A Bird in the Hand is Better Than Two in the Bush

One of my cats, Squeakers, is the worlds best bird hunter. I hate to think about how many birds lose their lives prematurely because of this keen hunting machine. Squeaks is the smallest of all our cats and the most agile. She loves to share her "catches" with us and is constantly bringing LIVE birds into the house through the dog door. Upon entering the house she releases the birds and they fly around and she chases them until Dan the Man or myself finally catch them and release them back outdoors.

This little guy was Squeakers catch of the day this morning. After I caught him and photographed him, he flew away unharmed. I'm sure he flew far, far away, hoping to never have to go though that ordeal again!

Click on the photo for a full screen view, the details are incredible, especially his feathers. And see the little twinkle in his eye, that's not post processed in by the way. Click on your browsers back button to return to the blog.

Holding the little guy in my hand made me think of the saying "A Bird in the Hand is Better Than Two in the Bush."

So I googled the phrase and found this at WiseGeek.com. Thought it was interesting and wanted to share it with you.

According to WiseGeek.com:

“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,” also sometimes given as, “A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush,” is a proverb saying that it is better to stick with something you already have, rather than pursuing something you may never get. This proverb is a very popular warning, widely used in many English-speaking countries.

The basic warning of “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,” is that you must take care not to get too greedy in life. If you are holding a bird in the hand, you have your meal for the evening. You can take that one bird, and be well fed. If instead you let it go to pursue two birds you’ve spied in a bush, you may catch neither, and wind up hungry for the night. This proverb points out that by passing up a sure thing for a more promising possibility, you also run the risk of losing both the sure thing and the promising possibility.

Squeakers, the bird hunter

Project Predator

Some of you who are on Facebook already know that Dan the Man and the Country Chicken Girl have been having trouble with an unknown predator at the Open A Bar 2 Ranch. On two separate mornings they have been greeted with a horrific sight upon awaking and checking on the chickens. Something has been getting in with the meat birds and killing them. This predator is ruthless and cunning... it would appear as if it is killing the poor chickens in their sleep, since there is no warning from the chickens that danger is amongst them.

The predator has ripped the heads off of 4 chickens, leaving the rest of the body untouched, had injured one severely enough that Dan the Man had to put the chicken out of it's misery, and has partially eaten one that it tried to drag away, but couldn't get it out of the fence surrounding the chickens. One of the headless chickens was found right inside the chickens' shelter.

Since Dan the Man and the Country Chicken Girl are no longer crazy, wild and party-all-night kind of people, they decided that an all-night stake-out was out of the question. And being poor-as-dirt, they couldn't afford to hire someone to hunt down this cold-blooded chicken killer, so into effect went...

Project Predator!

Watch the story unfold in this riveting award-worthy video...

Update on the War!

Just thought I would update you on the Possum (or technically I should say Opossum) War.

If you have no idea what I am talking about, then you need to read the previous post...

I Delcare War!

It's been two nights now since the opossum got the three chickens and we have not seen hide nor hair of the dirty little varmint.

I think he got on my blog and read my post and is scared silly, at least I hope that is the case.

So for now... all is well with my dear little chickens!

That is all...

goodbye and goodnight!

I Declare War!

Two nights ago I was working, yes working, not playing on the computer, when all the sudden I smelled a foul smell coming in through the window.

"Peee-yew! What is that stench?" I said to anyone who was listening. No one answered me since no one ever listens to me. Tay-tee, my man, didn't even answer me. He was sound asleep on the ledge by the window next to the computer.

My man, Tay-tee, fast asleep.

Sometimes I sleep with my tongue hanging out and slobber on my pillow!

The stench was getting stronger and I was almost certain that a skunk was outside. I got Dan the Man's attention and told him he'd better get his gun and make sure the skunk was not getting into the egg layers chicken coop stealing eggs.

Dan the Man reluctantly got off the couch and went to get his gun. Meanwhile I got the big flashlight. Dan the Man told me just to go outside and see if it was a skunk. I told him I didn't want to go outside without him because I didn't want to scare the skunk away before he was ready to go outside with the gun. Good thing it wasn't a burglary with some crazy prison escapee with a gun, because Dan the Man was as fast as molasses getting his gun, finding the key to the lock, trying to locate the ammunition, putting on his shoes, getting a drink of water....

So needless to say, but the time we made it outside, Dan the Man saw a big old possum going around the side of the house.

Man did that guy stink!

Hey dude... take a shower next time you decide to come around!

I was disappointed that Dan the Man didn't take care of him with his gun, but he didn't.

This morning I had the Farmers' Market in Scottsbluff. I leave the house before the sun even comes up so Dan the Man is in charge of feeding the meat birds (chickens) in the morning when I have the Farmers' Market. He found two of the chickens inside their pen with their heads torn off and one chicken injured so badly that he had to go ahead and put it out of it's misery.

I'm thinking it was the doings of the big ole' stinky possum that was here the other night.

This is only the second time in 5 years that we have ever lost a chicken to a predator.

This means war!

Tonight we are sleeping with all the windows open so I can hear any distress calls from my sweet little chickens.

Dan the Man has the gun loaded and ready.

I am tempted to set up a night watch and to make it mandatory for everyone in the house to take a shift. We even discussed locking the chickens up in their shelters, but that would be a pain.

So right now it is raining lightly and hopefully that will deter Mr. Big Ole' Stinky Possum from coming around tonight.

I only like one kind of Possum.

Guess what kind...

the dead kind.

So wish us luck tonight with our war that we have declared upon the possum.

Here is only kind of possum I like...

Gross old possum I found rotting in the field last winter.

Autumn Begins

Yipee!! Today is the first official day of Autumn!


Things I love about Autumn
(in no particular order, just as they pop into my head):

Frost on the Pumpkins

Pumpkins.
They just make me happy. I love the color of them, the variety, their shapes, carving them, the smell of them... one of my favorite Bath & Body scents is "Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin" and now they have a new one that is equally as yummy, "Creamy Pumpkin."



Beautiful Japanese Maple Tree in Tokyo.
Took this picture when we were there in December of 2009.



Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin Bread
Honey Wheat Pumpkin Muffins with raisins
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Pumpkin Cake with Caramel Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting



Hand-painted and Hand-stitched art by me.


The smell of fallen wet leaves.



Hand-painted by me.



The unmatched beauty of the changing Aspen trees in Colorado.

More of my art.

The end of irrigating! Whoo-hoo!!!




Another one of my paintings.



The end of chicken processing for the season,
it's not here yet,
but it will be soon!!!



Another painting of mine.



I have a reason to buy CANDY
even though we never get any trick-or-treaters out here in the boonies.
No Goonies for the Boonies...




Harvest Moon in August at Table Mountain Winery.



Harvest Moons


Harvest Moon in August at Table Mountain Winery.



Colorful Mums


Baby in the corn. Sooooooo cute!


Corn Mazes
need one to go to?
Ellis' Harvest Home near Lingle, WY



Country Chicken Girl working hard (at the napping tree.)


Snuggling on the couch with a comfy blanket
and watching one of my favorite musicals!

...or an afternoon nap down at the napping tree.




Felt and Stitchery art by me.



Hay Rides





Bon Fires



Bobbing for Apples



S'mores over campfires and hot dog roasts


Fall Cleaning
I know, I'm weird like that.



High School Football


Morrill High School Lions ~ 2009


Homecoming



Hand-painted and hand-stitched art by me.


and all this leads to Thanksgiving and Christmas!



The End

Sturgis at the Open A Bar 2 Ranch?

I think the grasshoppers decided to have a rally here at the Open A Bar 2 Ranch
similar to the motorcycle rally held each summer in Sturgis, South Dakota.

Motorcycles lining the main street in Sturgis.

Grasshoppers, or should I say Grasschoppers,
lining the street at the Open A Bar 2 Ranch.

The street was so crowded that some choppers opted to
park on the sides of the buildings.

This local pedestrian was extremely annoyed at all the extra traffic.

eGGNoRMouS!

Big Happenings in the Coop Today!




Every once in a while someone will lay a
gynormous egg like this one!

And you thought you had a hard day a work today!

Who Knew Cows Were Master Gardeners?!

The other day Dan the Man was checking the cattle down on the creek
and stumbled upon a weird phenomenon.

I know this doesn't seem like a rare occurrence, this squash plant,
but let me go on to explain.

The Squash plant is growing almost 1/2 mile away from the house, and I, nor did anyone else in our family plant it where it is growing.

Not only that, but there are about 6 squash plants down there
growing in the middle of a non-irrigated pasture.

And I have never seen any squash that look like these.
The pictures don't show the true color of the squash.
They are a bright orange, just like a pumpkin.

Then I remembered that last year, when I was cleaning out my garden in the fall, I had thrown several zucchini, yellow crookneck squash and pumpkins over the fence to where the cattle were grazing. I knew that the cows would enjoy the pumpkins. Did you know that cows love to eat pumpkins?

After the cows were done grazing in that pasture behind the garden, we moved them down on the creek.

Apparently, the cows planted the seeds by way of the cow patty planting method. The seeds germinated and produced squash that are a cross between the zucchini, yellow crookneck squash and pumpkins.

Dan the Man picked them and the laying hens are enjoying them now.



Wow, who knew cows are master gardeners too?

Wednesday Morning Inspiration: August 25, 2010

Moon Rise Over Open A Bar 2 Ranch

The other night Dan the Man and I took a walk down on the creek to check on the cattle that we have grazing down there. It is so pretty and peaceful down in the small ravine where the creek flows. It is my favorite place on our property.

Dan the Man and his Country Chicken Girl

Although we spend the majority of our time together working, we often forget to spend quality time together just enjoying the company of one another. When we take walks together, go on purposeless drives through the country or enjoy a meal alone at a restaurant, it helps me to see the man that I married who is not only my husband but my best friend, my soulmate, my partner and my lover.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

⁴Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. ⁸Love never fails.

Ephesians 4:26-27

²⁶"In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷and do not give the devil a foothold.

Remember Sweetheart?

A while back we had a contest to name this little girl...

Click here to see the posts concerning the contest if you missed it and have nothing better to do.

Spring is Coming

and

Last Chance to Enter the "Name the Calf" Contest

and finally...

And the Winner Is...


Well, the other day Dan the Man and I were out checking the cows that are down on the creek since we hadn't checked them in a while and of course I had my camera so I took a couple of shots of Sweetheart so you could see how much she has grown.



Sweetheart, now 16 months old.

Dan the Man will have to beat the boys away with a stick!
She sure is a looker!

Actually, Sweetheart has been paired-up with Mr. Chalk Butte and
if he has done his job, Sweetheart will be expecting her first calf in the Spring.

She hasn't learned that it's impolite to talk with her mouth full.

The End.

Handsome Calendar Men! Whoo-hoo!

Some of the men in my life...

So cute they should be calendar boys!

Since we had a month of Calendar Girls, I thought I'd start doing one for the boys!

Do yourself a favor and click on each picture to see a full screen view of the photo
then hit your browsers back button to return to the blog.

Big Red

Mr. Big Guy

Herbie

Big Red, again

My main man, Tatum
aka:
Ta-tee
Ta-tee Cakes
Tator



That's all. Just wanted to share those pictures.
Goodbye and good night!

Taste Just Like Chicken!

I've often heard that opossum "tastes just like chicken!"

Although I have never actually heard it from someone who has actually ate possum.

I had just finished my evening chores the other day when I was on my way back to the house. I was walking between the shop and the house towards the back door, my normal route, when I thought I saw a cat drinking out of a pan I have under a leaky faucet. I have the pan there specifically for the benefit of the cats and egg layers (chickens) to have fresh water when ever their little hearts desire so seeing something drinking from it was not out of the ordinary. But the WHAT that was drinking out of it caused me to take a double take and blink my eyes a couple of times to make sure I wasn't seeing things.

Holy cannoli! A POSSUM!! In the middle of the afternoon, well, late afternoon, around 5'ish. THAT was unusual. Aren't possum nocturnal??

First picture of possum, behind the lawn chairs.

Never wanting to miss a photo op, I rush into the house to get my camera before it scurried away. When I got back out to the shop, it was behind some lawn chairs. I couldn't get a very good picture of him/her, so I cautiously began to move the chairs away, all the while envisioning some horrific scene playing out that would be re-enacted on some tv show like "When Wild Animals Attack Stupid People Trying to Get Photos of Them!"

Second picture, trying to get closer from above.
Good thing I had boots on and not flip-flops,
He could have bitten my big toe off (at least that's what went through my mind!)

For some reason this possum was pretty docile. Maybe it was sick and rabid! That was a scary thought that also went through my mind! And I know what you are thinking... anyone with half a mind would not be messing around trying to get a picture of an opossum. Go ahead and say it! Thank heavens my mother doesn't know I do such stupid things.

Third picture after moving the chairs away and getting down on his level.
Seriously, what was I thinking getting so close.
I was 3-4 feet away on my hands and knees.


Here kitty, kitty!
I mean possum, possum, possum.
You be nice and don't attack me!


Remember you can see a full screen view of the pictures by clicking on them.
Hit your brower's back button to return to the blog.

Thanks for the nice pictures dude. I guess I won't know if possum really taste like chicken or not. Oh, I've heard they are greasy too!

The End