![\"\"](\"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/bad-Bella1.jpg\" "\\"bad")
<\/a>"Doesn't this dead chicken match my eyes perfectly?"<\/p><\/div>\n
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The answer is no.\u00a0 And yes.<\/p>\n
It’s true that the chicken necklace was a great hindrance to her usual romping and wrestling with Bruno.\u00a0 Her speedy race to the pond to bark at vultures was more of a clumsy waddle as she stumbled and tripped over the carcass around her neck.\u00a0 She got snagged when squeezing through the cattle panels to nestle amongst the hay rolls.\u00a0 Plus, no one was interested in giving lots of puppy love to a puppy wearing a dead chicken.<\/p>\n
But I also saw her curled up comfortably on several occasions, using the dead chicken as a nice, fluffy pillow.\u00a0 Several afternoons I caught her gnawing contentedly on a chicken leg.\u00a0 And once I saw her spinning around gleefully and then happily chasing the feathers that flung loose and floated down through the air.<\/p>\n
Seemed like the chicken necklace was not as traumatic as it was portrayed to me by other farmers.\u00a0 Rather it seemed like a combination of good and bad.\u00a0 And the results remained to be seen.<\/p>\n
By day 4 there wasn’t anything left of the chicken necklace except a wing and a chunk of thigh.\u00a0 Hard to say if the rest rotted away, disintegrated from being dragged all over the property, or was eaten away.\u00a0 So I cut away the twine from Bella’s neck and chest while lecturing her firmly.<\/p>\n
“Do NOT kill chickens.\u00a0 Do NOT kill chickens.”<\/p>\n
<\/a>"Who, me? Also, I love you."<\/p><\/div>\n
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Then I turned to Bruno.<\/p>\n
“Do NOT let Bella kill chickens.\u00a0 Keep her with you at all times.”<\/p>\n
<\/a>"Was there another choice?"<\/p><\/div>\n
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Then I just hoped for the best.<\/p>\n
Bella did kill a chicken a couple days later.\u00a0 But she hasn’t killed any since then and it’s been almost 2 weeks. Which means the chicken necklace was worth it.\u00a0 I think.\u00a0 Probably.\u00a0 Maybe.<\/p>\n
And the term “chicken necklace” has gained a lot of popularity around here.\u00a0 When used properly it refers to a process or state of being that involves a strong tolerance for the negatives and a healthy appreciation of the positives, all with an uncertain outcome.\u00a0 My friends were fascinated by my experiment with Bella.\u00a0 Probably because, as it turns out, our lives are filled chicken necklaces.<\/p>\n
For the past 2 weeks, I’ve been committed to eating healthy.\u00a0 That means no chocolate<\/span> chocolate only once a day, no junk food<\/span> junk food once a week, and no eating after 8pm<\/span> 9pm<\/span> 10pm<\/span> 11pm.\u00a0 The first part of that commitment is miserable, the second part isn’t too bad, and the last part is easy.\u00a0 Since I go to bed by 10:30pm.\u00a0 I’ve noticed my clothes fit a bit looser.\u00a0 By “looser” I mean looser than they were before Christmas but as not as loose as they were before Thanksgiving.\u00a0 I hope to get back to the waistline I had before the entire eating<\/span> holiday season started but there’s no guarantee.\u00a0 A friend who is also dedicated to a new and improved waistline asked how my healthy eating was progressing.<\/p>\n “Oh, you know,”\u00a0 I said.\u00a0 “Chicken necklace.”<\/p>\n “Yeah,” she sighed.\u00a0 “Me, too.”<\/p>\n After an annoying run-around with school officials and an aggravating amount of paperwork, I got Pretty transfered to a different middle school.\u00a0 She’s excited about being with some of her old elementary school friends and I’m excited about the better academic opportunities.\u00a0 Unfortunately, it’s not in our bus district, so for the first time ever I will have to drive a child back and forth to school.\u00a0 And now I’ll have 4 kids in 3 different schools.\u00a0 While I was having some drinks with friends, another mom mentioned that I must be proud of my victory over the school administration’s bureaucratic gridlock and the upcoming semester at a new middle school.<\/p>\n “Well, it’s a chicken necklace for sure, ” I replied.<\/p>\n “Of course it is,” she agreed.\u00a0 “It’s the public school system.”<\/p>\n Amen, sister.<\/p>\n At home I’ve finally gone on strike and stopped all washing, cleaning, or picking up after my family.\u00a0 It just didn’t seem fair that I spent the days I worked and the days I had off doing all of the household chores while begging everyone to pick up after themselves.\u00a0 Instead I’ve settled for keeping my beach room upstairs neat and tidy.\u00a0 Then I sit there reading, napping, or practicing with my knitting videos while the rest of the house descends into unkempt filth.<\/p>\n Knitters gonna knit.<\/p><\/div>\n \n On one hand, it’s stressful for me to walk through a cluttered family room and dirty kitchen.\u00a0 At this point, the floors are so covered in crud and piles of dog fur that I wouldn’t even dream of walking around barefoot.\u00a0 There’s barely even enough clean counter space left to make my morning coffee.\u00a0 On the other hand, now that I’m not the full-time maid in addition to my other full-time job, I have time to exercise at the gym every day.\u00a0 I get 8 hours of sleep on the nights that I’m off instead of whatever I can squeeze in after putting kids to bed, cleaning the kitchen, sweeping the floor, walking around putting clothing, books, couch cushions, and shoes where they belong, and hanging up wet towels in the bathroom so they’ll be dry for morning showers.\u00a0 I’ve had time for a haircut, breakfast with a friend, lunch with my mom, and planted all 85 tulip bulbs I had stored in the farm fridge.<\/p>\n My family is, of course, hoping the house will get dirty enough that I’ll fold.\u00a0 They know that dirty bothers me more than them.\u00a0 I’m hoping they’ll realize that a dirty house isn’t as appealing as all the ridiculous plaques make it seem,….<\/p>\n \n<\/a>