I made the decision to sort of call it quits in business and retire. But still wanted to do some small scale supplemental business on the side with the food trailers and the farm. For those that don't know my businesses started with Cattle, Hogs and Poultry and Direct Marketing the frozen packed meats from the animals I raised. I did that for 23 years as of August this year. Over the years lots of side businesses spun off from that central pillar of MEAT. Farmers Markets, Food Trailers, Silent partner in Food Co-Ops, 14 acres of vegetables, and some craft stuff (I build custom oak tables and benches from the post and red oaks I mill) All spin offs from the meat business. I have had a lot of health issues over the last year which are really complications from one primary health issue. And decided that retiring and focusing on getting this damn diabetes that makes blood sugar out of thin air under control was the best course of action. When you have ate NOTHING for 18 hours and are pulling 500+ blood sugar test there is a major malfunction. Also it is not a pleasant day to day life with the complications from blood sugar that high..... like the vertigo, disorientation, messed up vision, and extreme pain from the elbows and knees down that develops. So me and Doc have been working on this via Diet, exercise, two pretty potent meds and a removal of STRESS from my life. All of those businesses over the years developed into lots of little Stresses from multiple directions that created a big huge giant amount of total stress. LOL what started out as self sufficient little homestead farm, turned into a much bigger thing than I ever intended So over the last year I have liquidated everything and sold out all of my partnerships mostly to the partners via the right to first refusal clauses. Sold all of the live stock except one pet hog and the two holstiens that are hanging at the packing plant right now. And sold all of the businesses that I owned outright except for the farm itself and the food trailers. All of the sudden everyone elses problems were not my problems and I had a whole lot less worries in my life. But now I have found some new stress with the two steers gone......... I have big empty pastures! And one oddball gilt that at 3 years old is up to 200 pounds and never did sexually mature that can't decide if she is a Hog, a Dog or A Heifer and there is no keeping her in a fence. Sometimes she is in the woods, sometimes in the pasture and very often sound asleep on the front porch of the cabin. But beyond her the farm is empty right now and it just does not sit well with me. So last night a friend from middle TN was up visiting and said "It just does not look right sitting here and not seeing hogs and cattle out on your pastures!" Nope I replied and it sure as hell don't feel right either. So after some more conversation and drinks later he pulls his phone out and ask "Would you be interested in these? I saw them for sale a few days ago." and shows me this picture. A small herd of 5 registered lowline Arberdeen Cattle A 3 year old bull, 2 three year old cows, a heifer calf and a bald faced Hereford/Arberdeen cross Bull Calf and $5500 firm for the lot. LOL friend had already looked at them on his way up and was going to stop and buy them on his way home today but said I think you need them more than I do. So we called last night and I bought them. I don't even have to hook my trailer up and go get them, the seller is going to load them up on his trailer and bring them to me. Said he has wanted to meet me and come visit my farm for a long time and never got around to coming this far North. So they will be delivered and paid for Sunday and I won't have a empty pasture anymore Nope absolutely not going back into the nightmare regulatory meat broker business selling processed frozen packed meats! No interest in State, Federal and Local inspectors and Government types popping in and crawling up my back side and that Meat Broker License giving them free run of my farm. Nothing like sitting in yer outhouse contemplating the meaning of life and getting disturbed by a State Meat Compliance Officer knocking on the door wanting to inspect yer freezers and animals. Nope those days are done and behind me! What I will do is grow this herd up to 8-10 cows and finish the calves and sell them on the hoof as butcher cattle and deliver them to packing plant for the buyers. No Regulations for me to deal with selling that way. And the little gilt will be happy because she will be able to identify as a Heifer again and hang out with the cattle on the pasture instead of lounging on my porch! I am going to do the same and rebuild a small herd of Hereford Hogs and sell finished ones the same way. Probably 3 sows and a boar. And I actually enjoy running the food trailers and the cooking so going to start running mine again next year a couple of 1-2 day events and shows per month. Always having people message or call me asking if I will come to this or that and set up, so we have started booking dates at select events for 2022. Very nice to be established and be selective about where you go VS being new and unknown and having to take whatever you can get to get established. So I am only booking events that I traditionally made $750-$800 over the course of 8-10 hours that had steady but not crazy busy traffic. Figure if history indicates the future I can knock out $2400 per Month in supplemental CASH income just doing 3 events per Month. Nice easy low stress work that I enjoy doing now days. Not like I just financed a $100,000+ food truck and all of the things to make it run and work on revolving credit and am desperate to build a business and reputation and have to work non stop to make the payments on everything I financed.. NOW that gets stressful LOL. Mrs T5R is going to Retire soon LOL she has spent 32 1/2 years as one of those .gov investigators that I dislike so much And loses 1/3 of her income when she retires and takes the pension but we still keep the platinum insurance plan for life for some trivial amount of money per year. That is probably worth more than the pension income. So here I sit finally getting back to the basics of a smallish self sufficient homestead/farmstead that can still generate a decent income without a massive amount of work or stress and I can be a antisocial hermit all but 5-6 days per month And best of all no one except Mrs T5R cares how I dress out here in the sticks I can be a color coordinated as I want to be LOL.
Well,, congrats on your newfound retirement ,,, and I wish you all the best in being able to stabilize your blood sugar.
Your health is your main concern --sounds like you made the right move. I kind of know what you are going through, Had sudden hearing loss in my right hear MRI showed a growth on my balance and hearing never. Have had hearing loss and balance issues. Thank God it is not malignant and can be removed but I will loose all hearing in that ear. Jan 11 is the big day will be in the hospital 5 days, bright side they won't have to shave my head I get to keep my long hair just a patch behind my ear. Getting old sure sucks
Good luck with your health. You are on the right track, though, about staying busy doing things you enjoy. Use it or lose it.
I always liked getting old is not for sissies. Or getting old may suck but it sure beats the alternative.
You're full of crap about this retirement BS, LOL Take care of the diabetes stuff, Ain't nothing to fudge on.
That doesn't sound much like retirement to me, but if it works for you, awesome. God bless you and the Missus'. I always enjoy your posts although I'm usually tired out when I finish them.
Looks like a retiree that I wouldn’t want to screw with, yikes! Hopefully I’ll join your ranks within 5, there are things to build. Happy retirement.
An Ag operation without animals is a lonesome place. Sold most of the livestock before the 4th, used the money to renew 40 year old fencing. Happy place again with new calves on site. With luck I'll have another 10 years of retirement.
Finally got down to 104 with morning stick. No time to cruise, classed as a diabetic always a diabetic.
Been a Diabetic for 30 years, but with Meds & Insulin, my A1C is in the High 5s for the last 5 years, which for an Insulin using Diabetic is doing Great.... I just have to watch my Sugar & Carbs intake...
Lol. I've never been so busy as when I "retired". Miss the farm life when I drive by a farm or see pics. Then the reality of animal husbandry rears it's ugly head. Man that was work. I can barely deal with an old heeler with lots of needs and a 1 1/2 year old heeler that I think is possessed by a demon. ( He's gonna be good but SHEESH! Those first 2 years).
Had a Doc Appointment a few nights ago, the usual 3 months checkup of general health and check the A1C and go over the bloodwork. 3 Months ago the A1C was 9.1 this appointment it was 12.9 I think we can call the new medicine a absolute failure. On the blood labs we learned that my body is producing ample amounts of insulin now but my body is NOT using the insulin. So the new medicine was not a total failure in that it has kick started insulin production. So another new med that is a combination pill of the old medicine and another new medicine is now being taken to cause the body to utilize the insulin along with the newer medicine that is promoting the insulin production. Very frustrating do do everything you supposed to do, eat right, exercise and take the dope like it is a religion and see a 3+ point jump in the A1C Hell I even lost another 18 pounds over the previous 3 Months! The good news is 2 weeks into the new combo pill in combination with the other new med and everything else and the BS is now running in the 220-230 range which is much better than the 450-650 range Things get real nutty when it goes over 500 LOL. Hogs are WORK the way I raise them on Pasture and Woodlots. Cattle not so much so long as I check the fences often and keep it in good repair. Plus I really enjoy livestock, where it got to be work is when I was raising and finishing 250 hogs and 40 steers and cull cows per year VS 25% of that for personal use and a small number to sell as butcher animals. Working with the cattle is pretty much relaxing therapy for me. Working with the hog for me is a more intense insanity that will drive a person to therapy The two Holstein Steers I took in a couple of weeks ago are finished cut and vac bagged now. Got the call this evening that they will be ready to pick up Monday. 1110 pounds total beef from the two and processing cost of $971.33 Grand total I have $1.89 per pound into the beef. Averaging the price of all the cuts at store prices it would have cost me $9.27 per pound to buy it or $10,290 to buy it at the store. I am just not seeing a future here where there is not a small herd of cattle on the pasture and a very small colony of hogs finishing. I LIKE STEAKS AND ROAST and Sausage and BACON. I save $10,000+ per year between the hogs and the cattle and earn $20,000+ by selling the spares on the hook. Kind of like a sore weenie...... ya can't beat it!
