Yesterday, Sept. 8th, 1967, I was able to lift the shop door off the hinges and repair it by myself. Today, I tried to lift the tack room door off its hinges for repair and could not lift it high enough. I saw an ad on TV about our hormones bottoming out after 35, so I suspect mine have. I sure hate to think I am weakening up physically, but you can bet the farm that mentally I am just as strong as a bull. Probably just as smart, too!
I called the offspring in to help me with the door and then to do the repair with me. I do believe the lumber nowadays is soaked in some liquid to make it so dang heavy. I nailed the last board on and the youngest did the sawing to make it all even. We finished about noon so, naturally, he called the older one in for lunch, too. My close relative saw the traffic and prepared for the onslaught.
I am worn to a little old slick button this fall. Yes, I am glad to see the temperature slide down a few degrees. I believe the high heat and direct sun pulls the strength right out of a man. I figure having worked for so many years in this, my chosen profession in the outdoors, that it's no wonder I am feeling tired and weak. I don't need hormones; I need some cool breeze and another tall glass of iced tea!
We are going to have a bumper crop of fall calves. My choice cows are dropping babies like little black Easter eggs all over the pasture. The heifers in the bunch are all big and doing a great job of calving. Some of the heifers are right wary of that little black thing and it is comical to watch them slip up on the calf, smell, snort and finally decide they like it.
The fall working days are slipping up on us real quick. We will not gather all at once, doing it by pasture again this fall. I can't tell it did any good to reworm the cattle two weeks after the first dose and, so, we are taking samples to compare to the vet. It is sure hard on the cattle to be gathered and put through the chute again. I suspect the ordeal causes the loss of weight and makes the herd leery of anyone coming to the pasture for months. We will know the results after the vet makes the tests.
The feedlot steers are doing well. None of them are sick and all are big eaters, so I have a feeling they are going to do well. Of course, the market has started dropping and if it plunges to the price of cattle in the 1990s, I will be wishing I'd sold them as vaccinated, bunk-broke calves!
It is my opinion, and everyone has one, I hope to stop complaining about my lacks and start being extra thankful for my abilities that are still working! You fellers know we do a lot better when we start the day believing all is OK than if we start looking for trouble before our feet hit the floor. If it isn't OK, we know we can mend or tend to it one way or another. I am gonna turn over that leaf and get better. Hope you do, too.
Eat your greens!
Bill is the pen name used by the Gravette-area author of this weekly column. Opinion expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 09/16/2015