Love Comments...Annoyed by Spammers...and HATE Captcha's!

If you have a blog then you know the quandary about whether or not to use the Captcha, or require approving every single comment before it goes live, or requiring every commenter to be signed in to certain networks to leave a comment.  It is not an each decision.  You want to let everyone who reads your blog, to be able to share their thoughts without a hassle.  If your readers have to jump through a bunch of hoops, they may in the end, decide it's just not worth it and keep their thoughts to themselves.  And that is not what blogging is about.  I want to hear your thoughts, even when they are in opposition to my own.

Personally I H-A-T-E when I am trying to leave a comment on someones blog and have to enter the Captcha phrase.  If I'm using my phone, it is so small that I can't hardly see it to begin with, and then my auto-text tries to 'fix' the jumble of letters in a captcha for me.  It never fails that I will get one with the letter 'L' but its in the lower case so I wonder is that and 'l' or and 'I'?  I almost always get it wrong.  And then sometimes that causes my comment to disappear so if I didn't have the forethought of copying it before entering the captcha then its gone.  Grrrr!

So on this blog I don't use the Captcha, but I do require that I approve each and every comment before it goes live.  I do this, which is a total pain in my rear, because it stops the spammers.  Those spammers are awful.  I get at least a few a day!  Their goal is to make a nonsensical statement in hopes that it appears like they have really read the post (so they don't look like spammers), then they include a link to something they are selling or maybe even a link to a page where the unsuspecting clicker will pick up a nasty computer virus.

Image by Vlado at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

It is obvious they haven't read the post.  Most of them look like they were really trying to appear like they did read it.  Many others look like they used Google Translate to put their statement into English, but it ends up about as clear as the instruction manuals that come with the stuff my husband buys at Harbor Freight (where nothing in the store came from within the US borders).

Here are a few examples that I received just yesterday -for your entertainment.  Notice the title of my post they are commenting on, and how their comment doesn't even come close to matching the post.  (NOTE: I have altered their links so they are not click-able and would take you nowhere, but wanted to show them.  Also, I have NOT edited their comments at all...this is exactly how they came.).

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I can't believe that any of these tactics have ever worked for the spammers...but it must or they would stop doing it, right?  So now you see why pre-approving every comment is necessary.  These are all anonymous, but I even get these using fictitious accounts as well.  I want you to be able to share your thoughts without the need to be signed in to this or that.  I don't even mind if you want to remain anonymous, as long as your comment is a true comment related to the subject at hand, and doesn't include a link to something other than your REAL Blog or Website (that isn't selling something).

This is a place to come and share with me and my other readers, not a place to pedal your wares, or try to infect my readers with virus's.  So please understand that the fact that your comment has to be moderated before it goes live is not a reflection on you, it's to protect you and my other readers.

Ok, now lets have YOUR comment...

Image by Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Keeper of 1 husband, 3 dogs,

3 cats, and 17 Chickens!

 

 .

Do You Like My New Header?

I have wanted to include a cool header to my blog for a very long time, but just didn't know what I wanted.  I searched far and wide for just the right image for the background.  I wanted something that kind of defines who I am when you see it, but it also needed to match the general colors and theme of my blog too.  I went through over 9,000 photos on my devices. (Wow, I can't believe I had that many pictures!) I couldn't find one that fit the criteria needed and was of high enough resolution that it would still look good once I made it the appropriate size.

I ultimately found this image at FreeDigitalPhotos.net after searching for a couple of hours.

It took so long because they have so many images, and I wasn't sure exactly what I was looking for.  I had a ball searching through all the images.  And I can tell you this, they are going to be my go-to place for free images to use on my blog in the future.  All of their images are free...Yes, I said ALL and FREE!  You can use any image you find, in the small size, without a watermark, as long as you give credit to the particular artist who submitted it and to FreeDigitalPhotos.net.  How awesome is that? 

Now if you want to use an image where giving visible credit isn't feasible, or if you need a larger or high resolution image, then you can purchase the rights to an image at really reasonable prices.  Go check them out next time you need an image for use online.  Tip: be sure to register before you purchase any images (or even use the free ones) because you will then be able to see your image use/purchase history, and that makes it so easy to appropriately give image credit where needed now and in the future.  You can even download your image again and again from the history page as well, without the need to search for that particular image again.

Just so you know, this is not an affiliate based post, I have no connection to FreeDigitalPhotos.net and they have not asked me to post a review of their product or service, I just loved them so much that I wanted to share it with you.

So, what do you think about my new header?

Keeper of 1 husband, 2 grandkids, 3 dogs,
3 cats, and 17 Chickens!

 

I would love it if you 'Liked' my Page on Facebook too!

Did this post stir something inside of you? If so, Please leave me a comment, I would love to know what you're thinking!!!

5 Facts About Me That You Probably Didn't Know

I enjoy reading blogs on subjects as varied as chickens & backyard farming to techy how-to's, and from living green to entrepreneur networking, but that isn't one of the 5 Facts.  While reading all these various blogs, that have been written mostly by women (and a few men), I've had the opportunity to learn a little something about the people behind the blogs.  In the past I kept my own personal stuff to myself.  Partly because my husband was leery about me sharing too much personal information on the world wide web, but also because some of my beliefs don't fall in line with many of the bloggers that I follow or who follow me.  I was afraid of losing those virtual friends if they knew more about the real person behind the Backyard Chicken Lady.  But as I said in my recent come back post, I've come out of hiding in the closet and I am ready to share more of myself with you.

So here we go...

5 Facts You Probably Didn't Know About Me...the Real Backyard Chicken Lady.

My first name is Anna.  But that wasn't my birth name. I was born PollyAnna. But try growing up with that name.  By the time I finished school I was so sick of hearing children chant, "Polly want a cracker?" or having the nick name "PollyWog."  Throughout my childhood I'd never met another child with my name. However I did meet several old women with this name.  When I was of legal age, and working as a Paralegal, I legally changed my name by dropping the 'Polly' completely.  Now that I am an old lady myself the name Polly doesn't seem so bad, but I'm kind of fond of Anna now.

Family story is that my mother saw this movie the week I was born.

I ride a motorcycle.  When I was turning 39 (but thought I was turning 40) I went through a bit of an early mid-life crisis.  I didn't fear growing older, heck I was celebrating my 40th when it was actually my 39th birthday. (I didn't figure that out until the next day).  Anyhoo...on this monumental birthday I decided that I was not going to live my next 40 years like I had my last 40 (or 39).  Nope, things were going to change.  Yep, I was going to do something I had always wanted to do...I was going to learn to ride a motorcycle.  My new husband rode motorcycles since he was a little kid so we were already surrounded by bikes.  I just needed to learn to ride.  I took a beginners riding course at a Phoenix motorcycle training school and got my license.  Since then I have been through 4 bikes and ridden over 30,000 miles on my own bike.

One of my favorite bikes (#2) a Suzuki Intruder 800.

I am afraid of birds.  Not chickens, I'm afraid of the sky-flying birds, but not just the really scary birds like buzzards and hawks, I am also afraid of crows, sparrows and parakeets too. I can thank Alfred Hitchcock and his movie 'The Birds' for this.  I watch it now and it seems so corny, but when I was a little kid it terrified me.  Still to this day I go into a bit of a panic if a bird flutters its wings near me.

Are you old enough to remember this movie?

I own guns, but believe we need gun control.  I would like to see guns registered like we do cars.  Then if you sell or give away your gun you have to report it so that you wont be held responsible for what the new owner (or thief) does with it.  And like driving cars, if you don't have a license to operate it, you don't get to legally use it.  I think too many people believe all the scare tactics being promoted by gun sellers, that gun control means taking away our guns.  That is so far from the truth, but the truth doesn't sell guns in record numbers.

Reality

We need gun control because not everyone is a sane, responsible gun owner like you. This image is from EsterGoldberg.com a very funny blog I read.

I believe I was born an Entrepreneur.  I have been self-employed most of my life.  I started my first babysitting business at the age of 12.  It truly was a business, I was the only girl in my neighborhood that carried a calendar and was booked up for weeks in advance during the summer after the 8th grade.  I was so sought after because I wanted to be a mom SO bad that I would literally pretend the kids in my care were my own children.  In addition to playing with the kids I would cook their meals, fold laundry, do dishes, vacuum, and still get the kids bathed and in bed on time.  One parent, a single mom, even hired me to just come help her clean house on occasion when her kids were gone to their dads.

I've had multiple businesses throughout my life.  I've been self-employed at everything from being a paralegal to a pet sitter, from a eBay power seller to owning and operating a brick & mortar baby store.  I have had businesses that did well and I've had businesses that failed.  I am currently self employed in a passive business but still find myself constantly thinking about different businesses that I could start today.  I sometimes feel the need to create businesses like you might feel hunger.  My two favorite magazines are "Backyard Poultry" and "Entrepreneur."

[Disclosure: These two are affiliate links.]

So now you know a little more about me.  I will continue to open up about myself in the future so you will learn more about my thoughts and feelings on lots of topics other than just chickens.   But don't worry, I still have lots to say about chickens...and the donkeys I am thinking about raising!

Keeper of 1 husband, 2 grandkids, 3 dogs,
3 cats, and 17 Chickens!

I would love it if you 'Liked' me on Facebook too!

Did this post stir something inside of you? If so, Please leave me a comment, I would love to know what you're thinking!!!

Disclosure: In an effort to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendations, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. Thank you for your support and please know that I will only feature products I absolutely love!. Unless of course its a product review for a product that is terrible, and in that case you will NOT find any affiliate links for that product.

Oh Boy, Has a Year Rreally Gone By Since My Last Post?!?!

Oh boy, has a year really gone by since my last post?!?!  I am sorry for being away so long but I felt I needed to take a sabbatical for a while, I just didn't plan on it being this long.

You are probably asking "Why did you need a sabbatical from a simple Chicken Lady life?  Well, because it wasn't always so 'simple', and I needed to sort out some things within myself.  I originally created this blog to share my journey getting back into chickens, back to country life and living more nature, after being away from that lifestyle for most of my adult life.  But after a while I began to feel that I was boxed in to just blogging about my chickens, gardening, and my living green experiments.  I didn't feel that I could share more about the personal side of 'me' in this journey.  I had so much more I wanted to share and express but felt my readers that came here because they were interested in chickens wouldn't be interested in the other aspects of my life.   This left me feeling that I was being two people -the chicken lady AND the middle aged woman struggling with being middle aged, finding my way career wise or retirement wise, surviving in this hostile political time, and finding place within all of this.  I didn't feel like I was being my true self in only sharing one aspect of myself with you, so I took a break to sort this all out.

During my break, I considered starting a new blog where I would blog about the other 2/3's of my life, but that just felt inauthentic.  So I did what a deer does when faced with headlights of an on coming car...I stood there doing nothing, waiting for the car to hit me.  Fortunately for me the metaphorical car went around me.  Leaving me just standing there still confused as to what to do next, which direction do I go?  So just like that deer, I wondered off into the woods and pondered my decisions.  I doubt that's what the deer really do when they are barely missed by a speeding vehicle, but I would like to think that they at least learn something from the event and stay off the road in the future.

For me the time away gave me some clarity.  I began to realize that to be my true self I had to be willing to take a chance that my readers wanted to know ME, not just the Chicken Lady part of me.  So after much thought, consideration, and soul searching, I am back!  I loved this blog so much.  I loved interacting with my readers, and reading your blogs.  I just hope my readers are still around somewhere willing to give me another shot at this.  I have decided that I am not going to box myself in to just talking chicken (which I do love to do) because there is so much more to me than just that.  This was suppose to be about sharing my journey... chickens were just the springboard to that journey.  You can now look forward to me sharing my thoughts on other subjects, my opinions, and my personal feelings about things other than just chickens.  But don't worry, I will have lots to say about chickens!

Thank you for coming back and understanding that I just needed some time to figure out what direction I wanted (needed) to go in.  I hope you are willing to get to know the true me and take this journey with me fully! 

Keeper of 1 husband, 2 grandkids, 3 dogs,
3 cats, and 17 Chickens!

I would love it if you 'Liked' me on Facebook too!

Did this post stir something inside of you?  Leave me a comment, I would love to know what you're thinking!!!

Distraction can really help in trying times ~ my funny observations

This is our 3rd day of evacuation and emotions have been like a roller coaster for us, but today we got some really good news so we are feeling a lot better.  The hubby suffers from ADHD so he has re-textured our daughters kitchen and fixed every little thing around her house.  I've been using the internet to distract my thoughts.  It was sort of going well until I read a few of my favorite bloggers talking about how their gardens are progressing and how they are canning and freezing their harvests.  This made me think about my own garden that was just getting started, and now due to the evacuation it is not going to get any water for a full week.  I hope it somehow survives.  I did water it on Sunday, but it doesn't look like we will be allowed back home until at least Saturday.

Distraction, I need distraction...Okay, let me share a few things that made me smile in the last few days.

"We each have our own reality to deal with." Our dogs are use to traveling with us everywhere.  When we were evacuated they probably didn't even notice something was going on, we just opened the truck door and said, "Let's go girls!" and they jumped in.  While evacuated we are staying with our daughter in Payson, where we have had monsoon rains every day.  With monsoons come thunder.  Our miniature Schnauzer is afraid of thunder.  So every afternoon when it starts she gets all freaked out and wants to stick to me like glue.  She sits next to me and puts her paw on me somewhere, just to stay literally connected with me until the thunder passes.  So here we are uprooted from our home and she doesn't have a clue, the only thing that stresses her is the thunder.  Okay, maybe that isn't really funny because thunder is scary to her, but it struck me (pardon the pun) as funny because she is oblivious to the reality of our situation.

Big Red -with her dirty beak looking like she just won a grapenuts cereal eating contest! (I had to wet their food so it was like their fermented food they get at home.  They were upset when I gave them dry food to eat.  More on that story soon.)

"Chickens don't lay eggs in times of stress...or do they?"   With all the recent trauma the chickens have been under and the fact that I forgot to bring any oyster or egg shells for Big Red (my only laying hen right now) and she didn't have her coop or nest box, I figured that she wouldn't be laying any eggs right now.  She laid an egg about 30 minutes before the evacuation notice was issued, so I thought it would be her last until we got back home and things settled down.  But last night, while my daughter was letting her little dog out in the back yard to potty, Big Red walked to the middle of the kennel, squatted down and laid an egg!  My daughter has never seen a chicken lay an egg before.  I haven't had chickens since she was a toddler (she is 28 yo).  We were away from the house so she called me to tell me that my chicken just laid an egg!  She was afraid to go in the kennel to get it because she thought the hen would peck her, ha ha.  My granddaughter volunteered to collect the egg.  She went in, picked it up and thanked Big Red for the egg then went inside and put it in an egg carton in the fridge (just like we do at my house).  My daughter was so impressed with her 6 yo daughter for handling this situation (so she didn't have to, ha ha.).

"How well would you pack in an emergency?"  With about 30 minutes to pack everything you, your family, and your pets might need for an overnight (or 7 overnights) away from home, you are bound to forget some stuff.  I forgot many things.  None that I couldn't survive without, but very important things none the less.  Because it was Sunday, it was laundry day at my house, so most of our clothes were sorted out in piles on the laundry room floor.  I grabbed an overnight bag and through in clean stuff from our bedroom.  Since I knew this could easily turn in to '7 overnights', I grabbed a trash bag and scooped up our dirty laundry.  Thank goodness I did that because somehow I managed to forget to pack any clean pants for my husband or socks for me.  So after our first night away I went to take a shower and realized I didn't have clean socks, so my 4 yo grandson gave me a pair of his socks to wear while I did laundry.  Thank goodness for heelless tube socks...his little size made perfect bobby socks for me, Ha ha!  He got a kick out of bragging that his Nanny was wearing his socks!

"Wishing you a long evacuation" Today as my grandkids were leaving to go to their dads house for the 4th of July holiday (not to return until Monday), we had the news on and heard that the evacuation may be lifted as early as Saturday.  My granddaughter asked what that meant.  I said, "If they lift the evacuation on Saturday then we can go home on that day."  She said, "I hope they don't lift your evacuation...I wont be home til Monday and I want to see you more."  Aw, that was the sweetest 'non-well wish' I have ever had.


Writing (blogging) is so therapeutic.  It has really helped me during this tough time.  Thank you to all of my virtual friends for listening.

Keeper of 1 husband, 2 grandkids, 3 dogs,
3 cats, and 17 Chickens!

 

I would love it if you 'Liked' me on Facebook too!

Did this post stir something inside of you? If so, Please leave me a comment, I would love to know what you're thinking!!!