I hate spraying weeds!

If you want to see me loose my cool and be very cranky, just ask me to spray some weeds for you.  It ruins my day real quick!   If cowboys don't have to spray weeds, why do cowgirls?  I would much rather be horseback than spraying weeds!

For starters, it is July and it is hot!  Being on irrigated pasture, it is also muggy.  Don't get me started on the bugs.  Mosquitoes try their best to eat you alive.  Even with a long sleeve shirt, long pants and a hat, bug spray doesn't even phase them.  Not to mention the bugs in your eyes and teeth, just driving down the road to get to where you need to spray.

Then there is equipment.  I have a great spray rig for the 4-Wheeler.  It holds 25 gallons, has an electric motor and long hose so if you cant get right on top of the weed, you can get off and walk 5 feet to it.  It is awesome for a rosebush here, white top there, spurge, or the occasional thistle.  Unfortunately, I don't have the occasional weed to spray, I have the occasional acre!  So I drive 6 feet, spray, backup, pull ahead 6 feet, spray, backup, pull ahead, you get the picture.  I get frustrated that I've been spraying for an hour in one place, and only have  an area the size of my house done.

Let's talk 4-Wheelers.  I love them, and would kiss the guy who invented them.  They are small, go fast, can go just about anywhere, and you can even ram a cow if needed and not really hurt them (the 4-Wheeler that is).  I am not sure what was ram repeatedly with our ranch 4-Wheeler.  The handlebars go one direction, the front tires a different direction.  Brakes?  No, we don't need no stinking brakes!  Actually I would prefer them.  Driving down the road the other day, I got to going a little too fast, missed my turn and had to coast into the neighbors drive way to turn around and go back to my turn.  A little embarrassing when the neighbor and one of his friends were right there watching me and asking if everything was okay.  (They might have heard me swear when I realized I was going to miss the turn)!  The transmission is shot.  I think that whoever ruined the brakes started throwing the 4-Wheeler in reverse to stop it.  Needless to say it doesn't always catch a gear when it needs to.

I think I mentioned we are on irrigated pastures.  That means there is water everywhere!  Oh yeah, and the grass?  Taller than the 4-Wheeler in some places.  Not that I am complaining, but unless you've been in the pasture horseback, it's kind of hard to find weeds if they are shorter than the grass.  Water = Mud.  Mud = Stuck.  You have to drive fast enough to not get bogged down in the mud.  Not much of an issue if you have brakes and need to stop to spray something, or come up on a ditch.  Ditches are kind of hard to find if you don't know where they are, and impossible to miss without brakes!

So, I have spent this morning being eaten alive by mosquitoes, water up to my knees, my hands are dyed blue from HiLite, and I'm stiff and sore from hitting ditches going too fast!  Is it too early for a glass of wine?!!