Jocelyn Curry

Art & Joie de Vivre

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As a retired lettering artist and illustrator, I still create a lot of visuals and have fun doing it. My website is a place I can post and share them from my Shoreline, Washington studio in my home.

Chicken “Tractor” Update (Ongoing)

November 23, 2025

Did I need a deep plunge into a new blog site, right when such a time-consuming challenge really didn’t fit into my crowded calendar? The answer, no surprise, is “no” but at least I was able to navigate the mind-befuddling process of transferring the data from my old platform to this new, AI-enhanced version of good ol’ WordPress. My previous experience of working on good ol’ WordPress wasn’t stellar, so I’m hoping to improve my relationship with it asap. So far I have been able to upload my seasonally appropriate squash painting! But now, HOW do I get rid of “Hello World!” which was placed there by Good Ol. I’m not sure about this, but I think Good Ol’s default tips will stay on this, my First Post until I figure out how to discretely remove them without being told “This is not a good idea.” At least I got my squash up on this new site for your viewing pleasure! Happy Thanksgiving :-).


DSCF5475 Progress: a roof, structure fully primed, and ready for the next construction steps. 

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Now that I'm becoming more familiar with the circle saw, the jigsaw, plywood, the square…and now that I'm drilling less like a girl, the chicken enclosure is taking shape a little more quickly. Here's a photo taken this afternoon:


DSCF5415

On Thursday I hope to go chick-shopping!



If this story isn't the most down-home blog topic ever, I don't know what is! But, since curry powder is viewed almost exclusively by friends and family members, there's no need for an upscale, sophisticated publication, right? Let's keep talking chickens…

Before I buy my chicks, their house needs to be nearly ready for them. So here are a couple of photos to follow up on the previous post revealing the sketches for the little chicken enclosure I've designed. I'm now navigating my way through the construction. It's easier on paper! While I'm far from being a skilled carpenter, the structure so far appears that it will be reasonably square and stable. Tomorrow I will bring the plywood home to start cutting the walls of the house portion of the chicken's enclosure. The reasons it's called a "tractor" is that it can be pulled around the yard to provide fresh grass (and bugs & grubs) beneath. Also, larger-scale poultry operations hook up larger enclosures to tractors and move them around the farms. Here are the pics showing the phases:

Lumber
DSCF5365

 

On the left is the raw lumber which I subsequently cut to size for the framing elements. I primed and painted the cut pieces so that they will be weatherproof on all sides prior to being assembled. Above is a photo I took today. In the foreground is the finished skid frame, and behind it is the top frame for the chicken enclosure. The footprint is 3'x8'. I'm keeping the frame as light as possible so that the unit will be able to be pulled by one human ~ without the need for a tractor!

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