The only good reason to ride a bull is to meet a nurse
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Seeing the funny side of life in the
Old West was just as vital, if not more so, than a cowboy's horse or six-gun.
Those early buckaroos survived long hours in the saddle under the most
difficult conditions with jokes, horseplay and cock and bull stories.
No campsite was complete without a
tall tale or two. Cowboys didn't
experience weather like the rest of us.
No sirree. One cowpuncher told
about winter being so cold they couldn't hear the foreman's orders. "The
words froze as they came outta his mouth.
We had to break them off one by one so we could tell what he was
sayin'."
The wind was a popular subject. "You
think this wind is bad? You ain't seen
nothin'." Cowboys talked about feeding their chickens buckshot so they
wouldn't blow away in the wind. Not to
be outdone some claimed it was so windy a chicken laid the same egg five times.
Don’t dig for water under the outhouse
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California's recent drought was nothing
compared to what those cowboys of yesteryear experienced. "One drought was so bad the cactus took
to a-chasing after dogs."
Texas was reportedly the healthiest
state. So healthy, in fact, no one ever
died there naturally. They needed the assistance of a bullet to accomplish that
feat. More than one Texan was caught
crossing the border just so he could "ride to the great beyond."
Perhaps the most amusing rivalries in
the Old West pitted cowboys against railroaders. Cowboys had little patience with
the "bullheaded Irishmen" who stampeded their cattle. In turn, railroaders thought cowboys a bunch
of troublemakers—and for good reason.
One rail car filled with smoke when a
cowboy attempted to cook a steak on the train's coal stove. Another cowpoke, on the way to meeting his
best gal, shocked women passengers by stripping down to his long johns so he
could don his new suit.
When a cowboy’s too old to set a bad example,
he hands out good advice
One foreman befuddled railroad
officials by sending a wire requesting cars to ship 2,500 sea lions. The foremen figured his cattle had swum
across so many streams that "sea lions" aptly described his sirloins.
Railroaders dished out as good as they
got. One cowboy learned the hard way
not
to travel without a ticket when the train he was riding came to a screeching
stop and left him stranded in the middle of nowhere.
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Another cowboy boarded a train and,
when asked for his ticket, pulled out his six-gun, declaring it the only ticket
he needed. The conductor convinced him otherwise by returning with a rifle and
sticking it under the cowboy's nose.
Cowboys didn't just laugh at these
antics like regular folks. Oh, no.
They'd sit 'round a campfire "grinnin' like a weasel peekin' in a
henhouse."
So when is the last time
you grinned like a weasel?
What tall tale, anecdote or family memory would you
share around a campfire?
There's a new sheriff in town,
and she almost always gets her man.
I love your post, Miss Margaret! What a great way to start the day! I am very generous with my smiles...I give them away all the time. I once read something that said, "Find one thing to smile about every day!" My own philosophy is this, "If in this life I have made someone smile, then I have done something." I hope you have a great day!
ReplyDeletemauback55 at gmail dot com
Melanie, your comment made ME smile. I just read that people who smile a lot live an average of seven years longer. So smiling doesn't just make you feel good, it's good for your health!
DeleteLove this post, Margaret. I'm reading one of your books now, Left at the Altar, and it's making me smile. Meg is a feisty girl all right. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Martha, yes, and don't we love those feisty girls? Thank you for reading my book.
ReplyDeleteI do so hope you enjoy.
Great stories!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Stephanie!
DeleteMargaret, this definitely caused smiles and laughs. Thank you for sharing. A Match Made in Texas sounds like a fun book to read. I always want to give someone a smile to brighten their day. Smiling doesn't cost anything plus everyone feels better with smiles than frowns.
ReplyDeleteMarilyn, you sound like my kind of person. Smiling back.
DeleteFun sayings!
ReplyDelete