Our latest project at Rosemont Farm is the construction of a large storage barn and bunkhouse. This idea was hatched nearly three years ago during the height of the housing boom. Needless to say, finding a good contractor that was also reasonable was nigh on impossible back then. But one severe economic downturn later, the search for good, cheap(er) help was a lot easier. Just as well to have waited because it required a whole bunch of lumber to build this 80 X 50 Taj Mahal. Our trusty timber man, Mike Marshall, who also saves souls in his spare time, cleared around 20 acres for hayfield, lake and pasture. He dutifully sawed all the logs, hardwoods and pine, to produce all of our fence, corral and barn siding. We attempted to make all of our barns and sheds match with lap siding and it has taken a forest full of trees to do it.

This barn is about 23 feet tall and should be able to house our big rig. It also features a three bedroom loft apartment complete with communal kitchen, bath and loafing quarters. The bedrooms should be pretty cool looking because Mike sawed us some huge poplar trees and tongue and grooved paneling for the walls. The living quarters encompasses the top quadrant of the barn and runs the entire length and sports a barn- length catwalk on the outside of the apartments. I had some fancy plans to construct a truck wash inside the barn proper but the details of that still allude me.

Our plans are, shall we say, still dynamic. I intend to attract a succession of college interns from some of the good equine programs around the country to fulfill their requirements by working for Rosemont. What a possibly super way to develop great contacts and friendships around the nation. Plus we may find someone permanent. Good help is hard to find and especially to keep.

A passel of hearty "thank you's" go out to numerous hard workers to construct this barn. Riley Harcrow is our builder, and a fine one too. Tim Meachum poured our slab. Tim somehow manages to raise 5 children, manages a poultry operation, auto mechanic shop and is a concrete man. Joe Nichols is our long-time interior paint man. Trusty Justino Guzman, our full-time farmhand, found us Richard and Jose and the three of them only need me to pick up materials.

And last, but not least, is our newest horse wrangler Kelly Pollard. Kelly started some two year colts for us the first of the year but after another short gig contacted us again to see if we needed all of our horses ridden. Thank goodness for we've had a heck of a time finding a bonafide resident cutting horse trainer. We are always looking, though, and intend to formally advertise the position after we finish this big barn and acquire our next potload of stocker calves. But in the meantime, Kelly has allowed us to focus on this project by doing most all the riding and allowed us to spend copius amounts of time, labor (and money) getting our small band of brooodmares in foal.

Hopefully, it will be completed shortly so we can go back to the fun stuff of training and showing cutting horses.