My fishing hole is down 20'

I just walked in the door from driving from south of Corpus to Athens today and, with all due respect, those of us north of a line from Waco to Lufkin may think it is dry where we are, but our dry doesn't hold a candle to what is happening south of there.

I saw more empty stock tanks than those that still held water, and the most recession proof business to be in right now in that area is a dozer operator. I heard today that most of those guys are backed up several weeks on work cleaning out the stock tanks while they're empty or nearly so. I heard a wise man say once that cattlemen tend to be pessimistic optimists and there is no better proof than cleaning out stock tanks in the middle of a bad drought.

I saw somewhere else on the TFF that the powerplant at Fairfield will only be able to run about another month before the water is too low to pump.

I've been on several ranches in the last two months on which the prickly pear were dying. Think about that a moment and let it sink in: the cactus that you can hardly kill with a propane torch are dying from a lack of rainfall. A lot of cattlemen are already hauling water just for their cattle to drink. The last long term forecast I saw said that the drought would be "less severe than previously thought", but who knows what that means.

The ranches on the coast aren't in much better shape, especially those that were inundated with saltwater storm surge from Ike. They needed big rains to help dilute the salt in the ground and in their surface water that was contaminated during the hurricane and they haven't seen it either.

All of that should drive home to us all that our most valuable natural resource in Texas is our water, whether that be in a lowly stock tank, a river, an impoundment, or in and underground aquifer. I saw a projection a couple of years ago that said by the year 2020 Texas will have a population 40% greater than we have now and that the biggest issue we'll face will be water.

Pray to the religious honcho of your choice that we all get some much needed rain soon and that we will see better planning on the part of our local and state leaders in managing our water resources. Also, please remember that agriculture needs water too and that we all need agriculture.

We're one day closer to rain.

Wow, that was deep I'm impressed. Let it rain

It may rain here late tonight, or in the morning. I have been quiet cause a lot is going on, and none of it good. Had an absessed tooth, took antibiotics for it...the pain was horrible. Went to a funeral. Yesterday had a root canal and a new crown put in, and I am hurting all over again. I did a little work on the boat, but the pain is preventing me from doing much. I wet sanded half of the bottom of the boat today...that is it. I thought I was done with sanding that area. Then I read on the self etching primer it needs a very fine grit sanding before spraying the primer....sigh. Well it is going to get a 320. I could not find 400 at Walmart, or Home Depot. Hopefully that will work. It is one thing after another lately.

Mike, you can catch carp by walking the shoreline.