“Ooh, can I do the next one?”
“Sure.”
“So, we can put them in the coop and release them all when we’re done. That way we don’t have to pick up the same birds over and over again. Just so we don’t leave them in too long. It’s kinda hot.”
Benj grabbed another bird with surprising ease and traded places with me. I handed him the clippers.
“Okay, so just pull the wing out by the tip.” He did. “Then see where the primary feathers end. Right there. Now, just clip them.”
Benj was a natural. He took the bird and softly deposited her in the coop. He and I got most of the birds by hand, only having to use a net on a few at the end. Soon, we had a giant pile of feathers and a coop full of uncomfortably warm birds. When we opened the chicken door, they came flooding out like freed hostages.
“Wow, that went fast.”
“How often do you have to do that?”
“Oh, just when they need it. We clipped a bunch of them back in April. I’ve been noticing more escape attempts lately.” I stuffed all the clipped feathers into the empty bucket and dumped it into the compost pile. “Thank you for helping with that. It makes it go a lot easier.”
“I told you, I love this shit. I don’t mind working outside at all.”
“How are you going to deal in Seattle? It’s cold and rainy. A LOT.”
“Yeah, I know, but I’m going to get a job at a pot shop and see if I can find a farm to work on. At some point, I’d like to have my own farm. I know a lot about what grows well in Colorado, but I don’t know what varieties grow well up here, so I have a lot to learn.” Benj’s face opened up with a broad smile. “I just love getting my hands in the dirt. It calms me.”
“Do you smoke a lot?”
“Not really. I mean, I sample the product, and I have my faves, but I think of it more as a glass of wine. I don’t want to get stoned, just a pleasant relaxed state. I have gone weeks without smoking. I don’t really do edibles. Do you smoke?”
“Oh, not really. Once or twice a few years ago. Not really my thing. But I’m not all judge-y or anything. It’s legal, at least where you’ll be.”
“Yeah, well, I could do without it if I had to, but I like working with the plants.”
We got some loaded nachos from the convenient store, played a charades game on Chloe’s phone and watched an old Western I’d never heard of. We made fun of the movie as we watched it and afterwards.
“You didn’t have to kill me, Joe. I woulda come quietly.” Benj gasped and fell limply onto the couch.
“I hadda do it,” I pleaded to Chloe for understanding, falling to my knees at her side. “The Jones Gang woulda shot up the whole town.”
“You two are so lame.” Chloe picked up her phone and started scrolling through something. I snatched her phone and tossed it to Benj.
“Hey, give that back.” She hopped up, and we played Monkey in the Middle with her phone.
“Okay, you big baby.” On my turn, I handed the phone back to her.
“It’s time for bed, anyway.” I probably just participated in foreplay with the two of them. I put away the condiments and headed for the bathroom. When I came out, they were already upstairs and giggling. “Can you keep it to a dull roar?”
“Will do.” Their laughter echoed throughout the living area.
I put in my earbuds and texted Jodie. I can’t wait to see you.
About ten minutes later. I cannot wait to get home. I miss you.
My mom says ‘fish and houseguests’ Do you know what that means?
Stink after 3 days, right?
Yep.
Oh, well.
Don’t get me wrong, I still like them, just want my house back … and you
Aw. Well, it won’t be long, one more session and I’ll be on my way.
I love you.
I love you, too.
June 14, 2013
Chloe finally reached her limit on boredom, so the three of us spent the day driving around and looking at things and taking endless selfies. We drove down to the dam on the other side of Emmett, and I showed them the park there. We went into Boise and up to the Train Depot, and we could barely see the Capital building for the bushy trees obscuring the view. I showed them the crack in the wall sculpture and around downtown, where the gay bar was, Ann Morrison Park, and since Benj was a comic book nerd, we went to a comic book store on Vista that he reviewed as “primo.”
We made it back to the farm in the late afternoon, and I checked on the chicks before we rode over to pick up Jodie at her house. I know we had planned for her to stay the weekend, but I kept daydreaming that she would stay longer.
Jodie heard us pull up, leaned out the door, and motioned us in. “Come on in, I have a couple of things to grab first.” She headed towards her room, as the gang and I shuffled in.
“Hey, Russ.”
Russ was leaning against the counter, drinking from a small coffee cup. “Hey, there Bilbo Baggins.” Chloe snickered and I swatted her behind my back. He dashed the rest of his coffee into the sink, rinsed the cup, and placed it in the dish drainer. “Last cup, hate to waste it. So, who’s your friends?”
“Sorry, this is Chloe …”
Chloe leaned forward and shook his hand.
“… and this is Benj.”
Benj also
