tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post7538111532609430324..comments2023-10-22T01:22:40.529+11:00Comments on The Natural History and Antiquities of Lalor: That old yarnAlexis, Baron von Harlothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04675225579658733004noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-60735009878033770462015-04-08T00:46:34.992+10:002015-04-08T00:46:34.992+10:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15832246024628123427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-52562497272258472452014-11-04T12:12:18.434+11:002014-11-04T12:12:18.434+11:00Chook voyeurism is definitely a thing, and there i...Chook voyeurism is definitely a thing, and there is a lot of wholesome labour that can be performed while fraternising with them (hand-sewing, as you say, and laptop typing, broad-bean shelling, sock-knitting, etc). Some activities are contraindicated - i.e., trying to eat your lunch, very unsuccessful on account of the chooks' imploring-cum-thieving, or trying to dig a hole (every hen I've ever known interprets this act of worm-unearthing as a personal favour to herself and comes and helps with the digging).<br /><br />We do sometimes get lice, which I blame on visiting turtledoves. Lice are mostly kept under control via dustbathing, but occasionally I've had to dust a chook with diatomaceous earth (it abrades the louse's exoskeleton).Alexis, Baron von Harlothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675225579658733004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-50348262996721724912014-11-03T19:01:04.453+11:002014-11-03T19:01:04.453+11:00And this is why I don't keep chickens (apart f...And this is why I don't keep chickens (apart from all the other reasons): I would be hanging around those hens all day watching them do eggy things and chatting to each other and it would really interfere with my sewing. Perhaps I could just switch to handsewing, in the chicken yard. However, I am quite chary re bird lice. (Which I suspect your girls don't have, but which changed my grandmother's life forever, mid-pluck, many years ago, when they swarmed up her arms.) Back to nice things: shall be eagerly watching out for Esme/Shirley/Egg updates.Katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10908021959152599224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-16686792571779800822014-11-03T08:39:43.079+11:002014-11-03T08:39:43.079+11:00Yep, Shirleys are always treasures -- this one esp...Yep, Shirleys are always treasures -- this one especially. When she needs to lay her egg, she settles down right next to Esme, and the two of them roll the egg under Esme's breast into the egg-clutch. We're marked the fertilised eggs, which means that the Shirley egg can be easily identified and retrieved when Esme gets up for her daily ablutions.Alexis, Baron von Harlothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675225579658733004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-43572585101030453972014-11-03T08:36:27.100+11:002014-11-03T08:36:27.100+11:00A leadlight dunny window - posho! At the Harlot Fa...A leadlight dunny window - posho! At the Harlot Family Ancestral Estate (sold about a decade ago), before the house was built, we used a thunderbox that sat on top of a hole in the ground, on the hillside, no shelter. I used to sit there mooing back at the cows on the other side of the fence.<br /><br />Thanks for the craft-encouragement.Alexis, Baron von Harlothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675225579658733004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-5749555187231149932014-11-03T06:02:39.340+11:002014-11-03T06:02:39.340+11:00Love it. And still have very fond memories of a f...Love it. And still have very fond memories of a farm dunny I frequented. Built on a hill, with a lead light window from an old church in use as the door. And the obligatory red back(s).<br />Good luck with wrestling the alpaca yarn into submission. Many of these old crafts are HARD. And so worth the effort.Elephant's Childhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06650565833097914052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-23143190528572611562014-11-02T22:20:28.444+11:002014-11-02T22:20:28.444+11:00Shirley! Everyone needs a best friend named Shirle...Shirley! Everyone needs a best friend named Shirley :) Katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10908021959152599224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-60034710151149087232014-11-02T20:27:45.611+11:002014-11-02T20:27:45.611+11:00Kate, it doesn't have any lanolin and doesn...Kate, it doesn't have any lanolin and doesn't smell of anything very strongly (so I say, but the cats were both pretty interested in the sack of wool). It's soft, a bit like mohair, with no crimp (which also means it's not very elastic, hence some of my spinning difficulty). According to the alpaca propaganda I heard today, alpacas are better than sheep for Australian conditions, because their soft feet and their browsing habits are less eroding and de-vegetating than sheep's. Ta for the encouragement! x<br /><br />I'll pass on your well-wishing to Esme. She's got another fortnight to go, the dear girl, and then, if things go the way they did last time, her best friend Shirley will help her with the chick rearing.Alexis, Baron von Harlothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675225579658733004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-29726681535769340292014-11-02T20:20:15.667+11:002014-11-02T20:20:15.667+11:00Asparagus Pea, there are NO PHOTOS! (That'll t...Asparagus Pea, there are NO PHOTOS! (That'll teach me to head off to the Whittlesea show without a camera.) Think quintessential antipodean outhouse, though, and you'll just about have the right mental picture. The best of 'em were off-kilter cubicles made of greyed old fence palings, a strip of rusty corrugated iron for the roof, a bench inside with a hole cut out, for long-drop purposes, and a complementary redback spider or two.Alexis, Baron von Harlothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675225579658733004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-15901288187902602722014-11-02T19:32:21.340+11:002014-11-02T19:32:21.340+11:00I think we need to see pictures of the 'most b...I think we need to see pictures of the 'most beautiful dunny' section of the show!Asparagus Peahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12144544248029447571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-1936243924349916332014-11-02T19:24:59.451+11:002014-11-02T19:24:59.451+11:00Also, good luck, Esme!Also, good luck, Esme!Katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10908021959152599224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3400219905863730154.post-61543319669665623722014-11-02T19:23:58.362+11:002014-11-02T19:23:58.362+11:00What is the alpaca like on the hands, Miss A.? Wax...What is the alpaca like on the hands, Miss A.? Waxy/oily/drying? Does it smell like wool? Verrry exciting to hear the progress, which I know feels like non-progress, but I think all this experience will count for a lot in the long run. Very good idea, joining an association of experts ...Katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10908021959152599224noreply@blogger.com