… and a couple of good quality stainless steel shovels, a few lengths of pipe, a large metal tank, a smaller pressure tank, oh yes, and a .22 rifle to take care of any foxes that come after your chickens.
Oh, one more thing, a good genset. Why, you ask again? Because, Esteemed Reader, whichever party wins the next election, electricity bills are going to go through the roof and your indirect tax bill will triple to produce billions of dollars of taxpayers’ cash which is going to be wasted on ‘alternative’ energy sources which will, sometimes, produce energy which will be yet more expensive. More millions is going to be wasted by taking it from some people and giving it to other people who produce useless energy from small home ‘alternative’ generators and receive inflated payments force from the electricity companies – who then have to waste more money ‘cleaning’ the power supplied before it is of any use on the supply grid.
Oh, I almost forgot, more extra taxes, in, (at least,) the billions, which, surprise, surprise, we are not being told about, to build the ‘smart’ grid which will, if successful, like all big government IT projects, orchestrate the disparate sources of supply to ensure that your lights and heating stay on in the winter, (when there’s no sun, in high-pressure conditions, no wind, and in the stormy times, no wave power,) oh yes, and ensure that life support systems and other such minor accoutrements of modern life, like premature baby incubators, for example, never mind trains, the underground, air-traffic control systems…remain in operation. (How much weight do you imagine your TV carries in all this?)
Oh yes, the chickens? Well, since other carbon sources are going to be taxed out of the reach of the working man, you had better learn the mechanics of methane generation from chicken waste, not difficult, and you, at least, will be able to keep your lights on and your computer running so that you can continue to post on DNMyT.
There’s an excellent explanation of what I’ve summarised here, here:
Boadicea's Chariot 
A sardonic and rather frightening picture, somewhat reminiscent of an old Dave Allen sitcom I recall. Many people would simply eat the chickens!
Erm Bravo,
You can’t shoot the fox.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/news/7588111/Fury-after-Sussex-County-Cricket-Club-hired-marksman-to-shoot-dead-nuisance-fox.html
Might I suggest some liberally spread warning notices to deter the fox, and if that doesn’t work we hit him with a rather strongly worded leaflet campaign. 🙂
Or give him a really good telling off?
Zen. Fine, but they’re not watching Corry on my Sony Bravia KDL-52HX903.
I Don’t think we had all this alternative energy bull poopoo when Mr Allen was entertaining us? Brown-outs, maybe?
No, it was in the aftermath of a nuclear war, strangely enough seeing our recent discussion on that subject.
How many hens will be required?
Brendano,
Surely chickens is a more accurate statement. If you only have hens and no cockerel, the community would soon wither.
Ferret, I think of hens as the female birds and chickens as young hens/cocks.
Hens don’t need cocks to lay … we had two laying hens for years. Cocks can be troublesome.
Strange how people don’t use ‘cocks’ in this context any more on account of the other meaning …
But Brendano,
Chicken is the group name regardless of what you think of them as.
We are talking here about sustained methane production not just about eggs. It is the chicken guano that is sought, do pay attention.
Whatever, Ferret. As I say, cocks are an optional extra … it is possible to buy day-old chicks in large boxes (going cheep).
A quick Google would suggest around 800 chickens per home.
Think I will just strap my children to very large hamster wheels and make ’em run!!
Seems a lot easier to me 😉
xxx