THE COOP

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Abbott & Costello have nothing on the Chicken Family...

Hi Worldians,

So I'm standing in the kitchen attempting to work my way through two days of debris when littleb sidles up and engages me in the following discussion:

littleb:  Guess what, Mommy, we got some mail from a dog (laughs hysterically)
Chicken:  (Chuckles half-heartedly because kitchen debris cleaning is least favorite thing.)  Oh yeah?  Mail from a dog, you say?  Where is it?
littleb:  What?
Chicken:  Where is it?
littleb:  What?
Chicken:  Where is it?
littleb:  Where's what?
Chicken:  The mail! 
littleb:  It's at home
Chicken:  So where is it? 
littleb:  Home?
Chicken:  NO littleb, the dog mail
littleb:  The dog is not at home!  (Laughs)
Chicken:  The mail, littleb, where's the mail that came from the dog?
littleb:  (Rolls eyes)  I told you already.  At our home.
Chicken:  (Counts to five)  Yes, littleb, this is our home but where in our home is.the.mail?
littleb:  (shrugs shoulders) I don't know.  (Runs off)


Abbott & Costello / Who's on First?

Chicken & littleb / Where is it?





The next time I'll start off with, "That's nice, dear"

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Chicken Letters Volume 3

Dear Target:


I will be shopping in your store on December 24th from 4PM to approximately 6PM.  I would much appreciate it if you would limit store occupancy during that time to 100 occupants or less.  While I normally prefer far fewer people sharing my shopping experience, I do realize that you have a business to run and am willing to compromise.  I will, however, require a dedicated register and register attendant at all times.  Also, if your people could do a quick clean-up of all the aisles before I arrive, I would be most appreciative.  This will most likely require closing an hour before my scheduled arrival, but I think you'll find that the time spent organizing will much enhance my shopping experience and be well worth your time spent.   Don't forget the bathrooms!  Finally, I will require an additional 20% discount off your already low prices because, really, your prices aren't as low as I would expect.  Thank you for your attention to these matters.  I look forward to shopping with you on the 24th.


With warm regards,


Chicken


Dear Butterball,

While we very much enjoyed our Butterball Turkey this year, I have a suggestion that will improve next Thanksgiving's roasting experience.  At least for me.  It will make no impact on the experience of anyone else in my household because, collectively, they contributed nothing in terms of labor, and therefore have no need of improvement.  In fact, I'd say their experience was pretty optimal, on the whole. 

Anyway.  Back to me.  What I really could have used this year was a built in thermometer that pops out when the turkey is done.  It would be really cool if it could also be waving a little US of America flag.  That's what you call brand enhancement, right there.  You can use that idea for free.  You are welcome.   I do realize that there is a probably a cost attached to outfitting all these turkeys with built in thermometers and that you probably, in this economy, are trying to keep your costs down so as to help more people afford turkeys.  That is nice of you, but I need that thermometer so that I do not have to interrupt my tweeting to run back and forth, from computer to oven, checking temperatures.  That's a lot more exercise than I really need want, even if it is Thanksgiving. 

So I put on my thinking cap.  You know, the tall, pointy one that used to say "Dunce" until I changed it because I'm not a dunce, I just need to think more?  That's what my mom says, anyway.  And I had an idea.  How about if you genetically modify your turkeys so that they grow their own internal thermometer?   Yeah, then you won't have to insert one during the processing stage.  Or maybe you could just slip a little mercury and some plastic into their feed, and the whole thing will probably take care of itself.  Just give me a call if you want any more great ideas.  I have them all the time.

Sincerely yours,

Chicken

P.S.  By the way, you could also lose the organs and neck.  Who wants to reach into a body cavity and pull out a bag of organs and necks?  Only old people living in the mid-west, that's who.  Because they still make that giblet gravy, or cook it and feed it to their cats.  Because of the depression, I know.  But the rest of us think it is pretty gross.  You could sell it directly to the cat food company, and they could process it so that the old people living in the mid-west wouldn't have to cook it for their cats to prevent it from going to waste.  They could just buy it from Fancy Feast. 

Dear Fancy Feast:

You're in!  You owe me one.
Later,

Chicken


Dear Kendall Jackson:

Sweetie, it's me, it's not you.  You have to stop stalking me like this. Stop calling after me as I walk by your shelf.  I need a break.  Time to think clearly without your tropical fruit flavors and oak overtones clouding my mind. No, I haven't taken up with Clos du Bois.  We are just friends.  You were always my best guy, KJ.  It is just that your alliance with marlboro is killing me.  I would never  ask you to stop hanging out with him, but he and I have become estranged recently, and seeing you just reminds me of him.  Sure, maybe in the years to come we can get back together for a laugh or two, but for now I just can't see you anymore.  Try to understand, ok?  I'll always love you, KJ.  Stay sweet. 

Love Chicken

Dear Marlboro,

You suck.  You were hot once.  You had me fooled.  I really thought you were a cowboy.  Now you are just dead to me.

Hugs,
Chicken

Dear Santa,

Hiiiiiiiiii!  How are you?  How was your Thanksgiving?  How is the missus, and the elves and the reindeer.  Did Rudolf get that glowing nose problem cleared up?

Question:  How good is good?  I mean, could you clarify?  Because I am confused.  Are we talking Mother Theresa good?  Princess Di good?  There's a sizeable gap there, I'm sure you'll agree.  And then there's the rest of us.  I really want to be on your good side, but I don't want to over do it because then you'll think I am sucking up, and Chicken doesn't suck up.  Even for you, Santa, and you're one of my favorites. 

So just let me know, when you get a chance, exactly how good I have to be.  Do I need to adopt orphans and rescue stray kittens? Or could I just stop stepping on spiders?  If they are in the house, can I still step on them?  Should I go to church more?  Or can I just stop calling my husband a dickhead when he makes me mad?  Should I stop flirting with strange men, or should I sit on your lap at the office Christmas party?  I mean, there are just so many nuances to that one little word, aren't there?  It really is quite subjective, Santa.  Maybe an online list would help me with your expectations.  And a follow-up online quiz would be great for all of us, just so that we know where we stand.  For instance:

1.  How many people did you maim or kill outright in 2010?
a.  none
b.  2 or less
c.  more than 2
d. a lot
e. all of the above

2.  How often did you steal in 2010
a.  I never steal
b.  2 or less times
c.  More than two times
d.  a lot
e.  None of the above

3.  How often did you lie in 2010 (does not include white lies)
a.  I never lie
b.  I only tell white lies
c.  Whenever it seemed necessary
d.  I always lie just for fun
e.  Sometimes I lie, but on the whole, I'm very active

etc.

And then you could have a grading system, see?  People who answer mostly A get all of their holiday wishes.  People that answer mostly B. get 50% and people who answer primarily C. will get 25%.  People who mostly circle D. get coal.  Those answering mostly E. get everything on their list plus a relaxing vacation in an extra special care facility in Vermont.  You can tell them it's the vacation cruise they asked for.  They won't know the difference.  Okay, Santa Baby, gotta go and finish my list, and I'm sure you'll want to take another look at yours, keeping all of this in mind. I look forward to hearing from you soon. 

XOXOXO
Chicken

Friday, November 26, 2010

Thanksgiving Is Over and I'm Thankful to the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills

Hi World,

I hope that if you were celebrating Thanksgiving today that you are well and truly stuffed full of good things.  Well, even if you didn't celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you at least got a marmite sandwich and a bag of crisps.

I've decided that if I get to come back for another life, I'm coming back as someone who gets to sit on my ass all day, watching the parade and then the football game, until it's time to get up and go sit on my ass in the dining room.  That seems like a lot more fun than trying to remember how to make gravy.

To be fair, I spent a lot of time tweeting, which is getting to be a little bit of a problem.  You know, problem, as in a problem that you point out to someone behind a raised hand so that the person who has the said problem you are pointing out has absolutely NO idea that you are talking about them.  Enough of a problem, in fact, that the bushel of carrots I peeled and tried to cook boiled dry on the stove, burned, and stunk the place up.  Not only were we were robbed of that lovely turkey roasting smell, we had to eat dinner smelling the scent of burned carrots, reminiscent of a bad 50's sitcom about newlyweds in which the wife burns everything she cooks and makes horrible meatloaf. 

I'm wordy tonight, aren't I? I'm sorry.  What I meant to say is I burned the damn carrots because I was  busy tweeting and then I ran around the house doing my Lucy Ricardo imitation, which I thought was funny, but caused the people sitting on their asses to roll their eyes.  Which was probably more exertion than they were prepared for today.  Then I had to make more carrots.

Here are some tweets for you, and I didn't even have to lose any sleep over them: 

littleb wants to mail his Christmas cards now. Right now. Tried to explain we are slackers. We don't send cards. He's not buying it.

about 16 hours ago via web

If you r watching the MD parade and you see the Office Max float, can you tweet me the color of the elf's hat? Can't depend on Matt Lauer

about 16 hours ago via web

note to self: You being a flake will not automatically result in flaky piecrust. It does not work like that.

about 16 hours ago via web

lost a follower. I think it was Matt Lauer.

about 16 hours ago via web

What's a good substitute for corn starch? baking powder? Flour? vodka? I'm going with the vodka.

about 14 hours ago via web

Chicken, remember last summer when, in a organizational frenzy, you cleaned out your spices? Did you replace them? That's what I thought.

about 14 hours ago via web

Recipe for Worst Pumpkin Pie Ever: Suspicious can of pumpkin filling, gelatin, sugar, vodka, cinnamon, molasses. Better luck with turkey.

about 14 hours ago via web

And now I will attempt my signature recipe...Boursin Potato and Green Bean Gratin with Pancetta topping. Innovation, necessity, yada yada

about 12 hours ago via web

The number of people in your kitchen asking if you need help will increase in direct proportion to the readiness of the meal. True. Fact.

about 8 hours ago via web


I'm thankful the potato, gratin, greenbean experiment worked out, that the turkey was moist (but not contaminated) and for many, many things

about 1 hour ago via web

In between those somewhere, my left brain hemisphere and my right brain hemisphere got into a fight because, you know, holiday tension and burned carrots and all, and the left side tried to execute a coup to take out the normally dominant right side.  You know who won, because you wouldn't be reading this if old battle axe Righty had gone down with the carrots.  You'd be reading my potato gratin recipe with very exact directions, as if you need a recipe to make potatoes, cheese and cream taste good, and a sweet story about how TWLITB helped clean up after dinner.  You can go find me @chickensfeed if you really want to read about it, but who wants to read about my brain bickering with itself when you could be doing your Black Friday shopping at Walmart, am I right?

Oh.  And then after dinner, I got to sit and watch t.v.  Just reading that back makes me all soft and gooey inside.  I never get to watch t.v. except for Nick Jr.  but S. left the television on when she left and I sat in front of it.  The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills marathon was on.  I watched it for a half hour and then, in what can only be described as a transcendent and beautiful stroke of genius, I hid the remote and told littleb it was lost, whereupon he retired to the office with BigB, who is left-brained and therefore did not have the genius tools with which to even think of hiding the remote, and watched Max and Ruby until he fell asleep drooling chocolate hershey kisses. 

Yes, we can discuss my parenting skills later, but I've never seen a housewives show.  It was fascinating, primal and oh so disturbing, and I loved every minute.  I'm thankful to you, Housewives, for every brain cell-destroying second.  I just hope you went after the left side, which wouldn't be missed much.  Something tells me you did good, because I haven't had one coherent thought since I first considered whether or not your cheekbones and noses are for real. 

And so-for my successful potato-green bean-gratin and moist turkey, a decadent night of trash television, and TWLITB's generous gesture, and for many, many other wonderful things including you guys, I am thankful and fulfilled.  And BigB is thankful I didn't make my special meatloaf.

Enjoy your shopping tomorrow, if you do that kind of thing.  I'll be tweeting and feverishly trying to find that housewives channel.  I'll probably have to wrestle littleb for the remote but I've been working out.  I think I can take him.

Chicken out