Another day, another nickle #16: Mud, Cows and More Cows.

Thanks Thos, for posting.
Yes, cowboying is not glamorous, but the story is interesting especially when we watch it on tv or widescreen.
You remind me High Chaparral, my favorite series when I was teenage.

Take care Thos!

-- masrol, kuala lumpur, MY.

Kipp-ki-yi-ya! I’d still rather be covered by sawdust,,,,,,Sorry Tom! ;o)

-- Les, Wichita, Ks. (I'd rather be covered in saw dust!)

I never saw any Roy Rodgers or Gene Audrey movies that ever had that kind of problems.

Maybe you don’t understand how it’s suppose to be done.

But never the less it is nice and warm on this side of the computer monitor.

Glad you are busy and not sitting in your nice warm shop with nothing to do.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

Sounds like fun to me :-)

-- There is no such thing as a mistake. Its called a design modification Rick Kruse, Grand Rapids, MI

Nope.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

So good to see a post. I thought about giving you a call a couple of times. We have had some great weather the last few days up in Billings. The bad stuff always hits just east of us.

I already know too many people that ranch and have no more inclination to find it glamorous than I do working concrete or roofing.

Let me know when you head to Billings for supplies, we’ll have to hook up. You have to meet Rita.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Californians pay for mud treatments. Sure you not working a spa and not a ranch?
Always good to hear from you Tom.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

You just keep a bloggin Thos! You have inspired me to try and stick to this sawdust gig another month or so.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

My hat’s off to you, Thos. You are one tough, hard working guy!

I grew up on a smaller family operation – usually 100-120 pair. Even at that size, ranching starts to look a lot like work.

-- http://www.north40custom.com -- http://north40studios.etsy.com --

Just caught the weather. The Big Horn and Bearthooth Mts are both supposed to get 1-2 more feet of snow over the next day.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

unique post.. i decided that riding fence was not a lot of fun back in the late 50’s.. i can’t dream of working cattle in mont.. can’t you just freeze them till next spring?

-- It's not a sickness, i can stop buying tools anytime.

One question: Do you ever sleep? ;-)

-- "But godliness with contentment is great gain." 1 Timothy 6:6

I don’t miss cattle, hay haul in’ or corn rows one bit! :-)) Your mud story reminds me of one Sunday afternoon, a friend took me up to his uncles to hunt ducks. Nobody was home, so we took his pickup to drive out to the field in the Idaho gumbo mud. Got it stuck, so we walked back to the house to get his truck to pull it out. Got it stuck, so we walked back to the house to get a tractor to pull it out. Got it stuck, so we walked back to the house to get anohter tractor to pull it out. It got stuck, we were out of equipment and it was getting dark. We both had chores to do at home, so we had to leave it that way ;-)) His uncle wan’t happy. He was able to get things loose a few weeks later when the ground froze for the winter.

-- Debt is nothing more than the 21st Century's form of slavery.

Always great to read about your “adventures” Tom. When I was but a boy I thought it would be really cool to be a cowboy. After hearing about your experiences I’m glad my dad led me toward computers.

-- When you give someone a chance it may well be their last.

Thanks for the post, Thomas. I appreciate getting “your side of the picture”. I can honestly say that I have never entertained any notion of being a cowboy (once I was old enough to understand that it was a job that entailed more than shooting a gun and chasing bad guys). During the summers up until I finished college I would always work on farms that several family members owned, largely in tobacco, hay and livestock. I made myself a solemn promise that when I graduated from college I would never work on a farm again unless I absolutely had to. I can honestly say that, to this day, I have kept this promise. Being a cowboy, as you are, is a lifestyle that requires a special person- one with unique talents and abilities.

Keep us posted on what is happening from your side of the fence. It is good to hear from you.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

Thanks for the post Thomas, this isn’t woodworking BUT IT IS WHAT INSPIRES A WOODWORKER. This gives insight to what inspires you to do the work with the tone it has. This is what inspired Morehart to do his, knowing these things makes us all richer because it tells us what inspires us to do the work we do.

Any doubt about this—- then read the posts and what others talk about, Tom, Russel, Scott, we all have a better appreciation for what we do and why we do it. After all you don’t know where your going without knowing where you’ve been.

-- “Duty is the sublimest word in our language. Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more. You should never wish to do less.” General Robert E. Lee, C.S.A.

HI Thomas;

I got to admit, it sounds like paying in the mud, instead of ranching.

In my teens I live on a fifty acre farm, (my father’s place)

We had snow for eight months, mud for three months, and dust for one month.

Needless to say, I move shortly after turning 18.

Thank God I’m a city boy. (John Denver’s back up version).

I have to say Tom, you seem to be having fun. Or at least more relaxed than before with the previous set of details you were dealing with.

Take good care , and say hello to Carleen. did she finish the first round in the cleaning process yet.?

Lee

-- by Lee A. Jesberger http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com http://www.ezee-feed.com

Hello Thos. Hope things turn around and the sun starts shining on you out there. We have not seen too much sun here either. But we take what the good Lord gives us, right? God Bless and watch out for those Grizzlies. Mike

-- Mike. mwurm13@yahoo.com

I love the stories. It’s a good diversion from woodworking. Please keep them coming.

-- I don't make mistakes, only design changes....www.dgmwoodworks.com

Thanks for the post Thomas. Reminds me of my days on the farm and working the feedlots back in western Kansas when I was a whole lot younger. We put in many hours a day back then too. Thanks for the memories.

-- Jerry--A man can never have enough tools or clamps

Wow. I was raised on a dairy with 125 cows and no snow. We had more than our share of mud but we just moved the cows from pasture to pasture. We had it easy. fed powdered milk to calves and silage with a little front end loader to cows. Chopping corn was fun. We hauled the chopped corn from the field to the silo in old 2 1/2 yd dump trucks (no mufflers) and it sounded great. We were just racing around at 25 mi/hr.

Do you have some pictures of where you are and the herd and the cowboys ext.

Thanks for sharing your world with us

-- Sharp tools and thin whispy shavings make woodworking a joy.

Rob and all; you can see the ranch on the web-site. We don’t have the internet at our house yet. Too busy for photos anyway. Thanks for the comments.

-- Thos. Angle

Hi Thomas

Isn’t playing in the mud fun! Got my ATV stuck in a muddy creek last fall. Nice to hear from you.

God Bless
tom

-- Mc Bridge Cabinets, Iowa

Now Tom, you would’nt miss it for the world.

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

made me grin, thinking of how handy it was to have the horses with you when you were in the mud. Would have been a long hike home without them, I guess! :)

You are a great story-teller!

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Thomas I just read your blog and you surely made me appreciate my job. Glad to hear you and Carleen are well and seem to be enjoying life.

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

very interesting

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

Tom,

Thanks for sharing your adventures.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1