Preparation…

 

Today (Sunday, I am late in posting these for my Farmer), Maggie, Logan, Tucker and Cooper Came over to lead calves and work on our display…We have our ideas…all in the same ball park…just need to take a run up to the fairgrounds, making sure there is room enough for all our stuff!!! We will get it to fit one way or the other!!!

With weather looking good for hay next few days, I will have to work some over time to finish Lion, whose frame is taking shape plus some more metal flowers have started!!!Trying to make these flowers all somewhat different, no cookie cutter flower shop here!!!

It’s good Tucker stayed, that way he can do some chores along with tedding and raking hay, so may give me some time to weld during daylight hours, much easier…

This last week will be a push but what years aren’t! The other day I wrote about being excited, well it has become stressingly excited…

*** Maggie and Dad prepping for fair…and so it has begun!

Amazing…

With very few days between rain it amazes me how low the brooks are! The one across the road where some heifers run is down to the point that even I can jump it!

Another pasture where some steers and heifers run has a spring fed pond that is quite low…Almost to the low point it reaches in dry years!

Another odd point I’ve noticed is some of my corn in the tassel stage, where a good drink of water is a must, is beginning to dry down quite noticeably with many lower leaves turning brown!

I have to believe that we’ve had enough rain with the way hay has bounced back so fast if you can get it off! Now, I know I am on gravel ground but these dried up pastures, withering corn, shrinking brooks all while I am leaving tracks in mud in some hay fields…as water squeezes out under the tires of the baler as I’m baling!!

Go figure…is it wet or dry? Every time we get hay to the point I can start baling cloouds roll in, it becomes dark…you know what comes next!!! No, checked weather report six times, it is not to rain till late tonight!!!

Tell me…how can weather reports be wrong so often and those forecasters keep their jobs? Some in our area have been here over 20 years!

Regardless, even today with rain not due in our area till tonight, I fed Atta-Tude this morning in a bit of rain…

Then after unloading four loads from yesterday, went up to bale the last …what I had hoped to be a couple of loads this afternoon as it sprinkled and while I baled 2 loads that smell good and feel fine…just would have liked to have baled it in sunshine!!! Tomorrow I think I won’t even look at the weather and just go more…cause Mother Nature will be Mother Nature!!!

****The photo is of a lily from my garden of weeds…beauty powers through! I also have to a apologize for being so late getting these posts up…this one is from Saturday…(Carol)

My Farmer and Me…It is going to rain…

Because we had no hay ready for today, I have spent the day getting ready for our milk inspectors to come sometime during August. It is just a routine inspection (quarterly) but we do try to be better than just passing…It is pass or fail or re-inspect in ? days. We try to so something extra that will get noticed even if it is only a coat of paint on something.

After the work in the milking parlor, I came in to start dinner — green beans, lettuce, cucumbers and potatoes (Ed dug one hill to see how they are doing) along with some of our farm raised steak.

Well, in the middle of washing the potatoes and lettuce, my Farmer comes in and said he hated to bother me (oh sure) but it was time for another video; he had a grin from ear to ear so I was a bit skeptical…

When he headed out front and said he wanted some of the black sky to start the movie, I kinda knew what was up…I was very close in my thinking!

By the way, he was right…it is pouring right now…I have to do my chores and I don’t even have an umbrella but I do know where to find one!!!

My Farmer and Me…Debuting Scarecrow…

Ed finished up Scarecrow last night and we both put patches and ties along with the old straw on him this morning so he could go out and join Tin Man II.

I have got to admit that Scarecrow is impressive!!!Glad my Farmer has this hobby to keep him sane!!! Which in turn keeps me sane!!! Ha…

Would appreciate any feedback you may have regarding either character about changes/improvements you feel necessary!

Clone, Please…

As we all know they’ve already cloned a sheep, so why not me? Mr Jack of all trades and master of none, willing to try just about anything short of flying!!!

Just think…on days like today when Carol had Dr. appt and was only able to rake one field before she had to leave…with a clone on a day like that, after baling that field, had to rake the next one before I baled it! Instead my clone would have it all raked!

In fact maybe even two clones, one could have stayed at the farm doing chores, maybe even finishing touches on the Scarecrow!!! Maybe even two at the farm keeping the manure spread…those cleanup and repair jobs that need to be done before cold weather sets in!!!

Could even have two out in the fields with me…have tractors enough and if they’re my clones they’d be trustworthy, with a high work ethic!!!

So let me see…two me’s full time right at the farm doing what I do, milking, chores, repairs, creations and so one!!!Then two with me in the fields for hay, corn, planting season, fence fixing, etc…

Four me’s to make what I do now! Makes this I scared sounds way too much like a gov’t job and we know how screwed up they are, with every one pulling in different directions!!!

Way too much stress for this…I to handle nix the clone idea cause if you want something done right, do it yourself!!!

Excited…

With the fair just over a week away, the excitement mounts along with stress of getting enough done here on the farm to spend some time up there ourselves. It is tough getting all the chores done in the morning then run up and try to enjoy the fair, only to come back for night milking and chores!

Have no idea back in the day when we would go back to the fair at night and stay over!! In those days we were 4-H leaders but also barn superintendents in the 4-H barn! Carol and I did just that for over 20 years. Seems as if we would be lucky to get three hours sleep a night!

Oh those parties!!! Lots of reckless fun! Many animals ran wild over a dare, maybe one too many beers. Some neighbors trying to move a camper…ask Mary, she’ll tell you one was wearing a red sweater, right Mary??

Thank goodness the kids knew how to behave…other than the snow cone machine incident…most of their antics were just that…antics!!! In all reality even the snow cone thing turned out more funny than harmful, looking at it today!!

In fact, if you ever see my son Chad, ask him “why not try to hide under a car?’ Best part was the sheriff involved was married to a relative, so when he got telling how bad the whole –let’s call it a prank–was, informed him on some of the things we did…yes, we…some of those ‘you can’t pick your relatives’moments  — you know some of those brain fart moments…relatives I was known to run with…Ah, hell! The beer is cheap and the laughs are plenty! Just as those 20 plus years at the fair were!

At recent fairs, we still laugh-a-plenty …with me that is a must!Would like to win, but in all reality, know it ‘s not in my game! Just hope with the effort and time we put in our exhibit, we it will catch people’s eye… they may stop, we’ll talk…just maybe their next milk purchase will be whole milk and perhaps some real butter!!!

Most likely no one will give me a ribbon or trophy for this, but to me it would still be one of the greatest fairs ever!!!

***The photo–Carol and I when during the time we were 4-H leaders and superintendents…we would show ( in this case, Milking Shorthorns) in the open class once in a while when we were bringing sometimes 15 animals. Just helped out our kids by showing, they didn’t feel so much pressure after the 4-H shows were over. Those were the days!!!

Scarecrow is a Work in Progress…

Ed spends every spare moment in the shop working on Scarecrow; seems that he isn’t satisfied with the total creation. Has lost sleep thinking about his head/face…

So after finding some things that will work better for him, I think it is fair to say perhaps tonight he will get time to finish him…Lots of hay for today…Then on to the Cowardly Lion!!