I was getting pretty nervous about the hay season. You know I hate it, and everyone had started giving me a wide berth thinking I had put an evil whammy on it. I can't do that and, if I could, I ain't dumb enough to! We need the winter feed as much as anyone.
It did rain and the grass did grow, the tractors are in gear and a well-seasoned bunch of fellers are happily mowing. Our offspring are in their element, burning fuel, and my close relative is cooking for the crew! We are all relieved and anxious to put many bales in the barns.
I am having a hard time deciding if we need to cull some more old cows. The price of cattle is tempting, but culling too hard can be almost disastrous to a small rancher like me. Fellers who have a couple thousand cows can peel them down pretty easy, but my herd doesn't even skim that number.
I am remembering what my Pappy told me many moons ago about doing what you started. He believed if you started trying to shuffle around your business it would no longer be a profitable enterprise. If a feller sells weaned and bunk-broke calves, he should probably stay with it. Reputations grow and cattle markets are so fickle that a feller can be sucked into a downward spiral and the business killed almost instantly. I guess I have sold almost all I can without hurting the little business we have.
Warm weather has brought out the critters. There must be some reason the skunks have raised so many litters and I wonder how many babies per litter. I don't believe I have ever seen so many waddling around on their little skunk feet. The coyotes are also plentiful and the coons are raiding my feed room nightly. Snakes are abundant and, from small to giants, they are threatening me at every rock and crevice. I sure step lively for an old man!
I guess I am looking for a dump truck again. I need to do some work around the rock pile on the roads and especially around the headquarters. I have a gully I could mine if I had a truck to haul dirt and fill in the low spots. I do not own a creek and that wouldn't help anyway. I understand ravaging creeks is illegal and costs jail time -- can't see me doing that -- so I am looking at old beat-up and sorry dump trucks again. They are in my price range.
I hope your equipment works perfectly, your hay dries quickly and your bales are tight. I hope you wrap up as much as you need and some extra, never break a hydraulic hose or flatten a tire. May all your meals be hot and brought to the field with fresh iced tea and a new jug of cold water. Have a great hay season and remember how thankful I am for male offspring!
Bill is the pen name used by a local writer and longtime resident of the Gravette area. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 05/28/2014