It seems that no matter how high gasoline prices soar the roads are no less crowded. I still see just as many SUVs, motor homes, campers, and pickups pulling boats as ever. Obviously the oil companies are correct in their assumption that they can charge whatever they like and people are still going to be buying and wasting just as much as ever. Today, Sunday, the interstates were jammed with traffic. Not just a lot of local traffic, but license plates from all over. All of these travelers ...
After I pulled out of the truckstop this morning and started making my way up interstate 65 I glanced at my data display panel. Oops, fuel level down to 12%. I knew I'd forgotten something, I had planned to fuel before leaving. I had a choice to make. I could either make a U turn at the next exit and return to the truckstop for fuel or try to make the next one 62 miles up the road. I did some quick mental calculations and decided that if I cut my cruising speed back to 60mph I should have ...
I'm having my morning coffee and shaking the cobwebs out of my head. I woke around 6:00 this morning, which is my normal wake up time, realized that I really don't need to get up early, and went back to sleep for a couple more hours. Just being lazy. I am about 8 hours from Eau Claire where I'll be delivering on Monday morning. Two whole days to make an 8 hour run from here. I'm debating whether to just stay here until tomorrow morning or go on up the road a little way and split the trip i...
I stopped this afternoon in Lebanon, IN. It's one of my favorite stopping points. I had a few beers and a good meal. One of the guys I spent some time in conversation with is a rookie who's been driving all of 6 months. Good kid, but still naive about the lifestyle of trucking. We had some pretty good conversation as he's one of the few who is actually interested in learning a little from those who have been there and done that. I had a pretty good time tonight, shooting pool with some ...
The boss called me today while I was making my way out of NC. He wanted to know how I was making out (fine), and if I had yet had a chance to swing into a Western Star dealer to get an estimate done for the repairs for the damages done by that rookie in the truckstop a while back (nope). As I was on my way back to WI he said he'd make an appointment for me to take it in for the estimate for Saturday. I pointed out that there were two problems with that. He asked what they were. I replied t...
I arrived at my final stop in Walterboro, SC about 30 minutes early this morning just to be sure I could find the place. It was a bit tricky getting to it, but I did find it. I wasn't too surprised that the electrical crew wasn't there yet, I was 30 minutes early. At 8:00am they still hadn't made an appearance and that's when I began to wonder if there had been some miscommunication or if I was even at the correct location. I made a call to the electrical contracting company and spoke with...
No, I'm not writing about anything kinky. This trip seems wierd to me. I am normally running so as to be able to make my deliveries in a tmely fashion and am more often than not pressed for time. The way this load works out I have a lot of extra time on my hands. I delivered the first stop in SW VA yesterday. It was only 4 1/2 hours to the second stop South of CHarlotte, NC but that one couldn't deliver until this morning. It's a job site, a new school being built. I delivered that this mo...
I used to have a hat that was my favorite of all hats. It was a black Stetson Gun Club Dealer, XXXXX beaver felt. It was a flat crowned hat and the shape fit my head perfectly making it very comfortable. It was also a quite nice looking hat to boot. Sadly, a couple of years back it suffered a horrible accident. I have been checking in every Western shop I come across to find another one. All of the shops I have checked in the last couple of years either didn't have that particular hat or did...
Out of deference to my bum hip I'm making the run to SouthWestern VA in short hops of 2 to 3 hours to give me a chance to get out of the driver's seat and move around a bit to ease the pain and stiffness a bit. It feels a lot better today than it did yesterday although I am still forced to use the cane. Hopefully by tomorrow morning I'll be able to leave the cane in the truck. Maybe even later today if it continues to improve. I'm currently stopped in Gary, IN for breakfast. Gary is not...
What a morning! I arrived at the yard around 8:00 this morning to see what sort of load they had for me. I have 5 generators on fuel tank bases, some transfer switches, and 1 trailer mounted generator. 3 of the generators don't have enclosures so they had to be tarped. I spent most of the morning chaining down and tarping the load. All of that walking, climbing, and hoisting has left me barely able to hobble along with my cane. I'm walking like a 90 year old man at the moment. Anyway, once...
Just about the time I finished typing my last article I heard the door handle to my hotel room jiggling. WTF? I opened the door and here's a guy standing in front of me. I tell him "I think you have the wrong room, dude". He replies "This is the room she told me". He's obviously even more drunk than I am. He tried to push his way into my room. Sorry, not going to happen. I slammed him back out into the hall and up against the wall. "Look, dude, you have the wrong room". I am still try...
I'm back in WI. I stopped at the yard long enough to drop my trailer and collect my paycheck. I asked the boss what he had planned for me. His answer was "I'm not sure yet". That's cool. I boogied to the bank, cashed my check, checked into the hotel, and hit Applyby's. My favorite bartender, Jenny, wasn't working there any more. Major bummer. The new bartender, Nikki, was actually better looking and sexier, but not nearly as much fun. Several of the people who worked there said hello...
Today while rolling across I 24 in TN, cruising along at about 70mph I see that a couple of cars are coming down the on ramp. I check to ensure the center lane is clear, hit my signal, and ease over into the center lane to allow the cars to safely merge onto the interstate. Pretty routine. The first car comes on out and I notice that it's not moving all that fast. This usually gets my attention as it indicates someone who clearly doesn't know how to merge onto an interstate highway. I am k...
This morning's pick up at the Reserve post went very smoothly. No problems finding the place and they were waiting for me when I arrived. I was expecting some pretty used and abused truck but this one is in very good condition. It shouldn't need much except normal maintenance and relettering to be redistributed to another Reserve post. I made it through Atlanta so I won't have to deal with that mess in the morning. I'm spending the night here in North Georgia and will make my way up into W...
Mom just called me. I am going over to her house for coffee in the morning so they can give me a ride to my truck when I leave out tomorrow. She had lain down to take a nap. When she awoke she looked at the clock and thought she had overslept. She rushed into the kitchen, made coffee, and then walked out onto the porch to get her morning paper whereupon she got angry thinking someone had stolen her paper (it's happened). She sat down in the living room and switched on the television. That'...