Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Beryl blew through Knox County yesterday evening, about 7-8pm.  We had bands of rain off and on throughout the afternoon, but the strong part of the storm came about 7pm.  There was even a tornado confirmed south of Vincennes, with a tornado warning issued for all of Knox County until 745pm.  Pat and I took to the basement during the 30-or-so minutes of the warning.  When it expired, we had rain to show for the storm.  We received about an inch altogether.  But south of us in Posey County, the damage was extensive and severe.  We watched video on the Weather Channel from Mt. Vernon, Indiana of a tornado crossing the Ohio River, and tearing into buildings near one of the terminal elevators there.  It was a sobering sight.  The pictures released today show lots of damage to building and trees.  Please pray for those who have been strongly affected by the tornadoes in the remnant of Hurricane Beryl.

It’s a sunny and breezy and pleasant day here today.  I took the opportunity to wash the last remaining dirty tractor, the JD 9R 540.   I got done with that one in the replanting of DCB a little over a week ago, and we put the air drill and cart away in storage last Wednesday.  It wasn’t smokin’ hot today, but nice out there, so I washed the tractor.  Maybe not quite #Andyclean, but pretty good.

The 540 shines after its wash job today. Ready to put back inside.

We meet with our banker tomorrow for our annual renewal of the line of credit.  The process went pretty smoothly again this  year.  But, with the commodity prices as they are currently, it could be a much tougher year in ’25.  Then again, a  lot can happen in a year to change the situation.   Some of the things that will affect the grain markets cannot be predicted.  Still, we will do all we can to reduce our per-bushel costs, and watch the markets closely for any upside opportunity.

Once the roadsides firm up from the yesterday’s rain, I’ll be taking bites out of the mowing, bit by bit.  The Knox County Fair (we claim it’s the oldest fair in Indiana) begins Friday evening, and will last through next week.  I hope I can take in the beef show on Wednesday.    We haven’t had cattle here on this farm for decades, but the show at the fair always has interested me, since the days when my brother and sister showed calves at the fair.

Have a good remainder of your week.