Wordless Wednesday: Sweltering Summer Dog Walk

It's too hot to ride my horses (111 F heat index) so the dogs and I had a nice walk.

 

 

Rooster is so regal and handsome!

Best buddies - except when Cricket pesters Rooster

Dog lead dog

 

Just the prettiest, cutest border collie on the Earth

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Peterson Farm Bros - From Entertainment to Advocacy

About two years ago a trio of brothers made headlines by creating a parody to the popular LMFAO song "I'm Sexy and I Know It." No one, not even the brothers themselves, had any idea the firestorm they would create that would open the door of agriculture to millions of YouTube viewers.

By now, you know I'm talking about Greg, Kendal and Nathan Peterson, more commonly known as the Peterson Farm Bros. Their first song parody amassed more than 9 million views on YouTube and led them to appearances on national news outlets, Yahoo!'s homepage and countless speaking engagements in the past two years.

I recently heard Greg, the eldest bro, speak at the International Symposium for Beef Cattle Welfare in Ames, IA (which is why I was basically MIA last week) and it was interesting to hear him speak about the progression of their video series. What started out as a video for entertainment purposes has transitioned into a more robust advocacy campaign that is designed to spark more conversations and engage with consumers about farming practices. The Peterson family has even started opening their farm up for tours a few times each month.

Their most recent video All I Do is Farm (a parody of All I Do is Win) is definitely my favorite. Not only do I love that song, (it's on my iPod's running playlist) but they do a fantastic job of explaining why they do certain things and answering some of the questions that viewers might have about farm and ranch life.



Some of my favorite pieces of this video:

• How risky and unpredictable farming is but they just trust in Him
• The volatility of the markets and how that affects their livelihood
• Feeding the cattle a healthy ration
• Caring for their animals has always been a number one passion
• Farming is a family affair
• Conservation is on their minds and they are continually improving their operation and striving to decrease their carbon footprint
• The use of technology and input less to produce more

How can farmers and ranchers do a better job of reaching consumers and food purchasers on the level that the Peterson Farm Bros have? For my non-ag readers - how do you prefer to learn more about farming and ranching? Would you rather see a video like the Peterson Bros parodies, visit a farm or read a blog? What helps connect the dots for you?

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Why My Husband is NOT My Best Friend

This is why we can't be friends.

Disclaimer: Before you read on, please keep in mind that my husband, marriage, friends, family, circumstances and life are all different than yours.  Also, I've been married 3.5 years - those of you who have been married 5, 10 ,15 years or more will probably have a different opinion. So, your spouse/significant other might really be your best friend. I'm just sharing my opinion because, honestly, it's my blog. Thanks for reading and laughing along!

You've seen it in your Facebook newsfeed - a young lady's wedding day is rapidly approaching and she's excited to be showered with attention [that was a downside for me, actually], marrying the one her soul has chosen and generally just having a huge party. So, she continues to declare "I can't wait to marry my best friend!" to all her followers.

No offense to anyone who calls their significant other their best friend but I don't now, nor have I ever, referred to the Ninja as my best friend (If you have proof otherwise, please produce it because it has slipped my mind). I just don't think it's realistic. My opinion may change once I've been married for more than 20 years, but right now I just don't use "best friend forever" to describe the Ninja.

Why have I never called him my best friend? Well, that's easy - he isn't.

Yes - he's insanely smart, [bitter]sweet, supportive and caring. Yes - he listens to me gripe about [insert occasional life-frustration], keeps me grounded, walks with me in Christ and buys dinner most of the time. But that doesn't make him my best friend. Allow me to explain...

My best friends knows stuff about me that the Ninja NEVER will [ladies, zip those lips]. There are just some things I am not ever going to feel comfortable talking to my husband about and there are other things that I just don't think are any of his business. Call me crazy if you must but romance and marriage strife, body image/issues and past relationships/ex-boyfriends are just not great date night conversation topics in my humble opinion.

Communication is just one aspect of a relationship. Another important component is behavior and sometimes my husband's behavior makes me want to, quite honestly, hit him in the groin with a baseball bat. Sometimes, I don't really like him even though I love him more than words can say. Truth. Examples of said behavior:

• After ultrasounding sows all day at the hog farm he comes home, shoves his hand in my face and asks if his hand "smells piggy." Yes, it's been up a pig's butt for eight hours.
• On more than one occasion, he has vaporized on me
• He mispronounces Buzzard on purpose
• He drank my last Dr. Pepper - multiple times

My best friends would never do this - especially that Dr. Pepper one. In the words of Bon Qui Qui "I will cut you."

Lastly, I have built stronger-than-steel bonds with several of these women and ALL of them have been in my life before my husband. He's basically playing catch up. Some of the experiences we've had have formed a lifelong bonds and unfortunately very few of them can be listed on this blog but some safe ones are:

 

• Innumerable rodeo road trips
• Jesus holding some cheese
• A spring break trip to Europe with lifelong lady friends

 

• 21st and 23rd birthday parties in Manhattan, Alva and Durant
• Claremore/Hinton rodeo weekend in 200?
• San Antonio 2010
• NWSS 2010
• Cinco de Drinko Mayo
• And even a bunch of memories from middle and high school

It is for all these reasons that the Ninja can never be my best friend. Don't mistake that for not being a friend, period. Of course he's my friend and he will be by my side until the day I die but it takes more than a ring to make someone a best friend.

OK - I'm prepared for your thoughts and criticisms. Those of you who have been married for longer than the Ninja and I have been, did you feel the same way I did at this point? Am I the only woman who is not best friends with her husband? Again, mad props to you if he is your bff in addition to being your soul mate but such is not the story at the Frobuzz Ranchero.

I leave you with a quote that describes the Ninja and I pretty well.

"You're an ass. You can never make up your mind. You always mock me. I never seem to like you. But all at the same time, I am completely & madly in love with you."

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Blogging Pass Along - Why We Write



I don't know why I chose this photo for this post -
other than I don't have a lot of others to include that are relevant.

A few days ago, new-found blogger friend Terryn Drieling at Faith Family and Beef tapped me to participate in this Blogging Pass Along to provide readers with some insight into how/why I write. I hadn't really given thought to a lot of these questions beforehand so I surprised myself when I sat down and started thinking about my motivation to blog and the process by which I create content.

Thanks for including me, Terryn!

-------------

What are you working on relative to writing?
Right now in the hopper, I have a post about working from home, a Chipotle post [because they, unfortunately, supply a never-ending stream of anger inspiration], a wrap up post about my Alaskan vacation [that was more than a month ago], two recipe posts and a rodeo post. Those are in addition to 101 in 1001 updates and Wordless Wednesdays. Since my blog addresses agriculture, rodeo, K-state and my life in general, my post topics are often sporadic and all over the board. Some may view this as a setback because I might push away readers who only care about agriculture when I post about rodeo and cooking but I hope that it gives people a glimpse at my many different interests and this blog also provides me with a place to catalog thoughts and events I think are important.

What makes your work different from others' work in the same genre?
Well, I don't think I am anything special. I am a small blog and I enjoy writing about my opinions of agriculture and providing fact-based information. That being said, I am not afraid to dole out the truth and lay on the sarcasm, so maybe that differentiates me. I think my real-life marriage blog posts make me a bit different too because I don't sugarcoat it!

How does your writing process work?
It has started to take me a lot longer to develop content that it used to - when I first started blogging, about five years ago, I would think of something, pound it out and post it in the same day. I didn't put a lot of thought into the meaning behind it or the value to my readers and I definitely didn't put any effort into SEO. Now, I might think of an idea and write out a few paragraphs to begin with but not finish the post for a week or more. Instead of focusing on the quantity of content, I am focusing a lot more on quality; I may only post once or twice a week but those posts are planned and not just filler [most of the time]. I think this development happened during grad school when I became a much better writer and learned that every word must have a purpose and value.


If I'm not at a rodeo, I prefer to be in the saddle
 taking care of cattle alongside my family.

Why do you write what you do?
Five years ago, this blog started out as a way to answer consumer questions about agriculture [and it still holds that primary objective]. Over time I added in rodeo and K-State because I am extremely passionate about those topics, too. I strive to be a reliable, trust-worthy source on animal welfare, livestock and rodeo because there is far too much misinformation floating around. If we, as bloggers and advocates, don't tell our story loudly and often, HSUS and Peta will do it for us.

Now that you know a little bit more about me and why I write, I am passing this along to a couple of bloggers I follow:

Melissa at Born to Pharm, has a unique story to tell. She and her husband are farmers and raise cattle here in Kansas but she's also a board-certified pharmacist. You can imagine how important the health of their cattle is in addition to her family's own health!

Jessie at Ranching with Rhinestones is a fabulous gal. She's a rancher/rancher's daughter from Nevada and is currently working on her PhD at Texas Tech - this gal knows meat and how to safely prepare it! She blogs about her faith, ranching and life and is dang good at it!

Hope you enjoyed learning some more about my blogging origins and I highly encourage you to check out the two lovely ladies listed above. They are experts in their respective fields and offer unique perspectives on farming, ranching and being a working woman!

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

 

Independence Day Has Many Forms

Independence Day - the day when Americans celebrate distancing ourselves from the tea-drinking tyranny of England. Hopefully, amidst the BBQ, fireworks and bald eagles you will remember that freedom ain't free and that there are millions of brave patriots and veterans who paved the way for our freedom to say what we please and practice our preferred religion without fear of beheading.

So what does Independence Day look like to you? Are you on the lake? Having a BBQ with your family (with meat, I hope)? At the races? This is what my day consists of:

I spent the first half of today at a rodeo and will head to another one tonight. I'm proud to be part of a sport where we pray before every performance and honor Old Glory nightly. 

What are your plans today?

God Bless America!

~ Buzzard ~