Pig’s and other animals

Mama got a little surprise yesterday afternoon as she was working with the feeder pig. Big Mama jumped over a hog panel I have over the opening to the chute we use to load pigs from the enclosure. Mama was in the pig sty scraping the feed down into the part of the feeder the pig accesses when she heard a noise like a muffled crash; nothing too frightening. When she turned around, Big Mama was right in her face – literally. Big Mama, by far our biggest cow at nearly 1800#, wasn’t going to be left out of whatever the pig was getting. Such is her greedy nature. The ruckus Mama raised in response to her being in the pig sty with her was almost enough to send the porky heifer back out the way she came in…almost. Mama said she had to work with the cow to get her back over the now crumpled hog panel, but she did get her out. When I got home I put us a pallet where the opening had been damaged, so, hopefully that will be the end of that. It is hard to tell. Big Mama is not going to miss any chance to eat – regardless of who the feed was intended for.

Later that evening, before we had to go to FBI, we were sitting at the table eating a quick dinner when Mama suddenly blurted out, “We have hogs in our yard!” Of course, I looked out to see what she was looking at and saw no movement. Since we have the big dogs on guard day and night it was hard to imagine any hogs getting into the yard without setting off an alarm of some sort and there no activity at all. After I looked for a moment, Mama explained a little further. What she was seeing that alarmed her so was the ground that had been torn up by hogs. The damage was not extensive but it was noticeable and it was very close to the front sidewalk. In fact, the hogs had gotten to the little flowerbed we have around a tree at the edge of the front walkway. It is difficult to imagine that the hogs got to stay long but they had definitely been there. This morning, when I left, both dogs were at the entrance of the property on the grass just inside the pillars that front the drive. Maybe that will be sufficient to keep them out of our front yard.

At this moment, Mama’s greatest concern is for the chickens. She has been concerned for some time that they are not laying as well as they once were. That, she believes, stems from some lack in their diet, their environment or their overall happiness being her chickens. Now, what chicken would not be happy being one of Mama’s chickens? It is hard for me to imagine them not being happy but the lack of eggs being produced is an indication of something. We are not sure what that something is and Mama is not one to search the internet for answers. That will fall to me. I did read that dogs are happier when they listen to Reggae music but chickens were not mentioned as far as music preference. I am pretty certain that Mama will not play Bob Marley throughout the day. We are liable to get funky eggs if we do that, but the problem still persists and I am certain there is a solution. Maybe John Denver or Neil Diamond. Or since we live on the farm, Randy Travis or Curt Black. I will even pipe in Willie Nelson if we have to.

I will have to look that one up.

Very large pets, bus calling, transplants

Mama and I were up early Saturday morning. I say, early, but I slept in until 7 a.m. After doing my Bible reading I headed to the barn lot to close the gate on the cattle so I could clean up the area where we have set the last several bales of hay. (If I do not keep them out of the area where I am working, I have a very difficult time working around them.) There is a portion of every round bale that cannot be eaten and rather than allow it to accumulate and choke out the ground, I pushed it to an area where I will allow it to turn into compost over the next couple years. As soon as I had the area scraped clean I set another bale out and let the cattle back into the lot. They ran to the bale like they had not been fed for a week, but that is normal. Friday evening Mama and I fed them a bale of alfalfa we had in the goat barn in order to get some ruffage in them for the night. They acted like it was candy. They fought over it like a bunch of hogs; knocking each other around trying to get a better position. I was not fast enough getting it over the fence when we initially opened the bale and Daisy crumpled the fence reaching over it to get the first bite. That took a few minutes to straighten back. I told Mama we may have to get rid of this herd and get some cows a little less familiar with us; a little less like a bunch of thousand pound pets. She did not agree.

She and I both went to bus-calling a little later. She usually does not go with me but she had to take Yilin to hand out some tracts so Yilin could get her “service badge” for Master’s Club. Mama told me that Yilin was very timid - as you would expect. But Mama assured her that the Bible says we do not have the “spirit of fear” and that we should do things for the Lord even if we are a little bit afraid. Yilin immediately corrected Mama, stating that the Bible really says we don’t have the “spirit of scared”. I guess that’s what she heard in Children’s Church. Close enough for now. They had a good morning visiting and handing out tracts.

Meanwhile, Pastor and I went bus-calling and visited some of our usual riders as well as stopping at several houses to see if we could get any new prospects. In one predominately Spanish-speaking area we came across two men who were having a Saturday morning chat. As it turned out, they were talking about church. Pastor shared the plan of salvation with the man standing beside the truck and the man sitting in the truck listened intently. Both prayed to receive Jesus and the woman sitting in the truck wept as they prayed. I asked her later if she knew Jesus and she said she was saved and on her way to Heaven. A little later we came across a man waiting for a friend and were able to share the Gospel with him and he prayed to receive Jesus. He told me after he had prayed that he felt better, lighter. I told him it was because the burden of his sin had been lifted. We invited him to church but he does not live in this area. He was praising the Lord as left. So were the Pastor and I.

Mama met me back at the church about noon and we headed to the Wycoff’s house so I could dig up some of the asparagus he is taking out of his garden. I dug up enough to fill a large tub with the crowns. I did not want to impose on his graciousness. I know he wants some of the asparagus and I did not know how much. What I took was enough to plant a full row in the garden – which I disked up before I got the tiller out to do the final prep for the plants. Daniel also wanted a couple plum trees removed from the little orchard on the place he bought. They are mature (6-8 year-old) dwarf plum trees so if we did not do too much damage to the roots as we dug them up they should establish themselves quickly where I planted them in the garden. I will have to watch all the transplants for the next few weeks but I have high hopes for both the asparagus and the plums trees. Daniel told me yesterday as they prepare the garden he will have his daughter – who will do most of the work – to gather the asparagus she digs up to be removed and get the plants to us. I would welcome that. By the time I got everything replanted I was worn out.

Two pups sold and taken to other homes Saturday. Great soul winning opportunities. Great services on Sunday. It was a great weekend.

Oops, Victoria, offenses

Mama and I met at Arby’s after I got off work yesterday evening. They have their fish sandwiches two for five dollars. It is one of the few fish sandwiches we like and it is only available for a couple months each year. While we were there we decided that it would be more practical to leave the truck at the church and head to Denton from Decatur vs. both if us driving home and heading out from there. Mama had a list of four stops that would take us a couple hours if we took time to shop at each stop; which we did. Winco Foods, Kroger’s, Chick-fil-A and Sam’s were the stores that made the list. At least three of the four stops require a little shopping. There is no “run in, get what you need, and run out” with Mama, but to be honest, we were pretty close to that at Kroger’s and Sam’s. When we got home, Mama quickly collected eggs and checked waterers and called it good as far as the animals were concerned.

That may have been an oversight on our part. I do not think either of us realized how cold it might get last night. The forecast was for temperatures at freezing but not much lower than that. However, when I got into the truck this morning the temperature display read twenty four degrees. If Mama did not disconnect the hose lines from the hydrant at the well house, we could be in trouble. So far, this winter we have been fairly rigorous about disconnecting hoses and shutting the valve when the temperature was predicted to be low, but even at that we have ruined one manifold we used to connect three hoses to one spigot as well as busting the nozzles at the other end of the hose on two separate lines. We have not lost anything expensive, but it is frustrating to have to buy replacements several times in a single winter. Today may be another one of those occasions. Hopefully, the hydrant is okay. I will know when Mama calls me later. If it did freeze and break it will change my plans for this weekend significantly.

Victoria has been sick for an extended time now. Sick to the point that she went to the doctor to get some meds to help get her started toward healing. In the process of self-diagnosis, she decided that it would be advisable to leave the dogs outside through the nights instead of in her bedroom with her. I thought that was a good idea if we managed to follow through with it. So far, that has happened for one night. She felt sorry for them because it was cold and let them in overnight last night. I think they would have been fine. I also think she and Mama are worried about the dogs absorbing the residual skunk smell we still have around the house. That may actually be a valid concern, although I am pretty sure the cold would not have bothered them. Anyway, Victoria seems to be mending to the point of having a productive cough, being able to sleep more soundly and struggling less with the severe headaches she has been having. When she was faithful to take the tincture of teasel, she was doing much better, but she is stubborn, like her Mama, about doing anything long term.

Grandma was over the other day and took great offence to Mama’s purchase of “Bare Naked” cereal. Mama got quite an earful about the moral condition of our society, etc. etc. She felt Mama was supporting that depravity by bring the cereal boxes into our home. She has a point. Perhaps it is not good to have the words so prominently displayed, regardless of the manner of that display. And you could read into the purchase a desensitizing affect toward our culture. In a world as oversexualized as ours, it better to avoid any allusion to such things. I have recommended to Mama that if we buy the cereal again, we take the contents out of the boxes and discard those boxes.

After all, I am not sure how I would handle the discussion if my pastor was to ask about it.

New direction, smelly neighbors, old plants

I have delayed a project to install a gas stove in the kitchen for some time now. One reason for the delay was the attic work involved in running the gas line from the west end of the house to the kitchen. I have the pipe and connectors required to install the service. We even have a propane tank sitting ready, but I have not done the installation because I am hesitant to take out the cabinet that would have to be removed for the stove to be installed. We have a small kitchen as it is and eliminating that storage space does not seem prudent to me. With that in mind, Mama and I stopped at Lowe’s after church last night. Our main purpose for stopping was to look at electric cooktops that could replace the one we have. It is in sad shape and should be upgraded. That is one of the reasons we had seriously thought about putting in the drop-in stove. There were several cooktops to choose from and Mama settled on two to consider for purchase. However, to make that purchase we will need to sell the gas stove we currently have sitting in the garage. That purchase has become a matter of prayer. We have several other items that we need to sell since Victoria’s house is no longer on our project list. We also have a bumper we bought for the truck but later decided not to put on because I feared it would make the truck too difficult for Mama or Victoria to handle without incident. It is a Ranch hand bumper that extends the front of the truck several inches. Making it more difficult to maneuver into parking spaces and through narrow openings. I trust we will be crossing those sale items off our prayer list very soon.

As Mama and I pulled up to the garage last night after church, the big dogs were barking at something in the flowerbed at that end of the house. That something turned out to be a skunk they had cornered in the shrubbery. I normally open the garage door as we are pulling in the drive but last night the door did not open after I thought I pushed the button on the remote in the Sequoia. For that, I was thankful. I pulled out of the drive and parked in front of the house. Mama coaxed the dogs away from the skunk by getting them some treats as I went and get the pistol in case I needed to shoot the skunk. When I got back out to investigate, the skunk had not moved and was busy spraying the house with his stinky mess. To ensure that he did not get into the garage or into the back yard and spray the puppies or the inside dogs, I shot him and left him lay where he fell while I went to change and get a shovel to scoop him up and move the carcass away from the house. To my great surprise, the flowerbed was empty when I returned. The skunk was gone. Sam was gone. The smell, however, was overpowering. Mama lit candles throughout the house but skunk smell is difficult to abate. To say the house smells awful is a generous understatement. Mama is sometimes reluctant to go to work, wanting rather to stay home. This morning will not be one of those reluctant mornings.

We arranged to meet with Daniel Wycoff this weekend to get some asparagus crowns and a plum tree he needs removed from his garden area. The crowns are multiple years old and are producing stalks that are ¾ inch or more in diameter. They will make a great addition to our garden and since we really like asparagus they will make a great addition to our diet. I have a spot picked out to place them in the garden as we begin to set it up for this season. The asparagus crowns I currently have are from my mother’s little raised bed garden and are possibly three or four years old. They produced well last year but some of the stalks were pitifully thin. They tasted good in spite of the fact that they were scrawny.

I am looking forward to getting the mature plants and, for once, starting off years ahead.

Grandpa, Millie, puppies

Mama and I left the farm soon after I got home yesterday evening. My original plan was to get our nanny goat from Rick and get back to the farm, but Mama altered those plans a bit to include taking the Sequoia to Grandpa so he could detail it. No big deal except when we got there, Grandma told Mama she had been trying to call to tell her not to bring the vehicle because she did not feel Grandpa was up to the task. Again, no big deal; I thought. Mama was uncharacteristically annoyed by the change of plans. I guess she had her heard set on getting the Sequoia cleaned up like Victoria get her car cleaned up recently. Grandma’s concern was that Grandpa was letting himself go too far down, health wise. He is still losing blood through his colon. It is not a rapid loss but any loss is cumulatively dangerous. Since he is taking some powerful blood thinners to combat clot formation to protect the stints in his heart, the loss is very troubling. Being Grandpa, he will not go to the doctor, mostly because he has a strong hunch what the treatment will be and fears both the bad news and the high medical bills. Continue to pray for him. Even though he refuses to attend church based on some misconstrued ideas of “proper” worship, I believe he loves the Lord. He is resigned to live out his faith apart from any church and the support of a church family. Life could be much better for him and Grandma but we cannot change that. We can only insert ourselves where we are allowed but without the benefit of a common faith it is difficult to “walk together” with them.

After we visited for a while, I left Grandma and Mama talking and went next door to Rick’s farm to get Millie. When we deal with Rick, it takes time. He loves to talk and he is a wealth of information on a variety of topics – especially goat husbandry. By the time Mama got there we already had Millie loaded and had been talking for about half an hour. Mama’s arrival added another half hour to the conversation but it is always a pleasant conversation. We left just before dark. Rick is pretty sure Millie is bred and will kid sometime between late April and mid-May. Weaned kids are selling for about $600 each. That’s exciting. To think a little fainting goat will sell for as much as a five-hundred-pound calf is hard to imagine, but he seems confident that we can sell the little ones for that if we advertise them properly and do not get in a hurry to sell them. He has sold animals all over the United States. Most recently he sold three weaned kids to a buyer in Florida for $850 per kid. He’s been doing this for years and has established quite a reputation in this niche because of his champion blood lines. We’ll see how we do.

Speaking of selling, Victoria and Mama have just about sold all the pups. At this point it looks like all are spoken for. I still have the mantra that until the money is exchanged, there has not been a sale. Mama was telling me that they got a lot of texts yesterday because of a lady who purchased a pup from the last litter and is constantly bragging on the dog to all her friends – and anyone else who will listen. She has been a good contact for Mama and Victoria and is constantly sharing pictures of her and the dog. I will be relieved when all the pups are gone, mostly because there is always one that Mama and Victoria get attached to and want to keep. This litter is no exception, but I have been firm in telling them – no more dogs. Mama has even resorted to the “We may not have Rosie too much longer” argument. To me, that would be a relief, not a requirement to seek a replacement. Maybe if the two of them swept the house daily to keep up with the mass of hair I am constantly picking up or immediately filled the holes that are dug in the yard I would feel differently.

Maybe. We’ll never know.

Mama’s visitor, FBI, Millie

Mama called me yesterday morning as she was out feeding the animals to let me know that one of the traps I had set in the well house caught a rat. My first thought was that the rat had been caught by one of the snap traps so I could not piece together how the rodent was thrashing around as she described. She was quite excited by the visitor but she managed to complete the morning routine. When I got home yesterday evening she told me she had not fed the girl goats again because of the rat. I got on gloves expecting to be taking a now deceased rat out of a trap but that is not what I found. The rat had been caught in one of the live traps I had set. That made more sense. I ended up shooting the rat and disposing of it in the burn barrel. She was right in her description of the size of the rat. It was big. The body was about the span of my hand. Since we had had some luck with the trap, I reset it. That was not a comforting thought for Mama, but disposing of one rat does not usually end the problem. I expect there will be more especially since the one I had disposed of was a female that appeared to be getting ready to nest in our well house.

We are studying the book of James as one of the three classes this semester. I have always loved the book of James but what we have learned in the past two lectures has really brought the book to life. It is difficult to verbalize the wealth of information we get through the studies we have been doing through Faith Bible Institute, but I can say that it has enriched our knowledge of the Bible to the point that even our daily Bible reading has taken on new purpose because of the deeper understanding of what we are reading. When James writes about asking for wisdom, the context of the passage is dealing with trials and suffering and seeking the wisdom of God to endure those circumstances in our lives when we feel overwhelmed, disconnected from the love of God, abandoned. We are to ask God for wisdom in working through those times in a way that still gives Him the glory, still assigns Him the authority to do as He knows best in our lives. It is okay to ask why, but we cross the line when we demand an answer from Him who is our Father; an answer we would not be able to understand even if it were given to us. Each of our lives effect eternity in some way. That is something we will never comprehend. Something that only God can coordinate. My proper response is to step aside and let Him be God. Therein lies the struggle.

We are planning to go to Bowie this evening to get Millie. She has been taken care of by a billy goat out of Rick’s flock. Mama even got to specify the billy. We are excited to see the results of that breeding. I have high expectations since the three little females we have at the farm are from her last kidding. One kid would be nice; three would be outstanding. Mama and I have never sold any or taken any to the market so one of those two outcomes will be in our plans for the flock as it grows. With the three little girls we have ready for breeding in September – and Boomer more than ready to do his part – we could have some serious growth late this year.

That would be fun.

Puppies, repairs, hogs

A large portion of Saturday was taken up with the puppies. We had to wait through the morning for two people to come to get a puppy. Those two had already either spoken for a pup or had purchased one. They were waiting on us to give the puppies their first shot. Mama, Victoria and I teamed up to do that early in the day. Along with that we had two other people come to the farm to look at the pups. One purchased a puppy and one declined to take a pup home. At present, we have five puppies still at the farm; two of which are spoken for. That leaves three to sell and that could be accomplished this week because one of the families that purchased a pup put out an ad on their Facebook page that sparked an interest in looking at the remaining puppies. I think Victoria got several phone calls as she was convalescing from a dental visit earlier that day to have a tooth extracted; but that is a whole different story.

Grandma came over to go with Mama to Walmart to see if they could sell a pup or two but our Pastor and his wife came over about the time they were going to leave and we gave them a tour of the farm so they could see the updates we have made. They came initially to tell us they were praying for us and saddened by our loss; but also, rejoicing that Dad is in Heaven. There is not much grieving to do because of the nature of Dad’s slow decline and the loss all of us felt as he slipped away from us, but Sunday morning as we sang songs about the hope we have in Jesus, I struggled through a couple hymns (Standing on the Promises, He Hideth My Soul, I know Whom I have Believed) as I thought about not seeing Dad again this side of Heaven and the joy he now has in possessing that for which we continue to hope.

Between puppy chores I struggled to get the tractor started; finally succeeding late in the morning. I tried to jump it with the truck but did not have any success. When that failed, I started to look at all the battery terminal connections, cleaned them thoroughly and made sure all were secure. Somewhere in all that, I must have gotten the right one because the tractor finally fired up. With that working, I was able to get the tire pulled off the trailer. Then I pulled the front tire off the tractor and took both for repairs. Sadly, only the tractor tire could be fixed. It was filled with stop leak because there were multiple little holes in the tire from mesquite thorns and cactus quills. The trailer tire was split along the sidewall; so, it was junk. I could not afford a new one but I did have a spare on the trailer so that was put into service while I look for a good used tire to ensure I will have a spare the next time I need one.

Late Saturday evening, very near dark, the large male hog came back. This time I took the time to get the laser sight on the .22 working. In the low light conditions, it is a big help in ensuring accuracy. I had to wait for about half an hour near the back fence but the hog came back and I did get a clear shot at him. This time I know I wounded him, but he still managed to run off. Still, not a bad thing. On Sunday, one of the church members who lives near us asked if we had seen any hogs. He had a group of more that forty that are starting to frequent his creek bottom because, like our property, the acorn trees produced a bumper crop this year. I can’t blame the hogs for wanting to eat. I just do not welcome the destruction they cause as they root up our property when they come through by the dozens.

At least I got to sting one of them.

Dad, equipment woes, wild hogs, puppies

The call came early today that Dad had passed away in his sleep very early this morning. Martha told me that she had spent the evening with him yesterday, fed him his dinner and visited as much as was possible with his limited ability to converse. According to Hospice he passed away quickly; peacefully as much as they can tell – and they have the expertise to know something like that. It is as much a relief, a rejoicing and a grieving moment all at the same time. He is home. The desire of his faithful service to the Kingdom of God for more than sixty years is now fully realized. I can imagine Mom meeting him as his eyes opened in Glory, welcoming him; introducing him around. After all, she has been there for almost a year. I know her first words to him would have been, “This is so much better than we ever thought it would be.” Think about the changes we know will be there. The presence of the savior. The absence of sin. The wonder of a clear mind, a pure heart, a new body. Understanding beyond all that we have ever been able. Knowing even as we are known. No confusion. No wondering. No pain. No sickness. No death. No night. No spiritual struggle. Perfect peace. Perfect understanding. Perfect rest. He passed from debilitating inability to unlimited ability. He finished his race. He won an everlasting victory through Christ! May God give me the grace, the persistence, the patience to finish as well as my Dad did. My prayer now is that the Lord will continue to bring to my remembrance all the great memories He gave me through my Dad.

But life goes on here and last night presented a couple challenges for me and Mama. Just after I got home I went to get the tractor but it would not start. That has been an ongoing issue that could be rectified by purchasing a new battery – which I will do today or tomorrow. Anyway, I went to the garage to get a jump starter I used the last time we started the tractor, but it did not work this time. I do not know if the battery was so bad that it did not have any residual power or if the jump starter was not functioning properly. Together, they did not have enough power to turn over the engine with enough speed to get it to start. It got close, but no success. So, I pulled the battery and abandoned the projects that required the tractor; moving on to finishing up getting the feed stored, cutting the top off a barrel we bought last week to use as a burn barrel and burning the portion of our trash we set aside for that. As I was working at the burn barrel, Mama, who was tending to the animals – specifically the feeder pig -  called out to me. There was a wild pig on the other side of the fence at the back of our property; less than thirty yards away. I walked to the house and got my .22 in case I could get a shot at it. It was still there when I got back out and when I was as close as I could get, I took the shot. The way it hollered and jumped before it ran off led me to believe I wounded it. That was better than killing it and having to deal with a 160# hog carcass.

Shortly after that the Burns family came over to look at the puppies. They are debating getting one. It was dark by that time but they enjoyed the little fur balls and the puppies thoroughly enjoyed the attention – especially from the four-year-old. Not long after they left we had a visitor who purchased one of the little females. Mama and Victoria set up the puppies that were still available in the sunroom when the prospective buyers were on their way. There were a couple rearrangements required because they could not agree on which puppies were still unspoken for, but I think they finally got the order right. Victoria is the authority on the pups. They are very attached to her. As soon as they hear her voice they come running out of their house to greet her. That is quite a picture. Five more to go.

When Zach and I were talking he asked if I ever fooled with the puppies. “No”, I told him – then a little louder so Mama could hear it, I added, “I may have to shoot the ones we do not sell so I try not to get attached.”

You can probably imagine Mama’s response.

Farm expenses, life expenses

Mama went to get feed for the animals yesterday afternoon. We spent almost $200 for feed which will last us about three weeks – possibly a month. After getting all the feed out of the truck bed and partially distributed, Mama asked me is we needed to keep all the animals we have, or if we should get rid of the more expensive ones? That is a better question than I initially gave her credit for asking. Do we need all the chickens we have now, or the goats, or the potbelly pigs? We could definitely shrink our chicken flock considering the amount of feed we have to provide vs. the eggs we are getting. Giving up the potbelly pigs could be a good move also. I tried to talk Mama into letting be take our largest potbelly to the meat market but she said she would not be able to eat the meat produced by that particular pet. I am now considering putting the pet pig with the feeder pig on our next meat market run. Maybe I could get away with that. As for the goats, since we have not had the opportunity to sell any of them, they have been an expense with long-term hopes of producing an income. We will be going to Bowie to get Millie, who we hope is bred this time. Having those babies added to our herd could change our view of ownership for the better. We have yet to discover the issues in selling them, but that should happen this year.

We are planning on selling several head of cattle this Spring, so we will have that income to work with. I have maintained that six head on the land we have it too heavy a burden to that land which produces an additional cost by requiring supplemental feed to keep the herd healthy. And any animal Mama owns is going to be healthy – regardless of the associated cost. I am not sure where cattle prices are right now but selling a calf produced on the farm is a low-cost form of income. I will gladly take those opportunities. One heifer and her calf are a particular frustration to Mama because of the wild nature they continue to display in spite of her efforts to calm them. Those two will be the first two to go to the stock sale. Additionally, we had a heifer that had a problem calving last year and we are considering selling her also. She is fat and healthy looking, but now may be a good time to let her go to accomplish a needed herd reduction. That would leave us with two heifers and one calf – until the heifers have their calves is a couple months. That would be about right for us. On the rest of the animal reductions, we will approach that one decision at a time.

As for normal life expenses, Nate showed me an app when he was here that allows me to upload receipts. I started using it on January 1^st and am already shocked by the amount of money we have spent – only halfway through the month. It has gotten our attention as the receipts start to tally up an expense record that is not necessarily reflective of what our budget needs to be. Curtailing the spending is not as straightforward and issue at it seems in casual discussions.

More work is coming there.

Coyotes, puppies, chickens

For the past several days there has been a dead cow lying in the field just off of the road to our property. I had Mama call the owner in Friday evening to let him know that the cow looked like she was in distress in birthing a calf. She was close enough to the road that we could see the calf’s head crowning at the birth canal. The owner told Mama that he thought the cow would get up soon because he had given her a shot. Not sure what that meant, but he seemed unconcerned. The cow must have died that evening because she never moved. She is still lying in the field and Mama is distraught over the lack of attention to the rest of the herd in the pasture with the dead animal. I was not overly concerned but it will soon start to stink so we will have to do something about it by this weekend when it is supposed to get quite warm. However, my concern level piqued when, on the way home yesterday evening, I saw a coyote scoping out the carcass.

That concerned me and should concern the owner as well since he has three very young calves in the same field. It is not a large field; only about twelve acres. Not only will the coyotes come for the carcass but they will kill the calves as well when enough of them have gathered. So, when I got home I got my .22 and quietly walked back to the field to see if I could get a clear shot at the varmint but he was not to be so easily taken down. By the time I got to the point that I go a clear view of him, he had slinked far enough away that I did not feel comfortable taking the shot. I am not the marksman I used to be – and I was not that accomplished at my best. I hope I do not get another opportunity to get a shot at him, but chances are, if the carcass is not moved or dealt with in some way soon, I will have multiple opportunities.

Having small animals at the farm like puppies, chickens and goats makes the attraction of coyotes a problem. Even with the big dogs outside faithfully watching over the property, they could be overwhelmed if raids on the animals come from too many different angles. Speaking of the puppies, we have seven left to sell at this point and it looks like the interest generated through ads has dried up so we may be going to Walmart over one weekend to see if we can sell the rest. They are still cure and seem to be very intelligent. They are certainly very curious and follow Mama wherever she goes – at least, as long as she allows them to follow. With one harsh word from her, they will scurry back to the shelter that is home for them. Most of them are going into the yard to do their bowel related business, but there are a couple holdouts on that issue. My fear is that Mama may be enjoying them a little too much.

Lately, Mama’s biggest frustration has been with the chickens. One of the Banty hens got into the coop with the larger chickens and was being pecked fiercely as the smallest and the newest in the coop. Since we are down to only five little hens, Mama was trying to save her but was not able to rescue her because it seemed she would rather be pecked by her distant cousins than caught by Mama. That had gone on for a couple days and nights until last night the smaller hen decided she had had enough and left the coop. We have not figured out how she entered or left the coop but she is now on the proper side of the fence. Safe among her normal flock.

Mama was greatly relieved.

Quiet times, ten minutes, chores

With the holidays behind us and the house back to “normal”, Mama and I seem to be in one of those quiet times when routine takes over and life feels like it is on autopilot. It does not mean we are not busy. Nor does it mean that we have no forward-looking plans. It is more of the sense of calm; a settled time to reflect and regroup before the pace suddenly changes. Winter is a big part of that idle feeling. It is a pleasant little break, but it will not last long. It never does. At present, we are preparing our taxes for last year and planning our budget for this year. We are making plans for the farm, the livestock we are keeping or selling this year, the best schedule to be on to purchase feed and hay, the path forward to completing the coop and the well house, whether or not we will be able to get the shop done this year, starting the plan for the garden – which will need to be finalized very soon – and helping Victoria sell these pups. That is a partial list. I still need to add in practice time on the cello, violin and guitar – if I ever determine to follow through on that. And I need to take up Tai Chi to see if I can regain any flexibility. That’s our quiet time. I am enjoying it as much as I can.

I asked for a change to my work schedule last week. I had been working 8 a.m. to 5 pm. I asked that the hours be 7 a.m. to 4 pm. That gives me more time in the evening to help Mama get the evening feeding done ad get her set up for the morning routine. The evenings are lasting longer as the days begin to lengthen. Having the extra hour to use in those lengthening evenings is a big help. I learned from one of my more difficult bosses the value of ten minutes. He was routinely taking ten minute intervals to get things done or to set up to get things done. I learned to be succinct in conversations with him so that a longer conversation was not needed. I also learned that a lot can be accomplished in ten minutes if you want to use the time wisely. Dishes can be washed, a pitcher of tea can be made, a tool can be put away, the watering containers for the animals can be checked, the oil level can be checked in a vehicle, the trash bag can be changed out, the A/C filter can be replaced with a fresh one, etc. If ten minutes now has a measurable value to me, imagine what an extra hour is worth. I just have to look for opportunities to use that time wisely.

Rain is forecast for this evening so Mama and I have had to put some plans on hold; probably until Thursday. But improving weather should give us plenty of time to get the majority of our tasks done by the end of the week. We have feed to get, animals to retrieve, flat tires on a trailer and the tractor (one each) that need to get pulled and repaired, a coop to clean, raised beds to set up in the garden and several other chores that the farm requires before the week is done. 

I am not sure why we get to have all this fun, but we do.

FBI, Nate and Cori, visiting

Faith Bible Institute (FBI) starts again tonight. This is our fifth semester. One more and we will have completed the three-year program and will receive our diploma’s. It could be a nice addition to Victoria’s resume and will be a good addition to Mama’s resume also since she did not get to complete her Bible degree at Gulf Coast Bible College years ago. I do not know that it will make much difference to my resume at this point in my working life but I will happily accept it. It will at least give me a Bible degree since I was not able to finish my master’s degree at Nazarene Theological Seminary – also, years ago. We are both excited and apprehensive about the coming semester. It is a pleasure to sit through the preaching/teaching each Monday. It is an additional scheduling challenge for all of us to make it work week by week but it is always worth it. The wealth of information and insight into the Bible has made a huge difference in how much Mama and I get out of our daily Bible reading. It is much more fun to discuss the Bible since we have a lot more information to draw from in those discussions.

Last night, the church voted to take on Nate and Cori for support. While they were staying with us over the holidays, Nate made a point of using the internet at the church (ours was not serviceable at the time) to make as many contacts as possible with churches in the areas they already had appointments so they could fill the calendar without making too many repeat trips to areas they had already visited. I think one day he made over eighty phone calls through which he only got one meeting scheduled, but he definitely put in the phone and internet time – looking up churches and making whatever contacts were offered to him via the church website. Finding churches that he wanted to contact was a large part of the search. Our pastor was very impressed with his diligence. So much so, that he is the first missionary we have taken on this year. It was nice to be able to give them that news last night. It was also good news for them.

Over the weekend, I got the chance to go on bus visitation. I am not as faithful as I would like to be. There are some Saturdays that the needs of the farm and family (like visiting my Dad) keep me from going, but I try to get there as often as I can. The man I was with this Saturday morning has a son who is deaf. Bobby loves it when Mama come with us to visitation. They keep each other entertained through the entire morning with just the little signing Mama knows. One stop we made was at a house where one of Bobby’s fellow students lives. She was there with her older sister and a friend -also from the deaf school. The four of them jabbered back and forth in sign language while we hearing folks chatted amongst ourselves. Although the girls could not commit to coming to church yesterday, they all said they would make plans to come next Sunday. We will have to be ready to sign to the group of four or five rather than the one we normally have. Pastor was very excited about that. So was Bobby. In addition to that we had two other very good visits. 

It was an encouragement to the man I was with who faithfully visits this route every Saturday.

Training, farm purchases, puppies, weather

I have been in work related training classes over the past two days and will continue that patter through today. For the past two days, the training has been in classes that I will be responsible for in the coming months. Yesterday’s class – a Master Trainer Class – is one I will have broad latitude to restructure and revise. It’s a little daunting at first glance but as I pace through it I will be able to see the process unfold. The class today is a continuation or elaboration of the Master Trainer dealing specifically with course development. That is a new area of application for the past experience I have in creating courses and writing procedures. Now I can learn how to do it properly. I would like to have a look back at the training and tests I created years ago – without the benefit of training – to compare it to what I am now learning. That could be fun.

Wednesday afternoon, Norman and Seth went to buy us a pig. They ended up having to go back after the pig because she was too big to fit into the crate Mama and Norman took the day before. The larger crate, which she might not have fit into either, is still with Millie at Rick Gieslend’s place in Bowie. I am not sure if the crate would have held the little sow but it worked out okay that they had to make the extra trip. They have a small trailer at the place where they are living in Bowie that is set up for smaller animals. Mama and I need to get one like for the sheep and goats (and pigs) since we are planning on staying with that type of livestock. The larger stock trailer we have now is great for cattle but does not work well for anything else. Plus, it requires a lot of room to maneuver. Anyway, the pig is about one hundred and forty pounds at present. That weight is a best guess by Norman and Seth after they had to wrestle it off the smaller trailer. We will see how good a pig she turns out to be over the course of the next several days. They were leaving as I got home that evening.

Mama was in the back yard as Normand and Seth passed me on their way out. She was selling a puppy. That was the first real sale. There had been a lot of calls but few takers to that point, but over the last two days Mama had concluded the sale on two more pups – all of them were males. We still have seven females to go so I am praying that they sell quickly. They are very cute, furry little balls of fluff right now and I hope to sell them before they grow out of that cute stage. It makes them far easier to market when they look so cute and innocent and still have that puppy smell to add to the appeal. Unfortunately, none of those attractive traits will last very much longer.

The weather is supposed to turn sharply cooler and wetter today through the weekend. We are not expecting any freezing conditions but we are less than two hours east of the line drawn by those that predict such eventualities. Here in north Texas it is not impossible for the temperatures to shift enough to bring the ice into our area. We will just have to get up Sunday morning and see what we have to deal with. I do not expect any hardships but it is too early to tell. Mama and Victoria are already dreading the wet because of having to confine the puppies to their shelter. Even at five weeks old, they have gotten used to having the freedom to roam the back yard, going in and out of the building at will. Cooping the poor little dears up seems almost cruel to Mama and Victoria. It does increase the labor in cleaning up their living space since being confined will not slow their bowels or their bladders. I predict some spot cleaning of all the little ones will be in order once the storm passes.

Me? I am just loving the little surprises they leave for me all over the place.

Victoria, farm life, work site improvements

Today is Victoria’s birthday. Sadly, the day itself will be a non-event since she is working throughout the day. Mama and I hope to make it up to her sometime later this week. We did celebrate a little with a special dinner for her while Nate, Cori and the kids were here, but that was overlapping with a continuing birthday celebration for Grant. So, we need to do better. As one of her birthday presents this year she will be closing on the sale of her house. As I understand it, all the financing is in order and the paperwork has been prepared. All Zack lacks is the insurance policy to cover the property as the restoration/remodel gets completed. That, too, was a hurdle for us when we took on the property. I know Victoria will not miss the insurance payments she has been making and Grandma and Grandpa will not miss making the mortgage payments monthly. By comparison to the ones Mama and I are making for the farm property, both of those payments are relatively small but, small or not, that money can now be reallocated to something more financially prudent; perhaps a project that is far less overwhelming. I have only one stipulation for how the money should be spent – no more dogs!

I commissioned Mama to find us a pig to buy. We are running low on sausage and the best way for us to get more is to have a pig to process. She found one at the same place we bought from the last time. Those turned out to be very good hogs (even Grandpa approved) so we are going back. She and Norman will be going to pick up the pig this afternoon. It is a little over 100 pounds so we should be able to get it to market within six months or so. When we have this one processed we are planning to get sausage, bacon and roasts; nothing else. We tend not to eat the pork chops and pork steaks as much as roasts but we really like the sausage. So why not get the cuts we like? While she has the help, she and Norman are going to get us some hay. We are able to buy some good bales of last year’s hay for only twenty dollars per bale. That is a very good price and the cows seem to really like the hay. They eat the entire bale all the way to the dirt, which is better than what we were getting with the hay we were buying last year – at twice the price. Since the six head are eating a bale per week on average we need to get those bales for the best price we can. The fact that they like the hay is a bonus, not necessarily a requirement.

Today, at work, we got to do a webinar for the very first time. It is one of the projects left over from my Client Relations assignments. When the idea originally came up I suggested that we record it so we could accurately critique the content, improve the delivery and use it for future training purposes. So, we did. It turned out very well. There were a lot of practice runs, script revisions and PowerPoint rewrites leading up to it, but all the effort proved to be well worth it. It went off without a hitch and was well received by the thirty-one clients that joined us today. The next two webinars should be a cakewalk in comparison. The very best part of the exercise is that I came across a chair in the side room we used for the webinar broadcast that will work perfectly for me. It is a proper ergonomic desk chair. Praise the Lord! It will eliminate a lot of the issues I am currently having with my back. To go along with that little answer to prayer came permission to relocate to another desk so I do not have my back to everyone all the time. Hopefully, I can take care of that one evening or over the weekend so I can limit the workroom distractions of the move.

A little here. A little there. But overall it is nice to see Gods work in those little things.

Nate and Cori, weather, internet, Brittany

Saturday afternoon, Cori and Nate were in Shreveport, LA, traveling back to Pace, FL when their vehicle broke down. They had stopped for lunch and when they got back in the vehicle it would not start – and the dash lit up like a Christmas tree. Nate called around to a couple auto parts stores and in one of those calls found a store that would send someone out to diagnose the issue. The issue turned out to be the alternator. It had gone on the fritz and fried the battery. While they were getting the parts to fix the car, Nate mentioned that he had the tools in the back of the vehicle but it would take a lot of digging to get to them. Somewhere in all of this there happened to be a mechanic in the store who came out with the parts, repaired the vehicle and sent them on their way; all within a little more than an hour and for less than $200. When Nate asked the mechanic what he should pay him, the mechanic told him, “Whatever the Lord lays on your heart.” And that’s not all. While they were heading down the road after repairs their realtor called to tell them that they had a full-price offer on the house. The buyer wants to close by the first week of February. Praise the Lord! That fits with the timeframe they were needing to get an RV before heading north for meetings they have scheduled in March and April. Pray that the sale goes through as promised. It would be a huge relief, a huge blessing and a huge answer to prayer.

The temperatures are supposed to be well above normal for the next several days as a southern front rolls over us. That is a pleasant change from the teens and single digits we have been having the last four nights. The severe cold does not affect us too much other than getting water to the animals in its liquid state. One of the instrument techs in New Jersey used to say, “You know, a funny thing happens to water when the temperature gets down to thirty-two degrees.” Freezing was a constant issue for us in our instrumentation at the plant there. Here, Mama has to take the waterers from the coop every evening and put them in the dog building which is being heated for the puppies and Kira. This keeps them from freezing solid overnight. Then, every morning she sets them back out for the chickens to get a drink. For two of the last four days, the weather was so cold that they had to get a drink pretty quickly because the temperature never got above freezing. For the goats and pigs, we have to haul gallons of water from the house to give them each morning and evening.  Mostly we have to pour the water onto the ice block that was in the pans they normally drink from. They were ready for the water each time we got it to them. Normally, they drink quite a bit throughout the day and we have water available to them throughout the day. Over the weekend, they had to get it while they could. Everyone survived but it was lot of work for Mama. Three inches of rain is predicted for late this week – some of it in the form of sleet – but that is still days away. We will enjoy the respite.

Saturday, Mama and I went to the Cricket store to find out about using my phone as a Hot Spot – since I cancelled the internet service at the house. I should have looked into that instead of using the internet service. The total cost is an additional $10 per month. I had to apologize to Mama for the almost $800 I wasted trying HughesNet – six months’ service and the penalty to close the account. But, hindsight is almost always 20/20. For bigger web projects, I will have to go someplace where I can access better internet service but for the things I need to accomplish at home, this will work well enough to get us by. At the very least, it is so much faster that the service I was paying for that it is almost a pleasure to have it. Almost.

Brittany called Mama this morning to tell her that during the ultrasound this morning, the doctor found two heartbeats. She is carrying twins. The supposition is that they are identical twins but I am not sure how that determination was made. What I do know is that it is an answer to prayer – a big prayer; a long, steady prayer. God did not have to answer that prayer. Just for Brittany to get pregnant was a miracle all on its own. But God did answer our prayer. Now Brittany and Andrew are having twins; a miracle within a miracle. We are praying that the Air Force will allow her and Andrew to transfer stateside by April when he begins training for his new assignment. Mama is praying for the finances to travel to England and make the trip back with Brittany who should be three to four months along depending on the timing. Continue to pray for Brittany because what was a high risk pregnancy to begin with is now elevated on that risk scale. 

God is good.

Seth update, internet update, packing, life goes on

Mama, Grandma, Grandpa and Norman were all at the hospital in Ft Worth when the attending Emergency Room physician told Seth he would be released. Some simple instructions were given regarding care to be taken when blowing his nose or sneezing – both of which put tremendous pressure on the nasal passages associated with the fractured facial bones. He will experience more swelling and numbness as the healing process continues but there was nothing that needed to be done to repair the fractures. They must heal on their own. It took them some time to get home due to the 5 pm hour of his release, but Mama was finally home about 6:30pm. We learned only after the fact that the injury happened on Tuesday evening – two days before the trip to the hospital. It was another panicky, non-event. Status quo for the principal participants. On the bright side, Seth has a clean bill of health to operate under. Hopefully, he learned his lesson about tickling an unwilling person. He will have several weeks’ worth of daily reminders – every time he bends over, blows his nose, sneezes or strains to lift something. Not to mention, every time he looks in the mirror.

After dinner last night I got back on the phone with HughesNet to see if we could get the internet issue resolved. I was actually hopeful. They did not meet my expectations. When I was talking with the initial customer service rep, he had me go to a page titled purple.com. He was elated when the website showed up on my computer. It was literally a purple screen and nothing else. The fact that I could not open my email or any other website did not seem to faze him. He pronounced my internet connectivity issue to be solved. I asked him if he took his car to the transmission shop and the mechanic told him even though the transmission will only go into reverse that there is no need to do further repairs, would that be satisfactory? No, he answered. I then reminded him that I do not want to pay $80 per month to call up a purple screen, so I do not consider the problem corrected. He assured me that the connectivity issue was NOT their equipment and therefore there was nothing further he could do. I had him transfer me to the accounting department to cancel the service. I ended up on the phone for an hour all told. My recommendation: NEVER get HughesNet as your internet service. Oddly enough, I have been asked about the service by two individuals over the past several days and have offered them that very advice. For us, it was a very expensive, disappointing trial in providing internet service to the farm. 

Packing has begun in earnest for the Mortenson clan. Tomorrow we will have breakfast with them and they will head out. I has been great to have them with us for the last couple weeks – and I think they enjoyed it also. The house will not be the same without them. Please continue to pray for their house to sell. There has been a god bit of activity, but no reasonable, serious offers. Also, pray for safety in travel; they will be doing a lot of driving from here on out.

Mama and I have a busy weekend ahead of us; life on the farm goes on. We will need to restock the shed with hay because the six head are eating the last of the six bales we bought - starting today. Lately, they have been going through a bale in four to five days. The cold weather increases their appetite. [Although, we do have two head that need no outside stimulus to their incredible appetite. I have never seen the two of them seem satisfied but rather, both are ready to break down the barn door for one more mouthful of grain – even after they have been eating all day.] Mama and I will pick up another five bales tomorrow – if possible. I need to get the cattle on a bigger place so we do not have to supplement all year long but I do not have many options at the moment. It is still a matter of prayer, not urgent; a matter of guidance rather than an issue of supply. When the issue becomes urgent the focus of our prayers will change, but for now, Mama and I are able to deal with the cattle we have. This year we may actually have an income from cattle.

That would be a nice change.

Moving day, so many things pending, Seth’s injury

By this afternoon, I will be fully employed in the role I have been recently given. There are a few items I need to finalize in the Client Relations role but by late this morning all those obligations should have been fulfilled. As of late yesterday, I met with the leadership and learned my new job title and the pay increase that accompanied that role. It was very good news on both fronts. I also was told about my place in the org chart – who I will be reporting to. It is more of what ConocoPhillips would classify as an Independent Contributor role; no subordinates. I am looking forward to the change and the new challenges. I am also looking forward to the new atmosphere, which has been referred to as “the Library.” I will miss the busy-ness of the CR bullpen (at least a little) and will carry the experience I gained here with me to the new role, but I look forward to a more subdued atmosphere in which to work. I can always stop by the CR department to get a dose of the faster pace and higher noise level when I need to. I just hope I made things better having been with my peers there for the time I was with them learning their trade. They certainly helped me. I know I caused them a lot of extra work which will now have to be repeated as they bring a new person into the team. Hopefully, it will work out as well for my replacement as it has for me.

At the moment, there are a lot things pending; both small and large. Cori, Nate and the kids will begin the process of packing back up so they can head out Saturday morning. That will not be a simple process; nor will it be a particularly happy one. As I have stated before, this will be a completely new set of conditions for them to operate within. At some point in the next several days we will be closing on Victoria’s house – and all that will entail. Zach Burns has been working steadily on the roof over the past several days so he is fully vested in the project; looking forward to having the title in his name. I am sure his wife will come on board at some future point – when it looks a little more like a home. I still have several projects on hold that I am hoping will get started as I have access to more finances. (The raise I just got brings our finances on budget without having to rely on savings each month to meet that budget.) FBI will be restarting soon, so Monday nights will be filled through the Spring and into the Summer. It has been a good break from routine as we drifted through the holidays.

Mama called me this afternoon to tell me that Seth had been injured. The story line was that during a “tickle fight” his girlfriend threw an elbow at him and must have hit him pretty hard since the side of his face was numb and his vision was being affected. At the hospital, they told him that his eye socket was fractured and his cheekbone may be fractured as well. Mama called back a few minutes later to tell me that they were transporting him to a hospital in Ft. Worth for a CAT scan and further evaluation. Mama was heading to Bowie to get Grandma and head to the hospital in Ft Worth. I am not sure why but Grandma feels the need to watch over him as he is further diagnosed. She is in no condition to sit at a hospital but there is little else she can offer so we will help her give that much. Norman and Grandpa are all on board with the hospital to hospital transfer for the time being. Let’s see how that changes when they get the bill. As for Seth’s cheekbone, there is little they can do orthopedically besides wire the jaw together until it is healed. The real concern is that the eye socket may require surgery. We will know something late today but I do not anticipate any resolution today. Unless there is an emergency, surgeries are normally schedules days out. From my point of view, if this girl can inflict that kind of damage on Seth, she may actually be a good fit for him. 

Thankfully, I did not have to qualify Mama in that way – although I am confident she could have passed that test as well years ago.

Technical problems, travel for the kids

I tried the internet again last night and discovered that nothing had been resolved; not necessarily a news flash. So, after getting a few things done at the house, I got on the phone with Hughsnet. After I went through the obligatory customer support I was transferred to the accounting department because I had asked how much it would cost to get out of the contract. After a few minutes with that person, I was transferred to the Tier 2 support and was actually able to speak to someone who analyzed my problem as a software bridging issue. The problem will now be kicked up to the Tier 3 division for resolution but to get there I must once again go through the customer service route to connect to the Tier 3 team. 

But the issue has at least been identified as a software interface issue. I was on the phone for over an hour to get to this point and probably have another hour to get a resolution. The modem is indeed working properly as related to the satellite connection; however, like I have been saying, the signal is not being allowed out of the modem. I got frustrated only when the customer service rep told me that I should take my computer to the Apple service center and have it worked on to resolve the issue. The fact that this is the only internet it does not connect to did not seem to interest her. I will spend an extra few minutes at the church this evening to get a few things done on their internet. Funny how my MacBook will work with that – and every other – internet.

Nate, Cori and the kids were supposed to leave for Oklahoma this afternoon to be at a church this evening, but with the kids plagued by this illness we are all sharing only Nate and Grant will go. Cori and the other three will stay here with us. Blake has not gotten sick, but Nate thought it better to leave him home just in case Blake decides that tonight it the night. Mykenzie is recovering and the baby is fully recovered. Mama is still struggling but I am concerned that the delay in recovery is more diet related – too much sugar lately. A high sugar intake for a couple of days is difficult for her system to handle. She just dos not recognize that yet. 

The plan is still that they will all head out Saturday morning. Back to Florida for slew of meetings scheduled in that area. I am concerned that the displacement will affect them more than they are yet aware, but they are committed to the course set before them and I know they will manage – meals, laundry, living out of a suitcase, endless hours on the road, sleeping different places night after night (until they have an RV), living on very little money and without a predictable income. This is one of those unique times that I believe cell phones and online banking are a blessing. On the bright side, they will get to visit places they would never have gone without this motivation; making memories that will last a lifetime; making friendships that will be eternal. If we can keep the end in mind, the challenges on the journey are much more enjoyable. It will be fun to see God work.

At least we can be a part of it vicariously. 

New job, no internet, sickness

I met with my new team in the Education Department this morning for the first time. I learned that I have a new supervisor in that department – just promoted to that position. It should all work out, but there is a sense of continual change within the company. I still have very little idea what my new duties will be but am sure I can figure it out as we go. Everyone seems genuinely excited about the change – which I found out, quite by accident, will be happening Thursday. At that time, I should have a much better idea what I will be doing and how steep a learning curve I will have in order to get fully onboard. I am looking forward to the change and even more looking forward to the change in application of my time and skills toward something I enjoy doing – hopefully. I will find out sometime if the move comes with a raise in pay. I have not been told that yet, but I am hopeful. If not, God can always make what we earn enough.

We had a technician at the house this morning and I do not think it could have been much worse. I am not sure he really did anything and he found nothing wrong with the system other than we were nearly out of data. That was his explanation for the super slow system operation. It does not matter that it has been this way for a few weeks. He saw what he wanted to see and offered no help in getting the internet connection to improve. He did suggest that Hughes net has acquired access to another satellite which should dramatically improve the internet connection, but I am not holding my breath. I just dislike it when a technician treats the client like they have no idea what they are talking about. And to them, an answer like, “Well that should not happen” is sufficient to end the discussion and solve the problem. I will look at the system operation this evening and if it is not improved, I intend to make myself a very well-known customer.

Mykenzie got the bug last night and spent the night in and out of the bathroom. I did not have much awareness of it even though I did not get to sleep until after 1 a.m. I am not sure what happened to give me trouble sleeping, but every now and then I have nights like that when I either cannot get to sleep or stay asleep. I did pray a lot so it was a good use of otherwise frustrating hours. We are hoping that all the kids and parents have completed their bout with this but by the time they head out this weekend. They no longer have a home to go back to so there is no telling what accommodations they will have to be sharing as they travel. 

Anything out of the ordinary – like sickness, especially the vomiting variety – can make for very uncomfortable sleeping arrangements for everyone.

Dad, sickness, hunting, internet woes continue

Martha sent out an email about Dad’s current condition and the bottom line is that there is little change in his health other than a gentle slipping away. When she talked about him not having a good appetite, I can sympathize since I got the chance to feed him one afternoon. When she mentioned that he often spits out his food, I can also identify with that because he had such difficulty swallowing when I was feeding him. The discharge of food makes it a challenge to get his medicine into him - especially if it is in tablet or pill form. The caregivers and hospice are doing the best they can but it is only a matter of time until he goes home. Fortunately, we have a blessed hope that lies beyond the grave and can see the man we have known all our lives being made completely new in a moment, in the twinkling  of a eye.

The sickness that started with Savanna - or maybe Victoria - passed to Grant, then to Mama and now to me. I woke yesterday with that intuitive process our physical bodies use to alert us to a change in state. I did not initially feel that bad and was getting ready to go to church when I started to burn up with fever; then the nausea set it. Needless to say, I did not make it to church - nor did Mama. She is starting to get her strength back while I continue to struggle to get the fever contained. She was very pleased with herself this morning because she had lost six pounds. Although it is not the diet plan any of us would choose, it is, none the less, very effective. Hopefully, if we really desire to lose weight, we will figure out a less debilitating method - of we really want to lose weight.

Nate and the boys have been squirrel hunting the past few mornings and evenings. Even though the squirrels are fun to watch they are quite destructive. Having had to replace the spark plug wires in Victoria’s car (because the squirrels chew through them to make a nest on her engine) and having had to throw away a lot of items in storage that had been damages by either the rats or the squirrels, we are on a full blown assault against the rodents. So far Nate has removed two from the property and is sure to get several more as this week winds down. They will be leaving on Saturday so he and Blake are quite determined to get the kill count up before they go back to the Pensacola area to continue their deputation there.

Nate and I are both working from the church this morning since the internet is still not functional at the farm, A technician is scheduled to come out tomorrow to check the situation over and I have high hopes that we can get it rectified, but I will not hold my breath. I know something is wrong, not only because the signal is very weak, but because my data allotments are being used up even when the modem is turned off. I tried everything I knew how to do and finally traced it back to a faulty modem but getting the service company to acknowledge that took six phone calls totalling three hours on the phone. If a technician cannot rectify the problem I will have to work through the challenge of getting out of the contract we have with them.

Avoiding that fight would be my preference.

Work, Grant’s birthday party, Grant’s scare

The User Manual – my parting gift to the Client Relations/Account Management Group – has been a work in progress since I first started in the group in late October. Originally, it was the project of one of our group members but since nothing ever came of that it was divided among us; about twenty pages apiece. Since that did not work either (this is a very busy, overworked group) and since I was not doing anything too cumbersome I looked through the manual in one afternoon, made some obvious revisions and returned the revised copy to our boss. All that was needed at that time was to have one section updated and the proper screen shots copied into the document. The due date has always been January 3^rd. Now the heat is on to get the document out for final editing by noon today. I narrowed the revisions down to a final five pages (out of 86) but the company launched a revision to the system that now must be included in the final document. That will take the revised section up to twelve to fifteen pages. 

One of the ladies in our department is working on those updates now and will hopefully finish soon. That will give us this afternoon to compile, edit and format the document for review. We might make it. We need to finish since, as of next week, I will be relocated to another group. Although my replacement has worked in the Client Relations group in the past I do not know how broad her skill set is nor how much time will be required to bring her up to speed in handling the phones and emails, but there will need to be some focus on integrating her into the group and building her confidence. For that reason, focus on the manual will be divided once again so finishing this week really is urgent. At a minimum, it gives me something to do that is well within my abilities. Which leaves me a little curious as to what challenges await me in my new assignment. This morning I had to ask my new supervisor where I am supposed to report on Tuesday morning, the day I am to take on my new role. (Nothing like good communication.) Turns out that I will be at the same desk at least in the beginning of the week so I can finalize the projects I have been working on for the Client relations group – and my backfill can complete any assignment she is working on. It is a good idea. I do not like to leave things unfinished. 

Grants birthday party went well yesterday evening, but he gave Mama and his parents a scare yesterday afternoon. As Nate was cutting his hair he passed out. Cori was telling me that this is the third time he has passed out for no apparent reason. That is more than a little troubling for an eight-year-old to suddenly lose consciousness. Last night he was very sick; nausea, vomiting, headaches. Maybe the vasovagal episode and the current nausea are connected but it is very difficult to tell. At any rate, he made it through the party and enjoyed the guests (Ethan Burns, the Echeveria children, as well as Grandma, Norman and Seth) and the presents. It was only later that the symptoms that plagued him through the night set in. Since Savanna has had the same symptoms for about a week now we are not worried about the illness – which could last for several days – as much as the episodes of fainting. That may be something we need to investigate further but, according to the research, it is neither uncommon nor necessarily unhealthy. The most common resolution is proper hydration. 

That we can handle.

House sale, Norman in TX, Grant’s birthday

Victoria, Zach and Alissa got together yesterday and signed the sales agreement for Victoria’s house and property. The agreement was then dropped off at the Title company for implementation. So, sometime next week the property should transfer and the proceeds for the sale should come to Victoria. It had been a little while in coming but it took some time for the Burns’ to make the final decision. It was a very big decision for them as a young married couple, inexperienced in remodeling and construction, to take on a project of this magnitude. I expect it to be a two-year project for them, but we could all be surprised. It really depends on how mush gets contracted out. From their perspective, they will eventually have a home on two acres. From my perspective, it will be fun to see the completed project since it was originally a project Grandpa and Victoria took on – so it was kind of associated with our family. From Victoria’s perspective, it will be good to pass this to someone else because she never really needed a home of her own and was overwhelmed by the costs associated with making the house into a home. With only her salary at Walmart to fund the construction I can sympathize with the nature of that fear. From Grandpa and Grandma’s perspective, it will be good to be out from under the pressure of the continuous burden to find time and money to continue working on a project of this magnitude; especially when Norman is providing a place for them now. Their goal has been to find a place to live outside of our home and that is accomplished.

Norman, I am told, has made the final trip from West Virginia to Texas to get all his business and personal items relocated. He is here to stay – at least for now. He is going through the process of setting up shop here; getting business cards out, making contacts, placing bids on work, etc. Hopefully, things will work out well for him. I do know that weather will not be a big a factor for him to deal with as it was in West Virginia since most of his work is out of doors. There may be days in which his work is hindered by weather, but there should not been weeks of setbacks like he has been experiencing there. We’ll just have to wait and see how his price structure matches up with the local economy. I know Zach turned down Norman’s bid for the addition on Victoria’s house but I do not think that was necessarily a portent of things to come. There are plenty of people here who have money and appreciate good work. Time will tell how much effort will need to be put into finding those people.

Today is Grant’s birthday. Mama and Cori have planned a pretty big affair. I know she was confirming invitations with several mothers last night at church. I do not know if everyone will show up but it should be a birthday to remember. All the grandkids have a part in prepping for the party. It is built around a Lego theme so Grant is building Lego napkin holders. Mykenzie and Blake have assignments also but I cannot remember what they are tasked to do. Mama/Grammy has a cake to make and decorate to look like a giant Lego. It should be fun and the more that show up the more fun it will be. I don’t remember if we got anything for Grant’s birthday but I am sure Grammy will come up with something. I did see some boots sitting on the shelf in the closet that looked like they were Grant’s size but that is not my area of expertise. Mama will take care of all that. 

I just have to find a way to pay for it.