Tip Of The Week

Let PETA make you money…buy stock in Super Glue!

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.phillyvoice.com/horse-pennsylvania-state-police-killed-troopers-investigation-chester-county/

https://www.ladbible.com/news/latest-peta-demonstrators-superglue-themselves-to-starbucks-counters-20220422

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.9news.com.au/national/drug-and-rural-crime-eight-people-charged-nsw/a5495fe8-e2be-471d-bb26-5bf5cc5f5bf3

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10742037/Cattle-rustler-pulls-1-5m-livestock-heist-NT.html

Africa

https://informante.web.na/?p=318179

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2022-04-22-two-suspects-linked-to-fatal-chicken-farm-shooting-arrested-one-shot-dead/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://thebusinessjournal.com/prolific-thief-arrested-accused-of-crimes-at-two-farms-in-single-day/

https://bossierpress.com/mississippi-man-arrested-for-theft-of-livestock-in-west-carroll-parish/

Amber and Krystal Wilke are mother and daughter, and they are operating a very successful laser art and engraving business from their family farm in Kimball, Nebraska. While this might seem like the main part of the story, as successful as it is, it is just the tip of the iceberg.

Amber and her husband have been able to create an enterprise on their 4th generation, Nebraska farm, that has allowed their children to come back and work there. Now, they are surrounded by multiple generations of family, living at the farm. Krystal lives 12 miles away in town, but is back on the farm full-time. This has been done through expansion as well as innovation.

It's always fun to showcase FFA students that have done amazing things and have been able to take talents and passions and turn them into viable SAE's. Today's guest did just that. This is a replay of an interview I did with a very special welding artist. Learn more about Maci Krites and her "weld art" on this episode.

This summer, my family and I will grow a large patch of sweet corn. This is something that we have done several times over the years. And, if you were to ask me when we would be getting started, I would tell you that it would be sometime in May. And by my answer, it shows how I view getting started, and in a lot of ways, what type of farmer I am....or at least where I have room for improvement.

This dawned on me in my interview with Lydia Whaley today. Without even learning about Lydia's supervised agricultural experience you can already see that she is an all-star. She has responsibilities on her families cattle ranch in Missouri and is very active there, and she has already served as her chapter's vice-president and is just beginning a term as her area's president. By the time I got to learn about her SAE, I already knew she was exceptional.

However, when I asked Lydia about growing 4-5 acres of pumpkins each year I really got a glimpse into the way that she thinks and an indication of why she is seeing such success. Lydia doesn't plant her pumpkins until June, but when she tells you about her project she states that she gets started in January or February, which is obviously the middle of winter.

Lydia's project begins with the selection of seed and pumpkin varieties that she will be growing during the next season. She looks at her project much more holistically than I do my corn patch. Lydia realizes that her customers are voting for their favorite pumpkin varieties each and every time they select one from her honor system, road side stand. So, starting in January, she assesses which were the most popular varieties of pumpkins she sold the previous fall and begins making decisions about what she will be planting in June.

Some time ago, I was studying a martial art called Kajukenbo. My instructor was a very nice man with a lot of experience and training. And on one of those nights the man who had instructed him came to our class, observed and offered some instruction to the students of his student.

On today's episode of the Off-Farm Income Podcast, I am lucky enough to offer you a similar experience. Dan Miller, the famed author of 48 Days To The Work You Love and the host of the vastly popular podcast, the 48 Days Internet Radio Show, is our guest host. And, he is interviewing me!

It was my huge honor to be invited by Dan to be his featured guest for a private group that he facilitates called the 48 Days Eagles Community. On Monday's, Dan brings a guest on for their Monday Mentor Training, and on 4/11/22 it was me! I discovered Dan Miller in 2009 when I was first dreaming about a different lifestyle...actually, the lifestyle that I have now. If it had not been for Dan, I wouldn't be living the life I am living today.

Dan and I have got to know each other over the years, and he has kept informed about my progress as an entrepreneur and podcaster. I can't tell you how special it is that he thinks my story and experience is valuable enough to share with his exclusive audience. And today you get a special peek behind the curtain.

As you all know I am a fan of the lawn care and landscaping business. I have seen students in high school do some amazing things with this particular business, working it all the way up to a six figure annual income while still in high school! In my own experience, I know a full-time farmer who as able to become this by starting a landscaping business during college, building it up and then selling it and using the proceeds to purchase his farm.

It might seem like that those are all the positives of this business, but wait....there is more. This "future millionaire maker" business can be started with no money! I have interviewed several students, including today's guest, Jack Frank, who have started their lawn care business using the equipment that their customers own.

Tip Of The Week

Watch a rural crime movie tonight: https://crimereads.com/seven-great-rural-crime-films/

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.keyc.com/2022/04/14/thieves-steal-machine-goat-goofy-goat-farm/

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/woman-attempts-to-glue-herself-to-court-in-protest-during-clippers-vs-timberwolves-play-in-game/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.producer.com/news/slaughtered-cattle-remains-dumped/

https://bromsgrovestandard.co.uk/news/hartlebury-farm-owners-left-counting-the-cost-after-thieves-steal-caravans-and-damage-property/

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-humber-61107201

https://www.fwi.co.uk/news/crime/farmers-horror-after-101-dead-lambs-dumped-on-their-land

Africa

https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/oped/commentary/militarised-approach-won-t-bring-peace-to-karamoja-3783004

https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/updf-rejects-plea-by-kenyan-officials-to-allow-turkana-pastoralists-back-3781030

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.turnto23.com/news/crime/stolen-kern-county-tractors-recovered-in-madera-county

https://www.wmdt.com/2022/04/missing-father-and-son-located-in-farm-field-shed-after-15-hour-search/

In today's interview we are lucky enough to take a fascinating journey into the mind of an inventor. Not just any inventor though, a farmer who sees problems, visualizes ways to solve them and then follows through.....all the way through.

Monte Busser has a list of 8,100 ideas that can make life better for farmers and everyday people. Looking at all the patents he already has filed, all of the work he does outside of inventing and the processes he has in place to make his inventions commercially available you might euphemistically say that he has been "struck by lighting". However, when I asked him when he remembers first creating and improving things, he thinks back to a time when he was actually struck by lightning at ten years of age. Fortunately the lighting bolt first hit a transformer, then arced and struck him while he was riding his bicycle on rubber tires. His parents actually saw him be struck by the lighting, but he was not hurt, he just started riding faster. And since that day, he has been inventing and improving.

In today's episode we focus on five of Monte's patents that are featured on Google Patents.

Today's show is a replay of interview I did with a fellow podcaster. It is an interesting discussion on his discussions when it comes to hauling agriculture related freight. Check it out!

Orignial Show Notes:

As part of my journey in agricultural podcasting I have found myself as the editor and producer of the Bulkloads Podcast. The Bulkloads Podcast is part of Bulkloads.com, which is a service for truck drivers hauling bulk freight. Naturally this is related to agriculture with all of the hauling of bulk commodities around the country.

I was recently editing an episode for Bulkloads, and their guest was Mike Wade. Mike grew up on a dairy farm in Northern California and eventually found his way into truck driving. Along the way Mike saw a homemade tool another driver had, and he thought he would like to make one for himself. However, when he designed it he added on other features that he always wanted in a tool that would help him in other ways. Huckleberry's Hammers were born.

Our guest today had a couple things to say during the interview that really resonated with me. To begin, Riley Widboom, was starting over when he entered his freshman year at Worthington High School. He had gone from Kindergarten to 8th Grade in a small, private school, so his friends at Worthington were limited at best. However, he knew that the FFA would fix all of that. Plus, Riley had been interested in and involved in agriculture his whole life from growing up on a farm and participating in the 4H.

Later in the interview Riley told me that if he could tell a non-agricultural person just one thing about ag, it would be that agriculture is is for everyone. There is a place for every person in the world of ag. This really struck me as well because, well, because it is true, and because this is the way that Riley lives his life.