7 billion thanks

7,000,000,000 – that’s a pretty big number!! But just how big is it?? According to CNN:

*7 billion seconds ago, the year was 1789, the year George Washington was inaugurated as the first United States President.

*If a person takes 7 billion steps around the equator (at 2 feet per step), they could walk around the Earth at least 106 times.

*Suppose there were 7 billion thimbles filled with water, they could fill up over 5 Olympic sized swimming pools.

*If 7 billion people were stacked on top of each other (considering an average height is 5 feet, including children) they could reach the moon 27 times!

*7 billion ants (at 3 milligrams each) would weigh 23 tons!!!

*And oh yeah, you share the Earth with 7 billion other people.

As many of you may have previously heard, today – Monday, October 31, 2011 – the world population hit seven billion.

Doctors and researchers are already wondering how every child’s basic needs are going to be met! Will there be food, clean water, shelter, education and a decent life? In case you haven’t heard, Mexico’s streets aren’t paved with gold and not everyone has a stainless steel kitchen sink to supply fresh, clean, running water, nor the capabilities to attend school daily and learn about reading, writing and arithmetic.  Now, I can’t speak for every issue, but what I do know is food. And, that’s not just because I love to eat it, but more the fact – I produce it!!!

Now more than ever, farmers, especially American farmers are feeling the pressure to supply not only the great USA but also the world with food. And, I’d say with less than 2% of the American population in the production industry still feeding 100% of Americans….they’re doing a pretty good job!!

So today, instead of focusing on worldly problems, or worrying about tomorrow, instead take the time to thank a farmer!! Thank a farmer for the wheat in your bread to the cotton in your clothes! Thank a farmer for the daily, timeless dedication they spend working their fields and tending the crops. Thank a farmer for going the extra mile to ensure the safest, most affordable and most abundant food supply in the 7  billion world!

Debbie Lyons-Blythe Speaks With Butler Ag Ambassadors

Debbie Lyons-Blythe, a KS cattle rancher, spoke with the Butler CC Ag Ambassadors about how to be an AGVOCATE and why it's important.

The Horse Kid

With the new semester came the need to recruit more bloggers, so I say hello it is nice to meet you.  I am Luke Barnhart, another person allowed to add thoughts to the ever evolving World Wide Web.  I will try to blog about reading worthy information for followers, but no guarantees on source crediting or politically correct, but my posts will be entertaining to read.

As the title obviously quotes, I am the horse kid from Hesston, KS.  Living in a college world surrounded by livestock judgers, I have never been so at home and yet so out-of-place.  I don’t judge livestock, I live, breath, and bleed horses, cutting horses in particular.  I have been riding horses all of my life.  My Mother Karen, grew up showing horses.  She competed most of her life in various events in the America Quarter Horse Association.  Once marring my Father Scott, she promptly turned him into a horseman as well.  So naturally I picked up the “reins” in their foot steps.  I also have the coolest younger brother Jack, who also rides horses when he’s not busy being a high-schooler and wrangling the ladies.

I am now a very avid competitor in the National Cutting Horse Association.  I show, train and compete on my own horses.  I spend many hours a week perfecting this skill with the very talented trainer Dirk Blakesly.  I travel all over the midwest and beyond going to shows and trying to make a name for myself and my horses.  Luckily I have had success in the industry, making many major finals and having a current lifetime earnings in excess of $50,000.  It’s hard work being in the Cutting industry, but the things I learn are priceless lessons to life.

By some miracle I still have the time to be a college student.  Causing trouble, chasing ladies, relentlessly studying, working out, and being a kid are still assets I get to enjoy in my life.  In my second year at Butler these normal college traits seem to be concentrated, my focus is school and my horses.  Yet, I am not going to tell you I’d rather have it another way.  I feel that I live a very busy, yet fulfilling life and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The Livestock Judging Team has a Confession.

The 2011-2012 Butler Livestock Judging Team flocked from all ends of the country, racking up a grand total of 17,885 miles and over 285 hours on the road simply to arrive in El Dorado, Kansas. We came to spend two years with 29 teammates gaining invaluable knowledge about livestock and life.  We came to learn how to look, understand and speak. We came to learn how to make fast decisions. We came to learn how to defend ourselves, how to build our vocabulary impeccably, how to speak with confidence, poise and perfection. Yet, we are on a never-ending quest to find the feeling that leaves us speechless.

It is an exhilarating emotion walking side by side with teammates into the sunset, as the wind sends shadows of a bright red show barn and sturdy oak trees dancing onto the ground after hours of analyzing hogs, sheep and cattle. Seeing three different teammates receive high individual at three consecutive contests grants the greatest satisfaction any team can gain. Bundled up in snow gear, crammed in a fifteen passenger van surrounded by some of the most amazing, driven, dedicated, passionate livestock industry members there are, driving through the hills of Iowa blanketed in untouched, freshly fallen, delicate, white snow is matchless. Somewhere between phenomenal stock, breath-taking sights, and people that changed the livestock industry, it just hits you. It’s a feeling that paralyzes a person for words.

So, to all the Butler Alumni, to all the Butler faculty, parents, supporters, donators, and followers: the Butler livestock judging team has a confession. We may practice in the Oklahoma sun until 29 team members are burnt crispy, we may burn fuel to rush to Nebraska so we can look at sheep until 3 am, we may give reasons until our voices are hoarse, we may spend scholarship money on endless stenos and pencils that are used to describe everyday, common livestock…..but there are just moments when even WE are left speechless.

One LONGGGGG Weekend of Livestock Judging

It’s been a bit of a hectic week trying to catch up from three straight days of contests (Sept. 23-25.) After putting in several weeks of hard work, the 2011-2012 Butler Livestock Judging Team finally made their debut. Friday was predated by two days of preparing the El Dorado Fairgrounds for its annual Flint Hills Classic Livestock Judging Contest. With more than 500 contestants from across the nation, the contest was awesome! Saturday morning came early, with a trip to Wichita for the Mid-America Livestock Judging Contest. Following this, the Sophomore Team (and our 4-H competitors) jumped in the van and headed for Omaha to compete in the AKSARBEN Judging Contest on Sunday. Here is a list of the results from the weekend!

Flint Hills Classic – September 23, 2011

Freshman Division:

Sheep: Caleb Lagrone 4th (227)

Butler Gold Team 2nd, Butler Purple Team 3rd

Swine: Spencer Scotten 1st (289), Cody Beck 5th (286)

Butler Gold 1st, Butler Purple 2nd

Beef: Brady Jensen 1st (437), Cody Beck 2nd (424), Logan Bracy 4th (421)

Butler Purple 1st, Butler Gold 2nd

Reasons: Spencer Scotten 1st (276), Caleb Lagrone 2nd (273), Kerri Horvath 4th (272), Brady Jensen 5th (271)

Butler Purple 1st

Overall: Brady Jensen 1st (930), Cody Beck 3rd (915), Spencer Scotten 4th (914), Kerri Horvath 5th (908), Sydney Gehl 6th (908), Garrett Reiss 9th (898)

Butler Purple 1st, Butler Gold 2nd

Sophomore Division:

Sheep: Jared Wynn 2nd (228), Katy Satree 3rd (226)

Swine: Kinzie Selke 4th (284)

Butler 3rd

Beef: Emily Jackson 1st (433), Taylor Graham 2nd (431), Kati Keys 4th (427), Kinzie Selke 5th (425)

Butler Purple 1st, Butler Gold 2nd

Reasons: Maverick Squires 1st (279), Kinzie Selke 4th (276), Taylor Graham 5th (276)

Butler Purple 1st

Overall: Taylor Graham 1st (926), Kinzie Selke 2nd (912), Alyson Moore 5th (902)

Butler Purple 1st

Mid-America Classic Livestock Judging Contest – Wichita, KS

Freshman Division:

Sheep: Caleb Lagrone 1st (241), Kerri Horvath 2nd (239)

Butler Gold 2nd, Butler Purple 3rd

Swine: Butler Gold 4th

Beef: Garrett Reiss 5th (375)

Butler Gold 3rd

Reasons: Kerri Horvath 1st (183), Brady Jensen 3rd (180)

Butler Gold 2nd, Butler Purple 4th

Overall: Spencer Scotten 4th (747), Kerri Horvath 9th (742)

Butler Gold 2nd, Butler Purple 5th

Sophomore Division:

Sheep: Maverick Squires 1st (288), Jared Wynn 2nd (280), Kyle Wilson 3rd (280)

Butler Gold 2nd, Butler Purple 5th

Swine: Butler Gold 2nd, Butler Purple 4th

Beef: Butler Gold 5th

Reasons: Maverick Squires 2nd (279)

Butler Gold 1st

Overall: Maverick Squires 1st (856), Jared Wynn 7th (841)

Butler Gold 2nd, Butler Purple 5th

AKSARBEN Livestock Judging Contest – Omaha, NE (Sophomore Team only)

Sheep: Jared Wynn 2nd (291), Brett Moriarty 5th (285)

Butler 2nd

Swine: Alyson Moore 2nd (232), Jared Wynn 5th (229)

Butler 1st

Beef: Emily Jackson 1st (431), Taylor Graham 3rd (427)

Butler 3rd

Reasons: Jared Wynn 3rd (370), Maverick Squires 5th (266)

Butler 1st

Overall: Jared Wynn 1st (945)

Butler 2nd

3 days + 152 animals + 20 sets of reasons  = 1 AWESOME weekend for Butler CC Livestock Judging!