R&R&R

Memorial Day Weekend goes one of two ways: 1) we're starting to cut hay and are up to our ears in alfalfa and irrigating or, 2) it rains and our responsibilities on the ranch are reduced to feeding a few horses and checking the purebred herd for new babies.  This year we hit door number 2, which was great because our friends, Paul, Amy, and Malcolm, from Oakland made their annual pilgrimage north and I got to join in on all the debauchery fun.

We try to fit in all the ranch and valley activities we think they might enjoy and not otherwise get to do in the city.  Sometimes, admittedly, we go a little overboard.  Paul and Amy are very busy folks and probably wish for a quiet country weekend, full of Rest, Rose´, and Rounds (of ammunition).  Instead, as soon as they arrive, we hammer them with a 20 minute Powerpoint presentation on all the activities we hope to accomplish, have them do eleven shots, then *release the hounds* the weekend may officially begin.

After ranch chores (2 new purebred calves!) we loaded the coolers, the dog, and the kids into the truck and headed to the Russian Wilderness to hike into a lake.  Our day began inauspiciously when I led the group straight from the trailhead directly to the wrong trail.  We hiked about 100 yards and the trail suddenly quit.  I pressed on through burned fir pilings and I could feed the group losing confidence in my trailblazing technique.  Suddenly, I heard Paul yell, "Hey, here's the trail."  The rest of the group looked at me like I was General Custer and they'd just caught their first arrow.  Some leader I was.  I had to regain their confidence by finding the unmarked path to the lake, which I did, thank you very much.

By the time we made it home, we only had about ten minutes to shine up so we could make our dinner reservations.  The ladies showered, the gentlemen spit shined the wine and beer stains from our shirts and we made it with a minute to spare.  We spent the next day resting our legs by cruising around in the Ranger and shooting stuff.  By stuff, I mean ground squirrels, fence posts, and beer cans.  Everyone got a crack at marksmanship and we shot the shit out of a few dead Coors cans.


By the time they left on Monday morning, our recycling bins were full of wine bottles and our ammo boxes were empty, which is the first real indication that summer has started.  Soon, I'll  be sitting on the swather and Regina will have a little time off from principal duties, and we'll have a little time to relax and think, just long enough to start planning and preparing for next Memorial Day.