So, kinda like I expected they got me a load from the Kmart DC in Greensboro right down the road, But it didn't PU til the next day at 1, so I thought. I sat around all day and the left the next day around 10. got to the DC and picked up the preloaded trailer. I guess on the weekend they have them all loaded so I could have picked it up in the morning. Ohh well. grabbed to trailer and headed out. Ran the 280 miles straight threw and am now parked behind the Kmart store that i deliver to in the morning. It is in a nice shopping plaza so I got myself a good meal at a really nice Chinese food place. The people that work there were having their dinner so I hung out with them. It was cool for them to let me hang out but it was kinda hard to carry on a conversation. So it ended up being more awkward the interesting. I deliver half this load here and then take the other half to MD. The whole trailer is only a 3rd of the way full, 6,000lbs total with the 2 stops. Thats kinda scares me considering this is supposed to be the busy season as far as people buying shit. It rained the whole way here and from the looks of things it isn't going to stop. Plus big news that sis and mom will like... The Gerbil is gone!!!! i trimmed up the beard nice and tight!!! so no more making fun...well at least about that. Here are a few more pictures that everyone will enjoy. The fist one is of one of our trucks. Not sure what happened they don't give us details. but the trailer got cut in half right behind the truck. when they pulled the truck out the front of the trailer was still attached. Driver was OK. The second one is of a pile up due to fog and that sucker went up in flames. This one happened near our terminal in Joplin but wasn't one of ours.

After I delivered that Load in NJ, they sent me right across the border to PA to pick up a load that night. That load there was a nice light one for a change. I am kinda crazy about fuel mileage. anyhow it was a load of TP headed just into GA. Only 300 miles from where i asked to go for home time. NICE!!! I pick up the load and it is 770 some miles. Down I-81 to I-77 to I-85 exit 140. Nice easy run. Well just like on the "Skipper" The Weather started getting rough!!! It was a weired mix of rain and snow, but the main issue was the fog mixed in. At one point i was down to 25mph, i couldn't see a thing. this is when you want a heavy load, it helps keep traction and I think I had something like 7,000 lbs, not a whole lot. Anyhow I drove until 2 in the morning and then found a truck stop and shut it down. I woke up at 8am after my usual 6 hrs of sleep and of course had to sit around for 4 more hrs doing nothing except bitch about those stupid hours of service rules. That make me sit round instead of making money. Delivered this load at a new Walgreens DS. Then moments later I got a load to grab out of Atlanta to take to Charlotte. That load weighed nothing as well. The ride out of there was horrible back up 85. But for the people going South it was a lot worse. There was accident after accident a couple that had fatalities that shut down the whole road for hrs. It was bumper to bumper for 60-70 miles going that direction. So anyhow I dropped that load at one of our Freight terminals and headed the last 150 miles empty to take 2 days off at a friends place near Reighly NC. It was a fun short visit. Katheryn is a friend of mine from the days taking care of the horses and her sister was visiting also so that was good because we could go do stuff when Katheryn was at work. Then after getting up at 5:30 EST she droped me off and now am waiting for a load and for the shop to open so I can get a few lights fixed on the trailer I picked up. And thats about it. I just have to update the paper work and I am good to go again until Cristmas.

Got a load!!!

Finally got a load going to NJ. almost 1900 miles in 3 days!!!!! I already did 1300 miles of the trip. I have to get up around 2am to get as close as I want to get to NJ, spend the night and then deliver in the morning. Hopefully they will get me out of there quickly. It isn't a real truck friendly place. Wish i had more time to write but my 10hr is ticking away, got to get some sleep.

All the tacos you can eat!!!!

I took a nice long load from WI to Laredo TX, 1600 miles. We have a fairly large terminal here and on Mondays there is always a lot of drivers waiting for loads. Plus Monday was some Mexican Holiday so everything was shut down over there and that is where we get most the loads from out of this area. This time it was a grand total of 91!!!! Thats means it will be a long wait to get a load out of here. Luckily a friend of mine made it down here today so at least I have someone to complain with. I was plaining to stay out here until Christmas but I think I am going to take a couple of days off on Thanksgiving to visit a friend. All though i am about broke after that long time off and a $400 cell phone bill. I kinda forgot I was in Canada and ran up the bill quick. But other than that life is good. My fridge is working again, It is great weather down here and I have time to catch a movie and dinner with a friend.

This is a picture of the place i picked this load up. They get trees delivered by truck and cut them up and make it into Laminate. Then they call us, Put 45,000 lbs of the stuff on our trucks and we take it to Mexico to be made into Laminate flooring. Then we take it back up to the customers here in the states. Even with us charging around $2 a mile to move the stuff ($3,200 one way) it is still cheaper than to make it here.


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Made it!!!

this was a short trip, 350 miles. Took this starbucks load all the way to the delivery but as i thought they won't take me til tomorrow. That's OK hopefully I will get a good load out of here. The best part? free coffee for the drivers!!! This is a big place, where they roast the beans I guess. Surprisingly it doesn't have a huge smell of coffee like one would think. There isn't any parking on the property so just down the street there was a dead end that I backed into. so with any luck I will be able to get a good night sleep. It is a small town York, PA nice a quite.

Got a call today from a friend that drives for Swift. he decided to race his trailer down the hwy and lost. He was driving near the Ohio border and his trailer decided it was sick of following the truck all the time and attempted to pass the truck. it probably would have taken him except it was attached to the truck so it just ended up pushing the whole mess into the ditch. This was a bad deal needless to say. He was empty and there was a good layer of fresh snow. He said he was only doing 45mph and he panicked when he saw what was going on. Stepped on the brake and that was that. But other than that I got nothing to say...

Things went great on my home time. I really got to relax this time and got a lot done as well. Thought threw a bunch of stuff and realized some mistakes I have been making in my life and at my job. So hopefully I can get some of that stuff worked out. I looked into getting that local run with the same company, it just didn't make much sense right now so I decided to keep doing what I have been doing. Not much more to tell. I have to get the truck cleaned up a little and then get some sleep. tomorrow I got a load from Buffalo to York PA. it is a coffee roasting plant for Starbucks. Should be interesting to check out. I will put up some pictures of Asher when I get them e-mailed to me from Hillary. good times, good times.

Home sweet Home

I am so glad right now that I took the opportunity to come home early. I passed the HazMat test and got my finger prints done at the cop shop today. (well yesterday it is just after midnight) Today I will try and get up at 5:30 to go vote and then I have to take the truck to the shop to get new tires put on. I also talked to my company and they have another run out of Buffalo that pays by the hour and i would be home everyday. so now I have two different opportunities to run out of Buffalo. I still have to fill out the application for the FastPass for Canada but that I guess I just fill out, send it to our terminal in Detroit and they take care of the rest. The $150 i spent on getting the HazMat is supposed to be reimbursed. I am so glad I have these opportunities to run out of Buffalo. I really like working for this company it was just I wasn't getting to many miles. So this way it is going to guarantee me ok miles every week. With the extra pay stuff it should work out good. At least it looks that way so far on paper. I'll probably stick with it until the spring when things pick back up and then decide if I should go back to OTR (over the road) like I do now or stick with that run. So tomorrow i have to deal with the truck and get some little stuff done, then Wednesday i am getting a new tattoo which will take most the day and then Thursday Asher comes into town, which will be really cool and then Hit the road again on Monday.
Later.
Wooster

Well after sitting in the truck for a day and a half, i said screw it and headed home. I think it was a good move after all because I am going to work on getting my HazMat certification so I can haul deadly chemicals and bombs and stuff around the country. Then I have to get a FastPass so crossing the Canadian border will be easier. My company has a dedicated run out of Buffalo that I am thinking about taking. It will make it hard to goto Philly but i think I kinda have no choice. Our miles have slowed down a lot and this run will be guenteed miles every week. I will pobably do it just for the winter while things are slow. Then when things start moving again go back over the road. I will still be living out of the truck but I will have a day and a half home every week. I don't really care to much about the home time but I just need the miles out of it. This time at home is going to put a dent in the pay check for sure, but in the end after getting these additional certs. I will make a few more pennies per mile and hopefully it will be worth it in the end.