Ambulance chaser

Well with another day in Olympia under my belt and a renewed idea of never wanting to be a politician I am back home. I sometimes think one of the greatest things about humans is their diversity in what they enjoy doing or are willing to do for gainful employment. I enjoy politics somewhat but the degree of ass kissing and general inefficiencies of government and the political process is terribly annoying and frustrating. No where else but government and politics would ideas that are utterly absurd be discussed to such length and often implemented to solve a perceived “problem”.

It was nice to be back at home doing what I enjoy doing today. Once you have spent a day dressed up lobbying politicians you really appreciate being back to a place where dirty boots, spitting and urinating outdoors is a reasonably acceptable practice. I want to thank all the fellow cattle industry members who traveled and participated yesterday. I know it can be frustrating and seemingly ineffective but if we do not fight to keep ourselves viable few others will. Anyway, that’s enough about politics and government.

Thankfully nothing bad happened yesterday while I was away. Well, Chris did end up driving my black Dodge flatbed with no muffler to work because I had stolen her vehicle for the day. She was going to take the “brown Ford” but a dome light left on overnight made it unwilling to wake up yesterday morning. She was especially appreciative of the big hay bale on the back that blocked her rear view. The fact that the side mirror had fell out the day prior compounded her frustration. She is also not very keen on driving a rig with a manual transmission but she survived. The only real dangerous moment related to driving the Dodge was the fact that Dakota had to be dropped off in a secret location instead of in front of the junior high where her fragile teenage social standing would have possibly suffered irreparable harm. She described my nice pickup as a “noisy, mud covered, hay hauling embarrassment.”

Being back and watching the calves frolic in the sunshine today was great. The temperature approached the middle fifties today and it sure seems that spring is fast approaching. I won’t count on that because until February comes to a close you never know what may happen weather wise here in the Columbia basin. Now when we get a blizzard in the second week of March people will know it is my fault. The cheatgrass and triticale are both starting to grow and the hills are starting to get that green tint that is so inspiring when you live in the desert.

I really did not have anything of consequence related to day to discuss here but I will share something related to this evening that did strike me as humorous. I have a terrible addiction to smokeless tobacco and I found myself woefully short on the nicotine laden product this evening. I also needed road diesel for my pickup so I made the 6 mile trip to “Bob’s corner store” to take care of both items. On my way I had to pull to the side on highway 17 to allow an ambulance to pass. Since my mind is so scattered at times I decided to Google “ambulance” tonight and learn about the origins and history. I know I have your attention now with that bit of excitement. Anyway when I start something on the internet I often find myself far off course if given a bit of time and multiple mouse clicks. I will not bore you with details but the best thing I found while doing my research is today’s picture. I will get back to the calf pictures tomorrow.

Today’s real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the American coot aka Fulica Americana.

Today’s picture is related to my ambulance study and why I am glad I do not live in Africa with a heart condition!