Hello campers!

I am reporting LIVE from the badlands of West Central Texas, gateway to the end of the earth!

Help!

I need someone to keep track of me with my telephone GPS, just so someone will know where we are!

It has not been a pretty week. The plant seemed to stutter and stammer for the first couple of days, then she came alive. They have been nibbling along between 1100 and 1200 bales per day. Currently we are at 112,237. We have continued to lose cotton modules. To date we have lost about 313 modules that were moved to some other facility. That would bring us in at just under 180,000 bales.

I want to hit the 180's. If we are going to have to be here, I want it to be worth while. Even losing that many modules we have just trimmed three days from the season.

I went to a farm sale Thursday near Lomax. I made a couple of purchases of equipment for parts for K.O.'s and my sled project. This isn't the complete package because this is a different brand from what we were shoping for, but, there is a farm sale in a couple of weeks that has two of the exact models we desire.

It was kind of crazy. There were two farm sales, one in Seminole the other in Lomax. One circle of patrons attended the one while another circle attended the other. One was high dollar, the other low budget.

Friday an employee that had been gone returned to work. Five days late. I had given him an ultimatum, either be here or I would assume he no longer desired the job. While he was physically present he had lost any knowledge or technical skill he had acquired prior to his leaving.

Friday was an extremely difficult day, trucks were behind, equipment problems, inclimate weather. Late in the day I was working to rewire an fuel transfer pump and it did not matter what direction I faced, the wind was always blowing in my face. Through the course of the day I ran the bucket loader loading seed, the forklift loading bales, and I even ended up driving a truck a little. All these were in addition to my regular duties!

Friday night I added another employee to Delfino and Julio's shift. They had been short one man since before Christmas, but they had handled it well, probably better then the fully staffed shift. The new man is named Fernando. Thank goodness it isn't another Jose. Jose's have not worked out very well this year.

Saturday was not much better. I have a policy that if you are experiencing a problem, don't bring it all the way back to the compound expecting it to be fixed. Stop in one of the towns enroute where you can either find a shop or at least purchase parts. I had one driver bring a trailer in yesterday after slinging the cap (or tread). While it still had air, it had absolutely no tread. It had also beaten all four of the lights out on that corner of the trailer. They were totally gone. I had lights and I had pigtails but I had no rubber mounting boots. I ended up robbing them from our small supply trailer. Thankfully we got them fixed just as the tire service man arrived. I had a take off tire I had picked up at Stanton and the tire man put it on. Just the mileage for the tire service ran $110.70. I ought to charge the mileage back to that driver.

Saturday morning, the employee who had returned to work Friday was absent. About five thirty in the morning I had heard a vehicle drive through the trailer park and I had looked out in time to see who and what was going on. One of the compounds employees was dropping off my man. They had been to Midland, all night. I prepared a letter of reprimand and placed one copy in this employees file and carried the other one to give to him. He never showed. Late in the day he called me telling me he was sick. Either he had a bug or he had eaten something that made him ill. I told him it probably had something to do with staying out all night.

I had heard rumors that this employee was telling people I was all over him all day Friday. Truth is, I told him he was loading some really ugly bale loads. There was nothing striaght about them and that he was going to have to get his head out and do better. End of story. When I asked him about this he denied he had said it. He did continue on, saying that he was no longer comfortable working out here because one of the guys he had gone to town with had made a pass at him.

I told the accused man what my man had said and he went to confront him. My man denied he had told me this. Turns out my former employee was telling one lie after another. I had told him if he quit to be out of his company travel trailer before dark. Late in the day he slithered out of the compound. Now he is the butt of all sorts of jokes. It is a good thing he left because it would be impossible for him work out here after all of his lies!

I am optimistic for this week. I am hopeful that my truckers have caught their second wind. I also have a new driver who is chomping at the bit but has yet to be qualified. Maybe Tuesday or Wednesday he will be ready.

We will be finishing the Richmond contract sometime this week and that will give me access to seven more trucks that have been dedicated to the long haul.

Krl fixed a bowl of guacamole yesterday and cut meat, onions and peppers for fajitas. Although it did require a trip to Stanton for tortillas, it was well worth the trip. In fact, I had left overs for breakfast!

Have a day!

FATHER, I ask for YOUR perfect peace.