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Tag Archives: kids
It’s beginning to get a little tense around these parts
Oh my goodness! Patience and tempers in this camp are beginning to take a turn for the worse! We have been inside this trailer house entirely TOO LONG! The last time we set foot in a wheat field was June 2 – that’s 12 days ago.
Yesterday, the girls and I did escape for most of the day. We headed to Garden City to tour the FREE zoo and then did a little shopping – fun and grocery. We went to the zoo with friends (who are also harvesters… young harvesters). I mention young harvesters because that is an issue in our industry that really needs to be addressed. It happened that Allie (harvester’s wife) could escape with the boys for a little while so they met us there.The Garden City Zoo is by far my favorite zoo! Even better than the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo, as far as I’m concerned. I could go there every day and not get sick of being there. It’s beautiful! This is its 85th year of existence and has always been free admission.
This little tyke’s name is Brooks.
Boring, Boredom, Bored…Ugh!
I think the title of this posting will give you a pretty good view of what’s going on in camp today.
This is a part of the job that tends to wear on me. A day off (or even a couple of days) is always a welcome break. We’re on our 8th day of sitting – except for the two days of moving equipment to Deerfield. We worked pretty hard up to June 2nd which was the day we completed the last field in Arnett – just before the rain. So, I DID enjoy it… for a while.
Me and Callie
A Tough Start in KS
We are now residents of Kansas
The above cloud formation was something we saw nearly every night since Saturday.
Since we finished on Saturday, the past four days seem like they lasted FOREVER! The rain we received on Sunday morning continued on and off nearly every day. We were going to load up yesterday but it rained most of the day so we decided to wait one more day since there was no hurry to get to Deerfield.
Rain
This morning while I was lying In bed listening to the rain and thunder it made me think about how rain is either a good thing or a bad thing – depending on one’s circumstances.
For me, at that very moment, it was a good thing. It was a pull-the-covers-to-my-chin sort of feeling. I could lay there and not feel bad that we were getting more rain which would extend our stay in Shattuck because the wheat wasn’t getting cut. I knew that before we left the field last night – only ½ hour before the storm hit – the final acre had been cut, the trucks had been dumped, and the combine had most of the field dirt blown off. When I realized there was no reason to feel bad for the rain, I enjoyed it.
Arnett, OK
Today began with a trip to Fargo for fuel and then back to the farm where the combine and header spent the night. A quick fuel up, wiping of the windows and we were off on our 12 mile tour. The final acres we have to cut are on the outskirts of Arnett, OK. Once we arrived at the field, Jim thought the best thing to do was to put the header on the combine and test the wheat’s moisture.
They’re Heeeeeerrreee
We put in a pretty full day today. It was hot – no wind – and the wheat is plenty dry now. No more worries about green. We can just GO! The test weights remain in the 62 lb range. The field we’ve been working on for the past two days will probably average 50-55 bushels. Not too bad considering this area was suffering from drought this time last year!
Yes? No? Maybe? NO!
Nope…not today. We thought we might get to start later this afternoon but it just didn’t happen. And, it wasn’t because we weren’t ALL anxious to get started.
Jim and I are helping another harvester on this first job of ours. The other harvester is a longtime friend of ours (Delane and Travis Reimer) whom we’ve known for over 20 years. Our kids played together when we reached the Chappell, Nebraska area. There were always a whole slug of kids at that stop – Zeorian’s, Krumbach’s, Reimer’s, Trummel’s, Slattery’s and more. It was the stop the kids looked most forward to (except Jordan, MT) because there were friends to get together with. There were times when the kids were all together in one trailer and the old folks were in another. Rain days were most looked forward to in Chappell so we could gather together for a meal and friend time.
And Then…It Rained
We made it to Burkburnett!
As we were driving through Snyder, Oklahoma and further south into Frederick, I started feeling like we were the last ones to the party. I couldn’t believe the amount of wheat that had already been cut since we had been down just a week earlier. When we were through this area a week ago, we saw four combines running and wheat that looked like it should be cut. The harvesters began their exodus from all points of the Midwest with one thing in mind – cut wheat. And that’s what they did while we were still trying to get a truck repaired and a trailer house packed. Oh well…we did the best we could.
So, after all that work we did to get here, guess what it did last night – it rained. (Hurry up and wait – the harvester’s motto) Our first day of harvest 2012 and it starts as a rain day. Frustrating? Yes but, on the other hand, it gives us a day or two to take a deep breath, get settled and then gear up to the working stage. Those who busted their butts to get here and then had to start right away needed a break, too. It’s always nice to get to a place a day or two BEFORE having to start cutting – not the same day. So, if I’m responsible for their break – so be it. They needed one!