Green Acres

Last weekend, my husband and I drove to visit my parents in their small town (pop: approx. 5,000.) My parents used to own a chemical fertilizer business where they sold and applied liquid fertilizer to all of the farmers' and ranchers' land in the area. My dad is now semi-"retired", which means he only goes to work five days a week instead of seven. I love to go out to the country to his place of business and just see all of the projects he has going on. Could be anything from getting the hay baled, feeding, doctoring, and looking after cows, mending fences, fixing a
leak in a tank, repairing a tractor, attending a gin meeting (as in cotton gin), looking after the pecan orchard, and the list goes on and on. One of my favorite things is to feed the cows range cubes. Those things are like Snickers bars to them and they can get quite aggressive when they see you have them. Several of the cows are quite tame and will let daddy (no one else though) pet them. One time, a cow stuck her head in the cab of the pick-up truck and let out a moo. Good grief, was it ever loud!!!
My husband and I are both country mice at heart, and while we live in the city, we both yearn for a wide open space of our own one day. Here's a pic of me pretending to drive a tractor and another of my dad and my brother's dog, Pez. Daddy is a true animal whisperer. All of our (my siblings) animals recognize him as the alpha male and want to follow him wherever he goes. Even his barn cats, Squeaky and Fat Cat, meet him at the gate every morning. No matter what kind of problems I have or stress I am under, I always feel better when I visit my parents and take a trip to the country side. For now, we
live in the city and life is good, but we will continue to appreciate cows, trains, small towns, and greener pastures.