This is why I can't keep my bird feeders filled. It's snowing again, and poor Mr. Squirrel is cold and hungry. He's waiting for spring, too.
This afternoon, A and I pulled into the driveway after running some errands, and there on the front doorstep was a box. On the side of the box were the words: small cooler. "What is that do you think?" I asked. A said, "Mom, do you think it's the chicks? Do you think they sent them early?" I threw the car into park and sprinted for the front steps. As I picked up the box. I felt something move inside. "Oh, my gosh, it IS the chicks!" I cried, "And, we're not ready for them yet!"
We entered the house yelling, "Help! Help! The chicks are here!" Everyone came running. The heat lamp was quickly assembled, and since the food, feeder and waterer haven't even arrived yet, I instructed A to start boiling some eggs (in a pinch, I've read that chicks can eat mashed yolk). S ran down into the basement to cut a piece of nylon screen for the bottom of the cage (slippery surfaces can cause the chicks legs to splay resulting in serious, life-threatening injury). E got out the pine shavings and filled a shallow dish with water. When all was ready, we opened the box. S gave me an exasperated look, "Mom, you're really crazy, you know that." The box contained the chic kstarter feed, feeder, waterer, &c.--no chicks.
Oops, sorry kids :-@ At least, we're ready for the chicks now ;- )
This cold I have is awful. I did go to the Stevie Nicks concert last night, but I ended up leaving early. Thankfully, Stevie performed first. I left about halfway through Rod Stewart. The concert was wonderful. Stevie sounded amazing, and looked beautiful, although I must say that I prefer her with curls and waves rather than her current silky-straight locks. But, boy is it hard to believe that she is sixty-two! She had several costume changes throughout her performance, but all of her dresses were black, so there was hardly a difference from one outfit to the next. During Gold Dust Woman she wore an ethereal golden shawl that sparkled with beads and fringe. She sang many of her hits, and at the end of the show she told a story about how she always finishes her concerts by singing either Beauty and the Beast or Has Anyone Ever Written Anything For You. I love both of those songs, but especially the second one. At the end of the story, Miss Nicks told us that she was adding a third song to her closing repertoire. It was from her Trouble in Shangri-La album, and is called, Love Is. Do you know it? Like all of her music, it was hauntingly beautiful. If you are a Stevie fan, you'll want to know that she has a new album coming out in May--her first in ten years. The name of it is, In Your Dreams. She has already released a single from the album called, Secret Love.
Even though I was home by 11:30 p.m., I'm really wiped out today. This cold has me feeling really run-down and congested. So, tonight I'm going to curl up with a cup of hot tea and try to finish reading The Silent Governess.
