Monday, November 28, 2011

OH MY ~ my aunt gave to the hsus





Thanksgiving is a time for family to come together and eat, drink and be merry! Our Thanksgiving this year was no different.  We ate yummy food, drank some really good wine and had wonderful conversations on all sorts of topics. One topic much to my surprise that came up at the Thanksgiving table – The Humane Society of the United States.  How you might ask did this come up? My aunt donates to them religiously each month – because you know they are helping with the placement and care of all those little dogs and cats.  (Oh no!!)

Let me give you a brief family history~ my aunt is a lovely lady. She grew up on the family farm where I reside. She was active in the day to day activities, showed steers, her infamous Angus calf, “Tar Baby” was a county fair champion, she loved farm life. Upon graduation from Notre Dame College she married the love of her life and moved to the Bay area. She lived her life now in the City and to this day still is a “city girl.”  My aunt is now 80 years old – she has been away from the farm for 60 some years.

As we visited at Thanksgiving my mom started bragging about me – she is good for that- saying that I have been going around speaking to different groups about getting the conversation going in agriculture.  My auntie was quite proud when she told me she donates money each month to the HSUS to help with the puppies and kittens. I about choked on my bite of turkey!  What? Was my initial reaction.  You do what?  I instantly felt my tummy feeling jumbled and anxious.  She explained to me that she got something in the mail and that she really felt it would not be much of a sacrifice to donate monthly. I proceeded to tell her about the HSUS and why it was better for her to funnel her monthly funds to our local pet shelter. I also told her that the goal of the HSUS was to end animal agriculture and farms such as ours.  She was horrified, she had no idea.  I felt good that I educated my auntie on the tactics of HSUS.  We talked about it at some length. She now feels good that she will be sending her money to the local shelter and that this money will be put to good use.

The moral of the story is that even though you grow up on a farm doesn’t mean you are immune to the message of the HSUS.  Big cities and older folks seem to be a good place for HSUS to market their agenda.  My aunt is a prime example of a smart woman who was duped by the story that they told.  My aunt supports farms and ranches but she truly thought she was doing a good thing by also supporting the HSUS.

It is not only a good idea to share your story it is a good idea to engage in conversations, listen, share and educate when needed.  You never know who you will need to chat with!  It might be your dear aunt across the Thanksgiving table J

Are you interested in finding out more about getting the correct information out about the HSUS - check out http://www.humanewatch.org/ - a great place that uncovers mistruths and promotes good dialogue.

Friday, November 25, 2011

The PUFFY jacket - a must for wintertime!

Today is Black Friday and you cannot turn on the television or open up the newspaper or check out your email or facebook or twitter without countless ads about "lots of stuff" on sale for the holidays. I am here to say I am not a Black Friday shopper but figured since it is Friday why not a Black Friday Fashion Friday post.

My favorite thing that I have seen as an item for Black Friday Sales across America ~ the Puffy Jacket!!


I have seen these advertised in large retail outlets as well as higher end department stores.  They are in a rainbow of bright colors and are tremendously fun !  Turquoise, hot pink,  sunnyyellow, lime green,  outrageous orange,  electric blue and then of course all the "normal" colors. I have seen these very cute jackets really reasonably priced so be sure to investigate before you waste all your pennies. You can get a jacket and have some left over for a new scarf, mittens and a hat !

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

my very own travel show ~


Seems as if life has been a whirlwind lately, my most recent adventure took me to the American Agriwomen Convention in Wichita, Kansas. While there I got to meet facebook friend now real friend Lori Bammerlin.  Lori is probably one of the most creative people I have yet to meet in my adventures so  thought I would share her with all of you !



Lori made all of these fabulous necklaces with an assortment of wonderful beads, she also has hand painted shoes, tshirts and really cool, fun hats!  Old feed sacks turned tote bags and wranglers made into fun skirts.  Whats old is new again with many of Lori's fun pieces.

My adventures take me to lots of places~ I feel as if I am on my own  travel show , you know the ones you see on TV.  My travels hook me up with interesting people engaged in agriculture and sharing a common passion and just sometimes they are doing extra fun things that spark my interest, like Lori and her cool treats with a western style flair.  I couldn’t keep her to myself so I figured I would share her with all of you –

If you are interested in Lori and her creations you can email her at ag06grad@yahoo.com  - or check out her blog at http://homeontherangeexhange.blogspot.com - she can take it from there!


Tuesday, November 1, 2011

“Never give up on something you dream about every day”


Not sure where I saw this but it was awhile ago, I taped it to my computer so that I could reflect on it daily.  (yes I am weird like that) 

I have wanted to perfect my image, put everything under one umbrella, make it nice and neat. Blog, stationary, business cards- you name it I like a nice concise look.  With the help of my dear friend I am well on my way.  She is one of those techy, super smart computer geeks, (in a good way) .  I have now created a nice bio sheet so when someone says “Celeste can I get your bio?” I can say “Sure, let me send that to you right away.”  I feel like I am complete!

Excited for the opportunities ahead of me ~ for now I can venture out looking good !  Whether it be writing for a magazine, blogging on my own thoughts, speaking to the world on why I love farming and ranching or presenting a business card to someone I meet face to face – I can do it feeling good about the initial presentation.

What y’all think ? 

What do you think about every day? Don’t give up on it !  Keep at it until you make it a reality however small or large it might be !!!

Until next time when I find something fun to write about ~