This is going to be another one of my too long posts, so just skip it if you don't want to read it, 
There is an elderly couple that I know that are in their 80's now, and were friends with my parents over the years. Both had worked at the carpet mills around here, and have been retired now about 15 years or so. They have about 20 acres, and for years he has kept about a dozen cows, and they used to raise a big garden. Sold produce out of it and she did a lot of making preserves and other kinds of canning. But the last year or so , he has developed Parkinson's disease pretty bad. His hands and arms are continuously jerking, and his legs do when he is sitting,. She is kind of frail, and has mascular degeneration and can't see too well.
She called me Monday night while I was at an open mic, and asked me if II could come help them with something. They had decided to sell their cows, and they had a nephew, I think he is, that lived close by, and he told them if they got the cows up into their holding pen, he'd come by on his way to the sale Tuesday morning, and carry them to the sale for them ( for $150). This dude is in his 50's and lives maybe 3 miles from them. This dude has about 75-100 acres and runs about 50-60 brood cows himself.
The couple have maybe a 1/2 acre lot by their barn, and under part of the barn they have some nice working pens, that is easy to load out from. Monday evening, they were going to get the cows into the lot, and get up early Tuesday morning and put them in the working pen. Nephew said he wouldn't do that... for them to have them in the pen ready to load when he got there. So Mr. Jackson was going to put a round bale in the lot and shut them up in it. Well, with his Parkinson's he took down about 40 feet of the fence. Mrs. Jackson called me to see if I knew someone she could get to come fix it. She said when she called Nephew and told him, he said he didn't have time, and if they could get it fixed, he'd try to haul them next week. If not. he'd see what they were bringing Tuesday, and just buy them himself, and haul them when they got the lot fixed.
I went over there Tuesday morning to see what all we were dealing with. The lot was 6 x6 treated posts, with what looked like motor oil-covered rough cut 2x 8 oak for the rails. It has a 10' metal gate, and he just couldn't hold the tractor straight enough to get in with the hay. He had 6 Angus cows, 3 Herefords, 4 black baldies. what looked like a red angus and one Charolais. All of them had calves except for the Char, but she is going to calve any day now. These were fairly nice cows, about 1000lbs+ for the smallest angus, and about 1200 on the biggest, the Char. Oldest calf was born around Christmas, they said, and the youngest was about a week old. All black or BWF. 8 bull calves and 6 heifers.
Told them I could get this fixed pretty easy...just needed to call the saw mill and get them to get up some 2 x 8 oak. I told them mean time I was going to bring over some metal corral panels, and put them up til we got it fixed. I called Clay and asked him if he would load up about 8-10 at my place and bring them over. Wasn't an hour til he showed up with the panels, and his boss Mike rode with him. Mr,. Jackson hadn't hit the gate post, thank God...he had hit the post the gate closed against. So, we had the panels up in no time, and were sitting around drinking the tea Mrs, Jackson brought out to his, shooting the breeze, when Nephew showed up .
I had never talked to the man...had seen him around and knew who he was, but I had already developed a strong dislike for the POS because he wouldn't help them get the cows caught or offer to fix the fence. He got out and walked over to us and told Mr, Jackson: " Well I told you I'll just pay you what they would have brought today, and get them out of here later. You are lucky...today they were high. Good cows like yours were bringing $1500 a pair! So that's what I will give you, and you won't have to pay sales commission or a fee to me to haul them. That ole Charolais is about to calve, so I will just give you the $1500 for her, too, and for that old Angus bull of yours." ( The bull is about 1400 lbs...maybe 1500). He told Mr. Jackson that as soon as the grass got a little better, he'd bring some of his calves over ,so that Mr, Jackson wouldn't have to pay someone to keep it bushhogged!!
Well, that just flew all over me ( and Mike and Clay, too) so I told him that wouldn't be neccessary, that I would haul them to the sale for him. That kinda pissed him off. Then Mike told them " Mr. Jackson, if you want me to, I will pay you $2500 a pair, including the Charolais and that bull, and if you will let me. I will rent your pasture for $1500 a year, starting today, I need a place to keep a few horses after I move these cows, anyhow. And I will come back and fix that corral fence, and keep the place up for you as far as bushhogging, etc,"
Nephew got all red faced, and started toward Mr, Jackson, raising his voice shouting : " Uncle Hugh we had a deal". But Clay stepped up and got his arm, and took him aside and explained to him the best deal he was going to get today was to get in his truck and go on home. And he did. That pos knew good and well he was trying to take advantage of this old couple, and them even being kin! After he left, Mike even told us that when he sold these cows and calves, if they brought more he'd even split the difference with Mr. Jackson.
I got the best deal, though., Mrs. Jackson gave us 3 each a jar of pear preserves, home made sweet pickles and a jar of the squash relish she makes. Mike said" let me pay you for these, Mrs. Jackson". I shook my head at him though. No way would we have charged them for putting up those panels, but they would have felt bad if they didn't get to pay us something. These are old-school, hard-working country folks, that deserve respect and dignity. Besides, I wouldn't take $50 a jar for what she gave me...that stuff is good!
There is an elderly couple that I know that are in their 80's now, and were friends with my parents over the years. Both had worked at the carpet mills around here, and have been retired now about 15 years or so. They have about 20 acres, and for years he has kept about a dozen cows, and they used to raise a big garden. Sold produce out of it and she did a lot of making preserves and other kinds of canning. But the last year or so , he has developed Parkinson's disease pretty bad. His hands and arms are continuously jerking, and his legs do when he is sitting,. She is kind of frail, and has mascular degeneration and can't see too well.
She called me Monday night while I was at an open mic, and asked me if II could come help them with something. They had decided to sell their cows, and they had a nephew, I think he is, that lived close by, and he told them if they got the cows up into their holding pen, he'd come by on his way to the sale Tuesday morning, and carry them to the sale for them ( for $150). This dude is in his 50's and lives maybe 3 miles from them. This dude has about 75-100 acres and runs about 50-60 brood cows himself.
The couple have maybe a 1/2 acre lot by their barn, and under part of the barn they have some nice working pens, that is easy to load out from. Monday evening, they were going to get the cows into the lot, and get up early Tuesday morning and put them in the working pen. Nephew said he wouldn't do that... for them to have them in the pen ready to load when he got there. So Mr. Jackson was going to put a round bale in the lot and shut them up in it. Well, with his Parkinson's he took down about 40 feet of the fence. Mrs. Jackson called me to see if I knew someone she could get to come fix it. She said when she called Nephew and told him, he said he didn't have time, and if they could get it fixed, he'd try to haul them next week. If not. he'd see what they were bringing Tuesday, and just buy them himself, and haul them when they got the lot fixed.
I went over there Tuesday morning to see what all we were dealing with. The lot was 6 x6 treated posts, with what looked like motor oil-covered rough cut 2x 8 oak for the rails. It has a 10' metal gate, and he just couldn't hold the tractor straight enough to get in with the hay. He had 6 Angus cows, 3 Herefords, 4 black baldies. what looked like a red angus and one Charolais. All of them had calves except for the Char, but she is going to calve any day now. These were fairly nice cows, about 1000lbs+ for the smallest angus, and about 1200 on the biggest, the Char. Oldest calf was born around Christmas, they said, and the youngest was about a week old. All black or BWF. 8 bull calves and 6 heifers.
Told them I could get this fixed pretty easy...just needed to call the saw mill and get them to get up some 2 x 8 oak. I told them mean time I was going to bring over some metal corral panels, and put them up til we got it fixed. I called Clay and asked him if he would load up about 8-10 at my place and bring them over. Wasn't an hour til he showed up with the panels, and his boss Mike rode with him. Mr,. Jackson hadn't hit the gate post, thank God...he had hit the post the gate closed against. So, we had the panels up in no time, and were sitting around drinking the tea Mrs, Jackson brought out to his, shooting the breeze, when Nephew showed up .
I had never talked to the man...had seen him around and knew who he was, but I had already developed a strong dislike for the POS because he wouldn't help them get the cows caught or offer to fix the fence. He got out and walked over to us and told Mr, Jackson: " Well I told you I'll just pay you what they would have brought today, and get them out of here later. You are lucky...today they were high. Good cows like yours were bringing $1500 a pair! So that's what I will give you, and you won't have to pay sales commission or a fee to me to haul them. That ole Charolais is about to calve, so I will just give you the $1500 for her, too, and for that old Angus bull of yours." ( The bull is about 1400 lbs...maybe 1500). He told Mr. Jackson that as soon as the grass got a little better, he'd bring some of his calves over ,so that Mr, Jackson wouldn't have to pay someone to keep it bushhogged!!
Well, that just flew all over me ( and Mike and Clay, too) so I told him that wouldn't be neccessary, that I would haul them to the sale for him. That kinda pissed him off. Then Mike told them " Mr. Jackson, if you want me to, I will pay you $2500 a pair, including the Charolais and that bull, and if you will let me. I will rent your pasture for $1500 a year, starting today, I need a place to keep a few horses after I move these cows, anyhow. And I will come back and fix that corral fence, and keep the place up for you as far as bushhogging, etc,"
Nephew got all red faced, and started toward Mr, Jackson, raising his voice shouting : " Uncle Hugh we had a deal". But Clay stepped up and got his arm, and took him aside and explained to him the best deal he was going to get today was to get in his truck and go on home. And he did. That pos knew good and well he was trying to take advantage of this old couple, and them even being kin! After he left, Mike even told us that when he sold these cows and calves, if they brought more he'd even split the difference with Mr. Jackson.
I got the best deal, though., Mrs. Jackson gave us 3 each a jar of pear preserves, home made sweet pickles and a jar of the squash relish she makes. Mike said" let me pay you for these, Mrs. Jackson". I shook my head at him though. No way would we have charged them for putting up those panels, but they would have felt bad if they didn't get to pay us something. These are old-school, hard-working country folks, that deserve respect and dignity. Besides, I wouldn't take $50 a jar for what she gave me...that stuff is good!
