Thoughts from the Middle of Nowhere

Too much excitement around here for me. Monday afternoon the hired hand come running home saying there was a fire. Boy he was excited about it. We went running over to see where it was and what we could do. I told My Darling Wife I didn't want to call it in yet because I wasn't sure where it was. The hired hand wasn't making much sense.

I kept looking over to where he said the fire was and I couldn't see no smoke so I figured it must be pretty small. We finally got to where we could see the smoke and fire and it wasn't to big and I figured we could get a handle on it. I started up the sprayer and had the hired hand drive and we took off to spray down the fire and get it under control. We didn't go very far and all of a sudden the wind came up and off to the races the fire was, running out ahead of us at a fast and furious rate. About this time the hired hand was having all kinds of trouble with the pickup. The clutch wasn't working right. He couldn't get it out of gear, was having a hard time getting it into gear and one time when it dies, it barely wanted to start.

With pickup trouble and the fire running with the wind I decided to radio home and have My Darling Wife call for help. She called the different fire agencies in the area and the neighbors to come give us a hand. I then tried to figure out what was wrong with the pickup. It was real easy to figure out, the hired hand had overheated the engine. We were idling along spraying out fire and he had the air conditioner on which causes my pickup to overheat. I popped the radiator cap and watched the steam plume all over and filled it with water from the sprayer and we were off again with stern warnings about the a/c and radio staying off.

At this point I backed off and regrouped. The fire was really going so I had to come up with a plan. I started by trying to get the west side of the fire out up to the alfalfa fields. There was a couple miles on the east side before the fire found any timber but we were all ready only about 100 yards away from timber on the west side so I wanted to keep it out of the timbered hills. That's really hard to fight once its in the timber.

I just was getting that done when the helicopter arrived to start helping. Boy was I glad to see it. That meant more help was coming. The wind had died down by now so it wasn't to bad fighting the fire and we kept working around it as more and more people showed up and we all got it shutdown. What a relief. Was I ever exhausted by this point. It's amazing how hard a person can work when doing something like this and not even relize it. My throat still hurts from the smoke I inhaled. At times it was so thick that I couldn't see or breathe very well and it really got to my lungs. That's what happens though.

It burned around 50-75 acres of grass. The hired hand and I have been taking turns sitting on it making sure it is staying out. Put out any smokes we see and monitor the situation. I am feeling pretty comfortable that it is out now and we can relax a little. Now if I just don't get any more thunderstorms around here. That's how we figured this one started, we heard some thunder of rumbles on Sunday night so there must have been a strike that we were not aware of. Hoping for no more.

I would like to thank everyone that responded. Neighbors, county, BIA, all the help was appreciated to stop this.

We consider the beauty of nature and art with pleasure and satisfaction, without the slightest movement of desire. Moses Mendelssohn

It's amazing the difference a year can make. Last year I would have given anything to get some rain. This year I am to the point I will give anything to get it to quit raining. It has rained the last 3 days here and we have gotten over 4 inches of rain. Total in the past month we have received over 8 inches of rain. More than all year last year I swear.

On Sunday I was gathering some drys and was riding across a hay field. It hadn't rained for 3 days at that point and the field was so wet the horse was sinking in to his hocks and water was splashing up at every step. It was like a damn swamp, that is for sure. No matter where I rode, a field or grass land, you would be going along fine and then all of a sudden find a soft spot and the horse would almost come to a full stop with his hooves buried in mud. Then this whole week it has been raining more.

WE DON'T NEED TO MAKE UP FOR YEARS OF DROUGHT WITH THIS MUCH RAIN IN ONE MONTH. It's just crazy.

I finally got a hired man hired. We went for a while with no nibbles for the job when all of a sudden there were 3 candidates for the job. I hired the best one I think but as usual I really don't think he will last long. He only took this job because a better paying job fell through elsewhere. I'll see though.

As soon as it dries out I need to get quite a few things done. Normally i would be putting bulls out today but the weather has been preventing me from getting some preliminaries done so they are going to be delayed a few days. Hopefully by the middle of next week i can get them out. I would like to get the rest of the dries out then too. Whether it will be dry enough I am not sure but I will find out.

Last year the alfalfa fields on the Sarpy side had some weevil in them but I let it go because the little bit of hay was not worth spraying. This year the weevil are eating the fields alive. It's too wet to spray right now but as soon as it is clear enough a guy is supposed to spray them. Fourteen dollars and acre to spray for weevil but there is enough hay on them to make it worth spraying so spray I will.

It's amazing the difference from one year to the next. It makes it a challenge all the time. I guess that is not a bad thing but it gets tiring once in a while. Can't things just be easy once in a while?

We don't change what we are, we change what we think what we are. Eric Butterworth

I know posting has been lacking here of late but I have been fairly busy and not had much time to post. I finally got all the cattle where I wanted them this week and got some farming done.

I finished the renovating Saturday, covered almost 800 acres in 4 days, and am now working on the field I want to plant. Should finish getting seed in the ground, 120 acres, by Wednesday at the latest. I have hated putting some of the cow work on the back burner to finish this farming but long term, the farming is just as important and needs done. Hell, if the cattle want something other than a snowball to eat next winter it's vital to get done.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but I have hired a new guy to work here and he should be coming in later in the week to start. It's so hard telling if a guy is worth it but what am I to do? I need a hand so I hired him. He has a large number of kids and the bunkhouse is a little small for the family but he says that it is just fine with him. Normally in a situation like this with a wife and kids, its the wife that doesn't like it out here and they leave because of that in the long run. We will see.

As soon as I get the farming done I have to get ready to brand all the calves I turned out. Not a lot of work to do but I will stay very busy. I won't say I am behind this spring but I am just on the edge of slipping behind on my work. Going like mad I am able stay on top but the extra hands will sure help start pulling it ahead around here.

One last thought, why is it that when some people are behind on their work, all they can do is stand around and complain how they are behind instead of trying to fix the problem? If they would just get busy and do something maybe they would catch up. I know its not easy to do, but a little initiative goes a long way to getting things done instead of whining about the problems all the time. I just can't figure people sometimes.

Never complain and never explain. Benjamin Disraeli

Boy, things are going slow around here. As far behind as I am getting they should be going fast, but they're not. I'm not really complaining though. What's slowing me down is rain and more rain and more rain. It keeps it to wet to do most of the work I need to do right now. It wouldn't take me to long to get caught up if there would just be a break. These showers that hit every third day allow me to get some things done but keep it to wet for others.

The biggest hold up now is a little farming. I need to get the renovating done and I really wanted to plant one field down to a grass/alfalfa stand. It's been way to wet to do the farming though. If the seed was in the ground all the moisture would be great but with the seed still in the shed it isn't doing me much good.

On the hired hand front, I offered the job to a guy and I think he is inclined to take it. I am a little worried that his family might be a little large for the bunkhouse but he says that they are fine with it. In a way I am taking the first guy that is showing an inclination to want to work here but what do I do? With unemployment in the state at 2%, workers have more than enough jobs around so you have to take what you can find. This guy on paper looks more than qualified but how it works out in real life waits to be seen. I'm hoping for the best.

I keep meaning to take some pictures and I haven't yet but I now have 5 bum calves running around. The damnedest thing is happening this year and I have no explanation. Perfectly healthy, young cows in good flesh have a calf, take care of it and everything appears to be all right. Then a few days down the road the calf is starving to death. He nurses the cow fine but she doesn't appear to have any milk, or enough milk, and the calf is starving to death right on the cow. Not all 5 calves are from this but too many, that's for sure. I've considered bringing the cow home and trying to feed her up to produce more milk but have decided against it. If she can't produce enough milk for a calf to survive on, I don't want her genes on the place and she needs to go down the road. She's not fit, so she don't need to survive. Sounds cruel but it will help the cow herd in the long run.

Yesterday in Ed's City Lights column he had a real good statement that I wanted to preserve for prosperity.

When we flew into Miami, the whole city was still soaking wet from a storm a day earlier that dumped up to 2 inches of rain on parts of town.

It turns out that the storm stopped just minutes before Florida authorities announced the imposition of severe new water restrictions in the face of a continuing drought and the prospect of rampant wildfires this summer.

And I saw in USA Today's state-by-state roundup that Montana's Drought Advisory Committee had to cancel its meeting last week because of heavy rains.

It's like talking about global warming during a blizzard. Shortsighted skeptics love those coincidences.

I wish I had Ed's way with words. I've heard people questioning global warming during cold snaps or our recent blizzard and have never been able to figure out what to sat about them. Shortsighted skeptics, I love it.

Well, time to see what I can do in the rain today. One hundred percent chance of rain all day long so it will be too wet to farm. Maybe in a couple more days. We will see.

I'm a slow walker, but I never walk back. Abraham Lincoln

I've always liked the saying, Don't go away mad, just go away. Well the hired hand didn't follow this advice. He left, but he left madder than hell. It's been coming for awhile so in a way it wasn't a surprise, but it sure was sudden.

We were out doing morning chores this morning and he screwed up 2 different things in the first five minutes, not that unusual for him, and when I told him to take the horse down to where we feed him every day and he went two steps and fed him I got a little upset. I told him that wasn't where we fed the horse and to pick it up and take him down where we have been feeding him for weeks in a very loud manner. He said "I'm out of here" and left for the bunkhouse. I told My Darling Wife what happened and headed over to feed the cows after I fixed his screw up.

He was gone and left the bunkhouse in a shambles by the time I got home. The real amazing thing was that it didn't take me any longer to feed all the cows without him than it did with him. I never realized how much redoing everything he did was slowing me down. His attitude has been getting me down for quite a while now. I kept telling My Darling Wife he had "hired hand PMS" and it was really getting on my nerves.

This afternoon in celebration that he left, I cleaned the chicken coop. I figured I would clean up all the chicken shit on one day and be done with it.

Luckily I have had an ad in the papers for a while all ready to replace him. I was hoping to find somebody before I had to fire him but his walking off solved that problem for me. Now to get all my spring work done a partial hand down. I'll get it done somehow.

Never quit. It is the easiest cop-out in the world. Set a goal and don't quit until you attain it. When you do attain it, set another goal, and don't quit until you reach it. Never quit. Bear Bryant

Sometimes what a hired hand says needs a little translation. I thought I would jot down some of it here. When you interview them o course they know how to do it all and they are the best you've ever seen at it. Then once they start working watch out for some of these phrases.

I'm not to sure but I will try. This means they have never done it before but it looks simple enough to do so they will attempt it. Be wary if you hear this when you set them driving a high dollar piece of equipment, if their try doesn't work out to well it can cost you a lot of money.

It's been a long time since I done it, I would be more comfortable if you showed me how. This means that they have no concept how to do it, don't want to do it, don't want to learn how to do it, and want you to go do it for them. Even if you take them along the chances of them learning how to do it are slim.

Why do these guys claim they can do something when they can't? It gets so tiring after a while.

There is no meaning to life except the meaning man gives his life by the unfolding of his powers. Erich Fromm

Well, the hired hand is history. He left last night. I can't say it hurts my feelings, I'm just not looking forward to dealing with a new one. He should be here Saturday.

The old hired hand had his Dad come down to help him move out. He had a flatbed trailer and had a couple of pieces of plywood to help protect the load. How many of you Montanans remember this? Continue reading "Gone" »

No sooner did I put an ad up with Montana Job Service for a hired hand and now I have a new Hired Hand. Usually it takes months to find somebody but this time a qualified guy stepped up right out of the box and I went ahead and hired him. I really need somebody out here to help calve out heifers so I didn't want to fool around. Funny thing was that this guy applied in November when I was looking for a new hand. I had all ready hired the new guy so I wasn't looking when his application came in. What goes around comes around I guess.

Now I just need to get my present guy out of here and the new guy in. My present guy went up to his new job on Friday and looked for a place to live. He said nothing was available to rent so he plans on getting a bank loan and buying a house and moving into it next week. Some things you have to learn the hard way so I didn't tell him things don't move that quick and he had better come up with an alternate plan. The sooner he gets out the sooner the new guy can move in and start.

I like to be surprised. Fresh implications and plot twists erupt as a story unfolds. Characters develop backgrounds, adding depth and feeling. Writing feels like exploring. David Brin

I really wonder about people's integrity sometimes. The new hired man really brings these thoughts to mind for me. I know, he has worked here less than a week and I wonder about his integrity. That sure says something doesn't it.

I guess the question is does it say something about my lack of faith in the human race or does it say something about the new hired man's integrity, or lack thereof?

My Darling Wife ended up in town getting new tires put on the car this last week and she heard a conversation that really makes me think of integrity and some peoples lack of it.

Owner of tire store: That isn't right guys (speaking to his employees). There are women that drive this car alone long distances so it needs to be done right. See that license plate, it's a mom's car. Would you want that kind of shoddy work on your mom's car? Start again and do it right this time.

Employee: She's just a women, hell she won't know any better. What difference does it make?

Owner: The difference is if you want to work here you will do it right every time.

Why people have such a serious lack of integrity is beyond me. What are they thinking when they do such things? I know, their not thinking but I can hope. I'm really thinking this new hired hand is going to be short lived. The lack of integrity has led me to have a lack of faith in him which is going to be fatal to him working here. Maybe I should continue to look for a new guy. Damn the bad luck.

A life lived with integrity - even if it lacks the trappings of fame and fortune is a shinning star in whose light others may follow in the years to come. Denis Waitley

Let's see, what's happening around the ranch. Not much, just feeding the younger cows and caking the older cows. The warmer weather is helping and the cattle appear to be getting enough to eat and doing well. The new hired hand is here and working.

I can't say I am overly impressed with this kid. He seems a little too tentative. I was hoping he would be a little more of a self starter but you can't have everything. We did a little riding yesterday to get a few yearlings out of the cows. I can definitely say I was not impressed by his riding style. He either slouched forward in his saddle or leaned back like a saddle bronc rider in it. His posture and style were horrible. He has quite a bit to learn about cattle work a horseback too. His knowledge seemed more than a little lacking there.

I know, complain,complain, complain. I hired him knowing he was lacking in some skill, I just needed somebody to get me through feeding and hopefully he will figure that out. It will work out, I have to believe that or I will go nuts.

I had a coming two year old sluff a calf yesterday. No apparent reason why, just found the aborted fetus and then looked up the heifer. I will keep an eye on the rest of them but since they haven't been in any pine needles for over a month and a half I think it is just one of those isolated, fluke incidents. If it happens again I will have to investigate further.

Nice weather, beautiful, loving family, things are pretty good by my standards. A little more snow cover and things would be excellent.

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out. Anton Chekhov

The never ending cycle. The Hired Hand quit yesterday, the search for a new one starts. He had applied for a grant this spring to get his masters degree and it came through. He is going to stay and help work replacement heifers on Tuesday and then he is gone.

At least he got us through shipping and working all the cattle and he was a pretty good hand.

To help prolong my activity in this most wondrous profession, I am constantly in search of new discoveries that can help me sustain energy and good health. Red Buttons

Not much going on around here. Watching the calves grow fatter every day. We spent the last couple of days getting the corral ready for shipping. Don't have a firm shipping date yet, but the corral is now ready. I am still working at confirming the 29th of this month as shipping. The vet/brand inspector can't make it that day I found out yesterday. He said he could come the afternoon before and give us the health papers so that's the way it will have to be. I will have to round up a different brand inspector though. I will check with the local guy and see if he is free.

In his spare time the hire hand is looking at all the fences down in the area where we ship from. He is really going through a lot of steel posts and fence staples so it appears he is doing a thorough job. He kind of moves at a slower pace than I am used to but he seems to get the job done so that works out really well.

Like I said, pretty slow around here at the moment. I was in town yesterday getting my filling replaced in my teeth and everybody I met and talked to said what a nice day it was. I told them all, "It would be a nice day if rain was pouring from the sky. We've had enough of this warm dry weather, rain would be nice." They really didn't know what to say to me after that and changed the track of the conversation. City folk just don't understand I guess.

I do not understand! I understand nothing! I cannot understand nor do I want to understand! I want to believe! To Believe! Jean-Paul Sartre