10/18/08

To quote the immortal Keith Jackson: "Whoa Nellie." That's enough of this driving all day nonsense. Another 650 miles down, 480 left for tomorrow. Aside from a major snafu in Memphis, things rolled along pretty smoothly today. I guess I could have avoided that mess and taken the loop around Memphis if I were inclined to turn on my CB. No such luck though. Otherwise, all good. Speed limit through Nashville. Mostly speed limit through Knoxville. I had to fight my way out of there, but I got through in one piece. I guess that other orange-clad bunch of hooligans had a home game tonight. There was quite an exodus leaving town as I passed through.

This reminds me that I haven't checked in on the Fulmer Cup in quite some time. Apparently Nick Saban and the boys managed to bring it home this year. Tennessee finished in a disappointing tie for tenth place. You would think that the award's namesake could do better. Maybe Fulmer's gang will get a jumpstart on the 2009 edition. A good armed robbery or two should have them off and running.

So we put a pretty little bow on another pay week. 2,953 miles plus $19 in northeast pay. You won't hear me complaining about that.

10/17/08

Whatever man. Just review any old post about me leaving Laredo and going up I-35. Same shit, different day. I wonder what would happen if a nuclear detonation were to occur accidentally, taking out everything from Austin to Georgetown. All the radiation and dead people would pretty much suck, but at least they could start the freeway over from scratch. And maybe allow trucks in the left lane, just for kicks.

Gurdon is once again my home for the night. So that's a nice 670 mile chunk of this trip gone on the first day. I guess we'll see if I can put in another long one tomorrow and set myself up for a slightly lighter schedule on Sunday. Yeah, we'll see.

So... yeah... I went to sleep last night when Tampa Bay was winning 7-0 or something like that. What the hell? I actually try to get some rest like a good adult and I miss the fireworks. Since I really have no dog in the fight, I must admit that I would be intrigued to see Boston vs. Philly. That would have to be, without a doubt, the most bitter and miserable matchup of fan bases in the history of professional sports. In Boston, they boo the priest at a funeral. In Philly, they boo the dead dude at the funeral. If one of them were to get swept or something, I don't know, it might be fun to watch the fans wallowing in their misery. Maybe it's just me though.

10/16/08

Think I can make you slightly uncomfortable tonight? If you answered 'yes,' you win...

Holy smokes. And I thought the mantyhose thing was bizarre.

So... in the ongoing saga of 'how many stupid assed ways can my employer find to wake me up in the morning?'... Today I got a beep saying that I should please deliver my loaded trailer to the broker. Yeah. No shit. I was planning on it... after the broker opened at 9am, not 8am when they sent the message. Dicks.

So I made my drop and headed down to WalMart to exploit a few more underpaid and underinsured victims of corporate greed. Hey, razor blades for three bucks? Hahaha, no extra sick days for those poor suckers.

Then it was back to the yard to sit... and sit... and sit. I was #53 when I went to bed last night, #49 when the jagoffs woke me this morning, #47 after I made my drop, and #40 at 3:45pm today. Then apparently someone turned on the flux capacitor. Within an hour and a half, I was up to #6. An hour later I was called to the magic window.

Looks like we're heading to the Keystone State in the morning. That will kick my week up over the $1,100 level, which seems to be the recent baseline. Beauty. There was one run that was a little longer, but no. It had to leave between 1am and 5am tomorrow, then deliver by 5am Monday. Despite what the peckerheads who send the satellite messages seem to think, I'm not what you would call a morning person. The Pennsylvania run can leave after 8am tomorrow and deliver at any time on Monday. That'll do.

Guess we're watching baseball tonight.

10/15/08

Rainy trip down Satan's Driveway - I am pretty much at a loss for words. I don't know. Unbefuckinglievable. How's that for a word?

I'm #53 on the board. It's raining so I won't be working out tonight. Plus I had to do the right thing and buy a fundraiser candy bar from the guy in the inspection bay. Another 220 calories, but it was for a good cause right? Whatever.

At least Dumb and Dumber had a decent debate for a change.

10/14/08

Leisurely. That's the word of the day. Seven and a half hours of driving covered the ground from West Memphis to Lancaster. I did it in just under fourteen hours. Lots of R&R, interrupted by brief periods on the road.

So anyhow... I've noticed an uptick in my social activity in recent days. After a couple of years' worth of erosion in the good old black book, somehow more calls are coming in this week. I really have no explanation for it, but you know, don't look a gift horse and whatnot. Thus I'm trying to figure out how to capitalize on the situation before everyone realizes that I'm still just a common schmuck. I think I may have the answer... mantyhose.

On second thought, maybe that would be a bad idea. You just can't make this shit up.

10/13/08

Yep. Headed to Laredo. I made my drop this morning with quite a bit less fanfare than I encountered my last time in Mount Juliet. No Border Patrol seal, no rent-a-cop conference, and no delays. I pulled around the corner into a vacant lot to park once I was empty. By the time I walked over to Wendy's and had some lunch, I was assigned to my next load.

Almost the same as last time. Instead of Clarksville, I was picking up in Cumberland City, a little further to the south. Otherwise I was on essentially the same route as before. Once I checked in, I had to sit around for a couple of hours as the local P&D guys came and went. Then it was my turn and I was loaded fairly quickly. 9,000 pounds - groovy.

Down through the hills on TN-13 and onto I-40 west was the route this evening. I ain't gonna lie to you. I was tempted to head back to Carlisle and look for some trouble. Your don has learned a thing or two over the years though. In my case, the best way to deal with temptation is simply to stay as far away as possible. Plus I was pretty tired from sitting around at the shipper all afternoon. I really didn't feel like driving late into the night, so I've pulled into the West Memphis terminal and put my feet up. From here I'll have the traditional two driving segments to Laredo, stopping in Lancaster tomorrow night.

I just looked at the football game hoping to see the Brady Quinn show. Apparently Derek Anderson is good this week though. Oh well. At least the Giants might lose and keep the Skins within half a game.

I'll be in Laredo on Wednesday night with 1,159 miles on the books. That's a decent enough start to the week I suppose.

10/12/08

Well, I guess that holy vengeance thing didn't quite pan out. Pretty decent game anyway. After a disappointing loss like that, the best thing to do might be to chill out in a jacuzzi and smoke a nice fat cigar. By golly, my room last night had one of those jacuzzi tub things. Sweet. That made me feel a little better. Then a little while later I made a new friend for the night. That made me feel a lot better, if you catch my drift. I actually wouldn't mind seeing her again sometime, but she lives in Arkansas and I don't. Oh well, what can you do? That's life I guess.

Today's drive was a nice and easy five hours. I stopped along the way and watched the last quarter of that debacle in D.C. Shit. Should've just stayed on the road. I've set up shop at the parking area on the east side of Nashville for the night. We've seen this movie before. I'll have a few miles to my consignee in the morning and then see where I go from there. The last time up here was also a Monday delivery and that wound up with a trip to Laredo. I guess we could speculate that a repeat might be coming my way. Time will tell.

What to do tonight? I guess it's about time to pump some iron and watch some movies. This parking lot ain't the YMCA but it will work.