This morning I lingered in my little nest of fleece sheets upon my mattress-pad-bed-warmer. On top of being my last vacation morning, the day is bitterly cold, at least by North Carolina standards. The kind of day that makes you want to say in your cozy bed all day, not just until the morning is done.
What got me out of bed, eventually, was the chickies. They needed to be let out of the coop to start their daily routine of foraging in the back yard. And I kept thinking about how their water was probably iced over again. They needed some attention and the thought wouldn't let me slug away the day any longer. Here's what I found when I got out to the coop:
Trapped!
Somehow, during their morning confinement, the girls had managed to knock open the wide internal door of their henhouse, subsequently blocking the swing of the external door which opens inward (all the better to prevent chickens from leaving when you don't want them to). They were trapped, and trapped good. Couldn't open the door outward without breaking the hinges, couldn't push it inward due to the henhouse door in the way. I located my longest, strongest flathead screwdriver, which has always reminded me more of a weapon than a tool, to tell you the truth. I've never actually used it for its intended purpose. Instead it has been applied as a lever, a chisel, and once (by Isaac) as a garden trowel. Today it was used as a jailbreak.
Unfortunately for the chickens, even an open door can pose an insurmountable obstacle to freedom. Sigh. Check out these birdbrains, trying to figure out how to get THROUGH the door rather than AROUND the door:
Eventually, everyone was rescued and their captivity was soon but a dim memory. I admired them, shooting pictures until my fingers turned blue from the cold. Here are a couple of my favorite pictures.
Batty:
Miss Mouse's very fuzzy bottom:
Jane and Batty admire my new coop-mucking boots:
Hope everyone enjoys their last day of vacation!
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