A new haiku for you:
At the shop all day
Closing time, truck is ready
Fuck me, it's still broke
Yeah, that's about how my day went. I headed over to the shop and sat there all damn day. The guy gave me my keys as they were locking up for the night. He said I was good to go. And my truck died twice during the half-mile drive to the terminal. The best advice road service can give me is to head back over there in the morning and take those jagoffs for a test drive with me. How long have I been in Laredo now, anyway?
They told me this morning that I had "busted fuel lines." Yeah, I may not know a lot about trucks, but I didn't fall off the banana boat either. If this thing has busted fuel lines, the dipshit with the blowtorch busted them after I gave them my truck. Whatever it is, fuel lines or otherwise, they still haven't fixed it. I should have just stayed at the fucking motel.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
2/10/08
If it weren't for the fact that I am not making any money, this wouldn't be so bad. I had quite a few beers left after last night's binge, so I had a kick start in getting rid of my hangover this morning. Hair of the dog and whatnot. Then it was a long lazy day of polishing off the beverages, eating like a pig, and watching HBO.
I got a call from my fleet manager, waking me up this morning. I had a pounding headache and a sore throat at the time, so I'm sure I sounded thrilled to receive the call. Anyhow, he's doing what he can on his end to get me out of this predicament. Hopefully I will get my truck back (and functional) tomorrow, but if not we'll try to find another way of getting me to Joplin. Apparently one possibility would be to hitch a ride with another driver and then haul a load back down here to retrieve my personal effects. That sounds like a pain in the ass to me, so I'm hoping we don't have to go that route. Another possibility would be that someone quits and leaves a truck available in Laredo, but again I would prefer just to get my truck back and drive it to Missouri.
The Red Wings were on NBC today, so that was pretty cool. That last goal that got waved off was a complete hosejob though. It should have been 3-3, but the refs gave the game to Anaheim. It was a pretty exciting finish anyway.
Oh well, I guess I'll try to get a little sleep tonight. I guess there's a possibility I'm driving away tomorrow, so I might as well be ready.
I got a call from my fleet manager, waking me up this morning. I had a pounding headache and a sore throat at the time, so I'm sure I sounded thrilled to receive the call. Anyhow, he's doing what he can on his end to get me out of this predicament. Hopefully I will get my truck back (and functional) tomorrow, but if not we'll try to find another way of getting me to Joplin. Apparently one possibility would be to hitch a ride with another driver and then haul a load back down here to retrieve my personal effects. That sounds like a pain in the ass to me, so I'm hoping we don't have to go that route. Another possibility would be that someone quits and leaves a truck available in Laredo, but again I would prefer just to get my truck back and drive it to Missouri.
The Red Wings were on NBC today, so that was pretty cool. That last goal that got waved off was a complete hosejob though. It should have been 3-3, but the refs gave the game to Anaheim. It was a pretty exciting finish anyway.
Oh well, I guess I'll try to get a little sleep tonight. I guess there's a possibility I'm driving away tomorrow, so I might as well be ready.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
2/9/08
I went out for dinner last night. I didn't leave the terminal Thursday night. That night, I bought food from the guys who show up at the yard to peddle their wares. Now, if you usually tune in here for the hard-hitting news topics like crowded fuel stops or senile motorists, you might be wondering why I would bother with such mundane trivia as my dining habits. Well, the thing is - If I had gone out Thursday night, I would have learned of my most recent shitty luck a day sooner.
I don't know what those degenerates did to my truck, but it's way more fucked up than it was when I took it to the shop Wednesday morning. On my way here, I had trouble breaking 55mph with a 31,000 pound load against a strong headwind. Last night, it stalled whenever I reached 30mph, with no trailer at all. So I had to call CTL last night and tell 'em the truck ain't making it to Joplin. And I got to go back to the Kenworth dealer this morning. Nice.
I got there right when they opened. Then, shortly before they closed for the day, they told me I might as well get another room for the weekend. The truck ain't getting fixed until Monday. The CTL road service guys were testy about the fact that my truck is still broken, the Kenworth guys were testy about the fact that the CTL guys are testy, and I'm just basically pissed at the whole lot of them. If I had never been told to go to that shop, they wouldn't have broken whatever they broke. I should have been bobtailed to Joplin as soon as I got here, but we've already covered that.
When I talked to road service, they mentioned that they are supposed to assign me to an open truck after three days off the road. Well, fuckin' A man, let's do it. Get me the hell out of here. I was transferred to some dude who checked the Laredo inventory. No empty trucks. Story of my life. So I called the Laredo terminal to have them unassign me from my load and change my status back to 'shop.' Then it was back to the motel. I got the same room I had on Wednesday, so that's pretty exciting I guess.
I went out and watched Charlie Wilson's War after I got here. It was fairly entertaining, but didn't really make any permanent improvements to my mood. I guess it's time to grab a two-four and go old school style. Slainte!
I don't know what those degenerates did to my truck, but it's way more fucked up than it was when I took it to the shop Wednesday morning. On my way here, I had trouble breaking 55mph with a 31,000 pound load against a strong headwind. Last night, it stalled whenever I reached 30mph, with no trailer at all. So I had to call CTL last night and tell 'em the truck ain't making it to Joplin. And I got to go back to the Kenworth dealer this morning. Nice.
I got there right when they opened. Then, shortly before they closed for the day, they told me I might as well get another room for the weekend. The truck ain't getting fixed until Monday. The CTL road service guys were testy about the fact that my truck is still broken, the Kenworth guys were testy about the fact that the CTL guys are testy, and I'm just basically pissed at the whole lot of them. If I had never been told to go to that shop, they wouldn't have broken whatever they broke. I should have been bobtailed to Joplin as soon as I got here, but we've already covered that.
When I talked to road service, they mentioned that they are supposed to assign me to an open truck after three days off the road. Well, fuckin' A man, let's do it. Get me the hell out of here. I was transferred to some dude who checked the Laredo inventory. No empty trucks. Story of my life. So I called the Laredo terminal to have them unassign me from my load and change my status back to 'shop.' Then it was back to the motel. I got the same room I had on Wednesday, so that's pretty exciting I guess.
I went out and watched Charlie Wilson's War after I got here. It was fairly entertaining, but didn't really make any permanent improvements to my mood. I guess it's time to grab a two-four and go old school style. Slainte!
Friday, February 8, 2008
2/8/08
I think I should be pissed off right now, but honestly it's pretty damn amusing. It sounds like most people out here are worse off financially than I am, so I guess that plays a role. For a lot of people, these are the kinds of weeks that cause them to quit their jobs. They can't afford to have a bad week, so they overreact. Then they end up even worse off because they have to go through orientation with a new company and the first check is a few weeks away and all the rest of it. Honestly though, it just cracks me up that something so seemingly simple can be botched so badly.
When I went to bed last night, I actually thought I had been a little too hard on these guys, especially the Laredo dispatcher. He sent me a load assignment last night, with a 6,000 pound load going through Joplin. Considering that nobody at CTL seems to want to accept the fact that this truck shouldn't be pulling freight, I thought he had done a decent job of coming up with something light. It was pretty late and he dispatched me to be in Joplin Monday morning, so I went to bed and figured I would leave today.
This morning I was awakened by a phone call from the same dispatcher. He asked if the trailer that they assigned to me was loaded or empty. I told him I didn't know, as I had planned to hook to it today. So I went to check. Yeah, that trailer isn't here. So I went back on the board. He said "in the original spot" but I was #16 this morning when I checked, so I think he put me at the end of the line. Whatever.
This afternoon I got a plan summary for a load picking up here and relaying in Joplin. That sounds pretty good, right? Yeah, it is scheduled to be here at 00:30 MONDAY. I mean, what the fuck, seriously? I got here Tuesday evening man. I should have been dispatched at that time to bobtail to Joplin, arrived there Thursday, switched trucks, and gone about my business. CTL would have had to eat the cost of the miles and the fuel, which probably amounts to less than they'll spend in motel cost, layover pay and fuel by having me sit here in the 90 degree weather all week. Instead I spent two days waiting to get my truck fixed. My truck didn't get fixed. Then it will be another three days or so until I can leave, since apparently there is nothing coming through any sooner that would take me to Joplin. This is no way to do things. It's not like I requested time in Joplin or anything. When you request time off, you take what you get. No, they want this truck for trade-in. That's why I'm highlighted for Joplin. Since they're trading it, they didn't want to pay whatever it would have taken to get it fixed here (which sounds an awful lot like my original recommendation). That's why I'm still in Laredo. It's just one big comedy of inefficiency.
I spoke with my fleet manager earlier about a seperate pay issue on which I needed some clarification. He told me at that time that I would get the layover pay for having been here over 48 hours. That was when we thought I would be leaving today, so I guess now it will just be a lot more layover pay. I guess I can take some comfort in knowing that this shit hasn't happened to me before, and it shouldn't come up again for a long time. I like my job best when they just send me a load, I deliver it, and they send me another one. Nice and simple, no communication, no irrationality. I don't particularly like all of the phone calls and the weird decisions and all the rest of it. That stuff makes me think of better ways to do things, and that's not why I took this job. I prefer to be a trained monkey holding a steering wheel and nothing more.
The worst part about being stuck here really isn't the lost money for the week. I can afford that, even if I don't like it. The worst part is sitting around with nothing to do, so I wind up eating Mexican food all day. There are a few places down here that I really like, so I blow a bunch of money and get fat and all the rest of it. But hey, at least I'll be rested by the time I leave. Always look at the bright side, right?
Due to the structure of the layover pay system, I can't get that money paid until I get dispatched from here. I won't leave here until after this pay period ends. That means that my pay for the week will consist of a whopping 1,241 miles. What can you do? Get all worked up about it or just laugh it off and assume they'll make it up to me next week? I guess I'll take option 2. That seems easier to me.
When I went to bed last night, I actually thought I had been a little too hard on these guys, especially the Laredo dispatcher. He sent me a load assignment last night, with a 6,000 pound load going through Joplin. Considering that nobody at CTL seems to want to accept the fact that this truck shouldn't be pulling freight, I thought he had done a decent job of coming up with something light. It was pretty late and he dispatched me to be in Joplin Monday morning, so I went to bed and figured I would leave today.
This morning I was awakened by a phone call from the same dispatcher. He asked if the trailer that they assigned to me was loaded or empty. I told him I didn't know, as I had planned to hook to it today. So I went to check. Yeah, that trailer isn't here. So I went back on the board. He said "in the original spot" but I was #16 this morning when I checked, so I think he put me at the end of the line. Whatever.
This afternoon I got a plan summary for a load picking up here and relaying in Joplin. That sounds pretty good, right? Yeah, it is scheduled to be here at 00:30 MONDAY. I mean, what the fuck, seriously? I got here Tuesday evening man. I should have been dispatched at that time to bobtail to Joplin, arrived there Thursday, switched trucks, and gone about my business. CTL would have had to eat the cost of the miles and the fuel, which probably amounts to less than they'll spend in motel cost, layover pay and fuel by having me sit here in the 90 degree weather all week. Instead I spent two days waiting to get my truck fixed. My truck didn't get fixed. Then it will be another three days or so until I can leave, since apparently there is nothing coming through any sooner that would take me to Joplin. This is no way to do things. It's not like I requested time in Joplin or anything. When you request time off, you take what you get. No, they want this truck for trade-in. That's why I'm highlighted for Joplin. Since they're trading it, they didn't want to pay whatever it would have taken to get it fixed here (which sounds an awful lot like my original recommendation). That's why I'm still in Laredo. It's just one big comedy of inefficiency.
I spoke with my fleet manager earlier about a seperate pay issue on which I needed some clarification. He told me at that time that I would get the layover pay for having been here over 48 hours. That was when we thought I would be leaving today, so I guess now it will just be a lot more layover pay. I guess I can take some comfort in knowing that this shit hasn't happened to me before, and it shouldn't come up again for a long time. I like my job best when they just send me a load, I deliver it, and they send me another one. Nice and simple, no communication, no irrationality. I don't particularly like all of the phone calls and the weird decisions and all the rest of it. That stuff makes me think of better ways to do things, and that's not why I took this job. I prefer to be a trained monkey holding a steering wheel and nothing more.
The worst part about being stuck here really isn't the lost money for the week. I can afford that, even if I don't like it. The worst part is sitting around with nothing to do, so I wind up eating Mexican food all day. There are a few places down here that I really like, so I blow a bunch of money and get fat and all the rest of it. But hey, at least I'll be rested by the time I leave. Always look at the bright side, right?
Due to the structure of the layover pay system, I can't get that money paid until I get dispatched from here. I won't leave here until after this pay period ends. That means that my pay for the week will consist of a whopping 1,241 miles. What can you do? Get all worked up about it or just laugh it off and assume they'll make it up to me next week? I guess I'll take option 2. That seems easier to me.
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