A Tale of Two Birds and Two Eggs

When I was in Australia last time, Farm Stud told me that there was a nest with eggs in it sitting on branch of the crepe myrtle tree.  I stood on the front verandah and noticed the 'couple' birds (Willy Wagtails) were taking turns to keep the eggs nice and warm.

Tractor-Chick:  Babe, did you actually see any eggs in the nest?

Farm Stud:  Actually yes.  There are two eggs in the nest.

Tractor-Chick:  With the pair of them so actively taking turns to sit on the nest and being constantly there, how did you manage to take a peek?

Farm Stud:  Oh I was mowing the lawn and I pretended that I had to mow close to the tree, instead, I craned my neck and had a quick look.

Tractor-Chick:  Cool!  Now it'll give us something to watch while we sit on the verandah drinking our tea.

So this went on for at a least a week and the pair of them was protective, busy and noisy.  The nest held fast and firm in spite of strong winds and heavy rains.

One morning, bright and early, eager to have our cup of tea and watch the birds with their eggs, I noticed that the birds weren't anywhere and guess what?!!!  The nest wasn't on the tree!!  I walked over to the tree and found the nest on the ground upside-down!  I picked it up and found nothing!  No eggs!  I scanned the grass around me and no eggs, bits of egg shell, remnants were to be found!

Tractor-Chick:  Babe!  The nest is off the branch and the eggs are gone!  Willy & Wilhemena are nowhere to be seen.

Farm Stud:  I was wondering where it all went!

I picked up the nest and brought it to the verandah.  The nest was so neatly and intricately put together it was so wonderful to see.  Sadly, the eggs were destroyed and contents eaten by other birds or so Farm Stud thinks.

Boiled Eggs

I was looking for underwear and found a pair of Davenport's "Boy Leg" undies from Woolworths (Woolies) and after using them (I washed them first, of course!), found that they were really comfortable.  So the next time we went supermarket shopping at Woolies, I decided to get more.

Tractor Chick:  Babe, I want to buy some more Boy Legs cos they're really comfortable.

Farm Stud (selective listening):  Huh?  Boiled eggs?  Why would you want boiled eggs in Woolies?  I don't think Woolies sells boiled eggs.

Tractor Chick (distracted):  Huh?  Boiled eggs?  What boiled eggs?

Farm Stud:  You said you wanted to buy boiled eggs.

Tractor Chick:  Why would I want to buy boiled eggs when I can boil eggs at home?

Tractor Chick:  (Thinking again)  Oh....(hahahaha), no, I meant I wanted to get more undies and the type of undies is called Boy Leg!

Farm Stud:  ????

Tractor Chick:  I'll show you!

That's a farmer for you!  My Farm Stud from Australia!

The Pink & Yellow Moo-Moos

I'm back!  This is another tale about life in Australia.

I didn't actually witness this episode but was told the story after the fact when I was 'Down Under' between November & December 2011.

There is a farm owned by, let's call him Reddy, and Reddy's farm grows and sells turf.  One side of his property runs alongside a newly-built road and on that side of the property he placed two wooden cut-outs of cows, one pink and the other yellow.  Although I can't tell you why he decided on pink and yellow, I can only guess that it's a marketing strategy to draw attention to his farm and the business he's into.  Since it was nearing Christmas, Reddy decorated each wooden cow with red and green streamers which shimmer and gleam when sunlight or headlights hits them.

Anyhow, a neighbour, let's call him Mr K, has a few cows and calves of his own.  Mr K happens to be a close friend of Farm Stud.  For the longest time, Farm Stud had been urging Mr K to get his fences fixed with three strands of wire instead of the exisiting one strand.  Too late!

Mr K's two cows decided they needed a change of scenery so they 'climbed' Mr K's fence and wandered onto Reddy's property.  They decided that the pink & yellow cows were a threat and went ahead to attack, streamers and all!

In the meantime, Mr K, who noticed his cows went AWOL, hurriedly goes after his possessions and starts calling out to them.  He must have forgotten that farm animals, generally, do not come when they're called.

Mr K seeks the help of Reddy and old man Reddy gets on his Harley, like a true champion, to help out a neighbour in trouble by using it to herd it home.  The Harley wouldn't start!  He leaves his Harley and runs to where the action is.  You can imagine the ruckus that these farmers and the live cows created!

They had to seek the help of another neighbour and managed to herd these two runaway cows safely home!

When Farm Stud and I drove past after the incident, it appeared that the pink and yellow moo-moos were unscathed!  Thankfully it all ended well.

It was hilarious enough listening to the story!  I would have been a 'rolling-around-on-the-ground' and tear-smeared bystander if I actually witnessed it!

See, I did say that there's never a dull moment in Australia!