FIRST 5 YEARS: (Wednesday-Tulsa, Oklahoma)
Woke in Tulsa where I went into the truckstop for some munchies. Came out and got my logbook all legal and headed for Sand Springs, Okl,ahoma for a glass load. Got to the shipper and had to wait until around 11 AM before they loaded me. I got out of there around noon and headed toward Joplin(Missouri). I was in the company yard around 2:15 PM and I was asking for my new tractor. I had to drop my trailer and check in with dispatch. Dispatch told me to check with maintenance for my new tractor which I did. I parked the new and the old one next to each other and spent the rest of the day moving things from the old to the new. Tomorrow I will need to get my permits.
A Trucker's Tale: (the trucking joys of Quebec...)
I had been in Quebec several times and never had any trouble with the Quebec Department of Transportation or Highway Patrol(Provincial Police). One of our training drivers came into our Detroit, Michigan terminal with his student. They had just come from Quebec. They had been stopped by a Quebec officer when the officer pulled over several trucks. The trainer than said the officer, in his very clean outfit and out of his fully equipped white van(even had a dispenser for his gloves), proceeded to do a vehicle inspection. The driver said that this officer couldn't find anything wrong with the unit except for an outdated “company” sticker. This outdated sticker meant nothing to any government entity!!! This officer then fined the company $550 US dollars for that sticker. The driver then said this officer had a wireless FAX and setup for importing US “ComChek”s(checks that give truckers easy access to money). The company had to send this officer the $550 before he would release the truck. The company did send the money. The officer then went to the other trucks....After I heard this, I tried to avoid the Quebec law enforcement altogether--Ontario law enforcement???I never had trouble with them all the many times I was up there and I never heard other than "normal" stories about them...
I kept a day by day journal the first 5 years I was enjoying North America. While earning a living,I kept track of where I went, often what I did, feelings I had and various other details. I am writing this blog day by day as I lived it. The month/day I lived it is the same as the month/day I write about it. The years are obviously different...thus the days title: ie: August 30, 1989, 2009.
About Me
- The Protraveller...
- Starting as a preschooler, I remember my Grandfather bringing me rocks from his trips he took after he retired. Each rock had a story to tell. In the sixth grade, I watched a freeway be built and then wondered where all the trucks would go. I remember in high school looking at the mountains and wanting to travel. I did many jobs BEFORE trucking but I always wondered what driving would by like. I really wanted to see things and drive a big truck. So after almost finishing nursing school, a divorce and three cute little kids, I became a truck driver. While earning a living, I found myself enjoying North America and seeing the land and people. NO ONE ENJOYED TRAVELING MORE THAN ME. There are two things I have enjoyed in this life and they are traveling and writing. I use to call myself "Protourist" but my Mother-in-law and Wife would become upset with me as they know I really love THE "travel" and not THE stopping to see things. I now call myself "protraveller"(I like it with a double "L") and my Mother-in-law and Wife are now happy!!! I love to write and this blog gives me the opportunity to share my past and thoughts with the public.
About this blog's layout...BLOG UPDATED ONCE PER DAY...
I follow my journal daily by writing under the daily title, "FIRST 5 YEARS:" The first five years will strictly follow my 5 year journal. If I find the day I am writing about to be boring, I will either write about thoughts I remember(placed under the title of "SECOND 5 YEARS"), write a trucker tale(placed under "A Trucker's Tale"), give a helpful trucker hint, ask a "student driver" question or do something.....When a location appears after the day of the week after "FIRST 5 YEARS:", it is where I am at the start of that day((IE: FIRST 5 YEARS: (Sunday-Kansas City, Missouri))..... I would encourage those that find themselves enjoying North America to follow me day by day.....REMEMBER: THIS IS A BLOG ABOUT WHAT LIFE IS LIKE FOR A TRUCKER THAT DOES NOT HAVE A DAILY ROUTINE ROUTE(called a "dedicated" route). THERE WILL BE MANY TIMES WHEN THE ROUTING, SCENERY AND DAY'S ACTIVITIES WILL BE SIMILAR(boring???) TO PREVIOUS DAYS; THAT'S TRUCKING! THERE WILL BE DAYS WHEN THE ROUTING, SCENERY AND DAY'S ACTIVITIES WILL BE TOTALLY NEW; THAT'S TRUCKING. Frustrations? I mention the frustrations I had as a driver. I loved my job while earning a living and realized that all jobs have frustrations; truck driving is, and was, no different..... Many pictures on this blog can be left-clicked and made larger.....Questions?...Please E-mail PT at fabalt2000@centurylink.net
Blog Dictionaries...
The Trucking Dictionary...words in this dictionary will many times appear highlighted. If a word isn't highlighted or in the blog dictionary and sounds "different", check it out in this dictionary. Please note: Many times when clicking on these dictionaries anywhere in the blog, the first thing that comes up is an advertisement which I have no control over.
The Blog Dictionary...This dictionary contains words I use that aren't "trucker" words and thus not in the "trucking dictionary". I separate them--the dictionaries--in case someone wants to copy the trucking dictionary for personal use. This dictionary also contains names of people(not real names) that I dealt with many times through my trucking career. Blog word found in this dictionary often will be licked to it.
DAILY UPDATES SHOULD BE UP BY NOON CST...
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What's in my blog...???
- 666--Highway (2)
- A Trucker Tale-introduction (1)
- A Trucker's Tale (33)
- abandonment of truck (1)
- accidents (12)
- animals (3)
- backing (2)
- buffalo burgers (1)
- bull haulers (1)
- Catch 22 (1)
- caught but... (2)
- caught-almost (3)
- check trailer (1)
- church (2)
- citation-for moose killing (1)
- computer portable desk. (1)
- computer stuff (1)
- conservation agents (1)
- conservation agents-Maine (1)
- convoys (1)
- cooking-on-the-road (2)
- customs-US or Canadian (5)
- death while trucking (2)
- diabetes and driving (3)
- dispatcher's mistakes (1)
- DOT-Massachusetts (1)
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- DOT-Quebec (1)
- drive-why??? (1)
- drunk driver (1)
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- interesting (3)
- jackknife video (1)
- Just in time trucking (1)
- load content-strange (1)
- load turn down policy (1)
- logbook violation-see violation (1)
- logbooks (2)
- loyalty to a company (1)
- Matter of Opinion (1)
- Mayberry and Andy Griffith (4)
- mining--me??? (1)
- My opinion (1)
- Olympic bobsled (1)
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- places to see (13)
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- popcorn capital??? (1)
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- restaurants-good ones (5)
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- ripped off... (1)
- security-truck (3)
- side notes (14)
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- The Big Texan (1)
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- trucker frustrations (41)
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- unreasonables (1)
- vehicle inspection (2)
- violation (51)
- water-drinking (2)
- weapons-weird ones (1)
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- witches (1)
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