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.