Green Beers & St. Patricks Day-memories of learning from my dad on enjoying LiFe

Yummm!!! Today is a day for happiness and enjoyment I've decided! Leave it to the Irish. ;) I've had my share of bumps and bruises this year and even as of recently. Many recent changes in my life have signaled big changes ahead. Those changes have brought some emotions I was not expecting. Not bad emotions, just....emotions! :) The only St. Patricks day I guess I really even "celebrated" was one that could not be beat and boy am I glad for those now!

The day was a beautiful March day...back in 2005. I was much younger back then ;), hips weren't filled with pain, back was missing a few permament big ol' bumps, and I was LeArNiNg each and every day! Not only was I LearNinG...I was LiViNg! Why, I was working at our Cattle growing lot right beside my father....just a bit past the 1 year mark of his Stage IV non small cell lung cancer diagnosis! Boy were we living. Rather than plague ourselves with the WHYS of someone so healthy and never smoked caught a "smokers disease", we just got to work! We lived life no differently than before...well a little differently. No more afternoon snickers bars for my dad (aka Cowboy's Lunch) with my mom's new strict no-sugar diet, otherwise what I referred to as the no-fun diet! ;) It also meant that a special trip to "The Mining Company" after the end of a LONG & WINNDDY day at the growing lot meant my dad didn't feel much like a green beer! Never saw my folks drink much when we were little anyways, so no surprise that St. Paddy's day didn't send him into tailspins for a Beer when he's taking Chemo, Radiation, and Ranch work all in stride! Nope, in fact I am pretty sure his 2005 St. Patricks day Green Beer, came in the form of a short glass Vodka Cranberry. The question of that evening was, "Do you think your mother will be more upset of the sugar in the vodka or the sugar in the cranberry juice?"

Tonight I won't be enjoying a green beer or a vodka cranberry with my best friend, but I know he will be right there with me, smiling down and still chuckling with me over the liTTle things in LiFe we all were able to find humor and EnJoYmEnt in! Dad, tonight my cranberry vodka will be ordered just for you....I love you :)

~ToP 10 ReASonS I shOUld get to MoVe to TexAS~

10) I'm Republican

9) I love me some beef brisket sandwiches

8) I'm single

7) I'm a single FeMaLe

6) Not opposed to succession

5) Built for the WIND-40 mph winds are just a light breeze

4) I have good taste in music

3) I'm used to being the minority

2)I'm just CRAzY enough to fit right in

1) I have the perfect hair to "JACK it to JESUS"

tALkIN' of taLL TAleS

I successfully put my toe in the dark, frigid waters of social media when I launched my very first blog attempt last summer. The Young Washington Cattlemen’s Association blog was the perfect leap of faith needed to help our cattlemen venture towards their dusty computers and help chronicle some of the work I was doing to tell their amazing story of growing the food we all love to eat! :) God has been super busy keeping me on my toes over the last year and he shows no signs of slowing down. This adventuresome life he’s been in charge of requires a little more than a group page…..so The Sagebrush Chronicles was born!

I’m pretty tickled to sit down with y’all and chronicle the journey through this lil thing called LifE…chances are we’ll meet one of these days along a back highway through the desert or while grabbin’ faves at a small town truck stop! Until then, put some ice in your glass, pull up a stool, and join me for some hair-raisin’ good times….