9/29/07

Early mornings and odd schedules are the order of business these days. I was dispatched to be at the customer in Raleigh at 8am this morning. That was a little odd for a few reasons, but odd things coming from the desk jockeys in Missouri are nothing new. The customer didn't open until 8am, so that was the earliest this one could pick up. That's well enough, but it was a drop/hook so I could have gotten there a little later and had no issues. Being there by 8am made the log situation pretty difficult to manage, but I think it's all good. The split sleeper wasn't terribly useful since I drove so much yesterday, but it got me enough time back to make the last hour drive to the customer and then find a place to shut down and complete the break.

About the only real issue with the pickup was the damn tandem pins. I had to fight to get the things loose and move the wheels forward last night, then go through the same hassle to move the wheels back before I dropped the trailer this morning. Adding to the aggravation, the loaded trailer that I picked up was parked on the side of an incline. So much weight was on the pins on the right that I couldn't budge them. I had to spin the trailer around and stop in a position that leaned some of the weight forward onto the truck. That worked well enough, but it took a few tries.

I got a good high speed connection on my Sprint card, so I was able to watch the football game on my computer. North Carolina seems to be a pretty good state in terms of broadband service for some reason. I've been at various points throughout the state and often found that my speeds were good. I guess I'm becoming a loser of a football fan because that game today didn't bother me as much as the others. I was encouraged to see that, at least during the second half, the boys looked like a real football team. Hopefully they will build from there. I guess time will tell.

The drive that I had to make today was one that I knew I wouldn't enjoy. It's 90% mountains and I'm pulling 43,000 pounds of acetaminophen (The coincidence was not lost on me). Slow going most of the way. My usual route from North Carolina with this run would be to angle up US-52 and then catch I-74 over to I-77 and up through Fancy Gap. Today I gave in to curiosity and stayed on US-52 all the way up to Fancy Gap. I can honestly say that was one of the longest and steepest climbs I've made on a two-lane road so far, but it was pretty cool. I don't imagine I'll go that way with a heavy load again, but I was glad to have a chance to check it out. Very steep inclines, lots of curves, pretty scenic for the most part.

For entertainment purposes only, as long as Auburn stays within 16 1/2 of Florida I went 7-1 today. Even my Irish beat the point spread for heaven's sake. I can't afford to venture a lot of 'entertainment purposes' on the games, but a little extra never hurts. This year my record has been pretty solid. It looks like the college football world is being turned on it's head this year, but it's been pretty entertaining. (Um, Greg. Who could have known K-State would do that again? Crazy year man.)

I've shut down for the night about twenty miles short of the Ohio line. Rolling at 4:30am, I'll have just enough time to get to Taylor by my scheduled 11am arrival. I'll have to make a fuel stop, but otherwise it's non-stop driving. I have to be in Guelph, Ontario by 7am Monday morning, so I don't imagine that 11am arrival in Taylor is a big deal. Guelph is only 200 miles from Taylor. For personal reasons, I'd like to get in as early as possible and enjoy my break at home. Since I have been to this customer before and I know they have overnight parking, I figure I'll leave Taylor and cross the border sometime before midnight tomorrow. That way I can get that dispatch plus the border pay on my September paycheck. I'll get payed the same amount either way, but they say a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush or something like that. Might as well have the cash a couple weeks sooner.

With any luck, I'll get the hell out of Canada quickly on Monday. I've been deadheaded out the last few times and that's fine with me. Last year I got stuck sitting and waiting for loads a few times over there. Some of those little Canadian truck stops don't take American Express so I have to carry cash. I don't trust those crazy Canucks with the exchange rates so I like to be in and out in the same day. I think they secretly stash an extra nickel from every dollar in preparation for an eventual invasion of Montana. Crazy Canucks.