Fred processed 13 chickens on Sunday and I decided to can them. Of course, before I can can the meat, I have to cook it and then debone the chicken, and I prefer to cook the meat by boiling them, and 13 chickens is a lot to boil, so I spent all day yesterday boiling two chickens at a time in the kitchen. It took about two hours for each set of chickens (one in my huge pot, one in the dutch oven) to be done, so I’d take them out of the boiling water, put them in a bowl, and set the bowl in the fridge to cool so I could eventually debone them. Today, I’ll doing the actual canning.
Am I completely fascinating you, or what?
So mid-afternoon, I was standing in the kitchen, about to fish a chicken out of one of the pots, and Hydrox came lumbering in. The kittens like to come into the kitchen when I’m in there to howl at me because MY GOD THEY ARE ALWAYS STARVING WHY MUST I STARVE THEM TO DEATH? I circumvent the howling most mornings by giving them a bowl of chicken broth, and it generally takes them all day to finish off half a pint of chicken broth. They come in, start to howl, get sidetracked by the bowl of broth, and by the time they think to howl again, I’m out of the kitchen and there’s no one to howl at.
(This is my own homemade and canned chicken broth – it is literally water that a chicken has been boiled in, no salt added, no veggies added, just chickeny-tasting water. Except for Miz Poo, every cat in the house enjoys a slurp or two as the day goes on.)
Anyway, Hydrox came in to see if howling at me would net him any kind of food, and as he walked toward me, already howling, I fished the chicken out of the pot with two big serving spoons, and then I lost my grip on the chicken, and that chicken landed on the floor.
Hydrox stopped and stared, and I swear to you, I have never before seen a kitten’s face light up like that. It was as though every dream he’d ever had was suddenly coming true, and his stubby little legs were a BLUR as he tried his hardest to get to that chicken before I could grab it.
Luckily, I was faster than he was, but he was still kind of lucky because a few small pieces of chicken fell off as I lifted the carcass off the floor, and I let him have them.
And if you don’t think he spent the rest of the day following me around hoping that another chicken would magically fall from the sky, you know nothin’ about nothin’.
The Cookies have recovered from their traumatic night at the vet’s and are alternately running around like their tails are on fire, and collapsing in heaps of sleepy cuteness.
I bought this toy, which you hang from a door, at Petsmart last weekend. It’s hanging on the closet door in the Cookie room (during the day, all the cats wander in and out of that room), and every once in a while I hear the sound of leaping kittens as they rediscover the toy hanging there.
Pouty Miss Pink.
This “being cute” business is exhausting work.
Violet and Gus.
Veruca and the hugest ears in the house.
Gus finds it important for all household members to be clean. Except those stinky little kittens; he figures they can take care of themselves.
Ring ring ring ring ring ring ring
Banana phone
Ring ring ring ring ring ring ring
Banana phone
I’ve got this feeling, so appealing,
for us to get together and sing. Sing!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Previously
2008: I guess he’s sensitive about his belly fat.
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Hee — Hydrox’s moment of bounty reminds me of the German story my mother told me of “Schlaraffenland,” a Utopia where you can enjoy anything your heart desires … and the roast pigeons fly directly into your mouth. 🙂
I started laughing out loud at work over the chicken/Hydrox story! Oh my…how I can relate!!!! 🙂
P.S. He must of thought that chickens were raining down from the heavens!
That is a hilarious story – I can totally picture it. He had to be so shocked and excited at the same time, because the howling actually worked that time!
The pictures are wonderful as always!
Oh my word, that’s adorable! You should make them some hot ham water. 🙂 Christmas came early for one Cookie!
Hydrox and the chicken made me laugh out loud.
My daughter is 8 and still loves Bananaphone and laughs out loud when they get to Grandmaphone.
Me too, the Hydrox and the chicken story makes me laugh 🙂
thanks for that.
Oh dear, the thought of Hydrox’s face when he realized that the heavens were opening and chickens were raining down on him must have been hilarious…I can just see him trying to tell the others about this unbelievable event and the others mocking him…”Yeah right! Chickens don’t fall from the skies…you’re just making stuff up!”
Q : Why did the chicken fall out of the sky?
A: To get to the floor.
That Hydrox story is hilarious!!
Hey! There’s no actual pictures of Hydrox on this post!
“I swear to you, I have never before seen a kitten’s face light up like that. It was as though every dream he’d ever had was suddenly coming true”
ROFLMAO
Poor little kitty having his manna from heaven taken away like that *grin*
I got to say, you had me roaring with the story of Hydrox and the falling chicken – I can so picture it!
May you, your family and all the kitties enjoy the lovely holiday season!
It didn’t make them best buds, but it stopped the fighting — it was the Chicken Juice Treat of 2007, when I brought Calvin home.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fontosaurus/2045592042/
For the first couple of days, Scout hissed and growled and protested that he was the baby and that this new interloper SUCKED. Mooch basically avoided Calvin.
Then I put out a single plate with some chicken water (from canned chicken), and all three went at it like there was no tomorrow.
Calvin and Scout became inseparable buds. Mooch tolerated Calvin. (I was really surprised when I brought Mooch home from the vet so she could be at home for the last four days before we had her put down — Calvin barely left her side. He knew, and instead of being the “crappy little brother” he was sweet and kind to her.)
Chicken “juice” solves all cat domestic squabbles, apparently.
That is SO the best story! Chickens falling from the sky in response to a hungry kitten. Very best. Thanks for the laugh.
I loved the story, too! I would have thought he might be scared of it first, but then again, kittens aren’t scared of anything.
The story definitely made me giggle over here at work. Oops… I mean, um, I don’t go blog hopping at work! 😉
I loved the story, but I think my favourite part of it was that you described Hydrox as lumbering in. A lumbering kitten is my favourite concept of the day.
I am so in love with Gus!!!
I laughed out loud at the story of Hydrox and the magical chicken from the sky. I’ll bet he told the other kittens all about it!
Sarah, me too- I love the “lumbering in” description- that and the “stubby legs.”
Hi! I put a picture of my Banjo when he was a baby on my blog and linked to yours so that people could look at the Cookie family. I think they look related! 🙂 Especially when you look at “Pouty Miss Pink”s picture. Too cute! http://cornerofcatsmind.blogspot.com
Hope you don’t mind ~ Hope you and the kitties all have a great weekend!
that was hilarious!! thank you!
lol several of the reviews visitors enter make me giggle, more often than not i question whether they honestly read the articles or blog posts and content before writing or whether they merely read over the subject of the blog post and jot down the first thought that drifts into their heads. in any case, it is actually pleasurable to browse through sensible commentary occasionally in contrast to the exact same, traditional blog vomit that i usually discover on the internet