Ok, so I am loading tonights post on my new laptop because I decided to "try" the new blogger dashboard and in doing so I cannot make it work on my desktop, nor at this time can I seem to get it to revert to the "old" but RELIABLE way I used to post. This new dashboard supposedly has some new features that will be really cool if they work but if I sit here and type this out and can't get this posted tonight I will be quite peeved!
I started the day with much anticipation and again had a solid plan for the day. I wont dwell too much on the first issue because having an electrical fencer stolen or any item stolen deserves its own blog post and because I would just once again get myself all pissed off writing about it at this time. The main parts of today's plan was to deliver some heifers to the livestock auction and then travel on to a meeting with representatives of other agriculture groups. The heifers got delivered, in fact they got delivered about 1 1/2 hours AFTER the meeting started and the meeting was another hour away in travel distance, obviously I did not make the meeting. The sound of rushing air related to the picture above had something to do with that.
I did eventually get on the road with the heifers and did what I usually do when I deliver some cattle to the auction. I run the math through my head for the 100,000th time and make sure I did not miss any variables and then I do the "what ifs" and start to second guess myself. I am getting better at not fretting these things but I still do to some degree. I also chart a weight and price level that I expect. I am pretty good about weight guesses but on price I am usually too pessimistic. I have tried to solve this pessimism/cynicism by giving myself 3 options on price.
1. My bottom line price, I would hate to haul something back home but there is a limit to what level I will accept on the bottom side. Lately with a good cattle market this has not been in play for awhile.
2. My realistic expectation of price given the weight, sex, condition of cattle, market prices etc. I watch markets pretty closely so I am usually pretty good at this number.
3. My "pie in the sky" price, which is based in reality but also somewhat of a dream price.
I am sure that the gentleman that delivered this cow to the auction today does the same thing in his mind. He obviously is very conscious about not having too much money tied up in equipment and makes sure he hauls a full load. Like all pictures on this blog be sure and click on them to enjoy them in full size.
The auction barn itself is always a great
place to spend time. So many friends and such great jokes and catching up.
I was hoping things went well when it came my time to sell because these were pretty nice heifers and I also have plenty of bills to pay. It seems with a ranch there is always something such as new tires for pickups. I did that this past week and although my friend Ron who is a cattlemen and also happens to own a tire shop gave me a great deal, tires are still expensive. Here are the new treads and an old one that had "bubbled" that let my tight butt know it was time to buy tires.
So my heifers entered the ring, my price levels as explained above were $138 bottom line, $145 realistic and $150 pie in the sky, these prices are per hundred pounds which is also called "hundred weight" or cwt. The heifers were only 2 pounds lighter than my guess, but they brought $166.50! Sha shing! Now I have to reevaluate the heifers I still have at home for replacements but today's sale just made my day. I don't feel near as guilty about buying this laptop as I did just yesterday.
On my way home tonight I snapped a picture of a beautiful ending to a great day. This sunset picture was taken near the Cold Creek area of Washington highway 24 looking southwest. I was planning on posting a rock song tonight to reflect my excellent mood but here is instead a country song by artist Troy Olsen that is a tribute to Hank Williams Sr. who was a master of "twang". This may be a country song, but it ROCKS it my opinion and you cannot deny the classic roots and super twang factor! Just listen to the song from 1:30 to about 2:30, talk about a little piece of heaven.
I started the day with much anticipation and again had a solid plan for the day. I wont dwell too much on the first issue because having an electrical fencer stolen or any item stolen deserves its own blog post and because I would just once again get myself all pissed off writing about it at this time. The main parts of today's plan was to deliver some heifers to the livestock auction and then travel on to a meeting with representatives of other agriculture groups. The heifers got delivered, in fact they got delivered about 1 1/2 hours AFTER the meeting started and the meeting was another hour away in travel distance, obviously I did not make the meeting. The sound of rushing air related to the picture above had something to do with that.
I did eventually get on the road with the heifers and did what I usually do when I deliver some cattle to the auction. I run the math through my head for the 100,000th time and make sure I did not miss any variables and then I do the "what ifs" and start to second guess myself. I am getting better at not fretting these things but I still do to some degree. I also chart a weight and price level that I expect. I am pretty good about weight guesses but on price I am usually too pessimistic. I have tried to solve this pessimism/cynicism by giving myself 3 options on price.
1. My bottom line price, I would hate to haul something back home but there is a limit to what level I will accept on the bottom side. Lately with a good cattle market this has not been in play for awhile.
2. My realistic expectation of price given the weight, sex, condition of cattle, market prices etc. I watch markets pretty closely so I am usually pretty good at this number.
3. My "pie in the sky" price, which is based in reality but also somewhat of a dream price.
I am sure that the gentleman that delivered this cow to the auction today does the same thing in his mind. He obviously is very conscious about not having too much money tied up in equipment and makes sure he hauls a full load. Like all pictures on this blog be sure and click on them to enjoy them in full size.The auction barn itself is always a great
place to spend time. So many friends and such great jokes and catching up.
I was hoping things went well when it came my time to sell because these were pretty nice heifers and I also have plenty of bills to pay. It seems with a ranch there is always something such as new tires for pickups. I did that this past week and although my friend Ron who is a cattlemen and also happens to own a tire shop gave me a great deal, tires are still expensive. Here are the new treads and an old one that had "bubbled" that let my tight butt know it was time to buy tires.
On my way home tonight I snapped a picture of a beautiful ending to a great day. This sunset picture was taken near the Cold Creek area of Washington highway 24 looking southwest. I was planning on posting a rock song tonight to reflect my excellent mood but here is instead a country song by artist Troy Olsen that is a tribute to Hank Williams Sr. who was a master of "twang". This may be a country song, but it ROCKS it my opinion and you cannot deny the classic roots and super twang factor! Just listen to the song from 1:30 to about 2:30, talk about a little piece of heaven.
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