! Then instead of typing the same thing over and over, I type it once and send everyone who's emailed me the link!

I did not realize how much about produce I did not know! And it's not so much about the produce itself that I didn't know but more about safe handling procedures. Whole Foods Market (henceforth to be known as WFM) is the world's largest seller of organic and all natural products. Not everything in WFM is organic. There are many conventional items. As more farmers switch to organic farming (defined as produce that has been grown without synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, or chemical or synthetic fertilizers) and they are approved by WFM's buyers, the amount of organic produce will increase. WFM tries to buy local when and where it can. And Florida is an entity unto itself in the WFM world! We are our own region all by itself. So "local" in FL can mean strawberries in the spring from Plant City or tomatoes in the fall from Immokolee which is down by the Everglades.

The first two days was learning all about the WFM way of doing business. We are Team Members, not employees. We don't use last names. From our Store Team Leader to the dishwashers and maintenence people, first names only. Even the CEO/founder is John. We were given several exercises where we had to problem solve, first verbally then non-verbally. And with each excercise, we changed Teams so we could learn to work together. We all did our safe food handling certification. We each have a card and we have to have it accessable in the store if we are on duty should the Health Inspector ask for it. So if it is not on my person, it has to be in my purse in my locker and not in my car in the parking lot.

We were given a tour of the store with each dept having something that they make (or in Produce's case, an organic banana!) We were each given a T-Shirt to wear on Grand Opening day and on any other day that we want. So if it's Tuesday, I can wear my shirt. I don't just wear it once and stick it in the bottom drawer never to be seen again. We were each given a reuseable WFM shopping bag made completely of recycled water bottles. And in that bag, we got a coffee mug, a water bottle, 365 Brand (WFM's store brand) breakfast bars, Organic Salt & Pepper potato chips, trail mix, Organic bar soap, a WFM "globe" skooshie ball, fruit leather, milk and dark organic chocolate bars, 2 different beef, pork or chicken marinades, gum, recipe cards. There's more, but I don't remember it all! The bag was over half full by the time our tour was over! Then they turned us loose on 3 different food trucks in the parking lot for our dinner. Oh, and one dessert truck with CUPCAKES!!! Even gluten-free cupcakes. There were gluten-free and vegan dinner options from the food trucks as well.

Yesterday was getting our Produce Certification. Yep, ya gotta be Certified to work in any dept in the store! They want you to be educated about what we sell because the typical WFM customer knows what we sell so you are expected to be educated as well. Lots of info! Safe temp handling procedures. Steps to take if I am cutting conventional fruits as opposed to organics. Yep, they are both handled differently! You clean and sanitize one way for conventional and another for organics so as not to disrupt the integrity of the organics. The list is endless!

Next week we will be learing how to properly close down the dept at night. Also we will be trained and certified on operating the pallet jack, baler and juicer. There will be other training as well, but these were the only things we were give "sneak peeks" of.

I'm tired. Or shoud I say, my BRAIN is tired! But it's a "good" tired. It's nice to have some interaction with people again. I had gotten used to being here in my bubble every day. But you need that human contact!

Thanks for listening to me ramble! And here's a couple of pics. I took one of the front and back of my shirt!

 The two in the back are the double yolkers and the one up front is from the chocolate layer. See how much darker it is?

 Front of my shirt.

Back of shirt. Bottom, which is sorta hard to read says Nov 1, 2012

A new layer

And I don't mean layer like in a layer cake, I mean layer as in CHICKEN layer! I opened the door separating the "little" girls from the "big" girls on Saturday. Queen Biotch Survivor has spent all of her waking time since in chasing the little girls back and forth, forth and back. I don't call her Queen Biotch for nuttin! But apparently, one of the little Americauna's found some spare time in being chased to lay her first egg. And that surprises me since the Buffs are the oldest of the "little" girls. I just ASSumed (and you know what "they" say about ASSuming, right?!) that the Buffs would be first to lay. I don't know who it is that gave me this pretty little blueish green egg, but I'll take it! I put it next to one of Queen's eggs since hers are the biggest of all. The eggs start small since their hoo-ha's aren't stretched out as much. As it stretches, the eggs will get bigger. And a little more chicken "birds and bees" if you will. You DO NOT need a rooster (male) for the hens to lay eggs. All females "lay" an egg. Chickens just do it on a more frequent timetable than say, a human female. The only reason you "need" a male is to fertilize the eggs. Hens will lay an egg every day or so, rooster or no rooster. Just like a human female "lays" an egg every 28 days or so. And there is NO nutritional difference in a fertile and non-fertile chicken egg. Also, eating a fertile chicken egg will not hurt you in any way, shape or form. Class dismissed!

More rain

I dumped another 4.50" of rain out of the gauge this morning. Had to go buy the newspaper because apparently the delivery guy decided I was the only one in the neighborhood who didn't need one today. So I took the camera along with me and took pics while I was out of our flooded streets.

We are currently rain-free, but there is more heading in our direction. And for those asking, the chickens are fine! They are high and dry. The little girls were upset because it rained all day yesterday and they couldn't go in the breezeway without getting wet! They don't like having their feathers wet. Thanks to everyone for being concerned about them!

 curve on our street that always floods

 intersection of the two streets in the subdivision.

 House on the corner of the two streets. Water all in their front yard. Proabably in the garage, if not in the house as well. Sooooo glad we don't live there!

 Neighbors crepe myrtle tree that fell over from water saturation at the roots.

end of our street. Driveway on left is our next door neighbor. This is where neighborhood kids were pulling each other on inner tubes with their 4 wheelers yesterday. The water goes all the way around the corner to the other street.

Brawk, brawk

That's chicken speak for "dang it's been a long time since you had pics of US on your blog!"

We had some maintenence to to in the coop this morning. We had used scraps for the roost in the side where the (not so) little (anymore) girls are and it was falling apart. So while John fixed the roost so the girls could roost safely, I cleaned both sides and refilled waterers and feeders and took pictures!

Feeding frenzy!

 BREAD! We have BREAD for a treat! Nom, nom, nom!

 Queen Biotch Survivor in the big girls side is jealous because I give the little girls "better" bread than I do the big girls. At least in her humble opinion!

 Miss Els and her feathered feets! She will lay  chocolate colored eggs. Hopefully in about 3 more months!

I kicked some grass that was growing outside the coop over against the wire, so they are eating it thru the chicken wire.

Got Yogurt?

I introduced the little girls to yogurt this morning. They weren't too sure about it to start with, but once they started eating it, they seemed to like it better. They sure do love their lettuce though! One will pick up a piece and the other 9 will chase her all around the coop. I guess the piece that she has tastes better than all the others! The Buff's have lost all of their baby fluff. The Americauna's, who finally have names, only have fluff around their heads and the Cukoo Marans are still little fluff balls! So the Americauna's are Goldie, for the yellow one. The light brown one is Liz after Liz Taylor because of how they look like their mascara has smeared and it reminded my of Liz playing Cleopatra with the extended mascara and the darker brown one is Cleo, for Cleopatra. The Maran's still don't have names. I'm thinking that one of the brown girls is gonna be Godiva. I think they all need "chocolate" names since they will *eventually* lay chocolate brown eggs.

 Hey, Treat Lady! Why are you on the OTHER side of the closed gate? We want treats too, ya know! Anna, Anita and Sluggy, Goldie and one of the black Marans.

 Sluggy and Anita and Godiva inspecting the lettuce, carrrots and purple cabbage.

 Apparently the yogurt tastes better after you walk thru it. Goldie and one of the black Marans.

Anna, black Maran, Liz,  Goldie, Anita, Sluggy, Cleo

Chicken Update

The time came this morning for us to let the little girls OUT of the watermelon bin and have free run of the small side of the coop. They were a bit on the timid side at first, but Mama Anna was the first to RUN into the breezeway between the two sides and everyone followed her lead! We left them alone for a bit to get used to their new surroundings and I went back later to take some pictures. They were all laying in the breezeway right up against the door that goes into the original coop where the big girls are. The big girls who want NOTHING to do with them right now. But they can see each other, smell each other and have some time to get used to each other and in about 4 months, when they all reach the same size, I will open the door and everyone will have free run of both sides.

 Out enjoying the morning sunshine.

 Hey look! It's that Feeding Lady! Wonder if she's got any treats. I'ma gonna go see!

 Anna and Anita. First to the party!

 Two Cuckoo Maran's left in the breezeway. Everybody else has come to join me.

 Mmmmm...a green weed!

 They decide the sun is more interesting than the green weed!

Anna, Anita, Sluggy and Indy (for Independence) come make really sure the Feeding Lady doesn't have any treats. I tear up bits of romaine lettuce for them and also tiny bits of bread. They aren't spoiled. Much!

Easter peeps

Just came back from the feed store with 4 new babies. These are the Cukoo Maran's, the chocolate egg layers that I've been waiting on all week to come in. John went with me and because there were two colors, a blackish and brownish, HE told me I couldn't just get three like I wanted that I had to get two of each color. So my chicken total is now at 14 and it stops there! When all 14 start laying, I'm gonna put a sign in my front yard "Fresh Eggs For Sale" cuz I'm giving them away left and right as it is now with just 4 laying! Make them earn their keep!

And as an update on the older ones. Anna has decided that when she gets out of that watermelon crate, she is running away and joining the high wire act with the circus. She's decided she likes sitting on the cord to the heat lamp! Anita has joined her sister in sitting on top of the feeders and waterers. Sluggy is being a slub and staying with her feets firmly planted on the ground!

 the 6 older girls. I thought the Americauna's were still pretty little. And they are. Until you get the new ones next to them!!

 The four new Cukoo Maran's.

 Anna planning her escape to the Big Top!

 All the girls all together.

You can really see how much the Buff's have grown compared to the new girls.

Are You My Mother?

Had to go to the Post Office this morning, so on the way home I decided to take a chance and see if the Feed Store had gotten in their shipment of Americauna's early. And they had! So three new babiez made the trek home with me. And I'm really glad I stopped because the Chocolate Layers that weren't supposed to be in til May are now scheduled to arrive this coming Tue! So I'll be making another trip on Wed to get three of them.

They are so cute next to the Buffs! They keep trying to get underneath them like they would their momma. And the Buffs want NO part of that!

 The Buff's are starting to lose their downy feathers. And are trying to fly! John had gotten this  heavy cardboard watermelon bin last year at W*M and we folded it up and put it in the shed after we moved the big girls into the coop when we got it rebuilt. Good thing! The Buff's were trying to fly out of the toilet paper box I had them in after the first week. So now the watermelon bin is in the chicken coop so I don't have downy feathers all in the garage like I did last year. Plus, if they fly out, they can't go anywhere since they're in the coop and we don't have to worry about the garage door going up and down and them possibly being loose. They are separated from the "big" girls, but they can hear each other.

THIS ONE! This one's gonna be my Trouble Maker. I can see it happening. Her name is ANNA. She is the one who is trying to spread her wings and fly. She's on TOP of the waterer trying to figure out how to get OUT where I am. She watches me oh so closely when I am taking care of them. She likes to pick at my fingernails and rings. She likes glittery things it seems! I think I need to take some Distress Inks out and dab different colors on she , Anita and Sluggy because I can't tell them apart. Except for when Anna is in Trouble Maker mode!

Hen fruit

As dad used to call them! ( and what a coinkadink that I posted the dad layouts earlier! Things that make you go hmmmmm.)

Imagine my surprise when I walked out to the chicken coop this morning to find an egg. A single solitary egg. But hey, it's a start! I think this is out of either Penguin or Joker. It doesn't look dark enough to me to be from one of the chocolate egg layers. But I don't know if they start out light and go darker since I've never had them before. It's a small egg. They generally are when they start laying. Gotta let the hoo-hah's stretch out a bit! I put a store boughten white egg next to it for comparison.

Here's to more eggs in the days to come!

Chicken Check-In

Guess I have to quit calling them the "little girlz" since they are mostly grown now! I'm hoping that by the end of the month we might start seeing a stray egg or two out of them. They generally start laying between 4 and 6 months and the end of Aug, they'll be 4 months old. But I won't push them. Never do. They'll lay when they get darn good and ready and not a day sooner. The coops are soaked from all the rain. I tried to clean today, but wasn't getting very far. Only making it worse, so I quit. It'll dry out in the next day or two since they say were are back on track for 90+ degree temps starting today and very little chance of rain. One thing about the weather. If you don't like it, wait a day or two cuz it'll change!

I don't know why they always gotta show their asses! First pic is Cocoa in the front. She's still not "right" from when Queen B Survivor pecked the crap outta her. She reminds me of the Hunchback of Notre Dame! Then the two black ones are Penguin and Joker. STILL don't know who is who, and I don't think it matters much! Kinda in the foreground is Kiss. And Tweety and Sylvester are in the rear. Tweety's a beautiful bird. Can't wait to see what color green the shells on hers and Sylvester's eggs will be. Second pic is Kiss up front. Then Penguin and Joker. Tweety and Syl in the rear and Cocoa off on the far right. I had just given them bag salad treats and they were waiting oh so patiently for me to take the pics and get out so they could eat in peace! And see my volunteer cantaloupe plants outside the coop? If any stray leaf thinks about growing on the inside of the chicken wire, they make real quick work of it! Still haven't seen the first lope but the vines are big and beautiful and the butterflies and bees LOVE the pollen in the flowers!

Chickens

It's been a while since I updated on the babiez. Though they aren't babiez any more! We still have them separated from Queen Biotch Survivor because she still picks on them. It will most likely be a few more months of that. I think once the little girls start laying, they will be able to fend for themselves against her. And it's usually between 4 and 6 months old when they start laying. They caught on very quickly to the "treats" routine. I give them bagged salads, the peels from any fruits or veggies. The tomatoes and strawberries that the birds so lovingly peck holes in. Bread. They actually act put out when I go out with nothing. Like the catz, they aren't spoiled. Much!

The two black ones toward the rear are Penguin and Joker. They will lay brown-shelled eggs. The yellow one and the one right next to her are Tweety and Sylvester. They will lay green-shelled eggs. Miss Independance off all by herself and the one to the right of Syl are Cocoa and Kiss. They will lay chocolate brown-shelled eggs. They are enjoying watermelon rinds! They eat all the way down to the green.

Double double

Queen B Survivor's egg was a double yolker! I have no idea why I put the other egg in the bowl. Musta still been half asleep! I sauteed some mushrooms and made me a cheese and mushroom omelette for breakfast. It was yummylicious.

Eggs, Maters, Peas

Can you say OUCH! I think this egg that Queen Biotch Survivor laid must be the the same as a human having a 13 lb baby! It it huge! And I'm willing to bet that it's a double-yolker as well. You usually get double yolks out of girls when they first start laying. But occasionally, Ma Nature will throw in a zinger on an older hen. I want John to see it before I crack it, so stay tuned to see if it was a double yolker. And yes, the eggs are green. Queen B Survivor is an Americauna and they are the ones that lay the green shelled eggs. They taste the same as a "regular' white shelled egg. No, change that. Mine are BETTER than store-boughten eggs. Because we don't force the girls to lay and they get an all natural diet.

And these are some of the fruits of our labor from our Earth Boxes. One Heirloom tomato and three pear tomatoes. There are more of each coming, but once they start turning red, I have to pick them or the birds peck one hole in them and go to the next one. I might not care so much if they'd eat the whole dad-blamed thing, but no. Peck a hole and move on. I also got two. Yes, two sweet pea pods. That's one each for John and I!! There are loads of bloom on the plants, so maybe, just maybe I might get enough to cook a mess before it's all said and done. But I doubt it. We like 'em raw anyway! And my cuke plants are also loaded in bloom. Hoping to make some pickles if I get enough ripe at the same time.

Chicken coop Part...who knows?!

Poor John is so O.V.E.R this whole coop thing! What started out to be a simple new 8 x 10 coop has turned into a major undertaking. We ended up having to replace the corner posts on the old coop because after 15 years in the ground, they had rotted and the coop had sunk 3 feet and it was not stable enough for me to be going in and out. So John jacked each corner up, pulled out the old post and re-dug the hole so he could put the new posts in. Now we've just spent the last 2 days getting the old coop re-chicken wired and new doors built. Not one, not two but THREE doors so we can isolate chickens if need be. We have a door going into the new coop. Then we have a door going into the old coop. We have a door at one end of the breezeway and another door between the original old coop and the addition that we put on it 3 months after we built the original coop 15 years ago. John still has to make a roost for the old coop, but other than that, we are done! He let me cut the last few wires on the new coop going into the breezeway. Survivor, who may yet get her name changed again to Queen Biotch if she won't leave the babiez alone was the first one to explore the breezeway. The little girls have been a bit slower to explore. It won't take them long though!

We had to put the new coop off to the side of the old one because of the pine trees and roots. Hence the breezeway! I keep teasing John about laying tile in the breezeway. That's the ONE home improvement job he did once and said never again! You see I look over my glasses when I'm doing up close work! I ended up taking them off. I am "stitching" the chicken wire together with long pieces of wire so the outside kritters can't get thru where it joins together. I thought the little girls were too cute when all but one (either Penguin or Joker, I still can't tell 'em apart!) were up on the pine branch perch that Survivor sleeps on at night. And I had to get one of Survivor when she wasn't chasing and pecking at the little girls. Then there's the bumble bee. The pissed off bumble bee. He/she has a very nice home that they had worked on for a loooong time in the beams of the old coop. Well, we've sprayed it once or twenty times to kill the mites. And the bumble bee can't get to the home because of the spray. But it's determined. It keeps trying. It's been trying to bore a new hole in the new coop, but the cypress is still too wet and he/she can't get good purchase to start the hole. John is getting the last outside door hung. You can kinda see from that angle how close the pine tree is and why we had to jog the new coop back further. Finally I cut the last few wires and the girls get to inspect their new digs!