Journal - July 8, 2002

And this our Journal Readers, is why Jo has been slack for the last week with the Journal.  She spent most part of a week getting ready to go away for TWO days!!  We hear there was  a hundred and forty of them Cormiers there and that they had a really great weekend.  We didn't mind Jo leaving us for two days though, probably first time she's gone in five years and Friday was her Birthday!  Family's probably pretty equal, 50% Amercians came over and 50% Canadians attended.

	Bare with me folks, first day here and they get me to do the Journal!

Hello peoples, my Name is Betsy and today's my first day here, so this is all new to me.  Even though I haven't made it past the kitchen, I can still hear the other guys from afar.  The chatter has just been buzzing today and it's pretty good.  I almost got the zest of who's who and how things work here.  But first, want to hear the rest on me.  Pretty beautiful aren't I?  Jo and Lou are in love all over again.   All three of them, Jesse was here, Jo and Lou,  stand there and make these tsh,tsh, noises to me and I mimick them.  They are all impressed with me!!.   Now if they can just find me a husband, I would be most grateful.  Lou says I'm a diute blue fischer.    So now let's get on with the gossip.

Resting Room, I hear has all those new whiteface violets in there as well as two violet masked  lovebirds.  Jo pulled a switcharoo a couple days ago and divided all those whiteface babies here, males from females.  Why you ask, well it's pretty funny really.  Little cinnamon beauty (whiteface) there and another pied peacface they are keeping,  started playing the wife and husband roles at 12 weeks of age!!  Jo has caught them at 8 weeks trying to do the hanky panky and thought it was quite funny as neither of them could quite figure out what role they each were supposed to be playing!!.  Then she caught them the other day regurating food to each other and chasing everyone else off, well she, I guess figured it was not quite so funny anymore and poof, boys on one side and the Room and girls on the other!.  Oh and the little sky blue linnie up there by herself,  got herself a new cobalt husband too.  Now let's see what else is going on in there, Jo is desprately trying hard to get Candy and Mango to change their minds on breeding.  Mork and Mindy are back in here again  so's Peanut and Kibbles.  Now Jo's got her hands full again.  Queen Betty and Peanut both escaping everyday!.  Betty tried her darnest today, but only Peanut managed to get out today.  But I, Miss Betsy,  escaped twice today, in the Main House to boot.  I just calmly sat on the couch and let Jo scoop me up.  Figure if I'm good, maybe I can become Third In Command in the Resting Room!!!  

Out in the Breeding Hut there's a whole wack of linnies.  I never in my life saw those guys till today.  I saw them today when I escaped and was flying past the Resting Room patio doors.   There pretty cool guys.  Jo's got three of them in the Nursery almost eight weeks old now, and one of them loves to walk UNDER the Nursery  door and come just sit  there at the top of the landing, just looking  way over and way down to the first level.   Mattie has three babies now and Matt, I want you to know, is being a pretty good Dad right now and  giving Mattie lots of  space.  When Jo did her nightly rounds tonight, she discovered the third baby, just born today, has crawled  way down to the end of the nestbox.  Jo scooped the baby up and tucked back under Mom,  hoping everything is going to be O.K.    ...............................to be continued, be right back...............................Sorry folks had to go have a chat with Jo and get more scoop.   Just checked and Mattie's baby is doing fine.  Flo and Foxy have 4 babies now and I guess Jo just took one of them up to her Nursery.  Other than that, not to much excitement out there.  It's full of linnies out there, but so far not much activity.  Sidney is still happily building away at her nest.  Member she is the sloppy Mom, poor Jo can hardly wait till HER babies come!!  Double duty it's called!!.  Opal and Archie should start hatching their babies next Monday and Tuesday and Jo and Lou are waiting in anticipation for that.  See their not sure if Archie is split or not, meaning they are not sure if they will get any babies like Opal.  They are sure hoping (and so are a lot of other people!).    

Now I had better get on with the buzz going on in the Nursery.  It's FULL HOUSE up there!!.   Jo calls it a rainbow as there is every colour under the sun in there now.  Jo walks in there and as soon as they hear her voice, look out!.  She can only let bout 7 or 8 out at a time as they are all over her.   Have you ever seen a half dozen lovebirds trying to get into the food cup at the same time!!.  One of  Lacy and Webster's babies knocked the cup to the floor this morning and before Jo could reach down and scoop him up, he crawled in!!.  Remember the time we told you bout Tucker falling in the formula, well picture  a bright yellow guy with a red face and a nice golden formula all over him.  He was really quite content smacking his chops, even if Jo wasn't!!  Feeding time in this Nursery, you would swear Jo deprives them of food.  None of them have any manners, all trying to get first in line, jumping over each other, don't care who's in the way, just walk all over them!!   Jo had Lou make "trap" doors in the sides of  the apartments, but Jo usually lets them all out the "front" door, all at once,  just so she can laugh at them tripping over each other and then as they get fed, one by one, if they give her too hard of a time, they get put back in thru the trap door.  That's the only way she can sneak them in one by one, without them escaping again.  I told you bout the blue linnies sneaking under the doorway,  lovebirds haven't learnt this trick ...yet!.  They got four more of Mork and Mindy's babies in there, but they have not started feathering yet, so I can't tell you the mutation yet.  Also some more of those whiteface babies in there too.   Oh, and I guess they had a great weekend, Road Trip they called it.  Jo packed up 15 of her babies that are still in the Brooder and took them to Fundy Park with her and then she got together a bunch of cages, filled them with toys and babies, and off to the baby sitters they go.  I hear they had a great time.  So did the babysitter!  Later today Jo is gonna take a bunch of new pictures of them, so we'll get her to post them for you's to enjoy.  Till later folks ............

	Journal Day July 14, 2002.  Jo apologizes for slacking but blames it on us babies and this summer weather.

Well now let's see who is gonna take a turn today, maybe we will let the baby linnie hitching a ride on Jo's shoulder take a turn.

O.K. so they say it's my turn well here I go.  Today is my first outside adventure and boy's is it nice out here! Jo took me to the grocery store, movie store and everywhere today.  What a great day!!  She tried bringing three of us out at a time, but the other guys there wanted to explore the flower gardens and Jo didn't like that.  Says with three at a time we get to adventureas, so only brings us one at a time now.  Those lovebird babies loves to sit in the window and play around.  They are still trying to figure out how to get to those flowers.  In here now we got some of Flo and Foxy's babies and so far they are all going to be little pied fellors.  Mindy and Mork's babies are starting to feather in and so far as Jo can tell, first one is going to be a little violet masked.  Oh and we also got three more of those whiteface babies here and they are ALL going to be double violet guys.  Should have seen the move Jo pulled yesterday.  Remember how she is always telling yous that WE jump in the food cup, well yesterday Jo had the food cup sitting on the drawbridge of someone apartment and without MOVING the cup first, closed the drawbridge, smack .. food cup goes right over the little violet whiteface's head.  Well he was some kinda funny!  Didn't mind that accident at all he didn't,  Got some bonus grub to lick up!  Jo was not so impressed with herself though.  She had to wash the poor little fellow up or the others would have been licking him up too!  We got bout eight babies in here with us now that are at the month old stage that Jo just loves.  They hear Jo coming with breakfast, they peek out from under their stuffed bears, one guy runs out and up to the top of the bear ... then realizes he has to be quick if he wants to be first in line ........ only way to do that he thinks is ........ JUMP... RUN... he made it!!  First in line ... and then comes the rest... fast as those little feets will carry them.   What's this he says, Jo's puttin me down ... but I'M not done yet!.  What .. she's already feeding another guy... stomp my feet a bit .. maybe that will get me somewhere..... no that didn't work.........  oh well, may as well just scurry on back and take a nap... has a bit of egg food .... picks up a cheerio .... and scurries on back...... tucked back under his little teddy bear till lunch time!  

Out in the Resting Room there is a lot of chirpin these days.  With all those new guys, then you got Miss Betsy chirpin from the kitchen.  Oh and get this one,  remember way back... Little Pearl and Seawilly started building a nest so Jo gave them a nest box right in the Resting Room.  She only laid one egg and stopped, so Jo figured she did not like the version of nest box she gave her.  Well silly Jo of all people should have known better, but she left Little Pearl and Seawilly keep that nesting box on as they loved to sleep in it.  Well they did a little more than just sleep in it , as now they have 4 eggs in there so far!  Chain reaction gets started in there now, and it's Miss Jo's own fault we say!!  Jo was told by some breeders of us linnies that have linnies that they show in shows and get all sorts of ribbons for them that they feed their linnies guina pig pellets as long as the main ingredient is aflafa.  Jo ordered and got some and is now trying to get all those guys to eat some.  Guess some of them like it, no problems, but the ones that don't so far, Jo is grinding them up and mixing with their seed mixture.   Oh and get this one, Jo finally after all these months, found a friend that Squak likes and has become buddy buddy with.  And as a bonus Jo's impressed as her new friend has been DNA'd and is a true hubbie!! Now she says, with a name like Squak for Mom, whatever would you call Dad??   Jo also has a sky blue linnie female that she needed a hubbie for .... did we tell you she got a cobalt hubbie from London when those whiteface guys came last week? Anyways as an update, they are now together, the sky blue female and cobalt male,  very happily preening each other and being all in love.  The little cobalt hubbie is so cute, he plays all shy and casts his eyes downwards.  Jo's having a hard time now thinking of names for these guys.  Then we've got the sky blue female  linnie that got matched with a cobalt fella as well,  that Jo's named after her good friend Charlotte who is from Chester, so what  better name for hubbie than Chester.  Charlotte and Chester are now in the Breeding Hut doing their business.  I think now Jo has just about all those linnie guys paired up and named, so now she just has to get those whiteface guys straightened out with lady friends.  She's supposed to be going the DNA this week, so couple more weeks and they should all be couples down there, finally!  But I guess that may all change again in a couple months, as Jo has ordered more whiteface pastal silver cherry spangle, or something like that, from Belgium, again!.  I think I heard her say there was another 6 or 8 of them coming.  Rumor has it, then they plan on selling a couple pairs of the peachface pairs.  Now what do you think, what pairs is Jo going to be able to part with!?  

Out in the Breeding Hut, Matt has really been a good Dad.  That time out did him wonders!  Best Mom and Dad Jo has of linnies so far.  Hatched and fed all four babies.  Jo has two upstairs now that she has to band today and she's not looking forward to that.  Us linnie guys wiggle so much, she has a real hard time banding us.  Opal hatched her first baby yesterday and it's got black eyes, so that means no creamino so far.  Sidney and Slick have 5 eggs so far.  Jo just pulled Flo and Foxy's last two babies bout half an hour ago, so I guess they'll be leaving today.  Wonder who's gonna take their place?  Other than that they are full up with linnies out there, but those guys are so slow to get going.  Lucy and Linus are bout the only two fast on the draw, but then Jo HAD to put them out there, so what does that tell you!  

Hi everyone out there.  My name is gonna be Pascal.  Wanta know how come?  Cause this little girl who has one of the babies sittin on her head was  here last week visiting Jo and Lou with her Dad from Ottawa.  Anyways she just loved us and was askin Jo how she ever gets all the names for us guys.  She is such a sweet little girl and loved us so much, Jo decided to name me Pascal after her. Now Jo wants Pascal to think of a name for my hubbie here and email it to her.  My hubbie here is a cobalt fello and just so shy and cute.

Pascal and Baby Sky Blue Linnie

Here we are again and today Pascal's doing the talkin for us all.  Don't ya's just all think her new hubbie is just adorable?  Jo sure does.  Only linnie she has that does not have any fear factor, but is just plain shy she says!  Lookin at him, you'd think he's scared to death.  He's not, just shy.  Jo can hardly wait till Pascal comes up with a name for her for him.  We are here in the Resting Room now and have I got an ear full for you.  Dear old Queen Betty is laying eggs AGAIN.  Oh Jo is so at her! Jo won't even give her a nest box this time.  Says she does not want her sittin in a dark nest box again for the next month.  This is her third round, Jo still has her babies upstairs weaning.  So Jo's got her all rigged up with a  little open box in the corner of her house and Jo says she's dosen't care if the eggs hatch or not this round, (really she's hopin they don't) cause Queen Betty there,  needs a break to get back into real good shape,  Jo says.   Times like this Jo wishes they had a pill invented for these guys!!  Jo and her other friend Jo are doing some sexing out here today we hear.  That ought to be fun.  Really they hate doing it.  Then sometime this week, maybe today too, who knows, they have to do the linnie toe nails again.  THEN they also have babies upstairs (those linnie babies) they have to sex.  Oh Jo says, it's gonna be a looonnngg day!  Let's see, what else is gonna on out here.  Peanut's up to her old self  again and spending more time out of the house then in.  I got a good one for you.  The other day Jo's walkin thru the Kitchen with three babies on her shoulders.  She hears this chirp, chirp and thinks gee whiz sounds like awful mature chattering, but far away chattering, for these babies.  Looks at her shoulders and all three babies are there.  Now she's sratching her head as she hears the chirp chirp again.  She starts looking and what does she find but Toby and Emient sittin on the top of her fridge!  Jo right away figures,   isn't this gonna be sweet, I have to get those guys now and in a hurry before they get hurt out here.  They were real good though, Jo was impressed with them.  Jo starts to go get her net in a hurry, but those two smart guys, they just fly right on back out to the Resting Room and right to their house.  Now mind you, they were not foolish enough to fly right back into their house, Jo had to coax and guide them a bit, but she never even had to use the net.  She was impressed with them!   Hope she dosen't fool herself into thinking we all will be that good.  I see Lou outside there, he's on vacation this week and next and busy making cages people have ordered.  Jo she's busy there trying to keep us all clean and with so many here on a stop over right now, that keeps her hopping.  Plus those new guys are, one more time, seed eaters so she's got the fun of getting them to eat their pellets like the rest of the guys.  They love their veggies and such, so she's happy bout that.  Jo's got Cookie and Coby in Pig Pen and Jesse old house and are they ever becoming friendly with her.  Seems like whoever is in the houses right next to the door coming out to our Resting Room, just love being there and get so friendly with Jo.    

Out there in the Breeding Hut, Tilly and Tidbet are out work and laying their clutch now.  So's Lucy and Linus, but like we said last week, they had a head start in the Resting Room.  Those two are gonna be another Queen Betty and Barney!   Charlotte and Chester are still checkin things out here.  They haven't done much of anything yet cept make a mess in their Nesting Box.  Nana and Nigel Jo's bout ready to give up on them.  Oh well, she says when they are ready, they will let her know.  Mattie and Matt, Jo is just so impressed with those two now.  They are the bestest parents ever.  They are even feeding two of Opal and Archie's babies now, as they hatched out five little guys and could not feed them all.  Jo has to be up at the crack of dawn though, those two pairs, they wait for their early morning veggies to have breakfast THEN feed their babies.  They are sittin right there waitin for Jo to bring breakfast and they jump right in and start feasting even before Jo has the doors closed.   Sidney and Slick have five little white eggs in there with them now and I hear Sundance and Cassidity are here makin their nest again.  Remember those are the two that have given Jo some violet cinnamons and pied whitefaces.   Jo's still hopin some of us linnies will give her some creamino babies, but none so far.  Oh ya and did I tell you Dot and Dash are here again as well.  Usually they are right at it too, but they are takin their time.  Their the two that give Jo some of each mutation.  

Now up in the Nursery, things are hummin as usual!  Never a dull moment up there.  Those sky blue linnies up there are so spoiled and spend most of their day sittin out on their drawbridge and playin around.  They hate being cooped up.  Wait till they find out what they are in for today!  Then Jo's determined that Flo and Foxy's babies are all gonna be little pied guys, Mork and Mindy have two violets and a slate up there that are wobbling all over the place now, Peanut and Kibbles have four cobalts and a slate in there,  and the list goes on!  She also got three more of those violet whiteface babies up there and they are grown up real fast.   Toby and Emient have two normal greens and a creamino up there now that Jo says are real funny.  The oldest of the normal greens always try to sneak and get fed twice so the other guy would get nothing.  Couple times it worked and he did get a second helpin, but Jo caught on and the other guy got a helpin too.  Queen Betty's little pied is givin Jo a hard time, always wantin to be fed stead of helpin himself.  Jo wishes this fellow would catch on and get eatin as his new Mama is waitng so patiently up there in Ontario for him. 

 ..............gotta go as Jo is startin her nail clippin .............be back later

 I'm back! and Wow what a day!  Jo and the other Jo did toes for sexing on eight lovebirds and three linnies, then they weren't done .. they went and trimmed a lot of linnies toe nails.  They didn't brother the ones who are out breeding.   They did those sky blue baby linnies in the Nursery and they didn't even squarm one bit.  Then Jo got all the paperwork done up and now it's gone to the Postman.   Most the guys didn't give them a hard time, but Jo says you could sure tell the females as they put up such a fuss.    Anyways in between all this clipping today, Jo would take a quick check for her email.  What does she get but a message from Tucker's  new Mom and you won't believe "Poor Little Tucker's Day".   Apparently Tucker decided to try out his new Mom's finger I think and see if it was any good.  So he takes a nip.  Guess his new Mom figured this nipping was a NoNo (which it is by the way) so says she's gonna punish him.  This is the best  part folks , HIS PUNISHMENT ................  to spend the entire day with  his Mom.  I heard Jo telling the other Jo this story today and I near fell off my perch.   Sure hope Matt does not hear this one after him getting that Big Time Out in a separate cage looking in at Mattie!    Now, if Tucker's smart, he'll try to get punished more often!  ..........  Think that would work here guys?  It's been a long day guys and I think I'm going to go to bed now.  Night Night

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