Texas

[Italia]

That's great news! Please keep me in mind

 

[mandaleigh1981]

Thanks guys! Of course I am now obsessed and must go out every hour or so. They found the feed and are of course making a huge mess, as only chickens can do with FF.

 

[mandaleigh1981]

Cat, I hear you on the muddy feet. I let the water run a little when I fill their water buckets and the love to play and scratch in the mud. And talk about a mess! While I was feeding a little bit ago it was sprinkling they were standing in it. Reminded me of the old joke about turkeys standing in the rain and drowning themselves. The look worse than wet cats

 

[jajeanpierre]

I get what you are saying

I guess my point, which I don't think I made very well, is that no matter what the opportunities one has or does not have, it is the character of the person that guides the outcome. I personally don't feel like I was at a disadvantage because I grew up poor and I don't want others to think that of me either. My life was rich with family, caring parents and playing outside. Would not change it for the world

There is no doubt that personal character does have a powerful influence on the outcome, but there are still ceilings. To the extreme, an infant growing up in an unstimulating environment will never be able to overcome that deficit regardless of the innate intelligence. Intelligence is fluid, too, not static. There was an interesting case where a child was quite mentally handicapped and institutionalized from around birth in a facility with adults. The other residents, all with mental competence (not illness) issues, were fascinated by this little baby. That baby was showered with attention and love--to the residents it was a living, breathing little doll. The test scores of that child rose throughout her childhood to the point where she ended up having an IQ of somewhere around 80 or 90--the borderline number, can't remember exactly, maybe in the 70s. This child would never have made it out of an institution had the other residents not given her so much attention. Was the original testing in error? Maybe, but it was the early stimulation of this little baby that saved her.

 

[CatKai]

Cat, I hear you on the muddy feet. I let the water run a little when I fill their water buckets and the love to play and scratch in the mud. And talk about a mess! While I was feeding a little bit ago it was sprinkling they were standing in it. Reminded me of the old joke about turkeys standing in the rain and drowning themselves. The look worse than wet cats

 

[mandaleigh1981]

Staying poor and keeping your family poor is a personal choice in this country. I grew up in the ghetto. My mother worked as a teacher and did side stuff in order to take care of me and my brothers and sisters since my dad wasn't in the picture. I undoubtedly had abandonment issue concerning my dad; DH bore the brunt of those until we worked through it. I think subconsciously I thought I was going to be abandoned again. Yet despite all that, I graduated number 5 out of 525 kids in my class. I went to a four year school with a scholarship and got a BS in chemistry. I married a wonderful loving man, have 4 beautiful children, a house and vehicles that are paid for and no credit card debt. I love my life so much. It is simple, and I am sure we could buy more if I worked, but DH and I believe that our relationship and our children benefit so much more by having me at home.
I said all this to say that being poor does not set your life in stone. You can rise up and do well and have a wonderful life. That is what is great about America, and especially Texas. My kids are not spoiled brats, but they have everything they need, and certainly more than I did. I overcame a poor childhood, a broken home, and many childhood issues to have what I see as a pretty perfect life. I am happy. And that is all that matters. Not money or "success" as defined by the Webster's dictionary. In my mind, success is being happy.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Staying poor and keeping your family poor is a personal choice in this country.

Tell that to the young black man who was jailed for shoplifting but has turned his life around. He hasn't very much chance of ever being hired.

Tell that to the mid-50s middle executive who lost his/her job in the recession. S/he has very little chance of ever getting another job and paying for retirement.

Tell that to the retired person whose savings were wiped out by the recession.

Tell that to the university graduate who can't find a job in their field so works several part-time jobs at places like Starbucks.

 

[mandaleigh1981]

Tell that to the young black man who was jailed for shoplifting but has turned his life around. He hasn't very much chance of ever being hired.

Tell that to the mid-50s middle executive who lost his/her job in the recession. S/he has very little chance of ever getting another job and paying for retirement.

Tell that to the retired person whose savings were wiped out by the recession.

Tell that to the university graduate who can't find a job in their field so works several part-time jobs at places like Starbucks.

Keep working hard and trying and you will make it. Everyone makes choices and those choices lead to good things or bad things. The only difference between any two people is choices. I made good ones; others make not so good ones. Maybe a university grad shouldn't assume they will get a high paying job right out of the starting gate. Be willing to work your way up. Save for retirement. I started as a lab technician after college; when I quit I was running the Environmental and Safety for an entire division. If all the people above had made better choices and more informed decisions then they wouldn't be in those situations. You are responsible for your own life and all the choices you make. Choose wisely.

 

[LauriTX]

Mandy - I totally agree with you!! I grew up in a poor family. There were 5 kids and my step dad was in construction. For the most part, I was never in the same school more than one year. I am pretty introverted and shy but had to learn how to overcome that. I have done everything in my power to make sure my kids didn't go without like I did. That is why I went to school to be a nurse and am still continuing my education to get a masters. I have worked nights so I can be there when they go to school and get home. My kids are much older than yours but I know what you mean!!!

 

[jajeanpierre]

On a lighter note, I have some chicken questions.

I'm very new to chickens, my oldest group from a hatchery are only 6 months old. This group is all breeds that are not good for free ranging, with the exception of the mystery chick that turned out to be a bantam Plymouth Rock pullet. I have some Polish, Silkies and a double frizzle Cochin pullet and cockerel. The double-copy frizzles has really lousy feathering, especially the cockerel. Up until yesterday, I didn't think about rainy weather and cold. Big duh moment.

Originally, I was intending to keep them in tractors and move them around but realize they just aren't all that happy kept that way so they will be out in a yard that I am trying to make raptor unfriendly. I also will be putting up a big aviary that I brought with me from the Caribbean that is in pieces on the ground. It was made by a local welding shop in the Caribbean, so you can imagine what a mess it is going to be to try to reassemble.

I'll eventually rotate them through the two 20 x 8 ' x 8' parrot aviaries, the 24' x 8' aviary that is in pieces and the fenced garden. All will have covers to make them raptor proof but not water proof. Right now, the grass in the parrot aviaries is a mess--I need it to recover--so they are not in that.

How do Silkies deal with rain and colder weather? I'm in the Hill Country near San Antonio.

Does everyone let their chickens out in the rain? I have a free ranging group of Ameraucanas that are 5.5 months old.

Thanks for your advice.