Quack, Quack, Cackle, Cackle

Being a glutton for punishment, Forrest and I went to McDonald's again this week. It was morning, I entered the building confidently thinking "I got this". Afterall, I only wanted a sausage biscuit meal. 

I approached the kiosk and started pushing buttons. I push "meals". Surely, a simple sausage biscuit meal would be in that section. Nope. I search a little more, nothing. Finally, I turn around and walk up to the counter. A girl comes up to me and says "Can I help you?" "I would like a sausage biscuit meal, no egg". "Did you use the kiosk?" she asks. "I could not find it on there", I respond. She starts pushing buttons.  "Meal?" she asks, "Yes, sausage biscuit, hashbrowns and a coke". "No egg?, she asks again, "No egg". "What would you like to drink?", "A coke". I then pay for it thinking, "I did it, I defeated the system, I did not use the kiosk and am getting exactly what I want". 

We get our orders and return to the truck and head on down the road (we were headed home when we stopped). I open my bag, unwrap my sandwich and what do I see? I got my sausage biscuit all right, but with a f*#%ing egg! and not one, but two hasbrowns. I promptly take the egg off and flip it over my right shoulder to Dakota. She worked hard over the past week and deserves a little extra treat.

But that was not my only mind-boggling encounter with technology this week. I had another one when I borrowed one of the trucks to go to town. Everything was going normally until I stopped at my destination and turned off the truck. The display then flashed "Check backseat for infants". I do not remember bringing an infant with me, but I checked anyway just in case one magically appeared during my drive. One had not. But during each one of my stops it asked the same question, each time I looked, but no infant. Imagine my horror had I turned around to find an infant staring back at me! I get it, I know why it asks and if one baby's life is saved from it, it is worth it, but I did find the messaging amusing. 

But, back to my week with Forrest. We had a great time! We arrived Tuesday evening and met Dylan at the Pour Choices bar in Max for supper. After getting set up back at the farm we went to bed with alarms set for 5:30am. I slept in Chris and Holly's big 5th wheel while Forrest took the camper. I will not go into each individual duck hunt, but we set the alarm for 5:30 all 5 mornings we were there. 

We hunted fields, we hunted water, we made some great shots, missed some easy ones. Had a lot of laughs and filled the freezer with birds. I don't remember the last time Forrest and I shared a duck blind.... over a decade for sure, so it was so nice to settle into the blind with him that first morning after setting up our field decoys. We are joined by Dylan, Pete, and Chris. 

I will warn you now that the rest of the post has some dead bird pictures, it also has lots of dog pictures and yes, a couple of videos. Dakota went along on most trips, she is not a fan of hunting on land, but get her near a muddy slough and she is in heaven. You can tell in the picture above, she is not entirely loving it as we were on land. The rest of the photos were taken when we were water hunting so you will see a noticeable difference. 

As many of you know, there are two different classifications of ducks; dabblers and divers. Dabblers are what most people see in parks; Mallards, Gadwall, Teal, Widgeon, Pintail..... These ducks are the ones that tip their butts up in the air and put their heads under the water when eating. Then there are the divers who dive when they eat. These include the Scaup, Redheads, Canvasback, Bufflehead and many more.

To me, the dabblers eat better than the divers, so we try to go for them as much as possible, but depending on where you are hunting, they might not be around. 

You are only allowed 6 birds a day 5 of which can be mallards and of those mallards, only two can be hens. You can only shoot 2 canvasback and redheads, 1 scaup, and pintail. So, not only do you need to be able to identify the species on the fly, in some cases, you need to identify the gender within that species. Not always possible so a lot get passed on. 

One evening we were hunting big water where a lot of divers hang out. Big water is fun as it allows Dakota the opportunity to really get out there and swim while retrieving the birds. Here is a video that Forrest took of her retrieving one. 

We were just getting ready to wrap up when this bird comes zipping across in front of us and Forrest shoots it. Upon retrieving the bird, (a female canvasback) we noticed that it had a band on its leg! This is super rare, I have only shot one banded bird one time in my life, many have not shot any. 

When you shoot a banded bird, they ask that you call in the date and location of the harvest so they can use that data for their records. They in return send you back the information on the bird. 

Each morning we went out to various potholes or fields throughout the area. All the hunts were fun and memorable, but the most fun ones for me were the ones where Dakota got to get in on the action. Just look at the expression on her face.....

One spot we were hunting was kind of out in the open and the ducks kept flaring as they got close to us. We finally figured out that while we were in camo, that white dog down there was scaring them. Solution? Cover her with a decoy bag!

Saturday was another big day, the pheasant opener! So, we switched from ducks to pheasants. We put on miles and miles walking across the fields in search of these elusive birds. Dakota is not a pheasant dog, so she sat these hunts out, but we had fun watching the other dogs. These birds proved to be our nemesis, most of them getting away, but between the 7 of us we managed to get enough for each of us to take a few home for the table. 

One morning it was crazy windy. It was almost mezmorizing walking through the grasses watching the grass sway in the wind. The birds held super tight, but we still managed to miss more than our fair share. 

That night, the winds died down, making for one of the most beautiful settings you will ever see in a pheasant hunt. What an end to the day. 

Our week was over way too soon. Well, not really, we had plenty of birds, sore feet and were ready to sleep in. So, again at 5:30 in the morning we woke up, loaded up and hit the road back home. 9 hours later we pulled into our driveway, stretched out legs and opened the back door to let Dakota out. I wish I had taken a picture, but what do you think I saw in the floor next to Dakota? Some of you may have guessed it, but there on the floor, uneaten, was the egg from my "eggless" sausage biscuit. It might be a sign that I should not go to McDonalds anymore if even a dog will not eat their food!

Where Do You Want to Live?

Where do you want to live? I want to live where I can look outside and see turkeys and deer feeding across the meadow. I want to live where neighbors help each other out and wave when you drive by even if you have never met them. I want to live where your neighbor is next door, or 5 miles away. I want to live where you have to drive at least 20 minutes to get to the nearest grocery store. I want to live where the sound of gunfire is not alarming (most of the time at least, more on that later). I want to live where people on opposite sides of political lines can have supper together.

I could go on and on. We have found our slice of paradise but cannot help but think about these things as I see Forrest, Somer and Lily travel the country looking for their own slice of paradise. In the past year or so they have spent extended time in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Tennesse, Missouri, Oregon and of course, South Dakota. So far, they have not found it, so the search continues. There are things they like about each of these areas and things they don't like. Of course, we try to point out all the positives of everything in our area, but I think the winters (and wind) are two of the biggest drawbacks. 

In a way, I envy them. They have the excitement of finding their next home, where will they end up? They also have the stress of finding their next home. We loved our nomadic lifestyle but are happy to have our forever home. It has been several years since Lily, now 13, has attended school. I wonder when they find their next home, if they will enroll her in school or continue with her home schooling. They have gotten to the point where some of the education is a bit challenging for the teachers, so they have turned to an online curriculum that they have found that teaches 8th grade (and up) subjects. They still do educational field trips in each area they are in though. The nice thing about the website they use is that it not only sets the curriculum, but it also grades it and maintains records for when she enrolls in a high school or colleges. 

The last four days have been great, we had something going on each day. Here is a recap the four days I spent at home..... but first a funny story.

Forrest and I were driving around the property on our side by side when Kevin called to catch up. During our conversation, Kevin asked, "What's your crazy wife up to?". I looked towards the house, not expecting to see anything, but I do. I see Barb, on a ladder, leaning against a tree, so I reply, "At the moment she is on top of a ladder which is leaning against a tree". Why I did not find that alarming, I do not know. But Forrest and I did drive up there to see what the heck was going on. 

She was hanging her dart board on a tree. 

That night we went on a field trip as part of Lily's continuing education. Math, statistics and social economic are crucial parts of everyday life so we felt it essential that we help Lily learn more about these areas. Where did we go you ask? The VFW of course where all children should learn necessary life skills! With the Queen of Hearts over $30,000 how could we not go? No one won so the game continues for the 42nd consecutive week. Only 10 cards remain so someone is going to win soon!

Saturday was Bonnie's birthday. A milestone birthday! Barb spent the morning preparing for the big day starting at 6am when she put a pork butt in the smoker. She then made a cake and potato salad. Around noon we went to the Harvest Moon Festival in Custer where we enrolled both Zoey and Chloe in the pet costume contest. Neither won, but they seem none the wiser. 

That's right Harry, it is a dog video! 

After that it was back to our house where Dan and Bonnie joined us to help with more of Lily's home schooling. More math, economics and Phy Ed when we played darts, jenga and dice games. 

Sunday is football day! My Vikings were in England playing against the Jets. The game started at 7:30am Mountain Time and I woke up to find Zoey already pumped up for the game, traitor!

Speaking of dogs, we have 4 of them in the house much of the time. Zoey and Chloe spend a lot of time playing. Jack and Dakota, both over 10 years old, spend a lot of time sleeping. 

A little later in the morning Kevin came over to help form the pad for the garage in preparation for our upcoming concrete pour. Forrest got a taste of what it takes to get a site ready for concrete. 

Once that was done, we spent some time sighting in and practicing our archery skills for the upcoming archery season.

Monday morning, way too early, we headed over to one of Kevin's job sites to help him with a concrete pour. This one was a little sketchy and both Kevin and I were glad to have Forrest there as the first half of this pour had to be done by wheelbarrow up a ramp. 

Back to the sound of gunfire in the neighborhood, we did have a little excitement recently when one of our neighbors (about a mile away) was involved in a murder/suicide. We did not hear the gunfire, a very sad story for these this couple in their mid 60's. They had just moved to the area, and we did not know them. Another one of our "neighbors" (10 miles away) was arrested for arson, charged with setting 9 wildfires in the area. Again, we did not know the individual but are happy he is off the street.

That is our past 4 days in a nutshell. This morning Forrest and I are headed back up north to The Farm for a few days of father/son duck hunting. But first, a picture from the trail cameras. This one is for you Nancy, I know how much you love these little guys. Be careful, I think he knows where he wants to live and is headed your way!

10 and 10

 I learned something after last week's post about the automation at McDonald's. A couple of somethings actually. First, I learned is that with the exception of one deranged lunatic, that the majority of the readers are with me on my view of the kiosks. The second thing I learned is that McDonald's has various names throughout the world. Two commentors referred to McDonald's as Maccas. At first, I thought it was just a nickname that this commentors called it, but when a second person said "Maccas" I had to look it up. Sure enough, McDonald's is known as Maccas in Australia and New Zealand. Who knew!?!?

While waiting for the beans to get ready earlier in the week, we continued to clean peas, we now have about 16,000 bushel (960,000 lbs) of peas ready for sale. These should not be needed until spring, but they are ready!

Now for a P.S.A: 

Any of you who live out in the country have undoubtably come across one of these monstrosities on the road. Here is one of the frustrations of every farmer out there.... when a car approaches from the other direction, the combine operator has the ability to lift and tilt that header, they will then drive halfway into the ditch allowing the car to pass. But often times the person in the car does not know what to do and will stop in the road near a road sign so the combine operator cannot go into the ditch. Then it is a standoff. So next time you come across one, look to the other side of the road and make sure there is nothing preventing the combine from going into the ditch. 

Why were we on the road this week? Well, we harvested the remaining 500 acres, our last two fields for the season, wrapping up this year's harvest season! Upon finishing the last field, I prompted went back to my camper, took off my gloves and my boots and socks, counting my fingers and toes. 10 and 10, another successful season!

That same day Bob S. arrived back up here with his wife Sue. While Sue help Holly watch the kids, Bob and I got everything ready for Saturday, the opening of waterfowl season! This will make the 46th year that as have hunted together. Back in '79 when we started hunting together, we were the youngest in the group, now we are the oldest. We have spent many a morning together in a duck slough watching more sunrises than most see with their spouses in a lifetime. 

Our first morning together found us in a slough just west of the farm. The weather was perfect for anything. Anything but duck hunting. No wind, no clouds means no ducks. We fired one shot all morning, resulting in one duck. 

Drake Canvasback

The next two mornings found us on a couple of different lakes just east of the farm. Again, no clouds, but it was windy. Windy is good when it comes to duck hunting. We had some great hunts adding to our freezers and the memories we share together. 

As some of you may recall, Bob lost his younger brother Russ earlier this year. Bob is helping Russ's wife liquidate some of Russ's things. One of which included a single shot 12 ga shotgun that I just had to have! This particular gun was manufactured between 1962 and 1973 and is in great condition. In memory of Russ, Bob and I took the gun hunting one last time before it becomes a show piece in our loft. 

Bob and I each shot it, taking a few birds and let me tell you, this thing kicks like a mule! I don't know how people shot these things all day long, my shoulder hurt just after a few shots. 

I have hunted with dozens of dogs over the years, but Ember, the dog you see above (and below) is by far, the best dog I have ever hunted with. So well behaved, so wanting to please, and so loving. She loves Bob so much that she always wants to have him in her sights. In fact, when Bob was in the shop, and she was outside, this is what I saw from outside and then inside.....

Although we have been busy, it has also been quiet. Farmer Bob and DeAnne have been gone. Bob for two weeks now (he is back now) and DeAnne almost a week. They went in the same direction, but to different destinations. For years now Farmer Bob has wanted to go on a religious pilgrimage. With unrest in many of the areas one would typically go, he decided on Portugal where he toured a number of churches, basilicas and other historical sites. Based on the pictures I have seen; he is had a great time. DeAnne took a girl's trip to Ireland with several friends. 

 What's Barb been up to you ask? Well, after leaving here she went right back to work, starting with end tables for the bedroom upstairs. She used the leftover live-edge wood from the shelves she made for the laundry room. She made the legs out of scrap wood we had laying around and the lamps she got on Amazon. She is now working on a way to conceal the cord for the lamps.

Once she was done with that, she started work on a backing for a dart board for she bought at an auction. She bought some cork board and built a frame, now we just need to figure out where to hang it. 

If that is not enough, she built a giant Jenga game for the gazebo. She used scrap 2x4's, cut, ripped, sanded and painted 54 pieces and is now ready for action! 

 

Who is that lovely young lady in the picture you ask? That is our granddaughter, Lily! Forrest, Somer and Lily arrived this week for an extended stay at the house!

Bob and Sue left the farm Tuesday morning. They were replaced that night with a nephew that I have not seen in 30 years when we was 12. We lost touch many years ago until I got a message from him out of the blue a few months back asking if I knew a place that he and his friend could go duck hunting. I set him up to hunt here at the farm and was able to get out with him the first day. 

John brought his friend Connor; this was the first North Dakota duck hunt for either of them. John is in the background with the weed in front of his face...

Finally, the day I have been looking forward to for weeks arrived. Thursday morning. After spending an hour sweeping, scrubbing and cleaning the camper to get it into a somewhat presentable condition I headed for home! 7 weeks since I left, I am ready to sit on my couch, pet my dogs and hold my wife, not necessarily in that order.

I will not be there long however, as Forrest and I will he headed back up here next week for something we have not done together in.... I do not know how long, years for sure. A father/son hunting week, I cannot wait!

The Struggle is Real

 I am losing my faith in humanity. I had an experience this week that left me depressed and frustrated. It was at all places.....McDonalds. When was the last time you went to McDonalds? I used to love McDonalds, I prefer their fries over their competitors, their coke seems better than other places and it was one of my first jobs. I think I was 16, I was a cook. I have not been inside a McDonalds in a long time and was shocked when I walked into the Minot McDonalds the other day. 

No "Welcome to McDonald's how can I help you?". I was greeted with silence. There were plenty of customers in there all silently standing there with tickets in their hands. No employees to be seen, just 4 kiosks where customers were expected to place their orders. I turned to where the counter used to be. It was blocked off with a plywood wall and a sign asking the customers to use the kiosks. 

I hate these kiosks. I start punching buttons. I have in mind what I want, but do you think I can find it on that damn thing? Nope. I just want to double hamburger meal; one burger, two patties, fries and a drink. Should not be that hard, but I cannot find it. I ended up with a cheeseburger, small fry, small drink and 4 chicken nuggets. The machine pops out my ticket and I stand there like all the other zombie customers holding my ticket. I can see employees moving around back there, but still no customer interaction. 

Then it happens, one of the employees comes out and speaks "159" she says, plops a bag on a rolling rack, turns around and walks away. Zombie 159 walks up to the rolling rack, grabs the bag and walks out. Eventually my number was called, and I too did the zombie walk and left never having any interaction with an employee or customer. I seriously felt like I was in the Twilight Zone! 

But that is not what this post is about. Just a random observation from the week. What this post is about is some of the trials and tribulations we encountered while harvesting this fall. I already talked about a couple of them like the combine tire falling off and the combine fire. Talking to a Case service employee recently, we learned that Bob's was the 3rd combine wheel to fall off this fall and the 11th combine fire in this area. 3 of those combines were total losses. 

But wait, there's more! Remember that day when it was so dusty and windy that you could barely see this cart and combine through the dust? As hard as it was to see during the daylight, think about how hard it was to see after dark in the wind and dust? Well, Chris found out that you cannot see at all. You certainly cannot see that big hay bale on the edge of the field that Chris ran into bending a couple parts of his header. 

No parts needed to be replaced, but a couple had to be straightened. Then there was the gear box that went out. Sounds easy? 1 day and $8,500 (parts only) later, we had it replaced with us doing the work. A week or so later, in a totally unrelated event, Chris noticed a vibration in his combine. It was diagnosed to a cracked pulley and bent shaft. $2,000 in parts have been ordered, we have yet to fix that one. 

There were several tire incidents while harrowing. One by me, one by someone who is not me but will remain nameless. I will only tell you this much about the nameless person, the first letter in his name is T and the last letter Y. I will leave it up to you to figure it out. 

 So here I am harrowing away with a 70' harrow going across the field. You generally do not look behind you too often as you are going across the field, just a glance as you turn corners and a glance or two over your shoulder as you go straight across the field. A glance over each shoulder lets you see the edges of the harrow, you really have to turn around to see the center of it. So, you can imagine my shock when I turned totally around to see the center and saw a totally shredded tire flopping around behind me!

I honestly cannot tell you if that happened one minute earlier or 10 minutes earlier. I am thinking the latter based on the condition of the tire. 

The nameless person was harrowing the edge of the field when all of a sudden, the tire broke right off. Not fell right off, broke right off as in metal broke away from the frame. He says he didn't hit anything, but color me skeptical as that tire "happened" to break off in very close proximity of a power pole! In all fairness, it is hard to tell how close you are to an object with something that wide and I may have hit objects in my previous years as well. 

Then there is the spilled grain. So frustrating, so avoidable. As a truck driver, you drive from field to farm unload and drive back to the field to do it all over again. And again, and again, and again. 10-14 hours a day. It is easy to become lax and forget a step. For me, that included not fully closing the bottom trap on the truck, not only once, but twice on two different days resulting in grain going right through the truck onto the ground. So avoidable, so frustrating. 

To clean this up, you need to go back to the farm, get a conveyor, bring it out to the field and shovel it by hand back into the truck.

There were a couple of getting stuck incidents, one with me in the skidsteer where I had to be pulled out and another by that same nameless person with the hay wagon. 

These are a few of things that are all part of what happens on any farm U.S.A. If anyone tells you different, they are lying. 

What else did we do this week? Took down fences, cleaned some outbuildings, cleaned some peas getting them ready to sell for other farmers in the spring. Cleaning takes out all of the bugs, split peas and other debris, leaving only (well, pretty much only) plantable seeds. Cleaning and filling a bin like the one in the background takes about 6 hours. 

DeAnne and I spent a day in town at their rental which is where Ty and Stephanie are living right now. We sided the front of their porch and covered a couple of windows. It looks much better if I do have to say so myself! 

Two weeks left up here, one week of work and one week of fun. I am kinda hoping they both go quick; I am ready to get home!