Pepperoni, fair wives and 3rd rock from the sun

Hey, good news readers, two posts in the same month! Once you get out of the hospital from your strokes please let me know! Tonight's blog post is going to be a bit all over the board because that is just the kind of day it has been. My thoughts and actions today really fit well with the term "scattered".

I started the day early as I had a full schedule of tasks to complete, each with their own special emotional components. At daylight I loaded 2 older cull cows and 1 cull bull into the stock trailer. The cows were fairly nondescript, just older cows that were past their production prime that needed to be sent down the road. The bull was a bit of a different story. "Pepperoni" was purchased 3 years ago with a specific task in mind. The idea was to take a crossbred bull that was a bit smaller framed and had good fleshing ability, breed him to cows that were a bit too big and inefficient, to produce daughters that are the kind of females I like and want to keep. Sadly for Pepperoni his success at his task was the reason he needed to leave. You cannot have bulls around that will be breeding their own daughters for obvious reasons. For the most part I use only "purebred" bulls and Pepperoni was not a purebred. He was 5/8 Black Angus and 3/8 Shorthorn, a breed I wanted a bit of back in my herd without going too far. "Pepp" you will always be remembered as a favorite by all that knew you, and your daughters will long be a part of the future of this ranch. Here is Pepperoni earlier this month. He also did what he was expected to do, produce some productive, easy fleshing and efficient mothers like this young lady #9207Y nursing her second calf. He not only did he do this, he added blue roan color which has now been a favorite for 3 generations spanning my Dad, myself and Dakota. I know one cowhand up in heaven that will be glad to see you arrive and will put you to work breeding cows.

As I rambled up the highway this morning to deliver cattle I ruminated about last weeks fair and a few thoughts. I share my beef barn Superintendent duties with my "fair wife" Debby. We really work well together because I don't do well with paperwork and Debby doesn't do well with mornings so we cover each others weaknesses quite well. I call Debby my fair wife because we end up spending more time together than I do with my spouse that week. Debby shares in this view but prefers to call me "Debbys bitch" and several red solo cups sported this moniker as the fair week progressed.

Another reason I call Debby my "fair wife" is because of a story from years ago when we first shared duties as beef barn Superintendents. Each night during fair week as the rodeo ends, the VIP area closes and festivities generally end for the night Debby and I make a final check on the steers in our barn. We check to make sure halters and neckropes are tied, nobody has legs over ropes and in general that the steers are content and comfortable. This nightly exercise happens between midnight and 2 A.M. depending on the night. We usually have a few laughs like this year as we witnessed a steer consuming a red ribbon from his exhibitors display faster than we could stop the action. The last thing we do is turn out the lights in the barn. So the story now from our first year of sharing these duties.

One young lady exhibitor (the daughter of some good mutual friends) had assumed all week that Debby and I were married based on our work in the barn. When Friday night (the final night before steers leave) came around I had my "year round" bride Christine with me after the rodeo. I told Debby that I would handle the steer check and light shutdown that night in the barn. As Chris and I finished up the check and as I turned down the lights for the night I got a bit amorous, grabbed a fairly deep kiss, and a bit of a shallower "ass grab" on my wife. Unknown to me this young lady witnessed this exchange and promptly told her parents that Larry had been kissing some shorter lady with darker hair than his wife in the steer barn! Luckily her parents knew Debby and I were not married and saved this poor young lady years of therapy! LOL, The main focus of the week is kids having fun and learning and educating the public. I am very proud of "Larry's kids" in the steer barn as is Debby. I failed to take many pictures last week but here is one with a clean full barn of steers! 68 steers this year up from the low 20's just a few years ago! I always tell the kids in the steer barn that if they feel a bit better than their counterparts in the other bars it is because they ARE better than their counterparts in the other barns!

 So I delivered my auction items, unhooked my trailer and headed 40 miles north to the Washington State Beef commission meeting. What a great meeting and great people we have serving the beef industry in our state. Then it was back to Toppenish, picking up a trailer and a check and then 80 miles home. The day ended checking cows, irrigation water and working with Dakota and her two remaining steers Jerome and Roaneo. Roaneo, the pretty blue roan son of Pepperoni! Remember, all pics can be viewed in full size by clicking on them.

Today's Youtube music selection that encompasses today's scattered thoughts is Joe Diffie singing "Third Rock from the Sun".

Fair, and being as tough as Rambo

Here I am, back after a great and very fun week at the Benton Franklin County Fair and Rodeo. I ran into so many people that asked me why I wasn't getting to my blog on a more regular basis last week. I really appreciate the support and hopefully with the encouragement and support I received I can get back to posting a bit more regularly!

I will warn you now that because it has been so long since I have been here this post will be somewhat long. I have been to a lot of fairs in my lifetime. Both as an exhibitor and now as a parent and co beef barn superintendent. I can honestly say that this last week was as great of a fair as I have ever had the pleasure to be part of. Dakota did about how we expected in her market class. A high blue ribbon but not a champion steer. Being in the commercial cow calf business, showing our own calves and competing against some really stellar competition with calves bred to be "club" calves has proven to be a daunting but fun and rewarding experience for both Dakota and I. As I pondered the week I had a few thoughts about the beef business, family, memories of Dad and my own show experiences, and generational similarities.

People outside the beef business often ask me how in the world can you raise animals that you know eventually will sell and be turned into beef. Believe me it is not exactly easy but the fact that we know these calves their whole life helps a bunch. Rambo was born on Valentines day in 2011 to a very small but very efficient and productive 5 year old cow # 6228B. Rambo was a beautiful bull calf with very pretty markings and Dakota hoped he would become "show worthy".

As Rambo grew up I became as convinced as Dakota that he should be given a shot. By the time he was weaned from his mother last November there was no doubt. Rambo was a very curious and naturally tame steer. We have never had a calf that was so easy to halter break and tame. He just seemed to go with the flow on anything we asked him to do. This is a big part of how I explain this to people, Rambo lived a very pampered and special life. He was washed and brushed regularly, wet down on hot days, fed the best feed and as far as the life of most steers go, he lived the high life. Plus he had the companionship of a young lady that is rapidly becoming a young woman and quite a cattlewoman. 

As we approached fair week this year we knew it would be a bit more difficult than years past to balance all the demands . Dakota was competing for a varsity volleyball spot with 3-4 hour practices each day as well as needing to show and care for her steer. I am very proud of the way she handled herself this week. Her personal responsibility level needed to be high and it was. She struggled a bit in fitting and showing because Rambo had gotten so tame, fat and lazy that he did not really want to stand still or do anything that involved something other than eating and sleeping. She gave it her best shot though and never gave up. The only thing she did wrong was shed some tears after the class because she was disappointed in how she placed. I know she is competitive like her father but the importance is in the effort and drive, no matter the final result. This was proven today as she found out she is going to be a varsity volleyball player for the Lady Eagles this fall. She also received a very handsome price for Rambo at the market stock sale on Friday that will go a long way towards her future education and participation in the beef business. Thank you so much to Tyson Fresh Meats and all of the bidders and purchasers in this years sale. Gus, your Mother and I are very proud of the way you handled yourself this week and your work ethic and focus was amazing!

Saturday night at the fair we load out the steers after midnight for their final destinations. I decided that this year Dakota was old enough to help with this task. She took the responsibility of leading Rambo on to the semi truck. Sure there were some tears shed and I gave her a big hug and reminded her what a great life she had provided for Rambo. I also reminded her that these tears were expected and understood and reminded her of a few moments that she has watched me struggle with losing a cow or calf. I also reminded her that two more steers waited at home that needed her attention and focus as they will head to different fairs over the next couple of weeks. Each of these steers have certain special memories in their lifetimes as well and the circle of life continues. Rambo's older sister had her first calf this past February and  like her mother is raising a beautiful first child that will likely be in our herd for as a replacement heifer for many years to come.

One thing that always made me mad and I had a hard time grasping in my own life was why Dad always made get my butt out of bed early the day immediately  following the fair to go work with him. This morning as I sat on a ice chest with a few left over beverages from the fair on the back porch and pulled on my boots to go deliver fair steers I watched the sunrise come up with Dads memory. I looked over at Dakota pulling on her own boots to go help me and I knew why. The circle of life continues; cows, family, passion, work, community, and toughness is what defines people in the cattle business and I am so very proud to be a part of it. More posts related to this years fair will be coming this week.

Today's pictures that can be viewed in full size by clicking on them are Rambo with his mother the day he was born, and Rambo's older sister raising he first calf.

Part of making it in the cattle business and a lesson my Dad taught me well is being tough. I think this Youtube song by Justin McBride is a bit of an obscure song that embodies today's blog post, my feelings and besides that, you have to appreciate a song with "puke green Cadillac" in the lyrics!


 

A Happy Man

Summer is flying by like they always seem to do and I just have to buckle down at get to this page more often. I did finally accomplish one of my New Years resolutions last week and made a Facebook page. So far I am not really sold on all the joys of Facebook but I will be patient and see how it goes. 

The main reason I wanted to post tonight was because of a couple of events in the world and some memories connected to those events. I have been really missing Dad lately and this memory is related to him and certainly the kind of man he was. Today (well Monday) was the 23rd anniversary of the death of bull rider Lane Frost. Lane was only 25 years old and took hard a hit to his ribs from a bull named Takin care of Business after he had completed his ride. Lane died that day in the arena in Cheyenne Wyoming when a broken rib punctured his heart.

In 1994 there was a movie entitled 8 Seconds based on Lane Frosts short life. Dakota was not even born yet but when she was very young she would watch that movie over and over. All of my nieces and nephews also often would watch 8 seconds at Grandma Judys and Grandpa Larrys often with Grandpa snoozing in and out of slumber as the movie ran. It was one of those viewings of 8 seconds with 5 of his grandkids beside him (Dad) that is the subject of my memory and story.

I don't know the exact event of why so many of the currently birthed grandkids were at mom and dads  that particular day but I know that Dakota, SalliRose, Chase,Alex and Jake were all there. I am guessing this around 2003 or so just by remembering the approximate age of the kids at the time. I walked into the kitchen, said hello to mom and we laughed at how quiet the house was despite the kids being there. Mom commented that they were all upstairs watching 8 Seconds with "papa". I first went up the stairs thinking that I would sneak up behind them and scare them because I knew they would have their attention glued to the screen. When I got to the top of the stairs I noticed the movie was right at the point where Lane, Tuff and Cody were flying over the Cheyenne Days arena. Lanes last ride was about to take place. I just kind of knelt there quietly and watched as the scene took place. For those of you that remember he dismounts after his ride, the bull then turns around and gores him, then he stands up, takes a few steps and collapses. The next scene is of him being carried out of a church in a casket. 


Now that isn't the end of the movie but there was not a dry eye in the family room at that moment. You could tell that even papa was choked up a bit. Very suddenly dad jumped down on the floor on his knees, shut off the television and yelled "who thinks they can ride Red Rock?!!" 5 kids that had just been sitting there in total sadness jumped from their places and started to try and ride the spinning and bull sounding Red Rock aka Dad. He would let them ride for a bit and then buck them off and chase them to the fence (couch). They had all totally forgotten about the sad movie and were now shrieking in delight.


I know my Dad had many happy days in his life so to compare this particular moment to so many others in his life probably would not be fair but I can tell you this. At that moment my Dad was a very happy man, a content man, a man who loved his life, loved his family and loved making all of us happy. I just watched in awe at the way he had handled that moment in life and knew I had a lot to learn still in life. Teaching by doing, showing an example. Thank you Dad for that cherished memory from that day.


I think I may have used today's picture sometime before but it is Dad with Dakota at her second fair.


Today's music selections are from George Fox singing "Here's Hoping (There'll Always be a Cowboy) and Colby Yates sings "The kind of Man He Was." Both of these songs have great lyrics and music and the George Fox song has some great pictures as well! Enjoy!







I miss you buddy and I think about you every day and all that you taught and gave to me!

 

It's Magic

So here it is, months since I have last posted. I really don't have a good excuse, but I do have several excuses. I just cannot seem to get my life in balance seems to be the primary cause. I have stretched myself a bit too thin and it seems like some aspect of life has to always suffer to make the best effort at another aspect. The good news is I think my priorities have been mostly well defined, certainly not everyday, but in general I feel I have pursued the parts of life that had the most importance depending on the day. Keep living, keep striving, keep loving and keep learning are the focus for 2012. Unfortunately, often that knocks the priority of the blog way down.

You will probably be surprised at my primary excuse for not being here lately, not the only reason by any means but the one reason that got me started with ignoring this blog. Many here and those that know me also know how much I love music. The night of the 2012 Grammy awards was tough on me. I tried to watch and follow along on Twitter but as the night ran on I got a bit disgusted with society, even people I usually agree with on most ideas. As much as I love music I dont give musical artists any special standing as far their importance or opinion. The general public however does seem to have a huge regard for musical artists personal lives and opinions. I sat quietly on Twitter and watched as people I really see as great people seemed to be enamored with anyone with musical talent. Don't get me wrong, as someone with zero musical talent I am in awe of what ANY musical artist can do with lyrics and music. Where I lost it was when an artist that was a convicted woman beater was given a Grammy. This was not half as bad as when the woman that he assaulted decided to do a duet with him. I know forgiveness is a Christian trait and maybe the failure is mine but in all honesty it looks to me like the almighty dollar has a value that can erase the past just a bit too easily for many people. This is enough on the issue but honestly it made me want to retreat to my own sheltered, simple and honorable life and most of the world could go fornicate themselves.

This past week two things happened that renewed my faith in the goodness of the people of this country, and it made me ashamed that I even doubted that there are more good people in this country than bad. The big news in my industry this week was the mad cow in California. I applaud the industry, the USDA (yes I really did praise the Federal Government) and most of all the general public of the country. Despite the medias insatiable desire to blow things up and get all drama filled the story stayed informative without hype overruling intelligence and science. Yes the markets took a bit of a panic but it was short lived and as I tracked media the issue faded quickly. I even saw one poll that tried hard to extend the hype with the question "With the madcow in California will you quit eating beef?" The two choices were, "Yes I am worried about the safety of beef." or "No, we have a very safe beef supply." The poll was running 30-70 the last time I checked it.

The second thing that really helped to renew my faith in this country was the labor department deciding to rescind their rules about kids working on farms and ranches. I know many people sent in comments about this terrible idea and especially in an election year we saw how being engaged CAN make a difference in government. Nobody wants kids to be hurt or killed working on farms or ranches. Everybody benefits from the life lessons, work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit that is learned by kids working in rural America! OK off the soapbox and on to whats been happening in life.

Calving season has been absolutely spectacular for me. Every single first calf heifer I own is nursing a live calf and not a single one required any calving help. I did have one young lady that had some confusion and took over another cows calf but I caught the issue and the other cow is now raising the confused mothers biological calf so all is good. I saved a breech birth calf I would have bet my last dollar would not be born alive.Just for you anti agriculture people and animal rights people I must have sucked 20 gallons of phlegm out of this particular calf's lungs into my own mouth in a all out effort to make sure he lived.  The post calving health has been excellent and so far we are having an great grass year. *not just knock on wood, but beat the hell out of a log good!*  I did have some of the common issues that show up and some not so common issues such as a blind calf that kept me busy but overall things have been extraordinarily awesome. Everything is now at the home ranch and almost all the hotwire fence is gathered as well as portable panels and water troughs. Next week is branding and castration week and this family event is something I look forward to every year.

I want to thank all of you that showed concern about my absence from the social media world and the encouragement to come back. I really do enjoy being part of a bigger world and I do have a good selection of pictures from the last few months that I will share as we charge towards summer. Thank you for reading!  


All of today's pictures have a story behind them that I will share over the next few months and they can be viewed in full size by clicking on them. 


Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the human aka homo sapien, yes we really are part of Mother Earths creatures.


Today's Youtube music video selection is a feel good song from my youth. Magic by the Cars. Hey Mikey you remember a night in Cannon Beach Oregon, a roomful of recently graduated young ladies and this song? So far the cattle business has been nothing short of Magic in 2012.

From Hannah Montana to cowgirl tough

It has been a very busy few days and a very busy weekend. Like many people I have to work twice as hard for a week preceding and at least a week after a vacation. I am really looking forward to the coming week and spending some time with my family, friends and other cattle industry members in Nashville Tennessee at the Cattle Industry Convention. I have spent the week getting new fence built so cows can be on fresh corn stalks and getting the feed and water situation set so my being away does not put too much undue burden on my neighbors and friends covering for me while we are away. I am looking forward to this week and am planning to attend my first and second "tweetups" to meet some of my Twitter friends in person. 

The main focus of tonight's post is my youngest daughter Dakota as she turned 15 today. Like any ranch kid although it was her birthday that did not mean there were not chores and other ranch work to be completed. Dakota put in a pretty full day helping her mother and I and I always appreciate her help. I could rave on and on about how much she means to me and how special she is but it is her ability to really be a cowgirl that makes me smile the most. Not only does she really know the cow herd and their history, she does an amazing job of giving input and good advice. Dad may not be here in a physical sense but I see him channeling through her whenever we spend time working together. Sometimes her smart and smartbutt comments and sly grin makes me swear he is telling her just what to say. Like her grandpa and paternal great grandmother she has a special sense about the cows and her presence makes me a better cattleman. This is hard to imagine that a kid that once aspired to be Hannah Montana has become such a great steward of mother cows. Sorry Gus I just had to post this picture! She is also very well rounded and gets great grades, is athletic, is active in 4H and FFA and not only has she had some good success in the show ring with market steers, she also is quite competitive at livestock judging. Here she is getting ready to blast a softball which seems like yesterday but it was years ago. 


 I have really enjoyed watching her grow up but I hate the fact that I have to get older as she does. I cant believe that this picture of her kissing her first show steer (blue roan named Smurf) happened in the fall of 2006. Wow how time flies by and how fast kids grow!


Tonight we traveled to the TriCities and met her sisters and future brother-in-law for dinner. Even though she is quite the cowgirl she just has to choose Red Robin and order their clucks and fries as her Dad sarcastically thanks her for supporting the beef industry. These are the moments where I can't help but think her grandpa has a hand in things just to watch me be annoyed. I just find it believe that these next two pictures are only separated by 3 years. 

On the positive side the older she gets the more practice she has had with a firearm and the more time she has been educated about the danger of teenage boys. I am not overbearing on this issue I just try and make her aware that not all boys are as shy as her Dad was when he was a teen. *Big grin*

I love you Gus and am very proud to be your Dad. You are the reason for today's cowman You Tube music selection by Kevin Fowler as he sings "Daddies and daughters." Happy Birthday!

Griselda and I are Hell on wheels

Hey so here I am, two nights in a row. Actually after remembering about something I was going to post last night I looked forward to getting a post up tonight. I needed to get some pictures today to really do the post justice though but here we go.

Yesterday was the one year anniversary of owning Griselda my 2005 Dodge Cummins pickup. If you would like to go back and see what a great experience that purchase was and how she looked before it got "Cowmanized" go to this link  http://thedailycowman.blogspot.com/2011/01/introducing-griselda.html Cheryl, the nice lady who sold me this gem and also follows this blog may not want to read any more of this post, but I DID warn her what would happen once Griselda met the ranch. LOL

I feel that a pickup, especially a ranch pickup is to be used for work not just as some deliver me to the city form of transportation. I do take care of basic maintenance like oil changes, filters and whatnot but that is about as much babying I am going to give a pickup. I would wash her more often but I cant help the fact that it hardly ever rains here in eastern Washington thus providing a "natural" and "organic" bath. Plus I am a cheap bastard and who has time for washing vehicles anyway? 

So one year later Griselda is not quite as "pretty" as she once was but I am sure she is very happy. She even got the chance to transport a newborn calf in her cab this past week and the calf did not even shit during the ride, that will surely change but you don't want to scare a pickup off too quickly. The first damage to her exterior was because I was not paying good attention while backing up with the stocktrailer. The "Call before you dig" sign in front of our old house took her dent virginity. The next thing to happen was her rear bumper did not seem to be as aerodynamic as I liked so I "tweaked" it just a bit, the sad thing is I dont even really know how or when this happened but I suspect an old Poplar tree stump in the horse pasture is the culprit. Luckily no bumper stickers were harmed by this modification. You may also notice a slight piece of the tail light is missing as well but nobody seems to know how that happened.

Now we move on to incident number 3. I wont go into detail here but somebody chose to try and steal some scrap iron from my corrals last 4th of July. The only details I will give is I highly doubt they will be back and now if they need some scrap they can sell the rearend of their pickup bed and both rear fenders. Well, the bastards would not stop and I did not have my cell phone to call the law so I solved the problem. I will also say that if they were Nascar fans they now know that I learned how to "bump draft" from the master Dale Earnhardt Sr. Sadly, I am sure they had less value in scrap metal than my damages but to be so unamerican and to steal something on the 4th of July REALLY pissed me off! The damages were well worth the laughs and release of anger I was able to experience that night as the sky was filled with fireworks.The Iron Bull bumper did do one hell of a job though and besides a few scrapes to the rhino liner covering it is just like kind of new.

I would like to say that is it but there is one more teensy tiny thing that happened. Somebody leaned a spare stock trailer tire against the bed and then went over a bump where the overhang of the gooseneck pushed the tire into the bedrail. Soon this will be forgotten as now that Griselda has proven herself over a year she will soon be sporting a new flatbed. I see how jealous she gets of my 98 Dodge when we go feed cows. 

I am sure at this point if saleslady Cheryl is still reading she is cringing. Don't worry, Griselda is doing everything I want and need a pickup to do. For an example just today I was talking on my cell phone, tracking a coyote out the window, loading a rifle and keeping my coffee from spilling when I somehow lost track of where Griselda was tracking and ended up ass deep in a snow drift. A little shift of the transfer case, a bit of an engine rev, a quick prayer and a small amount of cussing and Griselda jumped free from the snowdrift monster and thanked me for her new tires. In no time we were back to building fence and feeling bad for Prius owners.

One year has been quite an adventure for her and I am sure she has found her calling. She finds new ways to please me almost daily. I mean who could resist a girl that keeps cold beer for you at the end of a day? 


Duct tape on the license plate, a 6 gun in the dash, Thunder in the hood, heaven from a still, lighting from a jar, brother I am hell on wheels" Brantley Gilbert sings today's Cowman You Tube music selection and dedicated to Griselda who really does enjoy life these days. Remember all pictures can be viewed in full size by clicking on them.

Hypothermia and electric blankets

Ok so here I am, at that point that the creative juices have slowed, the apathy is wanting to take a hold and the excuses not to post are easy. I just cannot let that happen, I have started to see many more views and a few more followers, thank you by the way! So I have to buckle down and get something posted. On the plus side I have already posted 8 posts in 2012 when I pathetically only mustered 30 in ALL of 2011.

So I do not have anything extra inspiring tonight, I dont have a bunch of pictures, so what in the h e double hockey sticks should I post about? LOL, just as I posted the last sentence I REMEMBERED what I WAS going to blog about tonight, but it certainly requires pictures so maybe tomorrow.


What have the last few days been filled with? Checking cows, building fence, chopping ice and preparing and worrying about what the weather will be like when I am away to Nashville next week for the National Cattlemens Beef Association convention. Speaking of "worry" i saw a great quote on the subject the other day, "worry is just a down payment on something that is unlikely to happen." I thought that was pretty good.


I also saw something that once again solidified my opinion that government is always the best answer. *cough sarcasm cough* The US Government via the Center for Disease Control has an ONLINE resource for "What to do when the electricity goes out."   http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/poweroutage/needtoknow.asp Just when I thought about opening my electric freezer to take out a frozen pizza to cook in my electric oven and enjoy while watching my electric television as the electricity was off the government saved me because I used my non electric computer to see what to do. I am just sayin! I especially loved this little nugget of information; Causes of hypothermia, cold temperatures! Well paint me educated for shits sake! No wonder I could not stomach watching the "State of the Union" this evening, that and the fact that my electric television still has no satellite or other connection. The BEST decision I have made over the last 4 years!


Luckily we have not had any power failures lately and last night I participated in a long discussion on a conference call about Animal Disease Traceability in Washington State. Tonight on Twitter I enjoyed a nice #agchat about water conservation issues with people not only across this nation but around the world. Part of the problem is I am just beat tired, my most "favorited" and "retweeted"  post on Twitter so far was last night when I posted, "U know it is heifer calving season when you wake up with your head on the keyboard and drool running out of your mouth at 8 p.m." 


Today's real environmentalist species found on the ranch is the Red Tailed Hawk aka Buteo jamaicensis.


Today's picture is the ice pile at the water tanks which should be melting tonight as we are getting some "Chinook winds"


Today's musical selection from YouTube are the "Sons of Bill" singing "Broken Bottles" with the awesome lyrics of "Hank Williams may have been a lovesick drinker but being a lovesick drunk don't make you Hank."