I love chickens

These are Buff Orpingtons. You may now be thinking, "Man, they'd make good eating." Or simply "Those are some amazingly fat chickens. Wonder what kind of eggs they drop."

Me, I'm thinking of them visually. That photograph looks to me like some kind of strange abstract painting. I just think chickens are cool to look at, with their incredible variety of colors, feathers and shapes. (Before you ask: Yes, I have had to take care of chickens at one point in my life. I didn't want to feed or water them or clean up after them ever again.)

I mention this because Charlotte Nature Museum is having Chicken Day next Saturday (the 18th) from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Buff Orpingtons will be there, along with Silkies, Araucanas, Australorps, and Buckeyes. There'll be both adults and chicks of the Polish breeds. Here's a Polish:

Guests will make paper-cup chickens and hear from naturalists. (Favorite fun fact: Chickens can run 9 miles an hour in a pinch, which is probably faster than I can go.) But the coolest thing about these beasts, I think, will be their beauty. We take fowl for granted -- especially barnyard fowl -- but they're as visually striking to me as a tiger or a lionfish. As proof, one more image, this one of a Silkie. The head is on the left!