If you saw the total eclipse recently you know it was everything they hyped it to be.  Imagine seeing something that amazing right out here in the sticks. But I want to tell you about another incident I read about that happened out in eastern Nebraska.  It is another amazing happening, but it’s the kind of thing that happens often out here in the sticks
Apparently a semi full of nearly 1500 wiener pigs got over a little too far on the county road, trying to get past the county maintainer.  The semi sank off the road and turned onto its side in a ditch.  The driver was okay, but was taken to the hospital just to be sure.  That left a whole semi load of upset wiener pigs lying along the road.
Now if you have ever been around wiener pigs, you know they can be rather loud.  In fact, if they really get going they are some of the loudest animals known to man.  They are also fast, athletic and have nothing to hold on to when you try to catch them.  But rather than let this semi full of trouble just lay there and perish, the neighbors stepped in.  

Dozens of people came to the rescue and transferred the little pigs from the wrecked truck to another truck.  How did they do it?  They formed a bucket brigade!  They got in a line that stretched from one truck to the other, then caught the pigs and handed them, one by one, to each other down the line.  Nearly 1500 pigs, about fifteen pounds each, with nothing to hang on to and each of which was probably squealing its little head off.   If those people didn’t have sore muscles at the end of the day, it’s a sure bet they were nearly deaf.  
But all that would have been worth it because of the bragging rights!  After all, how many times can you tell people you were on a pig brigade?  It would have been a great story to tell down at the café or coffee shop.  Besides, it probably wasn’t the hardest thing these people ever had to do, and imagine the jokes that went on in the midst of it!
Although there were probably more jokes and grins at the beginning of the project than at the end.  By the last few little pigs, they were probably ready to turn the whole deal over to any big bad wolf that was handy.
Still, it shows that life out here in the sticks is just full of variety.  You can see a world-class total eclipse or you can end up on a pig brigade.  You just never know what to expect.  What a great life!