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Man, it was hot and dry. Driving down the ranch road, the dust billowed up and literally rolled off the truck’s hood like it was water. On my right, the sage brush looked dried out and dull. Wispy brown grass spread about in clumps grew in between the sage. Just ten feet away on my left, the immense alfalfa field was bright green and the soil mud brown from irrigation. The contrast was startling. This had to be the longest and dustiest ranch road in the county, and it was probably my last time driving it.
I reached the last bit where the road’s surface transitioned from silt to what we called clinker rock and I cautiously slowed. The clinker rock, despite being crushed and packed into the dirt by a roller, was sharp and flinty. It easily tore up tires, even the expensive kind, and I was trying to stretch this set into next month. No sooner did I reach the rocky stretch than I heard that dreaded POP followed by a hiss. I had a flat on the right front. Luckily there was plenty of room to get off the road and still keep the truck level. Up ahead, about a quarter mile or so I could see the shade of the cottonwood trees along the Yellowstone river. It was tempting to change the tire in the shade but driving on a flat tire that far would completely destroy it and I was hoping it could be fixed. I sat there in the air conditioning trying to psych myself up to go sit in the dust and change the dang tire. It had been a particularly long day. I was tired, sore, and pretty certain I was fired although no one had said so.
Sometimes you just have to put your head down and bull through the problem. I shut the truck off and checked for snakes under and around the outfit before checking out the tire. Rattlesnakes love to hunt where dry ground and wet meet. Everything was clear. I pulled out my jack and tools then chucked the wheels with a couple rocks. That’s when I heard someone coming. A ranch truck pulling a trailer with three guys pulled up alongside. The driver’s window slid down.
“Hey John. Trouble?” It was Jake and his brothers, Tom and Shane. They were the ranch hands here. I had wondered where they were because normally they hung around when I was shoeing to “help” but I hadn’t seen any of them all day. They were good guys and, from what I saw, real hands as well.
“Just a flat. What are you guys up to?”
“Oh, picking up well pipe to rebuild some corrals. Need a hand?”
“I’m fine but thanks for asking.”
“You bet. See ya around!” Jake grinned and rolled up his window. They only went a few feet when he stopped, shut off his engine and the three of them got out.
“John, you look beat and its too dang hot out. We really haven’t done much all day. Let us change your tire and you relax.” Before I could protest, they had snatched my tools out of my hands and set to work. “Besides, the longer we stay away from the place the less trouble Sam can get into.”
I had to laugh because Sam, the foreman of the place, had a unique talent for making the most minor project into a major one and usually hurt himself in the process. His medical history was almost legendary around the area.
The boys were hard at it and in no time the tire was changed and I was back in business. I thanked them and offered to give them a few bucks, but they refused.
“You can bring us a couple six packs the next time you show up to shoe,” the youngest brother, Shane, said.
“Hmmmm, about that. I’m not sure I’ll be back,” I said with a grimace.
“Why? What the hell did he do now?” Jake asked.
“Well, since you are killing time anyway. Let me tell you what happened, and you tell me if I’m fired or not.”
“Oh, this ought to be good. Let’s go over to the river in the shade,” Jake laughed. I drove straight there while the boys pulled a big U-turn on the sage brush flat. We sat on a huge log by the river and I told them my tale.
“I had just finished up the last of the six horses that were tied up for me in the arena. I hadn’t seen Sam all day.”
“He was probably hiding in the house in the air conditioning,” snickered Tom. “We caught the horses up for you this morning.”
“In walked Sam with a guy I had never seen before.”
“Uh oh,” whispered Shane.
“He introduced himself as the owner of the ranch. He was a nice enough guy and I teased him about how glad I was to meet the man I worked for after two and a half years. He got a chuckle out of that and said he appreciated me taking good care of the horses because he and his family liked to ride when they come out here from New York. We talked a little about business and he mentioned his bank’s headquarters were in New York City. I told him I was born and raised in Connecticut and knew the city pretty well. He even knew where my hometown was. It was a fun little conversation.
“Now,” I added, giving a knowing look to all three guys. “This whole time Sam just stood there like a lump, frowning.”
All three brothers nodded. Apparently, they knew that frown.
“I finished packing up my truck and the owner asked if I had any issues or problems he needed to address. I said there was one thing he could do for me since we had been talking business. I was wondering if I could get my bill paid inside of thirty days instead at seven weeks when the horses came due again.”
“Oh crap,” Jake shook his head in wonder at my boldness.
“The owner was confused,” I said. “He said that he pays all the bills as soon as he gets them. Then he said. ‘Sam? You send me the invoices. How is this man not being paid in a timely manner?’ Then Sam says, ‘I save up all the minor bills until there are enough to justify the postage.’”
“He what?” asked all three brothers at once.
“You heard me,” I replied. “The owner and I looked at each other in wonder. The owner pointed out the arena door to where your three huge John Deere tractors were lined up next to two combines.
“‘Sam,’ he says, ‘we have just invested millions of dollars in brand new equipment. I appreciate you watching out for our expenses, but we can afford postage even if you have to mail twenty separate invoices a month. The one thing I really need to be sure of is that we are looked upon as good customers by local businesses.’ He came over to me and took a business card out of his shirt pocket.
“‘From now on just send your bill directly to me at this address in Manhattan. I will get you paid. Do you have today’s bill written up?’
“I handed it to him, and he pulled out a money clip and paid in cash, with a sizable tip. He shook my hand, said thank you for everything and it was a pleasure meeting you, and left. Sam was still standing there glowering. He abruptly turned and scurried after his boss. I let myself out of the arena and closed the doors. Then I blew my tire. So, what do you think?”
The boys sat there silently.
“Oh, you are definitely fired,” Tom finally said.
Jake stood and wiped his brow with a bandana. “Yeah,” he said staring at the river flowing by. “Sam was embarrassed and also paranoid you hit it off with the boss so he will get rid of you for sure. Probably by just ignoring you. My understanding is that there are negotiations going on to sell the place so he will wait until there is a new owner then get someone else to do the horses. Probably fire us too because he has talked about bringing in his family to live and work here but the owner didn’t think that was a good idea”.
I shrugged helplessly. “I didn’t mean to embarrass him in front of his boss, but I didn’t know he was such an ingratiating toady. Saving on postage? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“What do you mean by toady?” asked Shane.
“Means Sam’s an as***le,” Tom replied spitting on the ground.
“Oh yeah. He is all of that.” Said the boy with a grin.
I went to each brother and shook their hands.
“Well, boys I do appreciate your help today and if I can ever help you with a recommendation for a job or, well, anything really, just let me know.”
“No problem at all and we’ll remember the offer!” Jake said. “I guess we better get headed back to see what Sam has in store for us.”
The guys got in their outfit and roared up the ranch road to meet their fate. I hoped I hadn’t messed up their lives too much.
As it turned out, the place did get sold a few months later. The boy’s predictions panned out. I wasn’t asked back. Sam spent some time bad mouthing me around town, but it didn’t stick. Most people knew about Sam. The brothers stayed on for a while and then someone told me they left to go work in the oil patch but which one they couldn’t say. Several years after that I met their dad in a local restaurant. He told me Jake got married and had a baby and was living in North Dakota. Tom got tired of being a ranch hand and was working on a college degree in Bozeman. Young Shane was riding bulls on the rodeo circuit (To his mother’s ever loving regret! he said with a wink) and was just making eating money but he was having fun.
“My boys always enjoyed being with you,” he said while snatching up my tab before I could protest. “You being fired was a black day for them. I thought you should know that.”
It was a funny sort of thing to say but I’m glad he did.