Branding gives Easterner a taste of Western living

Since coming to Montana from Indiana, I have experienced several new things good and bad that I will never forget.

I went to the lutefisk dinner, Glacier National Park, the walleye dinner, and I have endured streets without stop signs. My opinion of lutefisk is better left unsaid, I can't wait to go back to Glacier Park, I'm still waiting for the next walleye to get in my belly, and the lack of stop signs has prepared me well for my next career as a figure-eight track race-car driver.

But none of these compare to the attack on your senses that is caused by a cattle branding.

When I was given t...