No Signal

This morning I walked to my neighbor's property with my bow. Decoy out, tom fan, box call, gobble call. Just me under an oak tree waiting. The first two turkeys this season went to my boys. This one was mine. While I was sitting there I kept thinking about how I got here. Brad Gunter handed me my hunting license at 11 years old in Roseville. His son Nate officiated my wedding. My dad hunted ducks and pheasant half a mile from where I live now. My boys have already been in the blind. Some things are too specific to be random. This is No Signal, life happens when you put the phone down. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with someone and subscribe on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

This week I built a chicken tractor. 50 Freedom Rangers needed a real home and something had to get built. I walk through the design, what went wrong, what Joel Salatin taught me about moving animals across the land, and why I chose to build it myself instead of buying one. The chicks are in. The predators are out. And the future plan is bigger than one tractor. This is No Signal, life happens when you put the phone down.

This week I walked across the field on shearing day. My grandma and I moved the sheep into their pens before the shearer arrived, wool has to stay dry. Standing in that barn got me thinking about Ernest Peter Brodersen. My great grandfather. Lifelong Petaluma resident, maintenance mechanic, 4-H leader for 30 years. He founded the California Columbia Sheep Breeders Association and served as President of the national association. He got into sheep because his daughters were in 4-H. That's it. That's how it started. The flock has been in our family since the 1950s. At its peak, 75 maybe 100 ewes. Now there are 16. My grandpa is 85. I live 20 acres away. I show up every Tuesday. This is No Signal, life happens when you put the phone down. Click here to view the episode transcript.

This week on the farm  feeding Berkshire piglets, checking on 50 Freedom Rangers, chainsaw work with my grandparents, and a conversation about taxes that turned into something more. Life happens when you put the phone down.