I am a proud Black Hills native, attempting to raise two little heathens (my term for my redneck kids) and cattle simultaneously alongside my partner in crime whose disposition sometimes resembles that of Woodrow F. Call from Lonesome Dove, and with the help of a supposed cow dog that’s terrible at bluffing cows. We live near Pringle; famous for things like elk, the Hitchrail, hunting, or the Pringle Poacher Car. Thanks for stopping by for a visit! Company’s rare around here.
So what kind of topics does a ranch wife in rural South Dakota write about? Probably more than you’d care to know if you hang around here too long. I tell on our cows and the disasters they often create; ranch life’s everyday challenges, and occasionally sneak in tales about our town.
I expertly describe what it’s like to be married to a ranch wife—to put words in my husband’s mouth, I’m sure he’d say an adventure would sum it up nicely.

I regularly disclose my faults, quirks, and slanted perspective on our ranch life with lawyer-like skill but I also illustrate stories reflecting the personality of my rancher-husband and our cowkids.
You won’t find photos from places like amusement parks posted here (just ours—we live in one). Things of exotic nature? Bizarre? Unusual? Yes. We rarely vacation because we live in a vacation destination—the Black Hills is a tourist mecca. That, and our cows can’t be trusted to be left home alone if we’re gone too long. But I love our home on the range. It provides seasons of infinite variety, 100% all-natural and organic beauty and my beloved clothesline.
I’m a coffee fiend, like a cold beer, open windows on summer nights, hearing our neighboring bull elk bugle and getting up a little earlier than early. I savor the scents of line-dried laundry, fresh cut aspen, leather, sweaty horses, camp fire smoke, and pine trees. The dress code at my job includes well-worn boots, tough looking jeans, t-shirts, and hooded sweatshirts. I refuse to call them by their sissy name, “hoodies.”
I can no longer claim that I don’t have any awards for my writings. I can only say that I still don’t have a journalism degree. I was awarded first place for Best Local General Interest Column for weekly papers under 1,151 with the Lyman County Herald newspaper in Presho, SD at the South Dakota 2010 Better Newspapers Contest and Best Local Humor Column with the Lyman County Herald also for 2012.
I enjoy combining ranch work with my penchant for writing and sharing it with readers. (A Ranchwife’s Slant has been published in these newspapers). Your comments are welcomed: amy@amykirk.com. You can also visit my website to read some of my archived columns.
I also guest speak–cow responsibilities permitting.
I combine my passion for agriculture, the outdoors, and writing in my weekly humor column about ranching with my husband and kids called A Ranchwife’s Slant. In my talk, A Ranchwife’s Slant: Connecting with People Through Agriculture and Humor, I share how my search for entertaining topics to write about for my column I inadvertently learned that finding humor in unpleasant circumstances can be a coping tool for dealing with the daily challenges of ranch life as well as industry-wide challenges in agriculture.
It has been an honor to guest speak for the following organizations and events:
2011
Rock County Farm Bureau Annual Meeting, Luverne, MN
2012
South Dakota Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference, Spearfish, SD
South Dakota Independent Insurors, Oacoma, SD
Presho Historical Society, Presho, SD
DakotaFest Women’s Brunch, Mitchell, SD
Wyoming Women in Ag, Casper, WY
2013
Lyman County Farm Bureau Annual Dinner, Presho, SD
Darrell’s Oil Customer Appreciation Dinner, Wessington Springs, SD
Yankton Area Ag Gala, Yankton, SD
For guest speaking inquiries, please call me at 605.673.2063 or email me at amy@amykirk.com to arrange a phone conversation to further discuss my guest speaking considerations for your next event.
Reader comments are welcome at amy@amykirk.com. You can also follow A Ranchwife’s Slant on Facebook and @RanchwifesSlant on Twitter.
Welcome! Have a seat and make yourself at home here.
Photo credit: 2012 © Harry Whitney
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