Happy Belated Earth Day!

Greetings from the epicenter of the Bakken oil formation!

I had every good intention of posting on Earth Day 2013.  Instead of finding time to carry out good intentions, life happened.

Business as usual and then some played out at the ranch. We had a couple SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) out to help us collect data for making decisions in settling Dad's affairs and we conducted a little hillbilly business as well.  A term you are not familiar with?  How about hillbilly bartering?  Doing business that doesn't involve cash where both parties walk away winners and where they are usually trading things that most folks would not find value in.

One of my absolute favorite commercial cows, #505 broke her leg three years ago.  Most cows would not have handled it well and would have had to be humanely put down shortly after an injury such as this (which due to the location of the break was not able to be casted).  505 on the other had was tough as nails and had survivor's instinct.  She continued to  maintain good flesh and served as a wonderful lawn mower the last two summers.  Pete had the brilliant idea a couple weeks ago that maybe we should see if Jeffery Kindle, a local carpenter and hunter could come out and give us a couple estimates on projects that need to be done out here, and well, since he would be out, see if he would want to harvest 505 for hamburger.  Both parties walked away winners and 505 served the purpose that she was destined to while as humans we made the most of a bad situation.

Although not glamorous, in a nut shell, the day was a good representation of what Earth Day means to me.  Its not about the environment movement, hugging trees or lobbying congress to put large tracts of land (natural resources) into preservation mode so members of the concrete jungle can retreat there on weekends and not have to step in cow poo (AKA - organic, all natural fertilizer).  In my view, it is about using our resources wisely and helping people understand that as our global population grows we need to adjust in a way that provides the most amount of sustainability possible considering the situation.

Brad sent me a really interesting link that was part of one of his senior seminar classes this semester.  I really enjoyed it and figured that it would be a nice share for our Earth Day celebration... a little belated, but still worth the watch.

How to green the world's deserts and reverse climate change

Again, HAPPY BELATED EARTH DAY!

Angels among us... while we dust ourselves off and get back up in the saddle

HOME matters to me.  All four of my grandparents were children of homesteaders in McKenzie County.  I LOVE my home and all it represents... where my roots are, pursuit of dreams, truth to self, family and neighbors, commitment to future generations, love of God's creation, and devotion to stewardship of the vast resources found here.

We buried my father on April 5th after his unexpected death on Easter morning.  Devastating to say the least.  It rocked our family (which is huge in numbers and strength) to the core.  I found myself heartbroken, but at the same time wondering what it would be like going through this personal loss in any other community other than Watford City, McKenzie County, North Dakota, USA.  The outpouring of support, love and spiritual comfort was absolutely overwhelming and there are no words to explain how much that means.

Kurt T. Hovet was a quiet, strong, steady, gentle, kind, amazing person.  His presence made you a better person for knowing him and being around him with out you realizing it until his physical presence left us on Easter morning 2013.

On Monday, April 8th just when we were attempting to dust ourselves off and get back up in the saddle as he would do, I learned that the state legislature, the Senate specifically was busy removing needed funding for HIS home and the home of so many others.  I felt I had to drive down to Bismarck and explain why this wasn't OK.  I did and then I drew from the quiet, strong, steady, humble way of 'being' that made my father such an amazing man.

Below are the two news segments that were aired afterwards.  The KUMV segment used random footage shot out in oil country from 2012.  As a quick note, dad had been into the hospital twice in the last year.  Once last fall for an X-ray and then on February 25, 2013, his 69th birthday for his annual blood screening.

The KUMV random shots were of traffic on the roads and little children in schools and a man walking into the McKenzie County Hospital.  THAT MAN WAS KURT T HOVET walking into the hospital on one of those two occasions.  He is wearing the same shirt that we buried him in and the cap and boots that he had on when he reached the emergency room on Easter morning.  My mom and sister both asked if I had provided the footage or suggested it for the piece since dad was included in it.  I didn't even know it existed.  All I could think as I watched it today - that even in dad's afterlife, God kept all of those amazing characteristics... QUIET, STRONG, STEADY and HUMBLE... of the man and then made him perfect adding one more characteristic that his earthly self didn't exhibit.  TIMING.  For a man that was notoriously late all the time, even for his own wedding, his accidental timing in front of that camera back last fall or this past February and the resurrection of that footage for this piece...  AMAZING TIMING!

KUMV Bismack

KXMC Bismarck

Angels among us... Truly.

Whether you live in western North Dakota or not, contact the Senate Appropriates committee if any of the communities or resources in oil country have significant meaning to you.  It really does matter and being able to make things 'RIGHT' and 'TRUTHFUL' for home would make dad really proud.

http://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/62-2011/committees/senate/appropriations