Travel, trucks, Chase, rocky bananas

Mama and I traveled yesterday as planned but not to Houston. At about 2 pm I got an email from a contact in the Borger office requesting I meet with him and the building owner at 10 a.m. Wednesday morning. I asked my boss which he preferred I do, attend the meeting in Borger or the training in Houston. He picked the Borger meeting.

Mama decided to come along since she can do some visiting and shopping here. We brought the Flex even though the vehicle is in bad need of new tires, so we could look into trading it off for a truck at one of the many dealers in Amarillo. Since all the hotels were booked in both Borger and Dumas we ended up staying in Amarillo. Mama was really happy about that.

We went to one dealer we always check out in Amarillo and found a truck we had not heard of before. It was the third or fourth one we had looked over and for some reason it caught Mama’s eye. It was a Dodge 2500 Diesel Megacab. The cab is huge for a truck. The back seats actually recline back or fold down forward to make a large flat surface. Mama and I were both very impressed. It, like all other trucks right now, was not cheap but Mama is headed back this morning to see if she can work out an acceptable deal.

We met with Chase by himself at the hotel last night and talked for over an hour. Mama came away from the conversation a little relieved about the pending nuptials but we are still a little concerned about the lack of any spiritual focus in the lives of Chase and Makaila. We are praying that that will change as the Lord begins to work in their lives. We (our family) will be their only source of encouragement on that front since her family does not go to church and Chase and Makaila are struggling just to make it to Sunday services.

While here Mama is also investigating the cost of blocking out rooms for those we will have traveling to the wedding. With the ongoing demand for hotels in the area it is going to be quite costly. We will work it all out but I will have to set aside more than I had originally thought. Not a big issue, just an adjustment so we can enjoy the wedding – and visiting family.

I am working out of the Borger office this morning and Mama and I are planning on returning to Bowie tomorrow morning unless our personal business in Amarillo keeps us here through Thursday. I can always work out of the office here for an extra day if necessary and head back to the farm on Friday. We will plan on leaving earlier than we did last time we were here so we will not miss RU.

Lee Davis is going to come to the farm on Saturday and replace the faulty hot water heater so Victoria will finally have the basic amenities for the mobile home. With that we will be set for a decade or more with hot water service – I hope. When I told Lee about the mix up he got a really good laugh. It took me a little longer to see the humor when we got home that Friday night but I eventually got there.

I was not mad at Lee. I was really frustrated with myself for not catching the error in communication that seemed so obvious when I played back the many conversations we had about the needed repair. Perhaps it will make a good storyline someday.

Blake just asked him mommy why bananas are so “rocky”?

After some discussion she figured out he was talking about the curve of the fruit, like a rocking horse.

I am not sure how she finally answered – once she finished laughing.

The weekend

The weather turned cold and windy this weekend so I had decided before we left the farm Saturday morning to go to Trade Days that I would go with Mama and Victoria on their shopping trip to Wichita Falls. There was not much I could get done at the farm and the only pressing thing on the agenda required that I have help; and I had given my help the day off.

While at Trade Days we came across a vendor selling some very new looking ladies boots. She gave us a running commentary on the history of the boots after announcing that the price was $75 which somehow dropped to $60 per pair very quickly. They were the perfect size for Mama but a little too big for Victoria. Mama ended up getting two pairs. We had set money aside for such purchases so it was readily available for Mama to spend. It was a pretty cheap price to give for the bragging rights she had Sunday morning.

We got some honey also but not from our normal vendor since they did not have the kind that Mama and Victoria favor. We did get some honey along with several other small items from a stand set up by one of the families that live at BBTI. On our way out we bought a piece of pottery from a lady that is there every month. Every month we stop by her stand to admire her work and yet have never bought any of the pieces she displays.

This time we did even though we do not need the piece we bought. I told her we stopped back by to encourage her because we really do like the pottery she makes. We found out she is only a few miles from us in Montague. Mama is going to stop by her shop and visit with her one afternoon. She really does make some unique and beautifully colored items.

When we got to Wichita Falls Mama and Victoria were in full shopping mode but I am the one who benefited the most from the trip. Mama got a couple tops and Victoria got several outfits but I ended up getting a nice suit coat, three new silk ties (that I had no part is picking out) and a couple pairs of dress pants from the 60-75% off racks in several different stores.

While we were away Lee Davis was replacing the hot water heater for us and I was excited to get that done. It was when we got back that I realized there had been a serious error in communication. He replaced the new hot water heater we had just recently installed in the apartment rather than the one that needed replacing in the mobile home. So we are back to square one. We still have a new tank. It is sitting in the shop not doing Victoria any good. Oh, well. We will get it put in the right spot soon.

On the way home we rented a movie. It was pretty good. The only problem was that after watching it Mama and I sat down and both began reading totally forgetting the time was going to change that night. We both stayed up way too late and were suffering for it Sunday morning. We got up on time – even with the time change – but we were very tired through the morning.

The alarm clock that I have used for years is programmed to make the change automatically so we had at least one clock set to the correct time Sunday morning. I set everything else when I got up and only waked Mama when it became necessary. We both really enjoyed our nap Sunday afternoon.

Tomorrow we leave for Houston so I can attend a training class on Wednesday. It is a sort of mini-vacation for us and hopefully a good chance for Mama to shop in the big city. Victoria will hold down the fort for us until we get back Thursday evening. I am planning on taking Friday off but that remains to be seen.

It will be another busy week.

Vehicle news, grandchildren, shopping

It was nice to spend the evening at home last night. It is the first such evening since last Saturday. I did not get much of anything extra done, but rather took the time to relax for a few minutes. Mama and I watched an episode of NCIS and I read a few chapters in the third book of a series I am finishing up – slowly.

Mama went to look at a particular truck yesterday but we were not impressed enough to seriously consider buying it. Right now, trucks, especially used trucks, are commanding a very high price; almost ridiculously high. Although this truck offered almost all of what we needed, it lacked some amenities that we are looking for. After all, vinyl seats are not at all appealing.

Having done that, Mama took the Flex to the mechanic. She used the truck to putt around town and meet Victoria for lunch. While she was shopping in town the mechanic called and told her that there was nothing wrong with the car that new tires would not cure; no additional repairs are required at this time. That was very good news.

Next week when Mama and I go to Houston, we will probably take Victoria’s car so we can wait another week on buying the tires for the Flex. If we do trade it off I do not want to have spent almost $1000 for new tires only to lose that money in the trade. Mama and I are still debating the merits of a diesel vs. a gas engine and it is difficult to look far enough down the road to see if we would need the diesel engine enough to pay the difference in both initial purchase price and the long term fuel costs.

From the pictures and texts Maggie is sending out it seems she and Aaron are starting to really enjoy Catherin. Now that the first several months are under her belt, Maggie and baby are starting to get to know each other. To me, that is the most special time; when mama and baby understand each other’s needs and begin to communicate to each other with less urgency than is generally present in the first several weeks after birth. It is not unexpected. It is not uncommon. It is always delightful to witness.

Cori has shared several fun things with Mama lately. She took a short video of her trying to get the kids to speak pig Latin. That was hilarious. She also shared Mykenzie’s newest work – awkward. After chasing Blake around the house on morning trying to examine a pen mark he had on his face Cori called a time out for lunch. Mykenzie pointed out the mark to her mommy who did not seem nearly concerned enough. “It’s alright,” mommy explained. “It is just a little mark. Blake will be fine.” Upon which Mykenzie responded indignantly, “I just wanted to help. I mean, this is really awkward.”

Trade Day’s is tomorrow and both Mama and Victoria have money to spend. Both of them are excited about the event. I have money too but all I am looking for is a pitch fork of a certain design. After Trade Day’s they are planning a shopping trip somewhere – they offered so many options that I quit registering the conversation.

I am planning on staying at the farm.

Terminal, back-up plans, rain, clocking time

The answer came back from the mechanic concerning the little truck and it was not the news I had hoped for. The head gasket is leaking; letting water from the cooling system into the cylinders. That water quenches the spark from the spark plug (in whatever cylinder/s it is leaking into) causing the engine to misfire. It makes for a rough ride. Speaking of the truck, in his words, “She’s used up.”

With body and frame rust and the engine leaking oil there is no need to attempt repairs. My little truck will die a slow death on the farm as we use it as a four wheeler and to pull the hay rake or trailer as we put up hay this season. It was fun and helpful while it lasted but that puts a serious damper on my plans of using what we had, vehicle wise, to make it through this year.

Mama is going this morning to look at a big pickup to trade the Flex against so we can have a truck on the farm that is equipped to haul the trailers we have ready for use. We have tried this before but we are so upside down on the Flex that it usually makes the deal untenable but we are past “it would be nice if we could” and have jumped straight into “we really need to” do something.

The pastor asked the question last night, “Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurs to God?” He already knows because He is already at the end of time eternal looking back at today. He is still at the beginning of time eternal looking forward. He is present today seeing eternity in either direction. Every event that has happened or will happen is known to Him and He has provided the way through the trial if we will trust and follow His leading.  Since He really knows it would make sense to take His advice.

As we drove home from church last night we actually had to use the windshield wipers. It was a light rain and the ground did not even get thoroughly wet but it was moisture that made it all the way to the ground – and we were excited about it. That may not thrill many of you but for us it is a real blessing for us.

It may put a damper on the plans I had to work in the garden tonight, but we can find other thing to do to make use of the time this evening. It has been more than a week since I have been able to do more than the minimal required work on the farm; the evening feeding of our stock, filling water troughs or setting things up for Mama to do the same in the morning.

At least starting this weekend we will have more daylight in the evenings. We set our clocks forward this weekend. I would be fine with eliminating daylight savings time. I do not think it serves any real purpose or provides any real service to us as a nation, but it is one of those things that we have always done and no one wants to evaluate the value of the process.

One of the other guys that gets to the office about the same time I do was telling me that it took a week to get his young children on a workable schedule when we set the clocks back several months ago. They wanted to go to bed at their accustomed time and get up at their normal time not realizing that they were an hour early at both ends of that schedule. It was our fault – we are the ones that changed the way we set the time. So they fought to keep the boys up an hour past when they wanted to go to bed so they would not get up an hour earlier than their parents schedule was set for. We live by a clock that has not relevance to them.

Now they will have to do it all over again – in reverse.

Errands, time constraints

I took a half day of vacation yesterday since there were so many things to get done in Bowie and I had the car Mama needed to get them done. Not having the little truck as my transportation to and from work really puts a kink in the works for Mama’s errands – and we really needed to get these errands taken care of; paying our taxes, voting in the primary election, and getting the truck to a mechanic.

We headed for Montague first to get the taxes paid for the farm. It is really convenient in Montague County. We went into the new courthouse and immediately inside the door is the tax and title office. We were able to pay our county taxes and step to the next window and pay the registration fees on our trailers and the little truck.

About a half mile away is the tax office for the school taxes. That’s where we owed the bigger tax payment for property – land and buildings. I was getting ready to write out the check and the lady helping us told me an amount that was about half of what I was expecting to pay. When we asked her to double check she explained that the taxes owed for the mobile home had been paid by the company that holds the loan on the mobile home. Paying half of what I expected was a real blessing. Mama and I were so tickled that it really made her day. (That does not happen to her very often.)

Voting in the primary was different. There were six or seven pages to the ballot since some of the numerous races had seven or more candidates on the ballot. It took me several tries on the internet to find a cheat sheet for the primary elections – of candidates recommended by a conservative group. Without that help it would have been extremely difficult to know who to vote for in all the races.

Mama and I went to the post office to get some packages mailed out then back to the mechanic. We had left the truck at his shop earlier but continued on our errands since no one was in the shop at that time. When we swung back by he was back in the shop so we talked about all the vehicle needs we had to get taken care of – ending with the little truck.

We left our contact information but have not heard anything from him yet. I have mixed emotions about fixing the truck. I have asked the Lord to let me continue to use the truck through this year but it is all in His hands. Mama and I have set an amount we will be willing to pay for repairs, but beyond that we will let it die a slow death in service on the farm. It will be interesting to see how God works this out.

Tonight will be our final revival service for the week. Tomorrow our pastor and several men from the church are going to a local prison for evangelistic services. Pastor Horton and Lee Davis really love that ministry and God really blesses that time for them.

Tomorrow night will be the only weeknight I have been able to get anything done on the farm for two weeks now – and there is a lot to get done. Friday night is RU at church and Saturday is Trade Days so there will be limited time to get anything done on the farm. We are also expecting rain – only a little – but the positive impact it brings to the land produces a negative impact on the work I need to be doing.

Next week Mama and I go to Houston so I can attend training there. It will be another short week on the farm.

I love this life.

Church services, travel issues

The last few days have been rushed because of the revival services we are having through tomorrow night but we have managed to get everything necessary done and still made it to church early. All the services have been good and last night was no exception. Meetings of this type are always tiring but they are rewarding.

I was delayed a couple hours getting to work yesterday because of the icy roads but I left the office at the same time as usual since it was going to be a short evening at home before leaving for church. By the time the afternoon rolled around the roads were clear even though the ambient temperature never got above freezing. It is at times like these that I wish we were closer to the church but that seems a brief and fleeting thought. Perhaps God will see to that in the future but for the moment we have no unction to sell the farm in order to get closer.

I remember many such times while we lived on the farm in West Virginia. It was a shorter distance to Ripley than it currently is for us to travel to Decatur but the time it took was almost the same. We did that for almost ten years – and loved almost every day of it. Like the sunset picture enclosed, there are moments that are worth all the little issues we face form time to time.

I have always lived a pretty good drive away from work and generally lived a good distance from church and we have always made the best of it. The current distance gives Mama a chance to put on her makeup as we make the drive to church. She likes the natural light.

I had planned on taking the little truck this morning but as I drove it down Hwy 59 towards Bowie I could tell that something was not quite right. I turned around and went back to the farm to get the car. Mama will be disappointed when she sees that the car is gone but I did not have much of a choice. She had a good deal of running planned for today and I have taken the best mode of transportation for her to get those things done. Oh well, we will work something out.

I really need to start praying about another work vehicle. Grandpa has advised that I not do anything costly to the little truck and he is right in thinking so. It is a ’94 model Ranger after all, but I will miss it.

Now the quest begins to find an acceptable substitute that has the same monthly payment - $0.00.

Mama’s and my week in the panhandle went very well for both of us. She got to go shopping and did a lot of visiting with friends in Amarillo. I got to go to work and have a little over twenty separate meetings. Some of those meetings were very difficult because they were something close to a reprimand to the individual in question. Not the type of meeting that is warm and fuzzy.

Mama and I met with our CPA on Tuesday evening and got all our tax information to him. He called with a couple questions but other than that he got right to work on our file. He had it ready by Friday morning and Mama and I were able to sign off on the paperwork. For the first time in several years we actually got a refund! I was very pleased about that turn of events.

We went to church at Central Baptist Wednesday night and had a great time there with the friends we still have in that congregation. It put us back to the hotel at a little after 11 pm but it was worth the time to get Mama there. The last time I went to a Wednesday night service everyone wanted to know about Mama. This time they all got to catch up on life events – it took a while but it was a good time for Mama.

On the way out of town Friday morning we stopped in Borger so I could look at a rifle a friend of mine had. It was the caliber I had been looking for and was in the perfect price range for me. I told Mama I did not need a Weatherby or something fancy for no more than I get to hunt. The rifle turned out to be a Vanguard – manufactured by Weatherby. God is very good.

We took a friend of ours on the trip with us. Kim Cantrell has children and grandchildren in Pampa so she hitched a ride with us. It was a pleasant trip. I am sure we will repeat the process in the future. The Cantrell’s were missionaries in Ecuador until Kenny’s health forced them to come home. They now run a ministry to police, firefighters and first responders as well as military personnel. It is called Boots and Badges. They are great people. Kim has become a true friend for Mama.

We are having revival services at our church this week. Yesterday God really moved in the morning service. Mama, Victoria and I went home excited to come back that evening, but we did not make it. The weather turned very bad Sunday morning and it took us almost an hour to get home. We did not try to get out after we slipped and slid out way to the farm. We will make it the rest of the week but we really hated missing last night.

This morning I had to wait until daylight to drive to the office. The roads were not too bad, but I am glad I drove here in the daylight. On the way I was listening to a report of a thirty mile backup of cars on I-45 heading north from Houston into Dallas . Many of the people in that idled traffic had been there for over twelve hours.

I cannot imagine what that would be like.