the natural progression of things

Hi there all

Just a trip down memory lane for me right now. After two glasses of wine, up came the memories of the property in Enderby in Canada where we used to live. The reason this came up was because most of our neighbors in the city have chickens, and that spurred our memories of when we used to have chickens. Oh, those marvelous memories. It has been said that chickens are only a gene or two away from Dinosaurs....... Well after raising them, I beleive that. I can honestly say, if given the choice, to raise chickens again, it would be a decisive.... NO. or any poultry for that matter, although I did like the heritage turkeys and the ducks. Overall, poultry smells in a way from other animals, that I can do without. I would rather smell my fresia, thank you very much. Raising chickens was a good lesson, but not one that I desire to repeat. OK. The fun with the turkey goes like this..... I was selling a fabulous print/painting at the house in Enderby, when the buyer and I hear Dane (then about 10 years old) yell on the top of his lungs," Oh, S--t. consequently followed by a loud feathery ruckass and a stomping of feet and more yelling. Then while I am holding onto the pen and the painting/print there come flying into the kitchen from the living room a beautiful white and black heritage turkey flapping and a squacking followed by a rather enthusiastic 10 year old boy chasing the tarnation out of the turkey and out the kitchen door. A sale to remember. All I could remember saying was, thats life on the farm.

But to carry on with chickens, Rob believed in relatively free ranged chickens living off natural foods. Our chickens were in absolute peak fitness and health. Every two days, we would move the chicken tractor, a cage for the birds on wheels, till the chickens had fresh grass and bugs and then move it again when needed. The following spring there would be a dark green drunken line across the hay field from where the chickens had been. They would strip the area clean, not a thing left. They also ate everything in sight, from mice to grass hoppers. One year we had a bumper crop of stink bug. Horrible little creatures, that fly like drunken pilots through the air and usually land in your hair or on a light bulb where they cook. They also nest in disgusting colonies with the lady bugs, when you find them there are about a thousand of the creepy crawly things usually in the house or in your wood pile. Yuck. It turns out that our chickens loved the stink bugs to the point of anxiously waiting for this treat. The kids would unhappily find a colony and trod over to the chicken tractor and the chickens would go wild. They would tear at them and have a great old time. But we would only thing about the fact that they were one or two genes away from dinosaurs, and we were glad that they were no longer taller than us. Chickens are voracious and carniverous creatures, and if you don't agree you haven't had them. The one other fond memory that I have is when Rachelle after being rather teenager like and snotty fell right into the chicken poop. Lesson: Don't beak off at your mother. Sorry about the pun, but I couldn't resist.

We had turkeys, ducks, geese, and chickens..... The duck were cool too. We called them Mr. and Mrs. Duck. They kept us humored for the length of time that we had them for. Mrs. Duck would decide that she was hungry, she would quack at him and demand that he follow her to the living room window, where she would tap her beak on the window till someone fed them some seed. It would happen several times a day. Even if Mr. Duck was not finished with his treat she would quack and he would scurry by her side and escort her to the pond. Eventually one day, there was no Mr. and Mrs. Duck. We think that he could no longer live in a matriarch society and called the coyotes over and committed a murder suicide.
The Turkeys were cool, not like what every one says, they were smart, they were also heritage birds. They decided to visit the neighbors one day where our neighbor kindly callled us over to retrieve, and when we went to herd they to our house, they took flight. Now, they are a relatively flightless bird, but they flew two properties over to our house. It was like watching Canadian geese fly. They took off for the winter and we think hid in the mountains. The following spring one came home. We bought her a boyfriend, she laid eggs and had a broud of babies. To protect his family, he sacrificed himself to the coyotes. The mother and the babies survived. But by then we had sold the farm and we took them to a new home.

I have one more animal to add.... the cat. Sassy, she was a cat to contend with. She was very small, but what a fighter. That little girl would come home with weasels. If you know anything about weasels, the cat normally looses. She also ate packrats and would leave the brushy tail ends on the front stoop to prove her worthiness. She also ate boundless mice, which she only ate the heads and upper torso's and leave the rest either in the play ground or again on the front stoop. She would also occassionally go for the birds, but after Dane and I took the survivors to the bird hospital, she wouldn't bring them home any more. We had brought home kittens, to help her hunt and keep her company. We think she didn't like that idea and arranged for the kittens to disappear. Usually, they were about 6 months when we didn't see them anymore. I hate to tell you this but we went through 10 kittens before we got the idea she probably had an arrangement with the coyotes to remove the unwanted competition. When we sold the house the clause was that she remain on the farm, where it was her home to spend the rest of her days. She was 11 when we said good-bye. We figure the new owners, probably don't have any of their own cats left, because if she got them outside her helpers would remove the competition. Oh well.......

Talk with you all later
Robin

Invasion in Banos

Hi All
For the last several days (what seems like weeks), the schools of Banos have been practicing for the Disfilo. This is where all the local schools show off their fab music skills and have their groups march down the street in parade formation in their school uniform finest and drum sousa-ing till some of the drums actually do break. Rob, the dogs and I went up the mountain to the city's own personal stair climber (over 600 steps straight up to the Virgin Monument) and listened to the sounds of Banos. This time the sound of the local schools proudly stoicly marching down the streets were the sounds of Banos. Banos is built into the mountain a bit much like a bowl and the sound is perfect up there. Which is both good and bad. Good if you like that kind of music, but bad if you don't and the dogs well....... don't. Neither do I for that matter and I just turned up the volume on my shuffle, no problem. It seems when ever I use that thing when going up the mountain it perfectly plays music to inspire my fear of heights. This time Another One Bites the Dust came on. I think it is my shuffle trying to remind me to laugh through the stress alittle.
I have to say though that compared to these people my attire is sadly lacking, but then again I was comfortable to climb the stairs and the rest of the people were looking very uncomfortable like they were going to a funeral, instead of a parade.
This week is a big week for Banos. This week there was the celebration of the anniversary of The Virgin Maria de Agua being here and it is Banos's Anniversary, also called Banos Independance day, tonight. I expect it will be much like last year, where there will be lots of music, dancing in the streets downtown and of course fireworks. It will be another night where the dogs are trying to either hide in the bathroom or under my bed making it very difficult to read with all the shaking.
For us also this week, little Acamaro, the 8 year old son of my friend living in Puyo, will be coming over tomorrow for his birthday. Rob is making him a disgusting cake that only an 8 turning 9 yr old would really enjoy. Rob is making a chocolate carmel marshmallow cake. Doesn't it make your teeth want to voluntarily jump out of your face to avoid the cavities, each one crying and screaming " I give up now". I can already hear my pancrease crying for a super cleanse and a month of bland no sugar foods. But when it is an 8 turning 9 year old you are willing to put up with alot. In celebration of turning 9 Dane with respect to his friends sweet tooth made him a mini marshmallow pvc gun. With luck, Dane could shoot those little mallows directly onto Acamaro's teeth and pummel the teeth into submission with sugar.
Well, on to something completely different, Ecuador is truely an amazing country. I, who have a black rotting thumb, who can't get to grow or care if they grow, garden have only killed 3 plants in Rob's garden, no really, I have pictures to prove it. Most everything that you plant lives. While Rob and I went to the local market on Sunday for the weekly fresh groceries, there was a lady selling my most favorite flower in the world in plant form, not cut flower. It is the yellow fresia. The perfume of this flower is fantastic. Often the purple or white variety have a peppery smell but the yellow is devine. So now I have one living in the garden making it smell devine for only $4. I always have hated buying cut flowers but love them in the house, I always feel that I am committing a murder. But while we were at the market we bought 2 dozen long stemmed roses for $2. I just couldn't help but buy these flowers....... I will give them a nice burial after they have done with living. But anyway, now I have this fabulous fresia flowery celebration of perfume and beauty living in my garden. Sigh.......
How ever speaking of gardens, I think I have carried on and off in the past about the various bugs that live there, from the 6 in long and 1 1/2 in wide caterpillers, and non dangerous but painful if stung scorpions to the beetles which dong when you defend yourself against them with a shovel but now Rob has found another friend. This friend is the size of a 3 year olds fist. This snail is about 4 or more inches around and if it takes one false move to my fresia it will become escargot for 4 with garlic butter. Beleive me that think is a complete meal for those who like their food somewhat slimey and chewy. I used to maintain such a Buddistic philosophy, almost 2 years living here and look at me, I am committing flower murders and using a shovel to protect myself against the bugs. I am not even going to get started on the bugs that they keep telling me about on the coast, Mosca Muerte, yuck and yikes.
Well, I have to say that my family and I are often inspired by what we see on the movie screen, especially when it comes to food. Sooooo, this means we were inspired by the movie Julie, Julia a truely fab movie. So French cooking is now on the table more often. The other day we declared it French dinner night, and the family had to cook dishes only of French recipes. Thank heaven for the internet, you can find recipes of all sorts. It was a success. I was on meat, and dessert, Dane on potatoes and Rachelle on vegies and Rob at the wine and eating. I think we will have to watch Sabrina again, they had Morocan food on that movie.......hmmmm... With all the different foods and spices available here, I still can't quite understand why the typical Ecuadorian fare is soooo bland or boring. Either they use alot of sugar, salt or pig fat or it is not served. I guess that is why when my family calls for inviting people to come for dinner, they are banging on the door waiting.
Ok, on to another topic. We will be going to the coast for Xmas to Mompiche. It is a quiet little beach town that still has its surrounding tropical forest and atmosphere (bugs, yikes mosca muerte!!!!!). I think that will be changing very soon as a developer just bought up a whack of land and is putting a huge developement in. I guess you just can't stop change, or progress. I hope that it will stay small for quite a while yet, or we will just have to travel to other countries looking for wonderful tropical beaches, oh damn. Hopefully, the other countries will have more interesting food.
Talk with you all later enjoy your day and look for a french recipe to perk up your day.
Robin

Went and Came back

Hi there Everyone
Went and had a huge looooooooooong bus ride to the American Thanksgiving Party. Short and sweet, it took 2 days of bussing and walking there then again same back to worship the Pavo cocinado, the turkey. Ya hoo. The people were nice and it was a very educated group. But being kind of goofy at best, I hope my family made an interesting Canadian Flavor. get it....
The end of the trip or shall I say the destination was to go to a farm in Intag. Was lovely but I didn't get to see the damn Cock of the Rock, after all the porn I had to go through to find it.
When we came home Auntie Sarah informed us that our darling Isis was up to her same tricks and again stole some Thanksgiving stuffing off the counter, where upon a slight scolding, peed on the floor, then our little princess feeling out of sorts was running around outside and fell, and hurt herself, where she cried for an extended period of time. Poor Auntie Sarah thought she was going to have to send Isis to the Health Spa (Vet medicated weekend, prozac) when she consequently, jumped up and ran around. What a dog~~~
Today signifies the beginning of the Banos celebrations, and the start of the Pragon (sp?) a parade that is about 2-4 hours long. Very nice.....
Still dealing with the "Brown Out"s and it is only bad when your son is taking a test and the power goes down at the antena's. Yikes, thank everyone for helping us get through that ugly mess. It has popped out a couple of time during Dane's school, thankyou very much global warming and making Ecuador Dry. Wasn't that an old joke having to do with Canada????
Anyway talk with you all later, a glass of white wine, I hope will take the edge off my anxiety.
Be patient
Robin