WOLFFIETRACKS CHASING RAINBOWS: We have chickens!

Chicken in our yard

We have the started off the new year with a few rain storms and very cold nights, in the 40’s. At least it does warm up once the sun comes up. So we are kind of having a winter here, too. After a night of heavy rains and winds, yesterday we woke to find 14 chickens now living in our backyard and the goats were missing. Raphael, the local handyman mentioned that he wanted to bring his chickens back to our yard. They had been living in our yard before we rented the house, but he moved them over to his daughter’s house just before we moved in. He said the chickens were not doing well at his daughter’s, they had stopped laying eggs. So, we knew at some point we would be having chickens in our yard. Still it was kind of a fun surprise. Patch was very interested in the chickens and kept jumping around the fence, but the chickens paid him no mind. When Raphael came by to feed the chickens we ask about the goats and he was very upset telling us the goats were gone. He feared that they were stolen in the night. We thought maybe they just run off because of the storm. He had moved them to an area by the house he is currently house sitting in, which is just behind our house and had them tied up on a long rope. He said he was going to walk to town and look for them. (He doesn’t drive.) A few hours later we saw him and he said he found the goats on the narrow edge of the highway against the hill into town. It is luck they didn’t get run over. The one still dragging the cut rope, so he thinks someone tried to steal them but they run off. We have watched them run from him and they can be fast! We are so, happy the goats are found even if one day they are going to be dinner. We hope not while we are around. Raphael says oh, but goat tastes great! Just saw a program on TV were they were fixing goat and said how wonderful the meat is and very healthy for you. I guess I am just too much of a city girl and don’t want to met my dinner while it is still living.

Other news, we guess, l we are seeing some effects of the new Mexican president. The military check point we had to go through every time we went shopping in Rosarito or back to the states has been removed. They still have one we have to go through when we go south to Ensenada. The other day dad and I went out to lunch in Ensenada and I decided to take the back road coming home to see the mountain views. I had never driven this way. It was a fun drive until I came to the military check point. This very young man was very rude to me…he didn’t like that I didn’t speak Spanish and made me get out of the car and he thoroughly check the trunk then looked in the back seat, and just made me stand outside the car for awhile without saying anything while he looked over at the other solder on the other side of the car. He did speak perfect English, when I looked blankly at him when he spoke Spanish. He never said a word to my dad and just seem like he was enjoying hassling me. Most times at the military check points we have been waved through and always the young men have been very serious in their expressions they are polite. In any case this was kind of unnerving…they carry very large automatic rifles. Don’t plan to take anymore rides in the mountains for awhile, which is too bad, because it was a pretty drive with awesome views of the Pacific ocean at times. We are so glad that the check point north is gone for now. They haven’t made us feel any safer, but rather remind us that maybe it isn’t a safe place here. Hopefully this is a sign of peacefulness around here; in any case that has been our experienced.