Clean, Happy Fair Divas

It is the week of the county fair in my neck of the woods. An exhausting, fun filled, often dramatic week for most anyone who exhibits animals in one town while maintaining the day-to-day operations of their farm at home. Weeks before the fair are spent preparing the animals you will exhibit. This means washing and re-washing to make yellowed tails and white patches (hopefully!) as white as snow.

It means walking your show animals around your yard as often as humanly possible so they will (hopefully!) be completely docile and well behaved on their halters. Even in the face of running, screaming children; golf carts; balloons and the unfamiliar sounds of the midway, your animal (hopefully!) will walk calmly beside you and be indifferent to this foreign environment. Hopefully! Because if you have ever tried to stop a scared cow or even yearling calf from running full tilt down the midway... you know that one hundred plus pounds is no match for five hundred pounds plus of flying fear!

Luckily, it is a wonderful week for people who commute across their driveways to work 52 weeks of the year. (Yeah, you don't get fair week off from farming! There are no vacations in this occupation) You get to commune with other dairymen and women, check out the finest in their herd and take pride in the fact that yours is not the only farm where people love what they do and do it well! You can relate to the struggles they've had in the past year and celebrate their successes. You can also hope your animal wins the blue ribbon over their animal... but in the event that doesn't happen, sportsmanship kicks in and you happily watch as those blues are hung over the backs of the other cow.

It's a chance for people who visit the fair to get a taste of farm life. To see cows at their finest, see one milked in the parlor, talk to a dairyman about a day in their life. And hopefully those conversations build trust between producer and consumer. That we love our animals and take pride in them and the milk they produce for our dairy consumers. We would never knowingly ship a poor quality product!

We would also never harm these animals to get more milk from them. Mistreating them in any way actually will produce an opposite effect. You get less milk of lesser quality! The California Cow commercials sum it up perfectly - Happy Cows make happy milk! That is why when you go to the fair, you'll see barn fans running non-stop and often at a speed greater than what is comfortable for a person. They aren't for the people, they are for the cows. You will also see cows and calves getting washed, constantly! It's not just about appearance, but keeping them cool and comfortable is really important.

The fair animals often come home a bit spoiled. We trucked out three divas to the fairgrounds this week and when they return to the usual routine at the end of the week, one in particular will be standing in her end stall wondering who will be coming to fluff her tail and trim her ear hair! My first fair animal, Michelle, developed a fondness for cotton candy during her fair days and I could see when she got home, she was looking for her sweet treats for weeks after.

You can't spoil them all every day of every year. But we do try to keep them as comfortable as possible! New gadgets to help with that are always of interest. Which is why I am fascinated with this new cow wash device a friend made me aware of.

How cool it would be for our cows to be able to clean up whenever they feel the need! We have a tie stall facility. That means each cow has her own stall that she lives in. She is let out for exercise every morning while barn is cleaned. I can imagine this cow wash installed in a breezeway between the pasture and the barn. Each cow could clean up after "playtime" and return to her clean stall all refreshed... how cool is that? They would love that big brush, I'm betting we'd have about 64 shower hogs and it would take a REALLY long time to get them back in the barn!

The expense of installing such a device makes it quite impractical at the moment; but it is food for thought. For the time being, our girls will have to savor the summer rains and the diva cows and their caretakers will enjoy their week of at the fair!

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Accessories Optional?

Every Wednesday is auction day. Quite often we have a bull calf to sell or sometimes a cow. My dad usually does the trucking and rarely fails to return home with some interesting tale of humor, adventure, or misadventure!

This week was no exception. It would seem a trucker came in with a bunch of heifer (female) calves. He informed the man who was checking the animals in that the load was all female. The man took a quick scan of the lot of them and informed the driver that two of them were bulls. The driver had no idea how this was possible. He was told they were all heifers! He would have to inform the owner, as bull calves do not generally sell for as much money as a heifer.

As dad recounted the exchange, I kept thinking back about a month. I was following a truck down a rather bumpy dirt road. Three calves were riding in the back of the truck and even though the truck was going slow, they were really getting jostled around! I couldn't help but laugh and had to comment, based on what I had seen previously, that it can be a very bumpy ride to the auction barn and perhaps some "extra options" got bounced down for a couple of those calves...

A Wonderful Time

A strong hand at my waist guides me effortlessly as we glide around an open-air environment. Our dance is so easy. It feels as though we are floating, our feet never touching the ground. I can feel the lightest layers of periwinkle chiffon swirling around and behind me and somehow I manage to be graceful enough never to trip.

My partner is an indescribably handsome stranger. Young, dark haired, gentle eyes and equally gentle hands that guide me with a strength that is not forceful, but comforting. My heart feels so full; I never want this moment to end! Just as the thought enters my mind, I hear him say, “I have to go.”

“I don’t want you to,” I say calmly, knowing this parting was inevitable.

“I know. But didn’t we have a wonderful time? What a wonderful time we have had.” I hear the words; but I no longer see the man.

“He’s gone. Your Aunt just called.” My mother’s voice breaks into the room.

“OK,” I say. I roll to my side, pull the covers up under my chin, and calmly begin to drift into the reality of the morning. July 10, 2002, my grandfather has just passed away after suffering for months with prostrate cancer. The words still echo in my mind as the morning sun enters my awareness. I do not feel devastated. I feel grateful for the moments I had with him that I will now hold forever in my heart.

My grandpa taught me to tie my shoes. He gave me my first cow. He played endless games of Yahtzee and later Triominoes and even later Dominoes with his grandchildren. When I was in college and broke, this retired dairy farmer "bought" a calf from me to see me through the rough patch, and never had the ownership papers transferred to him. His laugh was the most unique, contained chuckle I have ever heard. I can still hear it today. His eyes the most incredible blue and when he was about to tell you a joke, their twinkle rivaled any star I have ever seen.

We did. We had a wonderful time! Every moment I had with him was a gift. What an example he set for his children and grandchildren. Kindhearted, but strong, gentle but determined! A leader in his community, a friend, a hard worker, an intelligent business man who loved his wife, raised his children with a firm, consistent and caring hand; and enjoyed his grandchildren for all their uniqueness and potential.

I miss my grandpa. I think of him often. I can’t help but be reminded that not only did we have a wonderful time; but I am bearing witness to another generation having their own, equally wonderful time, with another kindhearted, strong, intelligent man.

My dad, I believe, is currently at the height of glory in his role as Grandpa. With grandkids ranging in age from infant to young adult, his mornings begin with grandkids and sometimes end the same way. His afternoons are touched by a pre-schooler who has zero interest in cows but shares his love of cheese and ice cream, and a school age granddaughter who loves his cows almost as much as he does. He spends his weekends with one of his beautiful young adult granddaughters, and revels at her many talents, endless potential and effortless beauty that radiates from the inside, out. From inside his barn, dad can ponder the future of his oldest granddaughter, and marvel at how she is so independent as she makes her way in the world. I've had to leave out some of the most extraordinary of this generation, but they are not any less important or loved in his eyes, or mine.

It is still a wonderful time. An incredible time. It will never be the same again. It will always change and yet, it remains. Thank you, Grandpa, for setting the stage for this generation. For teaching me to be kind, strong, smart, determined and hard working. I may never again have such a wonderful dance partner; but I will never stop dancing in the glory of all the wonderful people and things that are around me.