Vintage Thingie Thursday: Vintage Chicken and Roosters

Welcome to this weeks segment of Vintage Thingies Thursday. Thursday is the day to showcase your vintage treasures and to share your special things with everyone. If you are visiting and would like to join us, please do. It is very easy!
To participate, all you have to do is:

* * * * Please everyone, follow these guidelines!

(1) do a post about something vintage.
(2) Visit all the participates and leave a comment.
(3) Link in with the link at the bottom of this post, please use a perma-link to link in with, that way, anyone can refer back to your post if they can not get to it on Thursday.
(4) Be sure to refer back to my blog so everyone can see who is participating today, and if you like include the VTT button in your post. Please be sure to have your post up before linking in.

Since I have been telling my stories that surround my new rooster and chicken, I decided to post this once again, it was posted right after I started my blog in 2008, but decided I would re-run it this week. Seems appropriate!


This week I have a couple of favorites of mine. The first one is a magnificent rooster that watches over my kitchen. This wonderful creation was done by my Aunt LaVoice. She made this years ago, she made one for herself and one for her sister Joyce. This is the rooster that was in my Aunt LaVoice's kitchen for years. I can remember being a little girl and walking into my aunt's kitchen, this rooster was the first thing I always saw. He hung over her kitchen table and I always was intrigued by it.


I loved the colors, the craftsmanship and the way this picture came together with beans, popcorn, and seeds. Just look at the detail. Pure talent at its best to create something so full of character. I have to admit....my Benny sorta looks like this!! Makes it even more special!!


Of all my prized possessions, this picture is high on my list. When I look at this masterpiece, I can almost smell fish frying, and fresh tomatoes sliced ready to eat when I see this picture. Oh, and I can not forget the homemade french fries. Man, I loved those homemade fries my aunt made. You see, they were not the frozen packaged fries, these were homemade, and special. Yummy.
Funny, how that is what I remember when I think about eating at my aunt's house. My Uncle Noah frying mouth watering fish and those fresh tomatoes from my aunt's little tomato garden she had in her backyard. Oh, and the fries. Now my Uncle Noah was a talented man, and there was not anything that he could not fix or repair. But nothing could top his fish frying. I always thought my Uncle Noah could fry the best darn fish in this city. Believe me when I say the meals we had at my aunt's house, although they were not frequent, they were special.

Now these are a favorite of mine as well. You see, my Aunt Joyce is the chicken queen in our family. She has a set similar this which sets on her hutch in her kitchen. I found these one day several years ago in a local antique mall and they reminded me of the set my sweet aunt has.
I had to have them. You see, they just go with my rooster picture. I always have had a fondness for chickens, they remind me of the country and a simple life. These two chicken items also remind me of two dear ladies in my life and the childhood memories I have of each one of them.
And that my friends is the very thing that turns ordinary items into family treasures.

The Other Wom-hen

There were not too many things unusual about this particular Saturday in late May. It was sunny, warm with a slight breeze. The day started off like so many others had lately, with me having to go to work. Steve however, had left for his work-vacation at our cabin in Colorado and I was to spend the week home taking care of pets, working and not cooking dinner and cleaning for a week..in other words..a play week. ahem.

I rushed home from work anticipating going to the field and feeding Benny right away. We had fallen into the routine quite well. I would start making my way to the field all the while calling for him...."Benny......where is my Benny boy??" It never took long before I would see Benny running from what ever direction he had been scratching for a worm or bug. This day was different....

I called, and called and called.....there was no Benny running to greet me at all. I felt sick. I was so afraid something horrible had happened and Steve was gone and who was I going to get to make it all better? I surely had no courage to take care of a situation where Benny might be hurt or worse. I wanted to cry. I frantically propped open the gate to the field and practically ran into the open field searching every direction for my boy. Let me stress right here...I don't run...ever. I was so worried as to why was he not coming?? Where was he??

I glanced towards the big ole tree where he likes to roost in at night, and I saw a slight movement....he gingerly poked his head out of the brush but he was not running to me in greeting. He just sorta stood there and looked at me. With a huge sigh of relief I thought crazy rooster.  However, I was not amused. I then became on edge as to what was keeping him from running towards me.

I walked carefully towards Benny and the tree. At first glance, I did not see a thing....but once I got up closer to the tree and climbed into the brush with my rooster, it became clear as to what had happened.

My sweet, devoted rooster turns out is just like a typical man of most species....I had been replaced by a red head!

Seems my neighbor and his friends, by this time, had made their way onto their back patio waiting on the "fall-out" from their shenanigans. They heard me calling Benny and most likely could not wait to see what my reaction would be. While I was at work anticipating spending time with my rooster when I got off work, my neighbor and his cronies went to the local Mexican flea market and purchase Benny a girlfriend. If you remember correctly, he chose the opportune moment to do this, when Steve was out of town and I was at work. He really went about it the "chicken" way...no pun intended.....

So....there high in the tree sat a scared as could be hen. Benny's hen. She was so skittish, and scared, I wondered if I'd ever befriend her or if it was possible. I really thought she would die right there in that tree. She eventually came out, but she seemed to undo all the progress I had made at trying to tame Benny with her very presence. He was so standoffish with me for a couple of weeks that I seriously thought about not bringing any more treat at feeding time. I guess he was trying to make a good impression on his new girl and he sure hurt my feelings while doing so.

I stood there, under that tree that Saturday afternoon staring up at that scared little hen and felt so sorry for her. My mind began to think of all kinds of things, as I am so prone to do. There was  no telling where she had come from and what kind of life she had lived being sold at the Mexican flea market like she had. 

I told her she was going to have to trust me and learn to like me and there was no other option. I talked to her for a good while so she would get used to my voice. I told her she had to have a name, and I thought Beatrice would be a good one. When I called her Beatrice, she just sorta gave me a bored blink of her eye....so I shortened it and told her that her name would be Betty for short. She turned her head and looked at me then, and made a little sound. I took that little sound as approval. I informed Betty she was safe with me, and Benny so she might as well come out of the tree. She did...but it took four days for her to do so. I have yet to find a single egg from her, so I don't know really if she is an older hen and was destined to be someone's Sunday dinner or not, ( again my wild imagination working) but now...she is living the life that only a chicken could dream about.

As I was walking back to my house that Saturday afternoon after leaving food and fresh water for my now, TWO chickens, I glanced over at my neighbor and his cronies who were just holding their breath on what I would do or say. Two of the guys did not even have the courage to look at me. I stopped and put my hands on my hips and shouted..."Really....a red head??.....you had to get a red head???!!!!" They busted out laughing and I tried to laugh too, but seriously, inside I felt a little worried. Now I had two lives to keep safe and alive, not just one.

Oh, and did I mention in the previous post...I absolutely know nothing about raising or keeping chickens! Let the adventures begin!! Stay tuned.....

The Runaway Rooster

In early May, one evening as I was finishing up washing dishes from dinner, my husband walked into the kitchen and asked me if I had noticed a rooster in the field. Now, our house backs up to a field that basically is surrounded by houses. No one lives on it and it belongs to the Church around the corner from us. We live smack dab in the middle of the city. It is pretty secluded and we have really enjoyed it over the years as we have no one who lives behind our house.

So often, I hear what my husband is saying and I answer, without really PAYING ATTENTION. So as I have so often done, this time was no different and I answered with  "No, I had not seen the rooster"..........but I really was not paying him much attention, and honestly put it out of my thoughts and mind.

Three days later, I was driving around town, and I had a thought that if this rooster was still in the field, chances were he was not going to be there long, as I knew he did not have any water. I worried about that all day and when I got home, I started combing the cabinets for anything I could put water in to take to this poor guy. All the time I was banging cabinets open and shut, I was worried I had not paid attention when I should have and this guy was a goner.

I filled a large tea pitcher with water and found a old Christmas tin that I did not care to keep and off I went to the field behind my house. Once I was behind my house and in the field, I sat the tin down on the ground and started pouring the water in the tin. The rooster frantically ran or I thought he was charging me and I stood there thinking that I was going to be attacked. He was starving for water, and could not get to me fast enough. I felt so ashamed of myself for not thinking he would not have water and paying attention in the first place. Bless his little heart, he drank for a solid thirty minutes. It was that very moment I felt nothing but love in my heart for this rooster.

The arrow shows the tin I used for several days to hold his water.  That first night, once he had drank all I thought he could hold, I moved the tin by this tree. Poor little guy only had three tail feathers....three!!! My imagination ran wild with explanations as to why he ended up in the field. I was sure that wherever he had came from surely they were fighting the roosters and he escaped......poor Steve said that was not the case, he must be a young rooster......I was skeptical, and thought something had horrible had happened to him for him to be so scrawny. I fell in love with the darn rooster that day.....much to my husbands dismay........

I knew nothing about chickens before this day.....did not even know what they would eat. I had some corn tortillas and he ate those for a couple of days before I went to the feed store and bought him some real chicken food.

We had a couple of weeks with threatening weather coming our way, and this rooster would not let me close to him, touch him, or much less pick him up. He always stayed just out of reach. He found a grove of trees and he had been roosting in there. But with the weather coming, I was worried about him having someplace to get out of the bad weather. So after much debating and insisting, I had my husband construct a make shift shelter.

I can not say for sure if he ever really went underneath this, but I sure felt a lot better knowing he had the option if he wanted to.

I had Steve move it to under the tree and that is where it has stayed.

I guess if you are a wild rooster, this looks cozy enough, I sure thought so anyway. 

I really had no intention of keeping him for myself....at first. I never really thought about it.  But I fell in love with this guy, and named him Benny....and you know what happens when you name an animal....well for me, they become family. 

We fell into a routine, Benny and I.  That routine has worked out pretty well. Each morning, I'd go out to the field with fresh water and food. Then the first thing I would do when I got home was go feed him again and talk with him about my day. If you could have heard the conversation I would have with Benny you would think I had lost my mind. I talked about everything and rambled on and on. I was so sure, if he heard my voice, he would soon not be so scared around me. I am happy to say all I have to do is go outside and call his name....and he comes running!

By now after a few weeks, I was doing research on keeping chickens and read several blogs and websites that had to do with their care. I was beginning to think this was going to be much harder than I ever dreamed in taking care of a chicken. I posted a few times on facebook and had several tell me how dangerous it was for him to be out in the open and not have a real chicken coop and shelter. I had to ask myself several times why stress and animals seem to run hand and hand......

After about three weeks of enjoying my new rooster, my husband said the man down the street had mentioned that someone who lives around the block from us had lost a rooster, and told this man if he saw him to catch him and bring the rooster back. My heart skipped a beat or two and I felt hot and panicked.

I am sure many of you would be surprised to know that I will stoop to what ever level I need to do to rectify a situation. This situation needed my attention and an idea ever so quick. First off, if the original owner had not even looked for him and worried about his safety for three weeks, in my mind, he darn well was not getting him back. NO WAY. 

It just so happened that on a Monday, I was off of work, and I was unloading groceries out of my car and into the house. I looked up the street and saw the man who was supposed to be looking for MY rooster walking down the street. An idea just popped into my head and I dashed into the house to put a plan in action.

Now, I may or may not have ran to the bathroom and swung open the medicine cabinet and grabbed a gauze pad and some band aids. I may or may not have slapped that gauze pad over one of my eyes and taped it to my face....and then added a few band aids on the other side of my face for good measure. I may or may not have walked back out the front door to finish unloading groceries about the time the man was in front of my house. I may or may not have slyly asked him if he thought he was going to catch a wild rooster loose in our neighborhood. I may or may not have informed him as to the damage that rooster would do if he tried to catch him. I may or may not have pointed towards my face and said that rooster almost took my eye out and scratched my face all to pieces. I may or may not have warned him that the rooster had spurs and knew how to use them. All I know is that man looked at me all wild eyed and said very surly he was not looking for a rooster..."No ma'am, he surly was NOT." I can however admit, that was the end of me worrying about Benny after that!

He was happily living in the field, happily spending his time with me, and I was making progress on taming him. After about a month, my next door neighbor started teasing me about putting my chicken on the grill.....that is another story all together, but I assure you, he forgot about putting my rooster on the grill about as quick, if not quicker than the man who was walking down the street. 

 My neighbor did however have a plan up his sleeve......and it sure put a little damper on my one on one time with my new rooster....Benny!

~stay tuned for the next installment..........

Vintage Thingie Thursday: Vintage touches in the yard

Welcome to this weeks segment of Vintage Thingies Thursday. Thursday is the day to showcase your vintage treasures and to share your special things with everyone. If you are visiting and would like to join us, please do. It is very easy!
To participate, all you have to do is:

* * * * Please everyone, follow these guidelines!

(1) do a post about something vintage.
(2) Visit all the participates and leave a comment.
(3) Link in with the link at the bottom of this post, please use a perma-link to link in with, that way, anyone can refer back to your post if they can not get to it on Thursday.
(4) Be sure to refer back to my blog so everyone can see who is participating today, and if you like include the VTT button in your post. Please be sure to have your post up before linking in.

This time of year, I love vintage touches to the garden. I was scanning the use of vintage things in the garden and found this image below.....too bad I don't look that good when working in the yard!!

Love the hat and the gloves....I usually never put any of that on when I am working in the yard!

I love the use of old galvanized containers with vintage china dishes! I have a whole border with vintage plates and love the added touch in this bowl.

This is my old window frame with my large galvanized container that holds plants. I love these and they work out great in the garden.

Happy Vintage Thingie Thursday!

Vintage Thingie Thursday: Vintage Apron

Welcome to this weeks segment of Vintage Thingies Thursday. Thursday is the day to showcase your vintage treasures and to share your special things with everyone. If you are visiting and would like to join us, please do. It is very easy!
To participate, all you have to do is:

* * * * Please everyone, follow these guidelines!

(1) do a post about something vintage.
(2) Visit all the participates and leave a comment.
(3) Link in with the link at the bottom of this post, please use a perma-link to link in with, that way, anyone can refer back to your post if they can not get to it on Thursday.
(4) Be sure to refer back to my blog so everyone can see who is participating today, and if you like include the VTT button in your post. Please be sure to have your post up before linking in.

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!! I saw this one day while surfing the web.....how adorable is this!?!?!

I have a few old aprons, but none with a rooster and hen!! Love this one!!

Have a great Week!!

Happy Vintage Thingie Thursday!!

Vintage Thingie Thursday: Vintage Restaurant Ware Mugs

Welcome to this weeks segment of Vintage Thingies Thursday. Thursday is the day to showcase your vintage treasures and to share your special things with everyone. If you are visiting and would like to join us, please do. It is very easy!
To participate, all you have to do is:

* * * * Please everyone, follow these guidelines!

(1) do a post about something vintage.
(2) Visit all the participates and leave a comment.
(3) Link in with the link at the bottom of this post, please use a perma-link to link in with, that way, anyone can refer back to your post if they can not get to it on Thursday.
(4) Be sure to refer back to my blog so everyone can see who is participating today, and if you like include the VTT button in your post. Please be sure to have your post up before linking in.

Well....I guess you have all wondered what has happened to me! Last week I did not have a post up because the holiday through me off and when I remembered we lost a day (or I lost a day) Thursday was gone!! So sorry about that!!

However, I have a couple of cute restaurant mugs to show you. They were a great find at a local thrift store.

Both are marked Homer Laughlin.

I have a couple of pieces of restaurant china in this pattern. I always pick this pattern up no matter what the piece is when I see it!