Free Publicity! Wait...did you say FREE?

Recession, welfare, stimulus, bail-outs.....BLAH, BLAH, BLAH! If I have to keep hearing these words I might just give someone a piece of mind. Oh wait-I think I have this teeny tiny tendency to do that anyways! :) Is anyone else sick of hearing people whine about the state of the nation and the world? I don't even have TV, so I can't imagine what those of you who do have it are feeling like. I've decided its probably best for my health if I don't even watch a bit of Fox News at the gym anymore.....or maybe its just the gym that I just need to veto instead :)

Since I work for an agriculture lending company, I have a slight insight to what the economy is doing and I'd like to share my profound wisdom with you: The World is Not Ending! Yep-I am really that wise! The economy is a little worse than it has been in the past couple years, a few more people have lost some jobs, and prices of goods have risen slightly. Get over it or do something about it. Those are your options so you better choose wisely. The best bet would be to stop listening to the naysayers. Turn off the TV, turn off the radio talk-shows, and turn on some good old music. The older the better too! If you want to instantly feel better about your life listen to a song or read a book about yesteryear-its an instant happiness lift, guaranteed to make you feel better about life today!

I always have thought that people who didn't have everything were much more creative than those who had it all. You ever think about just how many writers, singers, and poets were faced hard times before they made it "big". The newbies all lie about their hard times, I'm talking about the old folks: Loretta Lynn, Mark Twain, etc. When you don't have everything, the only thing you do have is the ability to think and dream. You get creative about finding a way to get where you want to go. If there is a will, there is a way-the strong-willed will know just what I'm talking about.

As we all know the Cattle Industry is usually not dancing around in piles of money. The cattlemen's association is no different. Pay for advertising? Nope, that's definitely not going to work-how was I going to get more people involved if they don't know about us? I sure as heck didn't get very creative. I called the radio station. That was it-one phone call ended up with a sound-byte they started playing. I crossed my fingers they would want to hear more and let me on the air for a "segment". Who says that you need to "pay" to get heard? Grab hold of your confidence, brush up on your sense of humor and get out there on the airwaves. The WCA, WA Beef Commission, NCBA, and the BEEF Industry owes this station thousands in advertising by now. I spent 2 hours in the studio the first time I worked with K102.3 and frankly I didn't want to leave. If they were closer I would go in every Friday and work the morning show. I've called in numerous times since then to advertise Bloomsday, Beef Day on the Hill, the WCA Scholarships, etc. I have an open invitation to come talk in the studio or to call-in with some new information.

Pick up the phone and grab onto some of the free money that's out there. You will do far better for our industry than sitting around reading the weather and you will make some friends and business associates in the process. Tell them about what WE are doing for them day in and out, get out and tell our agriculture story!

30 days to live?

Do you count down the minutes of each day waiting for it to become the next? What do you spend your time on earth doing? If your not really sure what you are doing every day, you might be simply taking up space and much needed oxygen! Maybe we should all push ourselves a little more than that! We were given a soul and a very large brain. Use them, preferably both at the same time. :) No more counting down the minutes, because you never know when it could be your last minute breathed, or someone who is close to you. Consciously start thinking daily about what you are doing here and what you are spending your time doing. If you knew you had 30 days to live would you live your life the same way? If you would spend your time differently, then what is stopping you from doing the same right now?

Ma'am where's the emergency stop button?

Am I the only one that feels like I'm on a treadmill, or even worse a rat wheel and I can't get off? Whew! I actually think I'm starting to exhaust MYSELF these days-and if you know me then you know I passed you a long ways back! :) So much goes on in a day, that sometimes I feel like a week went by. So just some brief little tidbits of really exciting changes, things to come, and buzz on the "street"!

**Well, a brief snippet from Bloomberg today-Argentina may need to import beef for the first time EVER due to a couple year long drought they've been dealing with! I hate to celebrate one man's curse, but it is another man's blessing. If only we could be so lucky, especially if we can export some of our product to them! :) Fingers Crossed!!! These foreign export markets are absolutely essential to our industry-increases sales in a downward home economy but also these other countries will eat up parts of the carcass that Americans wouldn't dream of touching! I know I got a good wave of excitement this afternoon when I read the article!

**Officially joined the "Cattle Knowledge Team" of my company this week. My first conference call is Friday afternoon so I'm excited for what I'm to hear from across our 4 state region & also nervous for the work and mental challenges headed my way! This will be a GREAT resource for me personally to help build my all encompassing of every level of the industry and a big win for the YWCA venture & WCA as well. I hope WA cattlemen will be a great resource for me to share with others what our cattlemen's need, hopes, and fears are!

**Talked with a WSU Alum this weekend who has been eagerly wanting to get more involved with the WCA, and helping with the YWCA! That is literally an answer to my prayers. I can't do this alone folks. I was hoping to plant a little tiny seed of enthusiasm & watch it grow! I would love and NEED all the help I can get. I've never started a brand new charter group before and its daunting! I'm not artistic or super creative in the design department so bonus points if someone out there is! :) Thank you Lacy for wanting to get on board and be game for whatever I throw your way!!!

**I spoke with Kirsten this evening, the gal we are designating as the Student Director of the YWCA this year! Cows bellowing in the background, and kids hollering proved she was calling me in between showing and herdsmanship duties at her cattle show in Lynden! Kirsten has been so supportive, EXCITED and willing to help in any way since the very first day I asked her early last spring if she thought there would be any interest for youth in a college presence of the WCA! I only needed that one person who was looking for a group like this to be involved in and I could test my idea & I found my person! I love that those that have stepped up are game for an adventure that hasn't been tried before-they'll be mistakes, and falls, and hard paths to cut but they are just as excited to try as I am and that is all you need for success! :)

**I've been in contact with the NCBA Young Producer's Council leadership this week as they contacted all of us who showed interest in being a media contact for our individual states! They are starting a YPC Blog, a YPC twitter, encouraging everyone to get their MBA (Masters of Beef Advocacy degree) and then setting up webinar courses for us on further media training and policy briefing! I am SO excited for whats to come with this media outreach group. I only wish I could just focus on this stuff all day long....those dang day jobs sure do get in the way sometimes! :) More to come on this awesome venture from the NCBA YPC!

**BIG THINGS are happening every day through the MBA graduates, YCC Alum, YPC members-look for us. We are out there on every social network site posting FACTUAL information on the beef industry, responding to false stories, urban myths, and rumors on blogs, newspapers, television, and radio.

**My next goal is to get some Team Zip gear and try to get my rusty old hips to run some races here in the next year! (Ssshhh...just don't tell my physical therapists!!) They have a great blog on here: Team Zip The Power of Protein!