Category: Ranch Slants
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Column Drafting Preferences
When I sit down to write a column, I start here: Some writers head straight for the computer keyboard but I start out with a pen and notebook. That’s why I buy a ton of these. I’m not particular or very specific; I like variety and will use a different style notebook every time I…
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Harvesting Ivory in South Dakota
My husband collects teeth. Not just anybody’s teeth, but elk teeth. He doesn’t do anything with them he just likes keeping them and will get them out occasionally to show the kids, relatives, friends, or just look them over. Elk hunters know what I’m talking about and probably do the same thing. My dad inlaid…
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A Quoteworthy Book
This is my purple quotes book. I love quotes that inspire me, make me laugh or make me think. I used to jot down on a slip of paper a quotation that I liked or that I read in a book whenever I came across one worthy of remembering. It never failed that when I…
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Meet Scarlett
Five years ago, I was a real skeptic about getting chickens. I was concerned about getting stuck with one more chore to do because I knew the novelty of finding the eggs would wear off with my kids, which it did eventually. My husband kept bringing up the idea until I finally caved in and…
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Sharing My Comments
This is my reader comments binder. Getting comments on my column is one of the things I like best about being a columnist. Good or bad, I think comments help me understand my readers better. If I get a positive email from a reader, I feel like I’ve achieved one of my goals as a…
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Keep An Eye On the Ball
Blue Heeler dogs are common on ranches because of their desire to have a job to do. Our dog Pepper is no exception. She loves to fetch. Pepper is a Blue Heeler/Border Collie tennis ball fetcher. Baseballs and softballs aren’t chewy enough and footballs, basketballs, and soccer balls are hard to retrieve. Our dog makes…
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Women in Ag Get Together for More Than Just Agriculture
Inspiring conference speakers, informative sessions, and educational workshops are all worthy reasons for ranch women to gather every September, but for many, it’s the chance to get away, catch one’s breath, and let the family be self sufficient for 24 hours. Ranch women know they’ll walk away from the conference with useful information they can…
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Rekindling Old Flames
There’s nothing tougher than being tempted by a former addiction you’ve given up and walked away from. I know exactly how recovered addicts feel now, although I could easily go back to mine and it wouldn’t be harmful to me or those close to me. It’s just something I wish I could go back and…
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Putting Off Procrastination
Some writing days are hard for my brain to engage, which is one of the challenges I frequently face when writing before a deadline. It’s on days like these that I feel like I’m forcing creativity to happen and my mind just doesn’t want to play by the rules. When topics, good content, and humorous…
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Spouses In Translation
Some days I wish I was a cow. Then maybe I could communicate with my husband better and get the same attention our cows do. I recently read Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin, about decoding animal behavior in hopes of finding out what a cow’s got over me with my husband’s attention. Cows seem…