I'm not one of those people who sits around and wishes America was more like Europe, but I am suddenly a big fan of Lithuania for some reason. (Kudos to you if you were previously aware that Lithuania is a member of the EU. I would have guessed otherwise.)
I started work at 1pm today, so it looked like I would get a chance to catch the second half of tonight's football game. I fully expected my Irish to lose again, but I was gonna watch anyway. (Man bites dog. They won.) As I drove over to the dairy to pick up my trailer, I got a call from the dispatcher. Of course. Some dude called in sick and I caught a second run. The whole 'sick call' routine has slowed down considerably as of late. In what I'm sure is completely unrelated news, things haven't been all that busy lately so the mid-seniority guys aren't making quite as much money. (The senior guys are still getting two loads on most days.) It's funny how that works, eh? Make a bunch of cash early in the week and you get sick on the weekend. Make less money and you manage to stay healthy all the way through. Weird.
Anyhow, the second run that I picked up was a quick one-stop deal down to Dundee. It took me exactly two hours round-trip and added $89 to my day's pay, so I had no complaints. For that matter, the first run wasn't bad either. One stop in Midland, two in Saginaw, and one in Livonia on the way back to the dairy. Aside from the fact that I had to wait for a bread truck at two of the stops (~15-20 minutes each time) everything was pretty flawless. But of course the two runs took just long enough to prevent any football watching.
My pull time for tomorrow is noon, so I've decided against a late workout tonight. I'm feeling a bit sore and run down as it is, so this was probably as good a night as any to give it a rest. Working out until 2:30am or so would mean that I wouldn't manage to fall asleep until probably 5am. I like to leave home an hour before my pull time and I had a few little things to do at home, so you can do the math from there. We'll get back at it tomorrow. Maybe I'll back into a second run and make some extra money again. I'm gonna need a few bucks in the bank if I wanna get to Lithuania, dontcha know.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Friday, October 1, 2010
10/1/10
If the internet and this blog were around in the 50's, I would have observed that some naked Chinaman was a little closer than he should have been while I was getting dressed after my workout tonight. Nowadays I'm probably not supposed to say that. I'll just refer to some nondescript dude and leave you to picture whatever sort of fella comes to mind. In either case - creepy. People should keep their naked asses to themselves, and this cuts across all ehtnic lines.
I'm pretty tired. 273 miles and four stops tomorrow. Guess it's bedtime.
I'm pretty tired. 273 miles and four stops tomorrow. Guess it's bedtime.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
9/30/10
Dude. I'm all in favor of everyone having delusions of grandeur and such. Lord knows I try to gin up a few of my own every now and then. That being said, did The One™ really compare his legislative agenda to the freeing of the slaves? Why yes, it appears that he did. I'm the unwashed rube and he's the Harvard man, so maybe he's right, but I don't know man. Immense deficit spending with no tangible results to show = 500,000 dead Americans who fought for the most basic of human rights? I'm sticking with my 'delusions of grandeur' assessment for now.
No delusions about my day though. It was pretty dull. Some sleep, some reading, some lunch, some more reading, some more sleep, some dinner, some weight training, some cardio, some more reading, and now some typing. But hey, it took time to write War and Peace, right? Maybe I'm working on something major... or whatever.
One load tomorrow, three stops, afternoon pull, pretty typical sort of Friday I suppose. We'll have to see if that mechanic fella calls before I head to the office.
No delusions about my day though. It was pretty dull. Some sleep, some reading, some lunch, some more reading, some more sleep, some dinner, some weight training, some cardio, some more reading, and now some typing. But hey, it took time to write War and Peace, right? Maybe I'm working on something major... or whatever.
One load tomorrow, three stops, afternoon pull, pretty typical sort of Friday I suppose. We'll have to see if that mechanic fella calls before I head to the office.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
9/29/10
Given that today had all the markings of a royal pain in the ass, I guess I would have to say I was pleasantly surprised when it was all said and done. Waking with a hangover is never the best way to kick off a work day, but that's just what I did this morning. A few Advils and half a gallon of water were helpful with the headache and dry mouth, but only a good nap would be enough to shake the crappy feeling. Unfortunately I wouldn't be taking a nap any time soon. There was milk to deliver.
Speaking of milk, that was one more bad news aspect of the day. My three stops today were in the Flint area and two of them were at stores without loading docks. Peachy. Moving the milk to the tailgate isn't terribly difficult, but getting everything rotated and dealing with the empties can be tough at certain stores. Today was one of those days when I didn't feel like doing any physical work at all, so I wasn't looking forward to any part of the assignment. It turned out that my first store received seven pallets of milk and only gave me five pallets of empties. The second store (the one with a loading dock) received six and gave me three, plus had plenty of room for me to pull all of the milk out and rotate the empties to the nose of the trailer. This meant that the last stop was relatively easy. The trailer wasn't very full when I got there, so I had room to spin the pallet jack inside the trailer without any difficulty. The dairy fella pulled his milk off, gave me some empties, and sent me on my way.
All told, I only worked for five and a half hours today. That was pretty nice, given the way I was feeling at the start. I thought I would enjoy a nice pre-workout nap once I was done working, but I never managed to get comfortable enough to sleep in that damned car. So I did some reading instead, as I had intended to do yesterday before I was corrupted. Good enough. Tonight's workout certainly wasn't the most impressive one I've ever had but, all things considered, it will have to do.
Anything fun to do in Michigan tomorrow? Probably not.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
9/28/10
Oy. Sometimes a night can get away from you. After a quick and easy shift at work, I was all set to do some reading while the gym crowd receded, then take care of my workout. Alas, my brother called. There was some sort of trivia competition at a local pub and my useless knowledge was being requested. Who am I to say no?
It turned out that there was some kind of semi-final thing going on, so we weren't allowed into the competition. We played anyway though. We would have won. After leaving that place, we went down to DoHickey's in Wyandotte for a few pints of Guinness. Before we knew it, the broad was turning off the lights. 2am already? Sometimes a night can get away from you.
It turned out that there was some kind of semi-final thing going on, so we weren't allowed into the competition. We played anyway though. We would have won. After leaving that place, we went down to DoHickey's in Wyandotte for a few pints of Guinness. Before we knew it, the broad was turning off the lights. 2am already? Sometimes a night can get away from you.
Monday, September 27, 2010
9/27/10
When the American automotive industry stood on the brink of collapse a couple of years ago, I heard quite a few of the typical stereotypes about American cars. Poor quality, bad gas mileage, low resale value, etc. The funny thing that I always wound up pointing out was that these stereotypes are largely untrue. American cars do fine in each of these areas of evaluation when compared to their foreign competitors.
Cars weren't selling for a few reasons, such as a tanking economy, shrinking personal wealth, and people being paranoid about high gas prices. (You'll note that we went right back to buying SUV's and pickups as soon as the price of oil came back down.) Car companies were broke for other reasons, such as retirees' health care costs and a complete failure to set aside enough money for a rainy day. The companies lived beyond their means, largely on credit, as many of us have done ourselves. When the credit dried up, there they were, begging for a handout.
In neither case (sales or solvency) was quality the issue. There was a time when the Japanese and Germans were making better cars, but Detroit has caught up over the course of the last couple of decades. Things really do have to be evaluated on a model-by-model basis, rather than a generic overview. Since I'm not in the market for a new car (hopefully for a while... hopefully), I haven't exactly been out test-driving the new models. And since I'm from a Ford family (think employee discounts and so forth) and Ford never took bailout money, I won't be test-driving any GM or Chrysler products whenever I do look for a new car. Screw 'em. When my own financial interests and my values regarding national economics happen to align perfectly, it's not hard to see where my money will be spent.
So the closest I'll ever come to trying out the new offerings from Detroit will occur on the odd occasion when I have to rent a car. For the last week I was driving a Dodge Avenger. Nice car. Today I picked up a Chevy Cobalt. What the...? That car is a piece of shit. I don't mean to imply that it's in bad shape or anything, because it's not. It's brand new. But what a piece of shit. Noisy, uncomfortable, no power, no amenities. Hopefully Government Motors isn't hanging its hat on this one. I had taken a pass on a PT Cruiser because, quite frankly, I think they look pretty gay. Now I'm wishing I hadn't done so.
The cars are exchanged, the laundry is done, and the workout is complete. Nothing exciting, of course, but that's pretty much how it goes with these days off, isn't it? Back up to Saginaw for two stops tomorrow.
Cars weren't selling for a few reasons, such as a tanking economy, shrinking personal wealth, and people being paranoid about high gas prices. (You'll note that we went right back to buying SUV's and pickups as soon as the price of oil came back down.) Car companies were broke for other reasons, such as retirees' health care costs and a complete failure to set aside enough money for a rainy day. The companies lived beyond their means, largely on credit, as many of us have done ourselves. When the credit dried up, there they were, begging for a handout.
In neither case (sales or solvency) was quality the issue. There was a time when the Japanese and Germans were making better cars, but Detroit has caught up over the course of the last couple of decades. Things really do have to be evaluated on a model-by-model basis, rather than a generic overview. Since I'm not in the market for a new car (hopefully for a while... hopefully), I haven't exactly been out test-driving the new models. And since I'm from a Ford family (think employee discounts and so forth) and Ford never took bailout money, I won't be test-driving any GM or Chrysler products whenever I do look for a new car. Screw 'em. When my own financial interests and my values regarding national economics happen to align perfectly, it's not hard to see where my money will be spent.
So the closest I'll ever come to trying out the new offerings from Detroit will occur on the odd occasion when I have to rent a car. For the last week I was driving a Dodge Avenger. Nice car. Today I picked up a Chevy Cobalt. What the...? That car is a piece of shit. I don't mean to imply that it's in bad shape or anything, because it's not. It's brand new. But what a piece of shit. Noisy, uncomfortable, no power, no amenities. Hopefully Government Motors isn't hanging its hat on this one. I had taken a pass on a PT Cruiser because, quite frankly, I think they look pretty gay. Now I'm wishing I hadn't done so.
The cars are exchanged, the laundry is done, and the workout is complete. Nothing exciting, of course, but that's pretty much how it goes with these days off, isn't it? Back up to Saginaw for two stops tomorrow.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
9/26/10
The folks at Starter usually make some pretty decent athletic apparel. I was never into some of the jackets and track suits that the homies like to wear, but I've bought my share of Starter gear over the years. Case in point - I got some new underwear a few days ago. They're the boxer-brief hybrid sort of thingies. I tend to find boxers to be more comfortable for casual wear, but they come up a little short in terms of securing my pecker and nads during a workout. Regular briefs aren't very comfortable to me, plus I think they look a little... I don't know... something.
So anyhow, there I was at the gym tonight. I actually had a bit of an unintentional wardrobe coordination going for me, now that I think about it - Starter sweats and Starter drawers. Most of my sweatpants are Champion brand, but I have a few pairs of Starters in the rotation. Tonight's t-shirt was made by some other company whose logo I don't recognize. So anyhow, like I said, there I was. During my customary warmup on the treadmill, I noticed that I didn't really like the way the new undies were 'riding,' so to speak. Like a good little trooper though, I just continued along. Then it was time to hit the weights.
Shoulder night tonight. Hooray. I assume that it's because I worked all day before heading to the gym, but for some reason that 110lb. barbell felt awfully heavy during my first set of upright rows. My shoulders were screaming for mercy and I hadn't entirely caught my breath from the treadmill session yet, so I decided to sit down and relax for a minute between sets. And that's when it happened. My left nut got positioned incorrectly against the left leg portion of my pretty new undies. Instead of sitting squarely in the middle of the little ball holder region of the apparel, it was off doing it's own thing. As I sat down and the fabric shifted to accomodate my changing position... oy! That really fucking hurt. There's not really any indication that I'll be trying to father any children in the foreseeable future, but hopefully the option still exists. Just in case I meet that elusive wealthy broad or something.
The rest of the workout, after some recuperation from the incident, went solidly. When it's terribly difficult for me to remove my shirt or to wash my head in the shower once I'm finished, we can be sure that it was a good shoulder workout.
Work was pretty solid today as well. I pulled two loads, each with only two stops. The first trailer took me to two stores in Saginaw. Then the second trailer took me to Brighton and Grand Blanc. No issues on either load really, other than the fact that the teenage lass receiving the delivery in Grand Blanc caught me chuckling to myself. When pressed for a reason, I gave the obligatory "nothing" in response. I didn't have the heart to tell the poor girl that I'm pretty sure I married her 13 years ago. Back then I was dumb enough to think it was fine for a gal to bitch at anyone and everything, as long as she was nice to me. Now I know better. One of these days, some poor sucker is going to wish I had been around to warn him about this girl in Grand Blanc. A milk delivery is clearly not a long term commitment though, so I just enjoyed my little chuckle as she complained about everyone and everything. Then I got the hell out of there while I still found her amusing. Good deal.
As I wind down this night, it just occurred to me that I have to return my rental car tomorrow. Since my own car isn't due back in my possession until some point later in the week, I suppose I'll have to pony up some more dough and get another week's rental. And I have a bunch of dirty laundry too, just for kicks. Something about this employment by day and training by night nonsense seems to make me burn through clean clothes in a hurry. Fun times on the good old day off, to be sure.
Did the Redskins really lose today? Wow. They really are still good and shitty, eh? They fit right in with my other chosen programs. Tigers just over .500 for the year. Notre Dame probably gonna be around .500 for the year... if they're lucky. And now these guys. The Wings will always make the playoffs though, and nobody can take that from me.
So anyhow, there I was at the gym tonight. I actually had a bit of an unintentional wardrobe coordination going for me, now that I think about it - Starter sweats and Starter drawers. Most of my sweatpants are Champion brand, but I have a few pairs of Starters in the rotation. Tonight's t-shirt was made by some other company whose logo I don't recognize. So anyhow, like I said, there I was. During my customary warmup on the treadmill, I noticed that I didn't really like the way the new undies were 'riding,' so to speak. Like a good little trooper though, I just continued along. Then it was time to hit the weights.
Shoulder night tonight. Hooray. I assume that it's because I worked all day before heading to the gym, but for some reason that 110lb. barbell felt awfully heavy during my first set of upright rows. My shoulders were screaming for mercy and I hadn't entirely caught my breath from the treadmill session yet, so I decided to sit down and relax for a minute between sets. And that's when it happened. My left nut got positioned incorrectly against the left leg portion of my pretty new undies. Instead of sitting squarely in the middle of the little ball holder region of the apparel, it was off doing it's own thing. As I sat down and the fabric shifted to accomodate my changing position... oy! That really fucking hurt. There's not really any indication that I'll be trying to father any children in the foreseeable future, but hopefully the option still exists. Just in case I meet that elusive wealthy broad or something.
The rest of the workout, after some recuperation from the incident, went solidly. When it's terribly difficult for me to remove my shirt or to wash my head in the shower once I'm finished, we can be sure that it was a good shoulder workout.
Work was pretty solid today as well. I pulled two loads, each with only two stops. The first trailer took me to two stores in Saginaw. Then the second trailer took me to Brighton and Grand Blanc. No issues on either load really, other than the fact that the teenage lass receiving the delivery in Grand Blanc caught me chuckling to myself. When pressed for a reason, I gave the obligatory "nothing" in response. I didn't have the heart to tell the poor girl that I'm pretty sure I married her 13 years ago. Back then I was dumb enough to think it was fine for a gal to bitch at anyone and everything, as long as she was nice to me. Now I know better. One of these days, some poor sucker is going to wish I had been around to warn him about this girl in Grand Blanc. A milk delivery is clearly not a long term commitment though, so I just enjoyed my little chuckle as she complained about everyone and everything. Then I got the hell out of there while I still found her amusing. Good deal.
As I wind down this night, it just occurred to me that I have to return my rental car tomorrow. Since my own car isn't due back in my possession until some point later in the week, I suppose I'll have to pony up some more dough and get another week's rental. And I have a bunch of dirty laundry too, just for kicks. Something about this employment by day and training by night nonsense seems to make me burn through clean clothes in a hurry. Fun times on the good old day off, to be sure.
Did the Redskins really lose today? Wow. They really are still good and shitty, eh? They fit right in with my other chosen programs. Tigers just over .500 for the year. Notre Dame probably gonna be around .500 for the year... if they're lucky. And now these guys. The Wings will always make the playoffs though, and nobody can take that from me.
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