A fun day.

Church was good and the message really got me to thinking about my relationship with the Lord and also the end times.  He didn't specifically say or intone that we are in the last times, I have had my own thoughts about that tho.  Really, what it boils down to is, whether Christ returns in our lifetimes or not, are we prepared to meet our Maker?  Because it's going to happen regardless.  I pretty much got lost in thought and had to resurface to take in more of the message.  

After that, to Applebee's.  It took about 30 minutes to get our food. For that place and considering the place was nearly full (which is miraculous in itself), I was pretty happy about it. Our waitress was attentive and returned often enough to check on us but not too often, if you understand that.  It is actually just as irritating to have a server coming back too often as it is one that doesn't come back often enough.  This was the bartender serving us tho, even tho we were nowhere near the bar.  Either they were short handed or the GM was just making sure we were getting half decent service - yes she was there.

At the end, I did tell the waitress that I wanted the comp meal. She gave a weird look on her face, comp meal? Yes, this meal is free, just ask the GM, she knows about it.  Maybe 5 minutes later she came back with a receipt, it was $70 which is actually more than we usually spend there.  I tipped the bartender more than 20%, I'm not going to stiff her simply because this was supposed to be a free meal.  I really don't stiff servers at all unless it's really, really, reeeeaaaalllllyyyyy bad service.  And if it's that bad, the management is going to be called over, which I rarely ever do either, excepting in this case where I spent an hour and forty five minutes waiting for my food - which never arrived.  

I think most people would agree waiting almost 2 hours for food, being told 3 times during that wait that it's "done" and still not arriving, that you would probably walk out of the place and you would have a beef with whoever is responsible for it.  Or not, we are all different and we don't all have the same gearing in our reactions to things. 

After that, we went to the "Touch A Truck" festival. It's where businesses and government entities bring their trucks and rigs.  Fire trucks, ambulances, school busses, all kinds of police vehicles, hearses, other kinds of rigs and all kinds of tent booths set up giving kids free fidget toys and candy.  We stayed there for 3 plus hours going to every single booth and truck. My legs gave out on me and the boys were finally getting tired at the end as well. We had found a large area in the grass where they had wands that you dip into 5 gallon buckets filled with water and liquid dish soap to make floating bubbles.  They did that for quite a while along with dozens of other kids before they finally got tired of it and agreed, yes, it's time to go home.

Didn't matter, they were all tearing everything down and leaving anyway. 

Home.  Watched a few movies, kept getting asked to watch kids playing video games, so attention divided between the 2 and now? 9 pm, going to bed in an hour or so.  I don't have to get up particularly early since I have the late load and the plant is none too keen on people arriving there too early, they'll just make you wait.  I figure to show up there after noon, maybe around 12:30 or even a little later.  So, yes, I don't need to get up early for that. It's an hour and a half to the washout, usually around 30-40 minutes to get that done, 35 minutes to the plant from there.  

Oh, and yes, that dude did indeed show up to the park today, trailer in tow and parked at lot - 4 I think. Doesn't really matter, just didn't want him at lot 1.  I never went over there today, no need to and was too busy taking it easy. This week, I have no idea beyond Monday and Tuesday, unless they have updated the tablet, one moment please.....play some Jeopardy music.....oh my, I left the thing in the car. I guess I'll have to go out and get it, I always check it the night before and the morning of any run.  They change it too often and don't give a head's up.  I do want to work tomorrow, well, I don't want to work, I need to work, let's clarify that. 

I definitely didn't want the late load. Oh well.  

Reservations keep coming in for 1, 2, 4 day stays.  This is great. Almost tempted to leave 2 spots open for short term stuff.  We'll see.  If the demand picks up, I will leave 2 spaces empty, excepting now. If another person wants to come for long term, I'm giving the other available spot out, for I know more people are leaving soon and I will need the people in there.  

Which reminds me, I guess I need to get that tractor back over there and do the driveway yet again.  Hands are tied on that one, can't leave it like that. So, $800 about to get removed from the account for earth moving equipment rental. The tractor and the mini ex.  I'm just going to wait until they do, for unknown reasons, not give me anything for trucking for 2 or more days and get that stuff done.  I might be able to get that new guy to help me with the underground wire installation.  

Enough. Going to bed soon.  

 Sunday mid-morning, just a bit before we have to leave for church.

Well, we don't have to.

Did I say that these lunatics that talk about people shooting them with lasers all the time were at it again yesterday?

I didn't?  I get a phone call from an overnighter. He's been there before.  He says this man named Bill came over and demanded to know why he shot his wife with a laser?  The guy, of course, is dumbfounded and has no clue what he is talking about. "Well, you're the only ones that just came in here, it must have been you".   "I'm going to call the owner and he's going to have a talk with you". "I'll talk to the owner myself".

So, he calls me.  He was laughing, which was a good sign at least.  He has a sense of humor even tho these people completely serious.  He said he was leaving until late tonight and hoped they wouldn't be back. I replied if they do, call me and I'll deal with it.  

Those farmers? Are lunatics.  I'm sorry, but the government isn't just going around hiring people to shoot you with lasers.  They think everyone is poor and broke and the money is too easy to say no to, so these absolute strangers - and we're talking a lot of people at this point - are shooting them with lasers because the government wants them to.  

Yea. I don't believe the government has our best interests at hand, either.  Most of the people running our governments are selfish, greedy and power hungry. They become corrupted quickly if they aren't already.  Some go in with good intentions, but, "the love of money is the root of all evil". At the same time, I doubt the government has some covert operation against a couple of retired farmers, if it did, they would be dead by now.  It's gotten to the point I am going to have to address them and I am quite sure they will leave, if not at the time I say something, certainly when their rent is due again.  I don't know what happened to these people to believe that everyone, literally everyone, is out to get them...

I'm already facing several people leaving soon and 2 lots available already.  But, I won't trade mine and other's sanity for money.  People will come sooner or later, one is allegedly moving in today.  I did put up a Facebook ad.  It's received quite a few hits, hopefully I can get this dude and maybe at least one more person right off the bat and then run another one once a couple more lots are cleared out.  

Yesterday was quick and easy, in a relative sense to many other times going up to Gurdon and offloading.  The product was coming out quickly, at least for that trailer and I was out of there in an hour and a half.  On other trailers, I would have been out of there in an hour or less.  But, whatever, I got home early, before 1 pm, so no worries there.

Tomorrow is a late load day, unfortunately.  They know I like the early load but they give me a late load once a week or so now.  It doesn't matter, I need to go to the yard in Eldo, drop the trailer, switch trucks and then go up to Gurdon and offload.  It might be there a few days them trying to get things straightened out on that truck.  I want the AC fixed once and for all.  But, the air bag is leaking so heavily that one of the tenants was walking by it and sent me a photo of the tire next to it, telling me it is leaking heavily.  

I thanked him for his concern.  I was more interested in if his new neighbors were causing any problems? No, I've met them, he replied, they seem like nice people.  Ok, well they have little yip dogs and I asked them to ensure that the barking be nipped in the bud.  He replied that there is some barking, but it isn't bothering him.  Ok?  

So far, the new guy has mowed the doggy park, the large lot 1, lot 2 and I think lot 3. He's swept out the amenities shed and that's all I've seen so far. He has not washed his trailer, I will be asking them again to please scrub it down. It's not a huge trailer, but it's very dirty.  Spend the hour or 2 it will take to clean it up, it will be good to go for quite a while.  

Anyway, church en-queue and then Applebee's. I haven't been back since the ordeal where the boys didn't get there food for over an hour and ten minutes and I never got my food after an hour and forty-five minutes.  The GM assured me they will comp my next meal.  We'll see, but I won't be exposing myself to that kind of service again, if they can't have my food on the table within a half hour's time, we will get up and leave.  Even half an hour is too long, but I feel that's giving them enough time to get our order taken care of.  

And as it stands? My clock has run out. It's time to put on my shoes and get out of here.

Happy Sunday. 

 Friday - early

It was a good day yesterday. 

Got up early, saw the kids out, got on the road about the same time they would be leaving the school. I knew I would beat them, I didn't realize I would beat them by almost an hour.  No biggies, just sat out in the parking lot in my vehicle and then decided to mosey up to the entrance and wait for them.  I had no idea that there would be several other schools showing up from all over the place. 

Once our busses showed up, we went in side, bought a few souvenirs and then headed into the arena.  Huge affair, looked like a light, powdery sand on the floor where the performances were done, there were hundreds of people in there at least, the place was full.  There was lunch waiting at our seats which had a long, narrow strip of counter top running in front of the rows of seats for your food and drinks.  

The boy wanted a drink, so I got up and waited in line. The performance started while I was out doing that, I didn't miss much. It was some dude on a horse in the middle of the arena facing the King and Queen, the Queen seated on a large throne, the platform they were on near the ceiling at one of the ends of the arena.  

Some actors came out and there was a skit done about bullying.  But, of course, they took that portion too far and went into DEI.  Diversity, Equity and Inclusiveness. These are alert words, you hear any of that you know you are being exposed to pure, unadulterated wokeness.  It was disheartening to hear all of that and wondered whether the entire show was going to be like this?  The message about bullying was ok, the rest of it was ridiculous.  I then assessed - well, this is  Dallas, a leftist bastion of socialist/communist ideologies, not surprising you are going to hear such nonsense here. Just one of the reasons I refuse to ever live in a big city again. 

They got done with that s*** and then the real show started, fortunately and thankfully.  It was pretty cool. They had actors on horses - well versed actors that had obviously taken the time to learn their parts and also hone their sword and jostling skills - and they did the entire show on different factions "fighting" each other for the championship title.  Yes, the place is divided up into 6 different groupings, wherever you are seating, you in one of those grouping and your knight in shining armor represents you in the arena.  

 There were skill sets, fighting sets, horse back agility sets.  They were using real, metal swords, by the way, these were not wood or plastic stuff. The sparks from when the swords clashed against each other proved that, which gave the whole scenario a heightened sense of reality, like: this isn't fake, they could actually do each other real harm if they mess up and accidentally hit each other. Not that I would want that to happen, but it added to the authenticity of the event.  

I was imagining what this place must be like filled with adults and getting rid of the "school" style talk, this show was definitely geared towards kids, but, it was a lot of fun regardless.  The boy had a blast, I was egging him and others on to cheer on our knight. The instructions online stated the more you shout for your knight, the better he will fight!  

I can say that 2 hours of it was about the perfect length.   By the time they had all of their skill sets/fighting scenes done, I was also done. Oh, well, during this time we ate our meal which consisted of a half chicken (small chicken, lol), half a small baked potato and a half piece of corn on the cob.  After that, they brought around some garlic toast, very delicious and after that, they brought some large, prepackaged chocolate chip cookies.  I ate one of the 2 in my package and gave the other one to the kid, who happily devoured 3 of them.  

Fortunately, my pep talk on not being able to go home with me worked, he was all happy when we left, but mostly that was because I let him take his newly acquired sword and shield and lighted cup with him.  

The drive home was uneventful even if the road is filled with idiots paying more attention to their phones than the road and acting like morons cutting people off all over the place. That's on the Interstate, driving in Dallas is the same as driving in any other big city: it sucks.  I'm well versed in it, I don't miss it at all.  I just let people do their thing and enjoyed my ride home.  I sort of pushed the speed limit a bit, will freely admit, I was following along a small group of vehicles going a wee tad faster than posted signage allowed for.  

Got home, relaxed.  I never did go to the park yesterday, but I did note on the security system that the new people were cleaning the amenities shed and mowing grass. 

I made dinner which consisted of reuben sandwiches, quite delicious if I do say so myself. Taylor agreed, we have somewhat same tastes in food, tho I love onions and she hates them, lol.

I ended up going to bed early, 8:45 pm.  And for once, I slept through the night, only waking up once and quickly getting back to sleep. The sleep monitor app said my sleep was "average", balderdash.  I slept quite well and I feel pretty good this morning.  I think it counts snoring against me.  When I'm tired like that, I will snore quite a bit.  It said I was snoring well over an hour and also a very minor amount of sleep apnea.  

The reason I got the app was to see if my problems were related to sleep apnea.  I almost never show any of it on there and if it does show some, it's because I'm wasted tired when I go to bed.  Never more than a minute, couple of minutes at most. But, I guess they think snoring isn't so great either.  

Never-the-less, I am ready to hit the ground running, so to speak, get down to Nac, get the trailer washed out, get over to Lufkin, load, come home and then see what this dude has done.  They are clearly looking for reduced or even eliminated rent rate.  My only beef so far is the trailer is dirty.  It's in good shape, but it's covered with dirt and mildew.  Please clean that.