SNOW SALE

Anyone in need of large amounts or rock hard heavy snow?? I know where you can find some. lol

A picture says a thousand words.

This is how drifts come to be. See the blowing snow across the field?? We were out trying to ski in this but we didn't last real long.

ONE BAD ASS TRUCK!! And somehow the snow still stops it in its tracks at times.




































The wind does do some pretty amazing things to the snow sometimes. Grif is on top of one of the drifts created by a drift fence. The drifts are now taller than the fences. I don't think they are very effective anymore.


















Moonlighting as snow removal professionals. Plowing with the truck and tractor late into the night.


Where did the road go? Thats right, under the drifting snow. Looking down the road the next morning as we set out to walk down.

Us walking to the truck at the bottom of the road in the morning rom the ranch house at the base of the timber above. Fun times. Looks like we weren't the only ones who would be walking.

















Unfortunate friends we saw along the way.............................even big bad 4x4s have troubles.

I AM

BASED ON MY BDAY (March 31) AND FACEBOOK:
Your emotion is hard to predict. You can be sad this minute and happy in the next. People might find it difficult to follow your emotion and understand you. You tend to take things seriously. Your Love, You take your time to study a person before falling in love. Once you decide that he is the one, no one can stop you from making progress, even your partner.

Country Livin' is where its at!

My poor little care has still not moved since last Friday. We were not even able to get up the road last night in Grifs truck and in discovering this we got it sort of stuck. Thankfully, our friendly neighbors in a huge truck with chains on the tires got us almost up to our house. We got right into the tractor when we got home and started moving snow. Because the drifted snow is so thick and hard now even the plow can't get through it. It has to be picked up and moved. One bucket load at a time. A very slow process. After a few hours we finally got through the drifting in our driveway....maybe about 1/8 mile and moved on to the next task of feeding the cows. Simple enough right? Wrong. Because of the drifting we had to use a different gate to get into the hay than usual. One that of course was closed and also drifted over. So Grif had to dig the fence out with the back of a hammer. We got a bail and eventually got it to the cows having to maneuver the tractor around cars left parked on the road that had been drifted around. When we got to the cows we checked their water and it was frozen over because one of the extension cords to the tank heater had gone bad. Grif pounded through the ice to get the ladies water and then went to work figuring out which of the 3 cords it takes was not working. Keep in mind that these cords have been in their places since late fall so they are feet deep in rock hard snow. Grif dug them out with his trusty hammer.
There is something that I really love about watching him work on the ranch. It amazes me the way that he powers through every obstacle that we face while I sit in the tractor and watch. I help when I am needed but that is not often. He just moves through things with such grace. Watching him is very reassuring to me. I always know that I am safe and well taken care of.
Anyway, back to our evening. We eventually replaced one cord and went on down the road to pull the truck out of the ditch. Luckily it was not bad at all and I pulled him out in the tractor with ease. We took the truck down to the bottom of the road and headed back up to the house in the tractor. We got to bed a little after 1am.
This morning we got to walk down to the truck about 2 miles. We were most of the way down when our friendly neighbor from last night came up behind us and offered us a ride. (Gotta love livin in MT-everyone is so nice) We decided to just hoof it down since we were almost there anyway. Fun huh.....................anyone want to join? :)
I do have ton of pics and I will get them up as soon as I download them to my comp.

STUCK

I am again drifted in at he ranch. The most frustrating part is that we plowed until 10pm last night. I don't really need to go to town until this afternoon so Grif is going to come plow me out at lunch. He really didn't have time to do it this morning before his Tuesday AM meeting at work and of course he can get out in his truck.........but my car is another story.

I think the snow won!

As I said before, we got somewhere between 2-3 feet of snow at the ranch about a week ago. I was really excited and couldn't wait to go out and ski this past weekend. We ended up in a battle royal with the snow and wind. I think we are finally through the worst of it although the weather forecast is looking for more snow and wind. And I am still weary about driving my car out. I am glad that I am not working today. Most of the road that we drive to get to East River Road is county but they seem to really neglect us up here. It sometimes takes them up to 3 days before they will plow up here even with feet of snow and knee deep drifts. The ironic this is that there is no way that they are just forgetting us. There are huge sand and gravel piles at the end of our road where they fill their truck so I know that they see that no one has gotten in or out yet they still pass it by.
Anyway, back to the story of how the snow kicked our asses. The combination of snow on an open field and our lovely high Livingston winds creates my favorite kind of now. The kind that becomes dense like cement and collects in places where you have removed the snow, like the driveway or road. The wind carries every last particle of snow across the field and as it moves across a place that either moves the wind upward (like a drift fence-ugly 4ft fence that lines our entire road from October to April) or downward (into the road) the wind drops the snow and created drifts. Grif and I were lucky enough to get to spend our entire weekend moving snow. We literally started Friday night. We plowed for a couple of hours after work before we went to town to see No Country for Old Men and then plowed again when we got back. Grif got up Sat morning and started plowing right away. It took both the plow truck and the tractor to get through what had accumulated over night. I spent the morning cleaning and then joined him at about noon. We were in the truck until about 1:30pm when we cam inside to eat and get ready to ski for a bit. The wind had not died down yet so it was tough skiing and it had turned the snow into such an inconsistent mess we didn't ski for as long as we had wanted to. We came back inside and Grif went back out to make another pass in the plow. We had plans to go into town and join our friends at Brooke and Peters house for Peters bday party. So we got all ready and headed out. There are 3 possible ways for us to get to East River Road but it was impossible to get through any of them. I told you before that most of the road around us is county road. The only reason that we are responsible fore clearing any of it is that we are at the end of the road so once the road passes onto the ranch it becomes private. Anyway, the county had still not cleared the road even once since it started drifting. We got through a few drifts but go to a point even if we had busted through it there was no way that we would be able to get back up, especially not a few hours later. Our tracks would soon be filled with even more dense cement like snow. We tried our 2 other options for getting out and there was not a chance. Grif apologized that we couldn't make it to town and we went back to the house. I made some dinner with what we had in the fridge and we fell asleep watching Planet Earth. By Sunday morning the county had plowed but we were up against the same thing as the day before. We plowed until 2pm. At one point we had gotten the plow truck stuck and had to pull it our with the tractor. (My least favorite thing to do in the world!!) We took our chances and went to town to the grocery store to stock up on food. It is a pretty scary feeling to not be able to leave your house. I thought our many different emergent situations. What if I was pregnant and went into labor......what would we do. Grif said if we wanted to have kids we would have to plan for summer babies. What if I severed off my arm in the plow.....Not likely to happen. Either way, I still think it is a helpless feeling.
I get really frustrated with the county plow trucks because I really feel like they ignore our road and I drive a low to the ground little car. I have great studded tires but if the snow is higher than the clearance of my car I have no chance.
Grif called me to let me know that he is pretty sure that I could get down the road. (Since the county plowed Sat night more drifts have developed) And he 'thinks' that I should be able to get back up. Not all that reassuring.
As I sit in the office I can see the trees outside thrashing in the wind and I can hear it howling out there. I think I might just stay home today.
Pics to come........................

Then came the cold

We watch the weather channel often. early this week the weatherman was commenting on how unusually COLD it was in the northwest. Low 20s in Idaho. Completely ignoring the fact that the temps in the state next door (MT) were below zero. I do love our often forgotten state but come on, it is right there and it is huge. Monday was unbearably cold out and although it was MLK day I was out working. Doing Reward and Reminder (tobacco compliance checks) in Madison County. Thankfully it was not quite as cold there as it was in good ole L-town. At 8:30 am the bank temp was -14. At 9:30 am it had climbed to -9. Moving up in the world right.... Well, do you know what -9 feels like. Air that freezes your lungs as you breathe in is something everyone should experience and have the pleasure of enjoying sometime in life. When it is this cold the snow doesn't fall and all is pretty still, unless you are lucky to live in Livignston where is it almost never completely still. So once the snow starts falling again at least you know your lungs won't get frostbite. Or at least not as quickly. Thankfully when I was on my way home last night the snow was falling a bit again.

All my friends

You saw the cows. Here are the rest of my friends at the ranch.
Kitty (moe) is a real bad ass in the summer. But in the winter he kind of turns into a pussy.
Old doggie (14 yrs old) Fisher still loves to come play and help even if it does make him a little sore.

Hazel (white) and Corelli (bay on the other side) chillin at the feeder.
The deer are also just like pets to us. They of course keep their distance but the distance isn't much. I caught these guys eating from a bail of hay in the back of Grifs truck last weekend. They also wait each morning for G to feed the horses and they join them for breakfast.

Snow report.

Since last Friday, 1/18/08 we have had quite the downpour of snow. None of us Montanans are complaining either. We have all been praying for snow all winter it seems like and it all came at once. We got at least a couple of feet out at the ranch as you can see. These were taken over the weekend and we got at least 8-10 more inches since then. It is a winter wonderland. I was busy all last weekend but I can't wait for this weekend to be able to get out into the fields and play, play, play. Grif had to plow the road at least 4 times over the weekend and it is already not so clear again. Thank goodness for my studded tires. My little car has been a real rock start so far this winter and I am very pleased.

Doesn't this look like fun?

I want to share with you a little glimpse of my Manaia weekend. I of course can't share the photos of the participants for confidentiality reasons but I can share pics of myself. Now, if you know me well you know that I am not often very goofy like this. Being super playful and letting my guard down is not typically my style. So I think that this is telling of the kind of experience Manaia is and what it brings out in people.

Would your mom do this? I think it is kinda funny but I can't imagine being that kid.

'Meanest Mom on Planet' Sells Teen Son's Car After Finding Booze Under Seat Wednesday, January 09, 2008


DES MOINES, Iowa - Jane Hambleton has dubbed herself the "meanest mom on the planet."

After finding alcohol in her son's car, she decided to sell the car and share her 19-year-old's misdeed with everyone - by placing an ad in the local newspaper.

The ad reads: "OLDS 1999 Intrigue. Totally uncool parents who obviously don't love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for three weeks before snoopy mom who needs to get a life found booze under front seat.
$3,700/offer. Call meanest mom on the planet."

Hambleton has heard from people besides interested buyers since recently placing the ad in The Des Moines Register.

The 48-year-old from Fort Dodge says she has fielded more than 70 telephone calls from emergency room technicians, nurses, school counselors and even a Georgia man who wanted to congratulate her.

"The ad cost a fortune, but you know what? I'm telling people what happened here," Hambleton says. "I'm not just gonna put the car for resale when there's nothing wrong with it, except the driver made a dumb decision.

"It's overwhelming the number of calls I've gotten from people saying 'Thank you, it's nice to see a responsible parent.' So far there are no calls from anyone saying, 'You're really strict. You're real overboard, lady."'

The only critic is her son, who Hambleton says is "very, very unhappy"
with the ad and claims the alcohol was left by a passenger.

Hambleton believes her son but has decided mercy isn't the best policy in this case. She says she set two rules when she bought the car at
Thanksgiving: No booze, and always keep it locked.

The car has been sold, but Hambleton says she will continue the ad for another week - just for the feedback.

Da Cows

We have started calving on the ranch. And by we, I of course mean our ladies. So far we have 1 baby girl and 2 baby boys. It always AMAZES me how quickly they are up on their feet and bucking around testing out their little legs. There is a period of time when they are much more agile and much quicker than their mamas who are as slow and clumsy as can be. It is SO funny to watch the mama cows come running at feeding time as they trip and stumble over their own feet. Anyway, back to the babies. Last year the first calf just didn't have much will to live at first. Keep in mind that this was my very first experience with calving. Grif and I spent an entire afternoon out in the field bundled up to the max trying to warm up 107 (that was his tag number), unfreeze his little legs and get his mama to come take care of him. We ended up loading him up in the back of the truck, me sitting in the back holding the baby boy and taking him to the house to give him a warm bath. G carried him into the bathroom and we massaged his little body with warm water. Once he started to warm up a little he realized that he didn't like being in the bathtub inside the house. We dried him off as best we could so that he didn't freeze back up and took him back to his mama with the hopes that she would still want him since we had washed off all of his natural scent and surely by now he smelled like dryer sheets from the towels. Luckily, she took him back and pulled through. It was quite the experience for me. This year, so far so good. Once the babies are born they get tagged (one ear pierced with a number) and the boys also get banded. Then in May or so we will brand.

Not so Totally Fit

After a friend of ours had a not so great encounter at the local Total Fitness gym Grif and I decided to take our phat asses elsewhere. We are now members at the Firehall in downtown Livingston. Grif has a 3 month membership and I will be a member for the next 15 months. So again wish me luck.

Working straight through

For many of you last weekend was a 3 day weekend. And in some way I am envious. I spent last weekend working (as well as yesterday MLK day) with a youth program here in Livingston. I am honored to be able to be a part of this program know as Manaia.
For more info go to www.manaia.org
Here in our small town we have some really AMAZING things happening. I spent my weekend working with an awesome team and getting to know 15 young adults and 3 adult volunteers VERY well. We laughed, cried, argued and hugged (a lot) for 3 days straight and I am now looking forward to our 5 weeks of follow-up time together. It never ceases to amaze me what goes on in the small gym at the old Washington School. And as I mentioned before I am very proud to be a part of all of it. I am currently going through the training process to become a facilitator with Manaia. It involves 150 hours of volunteering doing things like enrollment with Wayne (program creator) and logistics for the programs. Along with 75 hours of training with Wayne and the other facilitators. It will be a long road but I am really excited about it and can't wait to develop the skills inside of me. I learn more and more about myself with each step. And if anyone is ever interested in being an adult volunteer I would encourage you to do so. It is a very powerful experience.

Under the Influence

So I know that this is a few days old but when I came to work on Monday I found these two very contradicting stories and thought it quite coincidental that they both came to light over the same weekend. Being the local Youth Prevention Specialist I sent both articles to the wonderful Project 71 (alternative high school) teacher in hopes that she would share it with her Project Penguins (students). Of course she thought it as interesting as I did and shared the two stories with her classes that day.

If you are not from Livingston you may not know the troubles that we have had over the past 3 weeks or so involving drinking and driving. There have been 3 accidents, 2 of which were fatal to some or all passengers, in the area all involving alcohol and young people (teens and twentysomethings) so these kind of national news stories are great material to add to our arsenal.

This first story is John Mayer's Blog:

SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 2008 UNDER THE (IMPRESSION I CAN) INFLUENCE (PEOPLE AROUND ME.With Chad, Left, seated. (With glasses)

I'm taking to the blog today to share something with you that I feel more passionate about than I saw coming. I want to make it short and sweet so that anybody who wants to re-print it can copy and paste without editing...Went out to dinner Thursday night. My car. One glass of wine. Carpooled from dinner to go out to one more place. Everyone in my car. At the next spot, I do the Diet Coke with Lime thing. My favorite scotch (Lagavulin 16 year) arrives under my nose. "Can't do it," I say. Then I find out my friend has switched to Designated Driver and has a plan that involves everyone getting home safe. Cool. I love Lagavulin when the time is right. Now it's the end of the night and I'm feeling wonderfully buzzy and ready to get dropped off to my house in my car, except the person that was going to follow my car in the DD's car to drive him back isn't in shape to drive either. It's 2 o'clock in the morning. I call my housemate Chad. Chad's sleeping. He was in the studio all day. I explain to him that I need him to jump in the back seat of my car, ride to the DD's car and drive me back home. Of course Chad says "yes" and comes through like a champ. A champ, I say.Here's what I want to tell you:If I, incredibly hot/fugly John Mayer can make that call, so can you. The distance from the parking lot to my house was about 5 miles, mostly straight shot up the coast of Santa Monica, zero traffic. And I didn't drive it. Me. The guy who gets the VIP velvet rope treatment in life. Oh, and the call? It's not the coolest you'll ever sound. And the logistics? It's kind of inelegant. You trace the same route twice when all you want to do is fall into bed. But you gotta do it.This is all coming from a guy who you can be sure would have found a sexier way to get home if there was one available. And there just isn't, especially in LA. (You can be sexy again the next day when you wake up with the rest of your big, beautiful life in front of you.)I'm not writing this to earn golf claps, it's just that if I'm going to stand in any way as an ambassador of something cool or influential, this is more important than any pair of sneakers or a guitar. And to give a big high five to the Chads of the world. See you around JM

This second story is from the news:
Pulp Fiction' Screenwriter Arrested
AP
Posted: 2008-01-14 07:45:50
VENTURA, Calif. (AP) - Oscar-winning screenwriter Roger Avary has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and driving under the influence after a Ventura County car crash that killed a man and injured Avary's wife, authorities said.Avary, 42, was the driver in the single-car collision shortly after midnight Sunday in Ojai, said Capt. Ross Bonfiglio of the Ventura County Sheriff's Department.Killed in the accident was Andreas Zini, 34, a resident of Italy who was apparently visiting the couple. Firefighters cut Zini from the car with Jaws of Life, and he died several hours later at Ventura County Medical Center.Avary's wife Gretchen, 40, was ejected from the car and found in the road by deputies, Bonfiglio said. She was hospitalized in stable condition.Avary was booked but later released on $50,000 bail, Bonfiglio said. He did not know whether Avary has hired an attorney.Avary won an Academy Award along with Quentin Tarantino for writing "Pulp Fiction," and was also a co-writer of the recent epic "Beowulf." He and his wife live in Ojai, a popular artists' colony and tourist destination 14 miles north of Ventura.

A breath of fresh air.

For any of you who do not know about Livingston or where I live. I am going to show you what you are missing out on.

This is taken just out of our back door. A little jealous......I thought you might be. But don't worry, you can come visit anytime.

This is the view from where we went xmas tree hunting this year. Luckily for us, it is just above our house on the property where we live.

Our friends Will and Suzie and their 'kids' Foxy and Annie on the xmas tree hunt.

This is Grif and I in mid December finding the perfect xmas tree.

Gettin Totally Fit!

Today I have decided that I am going to join the local gym. Total Fitness to be specific. Because I want to be Totally Fit!! So keep me honest and remind me that I should be going on a regular basis. Grif has recently joined along with many of our friends. So friends, I will be seeing you there. I am going to try to get into a routine. I am really bad about routines tho. After work all I really want to do is go home and eat some food which leads to me doing nothing active in the evenings. Especially when the temp creeps lower and lower. SO, see you at the gym!!!

rundown

This will be a brief rundown of my life. To inform you and give me a chance to reflect. I have found myself once again living in quaint little Livingston, MT. This is the place where I grew up. For 15 years (age 3-18) Livingston was my home sweet home. After a HUGE (lol) move over the hill to Bozeman I never again thought that I would make my home in Livingston. But to my surprise, and to all of my family and friends...........here I am. And surprisingly loving it. Livingston is not quite the same as I remember back in the good ole high school days. I find that there is much to do and the beauty that I am surrounded by keeps me quite content. I live now out in Paradise Valley on a 1,000 acre ranch with the most amazing person I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. There with his 14 yr old ranch dog Fisher, hard core killer kitty, 2 horses, and between 12 and 24 cows (depending on the time of year) we live quietly. It is a quick 10 mile drive to town that we often choose not to make over the weekends. I have found myself working at Southwest Chemical Dependency Program-I know, surprising huh? I am the Prevention Specialist which means I spend my days in and out of the schools and all over town working with some really amazing people all with the intentions of making Livingston a better, safer, cleaner place for all of us to enjoy. I have also recently started working with Manaia Youth Programs which I will explain in more detail some other time. Grif and I work hard all week and work hard at home. (He works a little harder than I do, but I try to help) But don't worry, we always find time to play in between.

Hello out there.

Today--January 15, 2008--I am now officially a 'blogger'. I love to read my friend Brooke's blog and although I also have both a myspace and facebook neither are much of an outlet for updating, venting or rambling. So this might be fun. Or it could turn into yet another space that I never change aside from the occasional mass picture uploads. We'll see I guess. Talk soon.
-J