peafowl update and other things

Peafowl: After three weeks of being crated after breaking her leg, I let Nara out of the crate and into the aviary last Monday.  She'd been starting to put some weight on the leg and use it for scratching herself, so it seemed like the right time to allow some mobility.  She'd seemed pretty content in the crate all along, very calm.  She came out quietly, and unlike chickens there was no drama amongst the birds.  Omar and Jovi both came up to her and they did a lot standing around quietly with their heads together.  Funny birds.  And Nara still definitely outranks Jovi.

She continues to make progress.  She's walking on the broken leg, though she has a severe limp, and I don't think the bone healed straight.  But that she's putting her weight on it after just, well, now four weeks, that's impressive.  They will stay penned up in the aviary for at least probably another month.  I won't release them until she is as healed as she'll get, and until they are totally settled down.  They are MUCH more calm now, consistently coming up to me for treats, rarely pacing, etc.  Omar has started to display a lot more often, though they are still very quiet (which tells me they're not settled in yet, he gets pretty loud when he feels like he has a territory of his own!).

I think Nara will likely always limp.  I just need to be sure that she is able to roost at night.  Time will tell.

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Chickens: I haven't seen them for almost a month now.  They're still down at my mom's place in Wilton.  I'll head down this coming weekend to check on things and take as many as I can to auction.  I'm not sure when they'll be coming up here, but I look forward to that happening.  The new chicken coop is currently in a pile in the driveway; it's one of those metal carports.  All in due time, and in the mean time I'll be back and forth every few weeks...

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Other animals:  I miss them.  My old mare Gwen stayed down in Wilton, and there she will live until the time comes for her to go to the great pasture in the sky.  A few times in the last few years, I've thought that time was imminent, but thus far she's proven me wrong...  Of course I miss Angus, my walking buddy.  A lot of my friends were aghast that he wasn't coming with me, but believe me there is NO way that would have worked.  I live in less than 400 square feet of space, atop what I affectionally refer to as the "stairway of doom" because it's really more ladder than stairs.  That's not a combination of features that would work for 104 pounds of flatulent dog.

And of course I miss the heck out of the cats, particularly Olin.  I am still planning to bring Olin up here to live with me.  I second-guess this all the time.  He's been an indoor/outdoor cat all his life, he would have to be indoor-only here (too many things that would want to eat him).  He would miss the other cat, Homer.  I have to wonder if I'm really being fair to him, but if you've ever had a special bond with a particular animal, then you know how I feel without him here.  It's like I've left a body part behind, I need him.  And in the back of my mind I know that if it just totally didn't work, if he was miserable and made me miserable too, he could always go back to Wilton, and I'd see him when I'm down there.  But I'm his human, the only one he really is friendly toward.  So I think he needs me too.  :-)

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Life up here: Well, it's hot.  But it's hot down in the Sacramento Valley too.  Actually it's been rainy up here a few times, which is totally cool.  It's so beautiful up here, I go out walking or riding and absolutely marvel at the view.  Lassen in one direction, Shasta in another.  The loft is sooooo close to totally unpacked.  I'm living in it, have been for... uh, maybe two weeks now?  It's a pretty awesome space, I have to say.  :-)  The last of the shelves were just put up yesterday, so I unpacked a few more boxes this morning.  Of course that means it's a disaster zone again, so I need to find the time to get it all tidied up and vacuumed for the umpty-billionth time.  And then I'll be ready for visitors!

I still feel weird using the word "home" for any particular location.  It'll happen, but life still feels strange.  I've been up here as a visitor so many times in the last 10 (11?) years, there's this strange little "shouldn't I be going home soon?" feeling as though I don't want to overstay my welcome, but well, here I am, they're stuck with me.  :-)  I'm trying hard to get back into a normal routine though... gettin' there...  I seem to have misplaced a number of items (how?!  They have to be within this space!!) and there's still a long list of things I need to get.

I really wanted to throw myself a small going-away party down in Wilton, but I feel like it's too late now.  Other than moving the birds and a few odds and ends, I'm already gone.  Blarg, I don't know...  There are lots of people I miss...  What do you think, too late?  Can't very well have a house-warming, nobody would drive all the way up here!  ;-)

Okay, back to work.  I'll show you some progress on a new drawing tonight if I can.