I often map my day, as I did yesterday.

Post office, Roscoe, shop, Memama and Pepa's, St. Lawrence, Roscoe, Abilene.

Simple enough. The first part of my day was gathering mail (hopefully permits from TXDOT), license receipts (from the little S-10 at the shop), drop off Pepa's settlement, drive to Garden City and register pickup, drive to St. Lawrence, present a bill, talk with GM, talk with drivers and loader operator, pickup check, hook to last remaining travel trailer, bank, return trailer to Roscoe, return to Abilene.

From my first stop, my day was off. No permits. In fact, no mail at all. We have been running with downloaded permits from the TXDOT website, which for most troopers would be all right, but there is one DOT officer up the way that marches to his own drummer. I have always been tempted to hire an attorney to contest some of his interpretations of the law. (Like cottonseed is not an agriculture product).

On the drive to Roscoe, I began making arrangements to pickup some tarp straps with D-rings. They didn't have any made up, so I decided to detour through the branch bank and cash a money order I had received. After sitting for ten minutes, I called the teller and asked if there was a problem. "We have to verify the money order", she said. I told her, "I don't understand, because there is enough money in my account to cash that money order many times over!" Finally, I told them just send me the check back and I would stop at the main bank and cash it, and file a complaint while I was there. Instantaneously, the cash appeared!

I stopped in, picked up my tarp straps, and headed West for the shop. I walked inside, looked for the license receipt, decided it would be quicker to just write down the license plate number, started the little pickup, just for good measure, and began to exit the shop. It was then I noticed the service trailer license expires in five days. Write down that number, get in my pickup and drive to Memama and Pepa's.

Delivered settlement and visited briefly. Mainly about the weather and possible icing conditions that might make it dangerous to bring the final travel trailer home. I said my goodbyes and headed West.

I arrived at the tax assessor collector's office just prior to noon, so my business was quick and easy. $105. I didn't say painless did I. When I arrived at the jobsite, I made a quick survey before parking at the office. I knew nearly everyone would be at lunch, so I was in no hurry. When I walked into the scale area, one of the ladies who work there was weighing in two milo trucks. We exchanged greetings and the drivers and I began visiting. The two ladies in the office warmed their lunches and sat down at the conference table in the office. After twenty or thirty minutes visiting with the drivers, I took a seat at the table with the ladies. We had a good visit.

Just after one in the afternoon, I produced my bill, which was accompanied by a check for the weekly fuel. About then my seed trucks began crossing the scales. I drove to their loading area and began distributing the parts and supplies they had asked for, and we talked of the driving conditions toward Lubbock. They told me the loader operator wanted them to return to St. Lawrence for a third load (which would have been around seven or eight in the evening). I told them while the loader operator usually had a good read on the pulse of that operation, he was not the man in charge, so I made my way to the GM's office. We visited briefly, and he told me he had stopped the milo trucks from running to Lubbock because of questionable driving conditions. He continued on that he knew we were more accustomed to driving in those conditions during the season, but there was nothing pressing about delivering the seed from flat storage. In other words, it isn't worth risking, life, limb or equipment. I appreciated his view and returned to my drivers to develop a plan.

Finally I returned to the office, picked up the check, and went to hook the travel trailer to my truck. It was then I discovered that GOD didn't intend for me to take that trailer to Roscoe. The hitch and leveling bars were sitting in Roscoe with one of the other trailers.

My bad.

Oh well, I will be out there next Monday, so I will do it then. As luck would have it, the roads and driving conditions were dry and clear until I got to Westbrook and fog and drizzle became increasingly heavier as I traveled East. Leaving the travel trailer was probably a good move.

My final accomplishments for the day were to make a deposit at the bank and finalize plans for Rian and I to meet at St. Lawrence next Monday and pick up our pig that we are going to have processed. It is then I will pick up the reluctant travel trailer for the trek to Roscoe. (I have already loaded the hitch and leveling bars in my truck).

It has been a few years since I had an animal processed. Use to you would take them and leave them on "kill" days and they would slaughter and hang the carcass. Rian made some calls and we learned we have to make an appointment to bring the animal(s) in. After about an hour of coordinating schedules, we all agreed on late Monday morning next.

By the time I pulled into our driveway, my pickup was beginning to accumulate ice.

Krl and I had decided to call a chimney sweep because she and I have both been wanting a fire, but after a wind came and blew our chimney cap off we had birds visit our chimney. I was hoping yesterday wasn't a busy day for chimney sweeps but they couldn't make it here until tomorrow, weather allowing. Oh well. I bet it has been years since we have burned a fire in our fire place. Of course we haven't been around too much during winter!

I am distressed by the news reporting. More and more layoffs. Sprint, Caterpillar, GM, Corning. Big big layoffs. (I was told yesterday to expect more at Caterpillar because as of yesterday you cannot put a Cat engine in a big truck. Cat can't meet emission requirements). Then locally the newspaper reports a 28% layoff of the work force that coats the towers for the big wind generators. They say people or companies that fund the wind farms have been adversely affected by the recession and funds are limited.

Here goes that ripple affect.

I read an article early this morning that says nine out of ten of the executives with banks receiving bail out monies will retain their job. I think they are whittling on the wrong end of the stick!

I can remember in 2001, Fred brought in some work out specialists to the family business. Their forte was to develop a plan to turn a company around. Of course this was a year after our ill-fated association with the unscrupulous, unethical international company that put the family business on the ropes. (Sorry, I may not ever get over this). The workout specialists came to Fred and I and told us we needed to get rid of several people and they gave us a dollar amount they targeted for annual savings. I developed a survey sheet and asked everyone to fill it out and to evaluate their own job, their performance and how vital their job was to our company. Then I would do my own evaluation of my people, Fred did his, and we would compare the employee's to our own. It was a very interesting process. In fact, the work out company asked me for copies of the job surveys to use in their other jobs. Long story short, Fred and I didn't want to lay off anyone. Many of the employees got together and talked and we ended up doing an across the board cut in pay. From the janitor to the top, everyone took the cut. I think that was one of the most amazing things about working there, although we worked at the family business, everyone that worked there was like family.

The more I read, the more I listen, I think many companies are taking steps to maximize their positions. By this I mean I feel some are cutting workforce to create shortages to prop up price and increase earnings but they are not the villains, they point to the recession. Or that is the way they want it to be perceived.

Why is it I can't feel sorry for a company that's profits drop 40%, yet they post profits in the billions of dollars. I read reports about missing projected earnings and I wonder if we have begun to over analyze. You know at one point in time red ink was bad and black was good. It was simple. Maybe too much information is bad.

I think the people on the bottom of the pecking order probably have a better understanding of simple economics than many of the executives. Many executives talk and deal in mega-economics and they don't think twice about spending someone else's money.

Accountability!

When is enough, enough?

The rich get richer.

You heard it here first.

Weather is here this morning. 25 degrees and precipitating. No snow, just freezing rain and drizzle. I will probably stay close to the house today.

Have a safe day! Stay warm!

FATHER, thank YOU for the moisture! We pray for more. We pray for safety for those traveling. We pray for those of us being impacted by the recession. Bless us, Oh LORD!