I was very fortunate to get out of it in 2008 - I work in road and bridge construction in logistics for an 80year old family owned company. I am seeing 10-12 CDL applications everyday and 20-30 apps for other positions, people are really hurting here in West Texas.My dad started out a roustabout, pumper, production foreman and ultimately a drilling superintendent for NRM in Midland but he took early retirement when NRM sold all their assets in Permian Basin and wanted to move him to Florida.I graduated Permian High(Odessa) in 1977 and went straight to the patch, my dad wanted me to go to college but at this time in less than a year at a service company was making 4 times what a college grad was being paid. Silly me I thought it would last forever. I remember when my dad told me the bottom was going to fall out in the mid 80s as his company had sent a rep to a meeting with ARAMCO and they planned to flood the market with cheap oil. 45 days latter I was handed my last check and laid off.My dad has been a hunter and marksman his entire life so when he took early retirement he started building varmint and target rifles and making his own match bullets and still does so today. He was on the National Shooting team for 6 years.I made a good living in the patch for a long time but I am so lucky that I found something more stable that paid as well.
I have the utmost respect for oilfield workers, unless you have been there you cannot possibly understand those dynamics.
Snow on a Texas night at my house rare but beautiful-God Bless America
