Nesting

Lois Greiman

I think it started right after 9/11. The nesting, that is. Everyone I know was shell shocked and terrified and needed to hunker down. To regroup. I repeatedly heard that it was then that Americans began returning to their roots, spending more time with their families, rethinking priorities.

But a few years have passed since then. The horror faded somewhat. Things began to rebound a bit. Folks were just beginning to peek out of their nests, to test the air a little when…bam… the economy took a nosedive. People who were living on the edge were pushed into the abyss. Those who thought they were doing well found themselves scrambling to keep their heads above water. Add a population that is increasingly concerned about the fragility of our planet and voila…we’re seeing some rather significant changes. More room on airplanes…less room in local parks. Fewer people in high priced gyms, more people speed-walking down their neighborhood sidewalks. Decreasing numbers of diners at five star restaurants, increasing numbers of diners at MacDonalds.

And it’s affecting other areas of our lives as well. Just a few days ago Michele told me she’s seeing vegetable plants for sale everywhere. Another friend commented that she just heard that there is a huge increase in the number of people who are buying chicks. Which was very interesting to me since I had just purchased…chicks. That’s right…you know, the cute little fuzzy birds that will eventually lay eggs. I haven’t kept chickens since I was a little girl, but we’ve been trying to go organic, and this seemed like a fairly simple means of doing so.

I had told my sister that we were considering adding poultry to the farm, so naturally she called me from the farm store when I was at my mother’s house to inform me that there were some newly hatched babies available and she was going to buy herself some. I said that she could not, under any circumstances, buy my chicks. To which she said, “Oh, let me check. Nope, they don’t have your name on them.” Anyway, to make a short story long, she eventually bought 4 little fuzz balls for me and brought them to Mom’s house. But when Mom saw them, her face lit up like Christmas. Suffice it to say that those little ones stayed with my mother while I trotted back to the farm store to buy four more. The really interesting part of this whole story is that I promised to winter Mom’s chicks for her when she moves back into town in October. It took me a while to realize that by fall they will no longer be adorable little peepers. Nope, I’ll be hauling four angry hens 300 miles in my little Saturn. I’ll try to take pictures just to keep everyone entertained.

But I digress. The point is, I don’t seem to be the only one who is planting strawberries and building chicken coops. Nor am I alone in my second hand gifts and homemade exfoliates. So how about you? Any changes in your lifestyle recently? Are you picnicking more than dining out? Playing table tennis instead of paying court fees? And how about books? Are you reading more and spending less on movies?

Oh, and speaking of books. :) We're giving away a signed copy of our new anthology, Faeries Gone Wild, to one chatty commenter. So, please, chat away.

www.loisgreiman.com