February 27, 2002

"Nature is smart as hell."

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Schools were closed today, presumably because of new snow and high winds.  After moseying out this afternoon to move snow at the resort, I'm not sure if conditions warranted the closing of school.  No doubt conditions were worse on the rural roads.  The kids weren't too broken up about it! <grin>

Today's picture was taken by the DanaCam (WebCam).  The temperatures warmed up a bit this afternoon and the morning gloom gave way to a stunning cloudless blue sky.

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The bulls that crowd around him seem almost sweet, acting more like a bunch of Ferdinands than like fierce symbols of machismo.  They were bred to be gentle, never dehorned, and never roped.  The Lasater Ranch occupies about 30,000 acres of shortgrass prairie near the town of Matheson, Colorado.  It is a profitable, working ranch that for half a century has not used pesticides, herbicides, poisons, or commercial fertilizers on the land, has not killed local predators such as coyotes, has not administered growth hormones, anabolic steroids, or antibiotics to the cattle.  The Lasaters are by no means typical, but have worked hard to change how American beef is produced.  Their philosophy of cattle ranching is based upon a simple tenet: "Nature is smart as hell."

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