People often talk about being in the right place at the right time and truly, that is important. On our farm, in our family, we have an inside joke for when the right PEOPLE aren’t in the right place. We call it the “B” team.
If Joe or I ever find ourselves frustrated or disappointed over how a job was performed, a meeting was conducted, etc and we don’t want to get drag the other into all the details, we simply laugh and say, “definitely a B team job”.
An example of this would be when you saw me on Facebook last week running a combine. Rita running a combine is definitely considered B team. It’s not my expertise — I’m really not the right person for the job.
This brings us to today. Joe really needed a day off. Our cow nutritionist was giving away some tickets to the Vikings game so Joe was gone when we received the phone call that our pasture heifers were out.
Joe’s Dad, my son, neighbors traveling by, our mechanic and me all worked together to walk the heifers off the alfalfa and back into their pasture. It went quite smoothly. However, when we tested the fence, there wasn’t a spark. One can’t leave heifers in a pasture surrounded by electric fence that isn’t working for a long time. However, I was hungry and so was my teenaged son, of course. So, after lunch, we rounded the heifers up to bring them to our more secure area up by our house. While Vince finished bringing them in, I started fixing fence.
Joe fixing fence is A team. I’m not ashamed to say that when I fix fence it is B team. I wouldn’t even dream of leaving the yard without a vise grip. Joe can pop insulators on and off fence posts as he practically passes by. My hands just aren’t that strong. However, I did find some definite “shorts” — where the wire is off the insulator and on a fence post and thus shorting the circuit. I’m fairly confident that everything is back in place but I am definitely awaiting Joe’s double-checking before sending heifers back out.
I hope this week finds you not only in the right places at the right time, but also has you doing the jobs you are best at. I think farm life forces me outside my comfort zone on a regular basis. In any case, I always keep a vise grip handy.
soshemarriedafarmer 