See ya 2011, I am still feelin lucky

Hello 2012, goodbye to you 2011. In many ways I am glad to see 2011 be over. I hate to start with the bad but I want to get it out, put it behind me and focus on the good for 2011. The toughest part of 2011 was the number of cattle I lost for various reasons. I think I can honestly say I lost more animals in 2011 than the previous ten years combined. I know for an absolute fact that I lost more mature cows in 2011 than EVER in my lifetime. Admittedly some were just terrible luck as two cows slid off a canal bank and drowned and I only remember ever losing 1 cow on this place to that in my life. I lost two cows to uterine prolapses and I had not lost a cow to that in over 5 years. I went through a terrible spell of sick calves last spring and although I was able to save many I still lost way more than I usually do on average. Some were my own fault like the 3 big fall calves I lost last spring right before marketing time because I failed to get a trailer door closed properly. That one will haunt me for a long, long time. $2500 or so just *poof* because of a mental error.

Just to finish off 2011 for good measure I had another issue on the last day of the year. We worked all the spring calvers, replacement heifers and calves still here from the 2011 spring calf crop.It was a good day in the beautiful sunshine with no wind and a temperature in the mid 40's. Things went well with the Courneya family helping out and we finished well ahead of schedule. The cows received two semiannual vaccinations as well as an internal/ external parasite injection. Before we left the corrals for a late lunch I went walking through the cows to turn on a water faucet. As I walked I noticed a beautiful 3 year old cow that was pregnant with her second calf standing over a premature calf that she had passed. Most likely this was a result of a bump or push from another cow in the working process or getting bumped "just right" as she made her way through the working facilities. It seems like every bit of bad luck that I have dodged with the cows over the last several years all presented themselves in 2011. Ok, enough, on to 2012 and the good parts of 2011.

It says in my blog header that I am "the luckiest man in the world" most days I actually truly believe that. Sometimes I just flat fail to realize how lucky I am. The cattle market has been tremendous over the last year and at first glance I hated that I lost so many animals in a year when they were worth so much. As my wise brother in law stated I was actually "lucky" that it happened this year because the high prices offset the financial losses of the lost cattle. I also was able to get another center pivot put up this past year that will make the land more productive and overall it was a pretty good grass year. The calves I did raise to weaning and beyond were certainly the best I have ever raised. The first calf heifers I had this past year also did a great job without a single calving difficulty. I am starting to feel lucky again.

Speaking of lucky, I was lucky in the parts of life that really matter. My family enjoyed a profitable year, everyone was blessed with good health and we enjoyed some really great fairs and fun times as the year went by. I have a great family, extended family and many wonderful friends and made many more over 2011. Luckiest of all was I was once again able to spend my days with Mother Nature doing what I have wanted to do since I was old enough to have an opinion. Raise cows and crops to help feed my family and others all around the world. I am approaching 2012 with an open mind. I want to keep my head up, stay positive and enjoy life, just a tic more mania and a bit less depressive please. I am working on a long list of things to do for 2012 not because I am setting myself up for disappointment, but because if I make a long list and only accomplish a small percentage it will still be a long list of accomplishments. Here are 5 things on that list as we head into this New Year.

1.Spend at least 1 hour a day on ranch improvements, fixing fence, maintaining equipment, rebuilding and building things etc. Not a specific hour each day, but an average of an hour a day as the weeks pass. Things over and above what HAS to be done.

2. Take a bit more time off that is not directly related to the ranch, my service to the Washington Cattlemen's Association as President, or the computer. Family focused time off.

3. Manage my finances better, as the finances of the cattle business have improved, I have gotten somewhat lazy and need to focus on that aspect better.

4. Continue to talk to Dad daily in the way I do even though he is not physically here. Especially on those days that the going is a bit rough mentally.

5. I have a blog and Twitter. Facebook, You Tube account and participating in Twitter agchat on Tuesdays evenings, here comes the luckiest man in the world.

Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the Yellow Breasted Chat aka Icteria virens.

Today's picture is daughter Dakota and her friend Miss Shelby and my awesome cow dog Festus helping to water cows on New Years Day. What was that about more time off again?

I am also posting a YouTube video with lyrics that plays in my mind so often as I make my way through my days and as I miss Dad. Enjoy Tim McGraw.

Being 5231 in 2012

Oh man am I ever excited for 2012. Sadly when it comes to this blog 2011 was not a stellar performance in content and especially in regularity. Several things contributed to this but rather than crying like a child and making excuses I am going to rededicate myself to getting back to a better blog with better regularity. I know we are in the time of New Years resolutions and I could make a long list and then feel crappy about my failures by mid February or sooner. I am instead going to make myself a list of 100 “options” for the New Year and then feel tremendously successful if I achieve a 10% success rate. I have some newly found energy and focus and it is other people in agriculture that I have to thank.

There are so many great “agvocates” out there that do so much in telling our story. What is truly amazing to me is how they do it on such a regular basis and do such an incredible job of it. Many of them find the time to actually post DAILY! I figure I have a minimum of 3 posts a month just taking time to direct my readers to other bloggers and “agvocates”. There is a downside to these great people in the fact that the more of them I find the more I prefer reading them than I prefer sharing my own life. I will share some of these incredible people and their contributions as we make our way through 2012. Most of these people I have met through Twitter and if you have an account I would be glad to know and “follow”. My account there is http://twitter.com/#!/TheDailyCowman

To help with this new focus and adventure I went out tonight and bought myself a new laptop. This desktop is getting old and slow and between my maintenance schedule of dumping coffee on the keyboard, blowing off the tower once a year and regular kicks from my boots it has developed a few issues. The new laptop uploaded pictures in about 30 seconds tonight that I have been trying to upload on the desktop for months. I just feel that a blog post is so much more interesting if I can post a picture from my daily life when I post.

These days I am working to get as many cows to cornstalks so they can feed themselves and not be fed expensive hay. Lots of hotwire fence building, panel moving and cow hauling rule the day as we fast approach spring calving. Dakota has been home this week for Christmas vacation and having her help makes the day so much more fun and productive. As this young lady approaches her 15^th birthday she has become an integral part of getting things done around here, I am very proud and thankful for your help Gus. Between her help and her mother going dutifully off to work everyday to earn money to feed us it makes my addiction to chasing cows much easier to indulge in.

One thing you will notice on this blog as we charge into 2012 is that some posts will be much more abbreviated. Some nights it might just be a few sentences or a picture or two but to see that I only did 6 more posts in ALL of 2011 than I did in January of 2010 makes me want to try much harder. I thank all of you that have supported my efforts and as always I am a big boy and any input you have will be gladly taken as to how I could improve.

I tend to relate just about everything in life to mother cows, sometimes that is not always a good thing but you would be surprised how much cows imitate life. One of the things a good mother beef cow does is raise a good sized calf, while rebreeding and preparing herself for the following year. I am going to do all I can to emulate cow #5231B. This little cow has at times been a bit of a challenge because of her attitude but because of her amazing ability continues to stay here on the ranch. Today’s picture is her with her massive steer calf #0231W born in February 2011, clear back in September 2011. This big boy is now being fed out and will provide nutritious, healthy and wholesome protein for a hungry world. His momma will be bringing another stellar child into this world soon I have no doubt.

I also need to shout out a Happy Birthday to a very special lady that turned 21 today. Chelsey, our summer intern is enjoying a few drinks tonight and they are very well deserved. Happy Birthday kiddo!

Today’s real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the Eastern cottontail rabbit aka Sylvilagus floridanus.

Awesome industry

Hey there! Does anyone remember me? The guy that used to blog now and again. *Sighs* life has a tremendous way of being very ironic when it comes to blogging. The "busier" life is the more I see in a day that seems to be blog worthy. The busier life is the less I feel like blogging about it at the end of the day.

Last year about this time I did a blog post entitled "Beef counts and time flies" http://thedailycowman.blogspot.com/2010/12/beef-counts-and-time-flies.html Tonight I am going to mostly focus on how far the beef counts program has come in a little over a year.
What is beefcounts http://beefcounts.org/ ? Long story short, cash and animal donations are taken and matched at a 50% level by a beef processor here in our state http://www.agribeef.com/ . The money generated is then used to purchase high quality beef roasts to help serve hungry families in conjunction with Second Harvest http://www.2-harvest.org/ . There are also Washington beef industry organizations as sponsors including the Washington Cattlemen's Association WCA of which I just began my second year as President, (yea I know people vote really weird sometimes) Anyway, it is a great program and the links will show you how you can help.

So as this year progressed we once again talked about "rollover" auctions that could help raise money for beefcounts. This is a very worthy program but I debated if I could really stand the donation of a $700-800 animal. I went to my Franklin County Cattlemens Association and asked them if they would be willing to go "half". Tom, a fellow cattleman and friend of mine quickly made a motion that the county association buy my calf outright and then donate it to beefcounts. I quickly thanked him for his generosity but said going half would be as much as I hoped or would ask for. Tom then proceeded to tell me it was his motion and that it was to buy the calf at market price and reimburse me and then donate the calf to beefcounts and I should just shut up he politely suggested. Our county cattleman's association is made up of the best people I have ever known. Hard working, honest, good neighbors and very generous. They voted unanimously to buy the calf.

So this was last month and Dakota and I chose calf 1000W a solid black steer calf as the calf to be donated. As we approached this evenings auction we have had quite a story. Our Washington State Beef Commission http://wabeef.org/, asked if Dakota and I would do a radio spot to promote beefcounts. I was all for it because for whatever reason I feel so much more intelligent, sexy and fit on radio as compared to television. So we got a scrip, Dakota and I practiced like crazy for 10 minutes and then did the radio spot at the end of last month. Radio is amazing these days as they can crop and edit so quickly and Dakota and I only did two takes to get the spot done. Overall I was very happy with the spot although I feel my voice is a bit flat. I was really impressed with Dakota though and the final product was acceptable, you can hear it here.....ARRRGGGGGHHHHH, so I cant save a mp3 file as a video and I dont have time to convert the ad tonight. So you will have to wait until a later date for the radio ad, sorry. Here is a picture that is running with the ads. UGHHHHHH........

So tonight at Toppenish Livestock auction calf 1000W entered the ring, he was sold numerous times and the Washington Beef industry raised over $32000 for beefcounts. AgriBeef will match that donation by 50% and with other donations I am sure we will clear $50000 to help feed hungry families in our state. For the month with other county and member donations we have raised very near $70000 for this cause.

I am so proud to be part of this industry, and I thank all of you that donated. I will not soon forget and now I can actually say i sold a weaned calf for over $30000 and it will be true!

Todays picture is one of Dakota and I that has ran with the beefcounts ads. If you read this and would like to make a tax deductible donation it would be very appreciated.

Washington DC and me

Hey everyone and thank you to my new blog fans that have been emailing me! I actually have so much blog material I am not really sure where to start. Since I was last here so much has happened and most of it positive. I was able to enjoy a day on the ranch actually working today and not only did I like it, I craved it and needed it!

I spent a good part of last week traveling and visiting our nations capitol "agvocating" for the cattle industry and the Washington Cattlemens Association. I am here to tell you that there is probably a good 10 blog posts related to that trip alone. Both from an awe perspective, to disgust and humor standpoint. I had been to DC before but not as a lobbying effort and not post September 11, 2001. Things are a bit different in that city than it was prior to that date. The city like so many in the south has its share of humidity and for a fat cowboy wearing a long sleeved shirt, sports jacket and felt hat coupled with being out of my element and nervousness (yes it happens to me too although rarely) I think I could have solved the drought in Texas just with the moisture my body expelled. Having to practically get nude and past security with a a metal belt buckle, steel shank boots and a tin Copenhagen lid got to be quite a chore.

I traveled with my friends and fellow cattlemen Jack (aka heart attack Jack) and Vic (aka Sidewinder). Other than being asked what part of Texas we were from as a bit of a pain in the ass I will say a cowboy hat on the capitol mall gets a whole lot of respect and a few raised eyebrows. I just love being in a place where the people with neon pink hair and fishing lures on their face filling piercings look at you like YOU are the "freak". I think having a conversation with an armed capitol policeman with a machine gun and discussing just how effective said firearm would be at picking off squirrels in the park is something that they rarely get to experience. Jack and I were even invited to join a wedding reception for a beautiful young lady and a military young man because they wanted some pictures to remember their special night with the bride wearing my black Stetson. Good times indeed, however nobody in DC that I came across can drink whiskey like cowpokes from the great state of Washington. The other wonderful observation was the ladies love a cowboy hat and we got lots of compliments and the riffraff seems to clear a path as you walk down the street. It is almost like if you are crazy enough to wear a cowboy hat in DC you are probably crazy enough to dispatch anyone that bothers you.

Instead of going into great detail as to our lobbying efforts I will instead post about some of the more amusing and exciting parts of the trip from my perspective and twisted observations. It started in the park and fly outside the Seattle airport. As Jack squeezed the car into a tight slot I noticed that the guard shack had a sign in the window, "like" us on Facebook! Now I do not have a Facebook account as of yet but I am just not thinking when I do have one I will be "liking" a park and fly parking lot. Then we got to the ticket counter where Jack, Vic and I had a long discussion over checking luggage. Someday when there is Cowman airlines things will be different. All checked bags will be free and any carry on item bigger than a Copenhagen can and a wallet will be allowed but will cost $8,974 per item. It drives me nuts to watch people hold up a flight as they try to stuff a bag that could hold an elephant or half of Rosie O'Donnell into an overhead bin! Before I even had to witness this spectacle I saw something that my mind just could not let go as we waited in the boarding area. At another gate I noticed a dwarf couple (aka little people aka midgets) board a plane. Other than the fact that an unfortunate sight at a strip club in Vancouver BC years ago on a fishing trip made me very midget uncomfortable I also had this thought. Why did this couple really need 2 carry on bags that were at the upper limit of size? I mean really, one shirt of mine, a pair of socks and some denim trousers would not take any more cubic space than a midgets wardrobe for a month.Here I was being very politically incorrect in my thoughts as I headed out to be politically correct.

Our flights were mostly good considering my claustrophobic butt and I only needed 5 beers @ $5 each to make the flight to Atlanta without breaking out a window and doing a DB Cooper minus the cash. Hey that really was not that bad, Jack needed 4 beers and he is not even claustrophobic! After throwing away my boarding pass with my plastic chef salad container in Atlanta I was able to convince Lila at the gate to give me a new one and let me go with my friends to DC. This flight was much shorter and would have only required 2 beers but luckily our flight attendant was not very attentive and only served us one each but also did not charge us. Here we enjoyed our first of many taxi rides of the next few days that ranged from one that was really fun with a guy from Ethiopia that had lots of great reasons why we could become bazillionaires ranching in his home country to one son of a bitch that could do nothing but grunt a pissy "mrumphfff" to any question asked.

This is getting long and I have not even gotten started so a few other quick thoughts;

To a Washington cowboy $150,000 is a lot of damn money, that same amount in DC is equal in perspective to the change in Griseldas ashtray to my total ranch operation.

Our National Cattlemens Association (NCBA) of which our state is an affiliate has some really top of the line people in DC and helped us get face to face access to people that matter and I was thoroughly impressed with their influence, hospitality and genuine down to earth people that did so much to make our trip more productive and enjoyable. I also want to thank the Missouri Cattlemens Association and their leadership for all the conversation, perspective and fun.

A quick karate chop to the steering wheel of a taxi cabs horn means, get the f*ck out of the way.

It is damn hard to find Pendleton brand whiskey in Washington DC.

The waterfront of the Potomac river has some wharf rats that look like they could wean 6 weight calves.

If you are going to join the occupy DC crowd you would get more respect if you did not stand next to a sign saying "corporations are evil" while using your Apple iphone, and AT and T connection and holding a Starbucks coffee while wearing your Nike shoes.

When a flight attendant asks a four year old boy that is in the row in front and across from you "may I get you anything young man?", and he says, "yeah, I need a place to POOP." it is much more amusing to me than it is to his father! Oh my that was solid gold I tell ya!

A young lady flight attendant named Cassidy will probably never have children.

All flight attendants named Patrick are not gay but at least one is. (not that there is anything wrong with that)

You cant tip a flight attendant for providing good beer service but if you give them a $10 bill to throw away as she passes by she probably wont throw it away.

Last but not least, those of you that happen to know Jack should tell him, "It a'int easy Jack!" every chance you get just to see his temple pulse.

Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the Northwestern Fritillary butterfly aka Speyeria hesperis.

Today's picture is an old one of cow #5019w with some birds because although I have a new camera I am not getting my pictures from the media card to load, arghhhhhhhh!

Insane in my own weird way

I am going to try a little something tonight I have never tried here. Going into a blog post with really nothing of a story, an issue or an idea of where this is going. I have done this before but I have never finished the post and certainly never hit the "publish" button. Just for the sake of doing something different I will post whatever I end up with here but will take no responsibility for lameness. It is now 8:51 p.m. and as I cruise the internet, email etc I will try and add to this post over time.

Ok, so I did not get very far. I went to Youtube to watch some footage of the plane crash in Reno. Invariably it does not take me long on Youtube before I check out some music. One of my favorite songs of all time Jamey Johnson sings about the realities of life as he sings "In Color" anytime I think life gets a bit rough this is a good reminder of just how lucky we are to live where we do, and do what we do for a living in a country that despite its problems still is the place many aspire to get to.






We made it through the Adams County fair with "Lebron" getting blue ribbons in both market and fitting a showing. Lebron was the third son to become a show steer of cow #02G a nondescript Hereford/ Red Angus cow that when crossed with an Angus bull produces some really good and easy to tame blue ribbon steers. Dakota had a pretty successful show season with all blue ribbons and one Reserve Champion in fitting and showing. We decided after her first year that we were going to show our own raised calves. This in some ways limits her chances to win against high priced purchased "club calves" but her carcass data and live animal placing has shown as a commercial beef operation we are on the correct trajectory. I tell her the bottom line comes down to dollars and sense (cents). If you pay a high price for a fancy steer and then in the end win a championship ribbon but lose money because your inputs are too high you wont last long in the world of the cattle business. The show ring can be a great learning tool, it can also be a way for people to chase fads and lose their ass. Just like many things in life moderation, learning and having some fun is key. When you do that the profitability thing will slide into place for the most part.

Now, as I posted that last bit of wisdom I listened to many songs including this gem by Everclear with excellent lyrics and drum and guitar twangs. "Insane and rising in my own weird way", you cant ignore the beauty of words like that!





Fall calving is pretty well wrapped up with just a handful of cows left to drop kids. So far it has been excellent with nothing in the way of calving problems or health issues. Knock on wood. Today I rounded up some cattle so I can move a few yearling heifers to a friends lush pasture and take the pressure off the grass a bit. Tomorrow I have a WCA meeting in Ellensburg so the hauling will have to wait until Wednesday. I look forward to tomorrows meeting as I have been a bit out of the loop lately because of the fairs. There really is nothing better than spending a day discussing industry issues with fellow cattlemen.

I was going to post one last thing tonight but in the interest of time and because the subject matter really deserves a full post I will save it. Christine, I love you so much and although I sometimes forget you come from a totally different world, your love of me, our kids and your embracing of what I do means so much to me. Check back for a post tomorrow about this unique love of someone that is not often easy to even like yet alone love.

Today's picture is "LeBron" as a young calf back in March 2010 who had been tagged incorrectly and was giving me heartburn at the time. He is in the lower left of the picture, and remember all pictures ab be viewed in full size by clicking on them.

Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the Beavertail cactus aka Opuntia basilaris.

Nothing to lose

It is way too late to be posting to this blog but I have been wanting to get something posted and now seemed as good as time as any. Tonight I am going to tell the story of "Kobe" a steer that had a bit of a rough go of it in the beginning but in the end turned out just perfectly.

I flash back to April 2, 2011 which is one of two "weigh in" days for two of the fairs Dakota attends and shows at. The day was a nice spring day in the Columbia Basin and Dakota and I loaded her 3 steers named Shaq, Kobe and LeBron in the stock trailer to head to Connell for weigh in day. The loading went fine and when we got there we helped other entrants get their steers weighed and tagged and waited until there was a break in the action to weigh her steers. Shaq went first and all went well, Kobe was second in line and as he was ran up the alleyway I worked on loading Shaq. In the blink of an eye and one open gate and next thing we knew Kobe was weighed but also freed of the confines of the corral. Personally, I think he would have come back to his friends but being in an unfamiliar environment and with the help of some zealous pursuers he bolted and headed for downtown Connell. I jumped in a friends pickup hoping to coax Kobe back to the corral but as the minutes passed I felt more and more like a cheap hooker on a Saturday night, it really looked like we were f*cked bad.

Kobe traveled down the Esquatzel canal and I was a bit late to cut him off at Columbia Avenue so off through the sand dunes he headed. I know Dakota will tell you I had Marks pickup at a 89 degree angle going up a hill but in all reality it was only 87.5%. Kobe traveled, and traveled and went through 3 barb wire fences and was getting more on the "fight" by the second. He went through a few different yards and also took a tour of the partially built new grade school. By this point I had taken an inventory of what the cab of Marks pickup contained and luckily there was a lasso in our possession. The problem was that even though the Olberding family has been in the beef business for generations we have some type of roping disability and my confidence of what the future held for us was not good.

As Kobe ran I could see a place ahead that looked like maybe we could corner him with the F150. Cornering him was possible but the only way to do that was on Dakotas side of the pickup. I made a loop of the lariat, handed it to her, gave a short presentation on how to properly toss a loop, told her the family was full of great ropers, and then prayed to Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, Confucius, Moses, Waylon Jennings, Motley Crue, Larry Olberding Sr. and anyone else that was listening and not laughing at that point. As we approached the point of no return I gently let Kobe bend down the passenger fender like a good Nascar racer at Bristol and told Dakota, "Just throw the damn loop darlin, we ain't got nothin to lose at this point sweetheart!".

The next few seconds seemed like a week and I will remember them the rest of my life. Dakota threw the loop, the loop sailed wide, high and true and gently laid down around the neck of Kobe. The next few seconds seemed like a year as Dakota and I looked at each other in disbelief and realized we would never win the lottery but holy hell we got this calf!!!!!! Now I am not a big Ford man but with a double dally around the steering column and 678 pounds of pissed off Angus steer on the other end the Ford proved to be "built tough". The cavalry soon arrived with more humans and my pickup and stock trailer. We were able to get Kobe into the trailer, shut the gate and travel back to pick up Lebron who wondered just what the hell all the ruckus was about.

We got Kobe home and treated his cut up legs and gave him some antibiotic. Dakota was justly concerned about his future as a show steer. I told her it really was not his fault and we would give him a try. As the spring and summer went on Kobe calmed down, learned to trust humans and he came to really love Dakota and Chelsey our intern. Still, because of his past we always wondered if something would set him off and especially if he would give problems if he returned to Connell for the fair.

Last week Kobe got a blue ribbon in market class and stood as the Reserve Champion intermediate 4H fitting and showing steer. I was so proud of this animal and also of Dakota with what life had presented and the final outcome. Kobe also did great as a bovine gaining over 4 pounds per day and finishing at 1369 pounds. When life looks like it is so imperfect, a bit of perseverance, trust and faith can really pay off! Congrats Gus, and Kobe you will always be a special memory for all of us.

Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the cow, calf, bull, bovine aka Bos taurus which is the most important for us in how we make a living.

Today's picture is Kobe as a newborn last January. I also am adding a YouTube video of a song that captures the essence of this story. Tom Petty sings, "Even the losers, get lucky sometimes."

County Fair

It is hard to believe that it is already September. We got through our first of three fairs over four weeks last week and things went pretty well with blue ribbons. Dakota and her steer named "Shaq" did well but no champion ribbons. She did get into the championship round in fitting and showing and I really thought she has a reserve championship won but the two girls that did win grand and reserve champion did an excellent job and were very deserving.The intermediate 4H division is full of excellent showmen (actually mostly young women) and just to compete in the championship round is a real accomplishment. Even though Dakota has placed higher at different fairs in the past I felt this was her most "successful". She really took things upon herself this year and not once did I feel frustrated at her focus, work ethic or self discipline. Not only did she have her steer responsibilities, she also had volleyball practice every afternoon last week. She did well and as a freshman made the junior varsity team. This is something I have longed for and yet seeing her grow up and become so responsible is a double edged sword. This does not even take into consideration noticing the teenage boys and their staring eyes coupled by their spittle laden chins of drool. Arghhhhhhhh!!!!! Good job Gus (Dakota), we are all very proud of you, love you and you can slow down the growing up whenever you like.

The fall calving continues to smoke along with a calf or two a day. So far it has been really excellent with very little in the way of issues. I am wayyyyyyyyyyy behind on tagging calves and hope to spend tomorrow getting a few more marked. Last weeks hot weather, the first real heat we have had all summer, has been tough on the grass. The fact that the spring calves are now getting big enough to put a fair dent in grass growth is not helping either. I need to move a few cows around to other pastures and I am going to take a few yearling heifers to a friends just to keep the grass from getting overrun. This week it has cooled down and has been very pleasant but the days are certainly getting shorter and although I hope we are at least a month away, in this part of the country it can frost anytime now that we are into September.

So, for lack of other material a few fun observations from the fair and this past week of running around getting steers delivered, harvested and graded for our "Steer of Merit" program.

Subject; teenage boys and girls at the fair.

One thing I love seeing at the fair is the same kid that is shoveling cow shit or washing a steer at 6a.m. in irrigation boots looks quite different at 10a.m. as he/she heads into the show ring wearing their best jeans, starched shirt or blouse and both the exhibitor and the steer have their hair styled to a level that would make Sally Hershberger jealous. Then, in the afternoon another transformation takes place as that kid heads out to practice in football cleats, volleyball spankies (second skin shorts Arghhhhhhh!!!!), or soccer or cross country gear.

As a casual observer and listener to teen communication I noticed quite an anomaly. When the boy is in his t shirt, football pants and cleats heading to practice the girls think he looks "hot". When the boy returns from practice he is wearing the same clothing but is now "gross", "stinky" and "dirty" in the eyes of the female teen. Contrarily, when the girl heads to practice she is viewed by the teen boy as "stuckup", "slutty" and a "full of herself". However when she returns later in the evening wearing the same clothes soaked in sweat she is now "hot". I often laugh because especially the young men have no idea how life changes over time. There was a time in my life when a cheer leading outfit, painted nails and high heels was the ultimate. Now a woman in insulated Carhartts that knows how to sort cattle is a huge turn on. The high heel thing is tough to get over.

Subject; VIP Tent at the rodeo

Last year I commented that I felt the VIP tent stood for very intoxicated people but I changed that this year as the Washington State Liquor control board may read this blog and have some obscure law and send me to a CIA prison in Nocowistan. I now know VIP stands for very inspired parents. Anyway this year the highlight of the VIP tent was watching my baby sister asked to leave. LMAO, granted she pretty much got caught in the crossfire of some wild friends but still. Standing there as Mr innocent was almost amusing as my sister asking the security guard if there was no height requirement for his job! OMG, Sis, that was awesome, I was ready to leave with you in support and protest but I had a full drink.

Subject;blog grammar

Most of the time I first post this on a Word document, then edit, then transfer and post. Some nights, like this one, in the interest of time i post directly. The blog does have spell check but does not do much for punctuation or grammar. Even when I post first to Word I run into a bit of an issue. I type something out and it says "fragmented, consider revising". Many times I know it if f%cking fragmented, hell I am fragmented. Other times I know it is not perfect in a grammatical sense but it is written exactly how I would SAY it. Then I have to decide if I want it to sound like me or sound like an English Professor. I do however have some rules that I cannot break because of my own issue with the specific issue. Your, You're and They're, their, and there are something I notice if incorrect. The one misspelling I notice every time is the word "quiet" as in STFU or soundless. It is so petty but when I see someone post something like, "I told them to be quite!" I cannot help but ask them quite WHAT????? Do you mean quite quiet?



Subject; hitchhikers

I know this really does not fit the fair and sometime in the future I will tell you a great story about a hitchhiker I gave a short ride a few years ago. This is based on a woman and man hitchhiker I saw waiting on the northbound highway 395 on ramp yesterday. Now, I am not a judge and maybe these people just had time on their hands or wanted a scenic route but still. You do not stand on the NORTHBOUND on ramp of highway 395 in PASCO Washington with a sign saying "Eugene, OR". I mean I guess you could eventually get there and it was a small sign and maybe they needed to stop at a cash machine in Cranbrook, British Columbia to buy deodorant or teeth, er I mean toothpaste but it still seemed like a long route to take. If nothing else they should have at least eliminated the "OR" part. That way the could say they were headed north to their friends in Eugene, Saskatchewan.

Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the Western Screech Owl aka Megascops kennicotti.

I STILL have not purchased a new camera so I am posting two pictures that I think have graced these pages before. One is Dakotas show steer "Shaq" as a newborn last February. Then as a weanling last November. I will get a picture added later of Shaq at the fair. He was a good steer and so easy to tame and he really loved Dakota. Cycle of life keeps spinning.

As an added BONUS I am posting Chris Ledoux video of his great song "County Fair"