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“My husband just called me … he just got fired,” said Laurie Cox, her voice trembling ever so slightly as she put on a brave smile. But it was impossible to ignore her now-crestfallen demeanor.
Cox is the owner of a hotel in Midland, a quaint town with a population of about 100. She had just finished talking about how business was booming late last year during which she had befriended people working on the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
Workers would return from their shifts from a handful of nearby pump stations to unwind at the hotel since it was just a short drive away. Cox recalls having dinner together with the workers and lively chats night after night, many became close with her pet dog—a cute canine called Heidi.