Hide Tanning

Having a steady supply of cow hides on hand, I wanted to try my hand at tanning. I knew the learning curve would be steep, but a guy has to start somewhere. The first hide I tried, off a black angus, basically flopped. So we revamped our method and gave it another whirl. 

From the day Ernie and I bought these Herefords I wanted to save their hides.

So we waited until late November of 2022, when their hides here full, to slaughter and skin them.

Beautiful big hides, we gave them a quick power wash before we laid them out. 

We did our best to flesh them as we skinned, but a cow hide still has a lot of work to be done on the underside. 

So to buy us a little time, we salted them and put them in the corner until all our ducks were in a row. 

Then in the spring we decided to go for it with one hide. First step was building a fleshing beam out of an old fence post and sawhorse. 

Then came the work of fleshing the darn thing. It actually wasn't too bad. This drawknife like tool did a good job. Some guys will use a power washer and just blow the fat and meat off. We tried that once but did have much luck. This worked good in the long run. 

Then hosed it down and shampooed the hair to get all the crud out of it. 

This time around, we decided on a soaking method. 

The ingredients involved sulfuric acid and pickling salt. 

We soaked it for about 30 days, turning it every so often. 

Once it was time to pull it out, we neutralized the solution with baking soda. 

Then hosed it off again. 

Not really knowing what all we were doing, I just draped it over the sawhorse and let it dry. 

Unfortunately it dried too well. The process we used basically preserved/pickled the hide, but didn't actually tan it. Which is fine for what we wanted, but you really got to keep the hide loose as it drys. They call this breaking the hide, and it is probably the hardest part of tanning big hide. If a guy could roll this thing around in his hand, it would limber up like leather. But it was just so big and tough to do anything with. 

Several months later, we decided to rehydrate the hide and start over on the drying process. 

This time we hung it from the ceiling and broke it as it dried. 

Once we called it good, then we took a knife and trimmed it up nice. 

Looks good. Can't beat a Hereford's color combination. The hide wouldn't make a good blanket, but it should make a nice rug. 

Merry Christmas Mom and Dad. 

Like I say, the learning curve is steep. One guy I read said, "You can tan your own hide. But it's best to start small, like with a rabbit." Good advice, and I would have taken it if I wanted a rabbit hide. But I wanted a cow hide! Go big or go home, I guess. Then next time around I have some new ideas to try, but I think we are getting the basic concept down. The one thing that would help is a tumbler that slowly rolls the hide around, breaking it as it dries. This is how you live and learn, though. We're on to the next one.

Springtime

God works in time. Be patient. 

           https://youtu.be/PMggGqklXuQ         

O Antiphon

December 17 marks a change in Advent.

           https://youtu.be/n1VTfGZ7T9U         

 

Rejoice

Rejoicing is the fruit of recognizing God's presence among us.

           https://youtu.be/M96dMlwlz7w         

Kingdom to Come

We may not be able to have our cake and eat it too, but we can taste it.

           https://youtu.be/EiaiUffSVCc         

NFR

High on a cowboy's bucket list is a trip to the National Finals Rodeo. I had kind of written it off, until Peg and Lee Isenberger said they have season tickets that they can't use all of. So last December they put my name on two of them for two nights.

I knew exactly who to invite, Fr. Zane Pekron, the other cowboy priest from South Dakota. For the last year we had been getting all our ducks in a row for two days in Las Vegas. 

I always feel like the best way to see a new place is through the eyes of the Church. So our first stop was at the chancery to see my ole buddy Archbishop George Leo Thomas. He was the bishop who took me on as a seminarian in Montana and ordained me a deacon in the Cathedral of St. Helena. It was great to see him again. Keep up the Good work, partner. 

We stayed at the Resorts World Hilton. It was a good hub for rodeo fans.

Right out the gate, we ran into Ryder Sanford from Sulphur, LA. He came on my radar this summer when he broke the saddle bronc arena record at Cheyenne Frontier Days as a rookie with a 92.5 ride. That's cowboy cool. 

Chancy Williams was the opening act for our first night at the rodeo. 

Impressive opening ceremonies. The NFR takes the 15 best contestants in each event who then compete in 10 days of rodeo. In the end, their is an average winner and the winner of the world for 2023. 

It was fun to see all the big names. Here is the wild man Rocker Steiner in bareback. 

Here's Tanner Butner from Daniel WY. He's riding strong. 

Ryder Wright is still in the fight. Though his brother Stetson had to bow out because of a hamstring injury. 

Hailey Kinsel and her horse Sister are always a crowd pleaser. Our seats were really good. 

Because Stetson is out, Ky Hamilton is leading the world in bulls. Though the second night, he got is bell rung pretty good. 

Back at the Hotel stood some of the future winnings. 

The next day we toured the LV Guardian Angels Cathedral. Las Vegas was originally part of the Reno Diocese. Then they joined forces and this church became a co-cathedral. Eventually, LV just became its own diocese. Then this fall, because of the exponential growth around this area, Pope Francis named Las Vegas an archdiocese. 

Our one full day in LV we spent at the Convention Center for the Cowboy Christmas. Too many vendors to get through. 

Zane was able to show the Cactus Ropes rep a trick or two. 

Good Catholic kid. We ran into a few Catholic Cowboys who were glad to see our priestly presence. 

Other rodeo hands were hanging around as well. Tim O'Connell is a world champ bareback rider. 

There were just as many good rides the second night as the first. Jayco Roper was a fun ride to watch on the world famous horse Virgil. 

Shad Mayfield is as quick as they come in the tie down roping. 

This was an incredible ride by Sage Kimzey to end our NFR experience. He'd like to win his 8th world title to tie the legend Donny Gay.

On to the next one. 

Good time. This was a fast and furious couple of days. But Las Vegas can handle it. We saw the Catholic side of the city as well as the cowboy side. Both were beautiful. Special thanks to all who helped make this trip possible. It was the ride of a lifetime. 

Sin

Sin is missing the mark in life.

           https://youtu.be/mn6lX3XTyEQ         

Hail, Full of Grace

Mary is the Immaculate Conception.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAgwdpJ13Jc

Wisdom

Wisdom and is knowledge combined with experience.

           https://youtu.be/zgnhC54jTuw         

 

Revelation

Jesus is the fulness of God's revelation.

           https://youtu.be/5O1q14xF-SE         

Look Alive

Look alive in Christ by always being aware of His presence. 

           https://youtu.be/GOTQ9VYssyM         

Battery Time

Last winter my battery started to give up. It was mainly only when it got real cold, so I did my best limp it through the rest of the year. Now, with winter knocking on our door, I figured I better not chance it any longer. 

I'm pretty convinced you get what you pay for in life. That last battery only lasted four years. This time, I figured I'd go for the gusto. Interstate Batteries are hard to beat. Beside being a cool shade of green, they also have good longevity. But, they come with a price. 

Changing batteries on newer vehicles isn't like it used to be. It's pretty clean and easy these days. 

Most things are metric anymore. 

At first glance, it looks pretty tucked away. But by removing a simple bracket we had easy access. 

A good rule of thumb is to remove the negative terminal first. That way it kills the power. If it is still grounded and you're working on the positive side and hit your wrench on the fender, sparks will fly. With the ground unhooked, everything is neutralized. 

Back in the day, battery terminals were always corroded. So cleaning them before reinstalling was necessary. Even though corrosion isn't as common, I still feel the need to scratch the clamps before putting them on a new battery. This also puts a little seasoning on your pocket knife. 

Same rules go for reinstalling. But this time, hook the ground up last. 

Back in business. 

A vehicle is helpless without a battery. Makes sense to run a good one then. Tires, batteries, windshield wipers... they don't last forever. So a guy better just plan on replacing them every so often. I feel better going into winter now. In Wyoming you can't always count on the snow. But you can always count on the cold. Best be ready.