We finished the job(s) we have been working on since late Monday afternoon. And, it was pretty much nonstop once we got rolling on Monday (today is Sunday). Believe me; I am ready for a break – even if that’s just a moving-day break!
The job we started yesterday ended early this evening – just as a storm wanted to move towards the field. The farmer asked us if we would cut a little more but Jim didn’t want to get caught starting a field, it starting to rain and we really need to get moved to job #2. So, we played a little less risk and decided to call the job complete. Burkburnett, Texas…it was fun but it’s time to move on.
The last truck to town was the Pete. So, while Jim was in town dumping I decided I’d start cleaning the header by removing as much wheat straw and debris from it as I could. I’d leave the air compressor part for Jim – he’s a little particular about how the job gets done. I figured I’d get started and he’d get to the farm to help. I was wrong. The sun was just starting to go down when he called and said he was headed back. It seems the elevators are filling up due to the crop around here. The newer elevator was full, the town of Harrold was full and Punkin Center was full. So, the trucks were all finding their way to “our” elevator which made for chaos. I felt sorry for the girls trying to keep things rolling along.
Right after Jim had called to tell me he was headed back, he called again. “Something’s going on with the sun. There were a couple of people stopped along the highway looking at it. I don’t know if it’s some sort of solar eclipse or if the world’s coming to an end. Go look at it. I’ve been taking quick looks at it – it’ll be ok” That made me laugh! I assured him it was an eclipse and the world probably WASN’T coming to an end. However, after he told me this, I grabbed my camera and tried to take a few pictures of the eclipse. Of course, I also had to include wheat in a few. 🙂
When he got to the farm, I was sitting in the pickup waiting for him and looking at the pictures I had just snapped. He was talking to me and when I looked up, he had the most perplexed look on his face. “Give me the camera”, he said. Then he said, “Don’t touch your face until you get back to trailer house and can see what you look like”. I knew it MUST be good. So, to be fair to the rest of the family (because I guarantee if one of them had looked like I did, I would have taken their picture too) I am posting a picture of what I looked like (it’s a good thing I had on my sunglasses). Tomorrow, we will begin the cleaning of the equipment, loading it and be ready to hit the road again Tuesday.
I took these pictures because I wanted to attempt to show the mess wild pigs create in a wheat field. Most of the wheat that was laying down in this field was not due to lodging – it was due to pigs. If you look in the upper left corner of the top picture, their trails are visible.
More pig destruction.
These little guys were as curious as kids!
Quite a few of the fields in “these parts” have old oil well pipes anywhere and everywhere. Before we got started, the farmer told Jim there was a pipe sticking up in the field. This sort of thing literally makes Jim sick to his stomach. Hitting something solid like a pipe sticking out of the ground could total a wheat header. The farmer was gracious enough to withstand the wheat chaff and stand over the pipe so we could cut around it.
This is what could have caused a whole lot of damage if it hadn’t been pointed out:
Ever wonder what mesquite looks like? This stuff grows like weeds everywhere around here. The farmer’s little boy, Sam (2), told me this is where the pigs are at. He also told me I wouldn’t see them in the day, just at night. I think he’s been listening to his Daddy real well!
