The end, closure, plans, Merry Christmas

If you are reading this, the world did not end today – at least not yet. I can only hope the suicide rate is at a minimum as the dooms-dayers prepared for the dawn of this morning. Actually I got up thinking about the predictions and realized if I was waking to think about it, it must not have happened...yet. The matrix continues. My prediction is the “scholars” who have interpreted the Mayan calendar to reflect the end of time will rework the numbers and come up with a different day; kind of like Harold Camping. I really likes this picture by Dean Reeves.

Today is my last workday for 2012. I am not sure if there will be opportunity to make any entries into this blog during the time I am off. I have a computer at the farm and I have access to it. What I do not have is the forty minutes or so with enough privacy to get my thoughts written out. I will try because there will be a lot going on and it will be fun to relay it, but I can make no promises.

My back is still very tender and stiff so I am not sure how much work I will be able to get done over the week I am off but you can pretty well bet I will get something done. Mama has already begun fussing at me about working with a sore back and I have already been giving her those “you must not be talking to me” faces, but I will have to be careful.

If my accounting is accurate, we have already bought and sent out all the gifts we are going to buy. The groceries have been accumulated for Christmas Dinner. Travelers are already on the road and I have most of the materials I will need to get the roof done on the shop and apartment. This week is pretty well gone and the next is pretty well planned. We will have to wait and see how well those plans unfold.

Grandpa is weaning three of the calves this weekend. That will leave us with seven or eight to keep on the bottle. So far everyone is doing better. The sick ones are starting to show signs of recovery and even our little blind calf is progressing. We have decided to raise him until about April whereupon we will have him converted into hamburger and such. Sometime in the next couple weeks I will need to have the vet sew his eyelid shut on his right side. He is pretty sad to look at.

As we plunge headlong into Christmas the wow factor of the world’s interest in the date has greatly diminished. The wow factor from faith’s perspective has definitely grown. We all must go out of our way to repair broken relationships at times. None of us will ever go as far as our God has gone to repair our broken relationship with Him. Thankfully, pride did not get in His way.

I hope all of you have a very Merry Christmas!

High wind benefits, more travel, feeling rich, Mama news

The winds roared through last night with gusts near sixty miles per hour. The mobile home has a roof on it that is referred to as a floating roof. It is sequentially sealed pieces of metal held on to the structure at the top of the outside walls. It is somewhat flexible. In the winds last night it sounded like thunder as it flexed and returned to shape. I do not remember hearing much from the time I went to sleep until I woke, but at those times I was awake, it was impressive.


What I discovered when I got to work is that the wind had cleared the pecan trees of all fruit and leaves. The nuts were neatly plied up against every curb on the parking lot. I got a small trash can with a new bag and hurried to fill it to the top. I did not even make a dent in the amount of pecans on the concrete. I am sure my office mates will finish what I got started. The better news is that I got almost all of the best pecans – the ones Mama and Grandma like best.

Mama and Victoria are going back to Denton today. This is the day the ultra sound is scheduled. I know Victoria is not looking forward to it but I think it is a needed diagnostic evaluation. I am not completely sure but we will go along and see what the results might be. I do know that we are chewing through some money with all the extra travel. Not only does it cost me quite bit extra in gas but it “requires” that Mama and whomever she is with go out to eat at least once (if I am lucky) per trip. I get those “It was only..” reports from her after each jaunt.

On those days when Mama needs to do a bit of driving I get to bring the little truck – the ‘94 Ford Ranger - to work. I prefer it to the Lincoln. In fact I do not think I have ever driven the Lincoln. Victoria and Grandma like it so it gets quite bit of use; especially now that the weather is cooler. It does not have air conditioning which can make it quite uncomfortable in the summer. I do not mind driving the little truck other than the fact that the seats are broken down, it rides very rough and we are lucky to get twelve miles per gallon. It has come in very handy with Grandpa’s truck sitting idle.

Grandma and Grandpa got paid yesterday so they are swimming in money for now. Grandma made an emergency trip to town as soon as the banks were open. She is excited to be able to buy anything. That last a couple of days until Grandpa puts on the brakes. He manages to make the little they get last through the month. He makes sure some of it gets spent on supplies for the house and farm. They use most of it for monthly medications, health insurance, auto insurance, and the electric bill. He is also hoping to buy the parts for the truck to begin fixing it. I am not sure if there will be enough for that.

Mama shared an audio she made by mistake yesterday. She had taken her phone to the calf barn to record the bawl on one particular calf. She did not realize that the phone was left in video mode when she put it in her pants pocket. It is hilarious to hear the chatter. It is even funnier to hear her instruct Grandpa on which two calves he can feed while she get exasperated at the nipple on the bottle she is using to feed the calf she is working with. I asked her to email it to me but I did not take the time to do it myself last night. I will get it today if possible.I do not know if it is possible to include in this blog but those of you who know Mama would thoroughly enjoy it.

As we were on our way home from church Sunday night I told Mama I missed hearing her read to the kids at naptime and night time. It is something every child she has ever gotten to share that gift with has enjoyed. It is now spent mostly to our grandkids when we visit them. I told her I would begin to pray that she could begin to use that gift again. The next night Jake called Mama. He asked if she would read him a book as he went to sleep. They have kept up the routine for several nights via Skype.

It was not the answer I expected but the two of them are thrilled with the arrangement.

Training, Christmas week, doctor news

I have to admit that the training I took yesterday was well done. The day passed by very quickly because the instructor took his time with the material and he kept us engaged in the discussion. It was not new material to me but it was a very useful review of a skill I developed some years ago and have since gotten pretty rusty with. My back was killing me by the end of the eight hours of sitting through the training but that was only because I was too vain to wear the back brace during the day.


Things are falling into place for the Christmas break. Brittany and Andrew are coming down for a few days. They are going to spend the night in Amarillo with Chase on the way here. (Aaron is going to get to go home to Maggie for a few days.) We did not have a lot planned except working on the apartment until my sister Sarah called to invite us to a birthday party she is throwing for Grandpa Kline. He will be eighty eight years old if I remember correctly. If not I am not off by too much. So we will be going to Chappell Hill for that. It will be an overnight on Sunday the 30th, coming home Monday the 31st. It will require another day of vacation for me but a visit to my Mom and Dad is long overdue.

Victoria’s visit to the doctor allayed both her and Mama’s fears but she is scheduled for further testing tomorrow. She will go to the office for an ultrasound of the cyst she is getting evaluated. My only concern is that the ultrasound itself will aggravate the cyst which is already causing her some pain. Since we bear the entire cost because of the insurance I have chosen to carry, it will be pretty expensive for us also. Although that comes into play, it is never a restraint to getting care.

I have to admit to being a little bummed out about Christmas. It happens every year as my schedule tightens and the bank accounts dwindle, but this year it seems especially disheartening. I am not sure why other than the fact that I will not be able to get Mama anything and I cannot give her what she really wants – the apartment. I will continue to push forward but as we roll into the New Year I know that our finances will tighten up even further and progress could be painfully slow.

Knowing that our stuff will arrive in a few days is also weighing on me pretty heavily since I do not have the roof on the shop and apartment. We have a place to put the items that need the most protection but some will have to be covered with a tarp on the open slab. I know it will all work out but I am still trying to find ways to get all the things done in order to make it a little better; the roof being the main thing.

We are still trying to get the two heifers well. Mama went to the vet again yesterday to get more meds to try to bring down the fever and put them on the path to healing, but the entire ordeal has left a sour taste in Grandpa’s mouth about raising bottle fed calves. I am okay with continuing the process, especially after we have learned the pitfalls and the remedies for those pitfalls. It has been a costly lesson to learn. It would be a shame to waste the money spent on that education – regardless of hassle.

I am hoping if we get a good price for the calves we have succeeded in raising, that he will want to try again.

Rosie, healing up, more projects, work

Rosie is back to her old self now. When I sat down to eat a sandwich last night she was at her usual spot begging. I had seen yesterday morning that she was at least moving around. That is something she had not done for days. Grandma and Mama were very relieved; Mama probably more so than Grandma but it looked like a draw to me.


My back is getting better. It usually does over the course of several days but we are still going to have a doctor take a look at Mama’s knee. Unfortunately she comes from a long line of persons with serious knee problems. Almost every person on Grandma’s side of the family has bad knees and several have had both knees replaced within the last decade; some quite recently. I am hoping to escape that with Mama but we will have to get a more professional diagnosis than I have gotten to date.

I was almost feeling good enough last night to put up a couple of pieces of OSB we are using for the exterior of the apartment, but I talked myself out of it pretty quickly. Mama and Victoria were all gung ho to help, so I guess we could have done it. It is almost a guarantee that it was better to wait a little longer so I can hopefully be at full strength when I am off.

Grandpa has let our calves into the upper meadow to eat what they could of the coastal and alfalfa there. Now he has given them access to the big meadow to eat it down. He is trying to conserve the hay we have in the barn to ensure we can feed all our livestock through the winter into the spring. If we get some rain we will still get some growth in the meadows, but we have not gotten enough to encourage the grass to keep growing.

He feels, and I agree, that what we have in the barn will go largely to the horse to keep them fed through the winter – unless there is some growth in their pasture. They require a lot of feed to sustain those large bodies. I tried to tell Mama we were a little early in getting them but she is only now beginning to realize how poorly equipped we are to keep them.

On my days off next week I will have to take the time to build a shelter for the two horses. Mama is worried about them getting wet when it does rain and she wants a place to shelter them from the very hard, and now cold, winds we have in this area. It will not take more than a day but it will take me away from the project I really need to be working on. Grandpa could do the construction, but he is not interested in wasting his time on the horses. So it will fall to me and Mama.

After having completed all the scheduled interviews I am left with the feeling that I did not get the right person for the job. The people who will be taking over the training are satisfied with the candidates we interviewed but I am coming up short of that. I suggested we start over again but there is some push to get the responsibilities away from me and on to the person who will lead the effort going forward. I am just not sure we found that person. Time will tell.

I will be in training all day today and most of the afternoon tomorrow. Today is some refresher training I elected to take to prepare myself for an interview with licensing early next year. I am still praying for direction in that but I felt it will be better to prepare for the interview even if the Lord directs me other wise. Tomorrow will be normal monthly meeting.

My last work week of the year is flying past me.

Busy times, bad back, medical issues

This was a busy weekend. On Friday the lumber was delivered for the apartment, it rained (which complicated everything) and Mama, Victoria and I went a Sunday School Party at the church. Friday at work I had my last interview for the position I am trying to fill and as I was moving a table out of the conference room I must have lifted wrong because my back started to feel tense.


On Saturday I got out of bed and could tell I was going to ache but I started working on the apartment anyway. As I build the bathroom walls, I was starting to limber up but when I tried to do an overhead portion of the wall in the living room, I could tell I should quit for the day. It was when I got out of bed Sunday morning that I knew I was in trouble. It was a struggle just to get to the bathroom.

I went to church and enjoyed the services and by the end of the day I was in a little better shape. Today I am better but not good. Between the problems Mama is having with her left knee and the problems I am having with my back we make a real pair. I am less apt to let the pain keep me from continuing to work on the projects I know are in need of my attention, but it will slow me down and require that I get help rather than working alone.

I was hurting as we went to the Sunday School party but we had a good time anyway. I did not participate in the Chinese Christmas portion of the party but Mama and Victoria had a great time. It was only because Victoria got off early that she was able to make the party, but Mama and I were both glad to have her there.

For those of you who are wondering, the gift giving portion of a Chinese Christmas is handled by number. Everyone who brought a gift is given a number. One by one the gifts are opened. However, as each number is called, if the person taking their turn has their eye on a gift someone already has, they can take that gift and let the person losing their gift take another turn. That person can steal a gift from someone else or open a new gift. A gift can only be taken twice. The person who possesses it for the third time gets to keep it. I think everyone was happy with what they got. Mama and Victoria both stole the gifts they took home.

Mama went Saturday and settled up with the vet. It was a little over $150. We were given clear directives for the continued treatment and we have followed through but now Grandpa is worried that we are overmedicating the calves. I am willing to trust his judgment but I am struggling with getting professional help if we are not going to follow the suggested regimen. Eventually it will all work out, but the work continues trying to get all the little ones well.

Mama and Grandma are worried about Rosie. Since Saturday afternoon she has been immobile. She will not eat or drink and has thrown up several times. Not a good combination of actions. Our guess is that she has something stuck in her intestines. We have seen the symptoms before and the prognosis is not good. She actually got up and had me let her into Victoria’s room before I left this morning. I am not sure if that is a good sign or not. I will get the rest of the story later today.

Today Mama and Victoria are going to a doctor in Denton. The visit is for Victoria and a cyst she is having some trouble with. Based on the recommendations of some of the ladies at church they scheduled the visit with a particular group of doctors who office near the hospital there. The exam is probably long overdue and none of us are sure what the prognosis will be, but it is almost always better to know than to wonder.

The problem is, with Victoria, all we can do is wonder.

A working vacation, adapting to changes, vet visit

I took off from work early yesterday since I had a pretty light load. My main push for the extra time was to get to Nocona Lumber and trade some of the lumber I had already paid for in order to get the materials to prepare the roof for the metal roofing. I needed fifty six sixteen foot two by six pieces for the rafters and lathing as well as thirty three for the ceiling trusses in the apartment. As it turned out it was a pretty close trade as far as money was concerned. I will end up paying about fifty dollars difference.


Grandpa convinced me to make a change in alignment of the ceiling joists which required the longer material. But I can make the span in sixteen feet across the apartment, so it is a savings overall. As for the roof, I have to have the longer pieces in order to cover the distance between the rafters I will have to build to accommodate the increased depth in the apartment. Stretching the apartment out the extra five feet changed the roofline to be above the existing metal pipes. On the short side of the shop roof I can attach the wood to the existing pipes. The roofing can them be attached directly to that. The materials will be delivered today along with the windows we ordered. I hope to have it all used up by the time our stuff is delivered.

We are back to expecting rain today. All in all, the predictions are for a little less than half an inch today and through the night. We will take all we can get for the sake of the ground, but I am happy I cancelled the delivery of our stuff for today. I am praying that we can get a least a large portion of the roof on before our things finally arrive on the 27th. Now, in addition to a lack of funds, the pigtail for the trailer on the little truck is not working so we have no lights on the trailer when towing it with that truck. I do not want to take it to get the metal if I could get a ticket for using it without lights. The big truck, Grandpa’s diesel, is still down and could be for some time.

As it turned out, it was a very good thing I took the time off yesterday afternoon since Mama scheduled the vet to come to the farm to doctor our ailing heifers. It was not until we were on our way to Nocona that the vet actually got back to us, but since I was sitting beside Mama in the car she got the okay for the visit. He came out about 2:30. Both of the calves were examined and both had a lot of congestion in the lungs with a high fever. Their temperatures were above 106 degrees. The vet explained that a black calf in the sun on a day like yesterday will have a normal temperature of about 101.

Each calf got two shots with extra meds left with us to give each afternoon for today and tomorrow. We were told if the fever had not come down by Saturday afternoon to give him a call. We have the calves separated and have sanitized the water trough they were sharing with the rest of the herd. We did not see that contamination point until yesterday which is odd since Grandpa and Grandma have been irritating meticulous about keeping things clean and separate. I have no idea how much the visit actually cost us. Mama will settle up today at their office. I plan on sitting down when she tells me how much but it was one of those unavoidable expenses associated with the business of raising cattle – especially such young ones. If each of them produces only one calf, we will be amply rewarded.

Mama and I are going to dig out all of my EMT gear to put into use for the calves; stethoscope, thermometer, gauze and bandages, sterile dressings and gloves, etc. We have more than enough to set up shop for ourselves. All I will need from the vet are the meds since I know what to look for and what to listen for during an examination. All Mama’s and my clinical training will finally be put to use.

In all the things we seem to be short of on the farm, I did not think we were short on doggie beds. But I stand corrected.

Shopping sympathy, adoption, still medicating, reversal

Mama and Victoria went shopping in Wichita Falls for most of the day yesterday and by the time they got home her knee was bothering her pretty badly. She contemplated not going to church last night because of the pain. She went anyway. After all, if you can shop all day you can sit for an hour in a church service. Once we got there I would not let anyone give her any sympathy – but the ladies snuck behind my back and did any way.


We were both glad we were there. The pastor preached on prayer and the conditions under which we come to God in prayer; that our petitions are given to the Lord who hears every one. He then takes those requests to the Father, under certain conditions. 1) That they are asked in His name, 2) that they line up with his character, 3) that they line up with the Word of God, and 4) that they are Spirit directed.

Christ will ask nothing of the Father that goes against His character, as in asking to win the lottery or be successful at the casino. We are to pray about everything, but we cannot fail to realize that we are asking the Son to go to the Father on our behalf and in that capacity, He will not ask for those things that are contrary to the Word or will of God, to be consumed on our lusts and often times, just plain silly. It was a good message and very timely for Mama.

On the way home I brought up the subject of supporting one or more of the children in the orphanages run by the Murillo family in Guadalajara. I suggested that the effort be something dedicated to that purpose alone. I do not have any ideas on a separate task to earn the money but I think it should be out of our routine so that there is a specific focus on the child and the ministry.

I suggested that I could work the first hour of every Monday with the gift of supporting that child in mind. For Mama and Victoria it could be selling eggs or doing some craft or baby sitting, anything that would keep the reason for the gift in the forefront of our minds.

The focus then shifted to adoption. Victoria has stated several times that she would like to adopt. I asked her to consider very carefully. In essence, she would be a single mom. Granted, she is near Mama and Grandma right now, but who knows how things will be in the future. Taking on a lifetime commitment for which you are ultimately, and often solely, responsible is a little daunting. I think the way I put it sobered her a little on the idea.

It did not change Mama’s resolve in the least. She is still pursuing the idea of adopting; possibly an older child. That could be an interesting augmentation to our simple life.

Please continue to pray for our herd. The weather is warming up slightly and that will be helpful to the continued healing of the two or three that are still struggling to get well. One of those still a little snotty is a heifer. Since we have big plans for her it would be very upsetting to lose her, but we will take that as it comes. For now we are continuing to doctor her and her cousins – hoping for a full recovery.

Becky texted me last night to say that Charles had reconsidered. My guess is that he found out that a divorce is not free and based on the effort and expense required to follow through with his threat, slammed his attitude into reverse. Seeking for wisdom in how to pray for their situation will require more effort on my part than I have applied heretofore.

Other than for his salvation, I am not exactly sure how to pray.

Becky, Mama, farm trials

Becky called me yesterday morning to tell me Charles was headed to the courthouse to get divorce papers. It is often difficult to tell what is going on in their marriage because Charles does not talk to us any more and Becky has an odd way of communicating. Her immediate take on the issue was that she had made a C in Algebra and Charles felt she had been hiding her grades from him because she was doing poorly.


I am not really sure, but I told Becky that with her working nights, fulltime, and going to school part time, a C was a good grade – especially in Algebra. Considering that Charles had been going to school fulltime, not working at all, and he flunked out of his classes, she was doing okay. So there has to be something else. I do not know what that something is, nor do I want to, but we need to pray for them. Right now we need to pray especially for Becky.

Mama is hurting pretty badly right now, physically. Her left knee is giving her fits. Sometimes it bends painfully, stubbornly. Other times it seems to give out on her. We are going to get it evaluated after the first of the year but she would appreciate your prayers for strength to keep going for now.

I realized as I was driving home last night how disengaged I have been from the farm lately. It is in part due to my focus on the building projects and the financial strain associated with that. It is also because the workload associated with the farm has slowed. Winter on the farm is the time to plan for the spring and repair the equipment needed for that plan to be activated.

I obviously miss the morning feeding of the calves and I have not made it home in time to help with the evening feeding for several days now. Grandpa and Grandma have been experimenting with feeding schedules and amounts for several weeks to try to get the calves we have past the illnesses they are struggling to overcome. I think they have been having great success but it has been a strain on them – especially Grandpa.

Mama had been doctoring chickens and has met with some success there. We have had trouble getting the medications for them locally so I had to do some research to find what we were looking for and order them. I have been constrained by money in ordering them. Everything seems to come up at once. You know the routine. But now the meds are here and she has started to apply them. We will see how it turns out.

The horses do not seem to like the cold but God has gifted them with the ability to endure it. We have to feed them supplementally since they have chew down to nubs the pasture where they are kept. Honestly, it looks like Mama has mowed and trimmed it. We are very new to horses so our tendency is to over feed them. Right now I feel confident that is not happening. If you were to ask the horses, you would get the sense that they are certain that they are on a starvation diet. They look good, healthy, trim and slick.

Grandma and Mama have both been very concerned about the two big dogs lately. They do not seem to be interested in the dog food we have been getting for them. I went to great lengths to find out what they would eat and we have stuck pretty close to that and that alone, but Wal-Mart ran out of the preferred type. The substitute does not seem to interest them. Grandpa solved the mystery yesterday. They have been eating on the bodies of the calves he buried.

No wonder they were so dirty.

Weather issues, decorating, Jake

I had high hopes of getting some little things done on the apartment in the evenings through the week but last night was not as profitable as I had been anticipating. It was cold and getting colder by the hour when I got home and it took some time to say hello to Mama and drink a hot cup of tea before going back out.

When I did go out I only had about an hour of good light left – sunset is at 5:30 pm) and the temperature was already at 36 degrees. I had to get out the tools I needed and make some measurements for square and plumb before anchoring any of the walls. I ended up getting one anchor in at one corner before I needed a tool I could not find. I did get something done, but not much. By the time I put the tools away it was dark and the temperature was nearer to 30 degrees. It got down to 18 degrees over night.

Mama spent the day making cookies. I guess the colder weather made her feel homey. When I got home the bed was still unmade and she was dressed in some sweats she had pulled over her pajamas. It was obviously not a day she was planning on getting out; or at least not getting off of the farm.

She did go out with me to get Victoria when she got off at 7 pm. We needed to find a star or some type of tree topper. I had stopped at Lowes to pick up some lights for the tree since I rescheduled the delivery of our stuff until later in the month. They were almost completely sold out but I did find several stands of multi colored lights that would work. (All of our decorations are in storage in Bartlesville, OK and I am trying to delay long enough to get a roof on the shop – where we intend to off load the truck when it does come.)

Mama bought a couple of clip on decorations for a dollar each to make up a tree topper since all of the lit ones were about ten dollars and looked cheesy. We did string the lights and put together a topper and Grandma put candy canes on the tree also. It looks pretty good but it is short of what could be on it if our things were here.

Rain is predicted for this weekend, which is why I delayed the arrival of our items in storage. I did not see a way to get them out of the truck into the dry without a great deal of maneuvering and I worry about the truck they will be bringing to make the delivery. Semis do not do well in our driveway when the ground is softened by rain. I am hoping this Saturday will be a dry day so Grandpa and I can build the trusses for the roof and get the ceiling joists in place. Then we will be ready for the roofing – and for the delivery of our stuff.

Jake called last night and he and Mama talked for some time. He found out Mama has an iPhone so he went around the house taking pictures of their pigs, goats, dogs, cats, his mom and dad, etc. He practically flooded Mama’s phone with pictures. Then they had to review each one. Today Mama is supposed to take pictures of all the animals on our farm and send them to Jake. Those of you who know Jake know how this works. At eight years old, he is hard to keep up with.

He asked Mama the name of the little filly we have. Mama reminded him her name is Misty. He told Mama he needed to come back to the farm because he was already forgetting the names of the horses and dogs we have here.

I have a feeling they are getting geared up for a visit next summer.

Winter, sickness, party, church

Saturday was spent winterizing the well house and the chicken coop. It turned out to be a good thing we took the time to do all of the insulating and wrapping of pipes and the well tank. The temperature dropped to 28 degrees over night and we had a dusting of snow on the ground when I went out this morning. It was in the forecast but we never know what parts of the forecast will actually happen. This time they were right. Tonight is predicted to be 17 degrees.


Grandpa and I finished all that work pretty early so we laid out an electric fence across the upper meadow in order to let the bigger calves graze on the alfalfa and coastal that managed to grow through the drought. I am not sure if the fence charger that Grandpa has is working but they are cheap to buy new and it will be a good use of what we have to offer the growing heard.

Only late in the day on Saturday did I build a wall for the shop. It is better in this area to have the wood in place than to have it lay around. The sun here is brutal enough but the wind accelerates the drying process in a maddening way. So rather than let the boards warp and bow, I nailed them together and stood them into a twelve foot high wall. It looked pretty good when I got it done. I had to build it to fit the bracing on the steel pipe structure of the building and it took two tries to get it in place, but it is there now and hopefully will remain in place for a long time to come.

Grandpa is stressing over the calves. We seem to be fighting a respiratory infection among the little ones and all the remedies we have tried have had little to no benefit. We have lost two baby calves so far (in total – not recently) and none seem near death at the moment, but the condition appears to bring them down pretty fast. Pray for him to have the wisdom to pull us through this bout of sickness and for his physical strength to keep up the vigil.

On Friday night Mama and I went to the office Christmas Party. It was okay until about 9 pm. Then the alcohol kicked in and the karaoke got a little out of hand. It started off with the oldies, Crocodile Rock, Peggy Sue, and the like. Then it migrated to Eminem. Mama and I left when that change took place. We did win a Kindle Fire in one of the drawings. We were able to trade it for a KitchenAid Mixer. It had been won by one of my direct reports but she had traded it for a tool set. Another of my direct reports had made the swap and when she learned that we were interested in getting it they made the offer to exchange gifts. They have a seven year old boy that will be very happy on Christmas morning.

Every Sunday God seems to reinforce the fact that we are in the right church. I was telling the Pastor yesterday that the pastor from one of the bigger churches in Bowie came to visit Grandma and Grandpa. While he and his wife were there he asked Mama if she had a good church. She told him we were going to Immanuel Baptist Church in Decatur. “Decatur”, he almost choked. “That’s a long way to go just for church. You passed up a lot of good churches on that drive.” Mama just smiled.

Blah, Christmas Parties, Dodger, farm news

Yesterday seemed to be one of those days that you just maintain; no forward progress but thankfully, no falling behind. I am not sure why it turned out that way but it did. I was busy at work and busy at the farm but there were no outstanding moments or events to point out that anything had actually been accomplished.


Tonight we have our Christmas Party for the Decatur office. It is not one of those events that I look forward to. It will be a chance for Mama to meet all of the people in the area and it will be a chance for all of us to meet the spouses of our coworkers. There is a nice meal planned, with little activity required of my group to pull it off. So we can relax and participate in the festivities.

It should be fairly enjoyable aside from the drinking that will go on. Fortunately, this is a company event so the object of the event is to socialize, not to get drunk. With our area manager in the party with us there should be some restraint, but there are always the one or two that feel they need to consume their “fair share” in order to make the event endurable. We should be able to manage that.

Mama and I missed the Thanksgiving Dinner at the church but we will be here for the Christmas Party. I am looking forward to that. I know most people in the office here do not have a clue why that gathering is more enjoyable for me and Mama but it is; the difference in people, the difference in attitudes, the difference in focus, the “others” orientation.

Construction will be at a slow pace this weekend. I will not have the money to get some of the lumber I need to progress so I will have to use what I have purchased already and move as far forward as I can. There are plenty of little winterization projects to be done on the farm and they should take precedent in light of the cold weather we have coming. The well house and the chicken coop are at the top of the list for work, but Victoria and Mama want to build some sort of shelter for the horses before the weather gets too bad. This weekend should be a good time to start on those upgrades and repairs.

Last night as someone was leaving the property up the lane from us, we heard Dodger start yelping as thought he had been injured. When I got to the door to go out and see what might have happened, he was at the top step looking to come in. He was not badly hurt but he was strongly favoring his right rear paw. I am not sure the extent of the damage or how he may have been injured in the incident, but we will watch and see.

It at least should serve to slow him down a little. His propensity to chase after shiny objects and dart after every light was sure to get him in trouble at some point. I am not sure if Mr. Allen who is an older gentleman, even knew he somehow struck the dog. He and his crew tend to drive very fast when they are on the lane that runs in front of the house; at least it seems fast to those of us standing by watching.

Mama’s chickens are doing much better. She lost another of the ones we purchased most recently but the remainder of the flock seems to be doing well. As I got home last night I had to avoid chickens when I parked at the house. Mama said that a couple of the red ones were visiting the calf pens cleaning up the dropped grain below the feeding boxes. That is good news. I would rather them get it than for some rat or mouse to get it.

Grandpa, Grandma and Mama are feeding the calves three times per day until tomorrow in hopes of getting them healthy. Grandpa has been doctoring two who are just now responding to the care. One in particular, Little Bit, looks like he is improving but the progress is slow. I hate shooting him full of antibiotics but there is no other remedy we know of at this time.

Grandpa is going to get him out of his little pen today and wrestle him around to get him stirred up. That will be a telling moment for us.

Good news, travel, misplaced items, seeking closure, sick little ones

I got some pretty good news yesterday as I talked to our accountant. We went over the preliminary tax numbers for 2012 and it looks like I will have paid off the tax debt in full by the end of the year. I may owe a few hundred dollars but the $17960 will be paid in full as we settle our taxes in the coming year. That will be a huge financial burden off of me and Mama.

I met Mama at church last night so I could drop off the company truck at the office. It keeps her from having the make the trip into Decatur to pick me up. If we had not met there I would have missed a great service. I was a little late since I did not get to leave Amarillo until almost 3 pm, but it was worth the extra effort. The visiting evangelist preached a great sermon on the fact that, contrary to what we are teaching our children these days, God expects us to win and He has prepared a way to enable us to always be victorious.

I feel like I got a lot done while I was in Amarillo and Borger but it is becoming more and more difficult to make the trip. There are compelling business reasons to go but there are compelling farm and home reasons to avoid the time on the road. Thankfully, it is the only area I need to visit on a regular basis – and due to company drivers (reorganization and realignment), that need may change. I will have to wait and see.

I was going to stop and see Chase at the Mall on Tuesday evening after I got off work but when I got to the mall I could not find him. I texted him and found out he was being shuttled from the mall to his apartment and back in hopes of finding his spare car key at the apartment. The key he usually uses was locked in the car. The spare, it turns out, was still in the glove box from the original transfer.

I have not talked with him to see how it turned out but as I left he had help on the way. A person working with him at Sears was a security guard in the past and proclaimed himself proficient at using a Jimmy to unlock a car. I hope the bragging was supported by a successful demonstrating of the skill. I suggested he put the other key in a safe place in his apartment. I would suggest giving it to Makaila, but I do not know if she is any better at organization than he is.

When I worked at the Pilot Plant in South Charleston, WV there was a young female engineer who came to work one cold morning wearing a hoodie rather than the heavy coat she normally wore. When I asked about it she admitted that she could not find the coat. She bought another one that day and I thought nothing more about it. Months later, she told me she finally found her missing coat. It had been wrapped up in some blankets. When she and her husband finally made the bed, they came across the coat.

Mama and I talked more about the Licensing job and I will apply for the position in January. It is the only way I can have closure on the issue. At this point I do not know what the demands of the job will be and there is the potential for several deal breakers in the assignment – required move to Houston, multiple short assignments abroad without Mama, etc. I need to find out the particulars before I completely dismiss the idea. So I will talk with my boss and put I the application next year – Lord willing.

Mama tells me we have several steers that are getting colds so we are doctoring them. We also have one particular little one, Little Bit, who is not doing very well. Grandpa is in high gear trying to get him past whatever is ailing him, but as of last night Mama was not sure of his condition. He is among my favorites; born more than two weeks premature, he is a perfect miniature bull.

It would be a shame to lose another one, but especially him.

Interview news, expanding the herd, repairs, coming up short

Yesterday flew by and it was after 3 pm before I knew it. I was in scheduled meetings for the majority of the day and I had several informal meetings through out the day so there was not much free time. Mama found that out early in the morning when she tried to call me about something urgent she needed to get done that did not actually get done until after 4 pm.


I interviewed one of my former employees for the Training Coordinator position and she did very well. Both of the gentlemen that were involved in the interview via phone thought so as well. She came back to my office here later in the morning after she had visited her way around the building to confirm that she was not disqualified by anything she had said. I reassured her and told her I will let her know as soon as a decision was made. I realize it is always a difficult thing to do when you interview for a job.

Speaking of interviews, Chase got the job with Sprint. He will start after the first of the year. He asked to be allowed to continue through the Holidays with Sears so they would not end up being short handed – and so that his sales would not be subject to the loss of commissions that result from the returned items normally coming back to the store after Christmas. He is pleased with the offer made to him by Sprint and in reality it should be a good job for him on a more long term basis.

We now have three more calves. That brings the total on the bottle to fifteen. It is a handful. Grandpa is slowly getting all of them lined out and healthy but he is fighting against unexpected opposition. Grandma, who is our milk mixer, decided that the problem the calves were having was the result of the milk being mixed too strong. So, she watered it down without telling anyone. When the calves continued to loose weight even thought they were being fed twice per day Grandpa began to put two and two together.

Now we are doctoring the needs and feeding the proper diet and the whole group looks better, healthier and stronger. Even the most gaunt are filling out and their energy levels are picking up. Every day he puts them out onto the lot so they can run around, soak up the sunshine and begin to eat a little grass. I am learning that the calves must develop a taste for grass. Once they do, it is their preferred food source. If only we had more to offer.

I am hearing the weather reports that offer the model analysis to try to prove that we are not actually in a drought, but it is hard to feed the cattle on supposition. They require something more tangible. I am hearing that the winter rains are coming. I am ready. I hope it will be well before the first hard freeze so there is time for some growth. We have enough hay to make it through the winter and into the early spring so we will be able to retain our herd. Many others will not.

We still need the steel and beams for the roof, but short of a miracle, it will not happen quickly. So on the flip side, the dearth of rain is a blessing of sorts. I am about $2500 short at the moment for that particular need but I have a feeling things will begin to work out pretty soon. Regardless, our stuff is coming next Friday. We will find the best way to deal with that after the fact.

Grandpa tried the last thing he could try to get the diesel truck running and it was not successful. We will have to do major repairs – about $1200 - on the clutch to get it operational again, but for the moment we are able to work around it. I am getting thousand dollar-ed to death right now.

Oh, for the days when I worried over $100.

Travel, Chase, ready or not, Christmas blues

I drove to Amarillo late yesterday so I could work out of the office here in Borger this morning. I have three meetings and an interview to participate in today so it should be a full day. I got into Amarillo a little after 5 pm yesterday and ran some errands for Mama before I went to the hotel. I called Chase to see what he was doing but he was on his way to class to take a final. We spent some time together after he got done with the test but it was getting pretty late for me.


He did okay in his class. He made a A for the semester, which is as good as it gets but he was a little disappointed by the lower than expected grade he got on his final. All in all it worked out pretty well for him. I think he is on the right track as far as career related course work. Time will tell. He took time to help me set up my new iPhone before I called it quits and started to get ready for bed.

He has an interview with Sprint today. I think it is the second interview. He is hoping to get the job with the expectation that cell phones will provide a more regular source of income over the long term vs. other retail electronic devices. It is also more of a hands on service required than sales that can be easily made via the internet. When commissions count, the web does not seem to be the salesman’s friend.

I will not get to spend much time with Chase today. He is working until 8 pm or so, so I told him I will come by the mall and see him there. Maybe we can have some dinner together. I am always up for Subway. If I was there with Mama it would be Chick-fil-A, but I think there are other acceptable fares with Chase.

We have made arrangements for all our things to be delivered to the farm on the 14th. I am not ready but I am praying the Lord comes through in a big way to allow us to get the roof on the shop. Otherwise we will be covering our items that can be moderately exposed to the air with a tarp and hoping for the best. All the items that will require more care will be squeezed into the front room of the farm house. It will be an interesting time.

At least there are enough walls up to break the wind so we will have fighting chance to keep stuff covered and well protected. Grandpa is going to build one of the shop walls with materials we picked up from the lumber for last Saturday. That should be a big help but without a roof, everything will be pretty much out in the open on the shop slab. At least it is on concrete. In West Virginia, we never had that. It was always dirt or gravel – and we were happy for the gravel spots.

More calves should be on the farm this afternoon. They are the three that I talked about the other day. That will bring us back up to fifteen sucklings with the older seven growing well on the grass we have remaining on the drought withered pastures. It is amazing to watch the growth process happen in real time – real slow time. All the little steers need is grass and water and they grow bigger and bigger; I am still amazed by it.

Things are starting to aim toward Christmas now. I suppose it is inescapable since we are in the first week of December, but I do not feel ready at all. I will not have any extra money to get anything notable for Mama or anyone else this year. We will not go without, but the usual fanfare will be somewhat subdued.

At least we got to have a little Christmas with the grandkids while we were in Florida for Thanksgiving.

Working sick, progress, more calves, missions

After being sick for several days it is nice to feel better. I started feeling badly on Wednesday last week and almost did not go to church that evening. By the following morning I was undeniably ill. I had a pretty good idea it was the same thing that Victoria had been dealing with for several days; a stomach virus. I let it run its course for a day and then I treated it with Imodium. I was much better by Sunday.


Even though I was feeling bad I used the time away from the office to work on the apartment. Grandpa and I went for the first of the lumber on Thursday afternoon and by Saturday had made trips three return trips for supplies – all of which are paid for. What was not on the paid invoice I paid for in cash as we got it. By Saturday evening we had all the walls up with the cutouts for the doors in place. We had even put up three ceiling joists to stabilize the walls on the long sides and we nailed up some of the OSB on the corners to hold everything square and plumb. It looks pretty good.

Mama took pictures but I have not got any of them to share with you. I did discover a new found superpower – the ability to walk through walls. Hopefully it will be short lived as we complete the walls, but it is nice to be able to use every opening for now. The only frustrating part of the construction is the eminent need for the roofing materials.

Unfortunately it will have to wait for several days as I am out of town. I have to travel to Borger today so I can conduct an interview with a candidate for the open position I have been backfilling. The candidate is one of my past direct reports, Judy Calhoun. It will be interesting to interview her for the job. I would like to do the interview with less of an audience but I will be sharing the time with three other interested parties so it could turn into quite an event. Friday I will interview one of the ladies who works for me here in Decatur. It will be much the same type of show.

Grandpa and Grandma were invited to a shindig in Windthorst, TX yesterday. The man who had gotten us most of the little ones we now have wanted them to come over and meet some other farmers and dairymen in the area. I think they had a pretty good time. I do know that Grandpa is going back today to get three more little bulls, one of whom Tom thinks is blind. He is giving him to us because he does not have time to nurse him along but does not want to put him down. A blind steer will still produce something for us, we just have to get him acclimated to the area where he will be raised. It should be an interesting project for Grandpa.

There was a missionary at church on Sunday morning from the Murillo ministry in Guadalajara Mexico. That is where Victoria spent the first three months of 2007 working in the children’s home. Mama went to go get her to see the slide presentation but she was too embarrassed to leave class so we arranged to see the DVD after church. She and Mama looked over the pictures and remembered a great many of the little ones. I think it brought back some good memories for the two of them. I know God was in it.

It was something I think Victoria needed whether she would admit it or not.

Smaller than you think, the good and bad of no rain, stock news

I finally got the chance to make some preliminary measurements on the apartment slab. It always amazes me that what looks fairly large can become small as it is divided up into rooms. Our apartment is only 625 square feet but it still looks like a lot of slab to cover. I am planning on taking Friday off so I can spend two full days building. Grandpa’s big truck is down for the moment so we will have to use the little truck to pull the trailer loaded with the lumber we will get to begin the project.


Grandpa and Mama are excited about getting the project under way and I have to admit that I am also, but I know what lies ahead and the struggle it will be to get the remainder of the materials we need to complete the construction. The metal for the roof and sides, the cabinets, the plumbing parts – hot water heater, kitchen sink, surround for the shower and all the line and connecting pieces – will all have to be purchased. It is a pretty expensive list. Fortunately, they will all be fairly easy to obtain as the Lord supplies the money.

We are in desperate need of rain again. The grass that came up as a result of rain a month ago is already eaten or killed off by frost. We do have some hay to make it through the winter but the rains would help the latter grasses come on before we get a hard freeze. The ponds are doing fairly well but the big pond is slowly drying up and I really worry over the fish population in it. We are also concerned about the well. God will provide, but it looks a little bleak at this moment.

On the flip side, it is nice to be able to plan all the activities we need without the consideration of rain. I can get a lot of building done while it remains dry. The temperatures are steady in the mid seventies with nights hovering around the freezing mark; perfect weather by any calculation. It is just too dry for the livestock.

All the little ones are on the mend for the moment. Grandpa and Mama spent a good deal of time getting the calves separated to the point that they would not have any contact with each other until they are all well. The vet told them that even a slobber passed from one to the other as they just nosed each other would spread whatever ailment was bothering them. That was taken care of yesterday.

We are down to one egg per day. Mama thinks the chickens are being stressed out by the guineas which have decided the chicken coop is a pretty good place to hang out. I went out after dark last night to close up the coop and got good look at the sleeping arrangements. The guineas were pretty much by themselves and the chickens were huddled together on the roost. I suppose if they all decide to get along, we will start to see more eggs produced, but I am no expert by any measure.

Mama and Grandma went to the church last night for a ladies meeting. I am not sure how it went but I am sure Mama had a good time. I am still praying that Grandpa would decide to go back to church. It is a dangerous position to take to be convinced that anyone, including yourself, is too righteous or too spiritual to go to church and hang out with God’s people – regardless of their spiritual maturity.

I am not sure where I would be without a good church family and having found one, I am not looking for faults. Hopefully, they are not looking for mine.

Safe travels, buying things, improper singing, Blake’s injury

Mama and I got to Cori’s and back without any real problems. On the way home we came up to an accident that tied us up for an extra hour or so but other than that we had no difficulties at all. It is always a moment to remember when in stop and go traffic with Mama. I can never find the right lane to be in because whatever lane I am in the other lane is going to be doing better than mine – according to Mama.


We had a great visit with Cori, Nate and the kids. It was busier than some in the past because of Thanksgiving and rearranged church services; so busy in fact that we did not even get to the beach for Mama to get some shells. We had picture appointments, shopping appointments and all the other appointments that go along with live in general. We shopped from 7 p.m. on Thursday night until 4 a.m. Friday morning. (Maggie stayed home with the kids.) Then we entertained one of the young ladies from our church who is attending PCC on Friday evening, taking her back to the campus late that evening.

We almost ruined our stay by buying two Keurig coffee makers. Cori found a good deal on Craigslist and woke me twice to tell me about it. She finally met the seller who agreed to come to Pace that evening and she and Nate brought them home.

One was a display model and was missing the cover for the water reservoir. The other was supposed to be new in the box. We talked back and forth for two days which one Mama and I would take and which one Cori and Nate would keep. The seller had told Cori he would make it right on the missing parts for the upscale model so we looked at the other one to compare the two. When we opened the new one, it turned out to not be new. In fact, it has orange spray paint on the water reservoir and the chord and is missing the cup stand. Cori was extremely unhappy.

I had already loaded up the unpainted one but the morning of our departure Cori was still very unhappy so I unloaded the better one. She made me take it back but I am not convinced it was the right thing to do. We will know later today or tomorrow as she contacts the seller to see if he will replace the painted one. It nearly ruined out time there.

We got back to the farm and I could tell Grandpa and Grandma were not happy with the way things were going but I was not sure why. I believe mostly it is a money issue. He and Grandma have spent themselves out buying cattle and truck parts. We do not have much to spare and Mama and I have been spending it on things they consider unimportant. I expected that. What caught me off guard was the scolding I got from Grandma for singing; specifically singing something other than what she had playing at the moment. I was told that was disrespectful to her.

Those of you who know me know that when I sing at home it is almost a whisper. I sing to the Lord and to myself. It is never my desire that anyone would hear me, but it bothers Grandma that is can sing “I shall come froth as gold”, or “I’m Amazed” while she had Squire Parsons or the Good Shepherd Quartet playing. I am not sure where the offence is but she is offended by it so I told her I would not sing any more; to which she took offence.

My theory is that it was Sunday and for the umpteenth Sunday in a row she would not be going to church because Grandpa was not going to church and she would rather take offence to something I or anyone else was doing rather than take offence at Grandpa. Mama encouraged me to keep doing what I always have been doing but that may not work – until we have a place of our own.

While we were at Cori and Nate’s, Blake fell out of bed and broke his collar bone. We were not sure at first what the injury was but it was not obvious that there was any displacement or break. We left it alone and watched since it was a holiday and most places they would ordinarily take him were closed. On Thursday Nate bound the arm and Blake seemed happy with the fix so we waited until Friday to get it looked at. It is a hairline fracture that the doctors feel will heal in a few days. They were impressed with the sling Nate had made and encouraged him to keep it that way as long as needed.

All in all, it was a good visit and it is good to be home.

Pot luck dinner, swapping vehicles

One of the ladies in my group asked about a week ago is we had ever had a potluck dinner at this office. I told her to put the announcement together and see how it played out. As it turned out, there was far greater participation that I had thought there might be. We had a table full of great food, smoked turkey, ham and brisket, dressing corn casserole, etc. and another table full of desserts, pecan pies, cakes and cookies. It was enough to rival any church potluck I have ever been to.


As the moment arrived for us to begin eating someone asked if we were going to ask the blessing over the food, so I volunteered. I prayed a very simple prayer for the food and those gathered together to eat it. After I said Amen, one of the guys near me said, “Man, that was beautiful.” To which one of my peers responded, “You can tell he’s done that before.” It was a confirmation of the witness I have prayed to have among my coworkers; another answer to prayer.

Victoria called yesterday when I was in a meeting so I had to wait about an hour to call her back. When I did, she told me that the person in charge of the pharmacy had offered her a part time position there. She was ecstatic. Grandma, Grandpa and Mama were so excited that they all went to DQ to meet her for a celebratory lunch. That too is an answer to prayer. Victoria will still be working for Wal-Mart but her primary posting will be the pharmacy. That means no more 5 to 11 shifts. She will get off no later than 7 p.m. when the pharmacy closes.

Mama and I did drive to Quanah last night to meet Chase and Makaila so we could get the truck. We chose Quanah because it is nearest to the halfway point between Bowie and Amarillo. It worked out well. We were just arriving when Chase called and said he could not find the DQ; our preplanned meeting place. That was because there is not one there. I think it is the only town we drive through that does not have one. We met at the local grocery store and moved over to the Subway.

Makaila had Mama cracking up as she told how horrified she was by the people they had shared the road with on the drive over. She had driven the Nissan while Chase drove the truck. I think it is the most she has driven by herself. At one point she had slowed down to 50 mph to allow a trucker to pass whereupon Chase called her to find out what she was doing. After they fussed at each other she caught back up to him. After eating a sandwich together and filling up all the vehicles, we went our separate ways and headed home.

Mama does not like driving at night. Right now that poses a problem because dark comes so early. She asked if she needed to follow me and I smiled and told her that had never worked in the past, why would we try that now? So I followed her back to Bowie and when I was rounding the curve into town Chase called to tell me they were already in Amarillo. It was about 9:45, way past my bedtime. But it all worked out well.

Grandpa is excited to have the little truck back so he can start to repair the diesel without worrying about doing without a truck for the many things we have need of one on the farm; not the least of which is hauling newborn calves and baby pigs. Since the truck has a topper on it we will not have to worry about the wind on the young bulls as we haul them this winter. That was one of Grandpa’s biggest concerns about the set up we have been using to move the calves; another answer to prayer.

I heard an interesting police acronym yesterday. It accurately describes a lot of drivers I share the road with these days. Nate will have to tell me if it is accurate or not but it was told to us by a Borger police officer. The acronym is D-W-H-U-A. It stands for driving with head up -----.

You can guess the rest.

Change of plans, answered prayers, more prayers

Plans changed through the morning yesterday. I was thinking I would be going with Mama to Muenster and Gainesville for errands we had there but the man we have been buying calves from called yesterday morning. He had two calves for us, his brother had one and a friend had four ready to sell. The calf the brother had to sell was a beautiful heifer that has an Angus bull as the father. She is very much her father’s daughter and the brother was getting ready to call a friend to offer him for sale when Tom called and told him to hold her for us. This was an answer to prayer.


We went to Tom’s farm first and loaded up two calves. One was a preemie but the other was a pretty big bull calf. We then went to the brother’s farm and loaded up the heifer. For the price we paid Grandma was irritated that she was not bigger (She is only one week old now.) but she is a great start to our breeding stock. Tom pulled me aside and asked if I was disappointed but I assured him I was not.

Tom rode with us to the farm of the friend he recommended to us. He did not want us to buy calves from just anyone and he obviously thought very highly of Robert. When we got to his dairy we found out why. Grandpa was impressed with the setup, the neatness and the cleanliness of the farm. He had four calves ready to go. He had another three that he felt like he needed to doctor up a bit and five others that were newborns. He was planning to hold them for several days to see how they turned out.

All in all we got seven calves last night. Two from Robert were almost a month old so we are already money ahead on them. One we are a little worried over since he is so young and so small, but we did the same thing with Tiny. This one Victoria has named Teeny Tiny. He is a beautiful little bull, just very small. I do not remember the names of the others but I am sure Victoria and Mama will. I hope to hear good news this morning after the first morning feeding. My original prayer list request was for 13-15 head of calves so we better get ready for six to eight more pretty quickly.

On the way back to his farm to drop him off, Tom expressed an interest in getting a couple hogs. He had heard that someone at Trade Days had some pigs for sale and we were able to tell him that they were not worth the money since Grandpa had looked them over. Tom asked to let him know if we found some good ones. He would like two or three on the farm to eat the spilled feed. That excited Grandpa. Now we are going to look for pigs. Another prayer answered.

I suggested getting the pigs and trading for the calves. That got the conversation going. Now we are going to progress on the hog building at a much faster pace. Grandpa is looking for any way to turn a profit and keep the cattle stock growing. Having the building will give us the resources to kick the process into high gear. When these farmers find out what Grandpa can do both in raising great stock animals and as a mechanic, we will have the resources to grow our little operation without sitting in a booth at Trade Days. Also an answer to prayer.

Becky called last night to tell me that an Army recruiter told her the Army wants her back as a paramedic. I told her that if she was asking my advice I would advise against it. Based on her past experience in both her personal life and her married life, I think it would be a mistake. I have to believe God has a better way for her and Charles than that. Whether or not they will pursue it is another matter altogether.

Be praying for Charles’ salvation. It is the key to their success.

Gathering pecans, more shopping

In front of my office in Decatur are two very large pecan trees. I have been told that for the past several years they have not produced a crop of pecans. This year, however, they are both loaded down and the pecans they have produced are very good, so I and several of my coworkers have been gathering them as they fall. The shells are so thin that some of them crack open when they hit the concrete of the driveway. (We eat those right them.)


I shared the pecans with Mama and Grandma a couple weeks back so Mama decided we would go to church early Sunday evening to see how many she, Victoria and I could collect. We were getting some off of the ground but the surplus that still remained in the tree was frustrating all of us so Victoria and I found sticks to toss up into the tree to knock some of the hold outs loose.

This worked pretty well until the stick I was using, which was curved like a bow, landed near Mama as she bent to pick up one of the fallen pecans and bounced into her forehead. I heard the crack as it hit her right in the middle of the forehead. It was not a big stick, but it clobbered her pretty good. I would like to say we quit using the sticks to batter the tree but we did not. Mama recovered and we kept going, eventually getting half a bucket full of nuts. We topped it off at the church where there are three other pecan trees loaded with fruit; albeit, much smaller. I can hardly wait until we have our own.

Grandpa, Grandma and Mama went yesterday to look at a tractor that they found through Craig’s list. It was supposed to be about an hour away but was really closer to two hours southwest of Bowie. It was something Grandpa was interested in for the price but he did not feel it was worth rushing about gathering the money so we did not lose the deal. I will have to talk to some people today to see just what we can do to have the money in place as we stumble across these types of deals.

Grandpa is planning on going to a local mill that he and Mama found as they went to look at a trailer last week. Grandpa was pretty excited about the lumber the mill produces and what we could eventually build with it. If I understand him right, much of what they sell is coated in creosote which would be fantastic for sheds and the barns we want to build. I am expecting that work to start soon as we expand the hog building and build a barn where we have been housing the calves. With winter bearing down on us we are feeling pressed to build some shelter for the horses and the donkeys.

Mama and I are getting the license plates for the Flex today from the dealer in Muenster. While over that direction we are going to the hog sale in Gainesville. She has wanted to go for several weeks. The sale is held every Tuesday night and it is supposed to be one of the better seals for hogs in the area. I suppose we will find out tonight. Since we are taking the Flex I am not expecting to bring back any pigs or piglets but you never know with Mama.

Maybe I had better have some cash and the dog carrier just in case.

Slips, shopping, funeral planning

Friday morning I found out about a friend of mine who was in the hospital in Amarillo with a broken hip. He is a little older than me but not by much. I tracked down the contact information and gave him a call. He gave me the detail on what happened that put him where he was. On Friday morning last week at about 3 a.m. he was wakened by one of his grandchildren rushing into their master bathroom. The daughter and grandchildren had come over early for Thanksgiving and had all gotten some sort of stomach bug.


He went on to say about the same time he got the same urge and since his bathroom was occupied he rushed to the nearest hallway bath. His daughter was in there holding on to the toilet. The only bathroom left was at the end of the hall by the kitchen so he made a mad dash for it only to find one of the younger children had not quite made it to the pot in their attempt to relieve the nausea.

Too late he realized the tile floor was slick with the remains of that failed attempt and his feet shot out from under him and he landed hard on his left hip. He said he heard something crack – it was no the tile. After making a bigger mess of the area he dragged himself back to his bedroom and got cleaned up - with much help. Then, he told me, he made one of the worst decisions possible relative to his injury, he dragged himself back into the bed.

About an hour later, because he was completely unable to more, he was transported to the hospital where the x-rays proved inconclusive. He explained what had happened, what he had heard and what he had felt, concluding that something broke and it was not the tile in the bathroom. A cat scan proved him right. A metal plate and three screws later, he is on the mend.

Mama, Victoria and I went to Trade Days on Saturday. I was expecting to buy the door for the apartment so I had set aside the cash for that. I also took along a little extra since you never know what can be found in the many booths. Turns out that Victoria found a desk for her computer and I found an old wooden bucked about the size a person would have used as a lunch box. It even had the original lid with it. Victoria’s desk was $20 and my little wooden bucket was $5. The door was $220. We feel like we did pretty well.

We also found some pigs that we took Grandpa back to see. Mama and I thought they were a bit small for twelve weeks old but they seemed pretty healthy other than being a little small. Grandpa thought differently. He saw that they were malnourished and dehydrated. He even diagnosed them with some sort of lice. Needless to say, we passed on them. He and Mama will go to the sale in Gainesville on Tuesday and see what can be found there. All that happened before 10 a.m.

Later that day Mama and I went to Sam’s and Costco. We took an alternate route to Costco and on the way we passed a rustic furniture store. There Mama found the bed she would like to have and I have to admit it was priced fairly at $450 for the King size model. We also found some cedar furniture that we would like to get but probably will not. One of those “that would be nice if..” items.

At church Sunday morning we got there fairly early and got into a discussion with some of the older women there about music to be played at a funeral. One of the ladies, Lola, now seventy five years old, had been to a funeral on Saturday and had heard two lovely songs she was adding to her list of songs to be played at her funeral. By what one of her long time friends was telling that put the total up to about fifteen. “”You’re gonna have to trim that down, Lola.” She scolded, “We’re not taking up a whole day just to bury you. You’ve got thirty minutes. Tops!”

“How about a drive through funeral?’ another dear friend added, “If you have it on a Saturday we could honk and wave and just go on about our business.” “No”, Lola instructed, “I think I am going to have a funeral rehearsal so I can sit on the front row and see how everything is going to turn out. After all I am the guest of honor and I won’t get to enjoy a minute of it. I especially want to know what the preacher is going to say.” “Maybe” her friend corrected, ”you’re forgetting that you are going to be the only dead person there.”

It was all done in jest and we were all laughing, but it was one of those moments when you knew you were around family.

Purchases, plans, livestock

Mama and I went to Denton yesterday evening. She met me at work and we took the truck from there to get the appliances. We drove right to the house and I loaded up everything while Mama and the lady of the house talked. Mama helped some with the loading up but mostly she visited. The appliances look to be in good shape so I feel pretty confident that we have most of our kitchen ready to go. Mama seemed happy with the purchase and I took her out to eat at Chick-fil-A after we got loaded up. It was a good trip for her.


When we got back to Decatur I had planned to fill the truck with diesel and then head home. So after we got the truck filled up we did just that. I had not gotten very far before I remembered that the car was sitting at the office so we turned around and went back so Mama could drive it home. We were home and unloaded by 9 p.m. It was a worthwhile trip.

The cast iron sink that came in the deal will probably be used in the farm house when we remodel it next year – Lord willing. My plans are to erect the log kit in a 24x24 barn and use the lumber from the demolition of the house (mainly the roof, the upper story and the back rooms) to complete the barn. Then we can start new on the house and make it into a salt box style home. I have a lot of work ahead of me.

I did make contact with a person who had a set of cabinets advertized that I really wanted to get but they responded last night that they had sold them that very night. We missed out on a very good deal on that one but there will be others. Now we even have a little shed with a concrete floor to house these purchases until we are ready to place them in the apartment.

I got to see the finished slab in the headlights last night and it looks like another amazing job by the same crew who did our apartment slab. It looked perfectly polished. I know we do not need a pretty slab for a shop building but it is a nice start to the project. It will be interesting to see who is the first to scratch it or spill something on it.

Trade Days is tomorrow. Mama and I are planning on buying the door for the apartment from one of the regular vendors. I lost his card so I could not make the special request for the door we need so I am hoping he has it with him. He is usually pretty well stocked. With that purchase I have everything at hand to fully weather in the apartment. All I lack is the metal siding to complete the outside walls - and the roof.

Mama is taking a chicken to the vet this morning to see if they can diagnose what is ailing our little flock. I am thinking that it might be better to start over in the spring but we will wait for the vets pronouncement on that. We have gotten very used to the fresh eggs every day and would like to keep the ones we have but these things happen and we will deal with it as required.

This may be the last week of morning feedings for the calves. I am praying fro seven more to come to the farm to fill the stalls once they are outgrown by our maturing herd. As I look at the little calves grazing in the calf lot it is hard to tell how much they have grown. Mama, Victoria and Grandpa can tell but I will need to compare them to a new batch to really tell.

Grandpa and Mama have done very well by this first batch.

Morning at home, dogs, building plans

I stayed home this morning so I could meet the man who has done our concrete work for us. I also needed to do some banking and arrange with Nocona Building Center to pay for the list of materials he had quoted me for building the apartment. I got an extra hour of sleep out of the deal and I got to help feed the calves. I left for the office before the concrete set enough for the workers to get on it with the power trowel but it will be another beautiful slab. We also got enough extra out of the deal to pour an inch or so in another of our little sheds. (I am glad for that since it took a great deal of effort for Grandpa and Mama to clean it out.)


Gregg Gilbert, the concrete contractor, is a good Christian man. I am glad God’s money is going into his business. He, like everyone I have talked to recently, is not happy with the election results. His greatest worry is the increase taxes he knows are coming and the Obamacare related expenses he is not sure how to prepare for; me either.

Mama and I left the house just after the concrete truck arrived but before the bank opened in Nocona. The lumber yard was very pleased we accepted their offer and I think it is a much better situation for us to be getting our building materials from there. I got a bid from Lowe’s and they came in $100 lower – not at all worth the extra travel. Plus we get to support a local business; someone who will know our names and our needs. While waiting for the bank to open we got to talk to the people at the feed store and answered some of Grandpa’s questions concerning our calves.

Dodger is healing from his emasculation but we have to be careful to limit his activities at least through the weekend. The vet recommended ten days, but with Dodger, we would have to shoot him to get him to stay still for ten days. I am hoping three or four days of rest is sufficient.

Grandma has been in a difficult mood for the past several days. It is impossible to tell what exactly brings her into such moods but in tight quarters it can be difficult to deal with. Mama does okay but her time of the month has her on edge so she is struggling to cope. Victoria and Grandma have a higher toleration for each other than most people I know, but even the two of them are at odds right now. I can tell from Victoria’s curt answers that she does not want to prolong any discussions.

One of the things rattling Grandma’s cage at the moment is the canine population at the farm; specifically, how much of that population is allowed indoors. She made the remark to me this morning that she feels like she is living in a kennel. In ways, that is entirely true, but the problem is that her love for or toleration of the dogs fluctuates from day to day if not from hour to hour.

Her pet peeve is germ combat and containment. The problem is she often strains gnats while swallowing camels. Food is left in pots on the stove for up to 24 hours while the milk or mayonnaise cannot remain unrefrigerated for over ten minutes. Things we cook are tossed to the dogs the next day while things she cooks make it several days to several weeks in the fridge. When she washes eggs they are clean. When Mama washes eggs they are not clean.

Mama made the mistake of setting unwashed eggs on a paper towel on the wrong side of the counter this morning – the clean dishes side. Grandma fussed at Mama for it to which Mama replied that the eggs were kept off of the counter by the paper towel. Grandma’s reply, “Well, maybe you didn’t read the same Biology books I did.” I keep trying to picture that in my mind and keep coming up blank.

I think my time table for getting the apartment done is getting shorter. I told Mama I could take Thanksgiving week to do a large portion of the construction, but that did not fly. She is going to Florida and I am taking her. On the bright side, we are going to Denton this evening to look at a dishwasher, an over-the-stove microwave, a built in gas oven and a gas cook top – all for $300. There is even a white double bowl sink in the deal so at this point, by biggest outstanding need is for the kitchen cabinets.

At least as far as the apartment is concerned.

Deceit wins the night, God wins the war

I went to bed last night hopeful we would not continue with the same leadership as the last four years. I was not sleeping well and woke around 10 p.m. I got up and found Mama in front of the computer. She announced the electoral vote tally to me. It took me over an hour to get back to sleep.


As I woke this morning and began to deal with the reality of what is happening in our country – as reflected in the presidential election – and I now know that people that think the way I do have become a minority. People who expect to get up every morning and work hard to provide for their families. People who are self-sufficient, providing for themselves and their families. People who are innovative, creating solutions to the problems they encounter. People who are willing to work for what they want in life without the expectation that someone else owes that prize to them. People who, from their own hard work, expect to leave an inheritance for their children.

I am deeply disappointed in the circumstances. I still know that the Lord is on His throne and He will care for His own. The warnings have been shouted out and ignored. Time will prove the “criers in the night” were telling the truth.

God is still in control. We still have a job to do.

Payback, building news, farm animals

One of my coworkers, who is my age, was walking a little stiffly yesterday morning so I asked him what was going on. He told me that his children had coerced him into some activities on the lake over the weekend. Activities that involved a wave board and other devices dragged behind a boat, skimming along the top of the very cold water at ridiculous speeds. He is still not sure why he agreed to participate. He ended the conversation with the thought he had left his kids with. His goal is to live until they get to his age. Then it will be his turn to rub it in.


Later today I will participate in what is called the “calibration session.” It is fancy title for the time when we put our direct reports up against the direct reports of all the other supervisors and see how well we can reward them based on their performance across the entire group. I usually end up in pretty good shape but it is a real strain to go through the process.

Yesterday I got a quote from the lumber yard in Nocona for all the materials to build the apartment. Nocona Lumber is about ten miles from us and we have done a lot of business there. It is an old fashioned place with people who are easy to deal with. They gave me a good price on the materials to erect, enclose, insulate and sheetrock the apartment. All I would lack is the metal siding. It was exciting to get it all in one quote so I can see how the money I have will be going out.

The man who has done our concrete work also contacted me with a date to pour; Thursday. I have not gotten a quote from him yet but I am fairly confident it will be close to the price he estimated when he was at the farm for the last pour. Getting that done will enable us to move very quickly forward with the shop and apartment. Mama had a bad day yesterday so she is more ready than usual. It was all good news to her.

Right now she is holding on to the idea of traveling to Florida for Thanksgiving. She and Grandma are trying to eat more correctly but both of them are less than strong when it comes to sweets. I do not know if a team effort with Grandma is the right way to go but it is the attack route they have chosen. I suppose it is better to do this change in diet together even though I do not see the “encouragement” they will give each other as uplifting. Neither of them likes to be told they cannot or should not do any particular thing – especially when it comes to eating. We will see how it all plays out.

All the animals are enjoying the cooler weather we are having. The only holdout is Rosie. She does not like to venture out until the temperature is well above the morning lows of 42 degrees. She is more of an 80 degree dog. The big dogs are energized by the cool and it has even peaked their appetites. They are now a little over a year old and are finally filling out. I was a little worried they would never get there.

Grandma and Grandpa favor them over all the other dogs but they are tolerant of both Dodger and Rosie. It could be because the big dogs are in their proper place – outside. Rosie and Dodger are both trained to be inside. Grandma has never been a fan of any animal inside the house. Dodger can be a lot of fun – when he wants to. Rosie is more of a family member, even fro Grandma.

The calves will be moved off of their morning feeding this week. They are all eating grass and grain and putting on weight very quickly. It takes a lot of feed to fill out a Holstein but all of them are doing well. Only one will get a morning feeding for a couple more weeks. Our “Big Boy” is two weeks younger that the rest of the herd - even though you cannot tell - so he will need the added nutrition to get past the baby stage.

We are praying for seven more little calves (that’s all the stalls we have) to buy so we can keep the momentum going.

Punch list items, a blessed mistake, church

Saturday was a busy day on the farm. I finally had some time to take care of some of the little left over items on our ongoing projects – my punch list. Mama and I went early to the vet to ask about a problem we are having with our chickens but we did not get any real answers; not without the carcass of the dead chicken. We have had two die of mysterious causes. We are considering putting concrete down on the floor of the coop to help eliminate mites and funguses. I am not sure the cost is justified, but cost has never been an obstacle to Mama’s plans.


We went to the lumber yard in Nocona and turned in a list of materials to get a price estimate on what we need to begin the apartment. While we were there we got several bags of Sakrete to fill in some holes left from setting posts on the equipment shed and to back fill where the hogs dug out in their pen. I got to use all of it up on those little chores, but now they are complete.

I cleaned out the calf stalls also. I dug out any wet dirt and replaced it with dry fresh dirt to help eliminate the smell that comes from keeping live animals – especially animals of that size. It took two very full wheel barrows loads to haul away the scrapings. We are scattering the material on the area where the leech bed was dug for our septic system. I hope it will produce some very fertile grass in the spring. Right now the calves are enjoying the grass that is growing in their lot.

Mama ordered some gravel to be used backfilling the form for the next pour and the wrong material was delivered. On the reorder the gravel yard got it right so we ended up with twenty tons of product which we were able to use in different ways. The yard only had us pay for what we ordered so the mistake for them was free to us. It was a real blessing to us.

Grandpa and I spread out about eight of the ten tons of the more compactable product in the formed up area and he used the gravel to complete a circular driveway around the shop. The driveway looks very nice and with wet weather coming, it will be a blessing. We should be ready to do the pour by mid week this week. Tonight and tomorrow we will get the area leveled out and tamped down. Next week, the building begins.

After the evening feeding Mama and I went to Wal-Mart to get a few things to complete the baking she was doing. We are keeping several people supplied with the Amish Friendship bread. Grandma and Grandpa like the recipe, especially Grandma. She will eat an entire loaf in a couple mornings. I have to admit I am close to the same intake at times.

Both Grandma and Grandpa went to church on Sunday morning to hear Squire Parsons sing at one of the larger Baptist churches in Bowie. Grandma actually got to talk to Squire and his son. She invited them out to the farm for chicken and dumplings but their schedule would not allow them the time. She felt they were really thankful for the invitation. Grandpa did not enjoy the activity. The worldliness of churches today is a huge distraction for him and it does not take too much to set either him or Grandma off.

Our pastor was out of town at a revival on a Zuni Indian reservation somewhere in New Mexico so our associate pastors filled in. In the evening service David Dickerson spelled out some of the refuges we have in our faith – like the cities of refuge in the book of Numbers. One of those refuges is the local New Testament church. We have found a good one but it is still made up of people; some of whom will never fully understand what they have in this body of believers.

It is sad to see the opportunity being wasted in Grandpa’s life to fellowship with the body of Christ.