I finally got a call from dispatch late this afternoon that informed me that I have a load to pick up in Charlotte, NC around noon tomorrow. As I have already been sitting in SC since yesterday I decided that I'll just sit here until tomorrow morning so as to gain a 34 hour restart.

The hours of service regulations governing truckers states that remaining in one place, off duty, for 34 hours results in a restart on the maximum of 70 hours one is allowed to work in a week.

As I am off duty and have nothing else to do I decided to wander over to the bar across the street. Naturally I took my pipes with me to enjoy a few good smokes while I indulged in a few adult beverages.

I had a pretty good time there for the most part. At a point after I had been there for a couple of hours a couple of ladies came in and sat to my left. They both seemed a bit "odd". Being the gentleman that I am I greeted them as they sat down. The one closest to me said something about having had a bad day and as I am quite fond of humor and believe that it's a great curative for what ails you asked her she had stubbed her toe.

It bwas meant to be humorous but she gave me such an evil look that I had to use all of my willpower to not burst out laughing at her. I even turned to the fellow on my right and said "Wow, what a look!" He had noticed it too.

After a few drinks she settled down and became less angry. I guess tequila works that way for some folks but has always had the opposite effect on me which is why I avoid it. Anyway, she did eventually converse with me, as did her friend, and I decided rather quickly that they were both quite insane.

Now don't get me wrong, I am rather a fan of insane people for the most part as I find them very interesting and often amusing, but these two were the sort of insane that makes one wonder if they are carrying large knives or something. Let's just say that they seemed less than stable.

Other than the two crazy women the place was comfortable and enjoyable. They have great burgers, fun employees, and are smoker friendly. As usual I had plenty of conversation spurred by my pipes and my knitting. Both seem to make people want to chat. Or maybe it's just my friendly air and boyish good looks LOL.

Probably it's just my funny hat.

Anyway, I'll pull out of here tomorrow morning with a fresh 70 hours and go get my load to haul to Milwaukee. With any luck at all I'll be able to stop along the way and enjoy some more adult beverages and crazy women.