Octomom

As the 4-H rabbit leader I receive calls from lots of folks regarding rabbits. Yesterday a call came from a family that had found a couple of rabbits that were sitting at the edge of one of the busiest roads on the island. They went right up to the rabbits and were able to pick them up and bring them home. We were summoned to assess them and when we arrived we found a couple of very sweet cross-breed rabbits that were totally calm. It seemed that the doe was the mother of the younger buck. He would nuzzle up to her and she seemed protective of him. They seemed in good health. This morning I received a call from the family about the doe going crazy overnight and breathing heavily. I suggested putting a nest box in the cage along with newspaper and hay. The family was gone through most of the day and came home to the doe and eight kits. She had plucked her fur to make a nest in the newspaper, which is amazing that she hadn't plucked herself days sooner before kindling her kits. We went over to check out the kits and all were healthy and the mother was in good shape too. Kits are born fur-less and with their eyes shut. There were black ones and white ones with all sorts of markings similar to English Spot rabbits. They will be oh so cute as they get their fur. More later.

Goodbye Old Friend

Tomorrow will be the last publication of the venerable Seattle Post Intelligencer. The morning ritual of reading the paper with breakfast will never be the same. Why didn't the paper ask their readership if they would fork over another few bucks a month to keep the paper printing? Perhaps that wouldn't have been enough to save it. A newspaper is something so elemental to one's life that you take it for granted that it will keep cranking out day after day, year after year. What happens to society when newspapers disappear? Where will the oversight come from of political corruption, business and fashion trends, medical breakthroughs along with cooking recipes and gardening advice. Will Betty the Blogger become the only, unreliable, source of social information? The importance of newspapers is even written into the Constitution. I'm just so upset that newspapers are folding across the country. I've heard that the San Francisco Chronicle is also on the chopping block. These papers are such an integral part of place making. They speak of the issues that define a place. In the constant spiral of bad news the loss of newspapers has to be the greatest threat to the integrity of our country. Where's the bailout of the newspaper industry? I would be far happier to have taxpayer dollars going there than to pad AIG's executives' bonuses! What a world turned upside down! Reward the idiots that create massive debt and ignore the valid needs of the nation. Have you seen the 1976 film "Network" lately? Watch it. It is very relevant and timely. Pete Finch's character Howard Beale is one of the most memorable in all of film.

When the world is so oppressively convoluted I retreat to my little sanctuary and sew. Pictured above is a corner of that world.

In the Garage

It has been too cold for the bunnies to be outside for the past few days (nights rather), so they are in the garage where it is much warmer than the arctic freeze outside. There are windows in there so they get some nice light. It's much easier to feed them in the garage instead of slogging through the tundra to get to the hutch corral. I have lilies to plant but the ground is frozen solid. This has been one relentless winter. But I do very much enjoy the sunshine we're having. The sight of the low morning light illuminating the iridescent feathers of a pheasant yesterday was a moment that I just wanted to park in my brain forever. It was spectacular. As the pheasant moved about, pecking away at the ground right at my back door, shiny brown feathers would magically transform into mauve, aubergine and orange.
I've been copicing my pussywillow, next up is the eucalypt to keep the juvenile foliage going strong. I think the crocus are a bit late this year, likely because of all the cold weather we have had. The stripey purpley ones are my favorite. The solid purple ones have taken over my garden.

New Crochet

bracelet
using Daiso Cotton Lace Thread #40
The bead end was fun to make

bowl
Optima cotton thread #10
This will hold my tiny crochet projects that are in progress