Tag Archives: new holland combines

Yes? No? Maybe? NO!

by nebraskawheatie

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.

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First Day “On The Road Again” – 2012

by nebraskawheatie

We got started just a little later than Jim thought we might today. Tieing up loose ends takes longer than you might think – especially when you know the two pieces going first won’t have a service truck full of tools following them. Jim does a good job of knowing what tools he “might” need on the road and usually, if we need something, he’s got it. It certainly would be nice to have the full inventory to choose from, should the need arise. But, that’s how we’ve done it most of our years of being on the road.

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IT’S TIME!

by nebraskawheatie

HAPPY MAY DAY!

We were supposed to have left yesterday for Texas with the first load. It decided to rain on Sunday (which was a surprise to all of us) and it set Jim behind a day. We  loaded the combine  (Jim’s truck) and  the header (my truck) late this afternoon. If things go accordingly, we will be on the road again tomorrow.

I’m having mixed emotions about this, though. We’ll be leaving without Taylor and Callie (and Jamie, Curt & Jenna). I’ve sort of come to the conclusion that when all the kids are no longer going with us, this could be a tough time of year – worse than it is already. Harvest just isn’t quite the same without the girls! I’ve never had an issue with leaving before because ALL of what’s important with home has been with us. Now, it’s getting weird 🙂 At least I have the end of May to look forward to – that’s when T & C will be joining us.

The wheat’s changing fast. I’m hoping that once we get home again we won’t have to turn right around and head back.  My feelings are that it will be CHAOS when we get back!

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OH HAPPY DAY!

by nebraskawheatie

The title of this post will only mean something to Jenna and the rest of my family. 🙂 However, we certainly HAVE celebrated a couple very happy days recently. I will attempt to keep the number of words to a minimum because I’m sure I could get long-winded. The number of pictures I’d l ike to share will make this posting long enough.

On Saturday, April 21, Taylor went to her very first prom.

img_2866She had ordered her dress online – in plenty of time –  on Thanksgiving. When she received it, it was way too big. I couldn’t send it back to the “store” as it was created in China. So, the next thing we had to do was take it in. It was a job that seemed rather overwhelming to me but I was willing to accept the challenge. I had questions, though, how to make it happen and called upon a neighbor who had done dresses like this in the past for advice. Taylor and I went to Judeen’s house for help. Judeen, bless her heart, just took over the job. I think she knew it was going to be something I really didn’t want to tackle! And, I’m so thankful for her and what she did. You would never have known that dress was taken apart and re-sewn. THANK YOU, JUDEEN – you are a miracle worker!

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A Random Re-post

by nebraskawheatie

I’m in dire need of something that reminds me of summer. Eastern Nebraska has had a WONDERFUL winter as far as severity. Maybe a little too nice. We’re in need of some moisture and it sounds like it may be on the way starting Friday. For now, though, I’m really missing summer and the harvest. I started this blog late in the 2011 harvest season so I don’t have a lot to choose from.  I know I have fun reliving the crazy days of harvest:  Click here to read Finished with Winter Wheat in Jordan

Are you sure it’s January 5?

by nebraskawheatie

Ok, so something is definitely up with the weather in Eastern Nebraska this year! I’m not saying anything bad about it whatsoever. Today’s record high is 62 degrees. We are looking at breaking that record. What this does do is mess with my day. When temps this nice happen, I feel like I should be finding SOMETHING to do outside. Maybe I should take down the Christmas lights. If Jordan were still with us, she’d have fun playing catch or chasing a frisbee. I’ve even recently read somewhere that someone local saw a snake in their yard. This is NOT typical weather but I’m loving it. Usually, though, when it’s this nice outside, it generally means something nasty is right behind it. I don’t think that’s the case this time. The weather man just called for 50 tomorrow and mid 40’s for the weekend.

I’m still trying to get through my huge stack of “things to do” because I chose to ignore it over the holidays. I’m paying for it now.  I felt like I made progress yesterday and need to stay on track to be able to say the same today. But now…we’ve got a heat wave calling me to come outside. Spring fever – which leads to thoughts of this:

And this:

An opportunity to share our way of life.

by nebraskawheatie

A couple of years ago, Conrad Weaver with ConjoStudios contacted me regarding his dream of producing a documentary about the wheat harvest and the custom harvester. I LOVED the idea but “bucked” the idea of being a part of it. Mostly, because Jenna was already involved as a correspondent with the High Plains Journal and I was a member of the  U.S. Custom Harvesters board of directors. I was willing to give Conrad ideas and help him in any way I could but wasn’t comfortable with being in front of a camera. I feel EVERYONE has a story and ours isn’t any more unique than the next guy (or gal). I tried conveying this to Conrad and yet he continued saying he wanted our family involved.  I still wrestle with the fact that my involvement with USCHI and HPJ has been more than enough exposure for me and for my family and it’s someone else’s turn to share. However, last summer, we agreed to allow Conrad and his family to visit us on the road and film the harvest as it was happening at that time. Since then, Conrad has put together a “trailer” for the Wheat Harvest Movie – which I am proud to say I am a part of. It is my desire that every American know exactly where their food comes from (it’s not from the grocery store) and every step it takes to get it there. I wonder if most people realize that it takes nearly a year for that first load of wheat to be put in the bin of a combine? I wonder if they realize the process it takes from the beginning with the farmer preparing the land to planting and caring to the end with the harvest and the harvester? My hope is this documentary will educate and stir up an emotion within all who watch it. Everyone needs to understand just how precious this resource (agriculture) is to our country and to our people before it’s too late.

So, because of what I’m seeing this documentary evolving into, I can say I am proud of being involved and hope to do whatever it takes to make Conrad’s dream come true. I realize this 15 minutes of fame could quite possibly be my one and only time to vocally speak out about the lifestyle I love so very much! One day when I’m really old (and it’ll come way too soon), I’ll be able to say I tried rather than wishing I had tried! As I mentioned above, EVERYONE has a story – ours is no more unique than yours. Tell your story! Tell it loud so everyone can hear and be proud of that story! We’re here for a purpose. Discover what that purpose is and run with it!

And I wonder why it takes me so long to get back in the groove!

by nebraskawheatie

The week’s recap:

“Home, home” on Saturday night.

Spent the entire day on Sunday reclaiming my house from the spiders and vacuuming up dead bugs.

Monday a.m., I’m on the school bus picking up kids and taking them to school. The afternoon was spent washing the outside of the trailer house. It was FILTHY from the road grime that had collected all summer. Thank goodness it was early enough in the “getting home” process that I was able to talk Jim into helping me. I’ve done that job by myself way too many times and appreciate the help when he can give it! Later that afternoon, I was back in the bus delivering kids to their homes. And the rest of the day was finishing the chore of washing the trailer house.

Tuesday was spent getting book work completed and important issues taken care of. Geesh…it’s amazing how much time that takes! You should have seen the box of mail I had to go through. Most of it was garbage and it wasn’t able to clutter the kitchen table very long. Late Tuesday afternoon, I headed to Elmwood to watch Callie play volleyball. She’s a pretty doggone good little player and didn’t even get to participate in any of the summer “camps”. It’s really too bad the coaches put such an emphasis on the summer time participation! Our high school coach told me when Jenna was in high school that her playing time would depend on her summer time. “Well”, I said, “She’s not going to be able to participate because she’ll be with us NOT because she doesn’t want to be there”. He stuck to his statement. However, Jenna LOVED the sport and continued to work hard even though she didn’t get to play very often. She stuck with it her entire high school career. By the time she was a senior, though, the parents from the stands were yelling, “put Jenna in”. I was so proud of her for not quitting – I probably would have! I hope it’s not like that for Callie, but it probably will be. Do these coaches REALLY think every kid on their team is going to go on to college as recruits??? Let the kids play and have fun!

We got up bright and early on Wednesday morning and loaded in Mark’s truck. Everyone went except Candi (she got sick the night before), Taylor and Callie. We spent the entire day walking the Husker Harvest Days’ grounds and it literally takes ALL DAY! Saw some familiar faces and enjoyed being together. Actually, it seemed like we were on the phone most of the day trying to find Jim (he likes to talk). However, they did have to look for me once. I stopped to chat with someone, turned around and everyone was gone. Then, I went the wrong way looking for them and ended up getting farther away. If you haven’t been, you should go! There’s something for everyone. That evening, we were invited to a supper put on by New Holland. It happened to be in the same place our USCHI convention was last March and will be again next March. It was fun standing in the same place we had previously been in and remembering the good times. “Chances R” (York, NE restaurant) served the food and it was OUTSTANDING!! Thank you New Holland!

Thursday was spent doing more paperwork items in the morning and a few things did get put away. Then, it was back on the bus driving the cross country team to an event. I got home shortly after 9:00 last night.  Another wasted day!

Jim left early this a.m. to head from some town on the Iowa/Illinois border to pick up a corn head. Maybe I can get something started with the unpacking process today – or at least get our bed made in the house. It’s chilly today so I won’t have to worry about sweating too much 🙂

Pictures are from Husker Harvest Days:

Entering the grounds.

 

Showing off their New Holland clothing. Jamie had on a shirt like Jenna’s but was too cold to show it off.

Jenna meeting a couple of the guys she had interviews with this summer for The High Plains Journal.

I took this picture for Callie. The prior owner of this bus was Justin Bieber.

One more picture of the grounds before we left.

Before leaving Grand Island, Mark had to make a quick visit to the New Holland Support truck.

Jenna found a picture of our combine hanging up inside the truck.

The final days of 2011 wheat harvest

by nebraskawheatie

It seems so weird to be sitting at my kitchen table typing this note!

Everyone asks me if it’s good to be home and I have to just flat out tell them that’s it’s good but it’s very overwhelming. They have no idea just how much work is involved with coming home. Preparing in the spring is hard but just so different. You have the anticipation of being on the road and involved with the harvest and all that goes with it. The stress of preparing the house to be locked up and the packing of the trailer house is nothing compared to coming home.

I find myself sort of walking in circles, trying to figure out what to do first. If I don’t mentally set a goal, I most likely will not get it accomplished because everywhere I look, I see work. I did get my house vacuumed and the dead bugs are now in the belly of the vacuum cleaner. Jim and I took advantage of the 90 degree weather yesterday and were able to get the outside of the trailer house cleaned of the road dirt and grime that had collected all summer. That’s a big job and one that I’m glad I can mark off my list of to do’s!

Tomorrow, I’m escaping the mess that looks at me every morning and we’re going to Husker Harvest Days with Jim, Mark, Candi, Jamie, Curt, and Jenna. The chaos will have to wait another day! Not only do I have the deluge of work continuing to pull me down, I have to try to keep up with the outside activities. Yesterday, I substituted for the morning and afternoon bus route. This afternoon, I got to go watch Callie play volleyball. I love to watch the girls participate so it was a welcome break to have to walk away from everything at 4:00. The next goal I have set is to get the trailer house unpacked. I’ll begin that chore on Thursday. It looks like colder and wetter weather is headed for us beginning tomorrow. The numerous steps and times of going between the house and the trailer house will be a little less sweaty with the cooler weather.

So a brief recall of the final days of the 2011 wheat harvest goes a little like this: As you’ll recall, we spent the night in the Garfield Motel. I had to get up the next morning for a 5:00 a.m. conference call. While I was involved with the call, Jim got up and headed for Fellman’s for “story time” with the locals. When he returned, we decided that we really needed to take a couple of hours and go visit some very dear friends before we left the country. So we did! It was well after noon by the time we got back to Jordan. One final meal at Rose’s cafe and we were headed for Miles City.  Since we got such a late start, we ended up spending the night in the truck lot of the station in Alzada, MT.

Have you ever tried sleeping on a twin size bed with another person? Thank goodness I’m used to sleeping on the side of the bed that puts me up against the wall of the truck sleeper! I’m afraid if “my side” of the bed was on the other side of the bed, I’d be falling out all night long! This first night was fairly chilly and the heavy blanket felt pretty darn good by morning!

The second full day on the road was pretty darn full of driving! We had to go a little different route than normal because of so many bridges being worked on in South Dakota. As we started coming into the town of Faith, SD, another harvest crew got ahead of us. I was so excited. Silly, I know, but here we go…it’s a part of the harvest world I was about to leave. It just gave me a good feeling being behind the combines and their trailers. We made a stop at 1880 Town and ate lunch in the Dining Car Cafe. It’s a real live dining car from a passenger train and a different era. It was something I’d never seen and loved being inside something that once was an important aspect of past travel.  We ate lunch, walked around a little and left an hour later than when we stopped. The second night on the road was spent in the Valentine truck stop, again.

Before we parked for the night, Jim pulled quite a ways away from the bar that had just a week prior been the reason we didn’t get a very good nights sleep. I was glad that he’d remembered and pulled as far away from there as he could. What we didn’t expect was a bull hauler full of cattle pull up right next to us. We got to listen to a truck load of stomping cattle all night. I felt sorry for the cattle, as I laid there listening to them, because they couldn’t relax. I bet they were glad when their trip was done!

We made it back to the farmer’s yard almost exactly the same time we had the week prior. This time, though, they were home and wanted to visit about the summer and how it played out for us. We made it “home home” again about 7:00. Mark and Candi had just pulled in from Park River, ND. They had driven all day and made it home just about the same time as we did. They loaded up the girls and we went to Runza for supper together. We’re all back home! And…one of these days, everything will be back to normal and the 2011 wheat harvest will feel like it only happened in pictures. We’ll be anxiously counting down our yearly events until it’s time to head south once again!

The combine’s loaded and waiting for the window cover to be added.

 That job’s done!

 The top picture was taken in Ed’s yard just before we left. The tractor shows the farmer’s determination and hope in a crop for next summer!

Goodbye Square Butte and Montana wheat fields. Sure hope to see you next year!

Crossing the Mussellshell River into Garfield County.

Sand Springs, MT. In 1983, we stayed here while cutting for Charlie Murnion.

The last picture taken in Jordan just before heading for Miles City.

The lot we spent the first night on the road in Alazada, MT. The town of Alzada is on the right.

Following another harvester into the town of Faith, SD.

Lunch and a break near 1880 Town along the South Dakota interstate between Phillip and Murdo.

Lunch in the Dining Car Cafe.

I don’t know a lot about the sunflower crop except there’s quite a few more acres seen than there used to be. Something that I find interesting is the sunflower head will actually follow the sun from east to west. Every sunflower head I saw must have completed it’s life cycle with the head facing east. Every field I saw, they had completed their final sun worship at exactly the same time. Another interesting tidbit I’ve often thought about when seeing the corn fields is just how identical the height of the plants are and that the ears are located exactly the same spot of the plant throughout the entire field. And somebody wants to try to tell me there is no God?

The final night of being on the road was spent at the truck stop in Valentine, NE.

The new Nebraska windmills.

The Platte River just south of Schuyler, NE.

2011 Summer Wheat Harvest…COMPLETE!

by nebraskawheatie

Just a brief note tonight with more story coming tomorrow. We made it back “home, home” about 5:00 this evening. So much to do and I haven’t a clue where to start! While you’re waiting for the details of the final trip home, please sit back and watch Callie sing her version of Taylor Swift’s “Story of Us”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYc9HqzjUAI&feature=email&email=comment_received