Time to grow. I mean... go.

So, there's been a lot of new stuff going on recently, mostly involving cows, rivers and amazing life experiences. But, these are the perks of living in Montana, I suppose.

Susan and I recently wandered around Fort Keogh, an old army fort that had been used by Custer and is now a cow research laboratory. People can go hiking, fishing, paddling, ect., and check out the cows that hang out in the pastures. We wound up getting slightly lost in our attempts to check out abandoned soldiers' quarters, and wound up going through a river. It was a delightful experience. We even encountered a bull who seemed to notice us, but ate grass contently as we quickly walked past.

We also had the opportunity to experience calf branding. This too was exciting, and new. I realized that things like this are potentially a once-in-a-lifetime type deal. How many times am I going to be able to walk into a room and say something like, "So, you know when you're out branding cattle and...." and have others be able to relate? Probably not so many. Unless they grew up on a ranch. Or maybe a farm if they've got several cows that are free-range as they are here.

Also, I heard back from U-MT, and apparently I'm not good enough to gain acceptance into their graduate school. This is okay, I guess. There'll be plenty of other opportunities. Or something. So I keep telling myself. I'm planning to return to Wisconsin towards the end of August. I've got an interview on Thursday of next week, which I'm looking forward to. It's for this program called City Year. I hope it works out, as it seems like a really interesting program. Just as eastern Montana begins to grow on me, I am also feeling the urge to return somewhere closer to home. I don't think I can spend the summer with brown grass, few trees and no humidity. I also miss the smell of thunder storms, spring time, and freshly cut grass. I miss the smell of fall. And of snow. I miss the feelings of snowmobiling. Of being in forests in the winter. I miss fresh veggies, and the Appleton Farmers' Market. I miss people who recognize that there are various kinds of corn. But, when I leave this Big Sky Country, I'll miss the people I've encountered and had the opportunity to spend time with. And the things I've been fortunate enough to experience here. How many people can say they've hiked through cow research facilities?

So, we'll see where I wind up. It's funny how things just grow on people, it's time to go. But this is a growing experience. On a slightly more positive note, Ty's thinking about coming with.