About Dayphoto

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

Not to be Outdone

Posted on January 22, 2013 by Dayphoto

The city of Delta is the winter home to many Canadian Geese,

They are thick along the Gunnison River’s banks

and in the waters of the Confluence Lake.

One thing I have noticed, very few of the geese are coming out to our fields, (they used to), but now with the Sand Hill Cranes here, it seems the geese are staying ‘in town’ and letting the cranes be the country birds. 🙂

Along with the Canada Geese are lots of Mallard Ducks, of which I wasn’t able to get a photo of

And a Bald Eagle.

The Bald Eagle hunts along these banks, looking for the ducks…just the right size for a swoop and kill….yummm lunch!

Terry and I haven’t seen the Eagle in action, but people who live and work along the river has seen the Eagle making a very swift dive and hauling off a duck.

I think, if I were a duck I would look for a different place to spend some time. Trying to hide in with geese is just NOT working!

For the geese this is just right…no hunting in town! HA! HA!

Linda

January 21, 2013

Posted on January 21, 2013 by Dayphoto

I tried to get the Sand hill Cranes in flight but no such luck.

Anyway, for those of you who enjoy these delightful creatures I give you the following:

A crane just landing….I hope you can see it

They are here all the time. I took this series of photos around 5 O’clock in the afternoon

There are hundreds here in this one field. The corn is field corn, not sweet corn. Sometimes a group of birds leaves, but another soon lands…always a large, large number feeding at anyone time.

They also spend the night here, I guess they feel safe with the calves present.

Last night I heard coyotes from three directions ….

Linda

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Dayphoto

We are having our January thaw. Sure is nice. After last week’s -21*f and a slight warm up to -18*f at night…..this weather is outstanding!

The temperatures at 2 in the afternoon.

If the weather man is right it will be here for at least the rest of this week. I’m not going to hold my breath that it stays since this is, after all January. Our worst month for horrible cold is always February. Thank Heavens it is a short month….one/two days less than all the other months, but it does count.

By 4 o’clock in the evening

Usually we can start farming the middle of March. We will have to see this year.

The Uncompahgre Water Users are staying the Taylor Reservoir is 60% of it’s normal capacity. February and March can be our snowiest months….fingers crossed this holds true this year.

So saying, Terry is NOT going to plant pinto beans this year…maybe next year if the water conditions improve. But probably never again in his lifetime, he is saying…we will see.

Oh, yes…that reminds me….Terry has decided to farm one more year (are any of us surprised?!?!) The reduction in bean acreage will take off some pressure…it isn’t the growing of them, but the harvest of the beans that is so hard.

Anyway, enough our pondering on farming.

The 4 O’clock evening sun was delightful….I had to take many photos, hope you enjoy!

Linda

The Adventures of Fuzzy and Boomer on Friday —A Healing Time

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Dayphoto

Fuzzy had his operation 8 days ago. He is slowly doing better. Most of the time we don’t go outside because it’s been really cold; Mom doesn’t want us (Fuzzy) to get chilled on top of the operation.

But yesterday was a little warmer, so we all went for a walk.

Fuzzy really didn’t want to be on the walk, even though there were some neat crows to chase. Mom said Fuzzy was having an ‘off day’.

Today he is doing better…he wanted outside to just be outside. I went with him. It is warm enough I don’t even have to wear that coat thingy that Mom makes me wear when it’s below 10*.

WONDERFUL!!!!

I rolled everywhere on the grass that didn’t still have snow on it!

This afternoon Fuzzy and I will go for another walk with Mom, to build up Fuzzy’s strength.

Every day is another day to having my Buddy back. Please keep sending Magic Thoughts, please. Maybe next week Fuzzy and I will have a really cool adventure to talk about.

Boomer

January 16, 2013

Posted on January 16, 2013 by Dayphoto

I am ever so humble by all of the wonderful Birthday wishes! Everyone of you have made me feel very special indeed.

It is still cold here. The back door always has ice on it when we wake up in the morning, ALTHOUGH, it was warmer last night….it only got down to -5*. I’ll take it! The closer to zero the warmer it feels. Of course ABOVE zero is really nice.

The rancher has moved his spring’n heifers onto the farm. The dogs and I have enjoyed these delightful ladies. (a spring’n heifers are female cattle about to have their very first calf. They are first time-to-be-Momma’s).

Since Terry had planted the corn all around the house this is where the cows want to be. They like to sleep in one of the draws at night, then with first light they come walking over to the corn fields.

I delight in their looks of interest as I move around in the house.

At first the dogs tried barking the cows away from the fence…the cows just looked at them as if they were some annoying fly or something. What’s a house dog compared to a coyote?

Come on, now get real!

No more barking, but the dogs do go and sit by the electric fence watching the ‘girls’ as they munch along enjoying the dried corn stalks.

If the weather man is correct…happy dance…we have a warm-up coming by this weekend. Anything around or above 32* will make for great delight for me. I have fire wood to sort, chicken pens to clean and hay to haul in closer to the house. Not doing it in bitter cold will be wonderful.

Then again….do I want to do it in mud!?!?!

YES!

It means I don’t have to wear five layers and a hat and hoodie to ‘get’er done’!

Linda

January 15, 2013

Posted on January 15, 2013 by Dayphoto

Yesterday was my birthday…I’m now 64 years old.

It always surprises me that I made it to anywhere after 50. I don’t know why it does, but it does.

I can remember sitting in my desk in the first grade of school, the teacher, Miss Mable Howard, was talking about the 20th century ending and the 21st century beginning…I remember thinking that none of that makes any sense at all.

Then she talked about the year 2000, you have to do the math, but this was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back in 1955, the year 2000 was sooooo farrrrrr away that I couldn’t even get it to come into focus. Since it was so far away I decided that I would make it to the age of 50, which was really, really, ancient and just let everything else take care of itself.

As the years progressed I would think about that little girl so long ago deciding to be fifty and then let every thing else just happen as it would. Fifty seems like a real nice number, way back when. It still does.

When I was fifty I lost my best friend/sister, my beloved Grandmother, and both my parents. Strangely my life did end at the age of fifty. Every year after fifty has been a surprise and a gift. A year to treasure and be thankful for. I am not sick, nor do I have beloved family or friends ill, what I have is a new year that my little 6 year old mind could not comprehend in 1955.

A gift of life.

Many of you have emailed me birthday wishes, which adds richly to my birthday. My children and my grandchildren and my step-grandchildren have widened my life to a whole of completeness. I have become the matriarch of our family, which still seems like an odd thing, but also a blessing.

Really, life is truly a circle and one we all get to rejoice in.

This is me in 1951! What a hoot!

Thank you each and everyone of you for helping enrich my daily world.

Linda

Sunday, January 13, 2013

Posted on January 13, 2013 by Dayphoto

It’s snowing here today.

Last night, I remembered that I hadn’t taken my 4 o’clock photo yet. I usually take it on Wednesday afternoon, but for some reason it slipped my mind.

Our days are growing longer, instead of 9 hours and 30 minutes long, we have reached new lengths of 9 hours and 42 minutes.

We are still cold. Although, three days ago we warmed up to above freezing for about two hours, I did the happy feet dance the whole time.

Our day was darkening down when I got outside, the snow clouds just starting to blow in over the Plateau. Our storms usually come out of eastern Utah, crossing the Uncompahgre, then moving on past us toward the North Fork of Delta county. From there I don’t know where the storms go.

Randomly and very rarely (right where we live) a big storm will roll into Montrose from the Durango area, blow itself around to the Plateau and then land on us. The storms from the San Juan area can lose steam at Montrose and never make it clear on down here to our Mesa.

Even rarer is the storm that comes in from Gunnison, spins onto Montrose, then to us. Usually those storms (the ones from Gunnison head into Peach Valley and the Black Canyon area, then into the town proper of Delta).

I watch the sky a lot……as if you can’t tell. The sky and the weather are major interest and concerns when you farm and have animals that live outside.

But besides those things—I just plain enjoy the magic of the heavens and how they swirl and play upon the land.

Linda

The Adventures of Fuzzy and Boomer on Friday —Update

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Dayphoto

Your Magic THOUGHTS WORKED!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

Fuzzy is home“`!!!

I’m so very happy!

He still doesn’t want to play much. He slept all afternoon and night, except when we went for a walk. Mom says we all have to do our ‘business’ outside, that’s the rule.

Fuzzy wanted to go with us, but he didn’t go far. Just Mom and I went far.

He has this funny coat on and it makes him breathe hard. I tried to tell Mom that Fuzzy’s coat is too tight.

Fuzzy talks to Mom all the time about how he is feeling.

Fuzzy never talks; I do all the talking, but now Fuzzy sort of whines and groans and looks at Mom…PLEASE HELP me he says. Mom sits by Fuzzy and pets and pets and pets him until he goes back to sleep.

NOW THAT starts to upset me, so I weasel my way in under her arm and make her pet me also. But if I try to get between her and Fuzzy, Mom says: “Boomer, that’s enough! Sometimes life isn’t about Boomer, sometimes it’s about Fuzzy!”

“HUH!!!”

“WHA”!

“Well I know that`!`! It’s just, geez, Fuzzy is getting ALL THE PETTINGS!!

So I go over and lay on Dad’s feet. Humph.

This morning Fuzzy felt well enough to go do the chores down at Shannon’s house, and to eat and drink a little something. But he is sleeping now as he had to have some pain medicine. I think life is really boring if Fuzzy is not up and doing something with me so I think I’ll go to sleep

Now

YAWN

Boomer

Canada Geese

Posted on January 9, 2013 by Dayphoto

I just love these huge black birds!

While walking the dogs at Confluence Park I just had to take a photo of all the many, many Canada Geese that were enjoying what is left of the open water.

Suddenly I noticed white birds…I had to zoom in…I didn’t want to startled all of them and lose my chance to see what white birds are homing with the Canada’s.