Bravery won’t save yard-invading gopher

This has not been a good week for sunbathing. It was raw spring weather with a continual nasty wind. We have received a little bit of moisture, but without heat things are not going to come fast. It is nice to see the grass is gradually turning green. Instead of guessing where you left those “Haley Hansons,” maybe soon we will have some weather that you really don’t need them until fall. A word of advice, don’t throw them away as since this is Saskatchewan, you may need them at any time.

On the home front, Jaco and Quinny have been working on the elevator. Bin 10 and bin 11 are unplugged, finally. It was a lot of work but it is done. They are now working on putting the air seeder tank on top of the stand we built. Airhead was there and lifted up the final pipe and now the guys have to cut it off so all four legs are even and the tank will fit on top. They have cut the cart wheels off and removed the pole. Come Monday Airhead is coming back to lift the tank. We will have to drill two holes in the tank because I want it bolted to the building. After that I have a four-inch pencil auger that needs installing from the holding bin we made inside the elevator to the top of the air seeder tank. The tank will then meter the grain into the grinder and then the grain will fall into the pelleter. That is the plan.

It must be spring. Out on the front lawn came a striped gopher or chipmunk. I was watching from my picture window. We put out one of our hunter cats, he was napping on his cat house. The cat went out and the gopher lie on the grass not moving a muscle. The cat looked right at where the gopher was and then was distracted by some birds in the bushes. That is all that cat thinks about. Birds. We sent my grandson Santi out to get the gopher. That was entertaining but not much danger to the gopher. Santi got up to three feet from the gopher before it ran. Santi ran after it. The gopher had no trouble outrunning Santi. It went under the step. The gopher was pretty smart to lie perfectly still and run only at the last minute. The two big black yard protectors in the back yard slept right through the gopher excitement in the front yard. They were resting up so they could bark at coyotes all night, I guess. It is just a question of time before the little gopher meets his demise. Either the cats or dogs will get him. He is way too brave for his own good.

In agriculture news, last week it was announced the Canadian Wheat Board would be merged with Bunge, a large American agribusiness firm and a Saudi agricultural and livestock investments firm. There will be a new firm established to be called G3. The Bunge and Saudi investors will own 51 per cent and the CWB will have 49% per cent. There is no money involved just a commitment that the G3 group will invest $250 million in the CWB. There will be a Farmers’ Equity Fund established where farmer will receive $5 for every tonne of grain delivered to the G3. The Farmers’ Equity Fund will grow and after seven years or $259 million, the G3 group may buy it out. No price mentioned. No shares in the new company will be issued to farmers. There is no payout of any assets that farmers own. The Canadian Wheat Board has a lot of assets bought and paid for by farmers’ money. That is all the money they have is farmers’ money, money that was skinned off of the final payments that farmers should have received. There is the head office in Winnipeg, a several-storey building downtown. That has to be worth a considerable amount of money. Then there are the rail cars bought with farmers’ money, 3,375 of them. There are ships on the Great Lakes, Mission Terminal at Thunder Bay, Ont. and grain elevators and loading facilities on the Prairies. All bought with farmers’ money. As a farmer, why do I not have the right to receive back some of the equity that was taken from me to build the CWB empire? This is a most unfair deal and I would suspect many of my fellow farmers would think so, too. You have just been put over the barrel, how many are going to deal with this new company and risk getting it again?

Joke of the week: A couple went to a night club for supper and a little dancing. While they were there a fellow started dancing. He did the break dance, he did some line dancing, he did some back flips and was obviously having a good time. The wife said, “20 years ago that man asked me to marry him and I turned him down.” The husband replied, “looks like he is still celebrating.”

Victor Hult