We have a lovely little pond with fountain that is a tranquil spot in our yard. The gold fish make graceful slashes of color, the moving water soothes and something about the purity of the white lilies invites contemplation. Our county has had a recent bout of violence and as of this day a manhunt is ongoing for a man who murdered his family. Of course, I judge this man harshly. Yet, while I may not carry out huge acts of violence, I am guilty of daily acts of violence. I guess we all are: anger, jealousy, greed are all difficult emotions to control and most of us don't have much training on how to handle these feelings.
But we need to try.
tranquility - a disposition free from stress
tranquility: the absence of anxiety
tranquility: steadiness of mind
tranquility: a feeling of calm
tranquility: an untroubled state even with disturbances
whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is
pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is
excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.
It's wonderful being home and I realize now that I had been depressed for quite a while. We've had almost two tumultuous years helping my folks and now that I have some breathing room, life is coming back into focus. It's still hard knowing my mom is alone in a care facility with Alzheimers, but we are both adjusting. She enjoys visiting with me and is also comfortable seeing me leave. But why wouldn't she be? She tells me that I live there. She says I go out walking a lot! Sad, but reassuring too in a twisted sort of way; she doesn't feel alone.
Spring on the ranch is beautiful. Love it! This year has been very warm and dry. We got a sprinkle or two the last few days which may save the grass a little, but we really are in a drought. It's going to be a long summer. We try not to worry about things you can't change, so we have just been enjoying all the sunshine.
Besides tearing down corrals, Mark has been assisting Eric on a building project and beginning the battle with thistles.... A battle he has been fighting since the fire. He also spends his mornings with business news and trading stocks. Mark has changed some of his investment strategies by being more active in the stock market. Not quite day trading, but almost. We can't stay in the green with just the cattle, so for now, Mark the Trader is making it happen.
Besides pulling tons of weeds and cleaning our home, I've been riding and training my horses daily for the last 3 weeks. I love riding, but consistent and methodical training on squirrelly horses is tiring. I don't know how trainers do it, day after day. My hat is off to them. My horses had really turned into a wild herd and needed tuning up badly. Plus, they were huge from eating all that sweet clover that is carpeting the ranch this year. I'm happy to say, they are all making steady progress and I haven't gotten hurt, so 'it's all good'. I really hope to find new homes for 2 of my 4 horses, but I just don't know which 2. LOL. If you would like a horse, let me know. I will give them away to the right home.
The cattle are getting very fat too on the sweet clover, and on them, it's a good thing. We will once again be selling some steers as freezer beef. If you want some let me know; split quarters, sides or whole. My phone number is 707-599-0518 or email me at tjandmark@gmail.com.
Went down to the barn the other day and discovered this. Posts still standing, but no boards. Of course, it wasn't much of a corral anymore and we've replaced the cattle handling facilities in another location. But still...
It does make good kindling. Or maybe we should sell this as a corral in a box?
Went outside and discovered this little feline at our doorstep. A pretty little thing, sweet too, but we have no idea where she came from. It's not like we have neighbors nearby. It's at least a mile, probably more and she would have to cross creeks and climb hillsides. Why would she do that? Probably because she hoped we would feed her, which we did. We are calling her The Cat. Shadow the dog calls her Sassy as she likes to slap her. Bam! If this is your kitty, or if you recognize her let us know.
Mark and I got to talking (AKA arguing) about these over-sized mosquito creatures and decided to google it. I was always told they eat mosquitoes, Mark thought they sucked plants. Wrong on both accounts. They don't eat in this stage. They hatch out of ponds and just mate. Short, but good life I am sure.
Last, but not least, what are these men doing? Also of note is the grass they are on. We hauled in loads of composted horse poop and planted it last fall. We are happy to see it grew. Of course now we have to mow it. Maybe we should have left the rocks and weeds?
Yes, we are still alive and well and I promise to do a more worthy update soon. For now though, some flowers for your May Day.
The lilac bush is in bloom and it smells heavenly.
Always reminds me of my granny as she loved lilac smell. Her perfume, her dresser drawer sachets, her bathroom spray all were lilac. It was a bit much as a kid and I can remember lilac headaches, but now, the heady scent brings warmth and love. A lilac hug.
Wild Iris are everywhere. Delicate flowers of spring.
We have a new dog named Shadow. She is a perfect companion for us at this time in our lives. She is easy to take on trips, loves long walks and the ranch, and makes a perfect lap warmer. She came to us through the hand of providence last fall when we needed a little dog and distraction most. She was a stray that a lady down the street from my mom found. Once the neighbor told us that she was a small, black, female I accepted sight unseen as I had been praying for just such a gift as my closest companion dog in my life had been a small black dog.
Here I am way back when with my little dog Chiquita. Chiquita was a gift too. A sneaky gift from my grandma. The story is told that when my first pet died, I told my parents I didn't want another parakeet, I wanted a dog. My mom said "no", my dad said "we'll see". I took it to a higher authority, my grandma. (I was sneaky like that). She smiled and also said, "we'll see". Even at five, I knew my dad's Mr. Will C meant 'NO' and my grandma's meant 'YES'. One day my grandma stopped by our house with a small, white, square box about four by four inches. Scratching noises came from inside. Grandma was direct. "Mary," she said, "Can Tj have what is in this box?" My mom smiled and thinking it was a bird said, "of course". Off came the cardboard top and there was my dog. I was ecstatic. For 11 years that little dog was my confidante, companion and best friend. I learned a lot about love and responsibility from Chiquita and my mom too came to forgive my grandma and love the little dog as much as I.
This made me laugh, maybe it will you too? BTW- I don't normally have such a twang. I was just being silly after finishing working the cattle.
Silliness aside, we had a great spring roundup and all but about 3 animals were handled and given needed care. The cows still know my voice, with or without the twang apparently, and they all followed me and my little orange Kubota full of hay into the handling corrals. Eric, Jo, Mark and I have turned into a fairly well oiled machine and the job got done quickly and without mishap. Well, one cow's head didn't get caught in the chute, instead her hips caught in the head catch, but she was gentle, so they just vaccinated her and gave her bolus as is. LOL.
Our jobs:
Eric: Piercer extraordinaire. Double checks for veins and always picks the right spot for ear tags. No bleeding. Also gives shots, usually the tetanus for the bulls who are getting banded to become steers. Helps with the chute when needed and keeping the chute loaded.
Jo: Head Nurse and shot giver for the vaccinations, also helps keep the animals moving down the runway. Works quietly and efficiently (unlike me!)
Mark: Runs the chute, puts on wormer, does the bolus, and the banding of the bulls.
Me: Quality control: Makes up tags, keeps record of each animal, and helps Mark with the banding. TALKS too much. Ex. "That's Suzette, she's a nervous gal, go slow, walk carefully. She's Bertha's girl, you remember her right? Remember Suzette when she had her first calf? Shook all over, poor thing, did fine though. Yep, she's a nervous one. Won't save any of her heifers" and on and on with almost every cow. :-)
Eerie, early morning shot out in the front of our ranch captures another place and time. Time, something that is all mixed up this week. Some of our clocks are on daylight savings and others are real time. You know the time the sun says it should be. Ranchers and farmers can't ever really understand how you save daylight. The sun comes up and the sun goes down. The same today as last week. It doesn't change. It is dependable. Unlike our new time, which messes with my internal clock a bit and makes me grouchy. I think it is one time and go to make a call and, OOps, its after five, and they are closed.
Lots of little business on the ranch. Tax time. Bills to be paid. Looking into new insurance, making a long overdue budget. And the cattle. The grass is short, but it is sustaining them. We got some rain last week. 4 inches, but more would be appreciated. Hate to be greedy, but it would be nice for the fish in the stream and the grass and the flowers and all the little creatures and our cows.
It is about time for another spa day for our cattle and today Mark went to town and got the supplies: premise I.D tags that are electronic and tell where the calves are born and the three month window they were born in, vaccinations, tetanus shots for the bulls who will become steers, new bands for the bander, copper supplements, pour on wormer and a few more earrings to write their number on so we can tell who are boys and who are girls and what year they were born in. We treat the cattle fairly and calmly put them through the chute, but I am still not fond of spa day. Cows moo and calves bawl some. But that's life, I guess. You gotta take the good with the bad, and the cattle don't know it, but we are doing them a favor. Well, the bull calves aren't getting any favors. They are going to go from being baritone to tenor. More jobs for tenors.
A month or so ago Charlie fell and got stuck sideways into the uphill side of our barn. We don't know how long he lay that way, probably 24 hours. Mark, Eric, and Jo used the Kubota and straps to pull him out of the side of the barn. After much coaxing and a night time vigil by Jo, he got up and ate a little and drank some water. It was a sad night. Jo stayed close by. Charlie was her childhood horse and they had the closest bond. They loved each other and it showed. The next day we had to leave the ranch again and Charlie was on his feet but weak. He could go either way.
Charlie fell again and he couldn't get up. Eric euthanized him and they buried him at the top of the pasture and planted a pear tree on top of his grave. He was 33 years old and until the last couple of days he was very happy and looked like a much younger horse.
Jo and I have both been experiencing a very interesting occurrence in the barn. We see Charlie out of our peripheral vision. Just a quick flash and then when we look, he is gone. It is quite odd and probably just a memory in our mind. But still, it makes us wonder. I've gotten to calling out, "Come on, Chuckles (my nickname for him) time to eat."
Click here for a little story I wrote a while ago in honor of him and Mark's 50th birthday.
Charlie giving one of the ranch visitors a ride. Charlie gave a lot of rides in his life.
It has been a season of change. We've had a year and a half of coming and going from the ranch. We've released our firewood business to our son and daughter and law, we cut back on the number of cows, we drove back and forth to our old home town to supervise the care of and to care for my elderly parents. We traveled.
My dad died this fall and my mom's mental state took a big hit. She had been struggling with memory issues, diagnosed with alzheimers, but coping. After her husband of 60 years died, she lost it. We tried personally caring for her, we tried 24 hour hired care in her home too and it didn't really work. She was constantly anxious and looking for her husband. She would leave to go find him, she would do odd things. Sometimes dangerous things. My siblings and I decided to place her in a care facility. I thought I would feel relief, but I struggle with guilt and grief. The poor dear misses home and every time she sees me she thinks I am taking her home. She usually thinks I'm her mom I think because she finds comfort with me. It's hard and I am struggling emotionally. I wish I could care for her, but it was just too much.
But it is good for me to be home on the ranch. REAL good. Best air in the country and nice people too. Beautiful surroundings. It is home. My cows don't really know me anymore though, but they have been doing fine all by themselves. Let that be a lesson to me. The horses still come running. Of course, it could be the carrots falling out of my pockets, but then again it could be love.
We are currently in a drought. Creeks that usually are running this time of year are bone dry. Our grass is short, very short. All of the rocky areas already have some grass turning yellow. It is strange and a bit scary, but we have to remind ourselves that the important rains are the ones that come in spring. So please come spring rains. Come and play. Make the world green again and let our hearts bloom.
As you can see, I decided to come back to this blog site. I will also blog over on wordpress, if you are interested, but I've missed the Ranch on Salmon Creek and I find this format easier to use.
Now, I just have to find something to share.
Perhaps a little flower will make you smile,
Or a group of stately trees.
Here's some rocks
I hear the honey call that the steaks are done. That's something else I've missed. Some good meat.
