The Dark Farm

We suffered damage to house and home during the Valentine's Day storm that passed through Tasmania, so that has seen me off-line more than on. Tomorrow we have an election and today we, like so many other Australians, lost the Internet for most of the day... and it doesn't matter what my excuses are, Ragga, Muffin, Rose, Goldie, Wilma and Betty will not be swayed when it comes to their seed and greenery... Oh, and did I tell you the Peahens and Peacocks have been hatching for the past two months?

I'm such a soft touch that I actually see the parents tell the chicks to, 'run to the front door when you see her come out. Don't forget to chirp babies.'

Tasmania has what are referred to as wild hens. Their breeding season precedes the Peacocks by about a month. Usually when their chicks hatch, they are kept hidden from me... unless they need rescuing... This year, they are not even pretending to hide their chicks, they all just wait with beaks open wide amongst the Peacocks .

I love spring and summer. There's so much happening, what with the chicks hatching, strange birds that fly in to nest. To feed, from, and around our lake, and of course Joe's still in the roof. We've laid out some bird netting to see if we can catch him/her, and it's interesting to see the looks on people faces when I tell them I just need to catch a snake...

Yes, Joe eventually caught Andorio, may he rest in peace, and every few days I listen to the ceiling creak and groan under his 2 meters of body weight, while he trolls the beams and wires looking for straggler rats, birds, or anything else who thought it was safe to go back in the roof...

But Joe knows what they did yesterday... he stalks their every move, and when he/she sees enough critters crawl back into the roof space, to give them a fighting chance, Joe enters and thins the herd...

Welcome to the Dark Farm...