The Lonesome Dove Passes Into the Great Beyond

Part Two of The Shock-and-Awe-Your-Vegetarian-Sister Saga

Earlier I regailed you with tales of rotting cow horns, and now that you have been sitting on the edge of your seats for a week now, I figured I had better tell the rest of the gory tale. I asked Rach what she thought of the thoughful gift we gave her. She sat back, thought a little bit, and said 'Well, I wasn't grossed out at Katie's birth. But the horns were definitely gross.' So there you have it: every woman's favorite gift.

On to the rest of the story: Rach came out to visit me one summer when I was in college. Jeff (my then underaged boyfriend...hehehe, Rach) and I took Rachel out for a little bit of farm entertainment, also known as shooting prairie dogs. Now, before you call PITA on me, let me say that in rural areas you gain a whole different perspective on animals. Prairie dogs dig up your fields and your roads and your yard. Their holes damage crops and create traps for horses to break their legs, not to mention the nasty diseases they carry. So, its basically them, or your livelihood. Anywho, we took Rach out to shoot some prairie dogs. She was impressed. She even made a comment that 'so this is ranch life. It's interesting.' After about fivty-seven times circling the center pivot field, we were running out of prairie dogs who hadn't gotten the memo. As we came around the bend, Jeff saw a dove sitting on the fencepost. In order to impress my sister and further secure his status as fabulous future bro-in-law, he shot the dove. Not really sure went through his head, but he shot it. With a gun that was more intended for, say, elephant hunting than shooting a wee bird. The bird literally went up in a poof of feathers. I cringed, thinking that my sister would forever exclude me from her life. Instead, she said 'Wow, that was really cool.' I think that was one of the first shared experiences that formed the unique bond that Rach and Jeff have today. That, and the radiator incident that will forever remain in infamy, right Rach? :)