Oversights, moving friends, Chase’s new pets, Becky

With all the planning and execution of those plans for Mama, Grandma and Grandpa, my work schedule, etc. those of us west of the Mississippi forgot Blake’s birthday. Mama called me on either Friday evening or Saturday to inform me that “we” had forgotten our youngest grandson’s birthday. I have to take my share of the blame because I did not post a reminder on my calendar. Aside from that, I cannot be held too accountable. I do not remember anyone’s birthday other than Mama’s; but I am still sorry for the oversight. Blake is still too young to notice. His mother, on the other hand did notice. Hopefully she does not keep score.


Chase and I helped in two separate moves on Saturday. I worked with a crew to relocate the De La Garza’s and Chase went to Canyon to help a family in the church empty a storage unit and retrieve the contents to their home in Amarillo. In the process, Bobby and Sandra gave us the washer and dryer we had given them many months ago. Chase was given the snakes they had been housing.

The apartment they moved into was tiny. When we left in the early afternoon, there were barely pathways through the piles of boxes. All the furniture that had been moved into the space was buried under boxes. Many pieces of furniture had been left at the house they were moving out of. Some were taken by people helping in the move – like the washer and dryer – but a lot was left behind. I hope it does not overwhelm Sandra.

Chase’s experience was a little different. The unit they emptied was an accumulation of mostly worthless items that had been added to over the process of a decade. He talked about moving boxes of newspaper clippings dating back to 1982; mostly recipes that had obviously never been used. Everything was caked with dust – understandable in this area. It was all placed in a run down singlewide until there was no room to move. He said he felt like he was in an episode of hoarders.

On the bright side it did make him aware of the clutter and unnecessary mess he keeps in his room. I do not know how long the effects of the shock will remain with him, but for the moment, his room is much neater than it has been in quite some time. He even did a load of wash yesterday. I am not sure if he is more excited about the snakes he is keeping or the washer and dryer. We have not had a home laundry for three or four months.

Chase and Makaila successfully fed both snakes yesterday after we had eaten. I don’t know if the timing was right for Makaila because the entire process grossed her out, but there is almost always a morbid fascination with watching a snake take its prey. They are fed frozen baby mice. I always fed mine live mice, but it worked. We had to thaw a little pink newborn baby for the rat snake and a fuzzy older baby for the ball python. Mama does not approve any more than Makaila does, but both are willing to go along.

Becky called me; I believe it was Friday night. She was walking to work as she was leaving Charles – for good this time, she stated. It was a long discussion but the bottom line was a festering problem with Charles’s mother who has recently moved in with them. Having a mother-in-law in the home is never a good idea; much less so for Becky and Charles.

I assured her that Charles would come around once it settled in that she was taking her earning power with her she walked down the street. As it turned out, she called again on the following morning and when I asked her where she was, she told me she was at her home. I am not sure how the reconciliation took place, but for the moment there is some peace in the home. Pray for them.

I told Becky that she is going to have to take the lead spiritually. She has been trained to do so. He has not. She knows what needs to be done to get her life back on track with the Lord. It is time to start getting it done. Only God can make this situation right. Only salvation can enable Charles to be the kind of husband Becky needs.

Charles still thinks he is a gift to Becky: little does he know.