Hobbs New Years Dance, 9 p.m. in the gym

The turnout is expected to be good for the New Year's Dance to be held in the Hobbs School Gym. People from Rotan, Roby, Sweetwater, Snyder and a few other far-flung places have made plans to be there.

Greg Maldo will be making music to scoot your boots to with his five piece band.

Cover charge is $10 per person, setups available, BYOB.

Come ring in the New Year with us!

Texas Legislative Session begins Jan. 8

There's an article on the Platts website about legislation that will change the name of the Texas Railroad Commission. Because that's what everyone is concerned about. The name. Most important legislation, ever. Anyway, that is Filed House Bill 203.

Other bills that have to do with energy are Filed Senate Bill 71, SB136, HB100 and HB314. Some are duplicates. I couldn't find the one mentioned in the article about forced unitization that would require the owners of mineral rights to join in blocks with other mineral owners under certain circumstances.

There are all kinds of bills filed, and it makes me wonder how the other half lives. I have a very calm life that has nothing to do with human trafficking, prostitution, heir contention, termination of child support due to mistaken identity as a parent, wrongful imprisonment, or the need for a peace officer when entering the marital residence.

There are also the super-hyped, high-profile bills regarding cell phones, smoking, abortion, drug-testing of individuals applying for financial assistance, and abolishment of the death penalty.

Some of them are very pertinent, such as changes in ad valorem taxation, as in SB95, which enables Senate Joint Resolution 9. Oh, and also HB130, relating to honesty in state taxation.

Many traffic accidents are caused by drivers falling asleep, so I'm glad to see the introduction of HB295, proposing a commission to study drowsy driving.

And you have to wonder what HB101 is all about, relating to the use of radio frequency identification technology to transmit information regarding public school students. Will they be putting ankle bands on all the kids?

Go ahead and read the bill descriptions at Texas Legislature Online. You won't need to watch the soap operas today.

A little technology rant

If computer commercials were truthful, they would show a woman kneeling on her knees, using her iPhone screen as a flashlight to light up the USB ports on the back of her computer so she can insert a memory card adapter, which she will have to wiggle many times and hold her tongue just right in order for the computer to recognize it. Forget all the folding, dancing, music, movie-making, and happy smiles that they show in those ads. It's just a relief when something semi-works.

Now, excuse me, cuz me and my stupid computer have work to do.

Snow, oil and a big party

- Greg Maldo -

It looks like we've got a chance at snow on Christmas Day, according to the National Weather Service forecast. Looking at the temperatures, it's definitely time to bring the wood in, with highs in the 30's for a couple of days.

Plans are going on for the New Year's Dance in the Hobbs School gym and the entertainment will be Greg Maldo from Lubbock. I talked to Judy Gordon at the cafe yesterday and she said she didn't know whether to expect five or 500 people to show, but that folks she didn't even know were coming up to her when she was at the store and telling her they were going to be there.

Dad and I cruised by the new Davenport rig and there was about a third of a load of pipe in the air. We couldn't tell if it was coming out or going in, but there's a lot of people and equipment there. There's a guard on that gate, just like on the first rig. We've speculated about why that is, as it isn't protocol. Patents? An incident? Safety? I guess we could call Devon's publicist and get the real story, but you know I'm a lazy reporter.

If you want to keep abreast of news on local oil, I would suggest taking out subscriptions to the Roby Star Record / Rotan Advance, The Snyder Daily News, the Colorado City Record, the Sweetwater Reporter and the Lubbock Avalanche Journal, or check them out online. I get most of my news from the Colorado City and Lubbock sources. Some of the Colorado City articles are reprints from the Snyder paper.

Deer and dancing, new cafe hours

The guys have a bunch of cameras down on the lease and I find the photos fascinating. A list of characters emerges after looking at the pictures a few times. There's High Antlers, Broken Antler, Spot the Pig, and a Racoon known as That Little #*$?! because it gets on the feeder reel and sticks it's paw up the hole and pulls out corn.

The entertainment for the Hobbs New Year's Dance will be Greg Maldo from Lubbock. You can check him out on reverbnation and facebook. More information to come.

The cafe is now open Mon - Sat 7 a.m to 8 p.m., and Sunday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dad and I had breakfast there on Saturday morning and it was SO good: hash browns, eggs, sausage, toast, coffee and orange juice. Make your way to the Hobbs Cafe and the sample the fare if you haven't yet.

There are a lot of rumors about the production on the first Davenport well (yup, a second well is being drilled), but they're too outrageous to repeat. I heard the numbers from more than one person, but no confirmation from a reliable source. I do know for a fact that there is a guard on the front gate, because he came out when I was taking a photo of the lease sign. I jumped in my truck and drove off like Bonnie, but he was only coming out to talk to a truck driver that was leaving.

Hobbs New Year Dance in the works

I had heard that there might be a New Years dance in the old school gym this year, so I asked Judy Gordon about it this weekend while I was eating at the Hobbs Cafe. She said there was definitely going to be a dance, they were just trying to line up the entertainment. Keep checking here for further details. It's gonna be fun!