The King's New Job

The king's job has been in jeopardy for a couple of years now. The economy and advances in medical technology will someday make what he does obsolete. So he peruses the Want Ads from time to time in search of the next great job opportunity. This week he may have found his true calling.

I proudly tell people I come from a long line of oil field trash. My great-grandfather drilled his first oil well in our state when he was a young man. He added a few more over the years. His son, my grandfather, added to the number over the years. It is not the big money-maker one might think, but it kept my grandparents comfortable and now does the same for my parents. My brother is now learning the ropes of the bookkeeping/management end of the business though none of us work in the "oil patch" anymore--that's hired out. And not much new drilling is happening in this part of the state now because much easier drilling and much more oil can be found in another part of the state--where the king's mom happens to own land that is now being leased out to oil companies.

But this week my parents are here and the king and my step-father headed up to "the lease" to check on the wells, pump houses, and assorted stuff that goes along with this very complex operation. The king had a great time learning about the workings of what he's been hearing about for years. And it was then that his destiny became clear.

Off in the distance, this is what he spotted:

A "beautiful" backhoe.

He knew what he had to do.

He climbed inside and began to dig.
This is the life!

Close up so we all know it was really him.

After they finished--well, they didn't really finished because the backhoe died and now needs some TLC--they headed back into town for dinner.

But first they had to make a stop at the local John Deere store.

Here's what the king is asking for for Christmas:

Ummm...How much is that going to cost Honey?