A Fairytale

Well, not technically, but if it isn't realistic, then it's a fairytale, right? =P

Once upon a time there lived a colony of earthworms.  These earthworms lived in the soil of a corn field, and relished the frequent irrigation events that moistened the soil.  However, these earthworms were pretty sneaky.  When they learned that the local agronomist checked "their" field every week, they began to plot their strategy.  You see, sometimes the irrigation would come at inopportune times, and sometimes it wouldn't come soon enough.  So they devised a way to get irrigation whenever they wanted it...  One particular day, they were planning a picnic with some neighbor worms, and decided they needed the irrigation to hold off for a few days.  So when they heard the far off steps of the agronomist, they grouped together and mapped out the probable spot he would check.  Then they all started spitting furiously.  Spit!  Spit!  Spit!  Gurgle gurgle... Spit!  And so on.  This went on for several minutes until one of the youngest earthworms began to complain.  "I don't have any spit left!  I'm dry as dust!"  "Then you better start salivating some more!"  His mother admonished.  Finally, they heard the sharp sliding of the probe into the ground.  They all held their breaths and wriggled as close to the top as possible to hear the agronomist's verdict.  "95..." They waited for the 2nd foot... "95..."  They began to slowly grin.  "95 again."  And all the earthworms began to cheer in their little earthworm voices.  "We did it!"  They yelled in delight, and then called it a day.  You see, their strategy had been to make the soil wetter than it really was so the farmer wouldn't turn on the sprinkler.  When they wanted water, they would do the opposite and suck in as much water as they could hold so the soil would appear drier than it really was.  And so that is how the earthworms came to have the reputation of incredibly, terribly, sneaky little connivers. 

The End!

A Tale of Terror and Suspense

The following is inspired from true stories: (written by Patty Piccolo)
Once not too long ago there was an agronomist.  This agronomist was the local farmers' best friend!  He checked all of their fields in a timely manner and gave good recommendations.  One day when the agronomist was out checking a corn field he was driving his 4-wheeler around the edge, and all of a sudden, just a few yards in front of him, he saw something dart into the corn field.
"What was that?"  He exclaimed.  He hadn't gotten a very good glimpse of it, but it was pretty good sized (the size of a big cat at least) and it had a long tail.  Well, he still had to make his check, so he went about half a field circle length from where the unidentified creature had gone in the field, and cautiously entered the field.  Everything seemed normal at first.  But that all changed when he stopped to check the leaves for spidermites.  He heard a low groan to his right... and it was getting closer...
To be continued! (very soon indeed!)

Part 2 (the last two parts of the story are strictly from the author's imagination; but it is what could have happened if the author stuck around long enough to find out!)
... the agronomist heard a low groan to his right, it seemed to be turning into more of a growl as it got closer.  "Uh oh!"  He thought.  But he didn't move, for fear that he would give away where he was at.  The corn was very thick, and had a full canopy, so he couldn't even see what was in the rows of corn next to him.  Suddenly, the growl ceased and it was quiet for a few moments. 
"Did it leave?"  The agronomist breathlessly hoped.  He decided to check and see what was in the rows of corn next to him.  So, he carefully, cautiously, and as confidently as possible, pulled back the leaves of the corn, and pushed the corn stalks to the side...  And right there in front of his eyes was the meanest, biggest, and ugliest mountain lion he had ever seen!  And did you see his teeth?  The mountain lion looked about ready to eat him.  The agronomist's eyes got very wide and he was shocked into a still silence.  What should he do?  If he moved, the lion would likely pounce on him, but if he stayed, he might be eaten alive.  Either way it looked like he was going to be someone's lunch!  What seemed like hours passed as the agronomist and the mountain lion looked each other in the eyes.  Neither one of them moved.  The agronomist was as terrified as a grown man can be, and the mountain lion was as angry as a very angry thing.  And can you guess what happened next?
The End of Part 2.  Come back next time for Part 3!  Are you mad at me yet?

Okay, I am not being very suspenseful and am just giving you each part after the other...
Part 3...  Last time we left off with me asking you if you could guess what happened next?  Well, the thing that happened was about as preposterous of a thing as you could imagine!  Simply astonishing!
The mountain lion started LAUGHING!!!  What?!  Mountain lions do not laugh.  Well, this one apparently does, because it was a low chortle far down in the lion's throat.  It was as if he just couldn't keep it in any longer. 
The agronomist then did something very uncharacteristic, he let out a scream that shook all the corn rootworm beetles off of the corn plants around him.  He was so frightened and surprised by this odd and unreal behavior of the mountain lion. 
"What's he going to do next?" The agronomist moaned, shaking in his boots.
Well, you'll never guess what happened next.  The mountain lion lifts up his paw... and raises it to his head... and rips off a mask to reveal the face of the agronomist's brother!!!  "What?  What is this?"  The agronomist was completely stunned.  "This can't be possible.  It was a real mountain lion!"
But no, it was just a very real looking costume, and his brother had played the part perfectly until he couldn't keep from laughing anymore and revealed himself.
Needless to say, the agronomist did not find the whole incident as funny as his brother did, but in later years, did chuckle some at how afraid he had been.
The End!  For real this time.  Did you expect that kind of ending?  I thought about doing a morbid ending... but decided to do a different twist instead.  =P


And there is your story, straight from the pen of Private Eye Patty Piccolo!  =)

After it rains...!

Hey-owdy folks!  In the past few weeks, we have had several torrential downpours in southwest Kansas!  It has been amazing!  Following are pictures for you to enjoy.  =)

Storm clouds before the first big rain.  These are terrible quality; I didn't have my camera with me so I had to take them with my phone.

The day after!

This was fun walking through to get to my spot to check... =P

Marvelously green.

Whew... so much water, it looks like an ocean!

Well... maybe not so much; but still, it's a lot of water to be in a field!

Water over the highway north of Cimarron

Our lil' ol' dog swimming to get a stick.

Yep.  Lots o' water!

Pretty greenness...

Dark clouds.

Ponds of water in a pasture.

Of course, it's only fitting to leave you with a marvelous Kansas sunrise!

Bye bye 'til next time!

Summer in Full Swing (Whatever that term means)

Well, folkies, I have some pictures for you!!  No people pictures, of course.  If you want those, you know where to go.  =P

A sweet little calf

Cliffs on either side of the road

A river.  Yes, this is in SW Kansas!!!

Oops, out of place.  Here are the little calf's friends and family.

Canola.

Canola siliques (i.e., pods)

The seeds. 

A milo seedling that was having trouble figuring out which way was up.

Horse!  With wind towers in background.

A second horse

And more and more horsies!

A horse sticking his tongue out at me.

For some reason this horse reminds me of an old west horse.

Alfalfa blooms.

Alfalfa again.

More alfalfa.

Wheat!

An escaped horse.

Cool; pickup, horse and corn!

I tried killing kochia with paint, but it rained and washed all the paint off.  I ain't gonna complain about the rain though, no siree!

Yum.  The only fruit you can't see is the pineapple; it's under the egg...

Haha; I think this is funny; I have a farmer's tan on my fingers from driving the fourwheeler with my fingers curled around the handlebars! =P

Okay, that should do it for ya for awhile anyway!  Happy fourth of July early!
-Josie

Pictures of Spring

Howdy y'all!  Here are some pictures I took yesterday.  Yay for Spring!

 

Have a marvelous Spring!

Tata!

Insect Zoo and Spring!

Hey y'all!  We went to the K-State Insect Zoo today; it was pretty cool!  Below are pictures for your enjoyment.  =)

 Sorry, I didn't bother to rotate it.

 Haha; there, now you know if you're ever hungry you can just go eat a grasshopper. 

 Cool little blue bug!

 Igh; millipedes.

Wouldn't you just love encountering a centipede that big?

Okay, now some Spring pics!

 

 There ya are!  Have a lovely Spring! =D