"Mail Order Chick", mixed media by Kerry McFall
Tracy’s maill order chicks arrived about 10 days ago – talk about modern day miracles! The post office calls her as soon as they’re in town, and there they are in their little shipping box, all cozy and warm and intact. She does her Chicken Lady magic to be sure they aren’t dying of thirst and/or constipated, puts them in their new cardboard box home with special feeders and lights, and they begin their little Dance of New Life. They cheep indignantly for no apparent reason, they peck at invisible things. They scurry about in a panic when a camera invades their space. They fall asleep standing up, and s-l-o-w-l-y tip over onto their beaks… it’s a hoot!
I drew this one from my photo taken when they were just past the fluffy stage and not quite into the Ugly Pinfeathers Stage, although you can see by her tail that it’s almost Pinfeather Time. She still has remnants of the little “egg tooth” on top of her beak. I’ll have to ask Tracy what breed this is – I call them Chipmunk Chickens, but I’m pretty sure the real name is something vaguely Welsh or British like Easter Egg Orphington or Buff Barred Linkhamshire.
When she grows up, this chick will be moved to Tracy’s backyard, where she will reside in sumptuous luxury in the Palais des Poulets – that’s French for Chicken Palace. I’m sure their coop is without equal in the world of Backyard Chickendom. I’ll have sketch it one of these days!
The quilt analogy in the background is reminiscent of some of my very early chicken-related art, which you can see in my Gallery of Works. I didn’t realize how close the colors were to those pieces until I just now looked up the link. Odd.
