30 Day Blog Challenge: days 1 and 2

I realized recently that this blog has lain dormant for too long. I never know what to write about. Of the thousands of words I have written, I have done very little creative writing since college. My life at the keyboard has been spent presenting the facts. So, I went to Pinterest and found some blogging pins.  I searched blog ideas. I found a few. I am now getting emails about starting a blog; I've had a blog for years, I don't need to START one, I need to give it CPR. I also found this challenge. It is quite introspective, something I tend to shy away from. I will definitely be moving out of my comfort zone.

Since this is coming to you on the 2nd of November, I have obviously already "failed" at the 30 days. So today will be a double topic. I actually think it will get easier as the month progresses. Days one and two are to 1. Describe your relationship and 2. Where do you see yourself in 10 years.
Weighty subject matter!

I am not in a relationship, unless cats count? I also am not sure how I sit here 48 years old and have never been married, have not even been close since my 20s. So, I guess it is time for some self inspection. I work. I have a full time job and a couple side jobs. I have almost all my adult life worked multiple jobs, and early mornings, both of which make it easy to say no if someone asks you out, and I have witnessed enough relationship foul a workplace that I would not date a co-worker. Layer one of the protective circle.

In your 20s, even with a grueling schedule there were many other singles, so there were opportunities for socialization, that got harder and harder as I got older. I also look at the many moves my career took me on, it seemed every new community it was harder to make social friends, versus work friends, until I just gave up and stayed home with my cats and  a book.
I also feel that while I am back in my home town, and know just about everyone, social circles are set, and no one has invited me in. I'm too socially awkward to invite myself. So I do feel envious when a group of ladies come in for a girls night when I'm bartending.

Wow, this has really turned into a pity party! So time to stop! What it boils down to, is that I am NOT happy with my relationship status, but damned if I know how to change it. I have tried on line dating. Thought I met a decent guy, dated for a year and caught him cheating.  That is something that I have zero tolerance for. If you are unhappy in a relationship you have two clear choices. The first is the hardest, FIX THE PROBLEM, many people apparently don't understand that a good relationship takes two people, working hard to keep it good. The second choice is to get out. If you are unhappy, chances are your partner is too. That is the easy way. The slimy way is to cheat. I guess another reason I'm still single is that I feel NO relationship is better than a BAD relationship. I don't understand otherwise strong women who stay with guys who are verbally or physically abusive, the need to not be alone overwhelming their self preservation. Just don't get it.

I'm going to shush on the day one topic, obviously I can get wound up! Day two's topic is even harder for me to write about. So many times in my life I have made those long term plans and goals, and then a few months down the road ownership change, mass layoffs and all my hopes and dreams get shattered and I am looking for the next gig. So sadly, at my age, I have become a superstitious old hag and hate to dream or plan a future more than a few months to one year down the road.

Your thoughts and experiences? Advice for how I can get out of my rut that has become as comfortable as a favorite sweatshirt?

spruce up

2015 Crop Outlook

This is the time of year when farmers are spending time learning and planning for the coming crop year. Last week farmers gathered in Paullina to hear  three speakers talking about topics ranging from the outlook for ethanol, transitioning the farm to the next generation and the price outlook for 2015. There was good news and not so good news.

Randy Ives, the ethanol services director for Gavilon, told the audience that ethanol exports may be the key to supporting corn prices.


Check this out on Chirbit

David Baker, Farm Transition Specialist at the  Beginning Farmer Center shared the keys to transitioning the farm operation from one generation to the other. He also is working with an organization to bring the new generation of veterans into agriculture.



Check this out on Chirbit

And the final speaker was Chad Hart, Extension Economist with his outlook for farm prices for 2015. His outlook was not optimistic. His figures and Extension Climatologist Elwin Taylors forecast point to a 2015 corn crop identical in size to the crop from 2014, 171 million bushels. That will put pressure on corn prices,

Check this out on Chirbit

Crop Fair will have timely information for producers

This is the time of year where farmers and ranchers are busy not in the field, but at meetings, trade shows and seminars. As the business of food and fiber production becomes more complex, continuing education becomes a vital part of a solid business plan. Farmers and ranchers will spend a considerable amount of time over the next 2 months learning. One of those opportunities is on Wednesday, February 4th. The Iowa Corn Crop Fair will be held at the American Legion in Paullina. Doug Ebel of Iowa State Bank to talk about the event,



Check this out on Chirbit
Here are those details again:  February 4, 8:30-12:30 American Legion, Paullina IA.
Contact the bank by end of day February 2nd so they can get a good count for lunch.

Please be safe in the field

#Harvest2014 is underway across rural america. Here in Northwest Iowa, there are some early beans coming out, and silage chopping is somewhere in the middle of harvest. This has not been a good year for farm safety.

 Do a Google search for 2014 Farm accidents, and along with the humorous (for us) failures of common sense that got caught on video, you will find these headlines:

That's too many lives lost on the farm.  And too many YOUNG lives lost.  It is difficult to keep safety top of mind, we all get in a hurry, stressed by the pressures of the job, keeping an eye on the markets, the weather, the monitors.... everything.

Remember please, if something gets jammed, turn the machine off, take the key out, put it in your pocket, and only then start to work on the problem.  When I had John Hansen here to talk about Creekfest (which was AWESOME!) I took the opportunity to chat about farm safety.

 John can speak to farm safety from a couple different angles... He's a farmer and a truck driver, hauling livestock all over the region, and he's a Paramedic, who has responded to many farm accidents. John is also one of  the most requested trainers in the country to talk about responding to agricultural accidents. I've taken his class.... he truly is one of the best!

So, please take a few minutes to listen to our conversation.


Check this out on Chirbit

Download it, share it with your neighbors, and please, please, please, be safe this harvest.

Logistics and Lifeguarding: Really Living with Cystic Fibrosis

 In November 1992, The Paullina Times featured 11 month old Ethan Pauling, and his recent diagnosis with Cystic Fibrosis. His Parents Craig and Susan were just learning how to manage his medical needs. In  the mid-90s the family moved to Texas. Ethan is now  in his 20s, and in his 5^th year at University of Texas, Austin majoring in environmental science. He works as a life guard on a beach in Galveston.

Looking at Ethan, and talking with him,  you wouldn’t know he spends hours of his day managing his medical condition.  Google Cystic Fibrosis and this is what it tells you: “Cystic fibrosis is a disease passed down through families that causes thick, sticky mucus to build up in the lungs, digestive tract, and other areas of the body. It is one of the most common chronic lung diseases in children and young adults. It is a life-threatening disorder.” Treatment involves a strict routine of nebulizers and medications to keep the symptoms at bay.

Ethan says he hasn’t let that stop him from doing what he wants to do, well, it did keep him from playing football, there was too much risk of dehydration. “I played soccer, and swam in high school, and was good at it. I’m pretty happy with my life right now. I don’t get disappointed or depressed, really about anything. Sometimes I think it would be nice to not have to worry about going off camping somewhere and not worry about waking up and having to feel better. But I have been able to go camping.”

He says he has inhalers that work really well for him, but the nebulizer needs electricity, which makes it challenging to go backpacking.

Ethan does have advice for parents whose child is diagnosed with CF: “My parents never really discouraged me from doing anything… if I had a kid with CF I would let him do what he wants to do and find a way for him to be happy. That’s mainly it.”

He says the logistics of managing CF are always in the back of his mind, but he doesn’t let it keep him from having fun with friends and pursuing the things he wants to do. “It’s time consuming.” He says if he stays with friends he takes a backpack full of his medications and nebulizer, but he still goes and has fun.  “always in the back of my head I have to think about my treatments and medicines.”

He also plays on the club water polo team at UT, noting that exercise is very important to help keep his lungs clear. He says lifeguarding has been a good job for him, they have mandatory workouts where they might have to run 3 miles or swim as far. He says Galveston Bay is fairly calm, but they do have to keep swimmers away from the jetties and the sea wall.

To learn more about Ethan, listen to our interview!  

Check this out on Chirbit

Time for a party in the pasture

From humble beginnings, to a premiere music event headlined by one of the hottest bands in the country, Creek Fest has come a long way in 5 years. I sat down recently with one of the organizers, John Hansen to talk about the event coming up this weekend.

Check this out on Chirbit

You can also get the details at the event website. If you go to the show after hearing about it here, stop at the EMS tent Friday night and say hey.

The Wind blows a lot... time to harvest the power

Every day we see white trucks drive by our farm. We see construction equipment moving from site to site. we see the signs of a large construction project. The project is the Highland wind farm, a 200 Turbine 500 megawatt project owned by MidAmerican Energy. You can find more information about MidAmerican and wind energy at their website.   I had an opportunity recently to go for a ride with Site Lead Shannon Bell and MidAmerican Energy Supervisor of Wind Energy Adam Jablonski. I asked these gentlemen questions for almost an hour, Some of my questions are rather silly, culled from what I've heard around town and at council meetings, and of course, for those who know me, know I will keep asking questions when given the opportunity! But each was answered. It was an enjoyable interview, give it a listen, I think you will learn a lot about the future of wind energy in O'Brien County.


Check this out on Chirbit
This is the article I culled from the interview for the Paullina Times.

The signs of a major construction project are everywhere, signs like this, and signs warning of children at play. Increased traffic as trucks and equipment move from site to site. 

A caution sign erected by contractors for MidAmerican Energy

The O’Brien County turbines, are part of  MidAmerican Energy’s Wind VIII project.  The total project, which includes several counties will provide more than $3 million dollars in landowner payments and is expected to create        more than $360 million dollars in property tax revenues. Supervisor of Wind Operations Adam Jablonski says the project wouldn’t happen without the support of the landowners. “They let us use their land for a certain amount of things and they get financial compensation for that. I think that's number one, we are part of the community, but we are only here because the landowners let us be here.”   

The future site of a wind turbine in the distance.

The construction process for a wind farm is hard to miss: increased traffic, construction equipment moving from one site to another, it’s not an easy process. The wind farm under construction in O’Brien County will produce 502 megawatts of power for MidAmerican Energy customers. The project is widespread through central O’Brien County. Jablonski says there are 300 unique landowners involved in the project. “ This will be one of the top ten in the United States built in one phase.  So, a very large project. The reason it's being spread out over two years is the massive volume. we did construct a 193 turbine project in southwest Iowa and we learned some lessons from there. There was just too much going on at once, it created safety issues.”

How does a project of this scope be a good actor, a good neighbor?   Logistics. Jablonski says meeting that challenge with all the different locations of the project is very important and difficult. “Getting all the components, the rebar, and the concrete from place to place. To do that you have to drive a lot of times by households.  And so the dust control is a big one, making sure we keep that up and always respecting the local traffic or the farm traffic. I know a lot of the crews will either slow down or completely pull over when local traffic is on the same road.”

While chemical dust control is applied in front of acreages, Mortenson Construction also applies water to control the dust elsewhere on roads that are being heavily travelled at different stages of the project.

There are signs that safety is also a top priority, overhead wire signs whenever construction traffic will have to cross under a wire, either while going down the road or when turning onto an access road.  They have also installed “watch for children” signs on either side of acreages that have young children.  Site Lead Shannon Bell says that crews will be mowing around those signs and maintaining them through the summer so that they will remain highly visible.

Construction is scheduled to be finished by the end of next year. The last several weeks have been a challenge because of rain delays. Bell says it takes 24 hours to drain each foundation and wash the rebar.  Bell says the wet conditions have slowed the work. He says the focus is on working safely, so everyone slows down and helps each other out more. “We take it slow and safe, that’s our policy.” He gave some examples, such as tasks that are a one person job in ideal conditions become a two man job when the footing is muddy and slick.  The rains have slowed construction this summer, and the project will again slow in the winter when it gets too cold.

To meet the construction goal of the end of 2015, the work is done methodically with crews focusing on specific segments of construction. For example there is one crew that builds the access roads, another that digs the foundations, and yet others who install rebar, and concrete.

Jablonski says the workers definitely respect their neighbors. “But, keep your eyes open. There's going to be a lot more traffic going up and down the roads than what everyone is used to. As much as we try to be safe, we ask the land owners and residents of the area to keep that watchful eye out there. Midamerican has the job trailers out there and we have a 1800 wind hotline, if you see a safety issue or have any questions feel free to call or stop in and we’ll address your issues or questions.” 

Spring is in the air....

The calendar says it's spring.... the smidge of green I can see in the grass says it MIGHT be spring, and the pollen count from the trees says spring is definitely in the air. I just wish there weren't more snow in the forecast! 

And a new laptop means the blog is back in business. I'm very excited to get some farmers back around the table before they get too busy with planting. Also hope to get more South O'Brien FFA members to the table, those kids have been having a great year! But for now, as promised long before the old laptop gave up the ghost... I'm going fangirl. I want to tell you about my new favorite musician. He's a fella by the name of Corb Lund. I think he's wonderful. If you're tired of the fluffy country music that we hear on the radio here in the U.S., if you loved Chris LeDoux and his songs about horses and life and cows....well, Corb is just as awesome.

 Check out the video for September. When I fell in love with this guy.. I can quote the interview. He said when he sits down to write a love song it usually ends up being about a horse. Who wouldn't love a guy like that? Seriously. But it's more than that. He writes about more than drinking, beer, girls in painted on jeans, and getting the truck muddy... okay he does have a song about getting the truck stuck.... actually all the trucks getting stuck .So the bottom line, if you want to listen to music about more than partying and cheating.... Check out our neighbor from the north... I think you'll be as impressed as I was after hearing Bible on the Dash for the first time. In fact, when you check out Corb, Check out Texan Hayes Carll... There's a whole world of great music that doesn't make the airwaves in the U.S. But the state of the radio industry is something that I don't want to discuss. So, check him out and let me know what you think of this artist and storyteller from Alberta.

Economic Development in NW Iowa. We have JOBS!!!! We Need People.

Northwest Iowa Development held its annual partners meeting last week in Sheldon. The economic development group represents six northwest Iowa counties.  The organization has been hard at work promoting growth in Northwest Iowa.  Vice Chair of the organization Steve Simons highlighted the development accomplishments:  there were 875 new jobs created, $105,385,000in new capital investment,  49 projects identified, 5 projects required IEDA financial assistance- $2.5M in tax credit and high quality jobs direct assistance.  Simons also said that approval of an application for Foreign Trade Zone Status should be coming before the end of the year. Simons said on average, each project creates 18 jobs.

Speakers at the event were State Economic Development Director Deb Durham and Governor Terry Branstad.

Check this out on Chirbit

Farmers' Table: Farm Rescue

Neighbors helping neighbors has been a rural tradition since farmers started farming. I can remember growing up how Dad would leave his field to help a neighbor in need of assistance. How it was almost a matter of pride to be able to lend a hand. It was also welcome, whether for planting, harvest or hay... many hands can make light work for a family that is struggling with  a death, or a health crisis.
Now days, neighbors who are able to help with field work are fewer and farther between, as farms have increased in size and farmer numbers have decreased.
What this means is that the helping neighbor has to come from a little farther away, from organizations like Farm Rescue. It's the same help my Dad gave the neighbors, and his dad and grandfather before him.

At the Clay County Fair I had a chance to learn more about Farm Rescue and  how this great organization got started when I visited with Danielle Abbas.
Check this out on Chirbit  This organization has helped over 230 farm families in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and eastern Montana since 2006.

Danielle Abbas working the booth at the Clay County Fair telling the Farm Rescue story.

Granville Fire and EMS Fundraiser coming to a close

In small rural communities it is a challenge to fund and maintain emergency services such as the fire department and the ambulance. The challenge is especially difficult when the departments need new infrastructure or apparatus, neither of which comes with a small price tag. These departments work hard to keep their facilities and equipment up to current standards, without overly taxing the community they serve.

Granville Fire and EMS has found such a way to fund construction of a new fire and ambulance station. They have been selling raffle tickets for several months. The raffle they put together appeals to  just about everyone.

There are a few tickets left, but they expect to have them all sold by the drawing next week.  Fire Chief Gregg Penning and project chairman Steve Christensen joined me at the Farmers' Table to talk about the project, volunteering in a rural community, and how the crops look.  Click here to listen!

County fairs.. memories and big things to come

I grew up going to the county fair, first watching my brothers show hogs, then when I was old enough for 4-H showing my pony and horses. Great memories and great experiences that I recall to this day. I had a chance to visit recently with O'Brien County Fair Board President Darwin Gaudian.
Darwin has been president of the fair board for 10 years, and has been involved with the fair, either as an exhibitor in 4-H and FFA or as an adult, well, darn near his whole life!
There was one thing in our conversation that surprised me... there is not a lack of volunteers when it comes to the county fair. Other community efforts in our rural area struggle to find enough help, but not the fair... he gave me some insight into why that is.   Listen and enjoy, this edition of The Farmers' Table.

Check this out on Chirbit

The Farmers' Table

February got away from me, and I didn't get the interview done, so I hope to have two for you in March. Today I sat down with Austin Rohrs and Denny Weber, both juniors at South O'Brien High School, also with us was their FFA adviser Mr. Eric Kumm. These are wonderful young men! Every time I have interviewed members of the FFA I have wished to go back in time to high school and join. This time was no different.

We talked about what they've been up to in FFA and how they think it will benefit them down the road in what ever careers they choose.  
Check this out on ChirbitListen and enjoy!



I will add that my equipment is still primative, I have a lovely little mixer and additional mics picked out on Amazon, but haven't bit the bullet yet.

Writing exercise:learning from the master

I'm still slowly working through Dinty Moore's Crafting the Personal Essay, and sharing my writing exercises, here at Tall Corn. This exercise involves an essay of Michael de Montaigne, and translating his words into the common speech of today.
 Here's the quoted text:

Others form man; I only report him: and represent a particular one, ill fashioned enough, and whom, if I had to model him anew, I should certainly make something else than what he is: but that’s past recalling. Now, though the features of my picture alter and change, ’tis not, however, unlike: the world eternally turns round; all things therein are incessantly moving, the earth, the rocks of Caucasus, and the pyramids of Egypt, both by the public motion and their own. Even constancy itself is no other but a slower and more languishing motion. I cannot fix my object; ’tis always tottering and reeling by a natural giddiness: I take it as it is at the instant I consider it; I do not paint its being, I paint its passage; not a passing from one age to another, or, as the people say, from seven to seven years, but from day to day, from minute to minute.

Here's my effort:

Man is what he is, but not perfect, and given the opportunity I would change him, but that's not possible. My perspective changes, much like the world turns and time marches on, both in ages and minute by minute.

Can't tell I have been writing in broadcast style for 25 years, lol. Not sure I have the gist of this one, I think he's talking about the flaws of man that he would change, and that those flaws also change just like time moves on and time changes things.

A new year, a new plan.

With the new year I have a new plan. I hope you will join me in the adventure. I spent most of the last 20 years working as a farm broadcaster, I LOVE talking to farmers and telling the story of modern life on the farm. Whether it's someone who embraces all the new technology and science in their farm business or someone who holds to the tried and true, I love talking to farmers.

If you want to meet people who truly love what they do every day, join us at the Farmer's Table, a conversation with farmers about agriculture, what is impacting their farm as a business and their families as consumers.

This is the first conversation of the new year. Iowa Corn Growers' Association President Bruce Rohrwer, and past chairman of the National Pork Board Tim Bierman joined me at the table to talk about the issues and life in rural Iowa.

This is a 40 minute conversation, I am posting the entirety. I will confess, that I am a little rusty, and I don't have my technology where I want it yet, but enjoy this discussion about the statehouse, Congress, drought, volunteering, and the love of farming.

The Farmers' Table, January 5, 2013.

It's been two years...

I am in the process of renewing my National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) license. I can't believe it has been two years already. It feels like I was in class just yesterday. Becoming an EMT has been a goal of mine since I first became a trained first responder in 2005.  And I'm already renewing the license.

Listening to the news, I'm reminded of what I haven't seen while in the back of the ambulance. I haven't been on any major trauma calls, no MVC, or farm accident. I actually hope that I can go another license period without having to treat a major trauma patient, because that means my neighbors and friends and family are safe.  I don't know what I would have done had I been on a rig in Newtown, on Friday. I am guessing that like the men and women there, I would do what I was trained to do. And as I'm sure many of them have done, hold my tears back until I was back at the station.

The folks who are on the front line of responding to a 911 call, the police, fire, and those of us in Emergency Medical Services will bear the scars of what happened as surely as the families of those lost. We all have calls that stay with us. To this day, I can tell you every detail of  a search that ended up being a recovery, and the every detail of the first fatal accident I responded to.  My sister-in-law keeps telling me that  it takes a very special person to be an EMT. These things stay with you, and either hold you back or make you better at your job.

Here is a really good synopsis of why critical stress debriefing is VITAL for all first responders, no matter the depth of the tragedy.

To learn about the different types of debriefs, click here

And, while being far from a mental health professional, I think in the wake of tragedy that touches each and everyone of us, whether we lost friends, family, or hope that innocence is still safe in America, a critical stress debriefing would benefit each and every one of us, that and a hug.

The Full Weight

I am currently reading the book, Crafting the Personal Essay: a Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Nonfiction by Dinty W. Moore.As part of the book, Professor Moore has writing exercises.  This is number four.
#

The guilt of failure can be overwhelming. It often sneaks up and strikes out of nowhere. My dad died at the end of August. I gave him CPR, but failed to resuscitate him. Now, you can tell me that it was his time, he was ready to end his fight against cancer and COPD, and ready to be free of pain. I know those things on one level. But that doesn't keep me from feeling the guilt of failure, and shedding tears as I write this.

My training says I did everything I could... breaths, compressions, shock when advised by the AED, but I still feel the failure because I wasn't ready to let him go. I thought he would live till November, see one more harvest, one more turn of the calendar to Autumn, maybe even one more snowfall.

So I am moving through grief, burdened by a guilt that others say I should not carry, yet can't seem to set down.

The flood of memory

I am currently reading the book, Crafting the Personal Essay: a Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Nonfiction by Dinty W. Moore.As part of the book, Professor Moore has writing exercises. This is the third.

#

This is an exercise in memory. Take 10 minutes and mine the details of a memory. My classmates have been talking about the blizzard of 1975. There have been other blizzards since, but this one was really memorable for me. 
One of the first things I remember are the losses. The storm turned out to be much worse than predicted, and at least one cattle feeder lost most of the animals in his feed lot at the time.  What don't remember, but have found a link, is that it made national news. 

I remember Dad couldn't get my pony into the barn with the other horses, we have a photo of her standing on a drift ABOVE the machine shed. She was too mean to perish in such a storm. 

I remember the farm was out of power for two weeks and I had to stay at my grandparents in town, yet I don't recall anyone caterwauling about the power company not doing enough to get power restored....

Our family hobby was snowmobiling, I remember as a family, we went to check on all our neighbors after the storm and  went to town on the snowmobiles to get groceries for everyone.

I remember snow drifts as tall as the trees, and power poles nearly enveloped in snow.  Which a google check shows why, 90 mile an hour winds, added to lots of snow, and it was one of the top 10 worst storms of the century.   

I look out the window at the bare dusting of snow on the ground today, it doesn't even look like real snow, it looks like fake TV snow, and remember the snows of my childhood, including and especially the Blizzard of 1975.

Why do you write?

I am currently reading the book, Crafting the Personal Essay: a Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Nonfiction by Dinty W. Moore.

As part of the book, Professor Moore has writing exercises.  This is the second.


#


Why do you write? That 's the question. I think I write because I like to tell stories. To share someone's story with others or to share knowledge that just might come in handy in a pinch. 
I remember during the Cedar Rapids flood, I came home to find the power out. I asked my neighbor how long we had been out, thinking about the food in my freezer... She answered me and referenced an interview I had done with an extension specialist and aired on WMT... that's why I write, and interview, to help people when they need the information that I can glean from the experts. 

I think what I want to write now, I am writing more for myself, the need to re-develop a creativity, that feels likeit has been quashed down into a little box. To share something of my self, and maybe help myself with the information I uncover.