12/2/07

First things first - if you're one of the sickly or old CFI/ConWay employees who will be spending my insurance premiums next year, you're welcome in advance. The roll of the dice came up snake eyes and I won't be heading east. Maybe I'll get to my benefit information before the deadline, maybe not. Given that we're on the road for a living, couldn't they do this stuff by e-mail? I'm not saying, I'm just saying...

I also didn't have to sit at that customer and wait for Monday morning to get a trailer, although it wouldn't have made a huge difference in terms of miles. They bobtailed me up to Howard City to grab an empty, then dispatched me to pick up a load outside Grand Rapids tomorrow morning. It's another one of those Peterbilt P&D runs like the one I had the last time I went back to work. Three pickups and a dropoff. Also like last time, they planned me on another load behind it. Why are the people in Taylor so much better at their jobs (at least in the planning arena) than the people in Joplin? Almost every time they've given me something short out of Michigan, they've tacked a longer run on behind it. Is it just the smaller number of trucks involved or maybe the smaller territory? Wouldn't that simply suggest that they need to staff more people, or better people, in Joplin then? I don't know. Anyhow, after my drop in Indiana it looks like I'm set to make a pickup nearby and then two drops in Florida. Given recent events, I won't count my chickens before they hatch but hopefully that will work out. In December, I find the south to be quite tolerable.

Ever tried to slide tandems on a solid sheet of ice? I hadn't before today, but it's not quite as fun as you might think. On a good note, I did find a use for my tire chains. Chain up? Hell no. I don't even know how to get them out of the bag. But that fifty pound bag does make for one hell of a wheel chock. Mission accomplished.

I did a lot of driving today for 56 dispatched miles. I had to go quite a bit out of the way to get some fuel before I could set up shop for the day. I still have that issue with the engine only pulling fuel from the left tank so I have to fill up almost every day. For reasons I won't go into, I couldn't make a fuel stop along the way last night. By the time I got to Cedar Springs, the needle was buried on 'E.' So, in my own clever way, I parked horizontally across their loading docks and went to sleep. That tilted my truck to the left and, by the time I woke up, some fuel had migrated over and pushed the needle to around 1/8 full. Of course, that meant I had 1/16 since the fuel in the right tank is useless, but that would be sufficient to get me to my trailer and to a fuel stop.

After that, I headed back west toward tomorrow's first pickup. I thought about heading straight to the customer and parking, but decided on the nearest truck stop instead. I have had my fill of parking lots covered in ice and snow. Hopefully they'll get their plows over there and salt everything down before the work week starts tomorrow. It's raining right now so, if it gets cold enough tonight... nah, let's not think about that just yet. Also, getting done early in the afternoon usually means it's a good idea to have a store and restrooms nearby.

Bring on the Sopranos. Nine more episodes and I'll be caught up with the rest of America. Better late than never. Cheers.