RUSSEL AND BILLIE'S
History of the
"What Next Farm"
A Special thanks to Billie for writing this down while Russel talked in his sleep
The name of the Farm originated in the fall of 1961 during harvest.
FIRST: I had a Wards tractor hooked to a feed auger wagon full of corn for the hogs. One of my part time helpers came back from lunch to feed the hogs, thinking the tractor was in gear(which it wasn't) he put it in gear thinking it was now in neutral. He had to stand next to the tractor to choke the engine while trying to start it and when it started (being in Gear) it took off. Being without a driver the wagon hit a tree and tipped over spilling the corn all over the ground, the tractor broke loose(wards power) from the wagon and finally came to a stop a foot away from a neighbors corn crib.
SECOND: As I was trying to finish harvesting 2 acres of beans and do this before it was to start raining, I slugged the feeder house and had to unslug it a stem at a time. Shortly after my wife showed up with both of our daughters (one on her hip the other in her arms) for moral support and to see what was wrong, in came my part time help from disking. He said "the bolt came out that held the blades and spool on, and the blades and spool are scattered all over the field". So I said, "well help me dig this combine out so I can finish this field before it starts to rain".
Before we got done unsluging the combine the THIRD encounter happened when my other part time help drove up and said "I hate to tell you this but, ya know how the throttle pulls back on an International to speed it up and on a John Deere it goes forward. Well, I pushed it forwards (the wrong way of course) and lost control and ended up in the ditch. The front end is broken off and the tractor is blocking the road. I looked at my "farm bred wife" we shook our heads, and as she turned around to go back to the house I said
"What Next".
The next year, our girls had babysitters in the spring and fall. So Billie and I was able to do most of the work without the need of hired-hands. Our break downs were few and the conversations were great. Now we are both RETIRED and only Help the tenant in the fall to gather the harvest. As I have said, I was in Management for years, and now I am a laborer and lovin it. "No decisions, and I'm told what to do (now I get to be the HIRED-HAND).