Spicy Cauldron's Comments

The Spicy Cauldron : Hepburn, our first-ever soon-to-be mother hen

Fri, 3 Jul 2009 06:52:02 +0000

Hepburn's comb and wattles (the red fleshy bits on her head and under her beak) have gone a lot paler since the above picture was taken, which looks awful but is entirely normal as a hen gets more and more into her broody state. She's also become a lot more hostile and I'm leaving her well alone. I'm only going to disturb her today when the eggs are replaced with the real deal. She won't have as many - probably just seven, odd numbers are better apparently because of the way the hen arranges the eggs in a kind of oval beneath her body - but we've got 13 eggs in total, the remaining six going into an incubator a friend has bought and is kindly loaning to us. If timings are close we should be able to get Hepburn to adopt the incubated chicks along with those she is going to be hatching.

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: Why Don't We Say Grace Any More?

Fri, 3 Jul 2009 05:38:31 +0000

Thank you Ruthie. I think we take so much for granted, there is so much convenience, and yes, many people have forgotten how to recognise their blessings or were never taught in the first place. So the cry is that of the hungry bird: always more, more, more.

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: Why Don't We Say Grace Any More?

Thu, 2 Jul 2009 09:58:04 +0000

Just testing out the return of IntenseDebate comments on the blog. New comments should replace old ones in the sidebar, and no comments ever made have been lost, they are still on the posts on which you left them.

The Spicy Cauldron : More bigotry and bile from the Daily Mail (but sometimes the gays fight back)

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:43:16 +0000

No. I don't think anybody except the Daily Mail is actually saying that. First, we only have the word of the newspaper that age is the deciding factor. This, coming from a newspaper that routinely lies, is more likely lie than truth--but it is true to say that many other factors would have been considered before the grandparents were ruled out.

As I went to great pains to say, yes, there have to be rules, there will always be some who fall outside them. I am also saying a sensationalist resorting to homophobia is NOT the answer for the families who feel they somehow suffer under whatever rules are currently in place. And the tabloid press meddle not for the sake of the children, but for meddling's sake alone to make waves and pursue the agenda of editors and owners. The families are best served by taking matters to those who can change things, if change is needed--MPs, charities, campaign groups whose agendas are not fuelled by hatred. But it remains the case that, in this situation, the grandparents were most likely ruled out for reasons we don't and won't know. Age was unlikely to be the driving factor behind the decision. But age is a convenient 'hook' to engage the rage of Daily Mail readers addicted to moral outrage: one day asylum seekers, the next day poofters.

And frankly, while I have nothing but praise for your apparent loathing of ageism, it fails to be accompanied in what you write in your comment by an equal defence of people's rights not to be judged on sex, sexuality, ability and skin colour. I rather think therefore that it comes across as somewhat one-sided. If we are to get a fairer world we cannot pick and mix who can be bullied and who can't. The Mail sets great store on defending the old only because it's readership is aged and/or ageing, and of particular mind-sets. It gives not a shit for anti-racism, anti-sexism, anti-homophobia. If it did, it would not be the Daily Mail.

Richard Littlejohn, it's long-time columnist and infamously vicious homophobe, today features on the front page displaying his usual ignorance, mouthing off about how wrong it is to take kids and give them to two gay men instead of the grandparents. He knows fuck all about this specific circumstance, or the rules applied. But this absence of informed knowledge has never stopped him shooting his mouth off whenever there's a story involving the minorities he despises, and all because he doesn't like being who he is. This story is NOT about the children. It is about stirring up hatred of gay men. Anything else you may glean from it is illusory. The children are a way in to the main event of hatemongering.

We don't know in what ways the grandparents did not successfully address the concerns of Social Services. Such information is kept confidential, for the safety and respect of all involved. It is only right. So to suggest that the decision against the grandparents is ageism is at best based on the word of a scurrilous tabloid newspaper, which may be putting words in people's mouths, and at worst downright deceptive.

Blood relations do not have a right to take on their grandchildren without being assessed. Not in 2009. People can, of course, campaign for change. But then one day the time would surely come when a relative adopted, say, a grandchild, and something dreadful happened to that kid afterwards. Where would the naysayers of today be then? I suggest no wrongdoing or crime on the part of the grandparents in this story. None whatsoever. I know nothing about them. But I do know that every murderer, every rapist, every thief, every paedophile, every criminal is someone's brother or sister, someone's daughter or son, someone's mother or father, someone's grandma or grandfather. They do not grow in pots. If we allowed blood relativity to provide an open and unquestioned right to adopt within the family without investigation and assessment by professionals, the risks to the children's welfare would frankly be unacceptable. To me, at least. Perhaps not to the gutter press, for any outrage or horror would, of course, make front-page headlines and sell to people who like to get angry about those they perceive as taking their jobs, their children, their way of life.

The Spicy Cauldron : Hack! Cough! Splutter! Ow!

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:31:19 +0000

Turns out it wasn't viral tonsilitis, it's glandular fever and it's hubby who's got it reallllll bad. With me, it or something just skimmed the edges and moved on. He's still poorly, in bed, and no sign yet of recovery. It could take a while. x

The Spicy Cauldron : The miracle hen that survived being crushed under a paving slab

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 22:57:08 +0000

Coming across this entry again, in January 09, while prepping a new blog entry, I was struck by the fact that Galadriel never did get her voice back properly. She can holler, but the noises she made before the accident never came back. It changed her voice, so I can only assume her vocal chords suffered permanent, albeit not painful in the long-term, damage. Still, a lucky hen. She's moulting at present, and looks absolutely dreadful. She'll be fully re-feathered in about a month's time. And she's as personable and clever, as hens go, as she ever was. See, that makes the tragedy of battery hens all the more horrific: they are the friendliest, cleverest of chickens and yet they're forced to endure absolute hell in a box for a year before most of them end up as pet food, fertiliser or takeaway curries. My view, it's evil.

The Spicy Cauldron : Time to stop thinking old and start thinking new

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 10:49:27 +0000

Yeah, but even that pain barrier if approached with a positive spirit can be rewarding, just like going to a gym works the muscles, makes 'em hurt, makes 'em better. I've personally found none of the sustainability and recycling etc options I've moved towards painful, because they keep me busy, keep me active, and make me think instead of just blindly consume. There's definitely some 'waking up from the dream' to get done to start helping ourselves and the environment. And the government and opposition need kicking awake as well, not only for the environment, but for the economy as a whole.

The Spicy Cauldron : Time to stop thinking old and start thinking new

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 10:47:34 +0000

Yes, the audio chap is quite funny sometimes! It's a feature not useful to all but hopefully useful to some or, as with you on this occasion, simply something curious to try out. :-) I just don't know on the 'voting back in' part. I suspect more people than we might in down times expect do see the Tories as being part of the problem and not the solution--but as you say, what is the solution, where are the choices?

The Spicy Cauldron : A funny egg

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 10:45:23 +0000

Some of them are edible, most aren't, but they do make you sit up and take notice! You can also get some hens that eat eggs, thankfully not something I've encountered yet (well, they eat accidentally broken ones but haven't connected those to unbroken eggs!). A hen that eats eggs would be quite the nuisance.

The Spicy Cauldron : A funny egg

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 10:44:02 +0000

I'm learning from scratch as you know, Sue. It's all new to me too and I suspect you never get to the point where you know everything about these little creatures. x

The Spicy Cauldron : A funny egg

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 10:43:24 +0000

I get that. Worlds unknown... It's like keeping the chickens, and having a certain eye, you see and learn so much that you won't find in any book. Affection between the hens, for example, far more prevalent than the savagery they're infamous for if one gets a cut; or the way they each have different personalities, and verbal 'expressions' when you approach. Lots of worlds are unknown, and I love learning. :-)

The Spicy Cauldron : A new home for the accidental cockerel?

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 08:27:35 +0000

He's absolutely fine, a little trooper. He just huffs and puffs when I take him out of the henhouse but when I bring him indoors he already knows the score and can be left to walk up to his new cage (which cost a fortune) under the stairs and put himself to bed. We don't then hear a peep out of him until we go to let him out in the morning. We had to get him a proper dog/cat cage as the cat/dog carrier, huge as it was, wasn't tall enough and he was clearly getting sore legs or a bad back from not being able to stand up all night. It was only for two nights but we couldn't keep that going, so the new cage has lots of room around and above him. So yes. So far it's working well and no hassle at all. Well, that said, I did notice something this morning--before, Buttercup couldn't stand up to raise his neck while he was in the carrier box, but now that he can he started crowing at 10am. Gave me quite the shock while I was sat in the kitchen! I don't for one minute think the neighbours would have been disturbed. I let him out and he was fine, not another peep from him when reunited with his girls. So we're going to see how we get on with the new cage... If it doesn't work out from the crowing front, he might have to have one a little smaller but still bigger than the carrier box was. I won't tolerate him being a bit stiff and unsure on his feet come the mornings, that wasn't good, but he needs to be able to stand while NOT being able to extend his neck up to crow! x

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: The London Astoria

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 08:24:26 +0000

That's true to an extent. It certainly helps to read them out loud sometimes when writing them, to see how they 'flow'. x

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: Universal Loss

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 10:20:19 +0000

I discussed this poem with my beloved the other night. It aims to promote the idea of how all-important life-long relationships can be to people, and how we share the same fears and feelings, including love. It's about equality, and the fact that it brings with it the good, the bad, and all of life and death. The reason for the poem's verses being almost but not quite identical is because that's how we are as people--we are almost but not quite the same as each other, and it is in those small differences we can find individual stories. As for the Blink reference from 'Doctor Who', no, I think that's fine. I will never look at statues quite the same way again after that episode. :-) x

The Spicy Cauldron : For a friend newly departed from this world

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 10:16:50 +0000

Thanks Sue. There's a memorial website and I'm going to rework what I wrote above to post thereon. x

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: The London Astoria

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 10:16:06 +0000

I do believe as well, Sue, with regard to one of your own interests, that the Astoria has some history of ghost sightings as well. Not unusual for a theatre or music hall, though. x

The Spicy Cauldron : Still no fix for the Apple TV 2.3 no sound problem

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 11:41:08 +0000

Thanks Pete. I definitely need to give Handbrake some time. At first it appears a little daunting. Our ATV has been slow and unresponsive ever since 2.0, 1.1 worked well enough. It become a little more responsive after 2.1 but that wasn't saying much. We've found the unit is strangely more stable having been hacked with the patchstick, the most irritating thing being the 'Apple TV is connecting to iTunes...' message (or whatever it says). It's like, I don't need to know! I don't care! Just do what you do and let us watch our shows uninterrupted... :-)

The Spicy Cauldron : A new home for the accidental cockerel?

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 10:33:14 +0000

Thinking some more, we have to try the 'bring indoors' solution right now anyway, so we'll be able to see how that goes while we investigate the rehoming option. If happy with the possible new home, we'll go for that; if not we'll just continue with bringing him in at night, and maybe take some time to try to find another possible new owner. I don't think we'd want any of our ladies to go with Buttercup. They'd get over it, as would he. Chickens after all. Besides, a friend has pointed out that sourcing some hens would show some initiative on the part of the guy who's said he'd take him on. It shouldn't be too easy; as a newbie, the guy needs to know for sure what he'd be taking on, in terms of responsibilities. And again, while new hens are being found by the guy, we'd hold onto Buttercup and then, one would imagine, it would make sense for Buttercup to go to his new home at the same time as his new wives. :-) UPDATE: Well I've done some more research, and the solution to the problem we have at present--morning crowing--is as I said, to bring him in at night and keep him in the dark. We have a space under the stairs that's ideal. But I suspect if he doesn't get to crow at dawn, he'll crow when he is allowed to get up. It's then a case of whether our neighbours and the council mind just one set of cock-a-doodle-doos after 10am (assuming he doesn't develop still further to start bellowing at all times of day). It's worth trying, and the only thing we can do until we check out this farm possibility. It stops us worrying for now, won't distress him, and means we have time on our side to sort things out, either for him staying or going elsewhere. But never will he go back to that breeder. Made the mistake once, not making it again.

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: Hens

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 12:46:06 +0000

I wanted an eglu for our first henhouse, but I wanted an eglu cube and they're outrageously expensive. I think a standard eglu is as well, but they are well-designed but it could only hold a few hens and we always planned, after our first four, all ex-bats, to get more. In the end we bought a wooden henhouse from eBay and it is dreadful. I was glad to see the back of it when we upgraded to a wooden playhouse we converted, which is quite lovely and big. The original house will now be for broodies, as you must separate them or all your hens could stop laying for a time. It was extremely hard to clean, everything about it was counter-intuitive and it turned out, I found afterwards, that poorly-made henhouses are a common beginner's mistake and to be found in huge numbers on eBay, and advertised in the press. But it will do the job temporarily, and will come in handy if any birds get injured and need 'hospitalisation'. Also, for quarantining any new birds we may add in future. Although, we don't intend to get more for a while yet--14 is enough, and we actually want to eventually end up with probably no more than eight! But we do intend, maybe next year, to raise some from eggs bought in. Our cockerel, assuming he doesn't get noisier and is still therefore around in 2010, would happily provide all the ladies with fertilised eggs--and does--but his children could be very strange-looking indeed as there'd be no selection process involved, no breeding plan. My favourites at present are our two Lavender Araucanas. Beautiful and not typical in their looks, they lay lovely blue eggs and are very productive--at least four eggs a week from each of them. They're also really friendly, although someone I know got two from the same breeder and her two are completely different, not at all friendly, very skittish, and not yet laying while ours have been laying now for at least two months! Chickens, like people, have their own ways and personalities... x

The Spicy Cauldron : Poem: The Alarm Clock

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 12:38:24 +0000

Hi Matt, great to get your comment, and thank you! I'm glad you like the poem. Yes, the morning alarm is something everyone, I think, can relate to...