Monthly Archives: March 2014

WPC – Inside (2) – Showy Milkweed

Posted on March 16, 2014 by John | 11 comments

Three phases of Asclepias speciosa, showy milkweed in June, August and September. A native perennial.

Weekly Photo Challenge

Bring Back The Monarchs

Uses

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Posted in Photographs

Tagged Monarch Butterfly, showy milkweed, weekly-photo-challenge

WPC – Inside (1)

Posted on March 16, 2014 by John | 5 comments

Weekly Photo Challenge

Wagyu X steer

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Posted in Photographs

Tagged Wagyu X, weekly-photo-challenge

The Cruelest Joke

Posted on March 15, 2014 by John | Leave a comment

Who else could take a break from their bookwork for Uncle Sam and look upon a mountain and see the calves we branded Wednesday, grazing with their mothers? Though it seems so unfair to ruin the prettiest time of the year here with tax accounting, even in a drought, I feel blessed. Thanks to Robbin, our ranch records are substantially better since she took over the daily bookwork in an organized manner.

I awoke early with loose numbers on my mind that tried to interfere, with some success, with my writing time. Language and math must reside on different sides of the brain, or some aspect of them, drawing battle lines in my head. The numbers usually win and I hate my smugness afterwards, finally with an answer. But usually balanced-out quickly with a poem, this morning’s offering is my first effort ever finished, mid-accounting.

Though I don’t pretend to understand it, I find the creative mindset interesting. So much depends on our eye, how we see things as individuals as we appeal to something common within us all, by adding our perspective. So opposite from filling out IRS forms. Done, time to let it rest overnight.

SHADOWS OF TREES

Posted on March 15, 2014 by John | 3 comments

Growing into ourselves
like the shadows of trees
leafless at dusk,

we become exaggerated
and unique with burls
for eyes and limbs

to reach beyond
our genetic root zones
as abstract art—

flat silhouettes
on a short green canvas
fading into seed

while the young oaks
all look the same
without character.

‘Aging the American Way’

3 Comments

Posted in Poems 2014

Tagged aging, poetry

Ides of March 2014

Posted on March 15, 2014 by John | 2 comments

Robbin and Lee took a load of hay to the Paregien Ranch yesterday to check on the condition of our cows and calves as well as the feed. On the first of March we measured 1.68″ of rain with temperatures in the 70s since—ideal grass-growing weather, one would think, except that the Paregien Ranch has only received 4.5″ this season. The ground is dry, competing with the grass, absorbing every drop.

It was a comment on our March 1st, ‘Our Window’ post that “Drought is the worst limbo” that’s become richer since, the waiting and indecision the past two weeks, branding calves as if by some miracle we might yet have a grass season.

We have a program for our cows that fits this particular ranch most all the time. Out of limbo, it’s now apparent that we won’t have enough dry feed to carry our cows through the summer and fall. More than likely, we’ll wean the calves early and cull the cows heavily at that time, ending this grass season with about half the cows we began with in September. Hopefully we’ll have enough stock water to support them. We will have to monitor conditions closely, as that will determine when we begin to wean. Robbin returned with photos that show some improvement in feed and flesh while I stayed home to assemble our tax information.