Late Summer/Early Fall 2012

Dusty Old Dust …

 

I donʼt know whatʼs worse for a hog farmer … mud or dust.

August was very dry here in the northern Rockies, and these cloudless days have carried over into September without a hitch. In this land of frequent precip, it doesnʼt take much of a dry spell to pull whatever moisture thatʼs in the ground out of it and turn the forest floor into kindling.  Some fires are burning around Montana, but fortunately none around here … yet.

This is a tough time for the hogs.

So when they see me coming with the water hose Iʼm sure itʼs like the sound of that ice cream truck getting closer when I was a kid. And the dust rises up and into everything… our eyes, ears, nose … but our animals are good troopers and seem to be taking it all in stride.

All this dry dirt makes me think of the Dust Bowl days and old Woody Guthrie …


I got that dust pneumony, pneumony in my lung,
I got the dust pneumony, pneumony in my lung,
An’ I’m a-gonna sing this dust pneumony song.
I went to the doctor, and the doctor, said, “My son,”
I went to the doctor, and the doctor, said, “My son,
You got that dust pneumony an’ you ain’t got long, not long.”
Now there ought to be some yodelin’ in this song;
Yeah, there ought to be some yodelin’ in this song;
But I can’t yodel for the rattlin’ in my lung.
My good gal sings the dust pneumony blues,
My good gal sings the dust pneumony blues,
She loves me ’cause she’s got the dust pneumony, too.
It it wasn’t for choppin’ my hoe would turn to rust,
If it wasn’t for choppin’ my hoe would turn to rust,
I can’t find a woman in this black ol’ Texas dust.
Down in Oklahoma, the wind blows mighty strong,
Down in Oklahoma, the wind blows mighty strong,
If you want to get a mama, just sing a California song.
Down in Texas, my gal fainted in the rain,
Down in Texas, my gal fainted in the rain,
I throwed a bucket o’ dirt in her face just to bring her back again.


… Dust Pneumonia Blues … by Woody Guthrie

 

No rain in the forecast yet …but the nights are getting colder, the leaves are turning and a new season is on its way …