THIS IS NOT MY YEAR
Well, needless to say, the New Year is also a jerk. Apparently it's not my year to make it ahead or get along with anybody.
Unfortunately, I have been chasing horses since the day after Christmas because my fence kept coming down. It took a few days to figure out what was going on. There is a herd of 62 deer living in the shelter belt inside my pasture. They took up residency when two people from town started to feed them during bow hunting season. There is nothing wrong with feeding the deer and this is something that they usually do every year because they don't like to see the deer starve, but 10 deer rapidly turned to 60 when the deer figured out there was good food lying around and this year they decided to stay in my shelter belt.
The townsfolk started to get very upset with the horses running around town everyday. I wasn't any happier than they were about it, trust me. Good Lord, who enjoys herding horses home with their car in 20 below weather and putting up fence every single day for a month. If they thought I was having fun, they were seriously mistaken. I was also getting concerned about the horses reaching the highway. If they were out there in the middle of the night nobody would see them and they would end up killing somebody if they were ever hit by a car. They were becoming downright dangerous. However, the true source of my problem was the deer, not the horses, and I have to admit that I was getting very tired of everyone screaming over the horses while nobody said a single word to the men who drew all the wonderful beasts in. Don't get me wrong, I really like the two men who are feeding the deer. They are good, decent stand-up folks, but they did create a headache for me this year.
I broke down and bought everything I needed for a 12.5 gauge high tinsel electric fence. It was expensive, but also my very last resort. You cannot do much more after putting up a brand new fence. When you do that, you have pretty much hit the bottom of the barrel. I also called the ND Game & Fish and told them that if they didn't help with the deer wiping out my fence I was going to start shooting them out my back door. After I hung up the phone I had two men from the Game & Fish at my door in 45 minutes. The NDGF walked around the property, saw all the deer, found their bedding spots, and eyed the grain elevator where all the food for the deer was being supplied. Unfortunately because of the great thermal protection my shelter belt gives and the 24/7 food supply from the elevator there was nothing they could do because the deer would just return within minutes. They said the next step is to contact the Department of Agriculture to see if any animals can be baited or trapped.
Luckily, since putting up the new fence the deer have not been able to break it so far (knock on wood). But the moment that they do go through it and my horses get out, I will become an avid hunter, pro-poacher, and a life long member of the NRA and will not give a damn what any of my neighbors think of it. Be prepared everyone, because I am going to become the female version of Ted Nugent overnight.
Wednesday was not a good day either. I was let go from my job up at the hog farm. I am not going to go into any of the details. All I have to say is that I absolutely loved that job, it was perfect for me, and I was sad to go. I have high respect for all the managers and co-workers. They did pay me the full bonus that some of the employees will be receiving next month, I filed for unemployment and am waiting to hear back from them, and I did get my taxes filed on Friday and should get my return in two weeks, so I should be okay for a little while.
There is everything in a nutshell. I will write more when I have the time. Right now what I really want to do is to go to town, tie one on with my best buddy, and talk about everything that's going on and heed some of his advice. If anyone can make me see the good points in life when I am at my worst, it is definitely him.
Unfortunately, I have been chasing horses since the day after Christmas because my fence kept coming down. It took a few days to figure out what was going on. There is a herd of 62 deer living in the shelter belt inside my pasture. They took up residency when two people from town started to feed them during bow hunting season. There is nothing wrong with feeding the deer and this is something that they usually do every year because they don't like to see the deer starve, but 10 deer rapidly turned to 60 when the deer figured out there was good food lying around and this year they decided to stay in my shelter belt.
The townsfolk started to get very upset with the horses running around town everyday. I wasn't any happier than they were about it, trust me. Good Lord, who enjoys herding horses home with their car in 20 below weather and putting up fence every single day for a month. If they thought I was having fun, they were seriously mistaken. I was also getting concerned about the horses reaching the highway. If they were out there in the middle of the night nobody would see them and they would end up killing somebody if they were ever hit by a car. They were becoming downright dangerous. However, the true source of my problem was the deer, not the horses, and I have to admit that I was getting very tired of everyone screaming over the horses while nobody said a single word to the men who drew all the wonderful beasts in. Don't get me wrong, I really like the two men who are feeding the deer. They are good, decent stand-up folks, but they did create a headache for me this year.
I broke down and bought everything I needed for a 12.5 gauge high tinsel electric fence. It was expensive, but also my very last resort. You cannot do much more after putting up a brand new fence. When you do that, you have pretty much hit the bottom of the barrel. I also called the ND Game & Fish and told them that if they didn't help with the deer wiping out my fence I was going to start shooting them out my back door. After I hung up the phone I had two men from the Game & Fish at my door in 45 minutes. The NDGF walked around the property, saw all the deer, found their bedding spots, and eyed the grain elevator where all the food for the deer was being supplied. Unfortunately because of the great thermal protection my shelter belt gives and the 24/7 food supply from the elevator there was nothing they could do because the deer would just return within minutes. They said the next step is to contact the Department of Agriculture to see if any animals can be baited or trapped.
Luckily, since putting up the new fence the deer have not been able to break it so far (knock on wood). But the moment that they do go through it and my horses get out, I will become an avid hunter, pro-poacher, and a life long member of the NRA and will not give a damn what any of my neighbors think of it. Be prepared everyone, because I am going to become the female version of Ted Nugent overnight.
Wednesday was not a good day either. I was let go from my job up at the hog farm. I am not going to go into any of the details. All I have to say is that I absolutely loved that job, it was perfect for me, and I was sad to go. I have high respect for all the managers and co-workers. They did pay me the full bonus that some of the employees will be receiving next month, I filed for unemployment and am waiting to hear back from them, and I did get my taxes filed on Friday and should get my return in two weeks, so I should be okay for a little while.
There is everything in a nutshell. I will write more when I have the time. Right now what I really want to do is to go to town, tie one on with my best buddy, and talk about everything that's going on and heed some of his advice. If anyone can make me see the good points in life when I am at my worst, it is definitely him.
posted by Janelle @ 6:13 PM
4 Comments:
At January 25, 2011 at 6:27 PM,
Unknown said…
Kiddo, glad to see you back on line. Vent as much as you want. It is healthier than holding it in.
You may need to use those deer to pad your freezer. How are you at dressing a deer?
I am so sorry about your job. I have heard too many stories like this over the past few years. I have on advice other than to say, "This too will pass." Sounds a little hollow, but you WILL get through this.
Karen
At January 25, 2011 at 6:30 PM,
Unknown said…
Me again...
If you need to laugh once in a while why don't you follow my site. It is my desire to bring smiles and laughs into the lives of others.
Just a suggestion.....
At January 26, 2011 at 8:12 AM,
Anonymous said…
FYI, anytime you have an elevater or grain bins in town you are going to have deer. If you hadn't noticed, we have alot of snow and the deer are starving, so yes, the deer are being fed. Your horses have been getting out for a long time now so don't keep blaming it on just the deer! They too, have been out looking for food to eat! If you are going to have horses, take care of them and quit expecting everyone else to do it for you.
Also, you might want to start throwing your garbage in the dumpster so you don't get anymore skunks and raccoons like last winter and then whining about it on your blog. Your garbage attracts those animals also.
Also, no one locked your horses in someones barn like you accused, they were locked out because they are always in there. They broke in. Get your story straight.
At January 26, 2011 at 6:36 PM,
Janelle said…
Karen ~ I absolutely love the stuff on your blog. It was good for a lot of belly laughs. I will definately have to check up on it more often. However, with both of my computers being down, it's hard to even post something on mine regularily.
Brenda ~ I am sorry, I did give you wrong information on the phone. I was going on assumption because I hadn't spoke with Bob yet at the time, but was trying to get a hold of him. I did speak later that week with him. He had told me that the horses were not in the holding yard when he closed the gate. We found out where they got in from. I do appologize for the misinformation on the phone.
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