Rodeo Songs

Earlier this month, I linked some coal mining songs.   Another prolific source of American music has been the rodeo.   Here are a few songs on that theme that I like.

Bucking Horse Moon, Tom Russell

All This Way for the Short Ride, Tom Russell

Everything That Glitters is Not Gold,   Dan Seals

Someday Soon, Suzy Bogguss

Also Someday Soon, Ian Tyson

Saddle Bronc Girl, Ian Tyson

And this one isn’t about the rodeo, but about a young cowboy and his first cattle drive:

Banks of the Musselshell, Tom Russell

…and the same song by Ian Tyson

Others?

Will There Ever Be an Apology for Covid Overreaction?

In the light of this story, and this one as well, I am more than ever glad that my daughter and I said “no” to the Covid shot and follow-on boosters. Of course, I know that any new vaccine or drug can have a small number of unfortunate side effects but honestly, aren’t well-informed adults allowed these days to calculate the risks and make their own decision? Apparently not for many employees, who were ordered to get the Covid vaccine or be fired … and are now facing health problems that make Covid itself look like pretty small potatoes.

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Retrotech: Making a Tunic, 1700 Years Ago

The tunic was found in the Norwegian mountains.   Textile historians recreated it using the technologies current when it was made–pulling the wool naturally rather than shearing, spinning it into thread (with no spinning wheel), and weaving it into cloth. The labor required was estimated by having skilled people do a sample amount of each task required and extrapolating to the complete garment.

Total labor requirement was 780 hours.   The linked post estimates the cost at almost $38000, apparently assuming Norwegian labor rates.

I don’t think anyone would produce such garments using such expensive labor, though (unless it was for some very affluent niche market) but would use cheaper Asian or South American or even American labor.   Maybe a reasonable number including overhead and supervision would be something like $5/hour. Which still gives a cost of $3800.

And if someone made it for their own use, or that of someone in their family, that 780 hours would represent a pretty large piece of their work capacity for the entire year.

As Paul Graham noted, clothing was very expensive right up to the Industrial Revolution.