Finally got some more information about the co-worker that was killed.  He was driving up a hill on the highway, came to the top to be greeted by a crash that had occurred right there on the other side of the hill.
Road conditions were bad with ice and snow.  A witness said he was swerving back and forth (lost control) attempting to avoid the crash, the pickup he was driving rolled several times and finally crashed into the semi truck that was already in the other crash that had already occurred.

The coroner apparently stated that he had 2 very deep gashes in his head - ie: brain injuries and a large number of broken bones.  I did not hear whether he had survived and taken to a hospital or had been killed on impact, but from the sound of the injuries I would veer towards either instant death or fast death shortly after the crash occurred.

As word spreads around that someone was killed in our company, so are the reactions.  Today, walking into a vendor to get some materials, the desk-dude was shocked to see me standing there.  "I thought you were dead".  A not-so-comforting thought.  No, not me.  The dude that smokes, that's the one that is dead.  He's the only one that smokes that goes around picking things up, so easiest way to identify who it was that passed on to the next life.

3 days left to go one the meatless fast.  Although I am definitely ready for a thick, juicy steak, the fast has been good and productive.  Got some interesting words from the Lord at the prayer meeting a few nights ago and am going to go again to the final prayer meeting concerning this fast tomorrow night (Lord willing, of course).  I think I might have a beer with that steak!

I was contemplating going up north tomorrow but with Duke's situation, I think I am going to give it a pass until next weekend.  And anyway, the prayer meeting tomorrow night and the end of the fast on Sunday, this weekend really wouldn't be a good one to take off up there anyway.  I tend to try and go up on a Friday afternoon so I can have 2 full nights up there and come back Sunday morning.  But in this case, I haven't been up there in a while, so if I go next weekend instead of this, I can just sleep in on Sunday and come back by early afternoon and skip church for one weekend.  Not the end of the world to miss one Sunday at church.

I was speaking with my mom today and she is all kinds of concerned about the door to her shed up there.  Apparently my older brother was up there a bit ago and told her the door won't shut properly and can't be locked.  She wants me to fix it while I'm up there.  Well, maybe.  They have the high temp for 2 Saturdays from now forecast at 56 degrees with the low at 24.  My first thought in cold weather like that is not to be fixing things in freezing cold weather.  We'll see.  My first thought is to take some cocoa up and already have coffee and tea up there and spend some quality time in the Word up in the mountains.  Of course I have Direct TV up there and internet access as well, so, not like cut off from the world (though in reality, I don't wonder if it wouldn't be a good idea to go ahead and take a break from internet/facebook/all of this stuff and just meditate on the Word and on the Lord).

Caleb wants to take my car up to Heber - which is further on up the road from my mother's property, about another 50 miles I think - and go to the Salvation Army camp again with a friend in February.  I am undecided about that one.  He is a good enough driver - he hasn't been in any accidents since he started driving and no tickets - but driving on open highway and up on the Rim where there my be the potential for ice on the road is a completely different story.  Not to mention that car is my ride to and from work every day.  I will probably let him take it, but I told him I would be praying about it first before making any decision.  Any "check" in my spirit about it and I will be inclined to say no.  He started talking about taking that old Buick up there and I simply said no.  I don't trust that car to do anything more than get him around town.  If it breaks down in town, not terribly difficult to get it towed home or to a garage.  Out  on the open highway, totally different story.  Rent a truck and a car trailer to get it back.  I actually have no idea whether that thing would be good for a drive up there or not, I just simply don't think it's a good idea.  I still have this thing about my co-worker being killed on an icy road on Tuesday running through my head, probably that is weighing on me more right now than anything.

I hit Walmart on the way home from work today to get some dog food.  I figured to get some 12 gauge target rounds - I figured wrong.  Not a single box of ANY kind of 12 gauge ammo in the entire case.  ONE box of .40 caliber in there - expensive stuff at $45 per box, no thanks.  I had been in that store about a month ago looking and it was low on ammo then, but this was even worse.  I read today that some group wants to sue the government for allowing lead in bullets - their reasoning they did away with lead in everything else.  Ummm, how much of the supply of ammo out there doesn't have some amount of lead in it? Yeah.

I'm not going to go into politics here, at least not today.  Too much going on, much of it bluster and hot air, the same old stuff not even packaged differently.  Dems blaming GOP, GOP blaming Dems.  Same-o, same-o.  The only thing I have seen of interest is the rise in the stock market - which has been great for my 401k!  Umm, but let's not get too excited, my 401k does not have that much money in it.

Enough.  Tomorrow is Friday, the entire day at work from the time I clock in until the time I clock out will be overtime.  I was informed today that management "bitches" about it regardless of whether it is justified or not.   Our 2-man crew has delivered/sold over 500k in sales this month at about 15% gross profit. I guess profit could stand to be a bit higher, but no other store in our region has higher GP so no biggies.  Meaning, to me, that the OT is justified.  All other branches have a lot more people working at it and most of them do not do anything close to the amount of sales we are dealing with each month.  They are, in effect, saving money in not having to pay another full time person and  the subsequent benefits they would incur with another person.   I think the not having to pay substantial amounts of benefits to another person is quite the savings in itself - but - we had asked for another person to be hired either for our shop only or to be split up time-wise between our branch and the main branch.  Nope, not happening.  So, I have no sympathy.  I need the money anyway, definitely not complaining about my paychecks : )

G'nite.

ben