Author Archives: John

PALO VERDE 2

Posted on May 19, 2014 | Leave a comment

Barstow transplant
likes its water, blooms high
into the last evening light.

We’ve had a busy week gathering and hauling the calves from the Paregien Ranch to the weaning pens where we’ll ship them to the Visalia Livestock Market on Tuesday for Wednesday’s auction. A short week’s wean instead of our normal 45-day+ wean for the Internet auction. Though a 100 lbs. lighter than normal due to poor feed conditions, the 90 head of mixed calves averaged 530 lbs. after an hour’s gooseneck haul down from 2,000 foot elevation on a 104° day. We expect to get some of the shrink back on good alfalfa while they emotionally adjust to not having the security of mother by their side.

All things considered, we’re very pleased with these calves.

6 Comments

Posted in Photographs

Tagged Calves, Drought, Paregien Ranch, photographs, weather

WPC – Work of Art

Posted on May 18, 2014 | 10 comments

Our short moment at dawn
from a long evolution
of spine and bone.

work of art

10 Comments

Posted in Photographs, Poems 2014

Tagged Echinopsis oxygona, garden, haiku, photographs, poetry, weekly-photo-challenge

You Never Know…

Posted on May 16, 2014 | 12 comments

…what you’re going to find in a haystack.

This five-foot gopher snake ‘on the move’ took my breath away yesterday afternoon as I loaded hay from the barn.

With apparent interest, judging by the comments, I’ve added this photograph of the gopher snake poking its head in a Black Phoebe’s nest of mud about ten feet up the vertical stack of hay bales. The nest has been empty for quite awhile. The snake knew just where it was and I suspect the Black Phoebe decided to move to another zip code.

On the Move

12 Comments

Posted in Photographs

Tagged Gopher Snake, photographs, weekly-photo-challenge

Heat

Posted on May 16, 2014 | 4 comments

Nobody keeps record temperatures in Lemon Cove, but yesterday’s 101° in Fresno broke the high set in 1927. It was 104° on Dry Creek as we hauled gooseneck loads of weaned calves, gathered the 101° day before, off the Paregein Ranch—three two-hour, four-wheel drive round trips off the mountain. In addition to the calves, we hauled 20% of the cows down to go to town as we prepare for summer with little feed. With less than 8” of rain, our rainy season is over until October, capping a second year of drought. With no snowpack or surface water runoff in California, hay prices are already escalating.

The first few days of 100° heat are hard on people and livestock physically, but we all get out a little earlier in the morning and finish what we didn’t get done in the evening. The most noticeable impact of the heat is to our temperaments, not near as pretty as this white geranium, happy as long as it gets water.