The insurance adjuster from Othello asked Lorrie to repeat the story. She wasn't sure if he was laughing or crying.

"Well," she began again, "Like I said, the cow got out. A second-calf heifer, no horns, good size. She was in the neighbor's little field.

"Scott, my husband ... it was his pet truck, chrome wheel rims, wash it every week, tachometer and pinetree air freshener. You know what I mean. Anyway, he said bring the cow halter. It was an old show halter with a chain snap. And bring a leadrope, which we didn't have, so I grabbed my 16-foot lunge line — I'm breakin' a colt — and a bucket of grain.

"So we went to the neighbor's and called the cow, who was suspicious of a trap ... for good reason, 'cause Daniel Boone, here, had tied a loop in the end of the lunge line and laid it out on the ground, then set the bucket inside the circle.

"It worked! While she was eating, I slid the loop up over her head. When Scott pulled it tight she took off like a scalded dog and drug about six foot of that flat lunge line through Tarzan's hands before he let go. Nylon, ya' know.

"It took us three more tries before he managed to catch a dally on a post down in the soggy corner of the field.

"We put the halter on her, then he promptly announced, 'We can lead her back with the halter and lunge line.' Right, buffalo breath. She gave him a severe whiplash, but you don't cover that, do ya'?

"He managed to dally her one more time after a thorough draggin' through the mud. Then sent me back to the house for his precious pickup.

"I backed the four-wheel drive up to the cow, where it immediately got stuck up to the white writing. An hour later we are back on higher ground and he ties the lunge line to the bumper. I drove, he walked and she balked.

"She stretched the length of the lunge line, then whipped around to the left and smashed a big dent right behind the driver's side door. Three times she did it before he got the halter snubbed to the trailer ball. It held 'til the pickup was five feet from the gate. The chain snap broke.

"The cow was pullin back hard — the lunge line was chokin' her. 'Quick,' says my commanding officer, 'Run home and get my pocket knife and the dog!'

"Need I say more? I came running back to find the right side panel now dented in and the tailgate creased down the center.

"He cut the cow loose and the dog took her home.

"So, that's the story. The pickup's a real mess. You got any idea what it will cost to fix it? Excuse me, are you alright? Scott, come help me get this insurance man up off his knees!"