Springish
It definitely has that feeling in the air. I know, it’s still the end of February and we’ve got another 3 weeks to go before the official beginning of spring, but you can feel it coming.
The real signs of a new season are there not in the daffodils that have poked their heads up into the air, even if they haven’t yet blossomed, but in the gardeners who are all out getting their plots ready for planting. You can see it in their eyes; that kind of hungry look that the avid enthusiast has when they’re about to embark on their passion.
I asked one of them yesterday if he wasn’t worried about us still having frost. He explained how it would be good, now that he’d turned the soil, because it would help to break things up even more. He was walking up and down his plot, looking like a racer waiting to begin a sprint.
I’m not sure if this is a sign of spring, but this morning when I took Shmoo for a walk (I had to walk the dogs separately for logistics reasons) there was a loose chicken in the gardens! His eyes lit up when he realized it was snack-on-the-hoof time, but he was clearly frustrated that I wouldn’t just let him go after it. I don’t know who had more spring fever: Shmoo or that chicken.
The chicken, by the way, was moving pretty fast for a creature with wings who instead chose to go by land. I didn’t know they could run that quickly. Of course, nothing outruns Shmoo in full out Shmoo-mode, so if I’d let him go, there would be one less feathery resident in Chalabre!
Ciao for now,
Randy
I also have a chicken story for you Randy today. Each morning during my years on Paros in Greece, I would walk my dog and see pigs running free in the enclosed farm land up the road. And there was a lot of chicken sharing this big land. One day, the farmer told me someone was stealing his chickens and he was very upset. As I was walking the next day, earlier then usual, I saw three pigs cornering a big chicken, attacking it and eating it. I just could not believe what I was looking at. So the farmer later moved his chickens and told me he had heard of this once but did not believe it. I had to find the greek word for “I swear I saw this”. I think because he knew me as I had taken photos of his goats weeks before and had them laminated for him (the photos, not the goats!), he realised I was not joking.
1Scary pigs! But we’ve all seen BABE, so we know that pigs can herd sheep, so I guess why not chickens too. Too bad they don’t know they’re not supposed to eat them as well.
2as ever, appreciate updates – just under a month now, and we’ll be over for the easter vacation – and i am bursting with anticipation… place will be stunning, air will be clear, and pace – well, that will be just perfect! chickens – aye, long may they run free (tho have to admit – old that i may be, Babe makes me cry every time i watch it – one of my fave happy-making movies…)
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