West Texas Livin'

Saturday, August 2, 2008

I'm offering a blanket apology to all my faithful blog readers.  Hopefully soon I'll be able to get back to blogging about daily happenings, and adding a (hopefully) funny twist to all that happens in my very un-normal life.  Until then, have a great time, and remember: It will be okay in the end.  If it's not okay, it's not the end.  What a great thought, eh?

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Surprise, surprise!  We moved last weekend.  Our house isn't ready yet...but oh-well!  At least we finally have the fun of living on our own property.  No water, no electricity, no septic system in place, no walls. . . what we have is a glorified tent of a house.  We DID get the last of the windows in last night, so all that's left to put in are doors, wiring, walls, floor, kitchen, bathroom. . . basically everything.  Problem is, it's all IN there.  In piles.  My friends keep reminding me it will get better.  I sure hope so. 

You've probably noticed my "Herd Reduction" sale.  I may have to turn it into a Herd Dispersal sale.  If you're interested in high-quality Miniature and Classic Herefords (all registered, many with calves at side) give me a call!  At least take pity on my family living in waterless and electricity-less places.....that's where the money will go.  :)

Here's the latest:

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Well, this is a little belated, but I received an email from Charles Anderson on the 19th, saying that one of the heifers I'd sold him as a weanling just calved.  I begged him for a photo, and with his permission I'll share it:

She's a lovely little calf, and I must say I'm really pleased that she's done so well for him.  (Look at how GREEN that grass is!!)

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Okay, proud owner has to show off more pics of new bull calf!

I went to check the rest of the herd today, and managed to capture a couple other little babies.  Both bulls.  I'd sure like to see some heifers...

Monday, May 19, 2008

What a day!  The track lights in the office aren't working properly, so we had electricians in this morning.  They sat on top of their ladders, brainstorming and scratching their heads until they finally decided to order a whole new system.  So much for lights on the artwork over Memoral Day weekend. 

Between chatting with the electricians, updating websites and responding to emails, I received a phone call from the local electricity rep.  He wanted to come out to begin installation - and someone needed to be at the property to discuss our options for putting in a meter.  Yeah.  We bought property that didn't have any electricity handy.  Well, our idea had been to run a line over some railroad tracks at the back of the property and put the meter at the edge of our property.  Then, Paul was going to run an underground cable to the house.  What-do-you-know, but train companies don't like that much.  They want $1500 for an easement, plus a yearly fee, and apparently the paperwork required to get to the point of forking over hard-earned dough takes 3 months.  Hmmm...... I think we're going to come up with SOMETHING ELSE.  The next best option is running a line about 700 feet, again just to the edge of our property so we can run the cables underground to the house.  The price tag is somewhat staggering, though: $10 PER FOOT.  We may come up with another idea - I hope.

All that said, I raced to meet the electric rep at our house even though I wasn't really supposed to be away from the Studio.  Paul and JR happened to be there when I arrived, and promptly informed me that one of my heifers was calving.  WHAT?!?

I raced back to the RV, and changed out of my office clothes just in case help would be required.  Sara had things well under control, and I hopped from one foot to the other and did my best not to bite my fingernails like a nervous momma.  You've got to realize, this is MY heifer.  I bred her, and now she's calving.  We're going on 2 generations of Orion Herefords breeding now.  Someday, I hope to add a few digits to that number, but you gotta start somewhere. 

I watched and waited, and when I couldn't stand it anymore I called my vet, explained the circumstances and asked if I ought to help.  He said sure, that would be fine.  Now I know why I halter broke these girls as babies.  To be safe, I slipped a halter over Sara's head, and she didn't mind me a bit.  I worked my way around to the other end, and slipped an OB chain over the little hooves.  Sara really didn't need my help, and her little bull calf slipped out like he was greased.  I slung him around for a good while trying to clear his lungs (those of you who've been reading my blog might remember that I lost my first and so far only heifer calf this year - couldn't get her lungs cleared out quickly enough.  It's hard to swing calves around in a mesquite patch!).  Needless to say, I was frantic to be sure I didn't make the same mistake twice.  Well, after a few minutes the little boy started shaking his head and looking around like a pathetic little life-form.  I drug him back to his momma, and by golly if she' didn't suddenly come to life!  Up to this point, she'd ignored me entirely.  Not so anymore!  She started licking and talking and I left the couple to complete their bonding.

I snuck back after a couple hours to check on the new pair, and lo and behold if that little guy wasn't frolicking already!  No, he wasn't quite to the buck-and-kick stage, but he was certainly flinging his little tail in the air and capering to the best of his wobbly little capabilities.  Too cute.

What a hard day for a little guy!

Saturday, May 17, 2008

We've added flags to the front of the Alpine Studio.  Mom came to visit the studio, and the first thing she wanted to know was if we were open (I'd been here for over an hour).  Well, this was a problem.  If no one can tell you're open when you're open....So we got some flags.  So far it's helped a lot - I see maybe 2 or 3 people a day instead of none. 

The nice thing is that I can get a lot of work done when there aren't any visitors.  New websites are up and coming, so check back often!

Saturday, May 10, 2008

"Dead Things"

You know, so many people think that the desert is full of "dead things". We had a visitor come to our house the other day, and the first thing he asked was: "What are all those dead things?" I have to admit, this time of year they do look pretty dead. In reality though, the bushes are catclaw, and though they are aptly named for their multitudinous claw-like spines everywhere, they do green up nicely in the summertime. On our particular 10 acres, they'll all be removed at our earliest convenience. In the meantime, they provide some nice privacy, trespasser deterrent and come this summer, greenery.

Catclaw aside, our grass is greening up nicely from the couple of raindrops we received last week.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Not much to report today.  I spent most of the day trying to find the "loose ends" from before my move, and if I'm lucky I might get to tie a few of them tomorrow.  I did design a brochure for West Texas Websites, and a postcard for my clients to inform them of my move (and new address).  It still needs a little tweaking, but here it is:

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Paul and I planned to process a good bunch of the turkeys today, but we were just to dern tuckered out.  The whole day wasn't a waste, though, we did load up the sheep and a whole bunch of livestock-related gear (buckets, feeders, hay rings, halters, salt, mineral, feed, water pipes, shovels, rakes, pitchforks....the list goes on and waayyyy more than filled the back of the truck) and we brought the whole load to Alpine.  It will probably be a day or two before the sheep grow accustomed to their new abode, but it is nearly twice the size of their last one.  I expect they'll like it very much.  They aren't sure yet about their neighbors to the East....the heifers.  Boy, if I'd had a camera I could have got a few really funny pics!

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

It feels a little strange to be having my Saturday so quickly after the last one.  But I'm glad of it, because today we're moving heifers to our new property for calving.  Since I only have a bitty 2-horse trailer, I'll be lucky to fit 3 of my miniature heifers on in one trip - so we're going to be making at least 3 trips before they're all down.  Actually, I have 6 heifers to calve out, 1 steer that is going to be turned into beef shortly and 1 heifer (Ruthie) that just isn't calving.  I'm beginning to wonder if she was a freemartin and no one found the other calf....the unusual part is the second calf, more than someone not finding it considering her original owner.  She's a special heifer, but I can't afford to keep her just for sentiment.  Sooooo......I still haven't decided what to do with her.

Musing aside, we managed to get 5 heifers and the steer off the mountain before we ran out of day.  Next week I'll get the last heifer - I saw her and she's not as "close" as the others.  Looks like Red did his job very efficiently.  I had wondered about him since he quit hanging around the girls about a month after I put him in with them - but I'd say all these girls are going to calve within a month.  I guess the good bulls know what their job is, AND when it's done.

Monday, May 5, 2008

CINCO DE MAYO!!  Actually, all the celebrating happened over the weekend, and I missed most of it since I decided I'd rather spend time with Gramps.  But today is my first day in the office.  The freight trains will take a little getting used to, but I don't suppose it will take long to ignore that horn as they rattle and rumble through town.  My new hours are posted, and are as follows: Thursday, Friday & Saturday, 10-1 & 2-6; Sunday, 10-1 & 2-4, Monday, 10-1 & 2-6, Tuesday and Wednesday are closed.  Weird hours, I know, and normally I don't like to sign up for work on weekends.  But I'm in a gallery, and I think the doors need to be open while tourists are here on the weekends.  I'll try this schedule for a few months and see how it goes.  One nice thing is that my commute is a whopping 4 miles from our new home. 

Oh, and one more thing.  I'm always available on my cell for website clients. 

Sunday, May 4, 2008

We had a meeting this morning, JR and I, at the lovely little breakfast place called The Bread and Breakfast.  We met with others involved in the Murphy Street Merchants group, and formulated a plan for the future of Murphyville on Murphy Street. 

Before I go on, I have to say a bit about the Bread and Breakfast - they, too, are an awesome place to stop if you're ever in Alpine.  Home baked bread, all sorts of breakfast and brunch goodies.  My personal favorite is the trashcan omelets, and it's delicious despite the name.  I may drop by their place a little more often in the future now that I'll be manning the studio not a block away.

Back to Murphy St.  This humble little road was once the main street of Alpine, before it was named Alpine.  Yeah, Alpine used to be Murphyville.  I'm glad they changed the name back in the 18-sumthin's.  Now, the original part of town is somewhat run down and dilapidated, which is just the inspiration some artists wanted.  They've purchased whole blocks and are renovating the buildings one at a time, and now I have the wonderful privilege of housing my office in the old Alpine Studio.  This building used to be an old photography studio, and has a nifty basement that I haven't fully explored yet.  I even hear there's a hand-dug well down there, and that the dark room was down there.  Maybe soon I'll get a chance to explore.  Until then, I have a massive desk in a big, airy, spacious, office that is decorated by several artist's work.  I have a lovely view through 1930's-ish glass (rippled and warped) to the train depot that is still in use.  I should go visit that depot soon.

All in all, a lovely place for website inspirations.

Friday, May 2, 2008

Well our turkey turned out so yummy, we decided to harvest another one or two.  Actually, Mom wanted to send a couple home with Gramps when he went.  I'll spare you all the details, but suffice it to say that we chose to capture a large tom this time instead of a small hen - and the largest pot in the house wasn't big enough to scald this guy!  In order to pluck the feathers out, you have to dunk the bird in hot water for a couple minutes.  We finally had to resort to a large feed tub - scrubbed clean, of course.

So now you know your Thanksgiving turkey didn't just magically happen in a tidy little plastic bag.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Second half of roof going on today.  Fortunately, the wind was cooperative and allowed us enough time to get the rest of the roof on. This side took a bit longer since the metal sheets are 19 feet long instead of just 13.  Needless to say, I wasn't handing them up today.  Paul got the great idea (partly because of my hints yesterday that I wasn't going to be hauling those big sheets of metal around and to please come up with another plan) and he used the tractor to place them on the solid part of the roof (over the porch-to-be).  That worked great.  JR was also up there, and between the three of them they had that roof on in no time.  Then we all went out to my favorite restaurant, Alpine City Limits for lunch.  If you're ever in the area, you'd better visit that place.  The service is fabulous and the food is out-of-this-world awesome.  Which is high praise since I'm very much accustomed to home-cooked-from-scratch meals.  Alpine City Limits doesn't beat Mom's delicious fare, but they're darn good as an alternative.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Finally, we're putting on our roof today.  Gramps was a big help, and even got up on top of the roof to screw the metal sheets on.  We chose to go with a metal roof from Muellers, INC., since shingles don't stay on out here.  Between the sun and the wind, those flimsy little shingles fly right off.  We got half of the roof on before the breeze got too strong to continue.  Since I was the one handing the 13 foot long sheets of metal up, I was starting to feel a bit like a kite - and I wasn't too keen on flying.

 

Tuesday April 29, 2008

Gramps arrived today!  Being the cattle-crazy girl that I am, nearly the first thing I suggested is that we all go check cattle.  Funny thing is, everyone agreed.  They must have been humoring me.  We loaded up the ATV and headed up the mountain.  Gramps even rode around with me on the ATV!  All the cattle look pretty good for the time of year, and I made a mental note for the thousandth time to bring the heifers down ASAP to calve.  Where on earth am I going to put them?!?

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Christmas!  Now y'all think I'm really confused.  Actually, Paul and I hopped in Silver the truck early this morning and make tracks to El Paso.  Our roof had been waiting for a few days, and we were anxious to get it installed.  But, with fuel prices the way they are, why not make the most of our 250 mile trip?  We made a nice, long list of supplies to obtain from the nearest home improvement center which turned out to be Lowes.  I love Lowes's.  Or Home Depots.  Or McCoys or anything else to do with nails, lumber, sinks, BATHTUBS!

We spent all day shopping for everything we might need.  We'd fill up one of those large blue cars they had available, and go make our purchase, cram the stuff in the truck and head back for more.  We bought light fixtures, kitchen and bathroom sinks (the really nice enameled cast-iron kind - Mom deserves a good sink, she spends so much time looking at the thing!), toilet, bathtub, dishwasher, water heater, tile for counters and floors....the list was a mile long and we actually managed to get everything before Lowes closed for the night.  Paul and I were exhausted and arrived home about 1 am.  But we were victorious!

Tuesday-Friday, April 22-25, 2008

When it rains it pours, I guess.  Paul and I were BOTH selected for Jury Duty this week, and my golly but if it didn't put a dent in our house building plans.  Our roof material was supposed to come in Wednesday - but NOOOO.....we had to sit in the court house and listen to evidence.

I didn't really mind, I've never been called for jury duty and I was curious what it was really like.  All you ever hear are horror stories about how awful it is - and I guess I now believe they're mostly true.  The case was pretty awful, the deliberation lasted about 8 hours....everyone on the jury felt crummy afterwards.  I did find out, however, that this particular kind of case only comes along about once every 2 years in our area.  So hopefully I'll never have to do THAT again.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Turkey day!  No, we don't celebrate Thanksgiving on arbitrary days of the year - though perhaps everyone would be happier if we all gave thanks a little more often. . .

But no, today is simply test-butchering day.  Mom's been raising her own turkeys for 3 months now, and it's time to see if they're big enough to make a nice meal.  Well, the whole ordeal was nothing like taking care of a chicken - for one thing, the bird is MUCH heavier.  Paul had to convert a 5 gallon bucket into the killing cone.  But the end result was a beautiful bird of 14lb proportions.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

No matter how busy life gets, it is always advisable to stop and smell the flowers.  Since I know many of you northern folk are still under snow - here's some color to brighten your day.  Mom's the green thumb who nurtured all these lovelies into existence.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Back to the house we go.  First, we stopped by McCoy's (a new store in town, and the timing of their arrival was most fortuitous) and purchased a TON of 2 X 4's.  No, I'm not exaggerating.  It was literally a ton.  Or so Paul calculated.

I was given the fun task of handing this ton of lumber up to Paul on the roof.  Did I move the whole ton that day? Nope.  But over the course of 2 days I did.  It was better than walking around on the rafters, anyway.

Come the second side of the roof, and it was decided that I should also be on top of the house.  These boards were feeling a little warpish and each one required some level of straightening.  At first, I was to manage 20 foot long boards into position while Paul nailed them into place with a nail gun of massive capabilities.  I tried that on a few boards and decided I'd rather take on the nail gun.  So here I am, on top of the roof, after nailing just about the entire thing.

What a roof!

The porch is already lovely and cool.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Sheep shearing time!  The poor wooly babies are just baking in the heat.  So, we decided to relieve them of several years of wool growth.  We invited our friends to help, and by golly, they were troopers!  It took us 4 hours to shear 6 sheep....with SCISSORS!  Fortunately, no one was cut.  Next year I'm going to invest in some shears.

Friday, April 11, 2008

My, how the days fly by!  The house is turning into a real house slowly but surely.

As you can see, there is still much to do.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Peaches finally lambed!  The babies are both ewes, and oh, so adorable!  The whiter of the two is much smaller, and I bet she only weighs about 2 lbs.

You gotta love that coloring.  As much as I don't give a darn about the hair color on my cattle (read my article about hair steaks) I DO care about color on sheep.  That's the point of sheep - their wool.  And lamb chops.  But mostly the wool, since I can't wait to start spinning it!

On to more important matters, the guys framed in the windows and doors today.  We're going to have lots of large windows, and a sliding glass door onto the deck.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Talk about progress! 

We're planning a huge deck to the West and it will wrap around North.  Decks are wonderful things in this part of the country, both for sitting on in the mornings and evenings, and for keeping the house cooler during the day.  We're planning to grow grapevines and wisteria around our decks.....ah, the planning is fun!

Friday, April 4, 2008

The concrete pad for our house has cracked ever so slightly, but it is still in good shape.  A little tile over the top and it'll be the best cottage ever.  The guys have added some walls, and the progress is impressive.

They've left the fourth wall out for the time being until they get the trusses up.  I guess the plan is to drive the tractor into the house to lift the roof on, and when that's done they'll add the last wall.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

I love this time of year.  All the babies!!  I couldn't contain myself any longer, so here's a few shots of the babies around here.

Rocksy's bull calf.  Compared to his momma, whom I love dearly, he's an awesomely blocky baby and much smaller than she is.  He runs under her belly for the fun of it, and at a month old.  He's got definite Red Pride features, I think, but we'll see what the DNA says.  (Yeah, I had a little trouble with not enough pastures last year - Rocksy cycled a little sooner than I anticipated....you know the story!)

Tink - not the best shot of her, but she's a great little heifer.  She's half Jersey and half Hereford, and shows a lovely brindle. 

Daisy, a purebred Jersey.  She's definitely showing a bulge right now, so it's high time I wean Tink.

Have you ever tried to photograph lambs?  Don't.  It's almost impossible to get them in focus and snap the shot before they're gone.  Flipping, kicking and twisting around - the little fuzz balls don't hold still for a second!

I did manage a couple pictures that are better than little white streaks.  Above is Annabelle with her two ewe lambs (Clarice is the spotted lamb, and Petunia II is on the right.  Stinker ran into the shot from the left - he's Nellie's baby and his name is well-deserved!)

(Chocolate) Chip and Brutus.  Chip belongs to Nellie, and he's very much his brother's brother.  They're both little stinkers.  Brutus is a single lamb out of Jewel, and he's got the most handsome face.  He's an early maturing lamb...not that it's a THING with sheep - I honestly don't know.  His horns are almost a half inch long already and I don't think he's a month old yet.  The other ram lambs haven't even started growing horns, and they're only a day or two younger.

Twin stinkers sneaking a quick sip.  Nellie's wishing I'd give her another treat.

And lastly but most favoritely, Little Orphan Annie. 

She's put on some weight - but not thanks to the Kid milk replacer.  If you've ever got to bottle feed a lamb, don't use the stuff.  I don't know what's wrong with it, but we almost lost Annie.  I think the replacer is the culprit in Petunia's death last year.  At any rate, we've switched Annie to Daisy's colostrum from last year (I save it every year just in case) and she's gaining weight, finally.  A few more days and she'll be ready to go live with her own kind and stop living on our front porch. 

Monday, March 31, 2008

Today is the BIG DAY!  We're pouring the concrete for our house.  We've never poured a concrete slab before, and this is going to be one heck of a learning experience.  It really didn't help when Paul started quoting statistics that 80% of concrete pads crack in the first 2 weeks.  I hope we beat the odds.

It's going to be 20' X 30' and just a small cottage for starters.  We'll live here while we build our dream house.  The circling pipe you see is going to be used to heat the concrete in the winter - since our winters are so mild that will be enough to keep us comfortable all winter long.

Thar she goes!

We enlisted the help of some of our friends from Fort Davis.  They were troopers through the whole ordeal, and I mean it was WORK! 

A home schooling family, they remind me very much of my school years, and it was a time I wouldn't have traded for anything.  I'm one of the lucky few who received home education, and then I was given the opportunity to attend a private high school.  After experiencing both options, I'd choose home schooling every time.

A very tired, but victorious crew.  We all went out to the Alpine City Limits (BBQ & Steakhouse) for dinner.  It's the best eatery in Alpine.

Sunday, March 30, 2008 

My brother Paul is very much an airplane guru.  He's flown models since he was 7 or 8, and has competed world wide with radio controlled gliders.  He's got a room full of trophies and has been accused of being as intelligent and educated as an engineer employed by Lockheed or Boeing or one of those big-name airplane places.  Problem was, he wasn't out of high school then. 

After we arrived in West Texas, and certain events happened the way they did, Paul shouldered the mantle of responsibility and began building livestock fence to support our family.  Ya gotta do what ya gotta do when you're the only man left in the family. Well, that was several years ago, and we've finally got our feet under us again.  So, for a surprise, we decided to buy Paul a glider ride for his birthday.  You see, Marfa (just 20 miles south of us) is a national landmark for soaring - or at least they'll be recognized as such in about a week.  Anyway, Paul decided he'd rather wait to take his flight until this weekend since it's a huge glider rally and he'll get more exposure to pilots from all across the States.

Early this morning, we headed to the airport, and my goodness if there weren't a hundred gliders!  Paul spent the whole day helping put the gliders together, helping them take off, doing just about anything that was asked of him - and did he have a grin on his face!  Along about 3:00 they finally had time to take him up for his ride.  He flew with a trained instructor for nearly 2 hours - and got his first lesson in maneuvers, zero gravity, thermalling and whatever else they do.  Paul said it was pretty much like the radio-controlled gliders, except that you get dizzy when you're circling inside the thing instead of watching from the ground. 

All that said, we've got a secret plan to get Paul his pilot's license.  Since we'll be living so close to the Alpine airport soon, it should be a piece of cake, right?  NOT!  It may take a few years, but I have a hunch my little bro will be in a cockpit soaring among the clouds.

Friday, March 28, 2008

Today is a Red-Letter Day.  We saved a life today.  No, not human - just a poor little lambie. 

Little Orphan Annie was born about a week ago, and we're pretty sure she was born to an older, sweet ewe who used to come visit us rather frequently.  Unfortunately, we didn't own her so when she had lambing difficulties there wasn't much we could do except inform the owner.  The ewe disappeared, but Annie wandered around and around our house crying and bleating. 

Today, we just couldn't stand it anymore.  The clincher?  Annie was drinking out of the cesspool  at the end of the septic line (yeah, this isn't much of a house!)  She was still quite a wily little thing even as emaciated as she'd become after surviving several days motherless.  After a short sprint, I managed to catch her and we immediately set about nursing her back to health. 

First on the menu: food.  We had left-over kid milk replacer from last year, so we mixed some up and taught Annie to drink from a stinky rubber nipple. She wasn't too keen on the smell until she got a bit of milk down her throat, then it was definitely on her okay list.  Next we decided it was bath time.  She'd gone without food, and eaten stuff little lambies ought never to think of eating for soo long . . . she was quite a smelly mess. 

I decided this wasn't the time to be tough...I wore coveralls!  Peeewwwie!

After a warm, sudsy bath and clean rinse, Annie had a smile on her little face again.  She's still a walking skeleton, and is pretty hunched up, but she'll be better now. 

Thursday, March 27, 2008

New website online!  Yahoo!  Well, it really isn't new...It's a re-design for Diane Alu of Middleground Farm in Lima, New York.  I've come a long way in my abilities website-wise since I designed her original site, and I thought it was time to upgrade during the update. 

At the risk of tooting my own horn - consider West Texas Websites the next time you're thinking of having a new website designed.  My prices are reasonable, I try really hard to be prompt with updates (just ask my clients) and if the website I designed for you a year ago just bugs me I'll probably redesign it for you just for the sake of redesigning it.  If you don't like the new design, no problem.  I'll add it to my up-and-coming Virtual Portfolio.  If you do like, it...GREAT!  Anyway, check out the latest:

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

I want to thank the MHBA members who nominated me for positions on the MHBA board.  It was quite a shock and very much an honor to discover I'd been nominated for Regional Director, Secretary and Vice President.  After much deliberation on my part, however, I feel I must decline.  Don't get me wrong.  I REALLY want to be a part of the growth of MHBA, and I'd REALLY like to be on the board someday soon. 

But the simple fact is that we are in the process of moving.  To a house we haven't even built yet.  And if I were on the board of MHBA, I'd feel the responsibility to do my very best for all us breeders.  Right now I need to concentrate on cement slabs, drilling a water well, selecting an electricity provider and getting a roof over our heads - and calving out my heifers in the process.  So I guess I'll just help out as much as I can, build the best website for the MHBA that I can until I am in a better position to add a leadership role to this three-ring circus I call my life.

Don't forget me next election!

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

You know, I really had a wonderful time at the Austin and Houston shows.  I think the best part is simply being able to mingle with other Miniature Hereford breeders, meet new folks and make friends. 

One couple really stood out to me.  Wonderful people, they are.  I had the honor of showing a little bull calf for them at both Austin and Houston - the calf arrived along with Greg Schulz' string.  When I marched into the Austin show ring, I wasn't aware that "Scooter" didn't belong to Greg.  Frankly, I wasn't terribly worried at that point who held the registration paper for the little guy; I was busy thinking how to show him to his best potential and to gain a little more experience in the ring for myself. 

Scooter was an amazingly well behaved little bull....that is, until we stepped into the ring.  Suddenly, he turned into a kite flying around me like he'd gone loco.  He may be a Miniature, and a small Miniature at that - but these little Miniatures are all muscle and they sure can pack a punch when they want to.  Fortunately, I never lost hold of Scooter but for a few minutes I was really concerned.  He never did stand still through the whole class, and thus was placed at the end of the line.  It was all I could do to keep him from crawling over all the other calves in the class to get out of the show ring.  Boy, oh boy, did I feel bad!  I kept going through the whole thing in my mind: was I nervous?  had I transmitted some fear to the little tyke before going into the ring?  But I'd already shown 4 or 5 head that day, and they'd all been fine.  Whatever.

We arrived at Houston, and I learned that Scooter actually belonged to Randy and Carolyn Rogers of Sunshine Acres Miniature Herefords.  Outside the show ring, he's a dandy bull who's got a ton of potential.  I also learned that they hadn't planned on showing him at all, and only began working with him in January after Greg told them he ought to be there.  AH HA!  With that fact in mind, he's mighty calm for what he's been through. 

Randy and Carolyn were really sweet and let me try showing Scooter again in Houston.  Before the show, I spent time with him trying to get inside his little head so I could keep him calm in the ring...well, whether it was me, or him, or the different setting, or just the added experience, he was a total angel in his class in Houston.  Sure, he'd start getting nervous and he'd start shaking, but I'd discovered a few tricks to keep him calm - and presto!  He won Reserve Division.  He deserves it!

Congrats to Randy and Carolyn, and thanks a million for giving me a second chance.  Here's a picture of Scooter and his hard-earned banner.

Monday, March 24, 2008

I got to check my "girls" today!  And what do you know, but Rocksy presented me with a little bull calf.  He looks great, but she's getting too thin.  Tomorrow we're bringing her in to be with my "baby bunch" otherwise known as old-cows-that-need-extra-groceries.  Rocksy has certainly proven her worth, she's lived on that pasture for several months and has about 2 teeth left in her head.  I guess the pickin's are getting just a little too slim for ol' gummer cows.  However, I just brought the rest of the herd off of the mountain to the mesa pasture a couple weeks ago, and I'd bet they've all gained at least 50-100 lbs.  They've got their teeth.  It makes a difference.

I did get to see every one of 45 faces on the mountain pastures today, which is no small feat considering the thousands of acres of pasture and beautiful day.  Most everyone is looking quite dandy considering the time of year, and I'd say the first-calf heifers are starting to feel a little heavy.  Looks like Red Pride did his job - I bet they all pop the first month calving season starts judging from the round middles.

Hmmm....she's leaving.  Now where's that last cube?!?


What do you say we wait here until she comes back for the truck?  She has to come this way...maybe she'll have some extra cubes.

As I said, the day was gorgeous.  The mountains had a lovely blue haze about them today - I suppose because our humidity raised to a whopping 60% last night.   I think it's back down to negative nuthin' this evening, though. This photo really doesn't do the scenery justice, but here it is anyway.

Peaches still hasn't lambed yet.  She's the fattest sheep in the pen, so she's got to be cooking something.  It's so hard to tell under all that wool though.  The poor dear has probably not been shorn in her life, and that's a lotta wool to be packing.  Whatever she's doing, she definitely has the biggest appetite of the bunch.  She's getting downright pushy for cubes and treats - which is fun since a month ago she'd have trampled anything to get away from me.

The baby lambs are quickly finding out about legs, and using 'them' things more and more each day.  It's pretty cute to watch the capers progress from little "let's rear up on our hind legs and come down like we did something really great" to scampers and bucks and kicks.  I can't wait to see the air-borne twists and twirls.  I suspect they require a little more finesse.

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Well, I'd hoped to go check cattle today, but I guess building our house is a high priority.  Rocksy's supposed to calve shortly, and I can't wait to see what she drops.  I will try to be patient.

Nellie lambed last night, and presented us with two little ramlets this morning.  One is chocolate colored, with cute little markings on his tiny face, the other is snow white.  It will be interesting to see if this dark little lamb loses his color like his older brother, Kao.  They are separated for the day, which means Jewel and family is mingling with Annabelle and family for the first time since I have very limited pen space.  Annabelle's babies are getting a pretty solid lesson from Jewel that she's not sharing her buffet.  I'm keeping an eye on them to be sure the lesson doesn't get out of hand, but I think they'll be ok.

We are selecting our sheep based on color - quite a difference from the cattle.  Since I like to spin wool (when I get a moment), I like the variety of natural color.  These sheep are the product of some 30 years surviving in the wilds of West Texas, purebred Shetlands originally but unregistered since the first animals were brought here.  The flock numbered roughly 30 animals when we arrived 6 years ago, and hasn't increased at all in that time - and they haven't been sold.  I wish that I could buy the whole flock and protect them as sheep are meant to be protected.  At least I can take care of a select few.  My "sheepies" have a secured pen to sleep in each night.  It is a little cramped in there right now, especially with the sudden increase in little wooly bodies.  But they'll have a lovely home once we move to our new property - and the babies won't be varmint feasts if I have any say in the matter!

Friday, March 21, 2008

We headed back to our new property today with tools needed to begin clearing and building the cottage.  Silver the truck was loaded down with Paul's air compressor, welder and plasma cutter in the bed, with the tractor, bucket, hay spike, auger and a few miscellaneous tools on the trailer.  Now THAT was a heavy load.  We have to prop up the back of the trailer to load the tractor nowadays since Paul put water in the tractor tires.  The water is really handy for rough country, because it lowers the center of gravity and makes the tractor safer on steep terrain.  But that water also makes for a VERY heavy tractor, and the first time we loaded it onto the trailer Silver's back tires came 6 inches into the air.  Yeah, that was a heart-attack moment! 

We unloaded everything at our property and ran into town to purchase a 300' measuring tape, some survey markers and stakes.  Then we measured out our property according to the graph paper we'd drawn up.  The cottage space is marked out and ready to go.  Tomorrow Paul and JR are headed over first thing in the morning to start building the forms for the floor.  So exciting!

Click here for a 360* of our property and its views!

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Today we had an appointment in Alpine at 2:00pm to close on our new property.  Yay-hurray, we found a place to stay!  It is 10 acres of raw land.  We've spent the last several weeks drawing the plat on graph paper, and adding house, cottage, barn, shop - all those necessary things.  10 acres isn't much around here, but it's a great start.  The water will be supplied by the seller's well until we can drill our own - so no treated city water (yay!).  Electricity is 1000 feet away, and is going to cost a bundle to get to our property, so we're planning to put in a solar system.  We're going to build a cottage to live in while we build the main house.  Oh, we've got it all planned.  Apple orchard, gardens.....everything.  I can't wait!

We arrived home and set about completing evening chores as usual.  I was met with the happy surprise of Jewel lambing!  We watched from a distance and a lovely little ramlet was born.  No other lambs came after, so he's a single and a pretty hefty little guy.  We separated him and Jewel for the night so they could have their mother-son bonding time.  There is something so special about little lambs.  Calves are adorable, and I think they will always be my favorite little creature.....but lambs run a mighty close second!

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Well what do you know, but I was greeted by two darling little lambies this morning.  Annabelle, our oldest (we think) ewe popped in the night.  Two little baby ewes, one all white and one spotted.  Too darling.  The white baby is named Petunia in memory of Petunia from last year.  The spotted baby is still unnamed, but I'm sure she'll be labeled before long!

We enjoyed the lambs and separated them from the rest of the flock.  While they are so young and fragile, we thought it best to keep them apart from grown sheep hooves.

Petunia II with mom, Jewel

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Today we took the heifers back up to the mountain pasture.  It was kinda cold this morning, and they looked like they missed their extra hair.  They'll grow it back in no time, or, more likely, the weather will get hot and they'll be glad they got trimmed up.

Electricity had mysteriously lost her tag in Austin.  It was just gone one morning.  Her ear was unharmed (if she'd pulled it out, she'd have a nice slit to prove it) and she'd carried that tag since she was 3 months old.  Strange.  I wonder if someone was after a unique souvenir.  We replaced the tag and loaded the girls into the trailer again.  I'm sure they were concerned they'd be in there for a whole day again, but it only takes an hour to get to the mountain pasture.  We unloaded the girls and they were very excited about their new found space.  It was nice to watch them buck and play after being on the end of a halter rope for a week.

Monday, March 17, 2008

Happy St. Patrick's day!  I spent the day on I-10 traveling west.  It was beautiful weather the whole way.  I did stop in Llano to pick up some fence supplies for our new property.  Buttery in Llano is the least expensive place around to buy fence, t-posts, wire, and anything else you need to build livestock fence.  I presented the list that Paul had written up for me, and they sent me to one of their supply yards.  Since I had heifers in the trailer, we had to squeeze all the fence materials in the bed of the truck.  The list consisted of two 330lb rolls of net wire, the Stay-Tuff brand Goat-Tuff fence.  We've learned that Stay-Tuff makes the best fence - and Paul oughtta know.  Also included were several hundred t-posts, 4 rolls of smooth wire and a bag of t-post clips.  Now, those rolls of fence are HEAVY.  It took some time to arrange everything satisfactorily in the bed of the truck.  On my way out the guy at the gate asked if I'd brought the trailer along for looks.  "Naw....got cattle in there," I replied.  He responded with a low whistle and told me I had a big load.  HA!  If he only knew the loads we'd hauled - this was nuthin'.  I didn't say anything though. 

Actually, the additional weight was nice.  Silver the truck was much happier.  With only the heifers on board, I had been having difficulty starting from a stand-still.  First gear was too low, and Silver was miffed that I thought so little of his power.  Second was a little too high and forced me to play with the clutch.  With the additional weight, Silver was quite happy starting in first. 

I arrived home about 7:00pm and unloaded the heifers into their pen.  Actually, I handed Rockette to Mom, and I took Husky and Electricity together.  Before we'd left, I hadn't felt comfortable handing a heifer to Mom to lead - but after everything I'd seen those heifers do.....I knew they'd behave just fine for Mom. 

Sunday, March 16, 2008

The Houston show refused to let us check out until 3:00 pm.  I can see their point, you can't have an empty cattle barn.  My problem was that I had a 12 hour drive home and an early start would have been nice.  As it was, I loaded up as quickly as possible after release, which was about 5:00 by the time I was on the road, and made it to Austin before I called it a night.  All in all, an uneventful day, but I think we were all (myself and the heifers) glad to be headed home.

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Show time again!  The show is at 2:00pm instead of 9:00 am, so we didn't have to rise quite so early.  The funny thing about being at these shows is that the cattle have visitors nearly all hours of the day and night, and the lights are on all the time.  So they really don't get much time to sleep.  Either that, or all the hubbub makes them sleepier than usual.  In a pasture setting, you rarely see a cow flat on her side sleeping.  I've heard they only sleep some 9 or 11 minutes out of any given 24 hour period, and whether that's true or not I'm not sure.  Someday I'll verify that piece of info.  But for now, I can say that they sleep a lot more than that at a show - especially if they've been there for nearly a week.  I would go check on my heifers and see one flat on her side - oh, what  a fright!  Then I'd startle her as I came near to check, and she'd roll to her chest with a slightly annoyed expression.  Oh, and I also discovered that cattle dream.  I caught one bull across the aisle sleeping soundly and kicking his legs occasionally.  Maybe he was chasing some gorgeous red-hided cow....who knows. 

The show itself went quite well.  There were more cattle in the classes than at Austin.  Husky and Electricity were again at the tail end of their class (gee, I wish I'd gotten them fatter!) and Rockette was next to last.   But as I said after Austin....next year I'll have a better idea what I'm doing and my heifers will have a better chance.  That said, the best part of being at the shows isn't so much the ring, or placing (though I have to admit if I ever win a banner it will be a red-letter day!) but it's the chance to visit with other breeders, chat with folks who don't know anything about cattle, and remember why you love the business so much.  I had so many special moments with my heifers as they learned to trust me in any situation, as they learned to be gentle for children - it was awesome.

Here are the results from Houston:

 

 

 

Friday, March 14, 2008

To Houston we all go.  We loaded up fairly early and were on the road by sunup.  I was in a sort of caravan with Greg Schulz, Hillary Dumas and myself.  I met Hillary in Denver, and she was showing for the first time at Austin and Houston as well.  At least her cattle were plump enough and she did really well. 

We stopped at a McDonald's for breakfast.  Ohhhhh.....I couldn't believe I was actually contemplating ingesting an egg McMuffin.  After organic, home-cooked, totally pure foods for so long - I wondered if my stomach would revolt.  Fortunately, we stayed on somewhat amiable terms.  The real problem at McDonald's though, was that I locked my keys in the truck.  Great.  Luckily, Paul had wired a spare under the chassis, so I was able to retrieve it after a few minutes of fumbling under the truck and didn't even have to inform anyone of my blunder.  I suppose they were wondering why I chose that particular moment to dig around under the truck, but we were on the road in another few moments and none the worse for forgetfulness.

We followed the directions to the Houston livestock check-in area.  The thing was the size of two football fields, and completely filled with traffic cones as if they were expecting a deluge of entries.  They could have lined up a hundred semi trucks in there.  I was just glad that I didn't have to wait in a line THAT long.  We checked in without a hitch, and traveled to the Reliant center.  I pulled in at the unloading dock and hauled my first load of tack inside while I attempted to find my stall assignments.  I came around the corner into the building, and found myself staring inside the largest building I'd ever seen the inside of.  There had to have been stalls for 1000 cattle, and that was just one half of the building!  People everywhere, and noise enough to make your ears quake.  I thought Austin was bad!  I had to settle an uneasy spot in my stomach, wondering what my heifers would think of this madhouse.

Fortunately, the girls were impressive.  They'd learned a lot from the few days in Austin, and this didn't seem to alarm them overly much.  I tied them in their place, settled them in with feed and water and set about parking the trailer.  The rest of the day was spent feeding, watering, washing cattle and preparing for the show.  Oh, and fending off the hundreds of people that came up and down the aisles.  Whew!

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Today is sort of a day off.  We were allowed to keep the cattle in the barns at Austin so that we could head directly to Houston for the check-in tomorrow.  I took the extra time to mend my little trailer of its flopping escape door.  My plan was to get myself a 2X4, and screw it to the wooden interior of the trailer, and to the door.  Not a bad plan according to the opinions I requested, and I set about finding myself a Home Depot or Lowes to acquire the necessary ingredients.  I found a Lowes somewhere on the south side of Austin.  I gathered a 2X4, which I had cut to a 2 foot length (my guess as to the length necessary since I hadn't measured that door in the trailer); a battery-operated drill for $50 (opposed to the DeWalts that cost $300 - but those battery drills are soooooooo handy!); a small packet of screws and a drill bit of proper dimensions for the screws selected.  I also had the presence of mind to get a little saw in case I'd had the wood cut to the wrong length. 

I loaded everything into the truck and headed back to the trailer parking lot.  It was rush hour traffic, and took me a half hour to go just a few miles.  I'd almost reached the trailer when I realized....OH NO!!!! I'd left the 2X4 at the store!  Yeah.   I knew I was running on a little too little sleep....but that was crazy.  Now what?  It certainly wasn't worth driving another hour round-trip to go pick up a $2 board.  Hmmmm......Hey!  Brilliant thought.  Just steal a piece of the pallet I'd put in the back of the truck to help keep feed dry.  It worked like a charm and I had that door fixed in no time.  Well, jury-rigged is more like it.  Paul will fix it for real when I get home.  At least I won't have to worry about my darling little heifers hopping onto the freeway. (What a thought!)

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Show time!  Talk about vaguely organized chaos.  But it was a load of fun.  I think the best part is introducing city kids to cattle.  The range of responses I received varied from shrieking and running away when the heifer twitched at the light touch (this from an upper teens girl); to the bright eyes and a definite desire to stay.....and pet....and stay.....and pet; to carelessly running in between the heifers and practically between their legs.  Obviously the last response gave me considerable consternation since my heifers weren't as gentle as might be expected and I had to shoo several kids away.  But on the whole, it was a positive experience for visitors, heifers and myself.

The show itself was a great learning experience, and the heifers actually did much better than I was afraid they might.  Attitude-wise that is.  As far as placing.....well, Husky and Electricity took 3rd and 4th out of a class of 4, and Rockette took 4th out of a class of 5.  Not a grand beginning to the world of showing, but it's a start.  I honestly believe that the placing would have been much different if the owner (me) had prepared them more carefully for the show.  Considering they were some 100lbs too light, Rockette's placement was due entirely to her quality and not at all to my feeding regime.  Next year I'll be much better prepared.....

Here is a copy of the results:

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

This morning we weighed and measured in.  The heifers weighed less than I expected and were taller than I expected.  But hey, they were under the 45 inch limit, so everything was good.  Scott Bang and his fitting team did an excellent job getting the girls clipped and ready for the show tomorrow.  They took their time and let the heifers get used to the idea - I'd only washed and blown them dry once so this was quite an experience for them.  Buzzing clippers aren't exactly common on a West Texas range!

Monday, March 10, 2008

To Austin I will go, to Austin I will go....heigh-ho...! 

From my driveway to the Austin stock show is some 425 miles, assuming you don't get lost in the big city and rack up a few extra miles (which I didn't, fortunately).  It was quite a trip, however, and rained...and rained....and rained.  Now, I'm not a rich person with a gooseneck aluminum trailer with feed compartments, tack compartments, living compartment.  No sir, I have a little rusty 2-horse trailer that my brother modified into a stock trailer by welding the tack compartment door in place and removing the compartment.  This door was not attached when I painted the trailer a year or two ago, and it's still as rusty as the day we bought it. Well, I'm not headed to the show for someone to judge my trailer, right?  So I'm just thankful that the thing is on the right side of the trailer.  As long as I stay in the right-most lane, maybe no one will wonder what on earth I think I'm doing.

Everything was fine until I pulled into a fueling station to spend another $100 in go-go juice.  I wandered around the truck and trailer, kicking tires and peeking at my precious fuzzy cargo until I came around to the right side of the trailer.  YIKES!  The escape door is flapping 2 inches from where it oughtta be!  Fortunately, I'd asked Paul to weld a latch to the door so that I could lock it securely (don't want any prankster letting my babies out that door in some parking lot).  So I knew I wasn't going to lose that door completely, but it was obvious the hinge had all but given out.  Who would put such a dinky hinge on a horse trailer??  Wondering wasn't going to help my situation though.  I purchased a neon orange strap from a local CarQuest and set about strapping that door down long enough to unload the heifers in Austin.  I don't know how many of you have tried to strap an escape door down, but it's not easy.  It didn't matter what I strapped to, hooked on or wrapped around, the strap did little more than LOOK good.  Oh-well.  I did my best and decided to simply race to Austin.  It worked, and I arrived on schedule with heifers still on board. 

It was pouring rain when I arrived on the show grounds.  Since I had no tack or feed compartment anymore, the feed was simply in the back of my truck under some tarps, and it was rapidly getting wet.  Justin Grady and Jami Mattson of J Bar W Cattle Company were very helpful and assisted me with the unload process.  Since I'd been house hunting for the past month instead of working with the heifers, Justin had quite a time with Miss Electricity.  But in the end my soaked little heifers were stalled in their places, looking like little wet rats with incredulous eyes.  I really wondered at my sanity in even attempting to show.  They weren't nearly fat enough to show, and I knew they wouldn't be when I arrived in Denver and saw the animals blubbering around the aisles.  But soaked, cold, and hunched up.....they looked awful!

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Well folks, I've done it again.  Gone almost a month without blogging.  Apologies to my devoted readers! 

I have a good excuse, though....a couple in fact.  My main excuse is that we've been house-hunting.  Yup.  We're moving shortly.  After growing up in 8 states across the nation, and moving roughly every 2 years; I really HATE moving.  I remember figuring up that I'd moved 18 times - when I was 18.  At least I have something in common with just about everyone I meet: I probably lived somewhere near you at some point.

My second excuse is that I've been preparing for the Austin and Houston shows.  I chose 3 heifers to bring, and did my best to get them ready.  It certainly isn't as easy as I expected, but I've learned a lot and have a few ideas to try for next time.  I'll be leaving early in the morning for Austin.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

So, I finally get to spend a little time on my OWN website today.  I finished the Resources section, which has been missing since my re-design.  Also, check out the Transportation page.  If you or anyone you know will be headed out on a cattle hauling trip - let me know.  Maybe we can find someone to add a few cattle and help with that fuel cost!

Monday, February 11, 2008

Today is Paul's birthday!  My little bro is a whopping 22 years old, and it makes me feel OLD.  We took Paul to town for lunch (a special treat around here) and bought him a glider ride in Marfa which he can redeem on the right day when the weather is perfect.  I gotta get pics of that!

Friday, February 8, 2008

Today we washed the heifers that I'm preparing to show.  It was such a lovely day, 70 degrees and only a gentle warm breeze (oh, it was wonderfully summerish!) we decided it wouldn't be overly stressful for the girls to be washed.  It was definitely good for their training.  They took the whole ordeal in stride and promptly went back to eating after I finally let them loose.  Such good girls, they were.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Heigh-ho!  We're back to MRE season.  For those of you who are new to my blog, MRE stands for Moving Real Estate.  I'm sure we get bits of El Paso stuck in our fences on some of the more blustery MRE days.  At least the air is clear today, sometimes the dust gets so bad it blocks the sunlight.

I've spent all day on the computer (what else is new??) updating sites, submitting sites to search engines, etc.  It takes  a lot of time to keep sites operating at peak efficiency.  And, I've created a new theme for a hopefully-soon-to-be client.  You'll definitely know when this theme goes live, it's a good-un.

 

Monday, February 4, 2008

Today we checked cattle.  It's my favorite pastime, so long as all the cattle are happy and healthy.  The mountains are beyond description to anyone who's never seen them, and the air is so clean it's downright sweet. 

We had a lovely little surprise today: Liberty's Ivy had a fuzzy little bundle to present.  A little bull, and unfortunately rather goofy-looking (I really hope he bulks up as he grows) but since he's only about 3 days old I can give him the benefit of the doubt.  Too bad I didn't have my camera today!  I'll see if I can snap a shot of him next visit.

 

Friday, February 1, 2008

Happy February everyone!  I think I'm going to upload my new Orion Herefords site today.  The page banner text is a little "out there" but it's rather pretty and I've wanted to try it for a while.  Now, for the record, the whole star theme is simply because I believe the Classic and Miniature Herefords are little stars in their own right.  They perform better than any breed I've seen out here, and I'm proud to actually say I own a few of them.  Trust me, I'm really a down-to-earth sort of person.

 

Thursday, January 31, 2008

It occurs to me that tax-season is coming up soon.  What with my two young businesses, I think my taxes are actually going to be interesting this year.  Always before, I didn't make enough to even have to file - or at least I didn't have to PAY anything.  One year, when I'd been in Maryland working for the Dept of Transportation, I even got money back.  I've always filed online.  This time....well, I got to thinking about the fact that I'm self employed..... and a couple cattle sales....and a couple good-sized websites.....and I think I'll visit my local CPA and let her worry about it.  No worries, mate!

 

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Back to the computer I go.  I have a lot to catch up, and the sooner the better.  I completed a site for a local restaurant and hotel.  Check it out, I think the design turned out well: www.FortDavisDrugstore.com 

 

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Today, I took off.  I played with our little turkey "seeds" and rested.  Turkeys are $80 a piece nowadays, and we decided to start raising our own.  Mom bought 20 little turkeys from a hatchery, and they had arrived while I was gone.  They look just like chicken chicks except for a soft little bump on their little foreheads.  So cute.

Monday, January 28, 2008

When I left for Denver, I had a cow that was getting heavy.  She'd calved before, so I wasn't terribly worried, but I did charge my little brother to check on her every other day while I was gone.  True to his word, he did.  She calved shortly after I left, a little bull that was DOA.  I was disappointed, but then Paul informed me over the phone that something was wrong with the cow.  He never could explain exactly what the problem appeared to be, so I hoped and prayed that the cow would hang on long enough for me to get home and check her myself. 

So, even though I still felt awful, we headed up the mountain.  Paul led me right to the calf.  We searched around for the cow, and didn't find her.  We widened our search, and found a strange 2-1/2 foot wide slide mark through the rocks and dirt.  We followed the track, straight to the 100 foot drop-off into Hell's Canyon.  Yup.  There she was.  Whatever happened, I'll never know.  Did I cry?  Yeah.  She was an awesome cow, and I'd had high hopes for her offspring with Spud.  For those of you who got a hold of the Kentucky Expo flyers, she's the Miniature Hereford photographed inside.

Not a good day in the cattle business.

 

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Fun's over, and it's time to head home.  I got to the airport an hour and a half before my flight, and there was a MILE LONG LINE.  I kid you not.  I took one look at that line, and decided I was going to carry my 2 duffels on the plane.  Now, that wasn't an easy decision since I was so sick I could hardly carry the dam things, and I certainly hadn't planned on carrying them all through the Denver airport.  But it sure beat that line.  So I hauled all my stuff to the check point, and had to declare my one bottle of lotion - which I had to throw away.  The lady firmly informed me that I could mail it to myself, I could check it, or I could dispose of it, but I could NOT carry it on.  So?  I didn't care.  I wasn't about to go through the hassle of finding a box, labeling it, taping it up, finding a post office and mailing it; and I darn sure wasn't going back to that mile long line.  The lady was nice enough to dispose of it for me.  Whatever.

I hiked 2 miles with my 2 duffels, coat, purse and camera bag, and then I had a nice hour to await my transport.  The flight from El Paso to Denver is only about an hour and a half, and the plane is really a glorified puddle-jumper.  When I booked this flight, I chose a row with two empty seats and hoped that I'd get them both to myself.  Not so.  I sat next to a college-age football player who, though all muscle, hardly fit in his seat so he took some of mine.  I spent an hour and a half plastered to my window feeling a little claustrophobic and a lot sick.

Paul met me at the airport, and humored me by taking me to Walmart before we went home.  I had my heart set on buying some fabric for my curtain-thing behind the heifer's info pages on their stalls for my first show.  The fabric I had in mind was black, with navy blue and stars sprinkled across.  I'd seen it at Walmart previously, and was really hoping they'd still have it.  I found something extremely similar (it might even be the same stuff and I just don't remember what I saw...you know how it goes) so I bought 4 yards and have grand plans for sewing it up.  We'll see if I get it done on time.

We pulled over the last cattleguard and up our driveway about 5:00pm, and who should meet us but the 4 heifers I've been feeding out for the Houston and Austin shows.  Hmmmm....they'd gotten out of their pen.  That's not so unusual (not that they've ever gotten out before), but one of them even managed to get her halter on.  Now THAT'S unusual.  Paul chivalrously rounded them up and put them back where they belonged.  I found a lock and put it on my gate.  They shouldn't do THAT anymore.

 

Saturday, January 26, 2008

With all the excitement yesterday, I finally succumbed to the Denver Bug.  Oh, boy, it's a nasty one let me tell you.  I convinced myself to get downstairs at the hotel, and over to the barns for morning chores.  We got the cattle fed, watered, cleaned up and settled in for the day and I felt awful.  I finally had to give up and go back to the hotel and rest up for the banquet.  I really missed out on a lot of chatting with other breeders, as there were several I wanted to meet.  *sigh* Maybe next year, and I plan on NOT catching the Bug next time. 

 

Friday, January 25, 2008

Show day! I was up at 3:00 am.  We headed over to the barns and got the cattle ready for the 8:00 am show.  First, I showed the darling little heifer, Josie's Blue Girl.  Greg told me beforehand that she'd place dead last because she was so tiny.  So, going in to the ring, my only determination was to beat ONE.  We took 3rd in a class of...I think it was 5 or 6.  Next, I showed KAP Princess Poppi, and I think Greg was pretty disappointed with how she placed.  You never know what the judge is going to like or dislike, unless you happen to know the judge. 

After that, we showed Miss Josie and Josie's Blue Girl in the cow/calf class, and we did okay.  Next came the little bulls.  I showed King Majesty, a cute little stinker of a bull - but I really felt I was getting the hang of this showing business when the judge placed me in 5th (blech) and I managed to set the little guy up really well while the judge walked down the line again - and we were raised up a notch. 

Greg had sold the second little bull, Outlaw Gold aka Elvis aka Knothead aka some other names I don't care to relate, to a friend I met while we were there: Hillary.   She had come up from Houston to help Greg, and I was sure glad for her company in the washrack.  She showed Gold, and I think they did okay.

Next came the two big bulls, Ace Joker and Mr. Maxamillion.  Hillary showed Ace, and I got to parade Max through the ring all by himself.  There were no other entries in his age bracket, for class or division, so he was automatically the winner.  Well, it was fun, but that ribbon will mean so much more someday when I win it for real.

 

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Whoopee-do.  Back to the wash rack to wash some little bulls who'd had WAY more than enough yesterday.  They were good sports, though, and we finally got everyone shiny and clean. 

I got to meet David Thompson today, which really made my day.  He's Red Pride's breeder, and he also owned Spud for a while.  He's a great guy to chat with, and when you get him and Greg Schulz together  they're a real riot.

 

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

The reason I was actually able to afford to be in Denver is because Greg Schulz of Schulz Farm in Bay City, TX offered me a job caring for and showing his cattle.  I am very thankful for the opportunity to be there, and I tried to soak up as much information about showing cattle as I could in the time allotted. 

We headed over to the barns after partaking of a fairly respectable hotel breakfast (the bagels were actually sort of soft).  After fetching our stall assignments, I was handed a shovel and told to clean a box-stall sized section of bedding out of the cattle area.  This was to be the place where we'd put our "junk".  Well, the bedding was at least a foot deep, and soaking wet - and it took me most of the morning.  Building websites is not exactly good preparation for this sort of thing, and it's been a few months since I've operated a jackhammer on the fenceline.  Ohhhh, I was sore after that!

Shortly after lunch, we brought in the cattle.  They had been kept on a ranch in Nebraska so that they could grow hair for the show (cattle in Houston area don't grow hair) . . . (well, they do, but not very thick - who needs a winter coat in that lovely year-round summer weather??).  Well, the cattle arrived plastered with muck and mud, and it wasn't wet.  I set to scrubbing...and scrubbing...and scrubbing.  You see, you can't just pull all the blobs of yukkies off, because that would pull out the hair.  So you soak...and soak....and soak.  And you try to keep the calves calm, even though they've been in the wash rack all afternoon and they're getting REALLY cranky.  Yup, it was grand FUN.  Evening rolled around and we decided to try again tomorrow.  I'd managed to clean 2 big bulls, most of 2 small bulls, and hadn't even gotten to the 2 cows and little baby heifer. 

I hadn't put in a day's work like that since I quit working for my brother building fence.

 

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Today I traveled to Denver.  Now, I HAVE flown before.  Quite a bit before, actually, back in my "dancing days" when I bopped all over the states to schools, performances and friends.  Ah, those were the days.  They were also the days before 9-11, and back when flying could still be slightly enjoyable.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  I know the TSA has thousands of folks to screen every day, and any one of which could be a terrorist for all they know (including me).  I'm glad they attempt to be thorough.  But it isn't reassuring to be treated with suspicion when you're about to place your very life into the hands of the airline and its employees. 

All in all, the flight was boring; which was good for my confidence.  As much as I love watching Star Wars and Star Treks - I like to keep my feet on the ground.  I arrived at the Denver airport, forked over a whopping $20 to get myself to the hotel . . . and enjoyed the rest of my evening.

Monday, January 21, 2008

I was working all last week to get a new site up, and I think it's finally ready.  Justin Grady, of J Bar W Cattle Co. asked me to complete a site for them, and I think this one turned out very well: www.jbarwcattle.com

 

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

I know I promised to post my latest design almost a week ago...but I had some lovely problems getting the thing uploaded. Sooo...here you are: www.pjranchminicattle.com

Please visit the site, look around, and definitely let me know if you discover any "bugs"! The Sale Barn page isn't complete yet because I'm going to meet with the Potters during the National Western to discuss all that. Yup, I actually get to go to the National Western!! Yeah! So, to all of you who will be there: I'll see you next week. And to everyone who can't make it, I plan to give a detailed account of my adventures as soon as I get home. Hopefully, I'll have a lot of pictures, too.

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

It has been a hectic week. Like what week isn't? Some are more hectic than others, though. Monday, I designed a new theme for a Miniature Hereford breeder who is very prominent in our little "Mini Hereford World" and I'm proud that he asked me to develop a site. Hopefully, we can get it off the ground soon, so I can add it to my portfolio and brag just a little. I love the design - but then I did it, so that would make sense, wouldn't it?

Monday evening was our monthly meeting for ordering organic produce...this month's order is over $2000 and much larger than usual. Yikes! It took several hours to compile and submit - hours that I wish I could have spent on my designs, but when I eat that yummy food it will probably all be worth it!

Tuesday we checked cattle. Oh, it was fun! I love visiting my "girls." Today, I intended to haul back a steer for butchering and "Amelia" the old dear-heart from Idaho. She's getting rather long in the tooth - well, that's a figurative phrase because she's actually getting absent-toothed. Maybe that's something like absent-minded? Anyway, I'm really proud of how she handled the mountain terrain (actually, she was on a pretty nice mesa) but she's getting heavy (ooooh, I can't wait to get that calf!) and she definitely deserves some TLC. My day was re-routed, though, as I checked my bull calves. One of them came in with a rather serious malady, and he was immediately loaded on the trailer in place of the yummy-looking steer and hauled to the vet for emergency surgery. Needless to say, he was steered in the process. *Sigh* I really liked that boy, too. Guess that's life in the cattle business.

Today, I have been racing around trying to catch up on everything I was supposed to do yesterday. The good news is that one of my sites-in-progress will go live tomorrow..so you'll get to see it! Check back to find out whose it is...

Friday, Jauary 4, 2008

I hope y'all had as good a holiday season as I did. We had a wonderful time!

You know, I promised myself I'd never let my blog get out of date....like all those blogs you see that haven't been posted to since who-knows-when? Now I know what happened. That poor person got BUSY! Happens to everyone, doesn't? So....what have I been doing?

Here's a recap since my last post, and I'm ashamed to say it was back in October!

September 17, I had my first beef slaughtered at Sul Ross University, located about 45 miles from me. They have a USDA inspected facility, and the price sure beats cutting that beef up myself (I've helped cut up beeves before, and it's a chore!) I was extremely pleased with the liveweight to packaged meat percentage, and the beef was very tender and tasty - I had simply rounded this guy up off the pasture. No finishing whatsoever. What do you know, it worked!

Important news aside, I've been re-desigining sites with Microsoft Expression Web (yeah, trying to get away from trusty old, un-standards based FrontPage). Plus, I've got about 4 new sites in the works, hopefully to be released to the public soon. It's been great working up so many website designs (each site that finally goes live requires about a hundred revisions!) and it's been good. The only down side is that I never have time for my site and my blog anymore. As much as I enjoy blogging about whatever comes into my little head, I have to admit I hope business stays "booming." More later. . .

Blogs from 2007