Marshall Dillon

Returned to Dodge City for a load of beef. Simply followed instructions to show up in Dodge City, I had to phone Stevens to verify that I was supposed to drop the trailer at National Beef. What a silly use of man power. A grad student just came up to the truck asking about what he was supposed to do. He was given a load from National with a DLD of 10/30, which means he will be stuck here until then. I pray they have not done the same to me since I have not been given a load assignment yet.

Chicken Soup had an article about a lost dog, but really it is about lost people. It is a well written story. Hope the link will work.

Finished reading a book last night, that normally I would read in an hour or two; however, it took several weeks. I loved the message; however, the delivery was fingernails on a chalk board. Now I will need to apply the message. I will need to stomach the book to devour the pearls that are within each chapter. Personally I feel someone has unstrung pearls into a pig pen and it is my job to find them all. Fortunately for me, I worked at a wastewater treatment plant, I have looked for the pearls in less than ideal circumstances before.

Mega church?

Randy discussed the mega church in his blog. A song came to mind: More like you, Jesus more like you... The churches I grew up in, the extreme legalism I was fed, were more Pharisee and Sadducee than Jesus. As I age, I realize the discovery of the Jesus I never knew.

I stated in a written "blog" in the church bulletin, that maybe we needed to dynamite the sign out in front of the building and call it the The Church on Sutter or maybe Church by the River. Are our traditions, now carved in stone, holding others away? Maybe; however, I still feel that Central needs to repent of hurts caused in the past to move to a better future. Knowing our hidden talents is a useful tool. Coming together as one, united in purpose, requires commitment to give an honest look at how we got to where we are now. With so many dead fish in the basket it is beginning to smell bad.

Mr Dunn

In an article of the NY Times about Mr Dunn, a former defense lawyer in death penalty cases, who is now a middle school teacher I saw a great quote: "He quotes Frederick Douglass: “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” I worked the prison system for 12.5 years. I regret that I did not know that quote previously, but I can soundly give it an amen.

Several classrooms had money stolen, so naturally reputation implies the Elston boys. Paula carries the keys on her, she locks every door when not present, etc. but their reputation precedes them. It grieves her to think that maybe one of our children would figure out how to break into so many classrooms and steal the money. She is strongly praying whoever is guilty will be discovered, even if it is one of ours.

Qualcomm acting up on the truck inconsistently; however, I called Road Break down to inform them of the problem. I will be taking the truck to Houston Communication in the morning after my first drop for quick repairs hopefully, since I need to be 51.6 miles on the other side of Houston before 3.

Arrested Development

My trainee jumped ship when we arrived in West Memphis,AR. Life has been stacked against him and he has chosen to remain under the pile. He is a safe driver; however, his heart was not into the many other challenges that come with driving a truck (mainly the time away from family), so he quit. I set my alarm this morning for 5:30 to take a shower, he was already up. I asked if he was going to shower he stated no. When I got back to the truck he informed me of his decision. I spent 1:45 attempting to get him to see a different picture on life. Not to persuade him to be a trucker, but attempting to have him see himself in a different light. But the Mississippi River called him back to his home state.

Jesse challenged Paula and discovered life outside of the minivan. He tried to call my sister to rescue him, but she declined when she discovered why he was where he was. He came back to the building later; however, he still does not know how to surrender to God. I told him to find the song "All to Jesus I Surrender" and read it carefully. Maybe it will give him some insight. Lay face down on the ground and weep for your choices is a good place to start sometimes.

Cheshire,CT

It was hard to believe it has been this long since my last post, sorry. Anyway, Terreal and I are in Cheshire,CT to deliver at 0515 (that would be 0415 our time) some fine produce from California.

My first student on the truck is almost to nice. He is very easy to get along with and will even laugh at my jokes. Most important for me, he is a very safe driver. He has some more polishing to complete his training; however, he is a good driver.

Jesse called today to inform me that he is a free man. All charges were dropped. Our "neighbors" when contacted by the investigator did not wish to make a statement after they were informed they would be required to testify under oath and that false testimony was a felony. I do not know if the decision to remain silent and the information were related. I strongly urged Jesse to not tempt Satan again and to leave Paloma quickly. I pray he follows my advice. Should hear from Charlie this week, he should be getting out of jail by Friday.

Attempting to solve the problem of Matthew and online education. So far we have used my connection and him on the phone. But that cannot continue.

Alarm is set to ring at 0320, so we can start the 4.8 mile drive by 0345 to final. Better get to sleep.