-
Read MorePower of the Purse
This week a hometown friend invited me to the Tenth Anniversary celebration and fundraiser for Power of the Purse, which features a purse auction to benefit the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women’s Health. Over 1,000 women attended to hear former first lady, Mrs. Laura Bush, talk about the efforts...
-
Read MoreChecking Cows
Checking Cows After moving eight miles from town and down the road from my in-laws, I wondered at my father-in-law’s compulsion to drive through his cattle every single day, sometimes twice. My husband did the same. We drove through the steers he fed out on leased grass most every...
-
Read MoreCowboy Gear: BOOTS
Cowboy boots, high-heeled boots, custom-mades, short tops were pee-wees. The early version of boots seen in the West did not always have high-heels, which has become synonymous with the American cowboy style. Early over-the-counter boots were plain with a lower heel and cost around $15.00. Cowboys began to wear...
-
Read MoreGamers & Their Parents
Gamers & Their Parents: Are We Raising Violent Youth? Is our youth more violent today because of video games? Every time we experience a horrific incident involving America’s youth, the group of computer geeks labeled “gamers” are usually mentioned in the backlash. As a mom of one precious heavenly...
-
Read MoreWindmills on the High Plains
Oldtimers say it’s a place where you can watch your dog run away for two days. A vast, arid plain of un-watered hearty mixture of grasses. Charles Goodnight set his ranch in Palo Duro Canyon and watered his livestock from the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River,...
-
Read MoreGreat-Grandmother’s Oak Table
Is it possible to feel emotional towards a piece of furniture? We own an antique oak table which came from Mullins, Texas, my great-grandmother’s house. It must have been over 75 years old when Mom and Dad brought it home. I was in Junior High. My parents passed it...
-
Read MoreJanuary Reads
Recommended reads and reviews for a few of the treasures I discovered in January. For Fans of Westerns THE MEDICINE KNIFE by Don Coldsmith I’m working my way through The Spanish Bit Saga by Don Coldsmith, after finding a few of his works at the local library sale....
-
Read MoreMaster Storyteller, Dusty Richards
The Western Genre lost a legend, mentor, and award-winning author. DUSTY RICHARDS passed this week from injuries following a car wreck in December, just one week after his wife, Pat, died. DUSTY RICHARDS wore a wide variety of hats including renowned rodeo announcer, auctioneer, teacher, author, tremendous storyteller, cattle...
About Natalie Bright
Natalie’s Books
Upcoming Events
Prairie Purview
Cowboy Gear: Wild Rag
Bandana. Neckerchief. Wipes. Wild Rag. “It’s the man that’s the cowhand, not the outfit he wears.” The history of cowboy gear can be traced back to the Spanish Vaquero, who without question, looked very fine sitting astride a horse. The clothes they wore added much to their mystique and Hollywood contributed their own spin to the image of the American cowboy. The tools of their trade and the garb they wore had more to do with the work at...
Read More
Branding Crew Pea Salad
It’s that time of year… Time to round up the new crop of Angus calves for branding and vaccines. Cowboys and cowgirls are on their horses at sunrise, and the work is done by noon, way before the thermometer will reach its peak. The branding crews are quick and efficient, and the calves are returned to their momma’s side as soon as possible. No breaks until the work is done. When the Ranch Foreman says it’s time for lunch,...
Read More
Calf on the ground!
“Nobody ever drowned himself in sweat.” Finally – it is spring! Birds singing, flower and garden planting, evening walks and vacation planning. If your livelihood has anything to do with a cattle ranch though, you best hold up because spring is when the real work begins. Cowmen spend all year turning pasture grasses into steaks to feed the public, and that beef has to be transported to where the meat processors and people are. The new additions to...
Read More
Hey Mom, You Should Know…
…I Kept the Bedspread. Remember the one that matched that wacky green carpet and odd gold walls in the new house on Cleveland Street? You laid it across your bed one day: mauve and pale pink flowers on a leafy background of green and gold along with a plaid pattern in muted shades of maroon. It matched the flooring and walls perfectly, as if the room had been decorated around that spread. After we admired it for most of...
Read More
