Updates

I took Friday off so I could fix the truck and the hot water heater and I did try to do both but I only managed to get the truck moderately repaired. I did replace the part that seemed to be causing the issue but it did not seem to completely fix the problem. I still have some more trouble shooting to do but at least it is drivable.

On the hot water heater, I got everything ready and I even bought a socket to remove the bad heating element but I did not know that what I needed was deep well socket. I took the heater out of service anyway to look things over and discovered a leak at the well where the lower socket is inserted into the tank. That is the reason the breaker keeps tripping out. We have decided to get a new hot water heater and repurpose this one into feeding troughs by removing the steel tank and cutting it lengthwise in two pieces.

Later on Friday afternoon Mama noticed that one of the steers was limping pretty badly. When we got the chance to look closely it was clear that his lower leg was pretty swollen. He was able to walk but he obviously did not want to put his full weight on it. We had to separate him from the others in order to keep him moderately contained. The last thing we want is for him to end up out in the field, unable to get up. He would become coyote feed before too long in that situation.

We ended up having to re-separate him late Saturday night from the others after I left a gate open when I came back through the gate with the tractor late Saturday afternoon. I had finished brush hogging the upper field and I forgot to close the gate behind me. Mama and I noticed it when we were getting ready to head out to have dinner with the seniors of the church so there was no time to redo what I had undone in my distraction.

We went to a café called “Shinola’s” in Springtown for our group dinner. Mama and I will probably go back sometime. It was good food at a great price and the atmosphere was uniquely Texas. Mama really enjoyed it. She asked one person for their leftover potato so she would have it to give to the big dogs and she ended with two to-go boxes loaded with leftovers. Everyone had a great time overloading her and teasing her in the process. I told them we could make some great potato soup out of what we had gathered.

Sunday we went to the house of some friends at church; the Wycoff family. They are recently returned from Mexico having left the area where they had started a church due to the drug gang activity in that area. By reports from the local authorities, there are four to six murders per day in the city where they were serving. It is a sad time for Mexico. They recently bought a place just a few miles outside of Rhome, TX and we stayed the afternoon at their house eating lunch and visiting.

We had a good time getting to know them.