Harvest Season

Over the past few weeks I have traveled through the Midwest, yet again and seen the last of the farm equipment in the fields.  It always amazes me the hours that America's farmers put in, the amount of land they tend and what it takes to feed this country.  Living in IA I see my fair share of corn and ethonal plants.  The trucks are lined up waiting to drop their crop and head back to get more.  Its a never ending cycle of commerce.
This past weekend was Christmas and with it brings time spent with family and friends.  However this season we were blessed with an unaccepted trip to Ames to take Lola to the ISU pet hosptial for a condition they are still not sure of.  Poor Lola has dropped about 15 pounds in the last 4 weeks and looks very frale.  When we arrived at ISU on Friday we were told that she would be ready to get the following Friday.  The wonderful folks at ISU got her back to health much quicker and I was able to head back to Ames yesterday afternoon.  She was super excited to see me when they got her out of "jail" and she looked a little healthier.  She has/had a cone on her head creating a 50+ pound lampshade.  While at the vet we were also informed that she will need to have eye surgery for an issue that is causing some pain in her left eye.  On the bright side, Lola now has a contact lens to protect the surface of the eye until she is healthy enough to have the procedure. 
At any rate, as I was traveling back home yesterday evening I couldn't help but notice the harvest was done, the fields were bare of crops and farmers were busy repairing machinery and prepping for the coming spring.  It always amazes me the amount of time and effort it takes to get the crops from field to table and I enjoy being able to watch this process in action as I travel the Midwest.