More harvests from the farm…the ducks have been laying so we have been eating lovely eggs. Here in Belize, the shop bought eggs are really, really bad…they are runny and the yolks are anaemic. You can’t even make a proper custard with them…believe me, I have tried and I ended up with a yellow snot that won’t thicken. Thanks to our Zazen duckies for their contribution to the farm!
Duck Eggs.
Look at the lovely fresh eggs…
Egg Tomato Dish.
I’d love an egg mold to make flower-shaped eggs like these…
Flower Shaped Egg.
I asked Gnome to make me one and he replied with,
“…add it to the list dearest…you might get it in a couple of years time if you’re lucky.”
We have been waiting for the “Iguana Rains” for two days now. At 5pm today we had a slight drizzle but not enough to fill two large water tanks. C’mon then…let’s have a downpour, if not for us, but for the sake of the iguana population; they need wet ground to lay their eggs:
Water!! Yes please!!
The Zazen duckies are also calling for rains through space and time; they need clean water for daily ablutions in the Zen Garden…it is imperative that the dabbling duckies are cleansed for meditation…
Water For The Zen Pond.
And the Paradise Piggies (aka Jedi Piggies, aka Ewok piggies…not officially, mind you) have jumped on the band wagon and are weee-weee-ing for water too.
It’s all in the name of a good cause!
Water Please!!
Anyone know a Rain Dance that is guaranteed to work…100% scientifically proven, double-blind trial?!
Answer: None. Zazen Duckies carry their own light.
Zazen Duckies.
Yes, the Zazen Duckies are meditating under the dappled shade of the kenip tree. They have even made a nesting spot out of old century plants…completely ignoring the modern luxury nests built to international ISO quality standards. The Duckies are doing are it “the organic way.”
Oh, what’s that funny noise….
“Oi!! WEEEE WEEEEE!!! What about us??! Has Mayor Gnome forgotten about us?!!”
Oi What about Us?
Mayor Gnome’s reply:
“Personally I don’t think any of you have a clue about spiritual intent but I am willing to give you a chance. Mayor Gnome always gives chances…get ready for the big move to the Zen Garden!”
Mayor Gnome Shows Grace.
“…oh, and by the way, I contacted George Lucas…you can’t change your name to the Jedi Piggies.”
The Piggies:
“Can we change to the Ewok Piggies instead, then?”
The Zen Garden is ready for the Zazen duckies and they are just in time for a Full Moon Meditation.
Happy Duckies!
What perfect timing! The duckies wish to thank Mayor Gnome for his superb workmanship and stamina.
Mayor Gnome.
The Duckie Monastery is defined by specially chosen rocks and every single rock in the centrally placed pond was hand-picked and laid down by Mayor Gnome himself. Within the grounds century plants have been placed at each corner and there is a beautiful south-facing kenip tree which will provide dappled shade for meditation in the afternoon.
Zen Garden For Duckies.
The duckies are very pleased and are ready for their 12 hour marathon meditation:
“We are ready to contemplate the meaning of life.”
Everyday for the last two weeks, Gnome has been digging out a pond for the Duckies. When Gnome was asked what machinery was used in the pond construction (I think they were expecting some sort of excavator in the answer) he replied with:
“A spade.”
Gnome Magic!
The pond is situated in the middle of the Zen garden and lined with rocks. Since the weather has been so dry, we were a bit dubious over whether it would get filled with rainwater. I mentioned to Gnome with a twinkle in my eye:
“…well, since it is a Zen Garden, can we fill the pond with sand and rake ripples into it? Do you think the Duckies would notice?”
No need to worry though…we had a constant drizzle today and the pond is getting nicely filled up.
Zazen Duckie Pond.
Oh, and we have to thank our doggy for helping Gnome every morning. She apparently thinks that a wheelbarrow should be pulled along by grasping the wheel with her teeth and dragging it along. What a funny dog she is! Gnome couldn’t resist shouting out to me to take a photograph…this is a picture of her in action.
The Paradise Piggies are totally hogging the Blog space with their adamant requests to re-locate to the Monastery. Mayor Gnome is building a Zen Garden to house the Zazen Duckies that have a genuine desire to meditate on the meaning of life. In the last post the Piggies were trying to convince Mayor Gnome of their noble lofty values in a bid to move to the Monastery. But somehow their message lost momentum when Treshawn requested having a baby first and Bob requested growing organic tomatoes and Barbie gave a mixed message about love, light and Jedi Piggies. Mayor Gnome told them to come back when they could decide on a clear and coherent philosophy.
Now this is what the Paradise Piggies have come up with. They would like to start up a School:
School Sign.
They want to call it The School of Life and the purpose of this place is to teach the “dance of life.” In order to convince Mayor Gnome of their spiritual desires, they did a public demonstration with their best dance piggie. This is Johnnie Daybreeze, dance piggie extraordinaire:
The Dance of Life.Dance of Life 2.Strike The Pose!!
They even had a tune to go with the dance…you need to listen to this and imagine this dance piggie prancing in front of you:
Any comments from Mayor Gnome?
“Hmmmmmm…I need to think about this.”
Anything else Piggies?
“Yes, Mayor Gnome just one more request. Can we change our name to Jedi Piggies by deed poll?”
Mayor Gnome called an emergency meeting with the Paradise Piggies earlier in the day. If you have been following the events, you will know that Mayor Gnome is in the process of building a Zen garden to house the Zazen Duckies. The Paradise Piggies have made a special request to move to the Monastery.
Zazen Duckies Inspecting Zen Monastery.
Today Mayor Gnome explained to the piggies that the moving of their gated community of Paradise Pastures would be no mean feat as their home weighs a whopping 100kg (200lb). This would entail the movement of their home across a distance of 100 yards! He explained to the piggies:
A Very Serious Mayor Gnome.
“Piggies, you need to convince me that you are serious about your spiritual goals because moving your house to the monastery will be a lot of hard work…”
Are the piggies ready for the next move? These are a few answers from members of the Paradise Pastures community.
Treshawn Piggie:
Treshawn Piggie.
“I’m ready…just need to have a baby first…”
Bob Piggie:
Bob Piggie.
“I’m ready…spirituality is the most important thing in my life but I need to grow some mmm…organic tomatoes first.”
Barbie Piggie:
Barbie Piggie.
“Yes I know I am ready and it is time to take the next step. Yay…I want to be a Zazen Piggie! It is all about being Jedi, right? With the way of the Piggie, I will find the way…love and light. The force is strong in this one…WEEEEEEEEE!”
In amongst the general piggie noise of squealing and squawking, these were the most intelligible answers that Mayor Gnome managed to get. This was his reply:
“Piggies, you don’t seem know what you want. Come back to me when you can all agree on a spiritual goal!”
Everyday from dawn to dusk, they have bee protesting over their terrible living standards…the coup is getting old and bashed up and fails all duckie coup guidelines.
Old Duckie Coup.
Plus they are upset over the Paradise Piggies getting all the attention. The spokes-duckie for the group stated:
“It’s not just about the Paradise Piggies! We duckies want freedom too. We ask Mayor Gnome to please grant us enough space to meditate, posture and stare into space to our heart’s content.”
But, the plot thickens…Evil Goosie is hatching a dastardly plan to convert the peace-loving group into Anarchists. He’s spoiling for a riot or anything that involves violent pecking and general disorder.
Let’s Riot!!
Mayor Gnome has been forced to work round the clock to restore order to the farm.
Mayor Gnome.
This is a public statement from Mayor Gnome addressing the duckie situation:
“Dear Duckies, I have meditated over your complaints and I will make things right! Right Thought, Right Action. We shall act speedily and build you a Zen Garden!”
In a later interview, Mayor Gnome confessed that he had to take control of the situation quickly. He explained,
“I know what that Goosie is up to. I don’t want this situation getting out of hand…it would be a major catastrophe if the duckies turned to anarchy..”
Yes indeed. Mayor Gnome is true to his word and is building a Zen Garden for the Duckies.
Mayor Gnome Hard at Work.
The Zen Garden is a whopping 30 feet by 30 feet. That should be plenty of space for the Zazen Duckies!!
Zen Garden For Duckies.
Hooray for the Zazen Duckies!! We have a feeling that they might get some prime-time space on this Blog…the duckies’ endeavours on the contemplation of existence is indeed worth reading about.
More harvests from the farm…the ducks have been laying so we have been eating lovely eggs. Here in Belize, the shop bought eggs are really, really bad…they are runny and the yolks are anaemic. You can’t even make a proper custard with them…believe me, I have tried and I ended up with a yellow snot that won’t thicken. Thanks to our Zazen duckies for their contribution to the farm!
We have been waiting for the “Iguana Rains” for two days now. At 5pm today we had a slight drizzle but not enough to fill two large water tanks. C’mon then…let’s have a downpour, if not for us, but for the sake of the iguana population; they need wet ground to lay their eggs:
Answer: None. Zazen Duckies carry their own light.
