I need chicken soup

Saturday night I came down with what Daddy would call the creeping crud. There is a bug making the rounds up here. Tom was knocked out by it last week, and Friday in the middle of dinner, I got it. Lots of stomach problems and associated trips to the bathroom. Dizziness, nausea, low-grade headache. Strange semi-feverish dreams that kept waking me up all night. After a very bad Saturday night's sleep -- even the cats stayed away because I was tossing and turning so much -- I wound up spending most of Sunday in bed or dozing on the couch. I could eat practically nothing and just sat around moping.

Anyway, since I didn't blog, I thought I would steal part of Tom's post about Urban Chickens. Enjoy!

Urban Chicken

When Teddy and David started raising backyard chickens in Austin a decade ago, I thought they were just, well, strange. Having spent enough time around chickens to be tired of them for life, I still think that, to be truthful.

But strange or not, it turns out that Teddy and David [Michael's note: Teddy is Tom's former sister-in-law. She and her husband David live in Texas.] were the vanguard of the "Urban Chicken" movement, part of the "sustainability" movement.

If the amount of public comment back and forth is any indication, Baraboo, our county seat, is the latest community to become embroiled in a controversy over urban chickens. Baraboo bans chicken coops, apparently, and folks who want to keep a few chickens in the backyard want that changed. I've been watching the letters to the editor for the last couple of weeks, and the back and forth is starting to get heated. Not quite as heated as brawls over the schools, but heated enough to notice.

I'm a little taken aback. Not only was I completely unaware of the Urban Chicken movement, it never occurred to me that you couldn't raise a few chickens in your backyard in Baraboo, if you wanted to do so.

But Baraboo is just, well, strange, at least when it comes to urban animals.

I know that because the other letter to the editor in this morning's newspaper, signed by thirteen people, concerns the Baraboo ordinance allowing two dogs and two cats, with no exceptions or variations. The letter protests a decision by the City Council last week not to consider granting variances to the ordinance.

I'm not sure what variance was requested, but the letter points out that a family having three dogs and one cat or three cats and one dog are relegated to being scofflaws in Baraboo.

I understand, of course, the thinking behind an ordinance limiting the number of cats and dogs per household. A few people have no sense at all, and we've all read stories about the health department finding out that someone has been harboring eighteen cats in a one-bedroom apartment.

My alter-ego, Mischievous Tom, is tempted to write a letter to the News-Republic quoting Genesis 7:2, requiring Noah "of every clean animal, you shall take seven pairs ... and of every animal that is not clean, two, a male and its mate", and suggesting that the Baraboo City Council should look to God's law in determining the proper cat and dog limits.

With any luck, the letter would set the dogs to barking.
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On the Urban Chicken question, I have no opinion at all, other than to note that I've been around chickens enough to know that I'll get my eggs from anywhere but my own chicken coop.

Actually, it is a relief to see letters to the editor about animals. At least I don't think anyone will accuse the chickens, cats and dogs of political chicanery.

But it's a small town. I could be wrong.

BTW, I woke up feeling much better this morning, although I am warned that the fatigue and touchy stomach make hang around for another day or so.

Vince asked about book sales. So far I seem to have sold about 20 (thanks to Kristin for her big order!). For more information, you can check my comment in response to Vince on the Valentine's Day post.