Fourth of July

Sorry about the late posting. I was on the road last week moving my son's truck from New York to California. Had a great road trip with an old college roommate and his seventeen year old son. Well, it was more like a cannonball run- we made it cross country in four days.

Here you can see Jonathan's truck parked in front of a restaurant in Texas. Crazy Texans, gotta love their style. I always love their hospitality.

We took the old Route 66 from St Louis on. Driving through the Midwest we saw a lot of corn, wheat and soybeans. Lots of dairies also. What I didn't see was a lot of fruits and vegetables either in the field, in the stores or in the restaurants. Just a reminder of how good we have it here in California. Hard to eat your fruits and vegetables if they aren't around.

I am not sure of what to make of something I noticed on the road. We had more bugs on the windshield between Bakersfield and home than we did from New York to Bakersfield. What's up with that? California farmers are accused of using all sorts of pesticides. I know it is not a scientific survey, but there is a huge difference. I think it reflects that California farmers actually use a minimum of pesticides and we leave a lot of bugs out there. Hopefully there are lots of good bugs eating all the bad bugs. Just something I noticed on the way.

Back on the farm the guys did a good job keeping the crops watered. The blackeyes have really bounced back after we knocked the aphids down. We have our first bloom in the cotton. That field is almost on time. The other fields are a bit behind. Almond hull split is behind also.

For the Fourth of July Sheryl and I were asked to post on another blog as parents of a soldier overseas. Sheryl did a great job. She brought a tear to my eye and I know the story. You can find the post at http://abc30.typepad.com/abc-30-blogs

Hope you had a Happy Fourth of July. Just a reminder, Ben Franklin was quoted as saying, "The American Revolution was not fought for freedom, it was fought for self-government." Think about it. Thank you to all who have served to preserve our freedom.