Doggon' it! We have a dog!

There's been a new addition to our family!
Rorri came home with us on June 16. We'd been looking for a dog to replace Dad's border collie, Radar, who vanished late last summer. Rorri, an Austrailian Shepherd mix, finally appeared at the Liberty Animal Shelter a little over a week ago. We took Dad to see her, but he wasn't sure that she was what he wanted. However, WE fell in love with her, and now she's home!

All Gassed Up?

I recently heard a nationally syndicated "pundit" bemoaning how much gasoline it took to produce the traditional beef found in the grocery stores.  By the time you add up the fuel used to grow the corn to feed the steer, to haul the steer to and from the feedlots, to haul the processed beef to it's final destination in the supermarket, it's a significant amount.  This "expert" then coyly asked if it wouldn't be better for the planet, more "green", if we all stopped eating beef.

 

Well, there's another alternative.

 

Why not START eating grassfed beef?  The use of fossil fuels to produce such a product is a small percentage of that of the grainfed beef.  My guess is that most grassfed beef in the US is bought and eaten within a short distance of where it is produced, instead of being shipped 1500 miles or more, as is the average distance travelled for most products in the typical supermarket. 

 

Wouldn't this be a way we could have our beef and eat it, too?

 

GO GREEN!  EAT GRASSFED!

The Lowline Lifestyle

What is it?
It's a lot of things, grassfed beef, country living, urban ranching, and more.
Find out about it at:
http://lowlinelifestyle.com

Watch Out For That TREE!

I was trying to chase one of the 500 pound calves out of a lot we have fenced off, and he had somehow gotten into.  Now, it's been years since I did much "hearding".  So it was kind of an adrenaline rush.  I mean, here I was, the "smart one", heading that dumb beast to the gate I wanted him to go through.  Suddenly, he darted and started to go around the pickup I was driving to herd him.  "AHA!", I thought.  "Just jump in reverse and cut him off!"

Would have workd well if it hadn't of been JUST slippery enough out there for me to slide into the tree he darted around.

OUCH!

Anyone good at putting in new tail-lights?

Broken Water

I knew I should have let the sun thaw it out today. But there was
1/4" of ice on the waterer, and I decided to break it free. When I
did, I somehow broke the chain that holds the float ball to the
shutoff valve. So now I had an overflowing waterer.

The temperature was 24 degrees out, and that water was COLD! I found
a rock I could wedge under the float valve to stop the flow. Then I
had to bail out the water to get to where the chain connected to the
shutoff arm. I eventually managed to get things all piced together
and adjusted again. I was chilled to the bone after an hour and a
half out in the cold air, and elbow deep in cold water.

But it felt good to have figured it out and gotten it done!

Broken Water

I knew I should have let the sun thoaw it out today. But there was
1/4" of ice on the waterer, and I decided to break it free. When I
did, I somehow broke the chain that holds the float ball to the
shutoff valve. So now I had an overflowing waterer.

The temperature was 24 degrees out, and that water was COLD! I found
a rock I could wedge under the float valve to stop the flow. Then I
had to bail out the water to get to where the chain connected to the
shutoff arm. I eventually managed to get things all piced together
and adjusted again. I was chilled to the bone after an hour and a
half out in the cold air, and elbow deep in cold water.

But it felt good to have figured it out and gotten it done!

Oh, deer........................

Life in the country can be all about the timing...........

As we were getting into the Jeep, I happened to glance down to the end of the drive. I spotted some movement on the other side of the road, so stood still a moment to see what was going on. Out of the small ravine came a buck, about a 12 pointer as near as I could count. Behind him came a harem of 4 does, followed by 4 young deer, judging by their size. They quickly crossed the road and followed what seemed to be a well known path up beside the driveway, then gracefully leaped the fence at the back of the yard, crossed the corner of the pasture, and leaped the boundary fence there before trotting on up and over the ridge.

It was a magnificent sight, a sight that would have been missed had the timing been 30 seconds different.

God blesses us so richly!

Early Hints of Spring

It was cold out this morning.

The thermometer read 12 degrees. My hands were almost instantly
chilled as I tried to work the clasp on the chain and then open the
metal gate into the pasture. There was a 2 inch thick layer of
"slush" on the top of the waterer, and by the time I'd scooped it out
with my bare hands, they were longing for the warmth of the heater
vents blowing on high.

But there was a beauty to this morning as well.

The pale reddish pink of the rising sun seemed to have just a hint of
warmth too it, something that has been missing for awhile now. As I
stood a few moments in the reflection, feeling the calm, cold air, I
looked up to see 3 V's of geese coming my way. I watched them
approach and fly over, heading northward with much loud honking, some
kind of communications between them.

And I thought of spring.