A Winter Adventure

Look closely at this first one - you'll see the wind towers on the horizon...






There are more coming - these 5 are from the last adventure I took on Sunday morning. I took a bunch on Saturday as well after I got done shoveling snow - ice and snow mixed!

Icey Adrenaline

A month has past since I wrote last and I haven't exactly done so well with recording the happenings of my life. All the good things should be recorded - all those memories should be forever cemented in my history - but it seems the only times in my life when I've felt driven to write were times when things weren't the best.

Maybe writing isn't the only medium that can be used to record life. My pictures tell a lot about my view of the world, and I've taken more pictures this year than any other in my life. When you look at the "My Pictures" folder on my computer, you see multiple folders under each month - and my Canon 30D has helped me grow tremendously as a photographer in this last year. I would love to be able to drop what I'm doing (work) and go take photographs any time - as if it were my full-time job. But I can't make that jump to depending on my photographs to sustain the economical side of my life. I guess if all you had to do everyday was take gorgeous photographs and find a place to market them...well maybe it could work. I could see how that could get expensive fast - especially when you aren't selling anything. Scary!

Anyway - the whole point of this blog was not to ramble on and on, but to share with you the pictures I've taken so far of the ice storm we had last night. I've been out in the cold several times today shooting the streets of Lincoln - including my own backyard. Many times now I've thought I should get out after dark and capture main street - with all its Christmas glow - but usually after dark in the winter my laziness gets the best of me and I opt to stay in. I think tonight I'm gonna do it tonight - the ice crystals will only add sparkle to the night shot. Maybe I can turn around and sell my "stock" photography of Lincoln to the chamber or tourism groups. I'm feeling spunky today - my adrenaline is flowing.

catchin' u up

I haven't written in this blog in forever. So you're behind. Whoever "u" are. So here is my summary of the last year. I've decided that it's really important to record things because it's so easy to forget things that have happened even just a year ago. Write things down, what happened when. Organize your photographs, write down who's in those photographs. Don't put it off. Do it now. Little bit by little bit.

Started with a self-improvement goal
In March, I started going to a new fitness facility here in Lincoln. I wasn't happy with myself, and I am continually feeling pressure that everyone thinks it's time for me to have a baby. I am not going down that road until I'm in better shape to start with. So my friend Susan prodded me into going to the WOW center. I never did get to working out consistently with Susan, but I made a new dear friend. I think it was all meant to be. That Amy and I met there for a reason.

So I worked out consistently for about 6 months, and I got a little bored. Maybe lost sight of my motivation. I had gained a lot of muscle, felt a lot better, but really hadn't lost any weight. I needed to be pushing myself harder and I should have changed my eating habits as well. I used the farm as an excuse to stop going for awhile. I played softball for a few weeks, got injured. Didn't get back into WOW until November. And I haven't been very consistent so far. BUT this month I started recording what I eat online at my-calorie-counter.com. I think, for me, being forced to see on paper, or on-screen, what exactly is going in helps me keep my love for eating in check. For some, writing things down all day is a pain in the ass. For me, it' s not a problem because I'm at the computer all day anyway.

So my new goal is to use the winter months to keep working out, get my eating habits regulated better and lose that first 10% of my weight. That should give me the motivation to keep going. And doing it over the winter is precisely the time of the year when I normally gain another 10 pounds so I have a high goal, but that's a good thing.

Old Mac-Jrod had a farm -e-i-e-i-o
So our farming is steadily improving each year. I am always looking for ways to improve the business side of things, make it into something profitable. The Easter freeze didn't help the wheat harvest this year, but the wetter year (compared to the last 5) made for an awesome fall harvest. Jarrod and I have taken over another chunk of 1 of our farms, and are getting to make the decisions on what goes into it and how. My baby has grown so much over the last 5 years into an excellent farmer and rancher. I can't wait to see him grow even so much more in the next 5 years. Making smart decisions and conserving what he has to work with. I just wish we had the financial independence to really do it right. But I guess that's part of the learning process - making the best of what you've got. And constantly trying to put yourself into a position to do better.

One of these days, we are going to have a gorgeous farm that we maintain, complete with animals, crops, us, kids and lots of love. Patience is hard to maintain over time. And it's so hard to gauge or judge when you need to sit back and be patient and wait for that better deal to come along, and when you should push, and aggressively go after what you want. I think that being patient the last 5 years has given us some time to mature, learn how to work together better, and prepare for what it will really take to manage a farm. I no longer feel like a big kid stuck in a grown ups world. I feel mature like I'm ready to move forward. When did that happen? Sometime over this last year I think.

Downhome fun

First - Josh Turner has the hottest voice there ever was. I wish I could download the clear channel stripped performances, because #1 I often love the stripped down/acoustic version of songs better than the radio mixes and #2 Josh Turner's low notes give me chills!

Second - Who knew you could have so much fun in your own living room learning a new dance with your sweetheart? Push all the furniture out of the way. Pop in your video and try to keep up. Dance, laugh, wrestle, kiss, dance some more. Try it without the video. Still suck when you're done. But vow to do it every Thursday so maybe by the time winter is over you can do it without stepping on each other's feet and counting out loud. :) That is the most good clean fun we've had in the living room since we've been married. He has no idea how much that meant to me that even though he dragged his feet getting started that we had that time together that had nothing whatsoever to do with farming!

The cow whisperer...

Jarrod and I checked cows tonight like we have been every night for several weeks now...I took along the camera not hoping for much. I've taken along the camera (which I consider somewhat dangerous since I'm just carrying it while we're bouncing around on the 4wheeler, getting on and off it frequently - there's lotsa chances to drop the camera or crash it into things) many times now and had trouble getting the exposures right, the cows sharp, and the weeds out of the compositions.

Anyway, at one of the pastures, I was able to dismount the pony and walk gingerly out amongst the cows. I took along my longer zoom lens for the first time tonight and it proved to be an excellent decision. The cows were comfortable with me there and I was able to blur the backgrounds on a lot of closeups of the cows. I think I walked away with a few shots that were good enough to be framed and considered art (at least amongst the people of the world who find cows to be beautiful beings). ;) So here are some web versions to feast your eyes upon!

The first calf heifer momma that was so protective of her baby that she fought the other cows to keep them away and the fight ended up running over the baby - twice! The baby is doing well and she has been an excellent mother - as evidenced by this excellent photo.

The comedy I catch on camera sometimes - this has not been photoshopped, but you could swere this calf is taunting another young calf.

The other first calf heifer has also proved to be a protective mother. We're calling her baby "dot" for the black dot on the side of its head that I couldn't seem to catch on camera for you. I did end up with this moment on camera that is very telling about how the mommas watch over their babies and keep us humans away from them!

The chewing of the cud when caught on camera is sometimes hilarious! She looks like the cows from the commercial where they trick the tourists into thinking their young child said "cheese!"

The curious little heifer cow. Well she's not so little anymore...but she's also not going to be a mother until next summer, so she was quite curious as to what I was doing out there with my long zoom lens auto-focusing and beeping. She came right up and licked me - more than once. I love this photo of half of her head - should I submit this as a stock photo and make some money on it????

babies!

We finally had some baby calves the last 2 days! I had been faithfully checking on the cows each day after work, expecting to see calves on the ground. Nada. Then we get busy over the weekend and leave them alone for 2 days and whatdya know - bada bing bada boom. They say a watched pot never boils.

Thelma (sometimes better known as "big titties" because of her unusually larger udder) had a black white face bull (chunky little booger for only being 2 days old). And in the other pasture, Big Mama had a red white face heifer. Big Mama drug her through the corner of the pond while we were there, so she was up and doing fine. I managed to get the little heifer marked with an ear tag, but the little bull was too spry for me and Jarrod. Have to wait to him tagged I guess.

The weekend was crazy and hot as hell. We stacked a bunch of square alfalfa bales in the sheds on both Saturday and Sunday and we also installed a new gate in Jarrod's Dad's winter pasture. We were pretty proud of our gate since it was just the kids that did the install job.

Here are some pictures I've taken lately:

checkin' the cows

Ever since that weekend we went camping and checked on some of the cows a little closer, we've been keeping a pretty close eye on them. Our early-calving fall herd is showing lots of signs of having their calves soon. August 6th was technically their due date. The first week or so, Jarrod and I were checking cows together every other day or so. But then he got busy with field work and it's been my charge to monitor the calving process the last 2 weeks.

I love being in charge of keeping an eye on the girls everyday and reporting the status back to my hubby. If any of the dang calves ever arrive, I'll get to put a tag in their cute little ears too! I guess it makes me feel strong and responsible to be able to hook up the pony (4wheeler) everyday and buzz it out around the 2 pastures and then get it and myself back to town safely. It's just the right size farm chore for me to do. I enjoy watching the daily changes in the cows' characteristics, their daily habits and their attitude/mood changes. I love just being out in the wind on a hill somewhere, the sun low in the sky, the wildlife I see when I'm out there everyday. Little fawns, jack rabbits, buck deer, farm cats, those noisy killdeer birds with the long legs that caw so loudly when I get to the pond with the pony. I haven't been getting much of anything else done lately except checking cows in the evenings, shuffling my hubby around when he needs help, and housework. But it's been a good 2 weeks. I'll post pictures of the cute baby calves if and when they ever decide to come.

Our first camping trip together...

We started on the road to making our marriage richer (in experience) - broadening our horizons beyond the farm and family. Jarrod and I camped together for the first time last night. We decided finally to just do it, packed up a few things, picked up a few things, and headed for one of our pastures. The cows have kept the grass mowed close to the ground near the pond and it's a quiet, secluded location. We worked together to set up our tent for the first time and couldn't quite figure out what we had wrong...the poles kept wanting to warp sideways. We thought maybe we had it stretched too tight, so we adjusted the stakes, but ended up with one pole that was still wapperjawed come morning.

Since we got a bit of of a late start, we didn't do much but sit around and watch a storm, talk and drink beer, and go to bed. Thankfully the bulk of the storm didn't hit our area, but we did get to enjoy the lightning show from a distance and listen to the gentle rain as we tried to sleep. Neither of us slept very well (we'll have to find a pad or mattress of some sort next time), but it was nice to wake up to the birds talking, evidence that the cows had been over investigating at some point in the morning (fresh tracks in the mud nearby) and a cool morning. We had some poptarts and sunnyd for breakfast, tore down, checked the cows and went home. But I woke up feeling much more at peace and much less stressed and we both had smiles on our faces all day.

Next time we'll have to try for a weekend of camping instead of just an overnight. :) And hopefully this is just a start to experiencing more of the world and more of life - together. Here are a few pictures:

Harvest is officially finished...

I just love the hurry-up-and-wait game (do you feel the sarcasm dripping off my words)?!! The whole harvest felt like a lot of rushing out somewhere and then twiddling our thumbs for one reason or another. Harvest finished up on Monday the 16th. We cut a bit on Saturday, and got rained out. Sunday we had another storm brew up. Monday we finally finished up the last little bit. Wednesday the machines were parked and the paperwork is all caught up. The bills have all come in and just as much or more is going out than came in. Be doing good to break even on the wheat harvest this year.
The good news is that the cows are still alive and healthy. About one month away from calving! yeah baby calves. Jarrod has been able to get some field work done and the rains have helped the milo and sowed feed grow well. The weeds like the rain too. Guess you can't have your cake and eat it too. The house is clean again, we have groceries again and we have clean clothes to wear. Should be thankful for all that we have. Is the constant need for better situations something that ever ends? Do you ever just happily, contentedly appreciate what you have, or do you strive for better until the day you die? I guess moderation or balance is the key. Appreciate what you have but still keep trying to improve. Everything in moderation. One of the giant important lessons/keys to life. I think. Not 100% sure.

On Hold

Well we've got about 150 acres to cut yet, but it's been raining all week, so we're on hold for awhile. Sunday night it rained out at Bob's place, so Monday we moved the combine up the East place - no more than pulled in the driveway and some storms came through. Tuesday they gave it a try, but it was way too wet. Wednesday it rained again. Today we're having intermittent sunshine...but I doubt it'll go today. Sure would be nice to get harvest over with - I want a haircut! And you can't cut your hair during harvest - it's bad luck. Guess you could argue we're already having bad luck, so what could it hurt. You just don't break tradition - that's all I got to say. :)

So in the meantime, we've been enjoying a little down time, getting caught up on other projects and enjoying the cooler weather. I kinda miss the hot sunshiny summer day though - we haven't had too many this year. Maybe next weekend I can get the fuel barrels painted up in their reflective silver coating. That's a project that hasn't worked out too well so far either because of the cool and wet weather we've had so far this year. My rig needs washed and shined up too - and I suppose it's about time to mow the yard again. We're just ready to have some party time - bbq, rodeos, camping at the lake, but we gotta get the workin' done first!

Long hot weekend...

We squeezed in another 2 full days of cutting over the weekend. It was dry enough to start cutting early in the morning and those still cutting were doing just that. The crew leaders decided to split the combines over the weekend (and therefore the trucks as well) and it caused a bit of a upheaval for awhile. Everyone was generally bitey and growly on Friday and Saturday because of the decision to split. Saturday night Jarrod and I decided to adjust our attitudes, quit pushing so hard and just let it flow. So Sunday we tried to joke around and have fun. We drank some beer Friday night and again on Saturday night. I don't know if that helped lighten the mood too.

It was nice to have the entire Heinze family around to help with food and with the cuttin. Becca and John were around the whole weekend and Matt drove truck all weekend while Sheila made sure we all ate since Tina had to work this weekend. Everyone kinda chips in when needed and the meals are definitely appreciated. We got some more seed wheat binned over the weekend since we had the extra help around. It was a good weekend over all. It just would have been nice to get finished over the weekend...since...

it rained in places last night. We've basically got about 150 acres yet to cut...and it sure would be nice if the showers would miss us for a few more days. After that - it can do whatever it wants. A drink for the milo would be good - a break in the heat would also be good for the cows. But we need just a few more days of sunshine to get the rest of the wheat to town. Our vacation time away from our day jobs is running out.

Just a workin'

Thursday and Friday were work days. Saved a load of seed off the river on Thursday afternoon - finished it up and moved up to the 80 at Denmark fairly late. Cut about half of it off working a little later than we had been - the wheat and straw is starting to dry out and stay dry with all the sunshine we've had the last few days. Got a good early start again on Friday - finished the 80 and moved back down to the Creek. Saved another load of seed there. But John had a fairly serious breakdown last night - luckily the guys were able to tear it apart before sundown, figure what was needed and this morning they've almost got it put back together. Looks like most everybody got an early start this morning - lotsa sun and the winds a blowin'. I stayed home this morning, got some groceries, some cash, did a couple loads of laundry - much needed things to keep us rollin. Bout time for dinner and hopefully a full weekend of cuttin and truckin. Things started slowing down at all the elevators yesterday - not nearly the traffic coming and going.

Holiday-Work Day-Family Harvest Day

Yesterday was like normal harvest again! We had the whole family out to the field at some point in the day. We had a family dinner after a full morning's worth of work and before going out to start cutting for the day. We got 2 loads of seed wheat binned with all the extra help around to keep the cutting going as well. The sun shone - it was humid, hot, storms brewed up in the afternoon (but luckily they blew right on by us). Matthew ran out of gas (luckily in the driveway, rather than on the way to town with a load!). Everything was just normal again. Maybe today we can keep right on rollin!

Yeehaw - a full day of cuttin'!

Wow I don't know what to think...we got to start cutting at lunch time today and cut the full day like a normal harvest. I was in a good mood all day - no more frustrations like I had yesterday. I drove trucks by myself all afternoon - Jarrod ran the grain cart. We got John's place finished finally today - I've never seen so much bindweed. Really slowed the combines down. We got one truckload of seed wheat saved off Ernie's at the end of the night - I hope that it tests out in the morning and we get to put her in the bin.

Today was a great start to a short vacation. I got to sit in my camp chair between runs for just a few minutes and feast my eyes on summertime scenery. I did get some good photos between runs to town. I tried to stop the action today in the full sunlight. I'd like to try purposely flowing the action in full sunlight soon as well.

Tomorrow should be exciting - we'll have a full crew available to help and hopefully everyone will be in good spirits.

Twitterpated...

I cannot remember being as frustrated and angry as I was today. My work computer gave me fits all day and got me all twitterpated before I went to help with harvest after work. Helping with harvest requires patience, a calm demeanor, no rushing - I had not an ounce of patience left when I got to the field. My first trip to town was bouncy and jerky - I couldn't calm down enough to run the clutch smoothly. It got better as the night went on. Partly because of my work frustrations, partly because of my harvest frustations and probably partly because of PMS - Jarrod got an earful from me at the beginning of the night and then Matthew told everyone I was bitchy. So I guess that'll teach me not to argue with my husband when there's an audience around.

Jarrod and I were fine - we had it all worked out in short order - but by then the rest of the crew was being cautious with me thinking I was going to bite their heads off. And I did let them know I wasn't happy with the communication side of things - but without being completely nasty. And the women in the family have finally decided to start communicating. I got two calls today telling me I didn't need to worry about bringing snacks to the field, because they were taking care of it. I just hope they touched base themselves so they aren't stepping on each other's toes. I'll be happy to relinquish that part of my harvest duties.

So I had a lot of thoughts cross my mind tonight about the way I handled my frustration, and the future farming picture and my marriage and what I could do better with all of that. Trying to balance different viewpoints on things can be hard. Especially when you care deeply about what you are working on and so does everyone else involved.

Started again!

Well we got another patch almost cut last night. Freeze hit it pretty hard. Lots of straw - not so many berries. It felt good to drive the truck to town a few times. I took a few photos, but they just seem blah to me - none of them really pop.

For example:

















I got a couple more shots that I like moderately better because they have funky angles. I spent some time on top of the truck and that viewpoint was better than the same old ground-level view. The photo that makes you feel like the wheat truck is falling over sideways is my favorite - but most people would find that unsettling. ha.




























I do think maybe the ones I took last night capture the overall down feeling that harvest has this year since it's been so hard to get anything cut with the wet weather and because the crop isn't nearly as good as it could be. This will not be the year for me to capture tall golden wheat waving in the breeze with the sunset on the horizon. Have to wait til next year for that dreamy photo I guess. Capturing reality might be harder than making a picture perfect, dreamy wall hanging. I guess it's not just the beautiful things that need to be remembered - it's all the normal, real, more likely to happen kinds of things too.

Blah - Days 3-6

Oh you wanted a harvest update...

Well there ain't been much of anything going on to speak about. It rained Wednesday afternoon and it's been cloudy, muggy, humid, dewey and any other wet phenomenon you can think of since. The guys cut a couple truckloads tonight...but it was really too wet to be cutting.

We keep hoping the sun will shine and summer will return and we can finish our harvest and move on. This state of limbo is driving us all bonkers.

Day 2 - slow start again

Today was a bit frustrating at first. Jarrod and I took off at noon from work and made it out to the field in half an hour. BUT no one else was in a hurry. Part of it was the weather and part of it is lack of communication. It was overcast all morning, humid, no wind. I don't imagine that the wheat, nor the straw was super dry. But some individuals were cutting before noon. So Jarrod and I thought we could too. After all, there is chances of rain the next few days - why not cut as much as you can while you can? Wrong.
Jarrod ended up planting some milo, so his vacation time away from work was not wasted. I ended up catching a ride back to town and going back to the office for the rest of the afternoon. Which was good I suppose but not really where I was hoping to be this afternoon. A simple phone call could have made the middle of the day go smoother with less wasted time. Gotta make the most of the time you have!
Now it's 6:10 pm and I'm waiting on Jarrod to pick me up at the house. I guess the guys decided to fire up the combines after all and had a truckload cut by the time Jarrod finished the patch of planting he was on. So he's going to pick me up after dumping that load. I hope we get to work late tonight and cut more wheat before the rain moves in - but it's already visible on the radar so I'm not getting my hopes up.
I don't imagine I'll get any good photos tonight - although - time permitting - the opportunity for a challenge could present itself - night harvest pictures could be cool if I can get the technicalities figured out! Speaking of technicalities - I just have to add that I'm a computer whiz! Becca got Internet installed at her house today and the installer could not get her computer working. So she called me! I was able to narrow down the problem and fix it remotely! I rock! Don't expect that to happen so good the next time! :)
Yep there's my ride...

con't...
So we did get to finally bring a few truckloads of wheat to town. Jarrod was totally pumped for some reason to drive the trucks...and the grain cart was not needed on that patch...so I was riding shotgun most of the night. That was alright though because my friend Amy hooked us up with a handful of candy at the elevator!

Day 1

I got our first load of wheat to the elevator today around 4...last one around 10. Minimal amount of problems today. Jarrod was leaving a wheat trail underneath the grain cart for awhile. John couldn't get his combine started at first (and then later broke some chain in it). I got a truck stuck in some mud and Jarrod had to pull me out. But all small and fixable. Knock on wood.

The 40 acre patch we cut of Jarrod and I's wheat made 33 bu/acre I think Jarrod said. Not bad. Not great. Won't complain. I think John's little 15-acre patch made close to the same just judging by the truckloads we hauled off it.

Random remembrances:

• It seems most all of our neighbors are full-speed ahead in their cutting as well. The roads and the elevator were fairly busy today.
• One of our neighbors jack-knifed their semi in a curve. They must have got it out fairly quickly, because by the next time I came through, they were gone and all I could see were the ruts.
• It was nice that the elevator had so many workers keeping things moving along and with a minimal amount of grumbling.
• I only had to pee in the field once today!
• Gotta remember the sunscreen tomorrow - I think I got my burn today - can't have anymore burn tomorrow.

Notable Photos: