Across the Purple Sage

They say stealing cattle in Texas can get a man hung by the neck until dead. From a young age Roddy Pippin was ready to take that risk, as he and his crew would take home close to a million dollars rustling cattle over the course of 3 years. In this episode Pippin speaks of his idyllic childhood and love for the ways of the old west, the precarious choices he made while chasing the steal that would lead to brushes with death, and how those few years on the run pushed him and his lifelong friendships to the limit.  --- Produced by Grace Heerman, Mike Martinez, and Tyler Wray. Sound Design by George Drake Jr. Music by Mike Etten and Dominic Palermo Intro/Outro music by Anand Wilder For more about this story, including photos by Justin Hollar, visit everythingisstories.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Om Podcasten

Created and produced by Mike Martinez and Tyler Wray, Everything is Stories is an ongoing survey of personal histories. Each episode is a first person narrative from someone who has lived through consequential changes to their notion of self and the world. Harry Crews said it best: “Nothing is allowed to die in a society of story telling people. It is all–the good and the bad–carted up and brought along from one generation to the next. And everything that is brought along is colored and shaped by those who bring it. These voices have told their greatest moments where peace is far and death is close. Sometimes these stories explore the philosophy of outsiders. But most importantly, these stories examine what it is to be human. We don’t record to defend or demonstrate an idea. Rather, we create a document of what was seen and felt during their transformative experiences. Take a listen. Start anywhere. You may find a new definition of reality’s highs and lows. Know of a story or storyteller? Send us your tales of genuine characters and unfamiliar places for consideration to: HQ@everythingisstories.com. No story too troubled, no atmosphere too strange, no realm too foreign.