Enjoying North America while earning a living...: July 12, 1991, 2011

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

July 12, 2011

July 12, 1991, 2011

FIRST 5 YEARS:(Friday-New Paris, Ohio)
I was to relay the load I had with a driver in Pocahontas, Illinois at noon CST. I left "Just a Truckstop" at 7 AM EST and was heading west on I-70. Traffic was minimal so I shot straight through Indianapolis and to Monrovia, Indiana where we had a fuel stop that would fill our tanks and we didn't have to log it as "work". I let then fill my tanks(55 gallons) as I didn't know where I would be going after Pocahontas. Some directions we wouldn't have available fuel stops for awhile. I went on to Pocahontas where I pulled into our drop yard--relay point--at 11:15 AM CST.

I met the driver I was to relay with--handle was "6 Pack"--and we exchanged trailers and I gave him my paperwork. I called dispatch and was told I had a relay that was going to Toronto, Ontario. The problem, it wouldn't be here until tomorrow.

FRIDAY EVENING...I got myself a motel room about 2 PM CST. I wrote two letters and decided to go to the Pocahontas post office and mail them. It was nice outside about 6:30 PM CST so I left to walk to the downtown area. I walked out of my room and another driver--handle was "Wandering Bull"--was walking out of his. He was walking to the small town bar and so we decided to walk together to the post office and then the bar. Wandering Bull was all dressing up and wearing a cowboy hat. He had heard that the bar was having a band there and he thought it would be better than sitting in his motel room. We mailed my letters and then walked toward the bar. We walked past the laundrymat where the high school kids were hunging out. As we walked by, they made fun of Wandering Bull's cowboy hat but it didn't bother him. We walked into the bar...boring!!!. No band and what surprised me was the children drinking their parent's beer. We sat at the bar and the female bar tender got him his beer and me my diet Pepsi. The evening got worse as a guy at the bar next to me started talking to me about making money with garbage...The final straw came when Wandering Bull was trying to get familiar with the bartender by telling her that she looked good in her jeans. Even though she did look good in her jeans, I had had enough; I excused myself and went back to my motel room. I just watched TV and went to sleep...