I am really having a difficult time. There is no way we can get through quick enough.

And, and it is a big and, the plant is really having problems. Yesterday instead of the customary 1000 bales in twenty-four hours we did 600. But the computer says 12 days 18 hours and 22 minutes.

We had a fire yesterday, not much cotton had fire so that meant it had to be somewhere else. It was, so it took an extended period to make sure it was out. Then just as the plant was coming back on line they had an odd occurrence which resulted in sparks igniting cotton in the press pit! They finally came back on line and were running "hell bent" until after the shift change when they broke a piece on the gin glow that ties the bales out. Frank spent four hours fabricating and welding. Today they are back up and going strong.

I was sitting at the scale counter visiting with the outgoing GM, the incoming GM, and Frank. We seem to have started a morning ritual. In the course of the conversation Frank told the two GM's that if we had a spare gin glow the repair would have taken thirty minutes. The outgoing GM said the problem was finding one because they are no longer manufactured. Frank pulled his phone out and read a number off and told the GM these people had one. In fact, they had tried to sell it to Frank earlier in the year but wouldn't put a price on it. The outgoing GM went in to his office and made a phone call. Minutes later the GM's, the old and the new were on their way to pick up the new acquisition. They ended up giving two thousand dollars for it and Frank told me the Continental Eagle man told him it cost seventy-thousand dollars new! What a deal!

Yesterday when the plant had a problem, it seems that Herberto my forklift man began calling and telling drivers. When I learned of this I almost went ballistic. I had motes and cotton seed that I needed to move. I finally told Herberto if he ever calls a driver and tells him the plant is down, he will be terminated!

I have one driver I talked with at twelve-fifty-seven and he told me he was on his way. Five hours later he showed up. It is only two hours from his turn a round point. He has made my _hit list. This is the same driver who bails at mention of a maintenance Sunday, soooo..... he won't be told any more. He is getting where he does what he wants to do when he wants to do it. What he doesn't know is I have a new driver waiting in the wings.

It does appear he has an accomplice in his evil deeds. Pepa always makes excuses for him.

If I can put the rest of a deal together they can probably make their own plans.

The truck I finally sent with motes left before ten in the morning. At noon I talked with him and he told me he was getting some lunch in Lamesa. At three-thirty he called me wanting to know how late he could deliver. I told him four-thirty and asked where he was. He told me Stanton. I couldn't believe it, I told him he talked with me and said he was in Lamesa at noon what did he do, drive back to Stanton? He told me yes, that he threw the belts off his fan and he went back to Stanton to get new ones. As if they don't have parts stores in Lamesa.

I think he forgot what he told me about eating lunch in Lamesa and got caught in a lie.

I talked with Jason Sunday and he told me that Jake and Joni closed Cottonwood on Friday. I have no problem with that. I have said all along that it needed to be their dream and not them wanting to live out Fred's dream.

Hopefully we will finish out our season and then we will begin putting together a long range plan.
Initially they were going to supply the majority of the trucks out here but it never happened and eventually none of their company trucks were running for us. About the biggest thing they did for us was let us draw from their list of potential drivers.

Rian continues to be hospitalized. They have finally found a pain killer regiment that works pretty well. They said he did sleep last night. They were supposed to have the cultures back and were going to begin the appropriate antibiotic! It sounded like he and his floor nurses kept going round and round yesterday until he told them he would go down to the ER to get relief. That seemed to get their attention and late yesterday the floor charge nurse was in his room apologizing and visiting.

Think and pray for us. We are so ready to be through.

Have a day!

FATHER, we are struggling. Give us resolve to get to the end.