Another Typical Day

A day in the life...

8:00 a.m. Walk over to our office next door. Linda our secretary is having a root canal so I'm on my own today. Linda has worked for us for over 19 years and is the glue that holds our ranch together, without her I'm convinced we would literally fall apart.

8:15 My dad comes in with a stack of bills- his daily routine. The phone rings several times. My brother brings in a new Mr. Coffee and starts to brew a pot in the kitchen (our office has a kitchen which we use during harvest and working cattle).

8:20 An anonymous (the name has been omitted to protect the embarrassed) person announces their visiting relative, a vet, is neutering the family dog on their dining room table. Astonished? Me? Not much...it's a typical day.

8:25 Three more males make their way into the room and a group discussion begins on the complex maneuvering of cattle, people, and trucks-from one pasture to the other; from grass to wheat; from wheat to grass; from one state to the other.

8:30 A neighbor and his wife stop. They ask if we're missing a water buffalo; they have an extra in their pasture. I call and check. No missing water buffalo...not that we know of. Shocked? Me? Not much...it's a typical day.

8:45 Crawl into the Mack (a truck) and head north with hubby to haul cattle to the sale.

9:20 Arrive 35 miles north to a remote homestead which we've renovated and lease to hunters. The guys start sorting old-dry (they're not expecting) cows from the young ones. I visit with a hunter's son and a friend about their deer hunting and their show calves which they'd hauled with them (they had taken them to a show on Saturday and had them penned in the corral) The show calves looked really out of place-fat and sassy-next to the thin old dry cows we were hauling

9:30 Deer Hunting Season. Need I say more about the actions of some "packing" men...and women? We arrive with the cattle at the destination pasture greeted by a group of individuals displaying some of the unsavory actions which accompany the overzealous hunter. Remember the movie Deliverance? Remember the movie Open Range? Let's just say the encounter we had with the "packing" individuals hung somewhere in between. Uneasy? Me? YES...this ISN'T typical and it's a relief to unload and drive away.

10:45 We head back north to load another group of cattle. After loading we make the 40 mile trip to Woodward where we unload. After unloading we drive north of town to the "wash out" to clean out the rented cattle trailer. This is a giant "car wash" for manure filled truck trailers. These wash outs are rare jewels in the cattle hauling truck world. If this one had been closed we would have been forced to drive to the next closest 60 miles away.

2:30 So much for eating at my favorite Mexican restaurant; we're stuck at the truck wash out and eat at their little cafe. Queasy? Me?...maybe a little but I'm used to the smell plus it is extremely clean and the chicken fry is excellent.

3:30 We're headed back home, but not before making another trip to return the trailer.

5:00 We drop the trailer off east of Fairview where we visit a while with relatives---I swap recipes and Brad swaps stories and ideas.

7:30 p.m. We're finally home. Brad heads to the family room and I head to the frig where I stare mindlessly at its ingredients. After a few minutes I conjure up a new recipe; Corn Meal Crepes with Broccoli Sausage Cheese Soup.
Tired? Me? Yes...it's a typical day---But I wouldn't trade boots with anyone.