TSCRA, money, Mama, Grandma

Last night after work I attended a meeting of the Texas and Southwest Cattle Raisers Association in Spearman, TX. It is a private company that provides thirty special rangers in the states of Texas and Oklahoma to investigate thefts on ranches and farms of organization members. I heard about them on the radio during my morning commute to Borger and since it was so close I decided to go.


I met some great people including one of our state House of Representative members – whose name I cannot remember, and a State Senator, Kel Seliger. I remember his name because he sat at the table with me, a gentleman named Dean Greene and Dean’s son, Brennan. I also talked at length with Special Ranger Ben Eggleston. It was well worth the time to go. Eventually I will join the organization to support the special services they offer, but I could not do it last night.

I also met the gentleman who owns one of the two feedlots in Hereford, TX. It is a 30,000 head operation. We got to talk about the market and how the rising cost of corn will affect him in his operation. He uses the wet corn mash sold by a local ethanol plant in his feed regimen and was shocked that I knew anything about it. I only know because Mama and I visited the manager of one of those plants when we were our doing follow up visits for the church. It really is an amazingly connected world.

I was careful to let Mama know how much money we had available through the remainder of the month with the caveat that I had not been told how much our insurance payment would be this month – with State farm it seems to fluctuate a good deal. As it turned out, what we owed was enough to use up – and then some – of what we had available for the remainder of July. She was canning peaches and wanted to know if she could buy another case of canning jars. I had to say no, but we have freezer bags to put them in; if there is room in the freezers after they were loaded with the pork we recently picked up. It could be a long ten days until I get paid again. But at least Mama and Victoria will eat well.

Chase was scrambling for food yesterday. We have things available that I will cook when I am off this weekend but with Mama leaving on Wednesday morning and me getting home just in time to get ready for church that evening I did not fix any dinner. Last night I got home at 9 p.m. He called me yesterday afternoon and asked if there were any frozen items he could heat up. There is not much of that is the house. I think he settled for a sandwich. He went to Makaila’s house after she got off from work so I assume he ate there. Poor guy! He does not get paid until next Friday.

Mama told me last night that Grandma is a nervous wreck as they prepare for the trip to West Virginia. She has never traveled well and with the pain she is feeling right now, traveling is self-imposed torture. She has finally recognized that what she is eating and drinking is exacerbating the conditions causing her pain. Both Grandma and Grandpa are scheduled to see Jonas while they are in West Virginia. Maybe she is really ready to hear.

Be praying for them as they travel. It is a long trip.