tasks and technology
John’s Farm News, 10th edition, Feb. 20, 2021
Oh boys and girls, it warmed up today. When 34° degrees seem balmy does that say something about being conditioned by the frigid temps of the past week? Winter has yet to completely let go of us; it’s a cold 10° tonight but steps up are encouraging! I hope the calves soaked up the rays this afternoon to help them through another frigid night.
Let me introduce Stretch who was napping this morning when John on the pasture scene. The engine noise woke our friend - his hair messy, his legs wobbly and he’s s t r e t c h I n g for all he’s worth.
It’s a wrap – indeed, it is!
John and Josh may have set a record this past week for the number of nets removed from round bales. If there’s one thing that gets under John’s skin it’s wrap along the side of the road where it gets tangled around mower blades, litters the ditch, and messes with the natural beauty of the countryside.
The expression on the younger calf face is priceless. Imagine him thinking, “Who goes there?”
Today was our annual audit for certification with Animal Welfare Approved through A Greener World. So…back-at-the-ranch I shuffled computer and paper files, preparing copies of records to have information readily available. The auditee at her desk inside her home on the family farm outside of Fairview, Oklahoma and the auditor at his desk inside his family farm home on a peninsula off the shore of Maryland – technology led the way.
My dad happened upon this well-used, double-sided desk in what used to be Cawley's on Main in Fairview; he was so intrigued that he traded some sweat equity for the unique furniture. He and mom shared this work space for many years. I recall well his Royal typewriter (which now sits in our bookcase) sitting on the pull-out drawer of the desk and how the keys clicked when he typed. Mom passed paperwork to dad; she was most interested in decorating her side - an embossed address book, a small, pewter, roadrunner paperweight, and a couple of framed pictures. A few times I heard her say, "Marion, you need to get your papers organized." John and I share the desk now; we enjoy it so much. We spend time away from the TV, facing one another, and talk about important stuff, not-so-important stuff, and I a few times I "might" have asked him to get his papers organized. We are blessed!