How did you get into cattle business?

[gman4691]

Well, I guess it started before I was born. My grandfather (on Dad's side) bought 110 acres a few miles east of Nacogdoches, Texas in 1958. He and Dad fixed it up by repairing/rebuilding perimeter and cross fencing. For my whole life, there have always been anywhere from 20 to 40 cows on the place. We've never done the AI thing or bred pure bred cattle. Growing up, we helped Dad with pretty much every aspect from hauling hay to working cattle (vaccinations, castrations, etc.) to mowing pastures to fixing fences, etc. I was pretty much a labor hand - Dad told me what he needed done and we or sometimes just I, would get it done with whatever we had to work with. For Ag, as a freshman and sophmore in high school I fed out one steer one year and two the next - not halter broken...just fed throughout the school year and sold at the auction barn. Started college when I was 24 - Stephen F. Austin State University, 1988-1993 graduated with a BS in Geology and a Minor in Applied Statistics (so good luck selling me on the whole man-made climate change thing). Got married in 1994 and worked 8-1/2 years as a hydrogeologist/Statistician for an environmental consulting company then went to work for Texas State Parks for the past 20 years (12+ years as State Park Police Officer & about 15 years as a park manager - those positions overlap a bit if you are wondering about the math). Lived too far away to get back out there on a regular basis and as Dad got older, he couldn't do what he used to do so some things fell into a bit of disrepair. Moved a little closer in 2009 and tried to get over there more often. When we would go to get the cows up for working, it was frustrating. Some had become a bit wild and with many of the fences being in bad shape, they were almost impossible to round up. Started using my days off to at least patch some of the fencing so rounding them up would be a little easier...quite a few were still wild. Dad sold me my grandfather's old house (right next door to him) and the wife and I started to do an add-on and remodel. When we starting tearing into it, we found that the frame was not in the best condition so after talking to the contractor we decided to just tear it down - slab, septic tanks, and all - and build a new house. We've been in it for about 2 years. That puts me on the place although I have a one hour commute one way to work five days a week. But I have been able to do some long overdue work on the place over the last several years. September 2021 through May 2022 was pretty rough. Dad couldn't even get out of the bed. So Mom and I took care of him until the end. Since then, she has pretty much turned over the operation to me although it is in both our names - I still consider it her property - don't know why - habit, I suppose. We have made some decisions on needed infrastructure jobs each year to 1) keep the tax man at bay; and 2) get the place back in shape. In the meantime, I've been tending to the cows, pastures, and fences. Since culling out the pyscho cows and a couple of non-producers (barren, old, etc.) we now have a brangus bull, 15 breeding age cows, 5 heifers (all are mostly brangus), about 20 acres of hay pasture (coastal bermuda), a 30-acre pasture currently undergoing "rehab" which will soon be another hay pasture (maybe grazing every other year), fences still need brush clearing in some spots but I've made good progress there, an old caved in barn that is on the list for next year (clean off footprint - more brush - and build a new one), two ponds, water line (to be replaced next year) from the house to four water troughs that will need to be reset, I do have the electrical service for the old barn down there - just need to build a new barn, a 1998 John Deere 5520 tractor with various attachments (front and rear), and good cattle working facilities. Brush and fencing is an ongoing project but with all the work I've been doing, they are pretty much serviceable as is. So I guess my involvement has been deepest over the past few years but I've been involved in it to some degree for as long as I can remember. I think my folks moved out there when I was 1 or 2 years old. The bull and the cows just run together year 'round. Calving is pretty much exclusively in the spring. When all of the calves have dropped, my neighbor and I will get them all up for vaccination, castration, worming - and Ralgro for all that will be sold later in the year. Try to get chicken litter spread early in the spring and spray for weeds somewhere around May. We have a good guy who bales our hay pastures usually twice per year - of course, the past two summers haven't been very cooperative - didn't bale anything this year until November (friggin' November!). Hopefully, this coming year will be better and may even get to bale the 30-acres on the back side of the place (fingers crossed). Planning on running new water line next year and re-setting the big concrete water troughs. The operation will probably never be big enough to make a living at it but it does provide a good supplement to our income. Met some folks on an online forum called "Cattle Today" - perhaps you've heard of it - lol. A good place to draw from the experience of others and beats the crap out of facebook. Good to know y'all even if it is just in the virtual world for now. (Although, I have spoken to Mr. Allison by phone and email on things unrelated to cattle.)

It's been, and remains, a ton of work but I would rather be doing that than managing the park - can't stop thinking about the projects that need doing. I'm a logistics kind of thinker so the priorities have already been established - now to just get it all done - it's a big job of "catch-up". I prefer, and will do much of it myself but will need to hire some of it out (water lines, dirt work, & possibly building a barn) - I never seem to get tired of doing this kind of stuff. It's good to be able to look back at the end of the day and see what's been accomplished. Looking for an opportunity to retire - I've been eligible for 4 years...just unable. Then it will be "Katie bar the door!" on the old family farm. I can see what I can do in just a day's time...having 6 days a week, I could get most everything done I see that needs to be done in less than a year. As it stands now, I'll just have to be satisfied with nibbling away at it. Priority 1 at the moment is finishing mowing that back pasture - and that's non-negotiable.

I guess I'm old school in that I feel a deep connection to that old place and the land it sits on. Played in them creeks and woods and fished in them ponds more times than I can count. I told the wife when we built that house, it would be the last house I live in...I have neither the intention nor inclination to leave...it's home to me. I'll look after my Mom, the missus, and the place until I am no longer able. Once I'm gone, I told the missus she can do whatever she wishes with the place but as long as I'm drawing a breath, I'll be out there working on something - I'm totally incapable of sitting still. Kids are grown and gone so that place out there is now my "project". Probably mis-stated something or missed something in all of this but that's what comes to mind right off the bat.

 

[TCRanch]

Great story, @gman4691!

 

[gman4691]

Great story, @gman4691!

Kind of like a reader's digest condensed version...lol...thanks & Merry Christmas

 

[gman4691]

Well, I guess it started before I was born. My grandfather (on Dad's side) bought 110 acres a few miles east of Nacogdoches, Texas in 1958. He and Dad fixed it up by repairing/rebuilding perimeter and cross fencing. For my whole life, there have always been anywhere from 20 to 40 cows on the place. We've never done the AI thing or bred pure bred cattle. Growing up, we helped Dad with pretty much every aspect from hauling hay to working cattle (vaccinations, castrations, etc.) to mowing pastures to fixing fences, etc. I was pretty much a labor hand - Dad told me what he needed done and we or sometimes just I, would get it done with whatever we had to work with. For Ag, as a freshman and sophmore in high school I fed out one steer one year and two the next - not halter broken...just fed throughout the school year and sold at the auction barn. Started college when I was 24 - Stephen F. Austin State University, 1988-1993 graduated with a BS in Geology and a Minor in Applied Statistics (so good luck selling me on the whole man-made climate change thing). Got married in 1994 and worked 8-1/2 years as a hydrogeologist/Statistician for an environmental consulting company then went to work for Texas State Parks for the past 20 years (12+ years as State Park Police Officer & about 15 years as a park manager - those positions overlap a bit if you are wondering about the math). Lived too far away to get back out there on a regular basis and as Dad got older, he couldn't do what he used to do so some things fell into a bit of disrepair. Moved a little closer in 2009 and tried to get over there more often. When we would go to get the cows up for working, it was frustrating. Some had become a bit wild and with many of the fences being in bad shape, they were almost impossible to round up. Started using my days off to at least patch some of the fencing so rounding them up would be a little easier...quite a few were still wild. Dad sold me my grandfather's old house (right next door to him) and the wife and I started to do an add-on and remodel. When we starting tearing into it, we found that the frame was not in the best condition so after talking to the contractor we decided to just tear it down - slab, septic tanks, and all - and build a new house. We've been in it for about 2 years. That puts me on the place although I have a one hour commute one way to work five days a week. But I have been able to do some long overdue work on the place over the last several years. September 2021 through May 2022 was pretty rough. Dad couldn't even get out of the bed. So Mom and I took care of him until the end. Since then, she has pretty much turned over the operation to me although it is in both our names - I still consider it her property - don't know why - habit, I suppose. We have made some decisions on needed infrastructure jobs each year to 1) keep the tax man at bay; and 2) get the place back in shape. In the meantime, I've been tending to the cows, pastures, and fences. Since culling out the pyscho cows and a couple of non-producers (barren, old, etc.) we now have a brangus bull, 15 breeding age cows, 5 heifers (all are mostly brangus), about 20 acres of hay pasture (coastal bermuda), a 30-acre pasture currently undergoing "rehab" which will soon be another hay pasture (maybe grazing every other year), fences still need brush clearing in some spots but I've made good progress there, an old caved in barn that is on the list for next year (clean off footprint - more brush - and build a new one), two ponds, water line (to be replaced next year) from the house to four water troughs that will need to be reset, I do have the electrical service for the old barn down there - just need to build a new barn, a 1998 John Deere 5520 tractor with various attachments (front and rear), and good cattle working facilities. Brush and fencing is an ongoing project but with all the work I've been doing, they are pretty much serviceable as is. So I guess my involvement has been deepest over the past few years but I've been involved in it to some degree for as long as I can remember. I think my folks moved out there when I was 1 or 2 years old. The bull and the cows just run together year 'round. Calving is pretty much exclusively in the spring. When all of the calves have dropped, my neighbor and I will get them all up for vaccination, castration, worming - and Ralgro for all that will be sold later in the year. Try to get chicken litter spread early in the spring and spray for weeds somewhere around May. We have a good guy who bales our hay pastures usually twice per year - of course, the past two summers haven't been very cooperative - didn't bale anything this year until November (friggin' November!). Hopefully, this coming year will be better and may even get to bale the 30-acres on the back side of the place (fingers crossed). Planning on running new water line next year and re-setting the big concrete water troughs. The operation will probably never be big enough to make a living at it but it does provide a good supplement to our income. Met some folks on an online forum called "Cattle Today" - perhaps you've heard of it - lol. A good place to draw from the experience of others and beats the crap out of facebook. Good to know y'all even if it is just in the virtual world for now. (Although, I have spoken to Mr. Allison by phone and email on things unrelated to cattle.)

It's been, and remains, a ton of work but I would rather be doing that than managing the park - can't stop thinking about the projects that need doing. I'm a logistics kind of thinker so the priorities have already been established - now to just get it all done - it's a big job of "catch-up". I prefer, and will do much of it myself but will need to hire some of it out (water lines, dirt work, & possibly building a barn) - I never seem to get tired of doing this kind of stuff. It's good to be able to look back at the end of the day and see what's been accomplished. Looking for an opportunity to retire - I've been eligible for 4 years...just unable. Then it will be "Katie bar the door!" on the old family farm. I can see what I can do in just a day's time...having 6 days a week, I could get most everything done I see that needs to be done in less than a year. As it stands now, I'll just have to be satisfied with nibbling away at it. Priority 1 at the moment is finishing mowing that back pasture - and that's non-negotiable.

I guess I'm old school in that I feel a deep connection to that old place and the land it sits on. Played in them creeks and woods and fished in them ponds more times than I can count. I told the wife when we built that house, it would be the last house I live in...I have neither the intention nor inclination to leave...it's home to me. I'll look after my Mom, the missus, and the place until I am no longer able. Once I'm gone, I told the missus she can do whatever she wishes with the place but as long as I'm drawing a breath, I'll be out there working on something - I'm totally incapable of sitting still. Kids are grown and gone so that place out there is now my "project". Probably mis-stated something or missed something in all of this but that's what comes to mind right off the bat.

Correction: 16 calving age cows

Update: managed to get tomorrow and the next day off...will give that new bush hog a good workout on that back pasture...need to get that done before it gets really cold (open-cab tractor and I don't get along well with the cold)...gonna give her H-E-double toothpicks the next couple of days)

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Correction: 16 calving age cows

Update: managed to get tomorrow and the next day off...will give that new bush hog a good workout on that back pasture...need to get that done before it gets really cold (open-cab tractor and I don't get along well with the cold)...gonna give her H-E-double toothpicks the next couple of days)

COLD!!! You're in TEXAS!! Come visit me. LOL

 

[wbvs58]

Well, I guess it started before I was born. My grandfather (on Dad's side) bought 110 acres a few miles east of Nacogdoches, Texas in 1958. He and Dad fixed it up by repairing/rebuilding perimeter and cross fencing. For my whole life, there have always been anywhere from 20 to 40 cows on the place. We've never done the AI thing or bred pure bred cattle. Growing up, we helped Dad with pretty much every aspect from hauling hay to working cattle (vaccinations, castrations, etc.) to mowing pastures to fixing fences, etc. I was pretty much a labor hand - Dad told me what he needed done and we or sometimes just I, would get it done with whatever we had to work with. For Ag, as a freshman and sophmore in high school I fed out one steer one year and two the next - not halter broken...just fed throughout the school year and sold at the auction barn. Started college when I was 24 - Stephen F. Austin State University, 1988-1993 graduated with a BS in Geology and a Minor in Applied Statistics (so good luck selling me on the whole man-made climate change thing). Got married in 1994 and worked 8-1/2 years as a hydrogeologist/Statistician for an environmental consulting company then went to work for Texas State Parks for the past 20 years (12+ years as State Park Police Officer & about 15 years as a park manager - those positions overlap a bit if you are wondering about the math). Lived too far away to get back out there on a regular basis and as Dad got older, he couldn't do what he used to do so some things fell into a bit of disrepair. Moved a little closer in 2009 and tried to get over there more often. When we would go to get the cows up for working, it was frustrating. Some had become a bit wild and with many of the fences being in bad shape, they were almost impossible to round up. Started using my days off to at least patch some of the fencing so rounding them up would be a little easier...quite a few were still wild. Dad sold me my grandfather's old house (right next door to him) and the wife and I started to do an add-on and remodel. When we starting tearing into it, we found that the frame was not in the best condition so after talking to the contractor we decided to just tear it down - slab, septic tanks, and all - and build a new house. We've been in it for about 2 years. That puts me on the place although I have a one hour commute one way to work five days a week. But I have been able to do some long overdue work on the place over the last several years. September 2021 through May 2022 was pretty rough. Dad couldn't even get out of the bed. So Mom and I took care of him until the end. Since then, she has pretty much turned over the operation to me although it is in both our names - I still consider it her property - don't know why - habit, I suppose. We have made some decisions on needed infrastructure jobs each year to 1) keep the tax man at bay; and 2) get the place back in shape. In the meantime, I've been tending to the cows, pastures, and fences. Since culling out the pyscho cows and a couple of non-producers (barren, old, etc.) we now have a brangus bull, 15 breeding age cows, 5 heifers (all are mostly brangus), about 20 acres of hay pasture (coastal bermuda), a 30-acre pasture currently undergoing "rehab" which will soon be another hay pasture (maybe grazing every other year), fences still need brush clearing in some spots but I've made good progress there, an old caved in barn that is on the list for next year (clean off footprint - more brush - and build a new one), two ponds, water line (to be replaced next year) from the house to four water troughs that will need to be reset, I do have the electrical service for the old barn down there - just need to build a new barn, a 1998 John Deere 5520 tractor with various attachments (front and rear), and good cattle working facilities. Brush and fencing is an ongoing project but with all the work I've been doing, they are pretty much serviceable as is. So I guess my involvement has been deepest over the past few years but I've been involved in it to some degree for as long as I can remember. I think my folks moved out there when I was 1 or 2 years old. The bull and the cows just run together year 'round. Calving is pretty much exclusively in the spring. When all of the calves have dropped, my neighbor and I will get them all up for vaccination, castration, worming - and Ralgro for all that will be sold later in the year. Try to get chicken litter spread early in the spring and spray for weeds somewhere around May. We have a good guy who bales our hay pastures usually twice per year - of course, the past two summers haven't been very cooperative - didn't bale anything this year until November (friggin' November!). Hopefully, this coming year will be better and may even get to bale the 30-acres on the back side of the place (fingers crossed). Planning on running new water line next year and re-setting the big concrete water troughs. The operation will probably never be big enough to make a living at it but it does provide a good supplement to our income. Met some folks on an online forum called "Cattle Today" - perhaps you've heard of it - lol. A good place to draw from the experience of others and beats the crap out of facebook. Good to know y'all even if it is just in the virtual world for now. (Although, I have spoken to Mr. Allison by phone and email on things unrelated to cattle.)

It's been, and remains, a ton of work but I would rather be doing that than managing the park - can't stop thinking about the projects that need doing. I'm a logistics kind of thinker so the priorities have already been established - now to just get it all done - it's a big job of "catch-up". I prefer, and will do much of it myself but will need to hire some of it out (water lines, dirt work, & possibly building a barn) - I never seem to get tired of doing this kind of stuff. It's good to be able to look back at the end of the day and see what's been accomplished. Looking for an opportunity to retire - I've been eligible for 4 years...just unable. Then it will be "Katie bar the door!" on the old family farm. I can see what I can do in just a day's time...having 6 days a week, I could get most everything done I see that needs to be done in less than a year. As it stands now, I'll just have to be satisfied with nibbling away at it. Priority 1 at the moment is finishing mowing that back pasture - and that's non-negotiable.

I guess I'm old school in that I feel a deep connection to that old place and the land it sits on. Played in them creeks and woods and fished in them ponds more times than I can count. I told the wife when we built that house, it would be the last house I live in...I have neither the intention nor inclination to leave...it's home to me. I'll look after my Mom, the missus, and the place until I am no longer able. Once I'm gone, I told the missus she can do whatever she wishes with the place but as long as I'm drawing a breath, I'll be out there working on something - I'm totally incapable of sitting still. Kids are grown and gone so that place out there is now my "project". Probably mis-stated something or missed something in all of this but that's what comes to mind right off the bat.

I'd be interested to hear what your take on the climatic situation is with your science background.

Ken

 

[gman4691]

I'd be interested to hear what your take on the climatic situation is with your science background.

Ken

Where to begin? The earth's climate has been much warmer and much cooler than anything mankind has ever experienced as indicated by ice cores, ocean sediment, coral reefs, etc. That gives a natural maximum and a natural minimum inasmuch as we know currently. In the history of humans on earth, the climate has never even approached either. The warmest period we know of would have been around 250 million years ago...the second warmest would have been about 40-60 million years ago when most of the North American continent was under sea water. Additionally, since 1979 temperature measurements of the lower troposphere have been made by Tiros-N satellites using microwave radiometry (Microwave Sounding Units - MSU). These are the only precision measurements of global temperature available for direct comparison with temperature predictions from General Circulation Models (GCMs). Unlike ground monitoring stations, the satellites cover the whole earth, measuring and averaging the temperature of the lower troposphere. This is the same region modelled by the GCMs. The accuracy of the radiometer measurements is 0.1 °C, which is considerably better than the accuracy of thermometer measurements made on the surface of the earth. And the satellites are not influenced by activity at the earth's surface, the urban heat island effect, for example. The satellite (MSU) temperature data set is the only one that is truly global, highly accurate, and uses a completely homogeneous measurement over the entire planet. It also measures the part of the lower atmosphere that, according to the climate models, should be experiencing the greatest warming due to the allegedly enhanced greenhouse effect. But satellite data since 1979 show no significant warming trend.

I could go into detail on major problems with the predictive algorithms used by the IPCC...if you are having trouble sleeping. In short, the assumptions made by the principle components algorithms are just that - assumptions...a number of very significant factors are left out from the get-go (e.g. cosmic radiation, sun spots, etc.). The largest and most erroneous problem is that CO2 is ASSUMED to be the primary driver of the global climate and that just isn't the case (they are getting the cart before the horse, as it were). The infamous hockey stick graph has been thoroughly disproven as it is simply an artifact of very questionable statistical methodology. If I turned in something like that to my stats professors, they would have either laughed at me and told me to do it again or just given me an "F". Issues with data selection (cherry-picking) and proxies (esp. tree ring data) used in the IPCC's GCMs remain problematic as does the "peer review" process at the IPCC. The Summaries for Policy Makers (which is what the public, politicians, and press mostly see) are constructed through an almost totally political process having very little to do with science and contain only the most dire predictions. One delegate out of over 500 (not a scientist) from one country can say they want a sentence removed from the SPM and it will be removed without any scientific discussion or justification at all. The actual assesment reports turned out do have some good climate science in them but they, too, are subject to questionable peer reviews...making substantive changes subsequent to the peer review process without having it "re-reviewed" (that's a huge no-no in scientific research - read academic malpractice), for instance - as seen in the First Assessment Report completed in 1990 if I'm remember correctly. The whole thing is a political and financial football but catastrophic anthropogenic climate change is not supported by the data or the science. The "97% consensus" that gets tossed around so much has been shown to be nothing of the sort as demonstrated by Dr. David Legates when he reviewed John Cook's 2011 study cited by most people who throw the 97% number out there (I doubt that most of them even know where it comes from - if they did, they wouldn't throw it out there quite so casually). I find the whole thing frustrating because it puts us nerds in a bad light. The planet is just fine and will continue to go through its cycles as it always has...glaciers have retreated and advanced and oceans have transgressed and regressed for a few billion years and will continue to do so. A better use of time, effort, energy, and money would be working on cleaner water, air, and soil. Or cleaning up watersheds...a real difference can be made there that matters. The doomsday stuff has gotten old and tiresome. Incidentally, a true 97% number was published in the journal "Nature - Climate Change" where 117 climate predictions made since 1970 were studied...the study found that 97.4% of those predictions never materialized. <- true story that gave me a bit of a chuckle.

I've gone on longer than I intended but this has been of interest to me since college (had my "Save the Planet" t-shirt and wore it proudly) and I have looked over more research on both sides of the issue than I care to remember. When the UN and government money got involved, the whole thing went down the toilet - scientifically speaking - as is commonly the case...unfortunately. Fear not...in the words of Mother Julian of Norwich, ""All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well".

 

[gman4691]

COLD!!! You're in TEXAS!! Come visit me. LOL

not cold here yet...that's why I want to get to work...lol...try to beat the cold...think I'll stay down here but you have a Merry Christmas up there...no matter how cold it may be. If you want some contrast, come see me when I'm digging post holes down here in August...lol!

 

[wbvs58]

Where to begin? The earth's climate has been much warmer and much cooler than anything mankind has ever experienced as indicated by ice cores, ocean sediment, coral reefs, etc. That gives a natural maximum and a natural minimum inasmuch as we know currently. In the history of humans on earth, the climate has never even approached either. The warmest period we know of would have been around 250 million years ago...the second warmest would have been about 40-60 million years ago when most of the North American continent was under sea water. Additionally, since 1979 temperature measurements of the lower troposphere have been made by Tiros-N satellites using microwave radiometry (Microwave Sounding Units - MSU). These are the only precision measurements of global temperature available for direct comparison with temperature predictions from General Circulation Models (GCMs). Unlike ground monitoring stations, the satellites cover the whole earth, measuring and averaging the temperature of the lower troposphere. This is the same region modelled by the GCMs. The accuracy of the radiometer measurements is 0.1 °C, which is considerably better than the accuracy of thermometer measurements made on the surface of the earth. And the satellites are not influenced by activity at the earth's surface, the urban heat island effect, for example. The satellite (MSU) temperature data set is the only one that is truly global, highly accurate, and uses a completely homogeneous measurement over the entire planet. It also measures the part of the lower atmosphere that, according to the climate models, should be experiencing the greatest warming due to the allegedly enhanced greenhouse effect. But satellite data since 1979 show no significant warming trend.

I could go into detail on major problems with the predictive algorithms used by the IPCC...if you are having trouble sleeping. In short, the assumptions made by the principle components algorithms are just that - assumptions...a number of very significant factors are left out from the get-go (e.g. cosmic radiation, sun spots, etc.). The largest and most erroneous problem is that CO2 is ASSUMED to be the primary driver of the global climate and that just isn't the case (they are getting the cart before the horse, as it were). The infamous hockey stick graph has been thoroughly disproven as it is simply an artifact of very questionable statistical methodology. If I turned in something like that to my stats professors, they would have either laughed at me and told me to do it again or just given me an "F". Issues with data selection (cherry-picking) and proxies (esp. tree ring data) used in the IPCC's GCMs remain problematic as does the "peer review" process at the IPCC. The Summaries for Policy Makers (which is what the public, politicians, and press mostly see) are constructed through an almost totally political process having very little to do with science and contain only the most dire predictions. One delegate out of over 500 (not a scientist) from one country can say they want a sentence removed from the SPM and it will be removed without any scientific discussion or justification at all. The actual assesment reports turned out do have some good climate science in them but they, too, are subject to questionable peer reviews...making substantive changes subsequent to the peer review process without having it "re-reviewed" (that's a huge no-no in scientific research - read academic malpractice), for instance - as seen in the First Assessment Report completed in 1990 if I'm remember correctly. The whole thing is a political and financial football but catastrophic anthropogenic climate change is not supported by the data or the science. The "97% consensus" that gets tossed around so much has been shown to be nothing of the sort as demonstrated by Dr. David Legates when he reviewed John Cook's 2011 study cited by most people who throw the 97% number out there (I doubt that most of them even know where it comes from - if they did, they wouldn't throw it out there quite so casually). I find the whole thing frustrating because it puts us nerds in a bad light. The planet is just fine and will continue to go through its cycles as it always has...glaciers have retreated and advanced and oceans have transgressed and regressed for a few billion years and will continue to do so. A better use of time, effort, energy, and money would be working on cleaner water, air, and soil. Or cleaning up watersheds...a real difference can be made there that matters. The doomsday stuff has gotten old and tiresome. Incidentally, a true 97% number was published in the journal "Nature - Climate Change" where 117 climate predictions made since 1970 were studied...the study found that 97.4% of those predictions never materialized. <- true story that gave me a bit of a chuckle.

I've gone on longer than I intended but this has been of interest to me since college (had my "Save the Planet" t-shirt and wore it proudly) and I have looked over more research on both sides of the issue than I care to remember. When the UN and government money got involved, the whole thing went down the toilet - scientifically speaking - as is commonly the case...unfortunately. Fear not...in the words of Mother Julian of Norwich, ""All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well".

Thank you Gman, that was interesting not that I understood all but I think I got the gist of it and it is pretty much my feelings about it but more coming from my gut. I think it is a great racket for those experts that will give governments the results that they want to hear. I think it is good that we are cleaning up things but this manic push at so called renewables at any expense is just crazy.

Ken

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Gman - thanks for that breakdown. Like Ken, it was a bit over my head, but explained well enough we got the idea. Exactly what I have been thinking. This world has been changing up and down and will continue to change.
Have a Merry Christmas - all of you.

 

[gman4691]

Thank you Gman, that was interesting not that I understood all but I think I got the gist of it and it is pretty much my feelings about it but more coming from my gut. I think it is a great racket for those experts that will give governments the results that they want to hear. I think it is good that we are cleaning up things but this manic push at so called renewables at any expense is just crazy.

Ken

Indeed, sir…it is crazy…I've run the numbers on wind farms, as well. We could cover the entire lower 48 states with the most efficient windmills made and it still would not produce enough to meet current demands in the US…

 

[gman4691]

Gman - thanks for that breakdown. Like Ken, it was a bit over my head, but explained well enough we got the idea. Exactly what I have been thinking. This world has been changing up and down and will continue to change.
Have a Merry Christmas - all of you.

Yeah…it's been a bone I've gnawed on for over 30 years…gives me diarrhea of the keyboard…lol

 

[gman4691]

Thank you Gman, that was interesting not that I understood all but I think I got the gist of it and it is pretty much my feelings about it but more coming from my gut. I think it is a great racket for those experts that will give governments the results that they want to hear. I think it is good that we are cleaning up things but this manic push at so called renewables at any expense is just crazy.

Ken

Incidentally, trust your gut on this one…it IS a racket…a manifestation of tax payer dollars being involved

 

[gman4691]

Correction: 16 calving age cows

Update: managed to get tomorrow and the next day off...will give that new bush hog a good workout on that back pasture...need to get that done before it gets really cold (open-cab tractor and I don't get along well with the cold)...gonna give her H-E-double toothpicks the next couple of days)

Another update: 2/3 done with mowing (1 trip to town to buy replacement pin for attaching the draft arm to the lift arm on 3 point hook-up - sigh); now find where the $&@#*& beavers are blocking the spillway…again…sigh…never a dull moment, I suppose

 

[1982vett]

Great Grandparents bought 190 acres in 1901 and another 90 acres in 1926. Always seemed to be my legacy take the reigns when it was time.

 

[gman4691]

Back pasture is finally done...looks so much better - chicken litter on it and the two hay pastures around February-March...then, spray everything again like this past spring and see how it responds.

Big portion of beaver dam tore out (by hand)...afraid to do it all at once - don't want to washout the culverts we had put in a couple of years ago - but lowered the water pretty good, culverts holding up.

Daughter and her future hubby almost done putting primer on cattle pen...then paint. Fear not, I will pay them well.

The mowing and the painting were the two big things on my mind. Can't express how much relief I feel from one of those things being complete and the other well on its way) - Incidentally, she heard me talking about the painting one day and said she would be interested in doing it (that girl loves to paint) - although, I think she's learning that it's a lot different from painting a room in a house...lol. The #$%^&*&^ beavers on the other hand were a bit of an unpleasant surprise. Loading up the little Ruger 10-22 to try and remedy that situation.

Now back to the fence rehab I started a couple of months ago - one three-way corner is rebuilt with wooden posts - now to work on the other corner with left over drill stem/sucker rod from cattle pen job - I think there is enough there to do it (one three-way corner and one "H" brace at the other corner - I'll weld that up, prime, & paint ASAP. Then, wooden posts, t-posts, restring the wire that's re-usable and replace the wire that isn't - may go with 6 strands instead of 5 due to the planned use and the topography (fence crosses three wet-weather drainage channels). Should be able to knock that out relatively quick (maybe 3 days total).

Then, clear out a bunch of scrap metal near the hay barn and create a bit of a "lay-down" yard for the steel that is worth keeping. Will use cross-ties from old cattle pen to lay down steel pipe and other odds and ends worth saving to keep it off of the ground. A little brush to deal with in that area, as well. Right now, it is just a mess and frankly I'm tired of looking at it. The rest will go to the scrapyard. I see some more welding in the not too distant future.

At some point during all of this, complete demolition of old caved-in barn and clear the footprint of brush and whatever else might be there - you never know what you might find on a project like that. That old barn was there when my grandfather bought the place in 1958...collapsed maybe 10(?) years ago.

Next year, I hope to re-do the water lines and reset the two big concrete water troughs...this one is a big a big job and will require outside help. Already talked to someone about putting in a new CTS new water line from the meter at the house to the barn with risers at strategic locations (a little less than 1/4 mile - I think). Need to talk to my dirt man about prepping a place to move troughs and helping me get them moved - quite a bit involved in coordinating that. But, I am nothing if not determined (or perhaps just hard-headed).

Progress continues to made - slowly but surely.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

COLD!!! You're in TEXAS!! Come visit me. LOL

@Jeanne, cold is a relative term. I'm back on the Ohio/West Virgina border through Jan 15, but just spent a month in South Carolina. I didn't think much of getting up and there being frost on my car winshield at 6:30 am and driving to downtown Columbia. I walked from the parking garage to my office in the federal building with a lightweight jacket on. In that short distance, I walked past probably a dozen individuals that looked like the Michelin Man with scarves, heavy gloves and down coats. It was 26 degrees. OK, below freezing, but not exactly in danger of instant frostbite, like you might be familiar with.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

Back pasture is finally done...looks so much better - chicken litter on it and the two hay pastures around February-March...then, spray everything again like this past spring and see how it responds.

Big portion of beaver dam tore out (by hand)...afraid to do it all at once - don't want to washout the culverts we had put in a couple of years ago - but lowered the water pretty good, culverts holding up.

Daughter and her future hubby almost done putting primer on cattle pen...then paint. Fear not, I will pay them well.

The mowing and the painting were the two big things on my mind. Can't express how much relief I feel from one of those things being complete and the other well on its way) - Incidentally, she heard me talking about the painting one day and said she would be interested in doing it (that girl loves to paint) - although, I think she's learning that it's a lot different from painting a room in a house...lol. The #$%^&*&^ beavers on the other hand were a bit of an unpleasant surprise. Loading up the little Ruger 10-22 to try and remedy that situation.

Now back to the fence rehab I started a couple of months ago - one three-way corner is rebuilt with wooden posts - now to work on the other corner with left over drill stem/sucker rod from cattle pen job - I think there is enough there to do it (one three-way corner and one "H" brace at the other corner - I'll weld that up, prime, & paint ASAP. Then, wooden posts, t-posts, restring the wire that's re-usable and replace the wire that isn't - may go with 6 strands instead of 5 due to the planned use and the topography (fence crosses three wet-weather drainage channels). Should be able to knock that out relatively quick (maybe 3 days total).

Then, clear out a bunch of scrap metal near the hay barn and create a bit of a "lay-down" yard for the steel that is worth keeping. Will use cross-ties from old cattle pen to lay down steel pipe and other odds and ends worth saving to keep it off of the ground. A little brush to deal with in that area, as well. Right now, it is just a mess and frankly I'm tired of looking at it. The rest will go to the scrapyard. I see some more welding in the not too distant future.

At some point during all of this, complete demolition of old caved-in barn and clear the footprint of brush and whatever else might be there - you never know what you might find on a project like that. That old barn was there when my grandfather bought the place in 1958...collapsed maybe 10(?) years ago.

Next year, I hope to re-do the water lines and reset the two big concrete water troughs...this one is a big a big job and will require outside help. Already talked to someone about putting in a new CTS new water line from the meter at the house to the barn with risers at strategic locations (a little less than 1/4 mile - I think). Need to talk to my dirt man about prepping a place to move troughs and helping me get them moved - quite a bit involved in coordinating that. But, I am nothing if not determined (or perhaps just hard-headed).

Progress continues to made - slowly but surely.

@gman4691,

Thanks for sharing your 'worklist'. To give you a head's up, some of this replacement that you are doing, you should be able to get assistance through the NRCS with a creation of a Grazing Management Plan. It's not necessarily all about grasses. It includes water lines and pond work. Check with them.

About your pond. You might not want to do the whole thing at once, but, the pond dam will be MUCH stronger if you do do the entire thing at once. Patches are just that, patches. They are never as strong (and considerably weaker in this case) than original complete construction or re-construction.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

Some of you might find this fascinating. I'll answer the thread that @Jeanne - Simme Valley started here. I can answer this, but only if you loosely interpret what 'Cattle Business' means, as I do not own livestock or a farm, unless 4 cats, a rabbit and 2 Guinea pigs count.
For as long as I can remember, and beyond that if you include what my parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents say and have said, I have had an affinity with nature in general. This includes trees, flowers, birds, fish, mammals. Pretty much anything associated with the outdoors. I was a Boy Scout (I am an Eagle Scout) and loved camping. Tents, campfires, trees, rain, cold, heat, mosquitoes. Yep, everything. I excelled in academia as well. I wanted to become a wildlife conservationist. My high school guidance counselor saw that as a waste and tried to get me to focus on something.......more lucrative and a field that didn't have 20 college graduates for every position. He was trying to get me to focus on environmental regulation. Well, he did turn my focus, probably more to get him off my back, to veterinary medicine. This wasn't too much of a stretch from 'conservation/wildlife' and I was able to still work towards wildlife while focusing on pre-vet coursework. At the same time, my pre-vet focus also prepared me for a degree in Animal Science. after 3 undergraduate years at Purdue University, I was at a crossroads, in more ways than one. I applied to vet schools, I had 2 different Bachelor's degrees I could complete in one additional year of undergraduate work, and I proposed and had a marriage sometime on the horizon. A lot going on. Well, I was accepted for admission to the University of Dublin, Ireland, veterinarian program. Here's the kicker. I turned it down. Does anyone have any idea how competitive admission to a veterinarian program is, especially one of this magnitude? I decided to go to Purdue for 2 more years and complete both Bachelor's degrees, Animal Science and Wildlife Science. And then I got married. During this whole time I was crafting/had crafted a way to combine the 2 BS degrees into a career that I could use the skills from both. Now enter into the picture being admitted to Oregon State University for a Master's degree in Rangeland Resources. No one from the Eastern US ever entered this realm as it was so foreign, combining wildlife/natural ecosystem management with livestock production. This kind of management was (and still is) sorely lacking east of the Mississippi River (academic trained expertise in it anyway). I had a professor (NRCS employee as he wore multiple hats) that anyone getting a range degree would be able to offer the eastern US so much if they went there. Problem is, no one from the west wanted to go there. I can't imagine why. <sarcasm>. Anyway, I went back east (I grew up in Indiana). Applied for and got on with the NRCS. I had always wanted to work for the federal government since my first year at Purdue. Now I am working for the NRCS (federal government) utilizing the skills from all 3 of my degrees, am relatively close to home, and am happily married. And I get to "Help People Help the Land" all over the country with my career. I help cattle producers (and other livestock producers) with their grazing operations.

 

[Warren Allison]

Big portion of beaver dam tore out (by hand)...afraid to do it all at once - don't want to washout the culverts we had put in a couple of years ago - but lowered the water pretty good, culverts holding up.
The #$%^&*&^ beavers on the other hand were a bit of an unpleasant surprise. Loading up the little Ruger 10-22 to try and remedy that situation.

Just curious, why would you want to to tear it down and reduce the water levels? I would think that with al the drought in recent years in Texas, you would want al the water you can get? Several years ago, Scott and I decided to damn up our creek to create a pond. We had run the dozer one day, and some Karen called the EPA, or some agency, and they came out with a cease and desist order. They gave us all kinds of specs and plans and requirements for all kind of things we had to have put in it. Even threatened to fine us or prosecute us. It was a mess. Doing what all they wanted would have cost us a fortune. But thank God, beavers moved in last year, and built a damn almost exactly where we had wanted one, and it didn't cost a dime. And the EPA couldn't do a thing about it! And as a bonus, we have some pretty good duck and geese shoots there. now.