Moving Slowly

They finally got me in the shop late Wednesday night and got my service done. They found other things to be repaired so I slept in the truck over night and they took it back into the shop in the morning. Finally got the truck back at noon on Thursday. Got a load about 4pm that afternoon to pick up in Harrisonburg, VA Friday night. So I drove down and waited. It was a 3 hour drive.

The next day I laid around all day and went over early to get the load, about 5 hours early. They had it loaded, but had not finished the paperwork on it yet. That took another 2 1/2 hours to get. I finally got on the road at 8:30pm and drove over just north of Beckly, WV on I-77. Spent the night there and made it to East Saint Louis, IL on Saturday evening at 8 pm. I had 2 drops in northwest St. Louis, MO on Monday morning. I had another day and a half to set.

When unloaded Monday, I was given a load sitting on the drop lot in East St. Louis that had 2 drops. The first is in Indianapolis on Tuesday morning, and the last drop is in Cincinnati on Wednesday morning. Will have 350 miles over 2 days, not much, but at least moving. Seems to be precious little of that lately. Ohio freight has been slow too, so that should be interesting.

Bangor

Picked up the load out of Newark, NJ around 8pm Monday night and had to drive through the night so I could make a 6:30am delivery on Tuesday. Stopped in Milford, CT to get fuel a little before midnight. Found out that when I inadvertently bump into the pump lever and turn off the fueling, I got problems. The fuel island was very narrow at this truck stop, and while trying to clean my mirrors I backed up close to the pump and pushed in the lever turning off the pump with only 49 gallons going into the tanks.

Well this wasn't enough since I needed another 80 gallons to finish filling up. They have this little rule with comdata cards that you can't fuel twice within 2 hours. So I had to call dispatch to have them call comdata to over ride my mistake so I could get the rest of my fuel. Ended up taking 45 minutes on a normal 15 minute fuel stop.

I got into Bangor, ME right at when I needed to, but had to drive non stop from Connecticut to Bangor, a trip of around 6 hours. I got unloaded and they gave me a load of rolled paper out of Skowhegan, ME going back down to Hagerstown, MD. This is pretty much all they make in Maine is paper, lot of trees. This gave me time to take a 10 hour break, but being in the middle of the day, I never got to sleep. Doesn't matter how tired I am, I can't sleep in the day time. I got the load and headed south, rains starting up. I was going to stop along the way and take another break, but my truck started acting up.

I was about 5000 miles overdue for my truck service since I couldn't get by a shop. With these trucks if you go too long after needing service your fuel filter is going to start plugging up...well surprise. A stopped up fuel filter and a heavy load don't go together, especially in hills. I was dragging down to 20 mph going up the hills. Anyway, I got into our terminal in New Kingstown, PA at 6am and had to give up the load and try to get into the shop. So here I sit.

Here are a few pictures along the way just south of Bangor.

Still in PA

Sat near Allentown, PA all weekend. They gave me a load offer last night that picks up later tonight in Newark, NJ. Will still be sitting here all day, and worse will have to drive all night up to Bangor, ME to deliver on Tuesday morning. Don't like over night runs, but really going up I-95 through NYC, Hartford, Boston area, it will be much better at night. Bangor is about the last medium size city going north into Maine. Maybe can get some good New England clam chowder this time up.

Will have to see if I can get a nap this afternoon, usually hard for me to do, but all I can do is try.

Wonderful Pennslyvania

Got the load to Lexington, KY delivered on Thursday morning and had to wait until Thursday night to pick up a load there in Lexington going to Quakertown, PA. This is about 15 miles south of Allentown, not a good place to go.

Dropped the load on Saturday morning and came to a screeching halt. Freight dried up. I am still sitting here on Sunday and got a message from dispatch, nothing going until possibly tomorrow, and right now that didn't look promising. The parking lot has our company trucks sitting everywhere. Will end up sitting here in one place for 3 to 4 days. Economy is really kicking in now looks like.

On the Road Again

Well, I'm back in the truck alone again. Corey and I had a good month together. Worked him hard at home rebuilding the fence behind the house. Couldn't do but about 4 hours a day since was around 102 degrees each day. Took him home on Monday and went to the ENT on my ear ache. Seems my right ear has closed back up again, scarred down as he put it. Kind of thought my hearing had gotten worse over last year. Will have some tests next week and see what to do next.

Picked up a load In Kilgore, TX going to Lexington, KY for tomorrow delivery. Nice up here today, temperature in the 70's, can't beat that. Have a load of bottle caps for jam jars going to JM Smucker Co.

Trip with Corey June/July 2009

Well, we have made it back home. Corey was with me for most of a month this time around. I let him have control of the camera and now will post his pictures. Not consistent on getting some shots everyday, but it shows what he was interested in. Several airplanes for one. Mountains for another. He got some rather good shots in some areas, a little blurry in others.

Since being home I have been mending fences in the back of the property where some trees had cut and laid them down. Our renters have horses on the lot so I needed to get it repaired. Worked two partial days since it has been over 100+ all week. Got it done though. Hope you enjoy Corey's pictures, I will be going to Houston for a Doctor appointment tomorrow and return Corey to his home. I will be leaving out again on Tuesday.

Still in Missouri

This is the day I was supposed to get home, but due to a snafu in the computer world I'm still working 800 miles from home. The way the system works you call your home terminal and give them the day you want to get home. They send you a confirmation on the qualcom satellite system and also place the information of approved home time on your screen so that the dispatchers can see it. Then as it gets closer to time to head home you send a message to the dispatcher in the region you are going into with a message that you need your next load to go home.

Well, it works when the message actually gets on your screen for the dispatchers to see. If that approval message hasn't been put on your screen by your home terminal then you can beg dispatch until you are blue in the face to get home, and you aren't getting there. I should have known that I had a problem when I called the terminal for approval, and the lady I usually talk to handed me off to a new girl that needed the "experience". Well bunk. She took the information and sent me a confirmation, but....she didn't put it on my screen. Then a long holiday weekend. I'm sending messages, I need next load to go home, and I'm getting nothing back from dispatch. They sent me over to Fulton, MO with a load after Harrisonville, MO, and I'm getting concerned because here it is Monday. Supposed to be home Tuesday. Have doctor appointment on Thursday and dentist on Friday. About mid day while waiting for a load I send a message to dispatch "It is on my screen about my home time isn't it?" NO!!!!!! it isn't.

So now I'm on phone to assistant fleet manager at home terminal. He is looking desperately through computer trying to find me something headed home, even loads to swap with other drivers. Nothing. Finally late in the day Monday they give me a load that loads late today going to Houston, but it doesn't deliver until Thursday morning. Can't deliver and go home, and get back to Houston for the doctor appointment. So Pat is on the phone for me trying to reschedule my appointments to fit my time home. Got lucky. Not normally the case, but thank goodness.

It is not normally this much trouble to get home on the day you need to be home. Was a "falling through the cracks" deal that I caught late because of a long holiday weekend. That is usually the time I get messed up on this job, is when I can't get in touch with home terminal for some help.

Still have loads of pictures to upload that Corey has been taking on the trip. My PC card is going bad I believe, I haven't been able to make a good connection for my computer in quite a while, and it is worse than dial up lately. So not much reason to try and upload them until we get home.

Happy 4th of July

Hope everyone has had a happy and safe 4th of July. We delivered the JIT load in Oklahoma arriving about 2 hours early for delivery. After getting unloaded went to a truck stop near by and bedded down until next morning. They gave me a load out of Muskogee, OK going up near Chicago. The load had a Monday delivery and since it was only Thursday I was supposed to drop the load at the drop yard in East St Louis, IL. When I got there there was no place to drop the trailer. Our company had about a dozen spots designated at the drop yard for our trailers and they were all full, and there were other drivers there looking for a place to drop theirs. There was not a single empty trailer there either. After one hour they told me to go ahead and take the load up to Romeoville, IL drop yard, which was only about 1 mile from where the load delivered. I got there at 10am Friday and dropped the load, and no empty trailers there either. After I got there about 5 more of our drivers came in too. I finally got a load to pick up Saturday morning going down near Kansas City, MO in Harrisonville. I am sitting near there now. Will deliver the load to Walmart Sunday morning and do a drop and hook. Hopefully will get a load headed to the house from there.