Tag Archives: food

a wheat whackin week

by Nebraska Wheatie

IMG_8593Testing the “bite” of the grain to see if it’s dry.

We began cutting the acres for our farmer in the Garden City, KS area on Wednesday morning (6/24) without missing a beat.  If you recall, we finished Shattuck late Monday afternoon and loaded as much as we could. On Tuesday, Jim and Taylor loaded the combine while Callie and I got the trailer house ready to go. After the tire on the van was replaced, we headed north. We unloaded Frank and the Beast in the dark. The next morning, as we were leaving for the field, the girls were headed home.

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a new field in a new location

by Nebraska Wheatie

IMG_8431Cleaning equipment after finishing at Shattuck, OK and getting ready for the move to Garden City, KS

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IMG_8442Zeorian Harvesting moved from Shattuck, OK to Garden City, KS in record time! We really did. We’ve never been able to move everything in one trip. It has always taken two trips to move our equipment which sometimes means valuable time in the field is given up for road time.

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mastering the art of mind reading

by Nebraska Wheatie

FullSizeRender (1) - CopyTime to unload (in more ways than the obvious).

We’ve been married 33 years. I still haven’t mastered the art of reading his mind.

I’m certain I’m not the only wife that feels this way. It helps me to think that, anyways.

This is how my morning began. Frank is loaded from last night and is waiting to go to the elevator. Cap’n Combine announces that he’s not going to be able to unload it for me this morning because he really wants to get things started in the field earlier than usual. We’re on our last field and it’s a weedy mess. I tell him that’s fine, I can finish what I’m doing here at the trailer house (making lunches and book work) and dump it. I knew there was an empty truck sitting next to mine so I wasn’t in too big of a hurry.

So, here’s where things go wrong.

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time for an attitude adjustment

by Nebraska Wheatie

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It’s been a slow start to Harvest 2015.

We sampled on Tuesday afternoon – late Tuesday afternoon – and the sample came back at 14%. The elevator in Shattuck said they would take one truck load. Hardly worth the effort so we just decided to shut ‘er down til the next day. Disappointment.

Wednesday rolled around but began with heavy, heavy dew and clouds. Not a very good drying day. We tried again. This time we cut two truckloads but the elevator closed before we could take them in. Thursday morning – again, heavy dew and not much strength to the sun. Lots of humidity on top of everything else. The trucks were taken to the elevator and the moisture came in at 15.2% – worse than the previous day. But, we kept moving along. I think we actually cut four truckloads that day. Friday – FINALLY a good sunny day! And that’s when I could feel the feeling begin to swell up inside of me.

I need an attitude adjustment!

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taking advantage of another rain day

by Nebraska Wheatie

IMG_8306Our anticipation and excitement of being on the road and FINALLY joining up with the rest of the “wheaties” soon came to an abrupt end. The rains we got the first night after we arrived, continued off and on for the next several days. That was Thursday – today is Wednesday. Almost an entire week has already disappeared.

Before we left, I planted my travelling flower garden. I try to do this every year mostly because it gives me a bit of a normal summer-type activity. Sometimes the busy-ness of the job and the heat of the summer take a toll on my garden. Right now, though, they are thriving.

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another faith building year

by Nebraska Wheatie

There’s one key element involved in this harvesting game which none of us have control over and that is the weather! This particular piece of the puzzle will either make you or break you.

IMG_5001Right about now, I’m feeling like my invitation was lost in the mail. I know it’ll show up soon…I just have to be patient!

Taylor and I left home early on Tuesday morning. The van was packed to the hilt as we headed south – south to Texas. For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been seeing the loaded combines on Facebook. I’ve felt that feeling before. It was when the girls were little and I had to stay behind. I’ve been feeling a bit left behind.  So, I was thankful to have the Case IH ProHarvest Kickoff as a reason to head for the Longhorn State.

IMG_0524Dan Renaud of Case IH has done this event for the past 18 years. Dan informed the crowd today that after this meeting, he would no longer be employed with Case IH. After working for Case for 35 years, his job was being cut. We’ll miss you, Dan! And thanks for the many years of supporting the US Custom Harvesters!

IMG_0525Day one of two.

The states of Texas and Oklahoma have been battling weather for quite some time. Rain, rain and more rain (and a few tornadoes and hail)! Some places have seen up to 30″ of the wet stuff. If you remember why we haven’t been back to Texas since 2012, it’s because of the drought…and late season freezes. Circumstances have kept us from returning to the great State of Texas this year (mostly because we didn’t have a “for sure” job to head to) but maybe it’s for the best.  This crazy weather has most of the “wheaties” who are in Texas struggling to keep their employees busy and has provided plenty of time to socialize.  And socializing is something you can only do if it’s raining. Those are my most favorite days on harvest – as long as you’re parked in a campground with other harvesters.IMG_5002

The annual kickoff breakfasts began on Tuesday with the MacDon gathering. I’ve never been to these gatherings before. I’m sure if there is wheat to be cut, the socializing is kept to a minimum. Today, however, everyone had plenty of time to enjoy each other’s company. It was almost like a mini convention.  I set up a “booth” with USCHI products to promote the organization a bit more and to sell a t-shirt or two.

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It was after the meeting that I started feeling like the party planner had forgotten to send my invitation. Seeing the loaded combines parading down main street of Frederick, OK made me realize that it was, in fact, harvest time.  The “boys of summer” were making their way back to the small towns for the wheat harvest. The golden wheat fields are just waiting for the combines to do what they’re meant to do.  When? When will this party get started? The harvesters are hoping soon…very soon. BUT, the weather needs to straighten out first. Today I learned that within the past seven days, the tornado sirens have gone off five times. It seems this part of the country can’t get a break from the rain. The lakes and reservoirs are maxed out and overflowing. The Red River is about as wide as it can possibly be. I heard a DJ on the radio talk about all this water. He mentioned that the flooding is bad but it will go away and the lakes will remain full of water. The ranchers and farmers who own cattle are in heaven.

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Taylor and I will start making our way back north tomorrow.  There was no rain here today but the forecast for the next two days shows 60% and 70% chance of rain. If things don’t straighten out soon, I have a feeling it could be a train wreck! If it’s not the wheat going down, it’ll be sprout damage (or both) and can you imagine the mud holes these combines are gonna find? Even though we SHOULD be out here with the rest of the harvesters, I have a feeling that we may have done the right thing this year by staying away from the Longhorn State. I will pray for my fellow “wheaties”. I have a feeling this is shaping up to be one of those faith building years.  One of these years, though, we’re going to have a typical harvest journey again (I hope)!

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gmo…labeling the harvest

by Nebraska Wheatie

photo 2 (8) - CopyBefore I begin, I want to add a disclaimer to the pictures I’m using. Although this is about GMO foods, I don’t have many pictures of fall harvest (corn & soybeans) so most involve wheat. There is no GMO wheat in our food system.

The 2014 midterm elections are now history. Thank goodness! I am so glad my landline phone is now quiet again and the signs that cluttered up the landscape have been removed…until next time.

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the past six weeks in a nutshell

by Nebraska Wheatie

It’s been six weeks.  Did you miss me?

The one true reason I started writing in the first place was to provide my family a written document of what has taken place at this time in history. I print my blogs from year to year so some day they will have something to look back on. I sort of blew it.

It actually feels a lot longer ago than just six weeks, to tell you the truth. We got home from Montana with the final load on September 23. And then it began…as though I had never left. The real world took over and the clock (and calendar) won out! My days have been full – too full! Could we just step back and jump into that harvest world again? No? You mean I really will have to wait for six more months to be back in my Cottage on Wheels?

What I’d really like to do is jump back into blogging beginning with today. Well, maybe a week ago would be better. However, my brain would never allow me to do that. You see, to begin now with the end-of-the-harvest story never really being told, well…that’s just not right. So, I’m going to step back to the point I left off and tell the story. I suppose, because sometimes I get long-winded, I may have to break this up for you. BUT, if I stop writing, I may never finish. So, I’ll keep writing and writing and when it becomes too long for one post, I will just continue it to the next day. Deal? Deal!

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and those montana sunsets!

by Nebraska Wheatie

photo 1 (6)Yesterday was the 12th day since the rains began and we finally got rolling again.

While we were still in our waiting-for-the-ground-to-dry period, Jim surprised me with a trip to the mountains. We left Friday afternoon and got back early evening on Tuesday. I’ll have more to share about that when I can get caught up on the piles sitting all around me. For now, though, the Beast is eating wheat again and that’s a good thing! Most everyone you visit with here will tell you they’ve never experienced anything quite like the rain we had. Jim’s been a bit worried about what the ground was going to be like – rightfully so – but we’re moving along quite well. Just to make sure we didn’t need it, we brought the tow rope to the field with us. And, so far so good!

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more breaks – the missouri kind (video)

by Nebraska Wheatie

Today (August 20) was a much cooler day. We began our day by putting the new part on the Beast and hoping the sprinkles would quit so we could get started again. We had lost nearly a whole day due to that breakdown and the miles we had to cover to get the new part. I believe it was nearly 10:00 by the time we were ready to rock ‘n roll again.

After you make repairs, you just hope there isn’t more damage from the piece that broke…especially when it’s part of the shaking system. We could only cross our fingers and hope nothing more would come from this. As it was, things ran as though the breakdown never happened.

IMG_4507Another harvester’s secret…Jim’s make-shift sink for the field. It works amazingly well! The sun warms it up so he has warm water at all times to wash his hands.

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