Well, after my last entry, we made it into Arcadia,FL and delivered to Walmart. After that, as expected, we ended up with another flower load. This time they had us head to Miami and pick up there, then go to Pierson,FL where we dropped that trailer and picked up another one with our load on it. What they do is bring trailers full of product from the Prime Floral in Miami to the Prime Floral in Pierson. Once the trailers get to Pierson they unload them and then reload other trailers based on what the customers order. So we grabbed a shower there and were off. This time we only had six stops instead of the 14 so it wasn't near as bad. What was cool about this load though is that the last stop was in the Chicago area. So when we dropped our last bit of flowers, we told our FM that we were taking the night off to see Justin since that is where he is stationed at. We were also able to spend the first part of the day with a high school friend of mine that I hadn't seen in about 9 years! It was so good to see her again! We had lost touch and she had an unlisted number but she happened to find me on Myspace. How cool is that?
We had a nice time visiting with her and then later with Justin. Then we headed to the hotel for a night of rest that was not in the truck. We told our FM we would be available the next afternoon at 1600 so that we would be able to get a 34 hr restart out of the deal. We got up the next morning and did a little shopping at the mall. We still have our summer clothes and we were in serious need of some warmer clothing. While we were at the mall our FM called and said he had a load for us. As soon as we were finished shopping we headed back over to the Mars facility to pick up an empty trailer. While I was on the way over there he sent a message saying that he was going to take us off that load because it was only 900 miles and didn't deliver until Saturday which meant we would be sitting because there was too much time on it for a team. A little while later he sends us another load headed to Sacramento. It is a FedEx load but it didn't pick-up until this morning at 0800. We decided that we would head to the I-55 Truck Stop in Bolingbrook,IL and spend the night there since it was only about 17 miles from where we needed to pick up and there aren't many choices in the Chicago area when it comes to truck parking.
Well, we picked up this morning and hit the road. J went back to bed for a while and after hitting the road at 0900, I made it to the Bosselman's Pilot on the east side of Des Moines,IA a whopping 349 miles down the road. Now we are left with 1736 miles to go by 2300 tomorrow night in Sacramento,CA. We are going to be late. There just isn't enough time on this load. Even with J driving 600 miles tonight on his shift, me doing 600 miles tomorrow on mine and then him doing the last bit, it looks like we will still be a couple hours late. At least it is just a drop and they won't be waiting on us to get there for a live unload so a couple hours shouldn't matter.
Our FM is going on vacation starting tomorrow so I sent him a message asking to get us pre-planned on a load going back to Arcadia,FL with some produce out of the Sacramento area. That is usually a good paying load to that Walmart and then we should get a flower load out of there which also pays good. Plus, a little physical labor unloading those flowers is good for us after sitting on our asses all day!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Marianna,FL - Again
Seems we were just here last week. Or there abouts anyway. We are ahead of schedule and had to kill some time. We drop this load in Arcadia,FL at a Walmart DC but we can't arrive more than an hour early. There is a Pilot about 10 miles from our drop but there won't be any parking when we would arrive there in the middle of the night since our appointment is at 0330. Therefore I stopped here for a few hours to let J get some non-moving rest. He was trying to get to sleep through Louisiana and that is near impossible!
Not much happened today. Had a nice drive and we are averaging 7.45 mpg for this trip from California so I am happy about that. I m curios to see if we get a flower load after this and exactly how many stops we will have. I guess we will have to wait until in the morning to find out.
That is all for now I guess. Not much to report!
Not much happened today. Had a nice drive and we are averaging 7.45 mpg for this trip from California so I am happy about that. I m curios to see if we get a flower load after this and exactly how many stops we will have. I guess we will have to wait until in the morning to find out.
That is all for now I guess. Not much to report!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Wichita Falls,TX
Ok, let me catch you up. After I last posted with trekked across I-80 with a stop in Ogalalla,NE to have dinner with friends. Took off and made it about 30 miles down the road before pulling over to stop for about an hour because a big rain storm was passing through and there was some really high wind. It passed and we head out again. I go ahead and head to bed knowing that J should get me to somewhere in Utah. Or at least close to the UT/WY border. Around 2330 he wakes me up and tells me he is stopping for the night. Apparently winter decided to make an appearance and it was a white out blizzard outside. No problemo, got a good nights sleep with the truck stopped.
Got up the next morning, had breakfast and headed out. Roads still a little icy but the further west I went the cleared they got. Stopped at a rest area about 45 miles west of Laramie when I got a message from our FM. There is a team about 70 miles behind us with a FedEx load that they can't make on time and he is asking us to take it over. What the hell, the pay is about the same, a little less actually. But the load is about 20K lbs lighter. Sweet. They meet us at the rest area where we swap and I am off. Driving, driving, driving and we make it to somewhere in Nevada around 0300. I get up and with 398 miles to go before noon, I am off. I make it to the FedEx facility in Sacramento with 45 minutes to spare. Find out it is a drop and hook (YES!) so we drop it, grab and empty and send in our depart macro and sit there and wait.
I sent our FM a message asking if we had time for a shower and laundry but he said to hang tight because he thought he had a load for us. About 10 minutes later he asks if we are ok with multi-stop flower loads and as I am replying we get our work assignment. Go to Salinas and pick up a produce load going to Arcadia,FL. Mmmm Ok, what happened to the flower load? He said that is what we will likely get coming out of Florida. Okey dokey, I am tracking now. J takes over and gets us to Salinas where we decide we will pick up the load and then go park and get laundry and showers. Nope, looks like sales dropped the ball and forgot to make an appointment after they got the load. They gave us an appointment when I got there, but for 2200 hrs that night. And the truck stops were already full so that meant no showers and no laundry. ARGH! I head to bed and J waits to get loaded. After he gets loaded, he just pulls back in their parking lot and waits for the time to wake me up. He is a sweetheart and lets me sleep until 0400. Once I am able to pry my eyes open, I head to the Pilot to scale the load and I head out. I made it to Barstow and we decided to stop there to do laundry and get a much needed shower. With this load going to Florida, we have 3 full days, that is six shifts with 3 shifts each and only 2780 miles to go. That means it is at most a 500 mile shift and we have extra time.
So now we are driving through North Texas on US 287 headed towards Dallas. We will hit I-20 down there and then I think it is I-49 through Louisiana and then pick up I-10. I am curious to see what flower load we end up with. I really wasn't fond of that 14 stop one we had last time. However, it paid damn good, and I guess I wouldn't mind it again since now I would know the stops and where I was going. Plus, I fully intend to take the night off after we do the flower load because they wear you out!
Got up the next morning, had breakfast and headed out. Roads still a little icy but the further west I went the cleared they got. Stopped at a rest area about 45 miles west of Laramie when I got a message from our FM. There is a team about 70 miles behind us with a FedEx load that they can't make on time and he is asking us to take it over. What the hell, the pay is about the same, a little less actually. But the load is about 20K lbs lighter. Sweet. They meet us at the rest area where we swap and I am off. Driving, driving, driving and we make it to somewhere in Nevada around 0300. I get up and with 398 miles to go before noon, I am off. I make it to the FedEx facility in Sacramento with 45 minutes to spare. Find out it is a drop and hook (YES!) so we drop it, grab and empty and send in our depart macro and sit there and wait.
I sent our FM a message asking if we had time for a shower and laundry but he said to hang tight because he thought he had a load for us. About 10 minutes later he asks if we are ok with multi-stop flower loads and as I am replying we get our work assignment. Go to Salinas and pick up a produce load going to Arcadia,FL. Mmmm Ok, what happened to the flower load? He said that is what we will likely get coming out of Florida. Okey dokey, I am tracking now. J takes over and gets us to Salinas where we decide we will pick up the load and then go park and get laundry and showers. Nope, looks like sales dropped the ball and forgot to make an appointment after they got the load. They gave us an appointment when I got there, but for 2200 hrs that night. And the truck stops were already full so that meant no showers and no laundry. ARGH! I head to bed and J waits to get loaded. After he gets loaded, he just pulls back in their parking lot and waits for the time to wake me up. He is a sweetheart and lets me sleep until 0400. Once I am able to pry my eyes open, I head to the Pilot to scale the load and I head out. I made it to Barstow and we decided to stop there to do laundry and get a much needed shower. With this load going to Florida, we have 3 full days, that is six shifts with 3 shifts each and only 2780 miles to go. That means it is at most a 500 mile shift and we have extra time.
So now we are driving through North Texas on US 287 headed towards Dallas. We will hit I-20 down there and then I think it is I-49 through Louisiana and then pick up I-10. I am curious to see what flower load we end up with. I really wasn't fond of that 14 stop one we had last time. However, it paid damn good, and I guess I wouldn't mind it again since now I would know the stops and where I was going. Plus, I fully intend to take the night off after we do the flower load because they wear you out!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Fort Bend,IN
Actually we switched drivers at the service plaza in Howe,IN but we just left the Pilot in Fort Bend where we got fuel.
So you know how I posted yesterday and was at Quad Graphics in Martinsburg,WV waiting to be loaded, right? Well, our appointment was at 1230 and I got there around 1145. She said they were running a little behind so I told her no problem. I turned on my CB and waited for her to call me to a dock. FINALLY at around 1730 I was called to a dock 38. Sweet. Pulled to that dock, backed in and set the brakes without a single pull up. It was really beautiful. And I proceeded to wait. About 30 minutes later she calls me on the CB and asks me not to kill her, but could I go back around to the back side (where I was at to begin with) and back into door 55 instead. Sure, no problem. Start the truck, head to the back and get in door 55. Wait....Wait....Wait.... Guess what time we were finally loaded and called up to pick up our paperwork? 0130 in the morning! Yes, that is 13 hours past our appointment time. The only good thing is that we better be getting detention pay out of this ordeal. Especially after dropping the load Saturday morning and not getting this load until Sunday afternoon.
Since it was already 0130, J just went back around to the back after he got the paperwork and parked until I got up at 0300. Then I headed out. Only made it about 503 miles because there were some good hills there in WV. But when I closed my log for the day I felt like I had accompolished something. I had entries in WV, MD, PA, OH and IN. So I crossed 5 states. Not bad!
So you know how I posted yesterday and was at Quad Graphics in Martinsburg,WV waiting to be loaded, right? Well, our appointment was at 1230 and I got there around 1145. She said they were running a little behind so I told her no problem. I turned on my CB and waited for her to call me to a dock. FINALLY at around 1730 I was called to a dock 38. Sweet. Pulled to that dock, backed in and set the brakes without a single pull up. It was really beautiful. And I proceeded to wait. About 30 minutes later she calls me on the CB and asks me not to kill her, but could I go back around to the back side (where I was at to begin with) and back into door 55 instead. Sure, no problem. Start the truck, head to the back and get in door 55. Wait....Wait....Wait.... Guess what time we were finally loaded and called up to pick up our paperwork? 0130 in the morning! Yes, that is 13 hours past our appointment time. The only good thing is that we better be getting detention pay out of this ordeal. Especially after dropping the load Saturday morning and not getting this load until Sunday afternoon.
Since it was already 0130, J just went back around to the back after he got the paperwork and parked until I got up at 0300. Then I headed out. Only made it about 503 miles because there were some good hills there in WV. But when I closed my log for the day I felt like I had accompolished something. I had entries in WV, MD, PA, OH and IN. So I crossed 5 states. Not bad!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Happy Birthday to J!!!
Y, today is his birthday! I won't say how old he is, because he is insisting that he is only turning 30 this year. But I will tell you that he turned 40 two years ago. So you can do the math but he can't be mad at me because I didn't tell you. :) Unfortunately being on the road, we didn't get to do anything to celebrate. But I did treat him to Waffle House last night, so that should count for something. haha
When we left Laredo,TX headed to Toughkenamon,PA we knew that we would have to kick it up to make it on time. Only stopping for fuel and the necessary bathroom breaks, I made it there about 10 minutes late. I notified dispatch so it wasn't a problem. If I hadn't stopped about 2 hours before to go to the bathroom, I would have made it on time. But a girl can only hold it for so long if you know what I mean. I was able to get there and get right to a dock but when they unloaded me, they took forever to count. It was an 0900 appt and I got out of there around 1030 so it really wasn't bad.
While I was there I sent a message in asking how freight was looking because I was going to need a washout on the trailer before I picked up anything else and I was kinda wondering which direction to head to get that done. The message back said that it was pretty slow on freight so I decided to head back south to Elkton,MD to the Petro where there was a Blue Beacon. After I got the trailer washed out I headed to the parking lot to kill some time. That was when J woke up so we decided to head in for a shower and hit the soup and salad bar for a light lunch. I sent a message in telling them that if we got a load to call me on my cell so that I would know we needed to hurry. We headed in and went straight for the shower first. She asked if we wanted a double shower and I said yes. Usually, they just give you a bigger shower for a couple, if they have one instead of one of those tiny ones where you can touch both sides of the room if you stretch your arms out. When we got to the shower room, it was indeed a bigger room, but the shower itself had two shower heads! I hadn't seen that before in a truck stop shower. I thought it was pretty cool. Anyway, get the shower and before we go in to grab lunch, we threw our dirty clothes and the backpack into the washer. Apparently either my shampoo or conditioner cap was loose and spilled. Ick! But at least we didn't have to put soap in the washer!
Finally had lunch and I headed back out to the truck to take Smokey out while J waited for the clothes to finish drying. When I get out there, I find that we have a load waiting. Hmmm Why didn't I get a call? So I start going through the messages and realize why. It is currently Saturday afternoon when we received the load assignment but it doesn't pick up until Sunday afternoon. Now some people would be mad and want a load that leaves out that day. Not me. I figure we basically live in this truck, so I will take a little down time whenever it comes my way. Besides, today is J's birthday (Sunday) so if we can get out of the truck for a few hours or overnight, then I am all for it. While I am writing the stuff down for the load and waiting on J, I look up and realize the Petro is right next to a Motel 6. Well, isn't that convenient! I make a call and they have plenty of room so I start packing up. When J gets back to the truck, I tell him the plan and we are off! We even ended up getting a room on the back side of the hotel and we could see our truck from our window. That was nice. We got situated and were going to order pizza, but we didn't have cash on us so we decided screw it, we will walk across the street to the Waffle House which is one of J's favorite places to eat. I couldn't give him a nice steak dinner for his birthday, but he loves to eat breakfast any time of the day, so he was happy.
With our bellies way to full, we headed back to the room and I forced myself to stay up long enough to catch Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live. I found it extremely hysterical. Finally I fell asleep only to hear my alarm clock go off way to soon for my liking. But we didn't have much choice if we wanted to get to our pickup on time. We still had to walk back over to the truck and drive about 150 miles. Of course I make it here to Martinsburg,WV about 45 minutes early only to be told they were running a couple hours behind. This is when I wish I knew these things in advance because I would have stayed in bed longer! But that is just how it goes.
So that is where we are now. I am killing time waiting to be loaded. Once we are ready to go, we will be headed to Tracy,CA and then to our final stop in Richmond,CA which are both due there on Wednesday morning. Keep your fingers crossed that the rain they are prediciting in Wyoming stays just that, rain. It is too early for me to deal with snow!
When we left Laredo,TX headed to Toughkenamon,PA we knew that we would have to kick it up to make it on time. Only stopping for fuel and the necessary bathroom breaks, I made it there about 10 minutes late. I notified dispatch so it wasn't a problem. If I hadn't stopped about 2 hours before to go to the bathroom, I would have made it on time. But a girl can only hold it for so long if you know what I mean. I was able to get there and get right to a dock but when they unloaded me, they took forever to count. It was an 0900 appt and I got out of there around 1030 so it really wasn't bad.
While I was there I sent a message in asking how freight was looking because I was going to need a washout on the trailer before I picked up anything else and I was kinda wondering which direction to head to get that done. The message back said that it was pretty slow on freight so I decided to head back south to Elkton,MD to the Petro where there was a Blue Beacon. After I got the trailer washed out I headed to the parking lot to kill some time. That was when J woke up so we decided to head in for a shower and hit the soup and salad bar for a light lunch. I sent a message in telling them that if we got a load to call me on my cell so that I would know we needed to hurry. We headed in and went straight for the shower first. She asked if we wanted a double shower and I said yes. Usually, they just give you a bigger shower for a couple, if they have one instead of one of those tiny ones where you can touch both sides of the room if you stretch your arms out. When we got to the shower room, it was indeed a bigger room, but the shower itself had two shower heads! I hadn't seen that before in a truck stop shower. I thought it was pretty cool. Anyway, get the shower and before we go in to grab lunch, we threw our dirty clothes and the backpack into the washer. Apparently either my shampoo or conditioner cap was loose and spilled. Ick! But at least we didn't have to put soap in the washer!
Finally had lunch and I headed back out to the truck to take Smokey out while J waited for the clothes to finish drying. When I get out there, I find that we have a load waiting. Hmmm Why didn't I get a call? So I start going through the messages and realize why. It is currently Saturday afternoon when we received the load assignment but it doesn't pick up until Sunday afternoon. Now some people would be mad and want a load that leaves out that day. Not me. I figure we basically live in this truck, so I will take a little down time whenever it comes my way. Besides, today is J's birthday (Sunday) so if we can get out of the truck for a few hours or overnight, then I am all for it. While I am writing the stuff down for the load and waiting on J, I look up and realize the Petro is right next to a Motel 6. Well, isn't that convenient! I make a call and they have plenty of room so I start packing up. When J gets back to the truck, I tell him the plan and we are off! We even ended up getting a room on the back side of the hotel and we could see our truck from our window. That was nice. We got situated and were going to order pizza, but we didn't have cash on us so we decided screw it, we will walk across the street to the Waffle House which is one of J's favorite places to eat. I couldn't give him a nice steak dinner for his birthday, but he loves to eat breakfast any time of the day, so he was happy.
With our bellies way to full, we headed back to the room and I forced myself to stay up long enough to catch Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live. I found it extremely hysterical. Finally I fell asleep only to hear my alarm clock go off way to soon for my liking. But we didn't have much choice if we wanted to get to our pickup on time. We still had to walk back over to the truck and drive about 150 miles. Of course I make it here to Martinsburg,WV about 45 minutes early only to be told they were running a couple hours behind. This is when I wish I knew these things in advance because I would have stayed in bed longer! But that is just how it goes.
So that is where we are now. I am killing time waiting to be loaded. Once we are ready to go, we will be headed to Tracy,CA and then to our final stop in Richmond,CA which are both due there on Wednesday morning. Keep your fingers crossed that the rain they are prediciting in Wyoming stays just that, rain. It is too early for me to deal with snow!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Laredo,TX
Whew! It has been a LONG couple of days since I last posted and we were in Marianna,FL. We made that drop in Arcadia,FL at the Walmart DC at 0330 in the morning. Knowing we would have some time to kill until day shift planners came in, we headed back up to the Pilot for a shower and to kill some time. Around 0830 our FM calls and asks if we are ok to do multi-stop floral loads. I tell him sure. A few minutes later we get a message from him telling us that they are going to have a solo load it and meet us at Prime Floral in Pierson,FL. I get directions and it is 250 miles away and decide I better get going! I hit the road and make it there around 1400 hours. J checks in and we find out that the driver picking up our load is picking up PART of our load. What they do is get all the trucks in from Miami and they break them up and fill orders and put them on other trailers for us to take. By the time all the trucks got there and they get us loaded it is 2200. All we knew is that our final stop was in San Antonio. When we get the paperwork to the trailer we are assigned we find out that we have 14 stops! Holy cow! It is almost midnight on Monday (almost Tuesday) and our last stop is on Wednesday at 1700 hrs and it is 1200 miles away. Trying to figure out how we are going to pull this one off, we head out.
When all is said and done, we are only about 2 hours behind at our last stop, which I consider outstanding. And all the stops DID say approximate time of delivery. What amazed me though is some of the places that they had us delivering to. Like the one florist in Mobile,AL. This was a floral shop, NOT a warehouse. It was on a main street and all it was was basically a house that was converted into a floral shop. WTF am I going to park a semi? Thank goodness there were no customers, but I had to jump a curb gettin into the parking lot and once I did, there was no room for any customers to park. Or how about the two stops in San Antonio that I had to back off of the street to get to the customer, on a two lane road downtown, and one was a blidside at an angle? Or of course the one down in Baton Rouge where we unloaded out on the street with our hazards on? Or, and this is my favorite, one of the five stops in Houston is on a freaking residental street!! After unloading on the street and blocking one lane, I ask the guy how the hell I am going to get out of there. He tells me head out the street we are on, and I will come to a major street and it will take me back to I-10. I question him about it and he says semi's so it all the time. Because believe me, there is NO room to turn onto a cross street. But I believe him and I take off. Going about 5 mph with trees scraping my roof and power lines bouncing on the trailer. One was so low that I don't know how we didn't pull it down. Thank the good Lord we made it out of there unscathed. And to top it off, every single stop was a driver unload, by hand, because all the boxed were stacked on the floor.
So yesterday morning around the 7th drop or so, I tell J to send in a message telling our FM that we would not be available until Thursday morning after we make our last delivery on Wednesday night. We were both awake for all of those drops because there was no way I could do them myself. And when I say that, I mean, if it was some different product, I might could have, but the way they stacked them, they were to the ceiling. My 5'2" frame couldn't reach the top of the rows! So we had VERY little sleep, but our driving was all legal! Just ended up working some after our 14 was up so that we could get the stops all unloaded.
After our final drop, I got out our trusty book, and checked for hotels. Found a Red Roof Inn and when we headed there, we say a billboard that promised truck parking. Once I got the truck parked, because we still had the trailer, all I had to do was wait while J checked us in and made sure they accepted pets. He came out and gave us a thumbs up so we were good to go. Grabbed our stuff and headed to the room. It was almost an all out battle over who was going to get to soak in the tub first. But J was bigger, and I have to admit, he stunk worse than I did, so I let him go first. :)
We had pushed ourselves out until 0900 this morning so we got up at 0800 and ready to go at 0900. Checked the truck and they already had us a load but it didn't pick up in Laredo,TX until 1700 hours. Knowing that we had some time, we indulged in the continental breakfast they offered and went back to the room to get the most of our money. J took a quick nap and I watched coverage of the Presidential Debate from last night. At 1100 checkout time, we were out of there.
From there we headed down the road a few exits to the Petro where there was a Blue Beacon and had the truck, trailer and inside of the trailer washed out. There was also a Taqueria across the street so we had to get some tacos for lunch and then I headed out to Laredo.
Having dealt with border crossings before, I really wasn't expecting our load to be ready on time. But I was pleasantly surprised when we stopped at the Flying J and we called and they said it was ready. We headed over and picked that sucker up and we were off. Stopped at the Pilot to get fuel, scale and grab a bite to eat and then we were officially on the road. We pulled out at 1820 and we have to be in Toughkenamon,PA at 0900 on Saturday which is 1877 miles away. Yeah, we are going to have to haul some ass to pull this off. No prolonged breaks for us! But we will still get another load after this that we should be able to deliver before payroll cutoff on Tuesday and it is already shaping up to be an outstanding week, so we will see what happens!
When all is said and done, we are only about 2 hours behind at our last stop, which I consider outstanding. And all the stops DID say approximate time of delivery. What amazed me though is some of the places that they had us delivering to. Like the one florist in Mobile,AL. This was a floral shop, NOT a warehouse. It was on a main street and all it was was basically a house that was converted into a floral shop. WTF am I going to park a semi? Thank goodness there were no customers, but I had to jump a curb gettin into the parking lot and once I did, there was no room for any customers to park. Or how about the two stops in San Antonio that I had to back off of the street to get to the customer, on a two lane road downtown, and one was a blidside at an angle? Or of course the one down in Baton Rouge where we unloaded out on the street with our hazards on? Or, and this is my favorite, one of the five stops in Houston is on a freaking residental street!! After unloading on the street and blocking one lane, I ask the guy how the hell I am going to get out of there. He tells me head out the street we are on, and I will come to a major street and it will take me back to I-10. I question him about it and he says semi's so it all the time. Because believe me, there is NO room to turn onto a cross street. But I believe him and I take off. Going about 5 mph with trees scraping my roof and power lines bouncing on the trailer. One was so low that I don't know how we didn't pull it down. Thank the good Lord we made it out of there unscathed. And to top it off, every single stop was a driver unload, by hand, because all the boxed were stacked on the floor.
So yesterday morning around the 7th drop or so, I tell J to send in a message telling our FM that we would not be available until Thursday morning after we make our last delivery on Wednesday night. We were both awake for all of those drops because there was no way I could do them myself. And when I say that, I mean, if it was some different product, I might could have, but the way they stacked them, they were to the ceiling. My 5'2" frame couldn't reach the top of the rows! So we had VERY little sleep, but our driving was all legal! Just ended up working some after our 14 was up so that we could get the stops all unloaded.
After our final drop, I got out our trusty book, and checked for hotels. Found a Red Roof Inn and when we headed there, we say a billboard that promised truck parking. Once I got the truck parked, because we still had the trailer, all I had to do was wait while J checked us in and made sure they accepted pets. He came out and gave us a thumbs up so we were good to go. Grabbed our stuff and headed to the room. It was almost an all out battle over who was going to get to soak in the tub first. But J was bigger, and I have to admit, he stunk worse than I did, so I let him go first. :)
We had pushed ourselves out until 0900 this morning so we got up at 0800 and ready to go at 0900. Checked the truck and they already had us a load but it didn't pick up in Laredo,TX until 1700 hours. Knowing that we had some time, we indulged in the continental breakfast they offered and went back to the room to get the most of our money. J took a quick nap and I watched coverage of the Presidential Debate from last night. At 1100 checkout time, we were out of there.
From there we headed down the road a few exits to the Petro where there was a Blue Beacon and had the truck, trailer and inside of the trailer washed out. There was also a Taqueria across the street so we had to get some tacos for lunch and then I headed out to Laredo.
Having dealt with border crossings before, I really wasn't expecting our load to be ready on time. But I was pleasantly surprised when we stopped at the Flying J and we called and they said it was ready. We headed over and picked that sucker up and we were off. Stopped at the Pilot to get fuel, scale and grab a bite to eat and then we were officially on the road. We pulled out at 1820 and we have to be in Toughkenamon,PA at 0900 on Saturday which is 1877 miles away. Yeah, we are going to have to haul some ass to pull this off. No prolonged breaks for us! But we will still get another load after this that we should be able to deliver before payroll cutoff on Tuesday and it is already shaping up to be an outstanding week, so we will see what happens!
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Marianna,FL
Yesterday we finally got our stuff together and by 1230 we were headed to Justin,TX to pick up a load going to Florida. I have to say I am happy to be going to Florida since the mountains are getting a ton of snow right now! We weren't in a big hurry because we only had 1300 miles to destination and it isn't due until Monday at 0330. When we got to the drop lot to pick it up, we decided a power nap was in order since we had both been up since dawn trying to get everything back in the truck and get last minute stuff done. Our friend Michelle that we were staying with helped us out and went to the bank and mailed off a care package to Justin so that was two less things we had to worry about.
Power nap over and we head out to the Pilot right up the road to fuel up. On the way out of the DFW area we stopped at the TA out in Terrell to get a PM done and were off again. J got me pretty close to Lafayette,LA where I took over this morning. At 1500 hrs my day was done in Marianna,FL with 500 miles under my belt. Now he has about 430 miles to go and he will have no problem making on time delivery.
One of the things that took us so long when we were trying to get ready is we were trying to figure out where to put two months worth of NutriSystem in the truck. We did our first month and then weren't able to get back through for the second month and by the time we made it back, the third month was delivered. On the bright side, we did find a place for all of it so we won't have to stress about getting back through to pick up a month before we run out. On the down side, we have NO space in this truck! I hope we don't get an overweight ticket! Just kidding, but there is a LOT of food in here. We definitely won't starve. And the day before we headed back out here, I got an e-mail saying our next order has been shipped. I think we are on a roll now and won't have to worry about running out of food since we are a month ahead on our orders and a month behind actually eating it!
Another thing I am trying to figure out is the cost of taking 5 girls plus J and I on a cruise. This summer Jessica said she wanted to go on a cruise for her graduation trip. I told her she could bring friends and we would chaperone but they have to pay their own way. The problem is getting the girls to committ to it because I have to book in the next few weeks or they will be sold out! Ugh! But before all of that I have to get her to get me all of the girls names and their parents names and phone numbers so I can call and talk to them. When I book, they will have to call and put down a deposit of around $200 so I have to know in advance who is definitely going. And that is near impossible with teenage girls when they switch friends every few months. I am sure I will be going gray by the time I get this all worked out, but I love her and I will get it together so she has a trip to remember. :)
Power nap over and we head out to the Pilot right up the road to fuel up. On the way out of the DFW area we stopped at the TA out in Terrell to get a PM done and were off again. J got me pretty close to Lafayette,LA where I took over this morning. At 1500 hrs my day was done in Marianna,FL with 500 miles under my belt. Now he has about 430 miles to go and he will have no problem making on time delivery.
One of the things that took us so long when we were trying to get ready is we were trying to figure out where to put two months worth of NutriSystem in the truck. We did our first month and then weren't able to get back through for the second month and by the time we made it back, the third month was delivered. On the bright side, we did find a place for all of it so we won't have to stress about getting back through to pick up a month before we run out. On the down side, we have NO space in this truck! I hope we don't get an overweight ticket! Just kidding, but there is a LOT of food in here. We definitely won't starve. And the day before we headed back out here, I got an e-mail saying our next order has been shipped. I think we are on a roll now and won't have to worry about running out of food since we are a month ahead on our orders and a month behind actually eating it!
Another thing I am trying to figure out is the cost of taking 5 girls plus J and I on a cruise. This summer Jessica said she wanted to go on a cruise for her graduation trip. I told her she could bring friends and we would chaperone but they have to pay their own way. The problem is getting the girls to committ to it because I have to book in the next few weeks or they will be sold out! Ugh! But before all of that I have to get her to get me all of the girls names and their parents names and phone numbers so I can call and talk to them. When I book, they will have to call and put down a deposit of around $200 so I have to know in advance who is definitely going. And that is near impossible with teenage girls when they switch friends every few months. I am sure I will be going gray by the time I get this all worked out, but I love her and I will get it together so she has a trip to remember. :)
Friday, October 10, 2008
I'm back!!!
Did you miss me? The girls and I got back in town yesterday afternoon from the cruise. We had so much fun I can't even begin to tell you. We headed out to Houston last Friday to spend the night so we wouldn't have a long drive the day the cruise departed. We stayed at a Residence Inn and we had a 2 bedroon suite with a pull-out couch so it was 2 to a bed for the night. Up bright and early, we got our showers, got packed, had the maintenance guy take a picture of all of us on our first full day of vacation and we were off to the ship to officially start our cruise!
Of course it was hurry up and wait. We got there and got parked, made it inside to get checked in and then they boarded us by group number. All in all it took about 2 hours to actually get on and get to our cabins. We had two cabins with ocean views, big windows, not the little port holes, and there were two lower bunks and one upper bunk in each room. I have to say that the beds in those rooms are the most comfortable beds I have slept in other than my own king size bed. Ok, so after we drop our luggage off, we have a mandatory meeting of everyone in the ship, really it is a practice drill, in case we sink. It is so that everyone knows where to go for the lifeboats based on what cabin you are in. After that we were free to roam around and check things out. First order of business was to find the on board bars! After that we had to find the dining rooms because food was important. Then the next must find place was the coffee shop. I must have good dark coffee in the mornings and not the weak stuff they give you for free. We got all of that done and having been assigned a late dinner seating we headed down to our formal dining room at 8:15 pm. They have another indoor buffet that you can eat at that is less formal or you can go to the formal dining room for dinner each night. But we chose the formal room each night because it is fun to get dressed up and go and have a 4 or 5 course meal with your own personal waiter. Plus you have a different menu for each night. The food was absolutely awesome! After dinner we hit the bar for a few drinks and then it was off to bed because it had been a long day.
Day 2 was a full day at sea. We were lazy and just chilled up on the back deck, ate way too much food and again hit the dance bar for drinks and dancing. Day 3 we arrived in Cozumel. This was the day I was looking forward to the most because we booked a shore excursion to go swim with the dolphins. We got to kiss them, hug them, they pulled us with their fins, pushed us on a boogie board and got to just swim around with them. I have to say it was by far the coolest thing I have ever experienced. After that we stayed there and went snorkeling, ate some REAL mexican food and had a few mixed drinks. When we left there we went back to the pier and did a little souvenier shopping. After that it was back to the boat for a nap before dinner. After that, as you guessed, it was off to the bar for drinks and dancing. Day 4 we were in Progresso where we wenk Kayaking in the mangroves which was a lot of fun, and then more souvenier shopping and back to the boat. Dinner, more drinks and more dancing. Day 5 we were at sea all day on our way back to Houston. This was the only day that we had bad weather but it was only a few morning showers, just light rain, but it was clear by noon and we were back up on the deck laying out getting some sun. Off to dinner again, more drinks and more dancing.
The next moring I awoke and looked out the window to see the port of Houston as we were pulling in. We docked at 0700 and were finally able to get off of the boat and to our vehicle around 0900. We had to make a stop at the Houston airport to drop Misty off so she could catch her flight back to Colorado. Finally got out of Houston and on the road around 1030. We made a quick stop for a burger and then made it back into Dallas and had the last girls dropped off by 1530. My mom and brother came in the night before to get her stuff out of storage so I hauled ass down to meet them and give my mom our suburban to take with her since we aren't using it. After a quick hello they had to hit the road so we were off to our friend Michelle's house to spend the night. After a 5 day vacation at sea, I was worn out and ready to see my baby because I missed him. And yes, I am talking about J! But I did miss Smokey also! :)
I could go on and on about the cruise, but I won't bore you. I will say that if you ever get the opportunity go take one, do so. At least try it once. After only one cruise, I can tell I am going to become a cruise addict and take one any chance I can get. We were on the Carnival Ecstasy and you can look at pictures of the ship, their ports they sail out of, their routes and prices and pictures of the inside. Also you can see what all is included in the price and what activities the offer. It is all at carnival.com to see.
Today was spent doing some running around we had to get done, we both went and got a couples massage (where we are both in the same room on tables next to each other) and we are now doing laundry. Didn't quite get everything done we needed to do so we called and told them we will be available at noon tomorrow. Last thing we have to to is get a PM on the truck in the morning after we finish getting it loaded back up. Then it is back on the road for us doing what we love best. Spending time together and driving cross country!
Of course it was hurry up and wait. We got there and got parked, made it inside to get checked in and then they boarded us by group number. All in all it took about 2 hours to actually get on and get to our cabins. We had two cabins with ocean views, big windows, not the little port holes, and there were two lower bunks and one upper bunk in each room. I have to say that the beds in those rooms are the most comfortable beds I have slept in other than my own king size bed. Ok, so after we drop our luggage off, we have a mandatory meeting of everyone in the ship, really it is a practice drill, in case we sink. It is so that everyone knows where to go for the lifeboats based on what cabin you are in. After that we were free to roam around and check things out. First order of business was to find the on board bars! After that we had to find the dining rooms because food was important. Then the next must find place was the coffee shop. I must have good dark coffee in the mornings and not the weak stuff they give you for free. We got all of that done and having been assigned a late dinner seating we headed down to our formal dining room at 8:15 pm. They have another indoor buffet that you can eat at that is less formal or you can go to the formal dining room for dinner each night. But we chose the formal room each night because it is fun to get dressed up and go and have a 4 or 5 course meal with your own personal waiter. Plus you have a different menu for each night. The food was absolutely awesome! After dinner we hit the bar for a few drinks and then it was off to bed because it had been a long day.
Day 2 was a full day at sea. We were lazy and just chilled up on the back deck, ate way too much food and again hit the dance bar for drinks and dancing. Day 3 we arrived in Cozumel. This was the day I was looking forward to the most because we booked a shore excursion to go swim with the dolphins. We got to kiss them, hug them, they pulled us with their fins, pushed us on a boogie board and got to just swim around with them. I have to say it was by far the coolest thing I have ever experienced. After that we stayed there and went snorkeling, ate some REAL mexican food and had a few mixed drinks. When we left there we went back to the pier and did a little souvenier shopping. After that it was back to the boat for a nap before dinner. After that, as you guessed, it was off to the bar for drinks and dancing. Day 4 we were in Progresso where we wenk Kayaking in the mangroves which was a lot of fun, and then more souvenier shopping and back to the boat. Dinner, more drinks and more dancing. Day 5 we were at sea all day on our way back to Houston. This was the only day that we had bad weather but it was only a few morning showers, just light rain, but it was clear by noon and we were back up on the deck laying out getting some sun. Off to dinner again, more drinks and more dancing.
The next moring I awoke and looked out the window to see the port of Houston as we were pulling in. We docked at 0700 and were finally able to get off of the boat and to our vehicle around 0900. We had to make a stop at the Houston airport to drop Misty off so she could catch her flight back to Colorado. Finally got out of Houston and on the road around 1030. We made a quick stop for a burger and then made it back into Dallas and had the last girls dropped off by 1530. My mom and brother came in the night before to get her stuff out of storage so I hauled ass down to meet them and give my mom our suburban to take with her since we aren't using it. After a quick hello they had to hit the road so we were off to our friend Michelle's house to spend the night. After a 5 day vacation at sea, I was worn out and ready to see my baby because I missed him. And yes, I am talking about J! But I did miss Smokey also! :)
I could go on and on about the cruise, but I won't bore you. I will say that if you ever get the opportunity go take one, do so. At least try it once. After only one cruise, I can tell I am going to become a cruise addict and take one any chance I can get. We were on the Carnival Ecstasy and you can look at pictures of the ship, their ports they sail out of, their routes and prices and pictures of the inside. Also you can see what all is included in the price and what activities the offer. It is all at carnival.com to see.
Today was spent doing some running around we had to get done, we both went and got a couples massage (where we are both in the same room on tables next to each other) and we are now doing laundry. Didn't quite get everything done we needed to do so we called and told them we will be available at noon tomorrow. Last thing we have to to is get a PM on the truck in the morning after we finish getting it loaded back up. Then it is back on the road for us doing what we love best. Spending time together and driving cross country!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Somewhere,TX
It has been a busy couple of days! Sorry I haven't posted but I have either been worn out or in an area that I couldn't get a consistent signal. But I am here now to update you because I know you have been on the edge of your seats wondering what the heck we have been up to. (Probably not, but this is my story....haha)
Ok, picked up the load in Jackson from the other driver and we are off. This was on Saturday morning. I get us back up to someplace in AL and J takes over from there. Our appointment was for 0900 on Sunday morning in Kirkwood,NY. J drives as far as he can and gets us to Toms Brook,VA I believe and that is where I take over. I have about 300 miles to go and five and a half hours to get there. Unfortunately there was that tropical depression off the coasts of the Carolina's and it had moved inland so it was nothing but rain and HEAVY fog the entire way. I was down to 30 mph in some places because I could only see about 2 of the lines on the highway in front of me. Couldn't see another truck even if he was one truck length ahead. It was some of the worst fog, if not the worst, that I have ever driven through. I made it to the receiver at 1130 and they got us unloaded immediately.
While I was enrt to that location, we got a call from dispatch telling us we had a preplan set up picking up in Baldwinsville,NY going to Johnson City,TN for 0800 the next morning. It was a shitty paying load, and heavy, but being a Sunday I knew that the pickins would be slim, so we took it. I managed to make it up there before I was out of hours for the day and J took over from there and headed back south on I-81. Being worn out from driving through the heavy fog and rain, I hit the sack only to be woken up about an hour later from J slamming on the brakes. I about flew into the front of the cab, but thankfully I ALWAYS hook the safety net when I am in the bunk sleeping. Apparently two cars were hotrodding and racing each other and one cut right in front of J to cut across 3 lanes of traffic to get to an exit. J ended up coming to a complete stop on the shoulder. It is safe to say that is just about nearly scared the shit out of him. After checking his pants and determining that everything was ok and there was no need to change underwear, we were off again. It did take some time to get back to sleep though!
J makes it back down through most of VA and I am left with 200 miles to go when I get up. Of course there is more rain and fog and I make it to the receiver only about 20 minutes late. Of course I called and let them know and it wasn't a big deal because they didn't have an open dock when I got there anyway. I only had to wait about 15 minutes though before they got me a dock and I sat back and waited to get unloaded. While I was waiting I called our FM and told him we were going to go get a shower before our next load but he said freight was slim and that he would keep us available because we may not get a load if we pushed our time out. Whatever, I said, just as long as he knew we WERE getting a shower today!
I get unloaded and the minute I pull out we get our next load. It is 1000 and I have 3 hours to make 154 miles AND stop to get fuel. I call back in and tell him I will wait on the shower till after we pick up but I must stop for fuel. Especially since it was a high value load we were picking up and we couldn't stop for 200 miles once we picked up. He said that was fine. Off we go to get fuel, grab fast food while we are fueling, and we are off. I make it to the shipper about 15 minutes after appointment time, but again, I wasn't worried because he was supposed to let them know. This is now Monday afternoon and we were excited because we could drop this on Tuesday before payroll cutoff meaning we would have a really good week. Well, it is a secure facility that I pull up to and when I pull up to the intercom a nice lady asks me what my pickup number is. I give her that info, she asks what carrier I am and then tells me to hold on. A few minutes later she comes back on and tells me that I need to call my dispatcher. Knowing that isn't a good sign, I ask what is up. It turns out that when they booked this load, they put the wrong date in and it was not supposed to load until Tuesday afternoon, not Monday afternoon. Well hell! Ok, back the truck up (thank goodness no other trucks were behing me) and park at the end of the street and call in to see what the deal is. I call in and our FM says that he is working on it since he already got a call from them. Then, being the brilliant mind that I am, I offer a suggestion. Why don't we just spend the night and pick the load up the next day. We know it will get us close to home for our time off, seeing as how another team is going to pick up up from us and take it to final destination, and I wasn't in the mood to drive another 200 miles empty chasing down a load. He said that works for him as long as we don't mind. We realized that it worked for us because even though it won't go on this weeks check, it will go on the next one, and our profit from this will cover our truck payment for the week we are off. So in the long run, it actually worked out better.
I have to say that I absolutely love our GPS. While we were sitting there, I punched up nearby attractions, chose motels and then chose nearest to our location. I found a hotel 13 miles down, right on the interstate, that had truck parking in back and allowed dogs all for $47 plus tax. Off we go to the hotel, check in and get unpacked and settled in. Got a nice big king size bed and the room has a table with chairs a fridge and a mcirowave. Unfortunately it didn't have a coffee maker, but there was a stop & rob next door that would do for my morning coffee. A little later we call in and tell our FM we are unhooking the trailer and putting the kingpin lock on it and heading to get something to eat. I looked in the yellow pages under restaurants and found a place 10 miles away right up I-75 that boasted of home cooking. You know when you are on the road if you can find anything close to home cooked, then you have to try it. OMG this place was awesome. I swear they had the best sweet tea that we have had while out on the road. It is called the Dinner Bell and is in Lenoire City,TN on I-75 at exit 81 and it is on the east side of the highway about a block down, right past the first light. If you go in the evening after around 1930 you could probably get a truck and trailer in there. But if anyone is parked right at the entrance it would be a tight fit. But there are places close by that you could park the truck at and walk over to it. One of the places is a Days Inn that says it has truck parking. Anyway, you must stop in there if you get a chance. We even went back the next morning for breakfast!
After that we headed to the shipper and promptly got loaded and we were off. I can't tell you where I am at, but we are somewhere in TX waiting on the other truck to get to our location to take this load off of our hands. Our FM said that he is dealing with a claim on the load he has so we may be here for a while. But at least we know they have someone lined up to come get this. I am glad because I am ready to start my VACATION!!!!
Ok, picked up the load in Jackson from the other driver and we are off. This was on Saturday morning. I get us back up to someplace in AL and J takes over from there. Our appointment was for 0900 on Sunday morning in Kirkwood,NY. J drives as far as he can and gets us to Toms Brook,VA I believe and that is where I take over. I have about 300 miles to go and five and a half hours to get there. Unfortunately there was that tropical depression off the coasts of the Carolina's and it had moved inland so it was nothing but rain and HEAVY fog the entire way. I was down to 30 mph in some places because I could only see about 2 of the lines on the highway in front of me. Couldn't see another truck even if he was one truck length ahead. It was some of the worst fog, if not the worst, that I have ever driven through. I made it to the receiver at 1130 and they got us unloaded immediately.
While I was enrt to that location, we got a call from dispatch telling us we had a preplan set up picking up in Baldwinsville,NY going to Johnson City,TN for 0800 the next morning. It was a shitty paying load, and heavy, but being a Sunday I knew that the pickins would be slim, so we took it. I managed to make it up there before I was out of hours for the day and J took over from there and headed back south on I-81. Being worn out from driving through the heavy fog and rain, I hit the sack only to be woken up about an hour later from J slamming on the brakes. I about flew into the front of the cab, but thankfully I ALWAYS hook the safety net when I am in the bunk sleeping. Apparently two cars were hotrodding and racing each other and one cut right in front of J to cut across 3 lanes of traffic to get to an exit. J ended up coming to a complete stop on the shoulder. It is safe to say that is just about nearly scared the shit out of him. After checking his pants and determining that everything was ok and there was no need to change underwear, we were off again. It did take some time to get back to sleep though!
J makes it back down through most of VA and I am left with 200 miles to go when I get up. Of course there is more rain and fog and I make it to the receiver only about 20 minutes late. Of course I called and let them know and it wasn't a big deal because they didn't have an open dock when I got there anyway. I only had to wait about 15 minutes though before they got me a dock and I sat back and waited to get unloaded. While I was waiting I called our FM and told him we were going to go get a shower before our next load but he said freight was slim and that he would keep us available because we may not get a load if we pushed our time out. Whatever, I said, just as long as he knew we WERE getting a shower today!
I get unloaded and the minute I pull out we get our next load. It is 1000 and I have 3 hours to make 154 miles AND stop to get fuel. I call back in and tell him I will wait on the shower till after we pick up but I must stop for fuel. Especially since it was a high value load we were picking up and we couldn't stop for 200 miles once we picked up. He said that was fine. Off we go to get fuel, grab fast food while we are fueling, and we are off. I make it to the shipper about 15 minutes after appointment time, but again, I wasn't worried because he was supposed to let them know. This is now Monday afternoon and we were excited because we could drop this on Tuesday before payroll cutoff meaning we would have a really good week. Well, it is a secure facility that I pull up to and when I pull up to the intercom a nice lady asks me what my pickup number is. I give her that info, she asks what carrier I am and then tells me to hold on. A few minutes later she comes back on and tells me that I need to call my dispatcher. Knowing that isn't a good sign, I ask what is up. It turns out that when they booked this load, they put the wrong date in and it was not supposed to load until Tuesday afternoon, not Monday afternoon. Well hell! Ok, back the truck up (thank goodness no other trucks were behing me) and park at the end of the street and call in to see what the deal is. I call in and our FM says that he is working on it since he already got a call from them. Then, being the brilliant mind that I am, I offer a suggestion. Why don't we just spend the night and pick the load up the next day. We know it will get us close to home for our time off, seeing as how another team is going to pick up up from us and take it to final destination, and I wasn't in the mood to drive another 200 miles empty chasing down a load. He said that works for him as long as we don't mind. We realized that it worked for us because even though it won't go on this weeks check, it will go on the next one, and our profit from this will cover our truck payment for the week we are off. So in the long run, it actually worked out better.
I have to say that I absolutely love our GPS. While we were sitting there, I punched up nearby attractions, chose motels and then chose nearest to our location. I found a hotel 13 miles down, right on the interstate, that had truck parking in back and allowed dogs all for $47 plus tax. Off we go to the hotel, check in and get unpacked and settled in. Got a nice big king size bed and the room has a table with chairs a fridge and a mcirowave. Unfortunately it didn't have a coffee maker, but there was a stop & rob next door that would do for my morning coffee. A little later we call in and tell our FM we are unhooking the trailer and putting the kingpin lock on it and heading to get something to eat. I looked in the yellow pages under restaurants and found a place 10 miles away right up I-75 that boasted of home cooking. You know when you are on the road if you can find anything close to home cooked, then you have to try it. OMG this place was awesome. I swear they had the best sweet tea that we have had while out on the road. It is called the Dinner Bell and is in Lenoire City,TN on I-75 at exit 81 and it is on the east side of the highway about a block down, right past the first light. If you go in the evening after around 1930 you could probably get a truck and trailer in there. But if anyone is parked right at the entrance it would be a tight fit. But there are places close by that you could park the truck at and walk over to it. One of the places is a Days Inn that says it has truck parking. Anyway, you must stop in there if you get a chance. We even went back the next morning for breakfast!
After that we headed to the shipper and promptly got loaded and we were off. I can't tell you where I am at, but we are somewhere in TX waiting on the other truck to get to our location to take this load off of our hands. Our FM said that he is dealing with a claim on the load he has so we may be here for a while. But at least we know they have someone lined up to come get this. I am glad because I am ready to start my VACATION!!!!
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