I despise projects that come together slowly.

Begin day 3 of the Blacksheep stereo saga.

I have lost count of how many stores and shops I have been in. This is torture for a non-shopper. I have modified my search and still I have not found that particular item that trips my fancy. I have gone into stores that you wouldn't think about, I have been into specialty stores that you would think had shelves filled with a wide assortment of inventory. So far, nothing, nada. The big zero!

I went into a specialty shop yesterday I had been avoiding. They are good, but past experience proved they were very expensive. They must have thought an innocent sheep had wandered in the door. They didn't volunteer any expertise, they didn't look through inventory. They didn't make a sale, and won't.

Fabricate. That was their solution. Shoot, if they can do it this guy can do it. I'm coming together with a plan.

Heh, when I get through with it, drivers may line up to pay to drive this rolling stereo.

(Sorry about that, visualization is one of my motivational tools!)

Another lovely West Texas Spring day. Hard to believe that today's forecast calls for it to be twenty-nine degrees cooler than yesterday. In driving around town, I have been on several of the outlying roads taking shortcuts and avoiding traffic. Some of the areas are still agriculture oriented, and the excellent moisture combined with the three warm days has made the wheat crop "jump". It is becoming a gorgeous carpet of green.

Yesterday was National signing day. All the verbal promises are now out the window, the ink should be dried on the dotted line, the fax machine should have the transmittal confirmation printed and waiting. I stress should.

I hope you had opportunity to read the Troy Shockley column in today's Reporter News. I believe it is titled "A recruiting fumble by Todd Dodge". It is about Abilene Cooper senior center Taylor Insall who had committed to North Texas State University last summer. It was a verbal commitment to then Coach Dickey. By doing so Insall turned down a scholarship offer from UTEP. What has happened is that NTSU fired Coach Dickey and hired the successful Todd Dodge from Southlake Carroll. The Cooper Head Coach, Mike Spradlin began trying to make contact to confirm his player's commitment but couldn't get through. Last month he finally made contact with Coach Dodge and learned that NTSU was not going to honor the previous coach's offer and the current staff was not interested in talking with prospective student athlete Insall. It is customary for new coaches to honor their schools commitments, and that is what should have happened here. What Dodge has done is not right. He may have been successful in Texas High School football but he needs to remember that schooling is required and school districts are defined and mapped so many student athletes didn't have a choice but to enter his high school program if they wanted to participate. Now that he has moved to the collegiate ranks, every player has a choice. If this is the way Dodge conducts business I hope his career is short and bitter. As for Taylor Insall, he is all dressed up with no where to go.

Let's organize an effort for multiple highly coveted athletes to verbally commit to NTSU and then bail on next year's national signing day. What's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Yesterday when I was leaving Auto Zone my cell phone toned and I answered it. Pepa. He wanted to know where I was and what I was doing. I was on the way to the yard where Blacksheep is parked and he said he would see me there. He had just picked up one of his trucks from the alignment shop just down the road. I don't guess he needed anything. It was just small talk.

I have been trying to cipher the exchange. Talk about confusing. I found myself wondering which "Pepa" I was going to meet. Luckily, this was the "old" Pepa. No ranting or raving, and absolutely no reference to last Thursday.

The worst part of my going in and out of stores is it seems I always buy something. Nothing major, nothing expensive. Usually it is something we need. Yesterday it was generic Zantac, $3 cookie sheets (2) (during our time at the jobsite our old ones rusted), and a replacement wok. I should begin a consulting service. I have been in all the national chains, Wal-Mart, Target, K-Mart, Auto Zone, Pep Boys. It is no wonder that K-Mart is struggling. It seems their target clientele is extremely limited. It sure makes me wonder what would be different had Martha Stewart bought it a few years ago. One interesting thing I saw was that K-Mart is handling some Kenmore products.

And with that, let's mark another one down in the books. Have a day!

FATHER, I continue to struggle.