Today our ten ducks got their first taste of the outdoors. After a few moments of terror, in which one agoraphobic Rouen duck actually wedged its entire body into one of the holes in a cement block and had to be manually extracted--yes, really--they started to enjoy the weeds, the bugs, and the fresh air. There are no fancy accommodations for them yet; we are hoping that our current kennel-inside-a-fence setup works until we can do better, and that no ducks are harmed. But we needed them out NOW.The turkeys are not sure what to think of life without their large, mess-making friends. They stood in the same place for at least an hour, unmoving, after I removed the ducks. But I think I managed to get them un-weirded-out and eating and drinking again. I like turkeys because they are quiet, timid, thoughtful creatures. But sometimes it can be frustrating when they are not brave enough to do even the most elementary activity. Some call it stupidity, but I would suggest that their nature has served them rather well over time.
All this was accomplished with more than the usual difficulty, because the s.o. and I are both sick as dogs. I have a cold of some sort, a post-Twangfest malaise that I don't think I could reasonably have expected to avoid, seeing as I am not exposed to very many exotic germs in my daily life. The s.o. has something which for all intents and purposes is dysentery, but is probably the flu. We are quite a pair. Most of our communications today have taken the form of groans.
In my current condition, I tried to respond to the comments on the previous post three separate times, but each time it was too challenging and I closed the comments box again. Sorry about that. I'll do better later. Now the Nyquil is calling me. I will be right as rain soon.
