Week 1: Chicken Tales Begin

This chicken clay sculpture from Mexico will serve
as a totem to encourage me.  The two story tellers
wait for chicken stories which you will read about
here.  No doubt there will be many.  Josephine
Aguilar is the sculptor.  Maybe I'll name all my
chickens Josephine.  Thanks to Tresa Nasi for
taking me to that awesome Mexican import store in
Austin.  

Well, here I go. As promised, I will track progress about the newest project on our ten acres outside Lawrence, Kansas.  My husband, Louie, has been going on and on about raising chickens for the past 3 years. Being the pragmatic one, I have tried to point out to him why this is not a good idea.

First, our valley is full of coyotes, raccoons, opossums, hawks, and snakes.  All these critters just love chickens and/or their eggs.  If not for eating, just for sport.  Raccoon stories frighten me.  They just love to kill chickens for sport according to my sources.  Our valley is also full of domesticated dogs.  I'll bet they will keep the chickens stressed, and stressed chickens don't lay eggs.  Second, we live in a community that is full of folks who already raise chickens and sell them at our local Community Mercantile and other grocery stores.  Third, we like to travel. We haven't adopted a pet since moving out to the country because, as you know, pets tie you down.   Talk about being tied down!  Chickens need daily attention more than any dog or cat.

But, my logic has not detoured Louie's obsession to own chickens.  He has finally worn me down, and I have agreed to try this insane adventure with him.  I have nightmares about those poor chickens getting attacked by all those predators.  I'm thinking that this adventure won't last long.

Louie's real partner in this scheme is our wonderfully talented and smart neighbor, Jim.  I just don't know what has gotten into these two, otherwise rational, men.  Jim is building the chicken coop at his farm and will deliver it in stages to our property.  Believe me, you will want to see this coop.  Anything Jim does is over-the-top quality work.

So. Here's the sketch that started in our kitchen.

Louie's sketches.  Wait 'til you see Jim's
construction.