Once married, Marianne’s education in this new life continued — and at a steep rate! Transitioning to farm wife was no small thing. In that first year they raised cows, a bull, calves, chickens and pigs…One task that saved, rather than made, money for the farm required patience and a sharp eye. Dairy barns are often surrounded by a fenced area called a cow yard, where the cattle can be near the barn — easily retrieved, but still outdoors. Most small dairy herds include a bull and the one on Hanson’s farm was a real pistol! When let out, periodically it would begin running up and down the length of the cow yard, getting rowdy and deliberately tipping over the large metal carousel of a dozen or more boxes of mineral snacks for the cattle. When that bull began his rampage, running then screeching to a halt and digging his head down in the dirt — that was her cue. She aimed the rifle and popped him in the butt with buckshot! That got his attention and settled him right down at least until the next time. Ah, the odd duties as assigned.
It must’ve been this chore that emboldened Marianne to do what needed doing when she and her good friend Sally Jung decided to have a garage sale. Since neither of them actually had a proper garage, they decided the unused barn on Sally’s property would suit the project perfectly. The only drawback was the large numbers of pigeons that had taken up residence. Mom recounted, “Well here we were, two middle-aged women determined to make this work. BB gun in hand, I climbed up the ladder, farm dress and all. Bink, bink bink. I took aim, down went those pesky pigeons and Sally grabbed up the fowl carcasses off the floor by their wings, collecting them in gunnysacks. All of a sudden, we realized how ridiculous this must’ve looked and we began laughing our heads off!” It sounds like a scene out of Annie Get Your Gun! with Marianne in the starring role! And, yes, they did hold a successful garage sale.
