8.24.2015

How Summer Got Away From Us

It seems like forever since I was able to sit down and write. The stories of our recent past have become a jumbled mess and those moments I was certain I would remember long enough to write down later, are gone. Sadly, my memory is not what it once was. Perhaps I took too many soccer balls to the head earlier in my life or maybe it has to do with that dumb incident last fall where I banged my head against the ground harder than is probably recommended (something I possibly should have taken more seriously at the time), or perhaps it is just the aging process taking its toll, but really, this summer is a big blur and has somehow managed to get away from me with very little shared. And for that, I am sorry.

But all is not lost. Because, just when I thought "Shoot, an entire summer without a story to share," one popped up (as they tend to do if you just pay life a little attention!)

So the story goes like this: a friend ask if I wanted more hens. (Uh, yeah. Always.) He had a friend who needed to get rid of her four laying hens because apparently that happens when you go through a nasty divorce. (Note to self: stay married.)

I got really excited because I had just given away three hens alongside our roosters (in attempt to offset the fact that she was taking three roosters off my hands....I think I got the better end of that deal personally!) And so my hens were not laying enough to keep up with my family's consumption. More hens would be awesome. Anyway, at the end of the dialog, the soon-to-be divorcee gave the hens to someone else and I was left feeling a little let down. So I went online and found a family near Mars who needed to get rid of their six laying hens because they were moving. (Yay for Craigslist!)

The man and I emailed back and forth a little while about the chickens, their health, the reasons he needed to get rid of them etc. and on one of the responses in the chain, the name associated with his email came up as Spartacus Clover.

Now, I have to stop here for a second and say, this might be where curiosity kills the cat. So, hypothetically, if you were emailing back and forth with someone you didn't know and their name popped up as something curious and peculiar like Spartacus Clover, what is the first thing you would do?

Google it, of course.

So, I did that and um, well, let's just say, I had to think twice about showing up at this random guys house to pick up his chickens. Actually, I had to go back and reread the post to make sure I hadn't overlooked some other sneaky clue like: Hens in need of a good home (Join me for some S&M when you pick them up).

(How many of you already Googled Spartacus Clover? ......Yeah, I thought so.)

I happened to be in a text conversation with my soccer team's manager about that time and so I ran it past her. (Someone should know how to track me down just in case....) After she finished laughing her tail off, she offered to send her husband along with me (for my PROTECTION guys! Not because he likes that stuff....sheesh.)  And, living in small town America, I could already see the headlines: Soccer coach and mom of 5, gets mixed up with local Dom while her friend's husband runs off with six hens and two of her kids.

I politely declined the offer to bring along some third party and set up a time to pick up the hens. Solly and Liam came along (that would scare anyone off right?) and after passing several houses that left my stomach a little unsettled, we arrived at our destination where a young woman about my age was waiting on the porch while two kids ran around outside. (Oh, THANK. GOD!)

Long story short: the six new hens, Lily, Maddy, Haley, Bailey, Dawn and Kernel, are enjoying their new digs where their pink, brown, white and blue eggs are picked up everyday for consumption (unlike at their former home where the eggs were left to rot) and they have plenty of space to roam.

I have no idea what happened to Spartacus. (And every plan to keep it that way!)

The Rescued Six: Kernel is in the left corner, Dawn is up top, Maddy in the middle, the Twins, Bailey and Haley are to the right and the bottom right is Lily, although you can't see her fully. 

A new favorite: Maddy, the Buff Brahma