country life

3.10.2007


What's better than an over-priced hour of pilates? how about a morning of picking up hundreds of sticks and hauling them out to the fire pit? how about when the wind is a bit more forceful than you thought and your girl scout teepee structure goes up in flames and gets BIG and HOT very quicky.


Then comes the aerobic part of the workout...the part where you frantically run around putting the little fires out with the "stomppy wardance of terror". bonus move: running to fill milk jugs with water to stop the march of grass fires hopping outside of the fire ring.


not to mention the adrenalin melt down.
talk about working the "core"!

surely abject mortal fear is a few hundred mac and cheese calories gone...and, burning off my eyebrows, i may have lost a gram or two of weight there as well.
looks like i get to lay around on the porch this afternoon.


Ah, the cool waterfall. Uploaded especially for the Red Mantissa, the little doe of Vancouver. Its on the far side of my property line. I really wanted to win the lotto so i could buy the other side. That way, no one could ever build on it. Right now i cannot see or hear any other human being. and i want to keep it that way. selfish, i know.

there's a little fish trap at the end of these falls, which doubles as a swimming hole where even full grown adults can go underwater and dogs get to paddle. one must be careful not to anger the little crayfish or disturb the mudpuppies. Oh. you don't know mudpuppies? Well, they are rather large, thick and heavy dirt-gray water lizards with red lungs on the outside of their bodies. very primitive looking. once i was in the "hole" and something "significant" slimed up against my arm. i turned just in time to see two mudpuppies engaged in combat, biting each other as they flowed past. my shrieks echoed throughout the cohuttas, and someone might have noticed and investigated, 'cept there seems to be a lot of screaming out here.


for tomorrow's sunday brunch there will be fresh eggs thanks to Red and Dovey. here they are in their chicken church. you cant hardly see Red, she's laying. I gave them an old blueberry box filled with shredded newspaper to nest in. the chicks are small, so to see the size of their eggs is impressive. and, it explains the racket they make before and during the laying.

by day, the chicks eat grubs, earthworms, termites and a scratch mix of corn, millet and sunflower. i like to take them out to a new area and turn over rotting logs to expose other kinds of insects and small larvae. they make the coolest sounds when they are excited about what they find. in the evening i give the hens peanut butter and salmon. sometimes vermicelli. peaches. soft cheese. rice. whatever.

now that the trees are filling the satellite is getting sketchy. so i was productive and made a non objective painting in photoshop. reproduced as a real large canvas, it would be a showstopper.


tomorrow: 3rd sunday of Lent. intention: hiking the trail to the swinging bridge over the Toccoa river.

33 comments:

  1. woah there pyro-girl!

    love the waterfall pic. nice that you are so isolated. so nice. have a great hike tommorrow.

    like to photoshop ... kewl. neat what you can do just goofing off with some brushes, ain't it?

    peace.

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  2. a retreat you have there - though an exciting one with the pyrotechnics.

    f/f/swoosh

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  3. Darn fine post.

    was about to ask if all the southern mudpuppies wear red bandannas but you answered that question for me.

    So you did the fire dance eh?

    smooth move ex lax! I am glad you are OK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Yipes.

    Truly an excellent post.
    I stayed up aaaaaallll night.

    the downstairs neighbors were hootin' and hollerin' drunk like until purt near 6AM!!! (sports on the newly installed cable TV... but it sounded a lot like what I personally imagine Gay sex to sound like) UH OHhhhhhh Yes Yes YES YEAAAH! WHOOOOAH OOOOH YEAH OOOOHHH!!! UUUUHHHHHnnnngggg!!!

    (maybe Boggsy was right?)

    Naaaaahh...

    By the by, did you change your clocks ahead yet? happened between 2 and 3 AM today.

    OK nighty night
    glad you are alright.
    nice painting too.

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  4. PS

    forgot to mention how much i absolutely ADORE Chicken Church.

    See the rainbows over the left corner?

    great photo.

    super excellent.

    a showstopper.

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  5. Hilarious, but scary!! No time for smores.

    Did you burn that old raft?

    What about the red lizard thing? A skink?

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  6. (1) I think I'd prefer the pilates.

    (2) Sounds like a very idealistic (or is that idylistic?) life. People up in NYC would kill for that kind of life. (Actually, some would kill for a lot less).

    (3) I had no idea that hens like salmon. Does it matter if it's fresh or canned?

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  7. Um'.....I do yoga..hee! hee!...hee!..

    I don't think I'd like to meet mudpuppies...

    Dovey looks...holy....

    Hens that eat peanut butter?..vermicelli?...nyee! hee! hee!...

    Do take care Miss Chickory!

    Luxie

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  8. hope ya had a greast weekend. and hey, you! stop playin with fire! hee hee.

    that kewl - hens that eat salmon and peanut butter. does your dog, too? my dog used to eat strawberries, and cottage cheese (spoiled hound, huh?)

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  9. ande, ditto on yor words of description, "they say what i see in your pictures taken."

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  10. red and bird: pyromania runs in our family. i have a stick burn almost every weekend, but i think la nina makes it too sketchy. bird, glad you found the trail i left, and welcome.

    enemy: sometimes i do camp out in the field. the "pup" tent in the truest sense: me and a good dog. i havent camped with trout yet, but Eva and i took in the leonid meteor showers together. amazing!

    infi: i commissioned an out of work sculptor to build that chicken church. and he did a great job...the sides are clabboard and of course the tin roof. someday i will have to tell you about the chicken i called "brick"

    "purt" near? PURT NEAR girrrrrrl you ready to move up to the mountains? you gots the sound right.

    your post on "hair" was hilarious vanille.

    dear anon: red efts can be found only be the young nieces! burn the raft??are you crazy? its there where the boy left it. love to you.

    x-dell: welcome to chickory!!! no no! you would have loved the fire dance. invigorating!!! exhilirating!!! it all worked out.

    ideal idyll? i think so. it is a great way to live: i dry the clothes on the line; brew tea in jars in the sun, make friends with turkey hens, dig wild ginger from the forest.

    new york has its charms though. art art and more art.

    i didnt know the hens would love salmon, but i let them try most anything im eating. they love blueberries but not strawberries, and they like eggs. the canibals!

    lady luxie: hey! that holy hen would LOVE to visit one of your tables set with fabulous exoctic food, trust me. theyre very sociable. i like yoga too but dont really know it...i still need to be in a class i cant remember all the moves and what happens when. no. mudpuppies are so weirdly primitive i think youd find them interesting.

    red: i did dhave a good weekend, did you? living outside with the blossoms i hope. yeah you got me all hepped up on CSS. im learning dreamweaver little bit at a time.

    WALTER D???? what a spectacular blast from the past. i hope this note finds you well. know that you cross my mind frequently and you alwasy have a friend in me.

    thanks to all for stopping by.


    -chickory

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  11. I did yoga today!

    feeling much better.

    thanks for the note, will respond asap.

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  12. Hens like eggs? That's a mindblow.

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  13. Well, looks like (seemingly) that Jean was right.
    We had had a conversation on the matter, but, lacking any hard evidence, we were at the mercy of our guessing.

    It does actually seem to clarify a statement you had made some time back....or was it the other day?
    Something to the effect of personnas.


    Still, I'm not sure what it was, but, when y'flashed the picture of the bikers, my brain invented a picture of K9's owner/secretary that was very unlike the photo on this particular blog....

    Kinda a "biker" type, scruffy, three day old beard, wears boots more than shoes, always chews on some cigar that no one ever remembers actually being smoked.
    And faithful K9 at yer side, growling fer the joke of it....

    You pat him on the head and he wags his tail (what would a goose do? I suspect he'de bark)

    Now I find you have a dog that climbs trees (so do I, but there has to be something worth jumping for...) and blonde hair, fair skin, and, at risk of guessing, blue eyes?

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  14. AHAHAHA ....

    OMG. i have some pyro roots as well. umm .... when my dad was a kid, he lit a paper on fire, just to see what would happen .... when my granny came home and asked WTF happen. he told her he spit on the paper and it caught fire! HAHA. she must have been quite amused, b/c she never passed that one onto my grampy, would would have givin' him a good wuppin!

    and then there's my wolf, M. who set some pain thinner on fire in the basement of his aunt's house one weekend when he was 'home' from boarding school. yeah, just to see what would happen.

    kewl about the dreamweaver. that and cold fusion are coming up for me in aout 2 or 3 months's time. i can hardly wait. y'know what that means, tho? .... it means i will be wantin' a new 'puter. sigh.

    the blossoms are great. the rain made them explode. its still friggin cold here (ummm i am a wuss and i think anything below 15 degrees c is cold) but the pigeons and the geese and the gulls grace and amuse me hugely. HUGELY. is that pathetic?

    is talking to the birds (and thinking they get what yer sayin') a sign of slowly impinging insanity?

    i rec'd a letter from a friend who lives in calcutta; his description of his surrounding environ/society makes me feel so humble @ that lovely and grace-filled city in which i live. i think its the same for you .... how lucky we are!

    thinking of you. and that dog of yours. and, also, that DAWG of yours. be well you 'three' ... hee hee.

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  15. chichorrrry,
    watch those flames....
    i have a very healthy respect of outdoor fires.
    one of our old backyard neighbor's woodshed went up in flames a few falls ago. fire leaped up into the sky, crept toward our house. a neighbor several miles away who lives on a mountain top called because he knew it was in our neck of the woods. I also saw some woods burst into flames due to the neglicence of a camper several camp sites down. my folks down in good ole MS would through all kinds of scarps to their chickens. those chickens didn't seem to be too picky. i remember getting my hands all scratched up from an overprotective hen who didn't want to let us take her eggs. she had decided she was gonna hatch them. oh well, those scars are long since gone.
    3d sunday of lent...i plan to take it easy..enjoy the warmth of the sun
    and go to church to see my youngest do his thing..
    enjoy your hike..

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  16. You are not lost! Oh, my!
    What a treasure of beautiful creations here. So glad I found you... hope you don't mind if I keep coming back.

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  17. Well Chickory, first of all, what a dreamland are you surrounded by. And how you describe life on it, would make anyone who appreciates pure fresh air, move to the countryside. The capture of the fire, is physical, palpable, warm.

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  18. vanille: i got your note and your wish is my command. by the way ya'll its vanille's b'day. so go on over there and give her a kiss.

    xdell: the bigger mindblow is when i eat their eggs i remember all the termites and grubs they ate...and the little beetles. *grimace*

    boney boney boney!! ya found me! actually i do have a three day old beard. it just happens to be on my legs. grrrherherhaha! boots and cigars. i can live with that. and the eyes? they green. K9's still dogpaddlin' so you may see him range through now and again. so good to see ya.

    red: im workin on a long note for ya. yeah, my brother burned down the kitchen when we were kids but he didnt need the paint thinner - he was just trying to cook dinner. yeah girl. me and three dogs howwwwwwwwwwwl!

    foam! how are you! yeah i have had nightmares about catching the forest on fire. so many times i wok up and looked out cause i was convinced it was burning. its really scary. and yes, that last stick burn was edgy as hell. i usually have water jugs all around just in case...but not this time and i was alone. bad. bad. idea. i did time down in MS myself. we'll have to compare notes.

    jean: hello goyjus. not lost at all. glad you tracked me here. but you should know that when you need a rottie, "he'll" be there for you. in fact, you may see him very soon in your own yard. thanks for stopping by

    and

    mister Q: what a treat! well, you know that i think you live in one of the greatest landscapes on earth so...it's a draw. but thank you for your kind words, i do love it here and think i have found a way to get back there on a more frequent basis. and, i am really heading south on the 192 right after easter. hope to see ya.

    thanks to all for the visit. made my night. cya

    -chickory

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  19. Yo,

    My Bday isn't until April... the 26th

    but thanks!

    It's the halfway mark in life for me. So i am taking it seriously.

    New post here please... MORE ART MORE ART!!!

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  20. /bark

    half-way? whatareya vanille? 50?
    grrrrrherherhaha

    /how

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  21. yeah, actually when the fire department came to put out our neighbor's wood fire they spent about half the night in the forest just checking for fire that might have travelled underground through root systems. i can understand your being nervous about it reigniting.

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  22. No, i will be 35... but I figure, i will be losing teeth and pissing my pants by age 70.

    I will call that a wash.

    halfway to "gumming it" and "depends" adult diapers

    In Little Miss Sunshine, the grandpa takes up sniffing heroin in the nursing home. His logic is, what better time to start getting fucked up?

    funny.

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  23. We did the same thing on Monday at Grandmas house- and it was the first time I'd ever burned anything in a trash pile (being a city chick and all that being illegal in my area! lol)

    Anyway- just like you, I was really surprised at how quick it got hot- and how big it was! The ground was wet and I had dad pull the hose out (not that he hooked it up though!) (I mean- really, why listen to me???? but anyway!)

    It was a fun experience. The Pixie wanted to know where the marshmallows were...
    but out there in dairy land, I was hoping for a steak-
    no deal! :)

    Hugs friend...3 day old beard on your legs!!!! LOL /grrrrrr!

    :) you kill me, in the best way :)

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  24. From the Boneman's post, does anyone
    else have a former image of the K9?

    Seems everyone of the gals and guys is OK with the species change:killer dog becomes fire hazard artistic wood nymph. Who knew? Just remind me that the next sweet gal I see may be a grrrrowling hound of heaven under all that revlon.

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  25. "...killer dog becomes fire hazard wood nymph.."

    hee!hee!hee!

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  26. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  27. ok,
    lemme try
    to get this right

    wish i'd thought of the k9=chickory ID switch thing -- that's absolute blogging :)

    harbinger -- the blackbird isn't dead, it's flying, right(?) -- but the shadow under the tail makes me see it on the ground... beautiful painting -- nice color -- very atmospheric, too!

    have i seen your pic with the blue shirt & hat elsewhere(?) -- it is somehow familiar to me

    /t.

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  28. oh
    hell

    i'm not
    very good at this -- here

      Blackbird Tartan

    /t.

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  29. About the "three day growth"

    I always did prefer a "full field" versus close mowed.

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  30. thinking of you. i have had a little solitary time this week ... spent it with the pigeons and starlings that scavenge/live outside my window. i can totally see why you have birds/chickens as pets. totally.

    mis you, y'know. come back soon.

    hey infini - thanx for the word veri. cool, girl.

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  31. Well, I want whitney to win ANTM because she has the same figure as me...

    hey did you read my pow wow post?

    what happened to the comments in the post upstairs? Did you hide them?

    You don't really have to bake nephew a bunt cake...

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