Kernels and Nuts

Hello blog. Long time, no...post.

After a weekend spent moving into my new apartment and enjoying my mom's company, I hit the road again today. Only this time, I really did hit the road and not the airport.

Today, it was off to Dimmitt, which for you Arkies is about and hour and a half northwest of Lubbock. We (myself, the boss and a few corn board members) met with Congressman Neugebauer's staff who were in town from Washington making visits to the 19th District of Texas. We were also joined by the National Sorghum Producers and their Texas organization (their office is like 429 inches from our office).

We met up at K-Bob's Steakhouse, where I ate a K-Bob Kabob, mainly just because it was fun to say. The little Hispanic waitress was not near as amused by this as I was.

We ate, discussed the concerns of grain producers in the 19th District of Texas, and listened to their cookie cutter replies. I've learned that this is rather ordinary in conversations with politicians and their staff (which is really not all that surprising).

After lunch, we drove north to Hereford (the feedlot capitol of the world) to tour one of White Energy's ethanol plants. This was my first time to step foot on the premises of an ethanol plant. After spending a good majority of my time with the corn producers defending the purpose of and need for ethanol, I figured it was high time I got to explore a place where it's made.

Since Hereford is the feedlot capitol of the world, there's obviously lots of grain that comes into the area to feed the bovine population. The town relies heavily on the rail system to bring in a lot of this grain, and so do the ethanol plants.

It's rather interesting to step back and think about the infrastructure needed to make ethanol work. The plants are making it. The domestic auto makers are producing FlexFuel vehicles. But the oil companies are making it very tough for gas stations to economically provide E85 pumps (E85 = 85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline fuel). This all involves blender credits, tax credits and some other confusing stuff I won't bore you with. I really just wanted to throw out that information for you to ponder on while you're filling up your cars, trucks and SUVs with expensive foreign oil.

Write a letter or something to your congressman. I'm sure that will help.

It's hot out here right now. We don't have humidity, so it's not near as bad as you Arkansas people that are rolling your eyes right now and thinking, "Oh, yeah? Well, the heat index has been 1 million degrees here."

Hot is hot people. Heat plus humidity just plain sucks though. I realize this. But, either way you look at it, you're going to sweat. At least out here my hair doesn't look like a football helmet at the end of the day. In fact, it's still quite straight.

Tomorrow, I'll do the same thing all over again, only this time I will be wearing my peanut hat. I won't actually be wearing a peanut hat, but you get the point. We're meeting with the same staffers to show them how important the peanut industry is to Texas, and heading southwest of Lubbock to West Texas' peanut country to go through some shelling facilities and such.

Then, I'll drive north to Amarillo to stay the night, and then go to a corn field day at the Texas A&M AgriLife Experiment Station at Etter. I think sitting behind a desk has made me soft, because I know the heat will get to me. Nonetheless, I'm excited to be outside.

As you notice, I don't have any pictures posted. It's because I don't have my cord again. Sorry. I apologize. I do have some for you to view.

Until then...I will continue watching this game show that puts Americans in Japan to participate in their game shows.