5/13/09

You know those sleeveless shirts that aren't really tank tops. I don't know what they're called, but they look like you took a regular T-shirt and lopped off the sleeves. Quite a few truck drivers wear those. Now, I know what you're thinking - "I wear those when I go for a jog." Yeah, so do I. But quite a few truck drivers wear them to work. Now, I know what you're thinking - "I've seen construction workers and lawn care guys wearing them before." Yeah, so have I. But quite a few truck drivers wear them into the receiving office when dealing with their customers. That's just wrong.

So what exactly jarred this bit of sartorial critique out of your humble blogger? Well, I arrived at my consignee bright and early this morning and checked in with the security guard. He directed me to the drop lot and told me where I would be able to find an empty trailer. As I backed in, the yard dog pulled around next to me and said that I was scheduled for a live unload. My assignment said drop/hook. The security guard said drop/hook. Whatever dude. I just do what I'm told. I drove around to the receiving office and checked in with the lady inside. She directed me to a door and told me to drop my trailer and bobtail back toward the receiving office and park. Once she called me on Channel 15, I was free to get my trailer and go. I watched five other drivers arrive within the next fifteen minutes. Four of them were wearing those shirts. The physiques in question would not lend one to wanting to show off 'the guns' either. That's just wrong.

Then I hopped into bed and relaxed for a while. I wasn't sure if I should fall asleep since I needed to hear the lady call me on the CB when I was ready to leave. I didn't know if she would be loud enough to retrieve me from Dreamland. As it turns out I didn't have a say in the matter. I was out like a light within a few minutes, whether I liked it or not. Then, just as Natalie Portman and I were about to get to know each other a little better, I heard, "ConWay in door 1924 come and grab your paperwork." Question answered. She was loud enough. I was awake again. Damn.

I grabbed my empty and headed over to that darned Love's in Polk City. Lots of parking at 7am, as many drivers were off to their jobs on the highways and byways by then. Back to bed we go. I wasn't able to watch that hockey game last night but I was up pretty late nonetheless. I got a solid two-hour nap this morning before my beep came from outer space. Perfect.

From Polk City, I headed southeastward to West Palm Beach for my next pickup. I'm still on strike against paying cash tolls, so the first part of the drive was a little slow. Once I caught up with FL-60 over to I-95 though, all was well. Compared to most places, this shipper was a real dump. Well, actually it was a real dump even if you had nothing to compare. Some may call it a landfill but you know... details. I got 43,000 pounds of cardboard to haul up to Jacksonville to be recycled. That trip up the Blue Hair Expressway, much to my surprise, was quick and smooth. There were maybe three or four Cadillacs cruising in the center lane at 45mph but that's a pretty low number based on my experience. The afternoon traffic had largely cleared out of Jacksonville by the time I got up there as well.

Along with my dispatch to Jacksonville, I received a pre-planned load picking up in Georgia tomorrow morning. So I got out of Florida without paper or beer. I can't even remember the last time this happened. The guys at the paper plant unloaded me a little early and I had a little time left on my logbook once I was empty, so I hopped back on I-95 and headed northward. The scales in Georgia proved to be the perfect place to park for the night once my hours ran out. There is a sign that says, "No Overnight Parking," so we'll have to see if I get harassed. There are quite a few other trucks parked here so I'm inclined to think I should be okay.

From here I'll have a quick 25-30 miles up to Midway for my pickup in the morning. Then I'm headed back up I-95 past D.C. and over to I-81 into Pennsylvania. I have a drop/hook in Hazleton to make at some point on Friday. It's probably time for bed now but this ballgame is pretty entertaining. I flipped the radio on when I left Jacksonville and they've been trading homeruns since then. Can't beat extra innings when you're working at night.