Last Christmas, my mom and I went to Puerto Rico on Christmas day. It was pretty interesting to see how Christmas was spent on a tropical island, and it really was like having Christmas during the summer, something I had never experienced. Britton and I are getting excited about our trip- a vacation to Puerto Rico– on January 28…about a month from now.
A Few Days after Christmas 2007 in Hatillo, PR
At the LOUD Hatillo, PR Mask Festival Parade
At the Arecibo, Puerto Rico Radio Telescope Observatory
For those of you on a warm tropical island and those covered in snow, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Feliz Navidad a todos!
And in Jimmy Buffet’s own words:
Ho, ho, ho and a bottle of rum
Santa’s run off to the Caribbean
He thinks about boat drinks and fun in the sun
Ho, ho, ho and a bottle of rum
After the sky cleared up it left frost on the trees against a blue sky
I noticed that our leghorn chicken (the white one) was looking a little sparse in the feathers around her neck the other day, but Britton just kind of dismissed it. Then, I went into the greenhouse to fill up their water and it looked like someone had had a pillowfight in there. There were white feathers everywhere! She is looking pretty ragged and I am pretty certain that she is molting. Why in the world would a chicken molt when it is negative 15 degrees? Don’t ask me, but she is…She has also stopped laying eggs which is common in the winter anyway to conserve energy when it is cold and also because they don’t lay eggs when molting. (We actually had to buy eggs for the first time since August so I could make chocolate chip cookies.)
Now that she doesn’t have quite the same level of “down coat” that she did before, I am a little more worried about her in the cold. We might run an extension cord and a light bulb for heat. My dad says to put a box, even a cardboard box in there with hay and a blanket or towel over it so they can conserve heat. The problem is that they still like to get up high at night and roost on the board or roosting stick we put up there. If we can get through this cold part of winter, I think they will be tougher for it…
Here are a few more pictures around the yard and neighborhood.
Fog over the lake out back
Kitty and Schnoodle follow the path we made in the snow from our house to the greenhouse
It is still cold and snowy here, but let’s focus on fun! We weren’t sure what to do for New Year’s Eve this year. I have to work during the day until 5pm, so that kind of limited our travel radius some. When we went over to the boxing fight party the other weekend we decided we should all do something, but we didn’t know what. So, Sandi and I decided that we could just have it here in Greeley, and that our house would be a good location…So…We’re having another party.
Here’s the Invitation
When: Wednesday, December 31, 2008 from 6:30pm until???
What: A White Elephant Party (AKA Re-wrap your Crap Party -What is a White Elephant Party, you ask? Well, this means for every person who is participating you should bring a crazy, silly, wrapped present. The sillier the better. Examples include (to get those creative juices flowing); an avocado green blender, a trophy with someone else’s name, a strange painting that you would never hang on your wall, a duck call, plaid pants that are 10 sizes too big, an old Bronco’s helmet lamp, a toilet coin bank, etc etc (BTW, I have seen all of these!)
Where: Our house, Greeley, CO
Contact info: Britton’s cell or home #:
Additional info: Please bring extra drinks or food, if you would like. We will try to have champagne, beer, non-alcoholic drinks and snacks. Also, if you are planning to drink and don’t have a DD, you are more than welcome to crash at our place-please do so, it will probably be a crazy night to be out driving anyway. Please bring a sleeping bag if you are planning to stay. Also, if you have a favorite game (board game, video game, mind games, magic tricks?)bring it as well. But most important of all, bring yourself!
Tentative plans:
7pm-8:30: Hang out, eat, drink, be merry, talk, listen to muzack
8:30pm-10ish: White Elephant gift exchange
10pm-12: Play games, hang out, eat, drink, be merry, talk, listen to muzack
12am-12:05: Happy New Year 2009-ring in the New Year with friends!
12:05am-?? -Hang out some more, sleep?… lol
Please RSVP to me if you can so we can plan, but if you forget, no prob! Come anyway! And feel free to bring a guest if you want.
It is about 8am and it is negative 15 degrees Fahrenheit (negative 26 Celsius)! That is arctic Colorado weather! Kitty usually sleeps outside, but we took him in to sleep in the laundry room last night because it was so cold. The people on the news kept saying to take pets in, that it is so cold it will freeze human skin within a few minutes, so we were pretty worried about the chickens.
I boiled some water this morning and took it out to them and they were just fine. They were not moving much to conserve energy and the black one had frost on her feathers. I think the leghorn has frostbite on her comb, but they were happy when they heard the ice crack as I poured the hot water into their dish. The high today is only supposed to reach about 10 degrees, so the water will freeze again soon!
When I was bringing water to the chickens, Schnoodle ran out with me to go to bathroom (our yard that is). As I was walking back to the house, she just stood there on three legs. I thought maybe she was standing awkwardly as she peed, but she wouldn’t move. I had to coax her back in, but she was slow and looked like she was in super pain. I think she might have arthritis in one of her back legs, and they say arthritis is more painful when it’s cold (low pressure).
As I was coming to work, my car started slowly and the road conditions weren’t too bad until I tried to get up onto “O” Street from 25th Ave. My car slid around and let out a bunch of steam/smoke as I gunned it up there. As I walked from my car into the building, the contents of my nose froze as well as my hair that was still slightly damp from showering. All of this is to describe that it is frickin’ cold!!! Puerto Rico, you are looking especially lovely today! 🙂
