Yellow No. 2 Lead Pencil

Yellow Number 2 lead pencils have died but the memories are great.  I remember in the second grade Jon Tanny was pestering me and tried to grab something off my desk and I stabbed him with a Yellow Number 2 Lead pencil.  He really did not bleed much or any that I recall and he never screamed because he was tough and never a cry baby.  He never told on me and the lead in the pencil broke off and was permanently in his hand until sometime many years later the doctor cut him open and took it out.  True grit was Jon Tanny.  This reminds me of our changing culture and how psychologists have changed the American way.

Let me explain.  In the "good old days"  when you pestered someone or aggravated someone and you got retaliated on YOU knew you deserved it but today it would have been assault with a deadly weapon / yellow number 2 pencil and common sense would not abound and Jon Tanny would have bee the victim.  We have used psychology to replace responsibility and consequences for bad choices and bad actions.  Oh well!

Number 2, Yellow Number 2 lead pencil story:  When in about the 6th grade you got to move to the big end of the Grainola School which means you got to sit where the Big Kids go.  That also means several other nice things like larger chairs (I always had to sit in them starting in the first grade and that is one of my old stories.  Go read it.), Mr Lewis Morris was our teacher and the library was in our classroom.  A little description would help right here.  The library was a very tall set of shelves the entire side of the south end of the room with a large counter dividing it from the class room.  The library had a tall rolling ladder which was quit fun to climb and then someone would push you back and forth.  You might say it was a toy for us.  I think Jim Heath read every book in that library at least twice each.  All the books had black, brown or dark red covers and were thick. I bet those books would be worth some money today.  OK, the great thing was on occasion someone would slip away and hide behind the counter to create a buzz for the teacher, Mr. Morris.  He was also the principal before he moved to Shidler as a principal.  He really was a great teacher of math and science and one of my favorites.  However I have to admit we made fun of his very long and slim nose of which Johnny Payne aka. The One Arm Bandit (go check out his website) renamed "The Beak".  Mr. Morris was very smart and a motivating teacher.

I get so excited telling you the details that I get lost in my own story so back to the pencil.  Hugh Allen Jones or Hugh Allen as we call him, was not always the greatest student and it was not because he was not smart but probably had a little ADD, developed a new tool of mass destruction - The Yellow Number 2 Lead Pencil.  Hugh Allen created a projectile utilizing a taught rubber band loaded with a, you got it, Yellow No. 2 Lead Pencil.  He taught us how to aim and fire it and no one got their eyes shot out or got impelled.  Now that I think about it this is what probably motivated him to become a US Marine. Did I mention his dad was a highly decorated soldier in WW II and fought on the invasion of Iowa Jima?  Hero!  Back to the subject.  Ultimately we found many targets like the books in the library and in particular the top shelf but my favorite was the tall ceilings, estimated to about 14 foot.  You could sit at your desk and when Mr. Morris would not be watching a Yellow No. 2 Lead Pencil would take off from a desk and puncture the tile ceiling and many times stick there.  Actually they were there for months and years.  Occasionally one would fall but again no one was ever injured.

The last thing I would like to share about those Yellow No. 2 Lead Pencils is that it was a badge of honor how you could sharpen them down to so short it could hardly be held in your hand.  Hugh Allen usually won that contest as well but he could also write extremely legible with a short pencil and when I say short I mean about and inch long.  I don't know of any value to this talent but he could also write extremely small and still be legible.  I guess you could summarize by saying that Hugh Allen Jones's legacy was the Yellow No. 2 Lead Pencil.  Although I could mention chasing the apple truck and gathering an apple against the will of the apple salesman or I could mention his toughness from playing alligators (another earlier story).

Oh well, Thanks for putting up with me.

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• How to be a Marine
• Missile technology
• Trouble avoidance
• Accepting responsibility for  your actions and not making excuses

Thanks for your time,

gary@thepioneerman.com

Double Blessings

It can't get much better than this as on Friday I got a call from A.J. Jacques and we got to visit for a good while and then on Sunday Shouna and I visited Crossing Community Church to see a friend, Keith, get baptized and as we sat down I looked over and saw Rocky Arrington.  Now I don't know how you count your blessings but getting to see two of the Shidler greats in just a few days which I had not seen in years was absolutely incredible.  Of course A.J. was in my class and Rocky was a few years older and in my brother's class of 68 (or was it 69 and he is one year younger than Larry).

A.J. and I got to visit how growing up on the farm and ranch was such a blessing and how lucky we were to have such a great class of folks to grow up around.  He reminded me that Steve Chrisco who just passed away a couple of weeks ago worked with him hauling hay for a couple of summers.  I reminded A.J. of when we staying with his uncle Ralph one weekend and he showed us how to train his bird dogs.  Ralph had two liver headed pups which he was training to be quail hunting dogs.  I had never been around someone who knew how to train bird dogs so it was a real treat to me.  Ralph would put a quail wing on a fishing line and after placing the bait he would turn the dogs loose to find the bait/wing.  When they would get up on it he would talk them into going slow and being on point.  He would also move the bait and see if the dogs could follow instruction and move up on it slowly to another point.  Well if you did not know it the challenge with young pups is like getting Johnny Payne to sit in a desk for an entire day of school.  Now if that does not tell you anything think of Robin Williams the actor and how hyper he is.  I guess I just spilled the beans on Johnny Payne to his kids, as if they did not know it.  Back to the pups and Uncle Ralph.  Those pups were more fun to watch and seeing the patience of Uncle Ralph was really cool.  As a side note, Really cool means the same thing as Rad or For Real and I probably don't know the current words used but it means it was a good time and fun to watch.  That weekend was the same weekend I learned to eat eggs over easy and they were great (referring back to an older story).

Anyway it was great seeing A.J. and hearing about his family and career but most of all it was great to hear his calming familiar voice and knowing that he was and is another example of the character of the Osage.

And now Rocky.  Wow!  I have not seen Rocky in about 30 years.  He looked the same but his hair was a little whiter but his demeanor was the same.  Friendly and matter of fact but affectionate in that he was glad to see me and I was glad to see him.  We gave each other a bear hug and talked for a few with a promise to get together soon as we live relatively close to each other.  Rocky was a a great baseball player in high school and if I recall correctly he was short stop or second baseman.  Uncle Gene and Aunt Connie came to every game and I would have to say they were very strong fans.  That means they could get loud and frustrated with some bad calls.  Interestingly enough Rocky became an umpire and referee while in college and throughout most of his career as a school teacher.  I may be wrong but as I remember Rocky was not a great student but what I have always heard was he was a great teacher.  That might actually be the reason he was a good teacher in that he knew what was needed to teach students.  Today he is the principal of an alternative school for troubled kids.  I bet you he is excellent for them.  By the way Rocky and Stephanie are my cousins (Steph is Rocky's sister).

Well it is now Sunday late afternoon and I am going to my weekly prayer group which has been meeting for about 11 or 12 years.  This is a side note to this whole story but the nice thing about this group is we have hung together for so many years.  That reminds me of the one thing I told A.J. and that was the only regret I have about high school is I did not keep in touch with a number of the folks over the years which were so important to my growing up and being part of who I have become.   I treasure the memories of so many great folks in my class and the classes before me and after plus the teachers and parents.  I have always hated to agree with a democrat but here is one place I agree with Hillary Clinton, "it really does take a community to raise a child".

What do you learn in the Osage?

• it is a great place to grow up
• sometimes it is hard to keep in touch with old friends but take a step back and enjoy them even if it has been 10, 20, 30 or even 40 years.
• Friends are friends forever

Thanks for the time,
gary@thepioneerman.com

4-H in the Osage

I cannot tell you how much 4-H added to my life growing up on a farm and ranch in the Osage.  If you recall from one of my earlier stories about getting my first bank loan at about the age of 9 (a very scary event) and then all through school and even up to day I am still working with banks and financing and using what I learned when I was 9 years old.  It started with the purchase of two Ewe lambs and no Ram (go read the story) and today it is investing in real estate, equities, bonds and even doing what is called Angel investing.  All of this is from my early learning as a farm boy.  WOW!  I am so thankful.  Back to 4-H.

At least in Shidler and the surrounding school district we did not have FFA although I was a little jealous of their blue jackets.  4-H had its advantages over FFA in that it included a lot more girls, just kidding - kind of.  4-H was king and at our house it was focused on animals for Larry and me but Debbie (my older sister and only sister) focused on raising sheep and showing them at the livestock show to cooking and sewing.  She was excellent at all of the above.  I think she got a lot of satisfaction out of cooking and spoiling me.  Regretfully she still calls me her baby brother but I don' complain as she ALWAYS remembers birthdays and special events.  One year Debbie won the Grand Champion ribbon at the Osage County Junior Livestock Show in Pawhuska which was held in the first week of March every year.  I should mention that she was showing one of her sheep to win the prize.  Typically she would win contests every year in sewing and one year she was the 4-H girl of the year.  One of the things required of every 4-H member was keeping a record of the events and income and expense of anything you did.  What a novel idea for a young person to start early at being responsible for expenses and income and writing down what they worked on and what they accomplished?  Yes, I am being facetious.  In my opinion that is what is wrong with America today  - No responsibility for yourself, No discipline, Low expectations and I can go on and on.

Well my part in 4-H centered around sheep at first then I added some hogs (pigs for city folks) then steers (that means bulls that were de-bulled, get it? castrated and I am not going to explain).  I also even took a shot at canning one year where I learned to put up fruit in jars and preserve them for the winter using a pressure cooker.   That was fun and interesting as I helped mom every year put up all kinds of things for eating during the winter.  Now for some folks "put up" does not resonate with your up-bringing so here is a little enlightenment.  Everyone had large gardens and even fields of crops that a person could eat if you could preserve them for later.  For example:  we had what seemed like thousands of green bean plants and we put up THOUSANDS of jars and later we learned how to freeze them which was much easier.  However I have to warn you that putting in jars was safer because if you ever lost power to the freezer the frozen items would spoil and there would be no food for winter and there was no WalMart (thank goodness).  We also picked, shucked and then cut corn off the cob for canning (put-up).  Tomatoes, rhubarb, apples, strawberries and anything we could grow was PUT-UP for winter.  There were two things I was glad we never put up for winter - radishes and celery. Those things are disgusting.  In fact I propose to you that there are only two things God does not like and they are Sin and Selery (Celery), get it?

4-H added so many other things to my life that just need to wait for another story.  I would just encourage anyone to get their kids involved in 4-H and then spend time working with your kids.  It brings parents and kids together with a common cause and together you win and lose but it is together that matters.

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• Responsibility
• Free enterprise
• Love of the farm and God's creation
• Appreciation for down time because there is always something to do

Thanks for your time,
gary@thepioneerman.com

Motors and motivation

I cannot tell you how many times I took apart a motor and most of the time they never went back together.  Over the years there were plenty of lawn mowers, engines, old farm equipment and implements that just wore out and needed replaced.  Dad allowed me to take them apart as long as I would sort out the parts into Folgers Coffee cans so if he ever needed a part he would know where to look.  Big parts were either in galvanized tanks or piled but in dad's mind it was required there was order to junk.

We had a huge junk pile hidden behind the barns so no one could see it.  It was filled with cool stuff.  In fact it was always a sad day for me when dad would call this guy from Ark City to come down and buy the old junk for recycling.  We had a couple of big galvanized water tanks where we had lots of smaller parts and then along side of those were the old machinery where we would rob parts to repair newer equipment.  One thing dad and most farmers were able to do and that was repair about anything broken.  They did it without driving to town unless absolutely necessary.  Even though gasoline costs 15 to 17 cents a gallon mom and dad knew it was expensive to drive to town plus they knew if they were driving to town there was opportunity costs.  Now that may be a strange term to you but let me explain.

This is actually something I talk to folks about everyday as a financial planner, opportunity costs.  Let me make it simple.  If you spend your time driving to town you cannot accomplish a task like plowing the field.  Another way of saying it is if you have a house with a mortgage on it and you pay 3.5% interest you feel pretty good.  But if you pay off the mortgage you feel great.  Kinda like to accomplish a great thing.  However the equity (value in the house) is now earning you ZERO.  You may disagree because the house is increasing in value but I hear this every day.  I propose to you that the house goes up in value every day whether you pay down the mortgage or not.  The fact is if you finance it by paying off the mortgage you are financing it yourself.  Think about it, if you invested the same money in a long term investment that you can get access to any day and you earn 5 or 6 % on it you would be way ahead in the 30 years of financing your house.  I dare you to do the math.  If you don't get it call me and I will show you.  That is lost opportunity cost.  

Anyway, back to the junk yard.  I spent lots and lots of hours out there looking for parts to create a new toy or as I got older to repair a piece of farm equipment.  My dad use to laugh when we had to take something and adapt it to repair something.  He called this farm engineering.  I dare to say that farm boys can look at problems and think up solutions better than most.  One of my favorite success stories is told about my cousin, Jon Tanny Olsen.  He told me one time, "I just figured if I could do something faster and cheaper than anyone else I could make a lot of money."  He did and it did not take a PHD in engineering or a psychology degree or an understanding of all that BS they insist on you learning in college.  Don't get me wrong education is a vital part of success but I am saying that a little common sense can make a lot of cents in the long run.  Get it?

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• One man junk is another man's treasure
• Junk ain't junk if someone else will pay you for it
• Learning to think starts early on the farm - give a kid an engine to tare apart and he will make millions

Thanks for your time,

gary@thepioneerman.com

Driving Nails

I can think of many things my dad taught me but some of the simplest things were the best and most long lasting.  In particular I recall how we always had Folgers Coffee cans in the barn (Quonset which was a round barn laying down) filled with nails.  Backing up a moment, that Quonset was shaped  like a green house but open on the side.  I hope that is a little help.  Anyway, when we tore down a building or found some boards with nails in them we would pull them and save for a later time in those Folgers cans.  Any time I was not busy or bored dad would send me to the barn to sort nails, bolts, screws etc.  into those Folgers Coffee cans.  But the best part I liked about all of this was that dad allowed me to utilize those resources in making a toy or creating something.

One of my great accomplishments which took me years to build and provided years of enjoyment was a tree house I built right out the window to my room where I slept.  There was an elm tree which was more than six feet in diameter and shaded the back half of the house.  The first thing I did was take some boards about 18 inches long and nail them to the tree like a step ladder.  As I built my way up the tree where the main trunk split into several very large limbs I reached the area where I would build my house.  It was at least eight feet off the ground and it was there that I built a floor using plywood and other boards.  It was great in that I could lay there and take a nap or have some friends over and not be discovered but close enough to the house so food and beverage was close by.  The sides to the tree house were short and there was never a roof but it lasted for years.

A can of nails and screws (never did I have an electric drill or electric driver) offered a plethora of creative opportunity (don't you love it when I use those fancy words?).  I made an airplane many times which was adorned with lots of bling (bling means there were decorations and designs utilizing nail and screw heads kinda like buttons on a coat).  I made cars and trucks and scooters that I could run on the sidewalk.  It was fantastic and the cost was virtually zero.

Now that I think about it entertainment was not invoked by a video game or a box of toys overflowing so much that it was frustrating to decide which one to play with or the frustration of finding all the parts in a big box.  In fact playing was stress free for the most part because I did not need a HELP button or a list of instructions.  I needed just a few elements to be entertained:

• Freedom to get into the nails and boards and screws and hammers 
• Freedom to create
• Freedom to roam around the property
• No rules as long as I did not hurt anyone except myself, yes I did hurt myself sometimes and I will give you a few examples like when I cut my hand and needed some stitches or when I smashed my finger numerous times with a hammer
• Freedom to think outside the box
• No government labels to warn me, tax me or stop me:  Freedom

Well I had better go but one last thing I would say, "don't get your underwear in a wad that your children don't have a new xbox and they get made at you".

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• Freedom is more important than money or toys
• Children will create fun, just allow them to create
• Sometimes we over structure our education and diminish children's freedom to think

Thanks for your time,

gary@thepioneerman.com

Common sense or cents?

The great thing about growing up in the Osage is that you learn that a little common sense creates common cents, get it?  I can think of a hundred examples of my dad teaching me common sense.  It happened every day and here are a few examples:

• When it is freezing outside and there is ice on the pickup window (nobody had a garage so it sat outside) an easy way to get the ice off in a hurry is to pour hot water on the windshield
• If you are going to feed the cattle in the winter and the ponds are frozen go prepared, bring an ax 
• bring wire cutters for the wire on the hay bales or at least if you are strong enough to take the wire off roll it up and put it in the pickup else you get your butt chewed out for leaving it.
• If you get stuck in the mud or snow: jack up the tire and put some hay or rocks under it or some wood and drive away.
• If you pickup quits running while driving check your gas gauge   It is best to check your gas gauge prior to driving rather than when it is too late.
• If you chose to cause trouble at school don't depend on your folks to bail you out because you are their child.  YOU are guilty regardless of what your excuse is and you are better off getting punished at school rather than having the school officials call your parents.  
• If you are so smart that you talk back to your folks or the teachers or any adult you had better hide cause if your folks find out you are dead.

Now there is an argument that Sense creates Cents and rightfully so country folks seem to have a lot of common sense but I propose to you that Purpose is what creates Sense and Cents.  If you have not read Jim Whitt's book (old Shidler guy) "Riding for the Brand" it would be insightful about Purpose.  I think that what has always driven me is purpose and it was helped along by common Sense and it created Cents for me.  How do you like them apples? 

Anyway, let me explain.  When dad told me to do something and I did something stupid like not bringing the ax to chop ice on the ponds and had to go back to the house and then back out to the ponds to chop ice thus wasting time I was chastised or chewed out for not thinking ahead of time.  Now how that works today is you can spend your time doing one task at a time and walk right by things that need to be done and waste time and money.  For example, have you ever gotten ready to go somewhere and then the last thing you do is go back and lock the doors and turn off the lights?  Why didn't you do that as you go thus saving time?  Or how about something simple like going to the grocery store and then when you get home you have to go back because you did not make a list in the first place and forgot the milk?  So what I am trying to say is dad taught common sense by explaining (that is the same word for chewing your butt off) how I could save time and energy (gas) by thinking a head of time.  

I think it is this type of training folks miss out on today because there is not enough responsibility put on young kids.  I think it is also what ultimately creates a sense of purpose in those who grow up in the country.  We learn to think and plan ahead and purpose about what we want to do.  Just like my daughter knowing when she went to college she wanted to do mission work or my son who knew early on he wanted to be a fireman.  It seems that most folks I grew up with knew what they wanted to do whether it was being a teacher, in the military, work in the oil patch, be a farmer or rancher, or be a business person and in my case I always wanted to be in computers like Uncle Bill Heath (brother of Jack Heath) who worked at Conoco in Ponca.

Purpose, a sense of knowing what you want to do and then pursuing it.  Occasionally we have to do a reset on our purpose either because we find it was unrealistic or that we accomplished it and now we need something new and many times we have a change in priorities due to family or some other situation.  But either way we Purpose to do something in life.  I also contend that if you do not believe you have a purpose or have not chosen a purpose you really have chosen one.  This is like not having a will only means you chose not to formally have one but you have one by default.  The government provides one if you don't and it is not pretty.  Call me if you need help on that one.  

Another way to say the same thing is:  If you don't make a plan you plan to fail.

Go figure and thanks for your time,

gary@thepioneerman.com

Tanny and Nanny Olsen

Larry and Dorothy Olsen

Now I don't know how much of this story is true but there are legends and then there is truth, today we will err on the side of legend.

Larry, Bob, Bill, Jim and Vea Harris were the children of N.T. Olsen, who and by the way were my dad's first cousin even though our last name is Olson.  It would take too much time and we would still not be able to explain the connection since Larry's sister, Vea Harris, passed away and she was the only person besides my dad who could explain all of the connections.  Don't get yourself confused but yes there are two Larry's, one being an Olsen and one being Olson which is my brother.  Just as another side note, Mrs. Head, "don't be  too critical of my long sentences.  OK, OK, back to the story.  Tanny who was married to Nanny (that is not funny but the truth about their names)were big time ranchers with 10's of thousands of acres and smart and tough as they come.  They were Larry's parents and when you see the picture above of Larry and Dorothy at their 50th wedding anniversary you have seen Tanny.  Larry is the spitting image of Tanny, amazing how much they look alike.  Tanny was a legend to me due the stories told by my dad.

Dad, Cliff Olson, went to work for Tanny out of high school Womega Kansas, at the ripe old age of 18.  Womega and Levenworth Kansas area is where the Harris, Olsen and Olson families collided before all winding up in Grainola and the Osage.  In fact Tanny and Nanny lived in Hardy which is between Newkirk and Grainola near the old train trussel (another story).  Dad told me many times how Tanny and Nanny were great at handling money and that is why they were successful plus Tanny had a knack for buying and selling cattle and purchasing land plus he worked hard.  Dad always said that Tanny taught his children to work hard and take responsibility.  One of the quotes I remember most was dad telling me Tanny's philosophy was, "if you take care of the pennies the dollars will take care of themselves".  Now I will have to tell you I read, study and help folks everyday to manage their money and invest it wisely but that simple statement sums up all the books you can read on how to handle money.  Dad told me many a story about rounding up the cattle and loading them on the train then sometimes riding the train with the cattle or driving with Tanny to Kansas City to sell the cattle.  Tanny really liked my dad and trusted him.  In fact Tanny use to comment how dad was the hardest worker he knew and could count cattle better than anyone when loading on a train.

As I think back about those stories dad always told me how Tanny could drink a pint of whiskey a day.  He told me that Tanny always had a bottle hidden in the corn barn and near gates in the pastures  so that Nanny would not know he had it.  What strikes me as funny about that is I never considered that dad and Tanny were doing a lot of drinking but that just Tanny was.  Somehow I think that perception was wrong although dad did not drink once he had kids.  Also I remember dad  telling me about him and mom going dancing at Big Beaver to see Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys and he never mentioned any drinking.  I wonder if mom and dad ever drank a bear?   Anyway, dad use to joke that drinking is what killed Tanny as Tanny lived until about 90 years old.  Not to get too focused  on whiskey but dad told me about the whiskey manufacturing facility on highway 18 at the state line where everyone could go since Oklahoma was dry, meaning no liquor.  Dad also told me about the house across from the Casselman's where there was a trap door in the living room and the man that lived there was a bootlegger, meaning he brought in illegal whiskey and sold it out of his living room.

OK, back to Tanny.  Tanny somehow made a connection to a lady rancher down in Louisiana where every year they would take a bunch of cowboys from the Osage and go down there to round up cattle to bring back to the tall grasses of the Osage for fattening.  They would literally purchase a train load of cattle each year.  They were Brahmas (pronounced brammers)  which were really skinny and in fact a few died every year on the train and during the winter in Oklahoma but dad said they bought them cheap enough that you could afford to lose a few.  Tanny would get all of his cowboys to saddle up their horses and ride through the swamps and bayous for several days to round up the cattle.  In particular one time dad told me about when they were driving some steers across a bayou and Tanny told all the cowboys to get on the raft to cross the bayou and dad said he would just ride his horse across.  However while crossing the swampy water dad said there were two water moccasins that crawled up on his horse and dad was deathly scared of snakes.  Dad said, "there was not enough room on that horse for him and two snakes".  Dad could not swim (another story) but he said he about walked on water getting to the raft after leaving that horse.

What I always liked about the stories of Tanny is that he represented a visionary and a risk taker, yet a good business man who understood the risk and reward of free enterprise.  Tanny was rewarded for those risks and his hard work.  Isn't that what America was about?  I think if you include religious freedom and freedom from TAXES you find the Pilgrims and Columbus and Tanny in the same category, Great Americans.

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• Luck comes to those who work hard and take a calculated risk
• Some times you win and some times you lose
• True grit is not in the movies but in the folks who built the Osage and other rural communities
• If you want financial freedom, "take care of the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves"
• A little drinking does not kill anyone but knowing Christ as a personal savior can cure a lot of what ales you

thanks for your time,

gary@thepioneerman.com