Chasing Chickens

Chasing chickens is never a task that I enjoy, mainly as they tend to be able to turn on 180 degrees and run in the opposite direction far faster than me. Now people say that chickens are stupid, and yes many are, but some are devious. I am sure they love seeing us running around, flapping our arms trying to encourage them into the corner.

I have at least ten chickens left to catch so they can moved, but will they let me near them....nope! So, in my wisdom I thought I would borrow a net, a huge net, a lot like the child catchers net!

Off I ventured into the orchard, net in hand ready to catch them all.....PAH they saw the net freaked even more than usual and run off. I need a plan D...yes I have exhausted A, B and C.

Ok, three days 10 chickens and one huge net how hard can this be, harder than anyone would imagine! 

Eerie Silence

Alongside chaos, noise is something that happens all day everyday here, but not anymore. There is an eerie silence falling over casa Chaos at present, as 90% of the animals have gone. Some people may think that the silence is good, however, I feel as if a part of me is missing.

The rabbits are now in there new Bunny Corner, the chickens that I wanted to keep are in their new massive chicken enclosure, and the others well lets say the end was quick. Unfortunately, all of the chickens had to be removed, which meant that a quantity had to meet their maker. Saved me catching and moving them I suppose.

So, as I sit here drinking my coffee, I can hear silence, no roosters crowing, no chickens clucking. I think at this point it has dawned on me that Casa Chaos is no longer my home, the heart has been removed, and all that is left is bricks and trees.

Some say silence is golden, and to enjoy the silence, but for me it gives me time to think and reflect. This is not always a good thing, which is why I need chaos and noise. On a brighter note the moment I get to the new finca (still unnamed) there is noise, and chickens, and roosters, and my heart!

Bunny Corner is Complete

I was showing some pictures of our madness AKA our new home last night to a friend, and she laughed and said that the animals had more of a home than us! The problem is they really do, but if you own animals you will know how vital is it that they are settled.

Our priority was to ensure that all of the animals had their living space first, which means that the chicken area is finished, the duck pond is nearly dug (only another three million wheelbarrow loads to go) and bunny corner is finished. The one thing I have learnt from Casa Chaos is what not to repeat again.

We made so many mistakes that I am determined to cut this number down in the new finca (still unnamed!) I am not going to lie and claim that I will make none, but just cutting the number down would be good. Therefore, bunny corner is huge, and allows them all to have space.

So, the rabbits are now living in their new accommodation, and if all else fails and I do not have walls and a roof in 10 days, I will simply move in with the rabbits!

Packing Hell

"I really love packing up my life and moving" those words have never been said in the history of the world!! I am in packing hell, and although I believed that stretching the move out over a longer period of time would be calmer, it is in fact far more stressful!

I have found that once the decision to move has been made, the first thing that people do is remove the art from the walls. This is some form of symbolic gesture of transitioning from one home to another. Some people think that the packing should be done at the last moment, but for me I have to pack at least one box a day.

This is partly due to the amount of Crap we seem to have accumulated, and also to ensure that when we get to the day of moving I do not have a caffeine fueled mad dash to finish. Although living in brown box hell is not attractive, as nothing looks worse than your life in cardboard boxes.

So, attempting to be organised I have packed a vast majority of items, and many have already been moved to the new place. This means I infact have two homes full of brown cardboard boxes! As the moving date fast approaches, I am attempting to remain calm, but I do warn people to approach with caution as the smallest thing can set me off at the moment!

I Like to Burn Stuff!

Why is is so satisfying to set fire to things, and before you all worry I do not mean in some arsonist style way! Whether it be a campfire, or a bonfire there is something incredibly satisfying about setting fire to rubbish. I can stand for ages watching everything burn, and find the whole process rather relaxing, yes I know I am strange!

Although I am all for recycling, there comes a stage on all fincas when a burn pile is needed. It typically consists of everything that is really on its last use, feed sacks, old wood, rubbish etc. I have a bad habit though of throwing everything on there, ooops toxic smoke time!

So, at the new finca there was a lot of rubbish, in fact years and years of lets say crap. Therefore, a burn pile was needed, and we added to it, and added to it until Guy Fawkes would have been proud to sit on the top. Eventually it became a mountain rather than a pile, and it was time to light it.

Again nothing is done discreetly in our lives, so rather than one small  match on a bit of paper, large quantities of accelerator were used. This always creates a spectacular effect, and  thankfully no eyebrows were lost....this time!! As I stand and watch the flames, I think back to something someone once told me about fires.

It is believed that the appeal of fires is due to the warmth, distinctive smell and flickering light. They provide a way to reconnect to our ancestors, as they would have provided heat, warded off predators, and facilitated cooking! yeah right I just like to watch things burn!

Mixed Emotions

Alongside having no time to do anything at the moment, I have days when I am incredibly happy and other days when I am so sad. Now either I am going through the menopause, which I am hoping is not happening just yet or I am human after all!

Although I am so happy about the new finca, the possibilities, the potential, and everything it will bring, I am sad to be leaving the safety, security and warmth of Casa Chaos. I have learnt so much about my self in the last few years, and also learnt so much about everything!

As they say all good things come to an end, and I think I could deal with it better it everyone didn't seem so happy to see me go!! Ok, the neighbours aren't dancing in the streets, but they also do not seem bothered about my departure. People only seem interested in when I am going so they can move in, and other people are concerned about their mango sales.

As you can tell I am having a sad day, where I will wander round the empty rooms, and reflect on my life. However, it won't take me long to bounce back, as the sun is shining, the chickens are laying and the views in the new finca are amazing!

Wombling

The whole family are huge believers in recycling, which is excellent to see, and even the kids make an effort to ensure that everything we can is recycled. This enthusiasm often spills over into larger things, and my kids consider if something isn't on someone's property they can recycle it.

Now some may say this is not recycling, however, as the Wombles claimed, "Make good use of bad rubbish" that is exactly what we are doing! So, alongside recycling the other favourite phrase in our lives is Wombling. I can often be found sending my children off to womble, in a similar way to Fagin in Oliver!

Building materials are an item that we womble often, and if we see something laying around, it typically ends up being thrown in the back of the car. So, when I was in the new kennels yesterday peering down the sheer drop that is the mountain behind us and spotted some wood I got excited. 

My daughter refused to climb down and get the wood, with some pathetic excuse of endangering her life...or something similar. However, the offer of 5€ to go and get the wood, made my son move the fastest I have seen him move all year. Within a short space of time, he was down the mountain, manoeuvring like a mountain goat!

After finding numerous other items, such as gutters, metal, fencing, oh and some goat skulls (don't ask) he had the wood, and was passing t back up to us. Another successful wombling mission completed.....and just to be clear no child was harmed or injured during this recycling episode! 

Starting Again

Every day when I have to build something at the new finca, it feels as if we are starting again at ground zero. When we arrived at Casa Chaos everything was here, we simply adapted or added to the existing infrastructure. It is so much harder when you have nothing to begin with.

So, far we have neglected building our own house to ensure that the chickens had somewhere to live. The concept is that the animals cannot be moved until they can all be housed. This is a huge task, and one that is taking its toll daily on everyone. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel and for once it is not a train heading for me.

Slowly things are coming together, the chicken area is complete, and we have eggs woohoo! The dog pens are slowly getting built, the duck house is 99% finished, and the pond has begun to be dug. Even blocks are being laid for the house, so we may actually have walls and a roof before we move.

As usual a huge proportion of this work is falling at my husbands feet, and although I say it often, I do not say it enough he is amazing. On very little sleep and too much work he is achieving the impossible. We are determined to make the new place incredible, a home for the rest of our lives, now all we need is a name for the new finca....