Victory on the Egg Front

We've had egg issues around here recently...

Life has been pretty chaotic;

we've been distracted;

and the eggs are taking advantage.

Everyday, Dad brings in another dozen or so as the

result of his evening hunts.

The ladies are still not confined,

and they like putting their eggs in the oddest places -

almost as if they have a contest for creativity going.

And no,

the eggs do not arrive in the pristine condition you imagine.

They probably have good reasons,

union issues, or something -

but their favorite thing to do, is break one

and then delicately glaze all of the rest of the eggs with

a nice thin layer of egg yolk.

Then they embellish it with a feather or two -

and allow to dry...

Lovely. Just lovely.

So we've had these eggs, piling up, and rolling all over

the kitchen counters...

One day last week, I received great inspiration for their

potential, and decided to wash them all...

and finish with a vow -

that no matter how crazy life gets,

we can't let them get that way again.

Yep. Those are green eggs...

Off the subject of the eggs for a moment;

here's a glimpse of the gang themselves.

Our ladies; as diverse a group as the eggs they lay.

That is the look they give me when they are demanding kitchen

scraps. They'll chase me all over the yard until I come up with something.

Besides the yolk and feathering practice,

they've also taken up a more vocal form of protest.

I think the main culprits are the green egg layers -

they are Araucanas from South America,

straight from the Amazon...

They are gifted with this tremendous ability to sound like

a herd of wild jungle monkeys.

And the best time of day to express themselves seems to be

around 6:30 in the morning.

The cover for their latest album - The Jungle Chicks.

Back to the egg story...

The Inspiration.

It seems that they realized that overdosing us with eggs - is way more

effective than going on strike, so that's what they do.

Sounds like a ridiculous problem I know, but we can't get rid

of the things. Four people can only eat so many for breakfast,

and they just don't sell at the local Farmer's Market

(they tell me they can buy them at the store for 98 cents...

What does being organic have to do with anything?)

Long story short;

I watched the Homestead Blessings DVD on canning -

and guess what?

Eggs are can-able!

I guess you'll have to watch it if you want to know eggsactly

how - but with a little vinegar, spices, and garlic -

you have pickled eggs, all ready for a Winter potato salad.

(Or to garnish a regular salad, and the list goes on.)

That's partly what I've been up to;

boiling and peeling lots of eggs.

We counted, and realized I've canned 18 pints in the past week;

(that's about 100 eggs to peel...)

But for the first time in years, we're keeping up with

the Summertime rush of eggs; the counter is clear -

and I've actually been out there looking around for more.

The chickens are re-thinking their tactics.