A Stitch in Time
In 1873, immigrants David Jacobs and Levi Strauss, combined their talents and resources and came up with a new phenomenon, called Waist Overhalls, more commonly known as jeans. From this first creation of denim thread and metal rivets, the single most popular clothing item in the history the world has taken shape, and variations are endless. Brilliant because of their durability and style, practical because they last forever and get the job done, jeans are synonymous with hard work and high fashion all at the same time. When women finally started wearing “trousers” in the forties and then “slacks” in the fifties, a proper pair of women’s jeans weren’t far behind. Cowgirl Tough Jeans have taken the jean world by storm, doing their well-fitting best to make women’s legs look longer, behinds firmer, and all with a sense of wild west chic. Pine Country Feed has the good sense to carry a product that goes so far in making women’s fashion about comfort, style and ease of care. Proud to carry the Cowgirl Tough brand, Pine Country is the place you’ll find a treasure around every corner.
Big Deal
Halloween is the day to make contact with you inner ghoul – the side of you that would prefer to be mysterious, and hide behind a mask of intrigue. We have to take our hats off to Martha Stewart who has perfected the art of ghostly retreat, greeting the holiday in the most elaborate way possible. Martha’s life isn’t a possibility in the real world, where you have to function within a budget, and your staff consists of your husband and your cat, but Martha forces us to look at life differently. She insists that we celebrate the everyday, that we go the extra trouble, that we make life a celebration, and she is never more Martha than on Halloween. Martha Stewart understands that there are times when the most important thing you can do is enjoy the art of living and she shows us just how to do it with style. We can take a lesson from Martha, who has become wealthy teaching people how to properly fold a bed sheet. Sometimes, despite the mayhem around us, life is very simply and exquisitely about the fun.
I’m Your Huckleberry
The condition of today’s world leaves reasonable people asking one question. Where is Wyatt Earp when you need him? Where is the guy in the black cowboy hat, and the long black denim duster that catches on the gun at his hip – the guy who was willing to fight for a decent way of life in a west that refused to be tamed? What happened to the man with the badge who didn’t stop until the job was done, didn’t care how long the ride, never asked if there was someone who could take his place? Things were easier in Wyatt’s day for the man who wanted to stand for right. You had to know how to shoot, a good horse was a must, and if you expected to live long a good buddy who could also shoot proved helpful, and of course you had to be brave. What you didn’t have to be was politically correct, college educated, connected to the people at the top, or certified in your field of expertise. You were respected for what you had done, not what you had trained to do, and if you put your foot in your mouth from time to time, nobody noticed, or at least they didn’t say anything, because you were Wyatt Earp for heaven’s sake! Where does this leave us? We must be brave, put on our dusters and whistle for our trusted steed. It’s time to fight for a decent way of life in a west that still isn’t tamed. Wyatt would be proud.
Pajama Excursion
Let’s face it, shopping is a demanding proposition. It can be a feet throbbing, purse gaining poundage with every step, music blaring overhead making your head throb, standing in line, where in the world is a bathroom experience. Shopping at Pine Country Feed is actually none of those things, but truth be told, a nice glass of wine, your toes bare and propped up on the ottoman, not a line in sight can sound pretty good, and soon it will be yours. Shopping at Pine Country Feed will be an armchair adventure, laptop in place, browsing at your leisure. The On-Line version of your favorite place to shop for all of your “have to have” accessories, jeans, boots, jackets, hats, blouses and the most remarkable, can’t be found elsewhere home goods on the planet, is coming to a living room, or a king sized bed with tons of pillows to cradle your head, near you. The only thing better than a peaceful afternoon at Pine Country Feed, is a midnight splurge at Pine Country Feed On-line. Fire up the laptop. We’ll keep you posted.
Duke
Take a guy who had an odd way of talking and an even odder way of walking, who couldn’t finish college because a body surfing injury made him lose his athletic scholarship, whose application to the Naval Academy was rejected, whose first real job paid him $105 per week, and whose given name at birth was Marion, and what do you get? You get one of the top three most popular film stars of all time, and the only one to make the list every year since the poll started. John Wayne, who was too tall and broad to really fit into the Hollywood scene, but ended up with lead roles in 142 films, and is now thought of as a legend for his work on the screen, didn’t start out with aspirations of stardom. The celebrity came to him after nine years of bit parts, one in which he played a corpse, and hours mentoring with stunt men about riding horses and straddling fences and taking a fall in a gunfight, and his “don’t mess with me” attitude when he refused to work with a major film maker because he didn’t like the way “the guy had treated him when he was nobody”. His stardom came from the way he owned the screen, the fact that he looked like he was born on a horse, the distinctive intonation in his voice that he didn’t even try to change, and the fact that in all but one of his roles he played a rough talking, heavy drinking, fight at the drop of a hat, good guy. He brought us bigger than life characters and better than life stories and he did it without being “discovered”. He just stayed with it until the screen was ready for John Wayne, and that took a few years.
The Holy Order of Football Fans
The constancy of breast cancer has become such a part of our daily lives we are no longer surprised by the diagnosis of thousands of women around the world, yet when it forces its presence into our inner circle we gasp with the harsh reality and shed tears of what lies ahead and it isn’t just the disease itself – it is the many methods used to combat the horror that subjects women to fearful, lonely, startlingly vulnerable scenarios that break their hearts a little at a time. When it is done, all the scans and readings, the surgeries, the 
endless consultations, the poisonous treatments, and you hopefully emerge “clean”, the pain of those months seem bearable, but in the early steps of the journey, and even the middle ones, before you can see the results, there is a deep grieving that the sufferer must endure. When my sister began the radiation portion of her treatment, and she described to me the mean moments of feeling helpless and exposed, at the mercy of people she didn’t know, I heard a wrenching discouragement in her voice, and the only thing I could pray was that somehow in the weeks of treatment ahead of her she would find some element of joy. There wasn’t anything joyful about a bi-lateral mastectomy, with months of chemotherapy, loss of hair and strength, utter exhaustion, always feeling less than whole, but somehow the radiation seemed like the final blow in a long drawn out fight, because we had hoped she would be able to avoid that portion. After her first ugly encounter, I dreaded th
e days she had ahead of her, until I received the call after her second treatment. She spoke of a room full of people, all awaiting their radiation treatment, and in their midst a group of nuns who called everyone honey, and walked from patient to patient with trays of donuts and Danish, pushing their sweets and their sweetness on the crowd. Every little bit one of them sang out a name, and the owner would pass the desk and ring a little bell as they went through the doors for their “medicine”. We laughed as she vividly described this elderly crew of women, dressed in their habits and Bronco sweatshirts plying the radiation patients with pastries and good cheer. The conversation concluded with a grand assurance in both our hearts that my sister, despite the weeks ahead of her, had found the one thing she needed to get through it. In those Bronco loving nuns, she had found her joy.
The Awful Truth
Perhaps the most dreaded utterance in the English language, or in languages worldwide is the word cancer, for with it comes a series of other words, like chemo-therapy, radiation, surgery, autoimmune disease, and death. When my sister’s regular annual exam brought about the discovery of something “questionable”, I was the first to say that it would be nothing, and yet, perhaps a week later, though it felt like months, we were discussing the treatment her oncologist was recommending for her breast cancer. It was as though we were walking one day as sisters, and then we were walking as cancer victim and onlooker, because there was no way I could walk in her shoes. Helplessly, I could do nothing more than possibly carry her shoes when they became too heavy for her. She faced her future with fear, certainly, but with the grace of one who knew that her steps were ordered, and she would walk them honestly and in faith, and I would share in her faith, praying that each step further from the diagnosis would bring her closer to health. The uncertainty was painful, but the greater pain came in knowing that the belief I had always unconsciously held that she would be protected from anything as horrific as breast cancer, that we all would, was a thing of the past. We indeed had cancer.
The Win
Whether you are a fan of Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos or not, Sunday’s game taught a life and business lesson that is worth learning, again. There is no way to place a value on true leadership. It comes from vision and passion, and a commitment to the success of the team, and it cannot be measured in experience, in safe decisions, or in salary. It can only be measured in the inspiration it creates. When Tim Tebow came onto the field against San Diego he did so much more than quarterback the game. He made an entire city excited again about watching their team, and convinced a team of football players and coaches that they can win, even if they claim to be “rebuilding”. And the interesting thing is the fact that all of that happened and the Broncos didn’t even win, they will the next time, and we know this how? Because winning comes from a winning attitude, and for the second half of Sunday’s game that winning attitude filled a stadium, a locker room, a press box, and homes all over Colorado. San Diego won the game, but the Denver had all the joy!
Pumpkin Up
The cool mornings and frosty nights are calling to your inner pumpkin. It is time to bake, so do it proudly and use the very healthy, rich and creamy pumpkin whenever you can.
Pumpkin Cupcakes
Mix together 4 slightly beaten eggs, ¾ cup vegetable oil, 2 cups sugar and 1-15oz can pumpkin. Combine with a mixture of 1 ¾ cup flour, ¼ cup corn starch, 4 teaspoons pumpkin spice, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda and ¾ teaspoon salt. Beat just until well blended, fill lined muffin cups two thirds full and bake for 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven. The center of the cakes should bounce back to the touch when they are done.
Allow the cupcakes to cool for 30 minutes at least then frost with a combination of 8oz softened cream cheese, 3 tablespoons softened butter, 2 teaspoons vanilla and 4 cups powdered sugar. After frosting refrigerate lightly covered cupcakes until you are ready to serve.
A hot cup of coffee and a pumpkin cupcake and you’ll be fortified for days. If you feel weak after 24 hours, eat another cupcake!
Dying Words
When Anna Sewell wrote her novel, Black Beauty, it was an immediate hit, selling 50 million copies, making it one of the best-selling novels of all time. It is the story of a horse, told by a horse and it threads a heartwarming and adventuresome tale of life in 1877 England from the viewpoint of the four legged laborers that kept civilization moving in those days. The book, besides being an intriguing read, addresses the humane, or inhumane as it were, treatment of animals, and specifically horses in that time. Horses were for work and the heroin of the story, Black Beauty, struggles through many different owners and works more than her share until one day she lands in the hands and heart of someone who truly loves her for the remarkable creature she is. Sewell’s story, though a fiction, stirred a new commitment to the proper treatment of animals and put horses in a place of dignity that many had not recognized before. By giving Beauty human qualities and a relatable, tender personality Sewell succeeded in carving out a place in our lives for these noble, intelligent beings that pays them the homage they deserve. It is notable that Anna Sewell wrote this book as she was dying, and just five months after its publication she passed, making Black Beauty her first and last novel and her legacy.
Long Haul
When someone in the family unit is sick, in a big way, the entire family feels it to the depths of their soul. Knowing there is great need, and knowing as well that there is nothing you can do to make it all go away is terrible and frightening and a little heart wrenching. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, which, since not one of us hasn’t been touched by someone who is part of that sorority, the “awareness” isn’t at the heart of this. It is more of an exposure, a coming together, an admission that we are better in numbers, in groups of people who are willing to stand with our hand extended to walk along side, to embrace with passion, to say you are never alone. Our goal is wellness, and for all of those who have moved ahead of the disease, we are applauding joyfully, and for those who are still wondering everyday where this will end, we want to say that when it does end, or if it never does, we will be there. As a sister of a survivor, we have been there and we will stay.
By Any Other Color
We spend a lot of time in the kitchen – cooking, eating, doing dishes, drinking coffee, eating again – and it needs to be a place we feel called to, a room that tells us we are home. Sometimes we get so busy thinking of the kitchen as a “utility” room that we forget to make it work aesthetically. On the flip side, a kitchen that suffers from décor overload can make us feel disorganized and stressed. The kitchen does have to support the work that goes on there, but it should also be pleasing to the eye. Martha Stewart who simply refuses to work in a kitchen that is anything less than beautiful , suggests an investment in small appliances, bake ware and utensils that are not only functional, but that are pleasing to the eye. A mixer can beat the egg whites into a meringue just as well when it is lime green as opposed to something the color of Cream of Wheat. Have some fun, add some color, or go the other way and take every drop of color out. A totally white, or a silver and black palette can be stunning. Your kitchen works hard and it is screaming for drama, something that says to the world, “the food cooked in this room may change your life”. Make your kitchen a place you want to be after dinner is done and the dishwasher is running. And while you’re there, put your feet up. You work hard too.
Cowboy Strong
What is it about us that makes us love a cowboy? Maybe it’s because we think the truth is important, and pretention a waste of energy. There is something right about the man who gets up in the morning knowing that his day will be full and his exhaustion at the end of it complete, that the people he cares about are counting on him to work the land and move the cattle despite the elements. We like that he doesn’t try to impress us with his money or his education, because our opinion doesn’t really matter to him. His goal is to look himself in the mirror every evening and know that he left everything he had on the range, and tomorrow he will get up and do it again, because it is just what he does. Not to impress anyone, but because he wants to do it. He cares about the land and the livestock and treating both of them with respect. And when the sky grows dark and the ranch rests quietly he’ll sleep in his bed, knowing he did it right for another day, and every callous was worth it.
Misfit Marilyn
Marilyn Monroe has been hailed as an American Icon and all time greatest sex symbol, and did over the course of her career play many roles suited to a beautifully, confused blonde in search of a man. She spent much of her time in movies frustrated by her “type-cast” opportunities, always looking for the role that would make her a “serious actor”. Hollywood loved to dress her in high heels, chiffon and red lipstick, which is why it is 
interesting that when she finally appeared in a movie that asked more of her than the presentation of a pretty face, she performed almost entirely in a pair of jeans. In 1960 Monroe starred in The Misfits, a screen adaptation of her then husband Arthur Miller’s play. The movie didn’t do well at the box office, since American movie goers are very often poor at accepting our stars in a role that isn’t what we’ve come to expect. It was the last movie Monroe ever made, her health waning, and her broken heart somehow irreparable, she gave herself to this final effort in a way she had never dared before. Later, by several years, critics took a new look at The Misfits and declared it possibly Monroe’s best work, certainly her most honest. No chiffon or red lipstick, just jeans and boots – unpretentious, real-life clothing for a “serious actor”.
Silver Lining
“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow you have to put up with the rain.” Dolly Parton
Cup of Sanity
When you’ve tried everything you can think of, the fact still remains, it is Monday and there is no getting around it. It happens every week, usually just once, but that is enough, and one truth seems to remain unchanged over the years. If Sunday happens, that day of afternoon naps and dinner with family, then Monday is certain to follow, and nothing but creativity and true grit will get you through it unscathed. It is the day of the week when it just seems easier to beat someone up than hear them out, but there is a remedy that will help you check that rude demeanor at the door. Make Monday your special coffee day, not just coffee, but a coffee drink with foam and perhaps a drizzle of chocolate, and add a muffin, and eat it at your favorite coffee place, where everyone is happy to see you, even though it is indeed Monday. When you wake up on Monday knowing that this indulgence lies ahead of you it will make your first day of the week feel like a regular, lots to do, get it done kind of day, so your week will not even have a Monday but rather a “coffee treat” day. Now that is worth getting up for!
Rough Riders
Before Theodore Roosevelt was president of the United State he was Colonel Theodore Roosevelt of the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, better known as the Rough Riders. It was 1898 and this band of 1250 men was comprised of cowboys, Indians and a few elite athletes from the East. The point was to recruit men who could ride a horse and shoot at the same time and were in a physical condition that would enable them to tackle the rough terrains and the long hours that were required of the make shift army. The Rough Riders served the country, entirely under the direction of Roosevelt and his cohort, Leonard Wood, in an effort to aid Cuba in their fight for independence from Spain. The regimen fought their first battle in Cuba on June 22nd, 1898 and by the end of the first week in July of that same year, they had defeated Spain and the war was over. After 137 days of service from enlistment to discharge, the Rough Riders were disbanded, their mission accomplished. They did it all with little training, complete on foot or on horseback, and without any real funding. It was all grit, determination, a sense of purpose, and as was Teddy Roosevelt’s reputation, the adventure of the thing counted for a lot.
Cowboy Strong
What is it about us that makes us love a cowboy? Maybe it’s because we think the truth is important, and pretention a waste of energy. There is something right about the man who gets up in the morning knowing that his day will be full and his exhaustion at the end of it complete, that the people he cares about are counting on him to work the land and move the cattle despite the elements. We like that he doesn’t try to impress us with his money or his education, because our opinion doesn’t really matter to him. His goal is to look himself in the mirror every evening and know that he left everything he had on the range, and tomorrow he will get up and do it again, because it is just what he does. Not to impress anyone, but because he wants to do it. He cares about the land and the livestock and treating both of them with respect. And when the sky grows dark and the ranch rests quietly he’ll sleep in his bed, knowing he did it right for another day, and every callous was worth it.
Behold the Horse
Hollywood loves horses, in every form. They love the horse that can win a race, or the horse that stands by his man until the last shot is fired. They have given us talking horses, horses that fly, singing and dancing horses, carousel horses and horses that have broken our hearts. They are the favorite means of transportation in an entire genre of movies, and most of the favorite film stars of the forties, fifties and sixties ended up on a horse at one time or another. Horses are back in style on the silver screen with westerns making a come-back over the last fifteen years. Today’s westerns are more violent and the main characters never bathe, but one thing is consistent with the early western. The best friend of the cowboy, rancher, farmer, or settler is still the horse. The west simply wouldn’t have been settled without them. The four legged beasts are beautiful, noble, intelligent, usually gentle pictures of the soul of an era that was misbehaved, poorly planned and truly brutal. When everyone else was spitting, drinking too much, gun fighting in the streets, the horse brought a grace and sureness to America’s wild picture of the west that makes us love them. They are the spirit of what we wish we could be; strong, sleek, peaceful. And they do talk by the way – you just have to listen really carefully.
Six Shooter to Go
So in a world of peril and hidden dangers you have to ask yourself who you would want protecting your town in a time of need. Many of us would tend towards the Andy Taylor kind of Sheriff, no gun, just a great big smile and a warm heart, while others would want James Garner, simply because he was stunning in a cowboy hat. For dealing with a rougher element, you couldn’t beat Marshall Matt Dillon and nobody would argue about Kirk Douglas as Wyatt Earp and his handsome brothers Morgan and Virgil in Tombstone. I have to think though that in a real pickle we’d all go for Clint Eastwood in Pale Rider, coming out of the mountains on his bleached steed, wearing a long coat and a hat that sat on his head like a monument. He came to town, made friends with the miners, kicked the riff raff to the curb, and took out the bad guys without ever breathing hard – all seven of them in one afternoon. Then he mounted his pale horse, settled his hat firmly on his head, and road back up into the hills like a superhero, only without the cape or the tights. Now that’s a sheriff.
Timing is Everything
“The greatest man I never knew, lived just down the hall. Everyday we said hello, but never touched at all. He was in his paper, and I was in my room. How was I to know he thought I hung the moon.” Reba McEntire
In the fleeting moments we call life there are a few things that we don’t get to do over. One of them is our children. We are never given the chance to go back and give those hugs we missed, and we won’t be given the chance to “re-listen” to the heartbreaking story about their day and actually try to understand. That day we should have told them how smart they are, not coming back, and the “I love you” before they left the house this morning is lost for good. The things in life that really matter can be counted on one hand, and they come along one time. If you’re going to be really good at something, make it parenting.
High Horse
“I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do. That is character!” Theodore Roosevelt
Labor Day
Labor Day is all about eating hot dogs with plenty of mustard, watching a baseball game, or playing in one if you’re inclined, and enjoying the near end of summer, with the people you love. It is also a chance, as it was on the first Labor Day celebrated in 1882 to be grateful for gainful employment. So if you are employed or able to earn a living through your own enterprise, wave your flag proudly for a country where all of us get a chance to succeed or fail by our own merit.
