The Skunk Creek Wells In South Fork -- Cumulative Production Updated -- August 9, 2026

Locator: 51369SKUNKCREEK.

The Skunk Creek wells in South Fork are tracked here. Production update did not reveal anything of note. 

Cumulative Production Data Has Been Updated For CLR Angus / Simmental Wells In Elm Tree Oil Field -- August 9, 2026

Locator: 51368SIMMENTAL.

Nothing remarkable. Wells are tracked here. 

A Whiting Rolla Federal Well Has Just Gone On Confidential List -- August 9, 2026

Locator: 51367ROLLA.

This well has just gone back on confidential list:

• 31715, 3,465, Whiting, Rolla Federal 21-3-3TFH, t10/16; cum 316K 9/20; cum 329K 8/21; cum 367K 7/25; back on confidential status, noted 6/26; 

This well and other Rolla Federal and Skaar wells are followed here. The wells have been updated; cumulative production only updated.

The NDIC map does not reveal any neighboring activity. 

Sunday — Early — August 9, 2026

Locator: 51365ARCHIVES. 

Updates 

5:40 p.m. CT: NASCAR -- Iowa. If they race, they will come, apparently. 

Close race -- five miles left -- Gibbs is leading Bell by less than a third of a second. 

Gibbs, Bell, Blaney. Only Gibbs and Bell. Blaney is 7 seconds behind. Two laps to go. Bell is relentless. Teammates Gibb and Bell. They both race for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), driving Toyota Camry XSE entries. Bell had been leading earlier. One lap left. Gibbs just won. Wow. Keslowski  was key in holding off Bell at the final fourth turn. Gibbs was as low as 28th in the race. A two-tire call earlier for Gibbs was key. Granddad Gibbs is thrilled. I believe this is the first time Toyota has won at Iowa.  

5:00 p.m. CT: opening price of WTI at 6:00 p.m. Sunday night, ET: $79.24, up $1.06, up 1.36% but quickly drops back to $78.95. Headline: strait is closed until further notice. 

Original Post 

Sports: full afternoon of --

• PGA (boring today, unfortunately); the top five on the leaderboard -- irrelevant;
• NASCAR, Iowa -- okay -- about the most exciting thing to happen in Iowa this time of the election cycle; 

The good news (for me): Interstellar, last night, was incredibly good.  

• I may have to see Oppenheimer though I have no interest, having been there, done that as an experience;
• but I still won't see The Odyssey despite my hunch that I'm missing something really, really good.
• Christopher Nolan is 56 years old; what does he still have left to do? 
• have all the big stories been done on the big screen; might we see an Amelia Earhart story or the Enola Gay? Too prosaic for Nolan? Are we ready for another Biblical story? A remake of a Hitchcock film? Horror seems to easy, unless it's an amazing psychological thriller like The Sixth Sense or the Salem witches. Apparently he's looking at a horror film.

The Mideast, coffee grinds (tea  leaves?) are telling me:

• Iran's supreme leader has appointed the former commander of the IRGC as his representative to the Supreme National Security Council. 
• I can only read this as formal control of Iran now belongs to the IGRC;
• it appears regime change is continuing, one step at a time in favor of the IGRC; 
• explains the hard line stance Iran has provided the US to open the strait;
• this is pretty cool; the strait is now closed, and Trump appears not to care;
• the IGRC is now negotiating with itself.  
• Trump has lost his base;
• "locked and loaded" has become "we'll see"? 
• my hunch: Trump is conferring with Clint Eastwood. 
• Trump has grown tired of Netanyahu and Hegseth;
• Trump will "negotiate" with Iran -- but only to drag out this out and let Iran's economy continue to deteriorate;
• he will maintain the embargo indefinitely; gives the US Navy something to do.
• tea leaves suggests he is bored with the whole situation; will let his negotiating team and DO take the lead, and he will move on.  
• Houthis will take Yemen; and,
• Yemen will be renamed Ansar Allah.
• the strait is becoming irrelevant;
• without cumbersome regulations, pipelines can be built rather quickly;
• recall PLUTO during WWII.
• the problem is that a lot of other stuff goes through the strait -- now it will go by rail and by truck.
• the big question: closing the strait indefinitely as of this weekend -- is Iran misreading global geo-politics but these incredibly "crazy" demands suggest that Trump's blockade on Iran is working;
• corroborating that feeling that Trump's blockade is working: Trump has stated he isn't going to respond for now. 

WTI: $78.18. 

 

Chip shortage? How bad is it? Apple is reaching out to China (CXMT). 

• the big question: how did the supply chain guru Tim Cook miss this one?
• but it also tells me demand for Apple products are unprecedented;
• even the MacBook Neo has a two-to-three week backorder;  
• if Apple is having trouble, what does this say for Dell? 

Futures (US equity market): should be fascinating this evening. 

 

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The Movie Page

 

The 1999 Pierce Brosnan - Rene Russo remake of the 1968 Steve McQueen - Faye Dunaway original The Thomas Crowne Affair -- wow, without question, the 1999 re-make was so much better. 

 

This afternoon was the first time I had seen the 1999 remake. Rotten Tomatoes? 70 for Steve McQueen's version; 69 for Brosnan's. McQueen clearly carried the movie and the reviews. The 1999 version is so much better. A slightly better sound track might have pushed Brosnan over the finish line, but probably not. 

 

McQueen has that much star power. Amazing.

 

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Ride or Die

 

Season 1 Episode 1 2026. "The Book of Judith." Premiered July 2026.

 

Amazon Prime / Apple TV+.

 

Opening looks intriguing.  

 

One of the two leading actresses plays a WOCA -- and, in fact, she's 52 years old.  

 

All 8 episodes are available on Amazon Prime / Apple TV+.

 

Query: will there be a second season? See also this link.

 

#1 on Amazon Prime video.