Let'em out

We were rounding up cattle on Friday. The 1st order of business was to spend an hour at the local coffee shop eating breakfast, discussing the cattle market, the price of grain, and laughing. When you have 2 Rudolf boys together there is always a lot of laughing.
The 2nd order of business was getting the cattle (cows & calves) rounded up and headed out of the pasture.
Well, here’s how that went. I was outside the gate and down the road (to keep the cattle from turning the wrong way). The old man was at the gate, sitting in his dodge with a plan to open the gate when the cattle head his way. The 2 other cowboys were on 4 wheelers doing there thing -as the cattle are headed toward the gate. The cattle are doing everything perfectly -facing the right direction, heading for the gate, and they were getting closer & closer & closer. And the old man doesn’t move away! Now, I know he sees them. It looks like he would like them to bunch up, but geez I’m yelling to myself “let’em out.” Finally, and only after one of the cows turns back to familiar territory, he moves his dodge.
Later he marked -“I thought I had the 2 best cowboys helping”? Well if you would have “let’em out” I thought again to myself.
Now, the old man maybe said that while smiling (he’s a Rudolf boy I told you). But, his big mustache is covering his whole smile. I think it came off sort of sarcastic. But, I’m keeping that to myself too.

Stop & See

I just love the 4 seasons of North Dakota. The colors of fall this year are absolutely beautiful. I was out in the yard the other day looking at my garden. The cucumbers were done, the pumpkin (I grew 1 -tee hee) was orange, the brussels sprouts were large and green, the tomatoes were down to the last few and turning redder everyday. I then turned around and saw a pesky climbing plant a brilliant red color, I’ve tried to control it’s erratic growth for years, and now it’s showing me it’s true purpose.
So I ran and got my camera and snapped this photo. Isn’t it just the coolest. The red of the climbing plant, the green of some volunteer tree. I then went inside and saw the photo a little better. Do you see the cowboy shadow that my husband gave me? Do you see the rusty & rather faded "little" red wagon of my youngest child, now in her mid 20's. Do you see the rustic pebble bird bath that my chunky blue jays used all summer (that my far-a-way niece made for me)? Do you see the trunk of a old and ugly tree that throws leaves on my grass all summer long and houses delightfully noisy red and black woodpeckers? How about the sunflower bird feeder or the tin pail laying sideways hiding my favorite cactus plant I got on a trip threw Texas some 25 years ago?
The color of our 4 seasons in this part of the country are just breathtaking, I really wish those colors would last longer, I know there is a saying "take time to stop & smell the roses" but I can’t smell very good so my saying goes something like "take time to stop and see the colors that surround you -daily".

No thanks Lady O

Thanks Lady O, but no thanks. That’s my response. I was reading an Oprah Magazine the other day and out of the center of the magazine slipper a "Special Invitation" Wow, a special invitation just for me -yipee was my first thought. And I read on -just in case it was some sort of a hoax. It said "Oprah invites you to celebrate your life and live it with passion every day!" Oh, wow that’s what I need, I need to live my life with passion. Yup, Oprah I except your special invitation ...Then I scanned down the special invitation and there was a box to check that said 12 issues only $18. A renewal notice, man what a bunch of double talk. I’ve been hood winked. Now I am thinking there was nothing special and the thing about celebrating life would be Oprah celebrating the fact that she conned another person into giving her a bunch of money to receive a magazine of adds for Calvin Klein and other stuff that I don’t buy and really have never even seen. -thanks but no thanks I’ll keep my $18 and try to live my life with passion without Oprah and her magazine. .