Light of Life

Follow Christ by following our conscience.

           https://youtu.be/4aRiwrMnyI8         

Teaching Compassion

Compassion moves forward.

           https://youtu.be/8EkQuHb6oPo         

Canal Repair

If my dad has any fault, it's being too loyal. Dad has sat on the Bluff Canal board of directors for the past 10 years or so. He's not paid. But if it wasn't for his fidelity and expertise, a lot of crops south of Worland would go unwatered.

For being a short canal, the Bluff system has a lot of pipes and pumps. This part of the Upper Bluff network has been a thorn in everybody's side for the past few years. 

Last year, in the middle of this field, the old concrete pipe sprung a leak.

So, they dug it up this spring and cased it with new concrete. 

The entire pipe probably needs replaced, but that's for another day. 

On the front end is the bigger job. On this side of the draw, lie the head of that pipeline, which has been springing leaks for the past few years. Replacing the first 500' of line is the first phase of replacing the entire stretch. But to do so, they had to get trucks across this draw. 

So Dad fired up our ole JD 450.

And went to work. 

Not bad for a country boy. 

This job is for the experts. Lots of depth and lots of dirt. 

Here's where the old line sat. 

It will drop off this bank and head to the dual pump system. 

Plenty of digging yet to do. 

As they pull all the old 10' sections out.

And make room for these 50' x 24" polly joints. 

Dad will make sure the job gets done. Some may criticize him for working too hard in a volunteer position. But I admire him. When Dad signs on to a project, you know you are in good hands. Keep riding for the brand, partner. Your loyalty is ensuring the growth of a lot more than just crops. 

Feeding Cows

It's gonna be a while before grass is ready to graze. In the meantime, we're just going to keep feed on the cows. Well, today they ran out. 

Critters of this age, you can pretty well keep as much hay on them as you want. Especially if it's grass hay. 

This is all the hay we have left from last year's little crop. Good opportunity to feed it up. 

Little squares should top off what's left in the feeder. 

This round bale feeder works great. But there comes a point, with tightly baled bales, where cattle can no longer reach the feed. 

So we just forked it around while the cows looked on. 

There was still a lot of hay left in those round bales. It just needed broken up. 

Then we threw the little squares on top. 

When cutting twine on little squares, I like to hold it on one side of the knot and cut it on the other. Trying to drag the knot all the way around the underside of a bale can be enough to make a preacher cuss! 

Best to keep track of all your twine and tie them in a knot before pitching them in the shed. 

Everybody's happy. 

It won't be long and grass around the ranch will green up. Then we'll kick the girls to pasture. Until then, we'll keep hay on them. Ranchin. 

North Forty

The real purpose of a rectory is to be a place of solace and renewal for the priest. Many times this is already the case. Other times you have to do some work to make it so. With a little love, our rectory now serves this end well. 

The rectory in Buffalo serves many purposes. Being built in 1953 or so, the Church obtained it around 1967. Since then, it has served as both office and rectory. With such a set up, you definitely need some designated personal space. Behind this door is the Cowboy Priest's North Forty. 

The entire house has been well kept over the 70 years of its existence. Before moving up here from the basement, it was a good time to refreshen everything. 

In the bedroom we gently restored the floors and painted the walls. 

Then put in the bed and new blinds. 

A couple reminders of home and she's ready to go. 

The bathroom was totally functional and straight out of 1973. 

I can hardly remember the last time I took a bath.  

For this job, we hired a contractor. New drywall, vanity, and flooring. 

And a walk-in shower!

The chapel we pretty well left the same, with the exception of a cool old light from the church. 

Both my predecessors had an Eastern vibe. Works. 

This was the old pastor's office, next to the bedroom. Last fall we moved that office into the designated office space. That left this room wide open.

So we did the same as the bedroom. 

And made into a cowboy corner. 

Giddy up. Just as a monk has a cell to retreat from the world. So a parish priest has a rectory to refresh his soul. This is a beautiful rectory and I thank God for all the hard work that has gone into keeping her strong all these years. With a little updating, she's now ready to serve the next batch of priests that cross her path. Let's ranch. 

Father

Jesus and the Father are one.

           https://youtu.be/mVAKBiFLTrg         

Greater

Jesus is fullness.

           https://youtu.be/tOgyKQEVuUQ         

Christocentric

Christological/Christocentric... close enough. 

           https://youtu.be/htqYCY7OhgI         

Reconciliation

To share the perspective of the son toward ourselves, God, and others.

           https://youtu.be/ywK8Wmhhjgk         

Neiber Ranch

With our field now in pasture, we decided to pick up some replacement heifers and run them on the ranch. Neiber was the last name of Mom's great grandfather who homesteaded the place we now live on. And this area where the Gooseberry Creek dumps into the Big Horn River is still known as Neiber. Sheep have been the main critter of choice around here for years. But with the pasture and set up we have now, it's time to see how well she run cows. 

Luke has been running our red calf Andi for the past year. So we picked up a few matching calves from him and hauled them out to the house. 

Different colors, but similar in size and disposition. 

Welcome home. 

It's good to make the working pen a friendly place. So we ran them down the alley and through the chute with no pressure before kicking them into the corral. The next time around they shouldn't hesitate because the first time was a good experience. We'll see. 

Later we trailed them back into the pen. No problem. 

Then we ran them in and branded them. The squeeze chute works good. Small calves are always a challenge with a big chute. Alls well that ends well. 

Reverse L Drawknife was my great grandfather Adam Lungren's brand. Grandpa Lloyd then gave it to Dad. 

We also re-tagged them. 

Andi has fared well over the past year. 

They'll spend the next few weeks hanging in the corral, nibbling on hay until the pasture is ready. 

The grass we planted last year is coming along!

Let the fun begin. Our place has been a good farm, now we'll see how she runs as a ranch. Watching corn and barley grow is fun. But I think Mom will equally enjoy keeping an eye on cattle. Let's ranch! 

Old School

My brother Luke picked up this 1975 beauty off the auction block. There's something about stock racks that take a guy back to the good ole days. Let's see if this truck can still ranch. 

50 years old this year and running strong. 20' box that can be used for grain, beets, or cows. We all cut our teeth on trucks of this vintage growing up. 

Wood deck, which helps with cows. But can still get slick. 

Especially when loading up, you don't want to leave a gap. Can break a leg in a hurry. Just fill the gap in with some lumber. 

Black open cows going to the barn. 

Up the chute and in the truck.

Fit nice.

To town we go. Trucks like this are a five speed with a four gear brownie. 

Big Horn Basin sale barn has been active for the past 6 or 8 years. Nice to have a sales ring so close. 

The boys at the barn were impressed with the old rig. 

No problem coming out. 

The slop makes it slick. If you were going to use this set up much, you'd put either dirt or straw down before loading. 

Giddy up.

Fun stuff. I'm a stock rack guy. The old trucks still have a place. That was no harder than using a pickup and trailer. And, with this outfit, you don't have to back up a trailer or try to get kicked jumping them in. Good purchase, John. Keep that truck ranchin.