Last Week

The week started with Ted's funeral. It was a blessing.
It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart.
When the choir (which I was asked to sing with) stepped out of the door on the leeward side of the church, it was into beautiful, warm sunshine. But as we followed the casket back to the cemetery, we realized that there was still a raw, biting wind reminding us that it was still winter. It is hard to sing when you are shivering from the cold.

On Tuesday we went to the Illinois Pork Expo at the Civic Center. Hog production in Illinois has declined ever since the fiasco of 1998, and as a result the trade show and attendance has shrunk. Its good to keep up with the latest in the business and to meet up with old friends and business contacts we have made over the years.

On Wednesday, I went to an all day seminar on the government programs that affect us in the new Farm Bill. As the restrictions tighten on who is a farmer, who gets payments, and how much we get, the government wants more and more personal information about us. Big Brother is definitely watching! The really scary part is the number of people that have access to our personal information.

On Friday was the Midwest Truckers Convention at the Civic Center. This is fun if you like to see fancy big rigs and lots of chrome! Since all of our grain and livestock eventually gets trucked somewhere, there is a lot of good info on all facets of the trucking industry. We currently own four trucks, but would like to get a tractor-trailer rig and get rid of a couple of our older trucks. So we were also doing a little shopping.

By Saturday the weather was reminding us that its not always cold here in Illinois. The temperature reached the glorious 60's, melting most of our snow, but turning our lots and barnyard into a muddy mess. The reprieve from the long cold stretch was welcome, but it is still early February, so we could still see a lot of winter. In the evening it was down to Tremont to spend some time with our daughter's future in-laws. An enjoyable meal and a time of fellowship.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Today we served lunch in church. The old farmer's wife did a good job again planning, baking, and purchasing the lunch. We had plenty, which means we have boxes of sandwiches, donuts, bars, and cookies leftover for the coming week. Not the healthiest of food, but good tasting none-the-less.