Lizard Archives - View from the Front Porch

24 10, 2014

Take Your Chicken to Work Day – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2014-10-24T06:00:22-05:00October 24th, 2014|Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

Mrs. Tucker, the teacher who owns Artimus the Goose of Michaelmas fame, has instituted Fabulous, Fun Fridays in her 3^rd and 4^th grade science class.

I learned this when she appeared with a lizard in a cage one Friday. She explained that the lizard was a North Carolina Anole and the kids were going to observe it during Fabulous Fun Friday and then they would release it.

Well, my chickens were not going to be upstaged by a silly lizard.

I asked if I could bring a chicken on the following Friday. Mrs. Tucker, the teacher, was thrilled.

That is how last Friday became Take Your Chicken to Work Day. I tried to convince Beekeeper Brian to take a chicken to work, but he wasn’t sure they would handle the hour-long commute very well.

I thought long and hard about who to bring and decided Samson was the best choice. He is a rooster, but still he fit in the same category as the chickens. I told him all week that he was in for an adventure on Friday. I’m not sure he quite understood.

When it was time for his appearance, I put him in a dog kennel (without a dog in it) and drove him to the school. He was very quiet.

The students were told to remain calm and still – very hard instructions for 3^rd and 4^th graders. However, they did a fantastic job as I held Samson and talked about his rose comb and the feathers on his feet. They were fascinated.

Then Mrs. Tucker told them if they were really still, I would put him on the table and let him walk around. They were perfectly still and Samson stood on the table.

He wasn’t really sure about walking around. I imagine the table felt different than the ground in the chicken yard.

I’m not sure who was more curious, Samson or the students.

Each student then had the opportunity to hold Samson. Mrs. Tucker explained that chickens poop whenever they need to so Samson would sit on a towel just in case. Samson patiently allowed all 10 students to hold him. As soon as I returned him to the kennel, he pooped.

He wins the Best Behaved Rooster Award for sure. No way a lizard could compete with that.

8 11, 2013

Flexibility and Perseverance – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-11-08T06:00:14-06:00November 8th, 2013|Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A Guest Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

As I was standing at the kitchen window yesterday and noticed a lizard on the ladder outside the window. This is a common sight however, this particularly lizard seemed to be trying to eat something I couldn’t identify.

Upon closer look, I discovered part of the lizard’s skin hanging from its nose. It had shed and was trying to get the last remaining dead skin off its nose.

Fascinated, I watched it rub its head against the ladder repeatedly to dislodge the dead skin with no luck.

I was tempted to go outside and “help” the lizard but I knew it would run away and I would not get to watch this process.

I began to appreciate the lizard’s persistence. It also made me glad I am not a lizard. I’m not sure I have the perseverance to shed my skin on a regular basis.

Next, it used its hind foot to scratch the skin off. This was so remarkable that I had to take a picture.

It amazed me that the lizard could move its leg that way.

I certainly cannot.

I do good to get my legs to walk consistently. Scratching my head with my foot is totally out of the question.

All of which led me to think about flexibility in general. While I may not be physically flexible, I have to be flexible in other ways.

For example, I plan my menu for the week and grocery shop on Mondays. A couple of weeks ago, my husband came home from the doctor with a very specific diet to follow. Very little of what I had purchased and planned to fix for the week worked with the new diet.

Time to be flexible :-)

Teaching requires lots of flexibility. I plan to play a circle game with the preschool class and they come in so wiggly that getting them to just sit down is an impossible challenge.

It’s time for a new plan.

The class right after preschool is the high school class. I go from wearing silly hats and using puppets to teaching on Renaissance music and playing ukulele.

How’s that for flexibility? Sometimes I feel like a rubber band.

At least I don’t have to use my foot to get dead skin off my nose.

7 06, 2013

Miller Farm Friday – Strange Living Arrangements

By judythemorgan|2013-06-07T04:56:16-05:00June 7th, 2013|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|2 Comments

By Guest Blogger Chicken Wrangler Sara

If you’re a regular reader of Miller Farm Friday, you know we have chickens in the coop and in the yard.

We have four daschunds in the house and sometimes in the yard.

We have bees and beehives in the yard.

Recently, I discovered new boarders … lizards aka chameleons

This seems to be a very good year for lizards. We also have a family that lives on our front porch that drives the dachshunds crazy. The critters crawl along the windowsill taunting the poor dogs.

There is also a family living on the back porch – with the bees. And, when I say “with the bees,” I mean in the same house or, in this case, beehive.

I knew no one would believe me so I asked beekeeper Brian to take pictures.

Naturally seeing the lizards reminded me of a song – actually a book with a lizard song,

Lizard’s Song by George Shannon

I read the book to my children when they were young. In the story, Lizard sings: “Zoli, zoli, zoli, rock is my home.”

Of course, in our house we now sing “Zoli, zoli, zoli beehive is my home.”

I’m not sure I would choose to live in a beehive. I think I’ll stick to living in my zoo.

In case you’ve never read Lizard’s Song, click below.

12 04, 2012

NATIONAL POETRY MONTH, who knew?

By judythemorgan|2018-04-13T16:55:06-05:00April 12th, 2012|poetry, Uncategorized, writing|14 Comments

April is NATIONAL POETRY MONTH. I didn’t know. Did you?

Seems back in 1996 the Academy of American Poet established the tradition to highlight American poets and encourage people about the pleasure of reading poetry. It’s all explained on their website.

Though I’m not a poetry writer, I ♥ to read poetry. I’ve memorized many poems by my favorite American poets. I read poems to anyone, willing or not.

To further the observance of poetry month, I’ll be sharing some poems by friends and family. I’ll start with one written by my second oldest grandson.

I may not write poetry, but I am a storyteller so first a little story about how this poem originated.

We were sitting at the kitchen table discussing how he should be doing homework. He’s home schooled, and I promised his parents I’d work with him while he was visiting.

Unfortunately, like father, like son. I remember fighting many a homework battle with his daddy who also hated doing homework. The thought of poetry homework made the task even less appealing, especially when the swimming pool was calling.

He starred outside at the squirrel climbing the pole to the bird feeder. He ate a Pop Tart. He slipped away to play a game of chess with his Pepa.

I marched him back to table and the task at hand. No, I’m not your push-over Nana. Although resisting those big, beautiful brown eyes isn’t always easy!

Then I caught him at the window. Again.

This time he was watching a chameleon on the Maple tree.

I thought he was wasting time and prepared to pull out my mean teacher’s whip! Before I could speak, he pointed to the laptop on the table. “I wrote the poem already.”

And, this is what I read on the screen:

Lizard Poetry

Lazy lizards leap from leaf to leaf

As green as a Sprite can

Lizards like to hide under the weather

Running, hiding, and sneaking around

Crazily, hastily, and hurriedly leaving their tails behind them

The miniature lizards are tiny compared to the big, blue sky

Amazing I think, don’t you agree? How quickly I’d forgotten how little boys multi-task when you think they’re playing.

YOUR TURN: Share one of your favorite poems!