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My name is Linda Brown. I live on a farm on the western slope of Colorado, in the high mountain desert. I’ve lived here all my life, hailing back four generations on my father’s side. Today I blog about our farm, the everyday activities that keep the farm going. I also write about my thoughts and dreams and goals. On Friday’s I always write about TLC Cai-Cai. Our sweet kitty who helps keep the farm safe. And Boo Berry Betty, a breeder dog learning to be a Farm Dog! The lovely thing about blogging it opens the world up for all of us to reach out and meet people from many different cultures and different ways of life. You can find me every day (but Saturday) at https://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com/ Your Friend on a Western Colorado Farm, Linda Brown

Once More–Cross your Fingers and Your Toes–Monday, December 1, 2014

Cute-1Daily we check the corn…riding out on the four-wheelers to get samples from all the fields.  Samples on the ends, samples in the middle…then THERE IT WAS…the moisture content said…”Give it a go!”  So we did!

Season-2Down the rows he went

Season-1Opening the driest field

Red2Filling the truck with red/gold corn

RedBecause it was the Thanksgiving holiday and the Elevator was good enough to stop and let everyone have a break….we parked the truck under the car port

TiresWhere Monkey-the -cat spent lots of her time checking to see WHY the grain truck was close to the house and not out by the barn.

WhatSilly cat!

Gradually the sun started to set filling our skies with a purple haze

Purple-4It was stunningly beautiful,

Purple-2Unusual and gorgeous all rolled into a swiftly darkening day

Purple-3Terry left for the Elevator at 5 this morning…when he called he was 13th in line and more arriving. It’s 9:00 a.m. right now and he still isn’t home.  He will be lucky to be here at noon.

Keep your fingers and toes crossed, send prayers and magic thoughts, please that this load passes and we are out-on-the-land until all the corn is in!

Your friend,

Linda

 

The Sounds in the Sky—Sunday, November 30, 2014

CranesEven as I write this the sky is loud with the sounds of the Sandhill Cranes (above) on the east of us and the Canadian Geese on the west of us!   Both species group together in great numbers, filling the air with distinctive cries...the Sandhill Cranes have a rolling sound

the Canada Geese sound close to their calls but more honking in tone.

The Sandhill Cranes are staying in the field just above ours, but across the canal…there are hordes of them. I wish I could have gotten a good photo, but it just wasn’t possible.  When I’m outside and both species are flying the sky is full of sounds.

The Canada Geese seem to be on the Buttermilk Creek…spending the night (it really isn’t safe down there—coyotes and big cats and other types of predators also live around the Buttermilk.  But so do Mr. Davis’ cows and calves. The geese flock close to the cows, then in the morning rise up and head toward Delta and Confluence lake and the two rivers that converge there—The Gunnison and the Uncompaghre.

I’m sure thankful for the birds; makes the dreary days a little bit brighter.  We also have fun little hordes of brown birds, of which the Junco seems to be a part …then the big hunting birds…Owls and hawks, ravens and crows.  The birds of winter—there are more, but for today I share with you the Geese and the Cranes.

Your friend on a Western Colorado Farm,

Linda

 

 

 

The Adventures of Boomer on Friday—Wonder Goo!

Sometimes I just don’t get hoomans!  No I don’t.

Busy

If you find sometime good….something so wonderfully, incredibly good, something so delightful you just have to bay….HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!

Weed

And then roll in it!

You always get a disgusted look—they actually (your humans) actually grab their noses and sometimes they even have to go herk.

I mean…come on!  Smells like this don’t come along all the time, they are a great find…a wonderful gift from the world of nature.

I just don’t get it.

Miss Tilly from Punkin’s Patch—sent me an email telling me she found some great stuff.

WOW!  Cool, Miss Tilly…go ahead and roll in it…roll really, really good!  Spread it alllllllllllll over you… start first with a really good sniff at the stuff…then with your neck—kinda scrape all the Wonder Goo onto your neck—try to get all four sides of your neck, you won’t be able to but try anyway.

Sniff

By the time you get the Wonder Goo on your neck a sorta daze will permeate your brain and it won’t matter if your Mom is yelling at you to stop….this is what you are aiming for…the permeating of your brain and the ability to ignore your mom.

Then as soon as you notice your Mom’s voice is far, far, farrrrrr away —get up and lay down on your back.  Make sure you lay your back flat down on the Wonder Goo and then squiggle and squirm all over it it…ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Boy that will feel good!  Just keep on squiggling until you are pretty sure you have every drop of Wonder Goo all over you and in your fur.

NOW!  You will have the Wonder Goo with you wherever you go!

Once you get done with this you can go and do whatever you want to do, since Wonder Goo is now a part of you!  I usually go show Mom!

Miss Tilly asked me if Mom would get mad…mine doesn’t I typed back to her, although, she does hack around a lot and usually makes me walk home with her.

Okay, Miss Tilly typed back.  I’ll print this off so I can have it to study.  Sometimes I don’t get the computer like I want, because Mom gets it first.

I always walk with Mom anyway so the walk home part is a cinch, Miss Tilly typed back to me.

I’ll let you know how it goes, was her parting line.

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++=

Hey, Boomer?  Are you there?

Say’n Hi! Miss Tilly!  How’s is going back there on your sheep farm?

Ahhhhhhhhhhh, Boomer?

Yeah?

I found some Wonder Goo….

COOOOOOL!

Miss Tilly

“I thought you said I wouldn’t get in trouble for rolling in gross stuff!”

Oh!  Sorry, Miss Tilly….sorry.  I just thought the bath would be worth ROLLING IN WONDER GOO!!!!

Boomer!

 

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone—Thursday, November 26, 2014

3Wishing each and everyone a Happy Thanksgiving.  For those who do not celebrate the American Thanksgiving, I wish for you a day of Thanks for the blessings and gift of another day, another year, another joy.

Your Friend on a Western Colorado Farm,

Linda

 

The Clouds have Left–Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Oh the joy of a sunny sky!  Albeit a weak wintery sunny sky, but still storm and cloudless!

I’ll take it!  The temperature is even a small bit warmer!  I dance for joy!

Today Boomer and I will walk right after lunch and enjoy the high point of the warmth of the day…we will walk down all the corn fields and over toward the hay field.  Which reminds me, today I really need to take the four-wheeler out and gather up all the siphon tubes….sunshine and warmer temps flood my soul!

I also need to finish up all my Thanksgiving baking…now THAT is going to be a chore, because the out-of-doors is calling to me!

5

Your Friend,

Linda

Where to Find Canada Geese—Tuesday, November 25, 2014

SandhillI find it interesting the Sandhill Cranes are taking over the farms and the Canada Geese

Geese-1Are hanging out down in town by Confluence Park/Lake and the rivers.

Terry and I ran to town to see how long the line was at the Elevator (to unload the corn) and we ran into to masses of Geese

Geese3

 

Masses!  🙂  It made me smile!

Geese2

Look at all that fertilizer on the road….can you just imagine what the grass and banks of the river looks like?

7We liked having them in the fields just for that reason.  But now the Sandhill Cranes have come (I’m not complaining); and the Canada Geese have left—it is extremely rare to see the two species in a field together.  If you are lucky enough to have those beautiful birds on your field I’m sure the fertilizer is just as much and just as big—if you want to know. 🙂

Thank Heaven for winter birds…they are a bright spot in rather dull days!

Linda

 

 

 

Storms and More Storms–Monday, November 24, 2014

LightThe weather people were right…storms and more storms following each other right on each other’s heels…

StormOur neighbor got his corn field baled just at the miserable winds arrived.  Although, the loose corn leaves would not have bothered us, it would have made a huge mess for the Church of the First Born on the corner by the corn field.

RainThe the rain and the sleet descended blocking our view.  That’s okay, the corn fields have blocked our view until just last week.  🙂

FlurriesThen the flurries started bringing snow to the foothills of Grand Mesa, the Uncompahgre Plateau (Un-come-pah-gray), and the area of the Black Canyon,  and rain to us.

Snow-1

Sunday was a good day to sit by the fire!

GoingLast night the storm left and

Morning another one arrived around 4 in the morning.  The sunrise around 6:30 was a promise of more storms—which is true, it’s snowing as I write this.

Later on today we will travel out and gather more corn for sampling the moisture.  A tedious routine now, but necessary.  Just as soon as the meter hits 14% the combine will roar into the life and the big orange truck will find it’s way out to the proper field, waiting for the corn to be loaded into the back.  As soon as the bed is full, the truck will head down to the Elevator…hopefully!  That’s the plan anyway.  Finger’s Crossed and Magic thoughts we can start again (I think I’ve said that at least two times before this time…shish!)

Your friend on a very cold western Colorado farm,

Linda

Checking it Twice—Sunday, November 23, 2014

more1.jpgSome of you have asked if the corn is tested at the elevator…for it looks like unscrupulous souls could just truck in wet corn and drive away laughing, if the workers at the elevator didn’t check.

You are so right!

The new combines all have computers in them—monitoring everything from the time the seed is put into the planter to when the corn is harvested.  The operator knows what the moisture is when he puts it in the truck.  BUT it doesn’t matter what the farmer says the moisture is…it matters what the workers at the elevator say the moisture is.  They are the last word…it is their product once it goes out of the truck into the silos.  Depending on the size of the truck probes are inserted into the load and samples of the each and every load is taken before the corn is approved for purchase.

YES! there are always those that try to slip in a wet load….but they always get caught and the word is out on them.  Who wants that type of reputation?

Our combines are not computerized (at all); we use a moisture meter at the house. Sometimes Terry drives samples on down to the elevator, but mostly it’s done here.

Corn

The best time of the day to take the test is in the afternoon, before the sun starts to set and the air starts to chill down.  We –Terry, Boomer, and I drive to all the different fields and get two or three cobs to test from each one in different locations of the field.

TestingThe cob is shelled and then dumped into the tester, if we get a consistent count (14%) we are good to go.  (Dry corn will take on the moisture of wet corn raising the moisture content  within the truck bed–so we aim for the 14%).

MoistureStill too high…now what?

We went shopping! (and lunch out)

ShoppingSurprisingly just what he has been looking for was right there waiting for us to write a check.

Not bad for a Saturday trip to Grand Junction, Colorado!

Your friend on a Western Colorado Farm,

Linda 🙂

The Adventures of Boomer—the Cats

Well, I guess it’s true.  Fuzzy isn’t coming back.

After following Mom around for days and days until I got into a daze (TEE HEE) I decided hanging with Mom 24-7 is BORING!!!!   If she is outside that’s okay, but if she is inside all that I can do is sleep.  Right at first that seemed like a really good thing….then it hit me.

THIS IS BORING!!!

I tried whining at Mom, trying to get her to come outside and ‘DO SOMETHING’, but she would just reach down and pet me all over and give me a really nice leg shaking/scratching belly rub.  Then she would continue dusting or whatever it was she was doing.

I tried helping her cook—THAT didn’t work for sure.

So I said to myself—“WHAT CAN I DO?!?!??!”  That’s when it hit me —I can make friends with the cats!  Maybe we could do ‘stuff’ together!!

Monkey-moo

The first thing I had to do was to get Monkey-Cat to want to go outside.  Monkey-cat never likes to go outside, but I whined and begged her until she finally said: “Okay, dog! Let’s go outside and see what so neat about being out there”!

1

Sammy-Sam grudgingly said Monkey-Cat and I could go out with him…BUT we could NOT get in his way.  He said he has extremely important work to do on a twice a day basis and we were NOT to create havoc with his routines!

“YIPPEE!!!” I howled…”LET’S GO OUTSIDE AND SEE WHAT WE CAN SEE!”

First we had to get outside…I can go…I just put my head against the back door and I’m out.  But the cats have to wait for Mom or Dad to open the door.

“To get outside, Monkey, you are going to have to sit at the door and meow and meow loudly”, I told Monkey.

Sammy turned a scornful eye at the both of us and said…”you just watch…I’ll get all of us out in a cat minute.”

Slowly he walked over to the door and sat down. He just sat there looking into the rest of the house waiting for Mom or Dad.

They never came.

It’s not working I fretted.

“Hang-on Dog I’m not done yet.”

“MEOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!!! Screech, yowl.”

“Wow! You sure are demanding, Sam,” Dad exclaimed as he walked into the kitchen then onto the back porch. Dad pushed open the backdoor and Sam yelled—NOW.  So we all bolted out the back door.

All

After a few minutes Mom and Dad came out!  “YAY!  We are all outside!” I bayed!

Dad headed over to the big truck where he is working on fixing the tail lights and Mom packed the trash to the trash cans.

Canal

“Come on, Monkey and Sam lets go see if there is any news at the canal.”

“SAY THIS IS FUN!”  Monkey screamed as she zoomed by Sam, Mom and I…”first one up the Willow tree is Queen of the world!”

“Look at that cat go!”  Mom laughed.  “I think she has finally figured out being outside is fun!”  Then Mom started loading up wood for the day.

Pathway

“Come on Sam let’s see who has passed this way.”

Neighbors-Tom

Sniff, sniff…..”oh, Aanda’s big yellow and white Tom Cat.”

Scram

“GRRR, GROWL   that neighbor cat is NOT welcome on this place….grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.” Sammy casted a malevolent eye toward the canal.

Outside-see

“What cat? Huh, what cat, Sam….how can you tell, are you sure…where did he go…huh, Sam?  Sam….”

“Shhhhhhh, Monkey…just put your nose to the ground and follow the scent”…Sam glared at Monkey.

“Sniff, sniff…..oh, yeah, you are right, Sam, snuff, snuff…yep, right here…down this side of the canal…”

Snuff-sniff

“COME ON…let’s see how far he went up the canal!” I invited as I slid down the side of the canal.

Down we all went- Sam, Monkey and myself.

“Oh!  This is really fun!’  Monkey exclaimed…”look there are pockets of water trapped between the rocks and little hidey holes under the long grass along the canal bank…”

“Look for mice”, Sam said.  “Don’t waste your time jumping on the rocks, Monkey…if you can find a mouse or two you can have a really nice snack.”

Smells

“You cats just go on and enjoy yourself, I think I’m going to hop up on the ditch bank road to smell what news is up here”…hummm,

One-of-the-herd

 

deer…yes…buck and a nice buck.

Travel

Oh…yes…the mom and the fawn are in the corn….RACCOONS!!!  A couple of big ones….snuff, sniffle…mice.  “HEY! SAM THERE ARE A TON OF MICE IN THE CORN FIELD!!!”

“SAM!”

“Thanks, Boomer, yum, yum, swallow, slurp…I found a few down here.”

“BOOMIE!!! WHERE ARE YOU?”

WHAT!  Mom’s calling.  Maybe I’d better —————head ——————–home…but………..wait……….hummmmmmmmm…skunk…I think they are getting ready to hunker down for the winter.

“BOOMIE!  YOU WANT TO GO TO TOWN WITH ME?  BOOMER!  DO YOU WANT TO GO!!!?”

GO?

GO” Town!?

Run to

“I’m COMING MOM!!! “

Run to

“I’m Coming!!!”

“Bye cats….I’m heading into town now.  See ya when I get back!”

Boomer

 

 

Storm Heading In–Thursday, November, 20, 2014

Yesterday afternoon the clouds started to skim across the sky stretching and cooling down everything under them.

Storm

Gradually they thickened and thickened, long  frontal cirrostratus(is that the correct name for snow producing clouds?)  clouds giving Terry and I the feeling that snow was about to happen.  Although, the weather people were saying not. 

This morning we woke to clear skies and the ever present cold 17*.  But a storm is predicted to be in here for the weekend.

113.jpg

Today we are bright and sunny!  Still I can see those same  frontal cirrostratus clouds being pushed toward us over the Uncompahgre Plateau.  (Un-come-pah-gray—a Ute Indian word meaning: (take your pick; rocks made red by water, rocks that make water red, or just plain dirty water.  🙂 )  A winter storm is predicted to arrive here Friday night bringing with it snow for Saturday, Sunday and Monday. After that our daytime highs will shift down a notch from the mid 40’s to the mid 30’s.  The slide into the long, dark days of winter has begun.  And it’s early!  Those of you getting slammed with snow are very aware of that —-winter has arrived; albeit several weeks early.

13

The corn is still checking out dry on the top end of the field and very dry in the middle, but the bottom end is W.E.T.!  17%.  We continue to wait.  If this snow goes around us and isn’t too wet (right here) possibly the ends of the fields will dry down enough we can start on Monday, or Tuesday, or Wednesday…hummm, next week sometime.  🙂

I thank each one of you for your continued concern and encouraging words and magic thoughts that soon, very soon, the corn dries down enough we can get this years harvest in.

Your friend on a Western Colorado Farm,

Linda