Latest / Just Us Sisters / Episode 21: The Ranch (Part I)
Transcript
- speaker-0: Welcome to the Just Us Sisters podcast. Doesn't come with a manual, so we made a podcast. speaker-1: How- dy! speaker-2: This is episode twenty-one called The Ranch. Let me first introduce my sisters, Susan, our little cowgirl, number one, Sheryl number two, and Stacy, number four. I the host today, Shelly, number three. My grandparents owned a thousand acre ranch called Channer Ranch in Diegler, Oklahoma, for seven years. It's amazing to me how something that was only a part of our lives for so little has had such an impact even to this day on each of us in different ways. And today we're going to talk about that. I've looked forward to this episode for a while now, and I'm just going to jump in and get started. The first question I have is what is your first memory of the ramp? speaker-0: It was hard to bring it down to one. There were so many. But one of the first memories I have, well not first, but major memories that I have was the fire. Mm-hmm. How all the neighbors came together and were doing their best, bringing their water buckets and just trying to keep the fire from spreading. It was my f honestly my first experience seeing people really come together in speaker-1: Yeah. speaker-0: in an emergency in a critical way to work together and that was just amazing to me. I just was so impressed by that. It was scary though. It was very scary as a child. speaker-1: Yeah. You know that Dad and I got almost got the fire almost got around us. Like I had to take my letter jacket off and start hitting it. I had a my le leather letter jacket, which wasn't leather, it was leather. It got all messed up. Dad had to order me a new one. speaker-2: Well, speaker-0: Well well first of all, how old was everyone when we got the ranch? I felt like I was in sixth grade. speaker-1: We got it in seventy two. Do you speaker-2: Seventy two or seventy three. speaker-0: That's four. I was in sixth grade. I don't know what year that was, but seventy, seventy, seventy one. speaker-2: Well, I think that they bought it in seventy two and I was speaker-1: Six. I must have been eleven. speaker-0: See, I thought I was eleven when we when they bought it 'cause I was in sixth grade. speaker-1: No, you were you were in seventh or eighth grade. speaker-0: Must have been going into seventh. But anyway, ⁓ it just was I don't know when the fire happened, but speaker-1: It wasn't early on. It was later. But I remember which one you're talking. speaker-0: about. It was huge. Anyway, what's y'all's first memory? speaker-1: My first memory is we would all go there in the summers and dad would work and we would work right alongside him ⁓ hauling hay. I remember Pop would give us a nickel, a hay bell and you know, they were the smaller ones, not the real big ones. And it was hard work, but man, it was fun working out there with those guys. Yeah, they were always good looking and had no shirts on and in good shape, but that's not what was fun about it. speaker-0: Maybe that's why I wanted to marry a cowboy. speaker-1: Probably so. Probably. Remember they would pop the the snakes' heads off when they'd find one? Did you ever were you ever up there? speaker-0: You know, I don't remember that. Yeah. If they did. speaker-1: Dad and I were talking about that today. He brought it to my attention. speaker-2: I excited to hear that after a while dad reached out and was able to connect with Foster Johnson, who was a ranch hand at that time and really special to our family. So I'm giving a shout out to Foster in case you're able to connect with our podcast because you still hold a special place in all of our hearts. speaker-0: Yeah. speaker-3: ⁓ my first memory is of sitting under the big tree in front of the house and or I guess more on the side of the house and just sitting there because it was too hot anywhere else and just enjoying the day with Gran and Mm. That's my first memory. There are many others. speaker-0: Yeah. speaker-2: What part of the ranch felt most magical to you as as a kid and for Susan and ⁓ Sheryl as you know preteen ⁓ and teenagers? speaker-1: Yeah. speaker-0: I feel like that what was so magical was because we didn't have air conditioned in the bedrooms. It was almost like sleeping under the sky. We'd have the windows raised, you could hear the grasshoppers, the cows, the coyotes, the horses, the birds. I mean, you could hear all of wildlife out there while you're asleep. And that to me was magical to be able to go to sleep listening to that. speaker-1: Yeah, for me, when you would drive on to that ranch, it was like a quarter of a mile to the house, I think. Mm-hmm. And it was like driving onto a movie scene because on the right you had a four to five acre pond that we did a lot of frog gigging and fishing and sometimes we'd get in the water, not very often 'cause very murky. But it was like being in a movie because we had everything at our fingertips, ⁓ on that ranch. And we just didn't realize what a blessing that was ⁓ as a kid. speaker-0: And really not too far from there were coal pits that were fifty foot foot deep and we would cliff jump off of the cliffs into the water and it was cold and fun and just fun for kids. speaker-1: Forty six. Yeah. That was a lot of fun. speaker-3: Mine was in the hay barn. On the second level you could like go and hide and and just hang out in the hay and play games or just be there. It was there was something about the smell of the barn and the hay that speaker-1: Playing hide and go seek in that hay barn was so much fun. Yeah. speaker-0: Wild. And it was actually jumping. Yeah. Jumping into the hay. So speaker-2: For me, everything seemed magical. It was so different from our regular life ⁓ just like Sheryl said, almost like a movie set. It was it just all seemed magical for the time that we would be there. And Susan Sheryl got to spend more time there to help with the hauling of hay and such, but all of our time was special. So which grandparent memory comes to mind when you think about the ranch? speaker-1: Mom and Dad used to ship me there in the summers, all summer. So I I got to be there a lot and Graham would cook for all the ranch hands and me and Pop and anybody that was working. So just and she would make a huge meal for lunch and they would bring that bell and come everybody would come to the house. Yeah. And it was just amazing. And little gran, she handled those cowboys just fine. speaker-0: Yes. And ⁓ that was mine, Sheryl, brand cooking, breakfast and lunch, it was. But then also pop working from sun up to sundown. I mean a cowboy's job is just never done. It it in the snow he was out there working, in the rain he was out there working. So speaker-3: Yeah. Mine was grand as well. Just the time that we got to spend with her. She would just sit and crochet 'cause I think there was T V but we never watched it. We didn't speaker-1: Yeah. speaker-0: Yeah. Lawrence Well, every Saturday. speaker-3: Yeah. Probably the only time it came on. But yeah. And then Pop working all the time. Just like you said, Susan. He was speaker-0: Yeah. speaker-2: My memory also includes Gran and Sheryl mentioned frog gigging and one time they thought it would be funny bring these frogs in a bag and these frogs were this big. They they're not your little bitty frogs, they are this big. ⁓ they brought into the house and let go. ⁓ And our bitty grand grandmother jumped from the floor on top of the pool table in one jump when they let those things go in the house and I will never forget. that memory in my mind then. speaker-1: That is funny. So what speaker-2: Smell, sight, or sound instantly takes you back to the ranch. speaker-1: Cow and horse poop and hay, that smell. And then just like Susan said, all the noises that you hear that you really don't get to hear in the city. And you're just trying to figure out coyotes, all the insects, the cows enjoying themselves at night, just a lot of really great things. ⁓ I speaker-3: Smell to that. The water. Remember the that came out of the faucets and how bad it stomped. speaker-0: So the iron or speaker-4: Yeah. speaker-3: But then being able to see drink the well water out of the crushed springs. Anyways, yeah. The poop, the hay, the water, and then just the pasture. speaker-0: For me it was the smell of rain because it was very vivid there when it rained. And then I said it before, the smell of bacon just takes me back. Yeah. In the mornings to grand frying bacon for all those ranch hands and getting ready for a day. speaker-2: I don't think there was a day that we were there that she didn't cook bacon for breakfast. So it was bacon for me as well. What was the funniest thing that ever happened at the ranch? speaker-0: That's right. Well, I've shared one before in a previous episode. Mine was in ul my college years when I was dating my husband. Actually, it was our first big date and and we had a horse incident. You'll have to go back to our episode on dating our husbands to hear that one. But my second one is just the snipe hunting experience with Pop. He got me. He got me good. 'Cause we were out there not too far from the pond and I had my paper bag and I was I don't remember what if I was hitting something or hitting the bag or laying the bag down and hitting my clapping, but I just knew that we were gonna catch some snip. Don't know when that speaker-1: It was so against his nature. Yeah. Because he was always so serious and he Shelley, you said ⁓ mine earlier was ⁓ the bringing the frogs in and lett and letting them go. So that was mine. speaker-3: Mine had to be when the house that was next door to the ranch house it was empty and we used to play in it all the time. And one year Jason, our cousin, was there and I don't know what set it off, but he was chasing us or we were chasing him, I don't remember, all through that house and Shelley slipped and fell and peed and I slipped in her pee and fell into it and so did Jason and ⁓ anyways. It was ⁓ Just one of those moments of ⁓ we gotta clean this up but couldn't stop laughing. speaker-1: Mine families have peace stories like ours. Yeah, we have a lot. speaker-2: We do. Mine has to be, ⁓ Susan alluded to it earlier, but somewhere along the way, Dad was told about the coal pits where you could go swim and it was hot and y'all had worked all day and it was hot and we wanted to cool off. And so he took us to these coal pits. The thing is, the cliffs were about 60 feet up in the air. And mom was like, You're not letting those girls jump off of that. speaker-0: Two speaker-2: Right as one of us goes flying off the cliff into water that was probably a hundred feet deep. And we went to the coal pits often and thoroughly enjoyed it. So that has to be one of my funnest memories. speaker-3: That those rocks were so smooth and thin. Y'all remember like like glass almost. Yeah. speaker-2: Yeah. So what's a story involving animals that makes you laugh at from the ranch? speaker-0: Well, because we would go up there and stay all summer, we would meet neighboring ranches, you know, ⁓ people that own ranches and their kids. And for the life of me, I could not think of these kids. But our parents would also let us drive the old truck. We didn't have our driver's license, but we were on dirt roads and we were visiting some some of these friends and we had a curfew and they were very strict about curfews. And so I think Sheryl, you were with me in this. And we were coming back home from the curfew. I'm driving, and this jackrabbit jumps in front of the truck. And I'm like trying to get around it. And I would go to the right and the jackrabbit would jump over to the right. I would go to the left and the jackrabbit would jump over to the left. And I I'm not gonna run over a jackrabbit. So we were late when we walked in and I told mom that there was a jackrabbit on the road and every time I would try to go around it it would jump in front. She did not believe me for anything. And I I swear there was a jackrabbit. We could not get around it. speaker-1: It's your story and your standard. So it wasn't that you met the the ⁓ the Indian boy, Virgil? speaker-0: No, that was that was in my first year. That was in sixth grade or going into seventh grade. No. speaker-1: Virgil Whitefeather or what was his name? Tip Tip Sword. Man, you knew that right there. speaker-0: Sorm. That was my first boyfriend. That was my first boyfriend ever. Never. No. speaker-1: y'all kiss? Okay. The story that involved an animal with me was I I didn't laugh then, but I was helping my dad and pop. We're working cattle and they had me holding the nose of the the k the ⁓ heifers up and then pop would put the medicine in the mouth and dad would stick it in the butt. and give ⁓ the vaccine. So I'm over there taking the I think everybody's finished with their their little chore, and I'm taking the hook and everything out of the mouth and my dad stuck that heifer and it rose up and knocked me right here in the nose, threw me twenty feet, and I had blood everywhere and they were dad dad and them were laughing and my nose was Probably broken, but you know, we don't go to the doctor for that kind of stuff. My spray everywhere. But when I look back, it's a funny story, but it was not fun at that time, for sure. speaker-2: But speaker-0: I remember that. speaker-3: Mine involved Shelley. We were riding horses and I don't know if Pop's prize bull was chasing us or if we were chasing it and he tripped and fell and died. Do you remember that? speaker-2: What? speaker-4: us. speaker-3: He yeah. And we went and got Ed and Ed came and cut the bull's nuts off. I don't know if it was to save whatever or I don't speaker-0: No Did he make you eat him? speaker-1: No, you don't eat old bull balls. You eat young bull balls, mountains. speaker-0: Okay. Yeah. speaker-3: Anyways speaker-2: I don't remember that at all. speaker-3: You don't? ⁓ I'll never forget that 'cause we speaker-2: Mine mine involved when Pop kind of delved into having a buffalo on the ranch. And I used to sit on the fence and that buffalo got agitated and it charged the the fence and I go flying backwards. Didn't didn't get me, but hit hit the fence hard enough that I fell backwards. And ⁓ that was quite the experience for me. speaker-1: Yeah. speaker-3: We ran from speaker-2: Schools a lot. A lot. So what trouble did you get into that our grandparents did or did not ever know about? speaker-1: Well I'll go first. I can't remember the girl's name. She was visiting her grandparents from California. And neither one of us had our license but like Susan said, we we got to use the truck and we went out for a joy ride and w we were driving a little bit and she said, Hey, can I drive? Yeah, I said, ⁓ I'm not really supposed to let anybody drive because, you know, this is the this is the ranch truck. And she put a lot of pressure on me, so I ⁓ pulled over and let her drive. Well it is a little slick 'cause it had been raining. It must have rained quite a bit up there. and so we were driving and she was doing a good job and we were go going down this hill and the road went to the right and She put her brakes on and just started sliding and it kept going and it took out all these fence posts on a neighbor's ⁓ land. And so how the the truck was up like this on had a whole bunch of posts underneath it. And I told her, We gotta switch back. We gotta switch back. I gotta take responsibility for this. So for I don't know how long I had told Pop that I was driving. And I think I was in my I don't know, thirties when I had I c I came clean with him and told him that that girl was driving that I took the heat for it. And he's that's all right, you shouldn't do that though. You if somebody's doing something wrong they need to take the responsibility. So anyway, that's what happened with ⁓ my speaker-4: you speaker-1: So Pop had to pay for the neighbor's fence to get fixed. And I think I had to pay him some money. speaker-0: But remember giving in trouble. I'm sure I did, but I don't remember or I've put it way back in my mind. speaker-3: Yeah. Yeah. I don't either. speaker-2: So the same story that Stacy told about peeing in the house, as she also indicated we like to play in the barn. And there was a phone in the old house that didn't get used and we just figured we would just take the phone to the barn for just playing with it there. So we cut the line and took it to the barn. And when we were finished playing with it, we came in and put it on the table or something and they were like, What in the world did you do? We said, ⁓ we just decided to use that in the barn and it turns out it was a live phone and not ⁓ a good thing that we cut the line and speaker-1: And it was about a party line. Yeah. speaker-0: Yeah, I do remember the party line. speaker-1: it up real careful and listen to other people's conversation. ⁓ I remember their phone was a long and a short. Yeah. If it was two longs don't even think about touching it. It's not not our call. speaker-0: Not your th it's not your call. speaker-3: The best things before smartphones. speaker-2: So what was the most only at the ranch experience we ever had? speaker-0: I had three. One was pumping the drinking water at the water well. Yeah. Only at the ranch. Was delicious cold, fresh water, eating mountain oysters, only at the ranch. Never have had them since. And then of course I said alluded to earlier, had my first boyfriend, Cherokee Indian ranch hand named Virgil Tipsor. speaker-2: those that may not know, explain what mountain oysters are, Susan. speaker-0: Sir Bull Balls Fried. speaker-1: Young Bo, Young Bo. The the the young speaker-0: Young bull, but it it it c it it's a cross between frog legs and fish. Yeah. Well it has the chicken texture, yeah. So speaker-3: Yeah. speaker-1: Chicken. speaker-3: You have to eat ⁓ fried too. speaker-0: Hey, they were delicious, but speaker-1: Yeah, if you didn't know what they were speaker-3: It's speaker-0: You didn't know and I didn't know. I didn't know. ⁓ speaker-1: ranch dressing back then? ⁓ my god. speaker-0: That would have been delicious. That's how ranch dressing started probably. Yeah. They were having mountain oysters on a ranch. Yeah. And someone said, We need to come up with something to do speaker-1: ⁓ my gosh, I bet that's right. Did you get the neighbor of delicatessa? Like they're expensive in restaurants. speaker-0: Yes. Yes. So we're eating away, 'cause they had worked all all day and sitting at the table, and I'm just eating up these things. And I said, What are these? And they said, Mountain oysters. I was like, I didn't know you could get oysters in the mountain. And someone said, They're the bull's balls. And I'm like, ⁓ my gosh. I ⁓ I almost got sick. But they were so good. So Anyway. speaker-1: Mine was of course gigging for frogs and then if you ever watched them being made in the f pan, they still would be jumping because ⁓ of the nerves or something. And then we did some skinny dipping in coal pits with some of our friends out there. speaker-3: My only at the ranch experience would be ⁓ pretty much what y'all have said as well. Plus at Christmas making the popcorn garland, y'all a and cranberry popcorn and cranberry garland. speaker-1: Yeah. speaker-0: Yes. Yes. Only a three inch. Yeah. speaker-2: So what sayings, habits, or values from our grandparents do you still carry today? speaker-0: Well, the values is a work ethic like none other. Pop would work seven days a week just from sun up to sundown. Just a work ethic. But my grandmother would say, ⁓ my lands or all the time, ⁓ my lands. And I say that. Now I don't even know what it means. ⁓ my lands. speaker-1: Hm. I remember that. Just a love for the farmers and ranchers and appreciation for what they do. And they were very patriotic people. I don't know if y'all remember we would always be taken someplace, you know, to make sure we got to see the fireworks and to be patriotic. And of course, I mean Gran, especially her love for the Lord and how speaker-0: Yeah. speaker-1: faithful she was, even when sometimes it was tough. speaker-3: Yeah. ⁓ the work ethic, like Susan said, because I think everybody had that work ethic there. It wasn't it was Pop but then it was dad too. And then it was the ranch. And the sense of a village, you know, of what what it takes to be able to run a ranch that size. And then, you know, Pop's faith and losing everything and having to start over, you know, with speaker-0: Farmers. Yeah. speaker-3: the fire and losing cattle and that and you know, just those types of things that it's like, okay, it can happen. And you can get through it too. So speaker-2: Yeah, the strong work ethic was very evident, but when you come to work on a ranch, you have to work until the job is done. There is no in between. And Susan said sun up to sundown. That was the norm for him at that ranch. As listeners, let us know if there was a place that you went to with your family or grandparents and and had such a significant impact on your childhood or into your, you know. ⁓ Teens and preteens. ⁓ we would love to hear that from you guys. Next week will be episode twenty-two. Until then, life is messy, meaningful, and better when shared. Thank you for listening. speaker-0: Don't forget to like us. speaker-1: Share us. speaker-0: Comment. speaker-3: Subscribe. speaker-1: Bye. speaker-3: No, we lost Sheryl. speaker-2: Well, Sheryl Okay, I'm gonna put a picture up for you because you're no longer there. speaker-1: Whose turn? Is somebody talking? I don't hear anybody. speaker-0: Yeah. speaker-2: Dang it. speaker-3: We were all raptured. speaker-1: Do y'all hear anybody? Do you hear me? Do you hear Shelley? Stark. I can't hear anything. Talking and I can't hear you. speaker-2: Yeah. Okay. speaker-1: What? Not again. Again? speaker-3: Susan, can y'all hear me? speaker-0: We can hear you, we just can't see you. And Shelley, we can't hear you. speaker-2: I'm on mute, but why I can't figure out Stacy. You'll have to reset Darn it. I I'm gonna ask her to try to log on. speaker-1: And so ⁓ speaker-3: Hey, can y'all hear me? Yeah. Okay. Was it just me? speaker-0: Yes. Okay. speaker-2: you hear us? Means you're just gonna have a picture up because you're not your picture's not showing. speaker-3: I can now but it ⁓ it's not? I see myself. speaker-2: Maybe it maybe it will. ⁓ speaker-1: Maybe look and see if your video cameras work here. speaker-3: Yeah, I just speaker-2: It's not that 'cause yours did the exact same thing. Okay, if you can hear us and can speak, then we're gonna can continue on. speaker-0: Okay. Can't she not log off and try to log back in? speaker-2: Do you want to try to log back in? speaker-3: Yeah, I can do that too. Yeah. speaker-0: It would be better to have her face in there. speaker-2: Well, I would much rather have her face. Sheryl just looked like she was deep in thought when I had to have her face up there. speaker-0: ⁓ did you have to do that last week? Mm-hmm. ⁓ I didn't see that. speaker-1: For this week? But for this week? speaker-2: Last week. ⁓ good. Okay. speaker-1: I speaker-3: Can you hear me? Okay. Okay. Is that where we're at? speaker-0: Yes. Okay. speaker-2: We're on ⁓ speaker-0: Yes, only at the ranch. speaker-2: At the ranch. And ⁓ we are looking forward to see seeing what that's gonna be about. speaker-1: This is gonna have to be two part.