Well, looks like the rain chances were slim and now gone. We are all praying and looking for rain each and every day. We want to remind everyone that the fire danger is still extremely high and to use caution when working outside.What we do not need right now is a large fire with all the homes here in San Saba County. Be sure to report any smoke that you're unsure of and we will check it out right away.

We spoke with some officials from the military and they addressed some concerns that they want to pass along to us. We all have seen the helicopters working this area night and day. The military has been training real hard and we are all proud of our troops. One thing that they are asking is that when you are out at night and see one of their helicopters; please do not light it up with spotlights or flashlights. The lights cause their night vision to go out, and puts the helicopters into a dangerous situation. Computers on board and other things us common folk need not know about, begin to react to these types of actions and cause a lot of chaos during the training. I was also asked to remind you that it is a federal crime to do this and it can cause quite a problem for the individual and or individuals who are doing this. Please help us to help our soldiers and let's help keep them safe and busy training to defend our country, and not chasing us.

It's been rather steady lately, but not too busy. We are still seeing a rash of damage to county road signs and 911 addressing signs. We are asking for your help in catching those individuals involved with this crime. If you see a vehicle acting suspicious or anything that looks wrong, please call us with a description and or a license plate and a direction of travel. We are hoping for a tip to put us in the right location at the right time. If you see traffic in your area and it's at an odd time or its really heavy, please call this in. We are putting out extra patrol, but it is a very large area to cover. We would be grateful for any assistance that you might be able to offer. We have spent over $3,000.00 dollars of tax payer's money replacing these signs and we are looking for a way to stop it. It's really sad that a person has nothing better to do, than to go around stealing or destroying others property. What really makes this dangerous is that it can make it real difficult to get to an emergency, especially at night without those signs to help us stay on track.

I saw a lot of community spirit this week and got to enjoy some of it. We had a good time with the float in the Christmas Parade, and I want to thank all of our staff for their assistance with the project. With our hours like they are, it's hard to stay on a project with just one person, so it takes several. We also want to thank Super S Foods for the lights and Steve Faught for the generator. We are hoping to stay involved with lots of different projects, but I really enjoyed the Christmas Parade and thought that it was excellent. Fern Reed did an outstanding job and the city workers really put on a show with their floats. It's sure beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here, and I for one, am glad.

Well, the Sheriff's job is moving right along and it's fast approaching the two year mark. We have seen some good times and some not so good times. I have learned a lot these past two years, some the hard way and some from day to day contact with the public. I am praying that we can continue to work together for the betterment of our county. I have learned one thing the hard way, and that is that no matter how hard you try, you will never please everyone and that's a very hard lesson to learn. The Sheriff's job is a continuous cycle of actions vs. reactions and it never stops. When you're in this job, sometimes your actions are dictated for you by the action of others. You can't always play nice and you can't always look the other way, no matter how badly you want to. The Sheriff must always remember that he is elected by the people to make the best choices for the entire county, not just for the needs of a few. The Sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of the county and the buck stops with him. There will always be tiffs, upset people and disagreements and there will be battles, my prayer is that God will grant me wisdom to know which ones to fight and which ones to forfeit.

We want to thank you for all your prayers and for all your support. We also want to ask you to continue to call in those reports and let us know where you are and what you are seeing in your area. We can be reached at 325-372-5551 or 5432, and we will be looking forward to your call.