My Blog

So here I go with a "Blog" - wonder where that word came from??? Sometimes I wonder about such stupid things. . . "Blog" is a fairly ugly word, don't you think? Blog, reminds me of a "Bog" - somewhere in a swamp, dark and damp. . .

I have not a clue where this will go - if anywhere. This is not something "I feel" I have time to do. But I do like the idea of sharing stories - Becky's are the best. So inspiring.

Tom and I are currently sitting in about the middle of the San Luis Valley - we are helping his cousin with harvest. It's really his cousins son, Tom's cousin is actually a potato broker, selling potatoes to all parts of the nation. Mostly Associated Grocers in Texas. He will load many many semi's daily with potatoes from all over the valley, for shipment south. The largest potato salad maker in the US receives all their potatoes from here, and through this broker - the brand name slips my memory. I have enjoyed my time here, learning about this "new" way of farming. Sure isn't what it was 50 years ago!

A funny thing happened the other day, I was telling Tom's cousin how I would love to be able to tell my dad how things have change in farming, (my dad's passion was farming - he dearly loved working the earth) and this thought came to me very strong - "the bigger the equipment, the bigger the problems"! Funny because dad really did feel that way, and as much as (I think) this new way of farming is incredible, he would probably say something such as that. I wonder if he is here with me, and was that his thought??!

Tom's family over here are such wonderful people. He has two first cousins here. As young people, we never spent much time with them, after Tom lost his dad in 1966, there seemed to be a separation of the families which is probably normal since his dad was the brother of his cousins dad. So it's only been the past few years that we have really got to know them. Now if I could just have a prayer answered that they would show some interest in the gospel. . .! His other first cousin lives in Gurnsey, Wyoming. For those familiar with the Pioneer Trail will know of Gurnsey. (They also have a neat golf course for those who golf!)

Today is another learning day for me - I am going to run the scales. (Where semi's weigh in and then weigh out after being loaded with all those taters.)
The other day I ran the piler - I was in this portion of a huge building (storehouse), and ran the end of a very long conveyor (with a boom on the end which I controlled with a remote control) that brought potatoes into this storehouse. Rather than storing potatoes in sacks, they store them in these huge buildings, with tubes running across the bottom that blows air through them to keep them at optimal condition until they are sold. This one part of this building holds 60,000 sacks - even though they no longer use "sacks", it's still used as a measurement with each sack weighing 100 pounds. So I ran this piler, piling potatoes up to a height of probably 30-40 feet. Dirty, dusty and felt it in my lungs at the end of the day. Found out why they all have bandannas around their necks! So anyway, the potatoes that are not directly loaded into semi's are stored in buildings like these.

So this is a "Blog" - my thoughts for the day. . . Have to go weigh all those trucks!