Friday, July 31, 2009

BABY IT'S HOT OUTSIDE

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought we moved to Washington State to get away from the blasting, oven hot heat of summer. Did I miss the memo that said the jokes on us? And yes I know, at least it's a dry heat with no humidity, but I am so ready for Fall and Winter......that is until I start complaining about the snow and ice covered roads. Craig sent me a picture of the yard in Bloomington, CA while he was there waiting to deliver on Thursday. We have never seen the yard so empty before, and Craig was the only TWT driver there! Things must have really picked up on the flat bed side this week, as Craig was just about the only customer when the Taco Truck showed up at lunch time. After his delivery early Thursday morning, he was told to go back to the yard and drop his trailer and await a loaded trailer which would be brought to him by one of the local drivers. We had guessed correctly that it would be bananas from San Diego, and by noon, Craig was headed for Puyallup, WA and the well deserved home time. His delivery is for Sunday morning, and most likely he will get a load from the Fred Meyer DC into Spokane for either Sunday night, or Monday morning. Life goes on here in Walla Walla, WA while I am visiting my friend, awaiting Craig's return to Spokane for home time. We tried a new chicken recipe called "Spiced Sticky Boneless Chicken Thighs", that was literally devoured by the five of us for dinner. Even the kids were fighting over the last little bits of chicken left clinging to the yummy glaze on the serving platter. This will no doubt be a meal I will fix for Craig while we are home. Cori and I spent some time out in her flower garden cutting flowers, before the day got too terribly hot. She then got busy trimming them and placing them into bouquets, which she brought to a neighbor, along with some of the maple oatmeal scones. That is some lucky neighbor in my opinion. We'll do battle again with the heat, and live to tell about it tomorrow, when it is predicted to be 105 degrees. I think it's time for another glass of ice tea.....and hurry home Craig, before I melt from the heat!

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

BRACE YOURSELF

Okay, you testosterone filled males that read this blog, some of you may want to by pass this entry and wait until next week when I am back on the truck to read a real trucking blog entry. For the rest of you, sit back and wish that there was a scratch and sniff photo, so that you can thoroughly enjoy this post. Suffice it to say, I don't cook much, what with the majority of my time being on the truck and the limitations that brings with it, and how that our kitchen at home is just about as limiting as the truck. So when presented with being in the kitchen of my friend Cori, and her love of cooking, I found myself in a wannabe cook/baker heaven, much like a kid in a candy store. We have tried several new things since my arrival on Monday. There was the potato fresh from the garden, Gruyere cheese, onion, fennel bake, the sun dried tomato, cream cheese dip with other assorted spices and ingredients, which will be calling my name again later this afternoon, and then there were the oatmeal maple scones we baked this morning. I love a good scone, and I have got to say, these were pretty darn good and easy to make, at least from my spectator chair with only the responsibility of reading off the ingredients. I, myself, think that was probably the most important job, because one mess up there, and you have potential disaster on your hands right? Come on people, I want to feel like I truly did participate in the process. So working hand in hand, the ingredients were assembled, mixed, rolled out, and then cut and placed on the cooking sheet to bake. A mere 15 minutes later, were hot, nicely browned scones just begging for a hearty dose of glaze and a sprinkling of oats for their proper introduction to our stomachs. I got to say, they didn't disappoint. Now pass the plate around, I think I'll have another one.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

HARVEST GOODNESS

About the time I was almost half way to Walla Walla, WA Craig called me from Eugene, OR with the happy news that he was in a dock and preparing for the loading of the ice cream. He would have a full day ahead of him once he was loaded, driving almost 550 miles to French Camp, CA. About 10pm last night, I received the phone call that he had arrived safely and was heading for bed. I was hardly able to keep my eyes open myself, as I had had a full day myself.

I arrived in Walla Walla just before noon, and quickly got to the hugs and embraces of missing my dear friend way too much over the past 8 weeks. Much to my surprise, she had a gift waiting for me on the kitchen counter and encouraged me to open it up. I was deeply touched by what was inside. A set of coasters, which we have badly needed over the past year, but I just couldn't find the right ones, until there they were staring me in the face. Cori hand made these tile coasters and had transferred four photos which I had taken during our first year out on the truck. As I stared open mouth at this wonderful, touching gift, I was transported back in time to each place I had taken the pictures, rattling off States and Cities, and falling in love with the coasters, our love of traveling in the big rig, and at a loss for words in which to thank Cori for such a gift. But all too soon, it was time to check out the garden and the bounty in which Cori and her family were going to gather for our evening meal. For this city girl to go out and watch for the first time potatoes being dug out of the ground, and then onions, carrots, lettuce, and finally fennel, well it was just a great joy to know that I would soon be enjoying this bounty, fresh from the garden, in just a few short hours. The evening meal was a true success of eating off the land. This is the first year for them to try their hand at growing their own vegetables, and no doubt they will cultivate what they have learned this year and make next years garden even better. If we had a little bit more space at our place, I wouldn't mind trying my hand at it when we finally settle down in the future, but no doubt Craig would gleefully remind me again about that lack of space. I know Cori will not mind a visit from the two of us to get our fresh veggie fix.After an evening spent watching Mike and Cori's two children, Jackson and Allison, practice flag football with their teams at the local High School, it was time to call it a day. After the last couple of weeks of being by myself, this flurry of activity today tired me out a bit, but not so much that I couldn't quickly snatch my camera and take a photograph to remind me of what a great day it had been with friends and enjoying the bountiful harvest of goodness they had so graciously and warmly served me!

Sunday, July 26, 2009

TIME FOR A ROAD TRIP

I spent the day cleaning our 400 square foot house. You wouldn't think it would take that long, but I was very thorough, and now it will be sparkling clean for when I return with Craig for his home time around August 4th. I rewarded myself for my efforts with a 6 shot espresso 32 ounce latte! Who needs Starbucks when I got the makings of my own right here at home.

I'll be packing my bag in the morning for a week long visit with my friend Cori and her family in Walla Walla. I'll be sure to have lots to write about and take photographs, while I am there. We always have tons of fun and the time flies by much too quickly, unlike the last two weeks at home by myself.

As for Craig, he has had plenty of time on his hands the past two days waiting until Monday morning, when he attempts to get loaded again with the ice cream. Being a bit paranoid now, he has tested and retested the reefer unit a few times to make sure it is cooling properly. In fact, he plans on cooling it to minus 20 degrees before heading to the Shipper in the morning.

We are both counting down the days until he pulls into the Company yard in Spokane to take a couple of days off, and then hopefully with all of our errands accomplished, we'll be back on the road together again on August 7th. I for one can not wait. I've miss the road more than I would have imagined, but even more, I've missed Craig!

Saturday, July 25, 2009

THE LOST WEEKEND

What started as a simple dispatch to pick up ice cream, all too soon, turned into what will now be forever referred to as the "lost weekend". For those of you not in the business, the details on all frozen loads, always reads to pre chill the trailer to -10 degrees Fahrenheit. As Craig has done in all previous frozen loads, about two hours before load time, he fired up the reefer and thought nothing more of it. Upon arrival at the Shipper, the temperature read 7 degrees, and that is where it all started to go so very wrong.While paperwork was getting sorted out, a recheck of the temperature showed that the trailer was not chilling down to -10 degrees, but remained steady at 7 degrees. Gauges were checked and tapped on, because after all, it never hurts to hit on the item you want to work correctly, right? But no matter how hard he wished it would chill down, it never did, and the Shipper refused to load the trailer with the ice cream. Now add into the mix, that the Shipper does not work on weekends, and I think you are now getting the big picture.

A phone call into dispatch, and Craig was told to take the defective trailer to the Fred Meyer DC this morning, where it could be loaded with a non frozen load, and obtain a trailer that would chill to -10 degrees. After sitting idle for the weekend, with his $208 layover pay for Saturday and Sunday on the books, he would then return at 10am on Monday morning and hopefully get the trailer loaded and head down to Temecula, CA for delivery on Wednesday.

Craig related his sad tale to me over the phone last night while still parked at the Shippers dock. They had given him the code to exit the gate when he wanted to leave, since he was planning on just staying there all night. I inquired as to why he just didn't leave and go back to the truck stop about 20 miles away. He didn't have a good answer to that, and decided maybe it would be a bit nicer there, especially with the free wi fi and facilities to use. I always got your back honey!

Now for those of you who were wondering what it was that Craig ordered at the restaurant Thursday night, it was meat loaf served with brown gravy. Craig said it wasn't the best he had ever had, but certainly it was tasty and well worth the money for a nice dinner out. Oh, and Txjerry2, check out the comments section on the previous post to the answer to your question, I never could find a way to send the response to you personally.

Friday, July 24, 2009

GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER

As I have mentioned before, we rarely eat out when on the truck, as it is so much more cost effective to have nourishment on board. But there comes a time, in everyones life, when you just need a little change of pace, something different to titillate the old taste buds, and last night was that time for Craig. After staging in Aurora for his 1pm delivery in Clackamas, and then after a successful unload at Fred Meyers DC, he headed back to Aurora where he received his next assignment. Wouldn't you know it......it's ice cream!! but much to my relief, it wasn't in Tillamook. (I'm still holding out to go there when I'm back on the truck). No, this time it is a return visit to Eugene, OR and the Oregon Ice Cream Company. Knowing that there was a independent truck stop just 20 so miles away from the Shippers location, Craig decided to head to Halsey, OR for the night, even though he didn't have an appointment to pick up the ice cream until 2pm on Friday. We have stayed at this truck stop before, while on the Marine Division delivering boats, and had to pay $75 for a mandatory weekly truck and trailer wash. You can see the tiny little shack, and the one man operation in the picture above. That was by far the most we have ever had to spend for a wash, then or since. When he arrived at the truck stop, and was settled in, even finding to his surprise good TV reception, he gave me a phone call to update me on his status. Several times during the conversation, he mentioned that he was starving and was having trouble getting excited about what he had in the truck to eat. With just a tad bit encouragement from me, he decided to treat himself to a dinner at the restaurant on the premises. From the looks of the photograph he sent me, I doubt he walked away hungry from that meal!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

ANOTHER STAB AT IT

I'm going to take another stab at trying to make an entertaining or at least interesting blog entry with so very little information from my wonderful husband. Honestly, he tries, or at least I like to think he tries, to give me something of which I might be able to make a blog entry out of, but most times it leaves me scratching my head wondering how in the world I'll ever think of something to write about. So I guess, writing about trying to figure out what to write about, just might do the trick, at least for the first paragraph.

Craig was in and out of the CostCo Tracy, CA delivery long before his appointment time, and then making his way south to stage in the Company yard in Bloomington. Upon his arrival there, he noticed two things, the first being that there was only one other TWT truck in the yard. The other, was that the yard was filled with trucks and trailers from the flat bed division, and that the majority of the flat beds were empty. Freight must not be moving as well on the flat bed side as it is on the reefer side.

Since the temperature in sunny southern California was a very sunny 100+ degrees, he activated the heat shields and sequestered himself inside his man cave of a truck, although he assures me he has been keeping it clean and vacuumed. Getting up early on Tuesday he was showered and had his laundry done by 6am and waiting out the clock until his 10am delivery at the CostCo in Mira Loma.

He managed to eek out some detention pay at the CostCo and for his troubles was rewarded with a loaded trailer of Tropicana juice waiting for him back at the Company yard courtesy of Eddie the local driver. Doesn't get much better than that, as he had just enough hours on his books to get him well out of the LA area and into Avenal, CA for the evening.

The juice delivers at the Fred Meyer DC in Clackamas, OR Thursday at 1pm and we have already begun the guessing game on what his next assignment might be. I'm hoping any Tillamook loads will wait until I'm back on the truck come August. Even up here in Washington it has been unseasonably hot and the thought of a nice big ice cream cone is sounding super fantastic about now!

Monday, July 20, 2009

RELIEVED

Bless his heart! Craig made sure to call me and let me know he made it to San Francisco and into the dock safely yesterday. I have a bad habit of worrying over things I really don't need to worry about, but Craig has learned to adapt to it and calm my worries. As we had talked about, it was so much easier this time at this particular receiver as one, it was during daylight hours, and he could see exactly where he was backing up to, and two, it was first thing in the morning and not at the tail end of his 14 hour clock. Two major factors for a successful delivery.

He had been informed the day before, that after his delivery in San Francisco to head back to the Company yard in French Camp and drop his trailer, because he would not have enough hours to make the final two deliveries in LA. When he arrived at French Camp, he received his next assignment to hook up to a loaded trailer full of Tillamook Cheese. This particular load has two deliveries, one in Tracy, CA this morning at 9:30am and then tomorrow in Mira Loma at 10am. This will make for a nice relaxing two days, as Craig's hours were looking a bit slim with only a few hours left on his 70hour clock. We both are thinking he will probably get a banana load come Wednesday morning as we begin the countdown to his home time.

As far as news on the home front? I'm still enjoying my surroundings, getting to know a few of the people that make this area their summer home, and even began a home project of making a headboard for our beds. I still need a few more decorative details, which will have to wait until Craig is home and can cut the wood pieces for me, but all in all, I think it is shaping up quite nicely. I'll be sure to post pictures of the completed project.

I've also been doing battle with yellow jackets as well. I was able to eradicate them from building nests under the eaves on the shed, but they found a new place to their liking under our front porch decking. Who knew that I would be so exposed to all the crawling, flying critters that living in remote areas brings with it. The carpenter ants are no where to be seen, the big flying beetles are gone, I haven't seen any flies or mosquitoes yet, but those yellow jackets are a persistent lot. But hey, it gives me something to worry about when I'm not worrying about Craig.

Saturday, July 18, 2009

YOU AND ME AGAINST THE WORLD

It's been a week since we parted ways, me to go home for a few weeks to check on things, and Craig to stay out driving until scheduled home time around the first of August. It hasn't been our first separation, and certainly it will not be our last, but this time, for whatever reason it seems to be dragging.

When he was training Don (and we all remember that infamous trainee and his rather rude departure), the time flew by, and I couldn't believe it had almost been five weeks apart, and there suddenly, he was home and I was back out on the truck. Now, every day is like watching each and every crystal of sand drop slowly through the hourglass, as we count down the days until we are together again.

I never imagined finding someone like Craig. Strike that, of course we all dream of finding that perfect person whom we think is right for us, but that perfect person I had thought I wanted, wasn't Craig. He was so much more, and it was quite by accident that we even met up. I know in my heart of hearts that a higher being had a tad bit to do with that meeting.

With Craig in my life, he inspires me to believe I can do anything. I know he will read this and say that's not true, but he truly is the better person in our relationship. He brings me out of my shell, he trusts me and my instincts, Lord, how he makes me laugh everyday, and he loves me beyond measure, and it's not so much in his words of endearment, but in his actions. I've told his parents many times that they raised a very decent, honorable man, and who can ask for more than that from a parent?

You wouldn't think that two people together 24/7 for over three years now, wouldn't mind a break from one another every once in awhile. But honestly, after about 12 hours apart, we are so ready to be back in each other's company. So continued safe travels Craig, I'm counting down the days and hoping the next two weeks go by quickly, and really, when you think about it, you and me against the world? ............. we are an unstoppable team.

Friday, July 17, 2009

SORRY, DON'T HAVE MUCH FOR YOU

As you know, when I'm not on the truck, I get very little information from Craig about the goings on out on the highways. The last couple of days have been no exception, and I'm left with just regurgitating what has been told to me. Don't get too excited, there isn't much to report.

Craig left Corning on Thursday morning and had an uneventful drive into Aurora, OR where he staged for his delivery in Clackamas this morning. He arrived around 2pm and quickly put the heat shield blockers up on the windows, and relaxed in the comfort of his truck at what I am sure was around 58 degrees. If I haven't already shared this with you, Craig's temperature runs a degree or so higher than most people, and I have been known to refer to him to my friends and my "thermo nuclear man".

He did hear some knocking on the door around 6pm by another TWT driver that said he was there to swap loads with him. Craig was a bit confused as he hadn't received word yet on this swap. So when the other driver told him that all he knew was that he was swapping loads with truck 269, Craig had to chuckle a bit and kindly inform him that he was truck 296, and that he too had problems with transposing numbers from time to time. As is normally the case when a couple of truck drivers meet up, they spent a few more minutes shooting the breeze before Craig climbed back into the cool comfort of his truck.

This morning the drop went as it usually does at the Fred Meyer DC in Clackamas. A mere 30 minutes and the bananas are off loaded and you are headed out the gates. This time another dispatch was fast on the heels of his empty call, and he is now headed to Wallula, WA to the Tyson Meat Plant to pick up a load of meat at 7pm tonight.

This particular load has three drops, one in Daly City, CA on Sunday at 11am and then two more drops in Vernon starting at 2am and 6am Monday. It didn't take too much time to figure out that no matter how he crunched the numbers, that he would not be able to make the last two drops in the LA area. As has been the case, no doubt there will be either a drop or a swap at French Camp when he is done in Daly City.

By the way, I'm trying not to think too much about that said drop in Daly City, the San Francisco area is never a fun place to make a drop, but if memory serves me well, I think we have been to this particular place before, and with it being a Sunday delivery, maybe it won't prove to be too difficult. It's times like this that I wish I was on the truck to be able to help with those difficult backs in congested areas!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

SCRUB A DUB DUB

It is safe to say that Craig's truck has not been washed in well over two months, right about the time we started running non stop. He has had intentions of getting it washed, but the timing never quite worked out with the trip plan, and so the truck went unwashed and the bugs and debris slowly became petrified onto the paint surface.

Well today was the day that Craig made it happen. After picking up his bananas in San Diego Tuesday morning, he made it to Buttonwillow, CA where he called it a night. Up this morning, he first took a shower and cleaned himself up, and then headed towards Lathrop, CA and Joe's Travel Plaza. Here is where two unlucky truck washers, had the pain of trying to wash over two months worth of road grime and bugs from the truck. But wash it they did, and it emerged looking like this. After a quick stop at the Company yard in French Camp to drop off a trip packet, Craig continued his journey north and is now sitting sequestered away inside his truck at the Casino in Corning, CA with the AC blasting, as the temperature reads 113 outside. While he is there he is finishing up the day with one last washing......his dirty clothes. Tomorrow looks to be a nice clean start to the day!

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

WONDERING NO MORE

Life for us in the trucking business has been good these days. Before Craig had even finished his last assignment, he was sent his next dispatch. We had suspected the odds were in the favor of a banana load out of San Diego, and our instincts were not wrong. But first, Craig had to finish up with his deliveries in the LA area.

His first stop at the Kool Pak in Wilmington proved a little daunting, as when he arrived, they told him to park on the street somewhere and await their phone call. You don't want to miss an opportunity to turn when you should in the middle of LA, which Craig did, and he ended up having to drive about 5 miles out of his way to make a turn on a truck allowed street to get back to the area of the receiver. The good news out of this was that he actually found an area of street parking for trucks which he tucked into his memory banks for the next time he would return to this part of town.

His second challenge was actually communicating with the workers at Kool Pak. Here is where a little knowledge of Spanish would have been helpful, but Craig powered through the communication difficulties and got all the proper paperwork signed before the unloading commenced. After the unload, and with a couple of hours to waste until his next delivery, he used the before mentioned new truck parking area to kick back and relax.

Arriving at Ralph's the security guards checked him in and then the warehouse workers seemed to have a problem with him being there after 3pm, since according to them they don't unload after that bewitching hour. Hmmmmm, let's check the facts here. His appointment was confirmed for 3:30pm, the guards had checked the paperwork and signed off on the 3:30pm appointment, and gee, how funny, once the warehouse workers made a phone call, they were unloading Craig's trailer after 3pm. Score one for the truck drivers!

Once unloaded, Craig went over to our super secret place to park in Vernon for the night, which was closer to San Diego then driving all the way to the Company yard in Bloomington. After a good night's sleep, he was headed to stage at the rest area on Interstate 5, right along the coastline, to await his okay to respond into the little receiving area on the residential street I have talked about before. No easy pick up at the Port of San Diego this time for bananas.

As for me, well I'm still looking at the headboard project that needs to be tackled, not to mention the hamper of dirty clothes that will probably stay put for another few days, and just enjoying being happy, rested, and being totally in love with the place where we live. I've taken to going for my morning walk way before the rest of mankind has even thought about sticking their heads outside and I get to watch the the sun rise above the pine trees.

Monday, July 13, 2009

LIFE GOES ON

It's been a quiet couple of days both here in the Pacific Northwest, and for Craig out on the road. The load of meat was waiting for him when he got to Wallula, WA Friday afternoon, and after scaling and finding it legal to transport, he shut down for the night in Pasco.

While Craig was busy back at work, I made my way north with a stop at the Wal Mart north of Spokane. This is probably one of a handful of Wal Marts I truly do not like to go to. It is always packed with people, and going up and down the aisles is like playing bumper cars trying to maneuver around everyone else. But I persevered, and loaded down with groceries to last me the two weeks that I would be at home, I continued my trek north.

Saturday, Craig was up early and on the road with the thought of driving well over 550 miles and making it to Corning, CA. Yesterday, he finished off the majority of the rest of his trip and landed in Lebec at the Flying J to stage for his delivery into LA this morning. His first delivery is in Wilmington at a Kool Pak at 9am, and then finishing up his day at the dreaded Ralph's in Compton at 3:30pm. Craig is hoping with such a late delivery at Ralph's, that the dock area will not be as crowded as it normally is in the morning.

I've spent the last couple of days just relaxing and enjoying my surroundings. It was warm, near 90 degrees, and I was thankful for our AC system, as I kept comfortable inside looking out. Today however, is a different story. We had some thunderstorms during the night, and as I went for my morning walk, it started to rain again. Presently, it is raining quite hard and the skies are grey. They say it will not get much above 60 degrees today and that is totally to my liking as I sit with the windows open and sipping my latte wondering what assignment Craig will get next.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

GOING OUR SEPARATE WAYS

While sitting in the yard Thursday after making our deliveries, we noticed that the QualComm was not receiving a signal. We moved the truck around the yard, even tried resetting it, but nothing doing, no signal and us left wondering if we had received a dispatch yet. Luckily, we had informed dispatch that we would be available on cell phone while we did some shopping at Wal Mart, and after we hadn't acknowledged the dispatch, they called us and let us know the information.

We wouldn't have much to do, just wait until a driver dropped a trailer loaded with produce in the yard at 3am, and then make two deliveries in the morning, the first one being Spokane Produce at 5am. After some documentation regarding a missing pallet of produce, we were on the way to our second drop at Safeway at 9am. By 1pm we were headed back to the yard and thinking that we would be spending another night together before parting ways.

Just when Craig stepped out of the truck to see about getting it washed by the yard crew, the QualComm started beeping and I knew that I would indeed be headed home. I met Craig in the parking lot to give him the news and then went and got our pick up to load up my stuff. And with that, I was headed home and Craig was headed to Tyson Meat in Wallula, WA for a load which delivers in the Los Angeles area on Monday.

It goes without saying I miss Craig already, but I have no doubts I will have no trouble getting into the routine back at home, and that the next three weeks will fly by......with the help of a few home improvement projects that I have on my list.

Thursday, July 09, 2009

GOING HOME

We spent a nice relaxing evening in the drop yard in Pacific, WA Tuesday night. Even left all the windows and vents open in the truck, which a mosquito took advantage of, and proceeded to bite me in two peculiar locations.......under my chin and the side of my wrist.....go figure. Hope it enjoyed my unauthorized blood donation.

We couldn't have asked for nicer weather either. A cool breeze blowing and the temperatures in the mid 50's to low 60's......just to our liking. It wasn't until noon Wednesday that we were beeped with our new assignment. No shock there, being without a trailer and with no empties in the drop yard, we were told to head to the Fred Meyer DC in Puyallup and pick up a load at 6pm, with 4 drops in Spokane starting at 6am in the morning. Doing the quick math, we realized that if the load wasn't ready to be picked up early, it was going to be tricky to be able to complete this dispatch.No worries, as we checked in and were told the trailer was in the dock waiting to be loaded. Craig parked directly across from it in the parking lot so that I could keep an eagle eye for any movement that it was in fact being loaded. I gleefully shouted out to him in the back of the truck every time I saw a jello jiggle of the trailer and was shocked when the red light turned green after only 30 minutes. We were loaded and scaled by 2:15 and on the road to Spokane knowing that we would be able to take at least an 8 hour break before making the deliveries in the morning. Both Interstate 84 which runs along the Columbia River, and Interstate 90 through Snoqualmie Pass, rank among my favorite routes to take. I am a lover of pine trees, water, and mountains, and this route pleases me on all levels. With a quick stop in Ellensburg for a Subway sandwich, which by the way, I hope they never stop that $5 foot long deal anytime soon, we were in the Company yard in Spokane by 8pm and crawling into bed for some rest before the anticipated 4am wake up call.The four deliveries when flawlessly, and we were back in the yard by 11am. Knowing that we haven't seen Spokane in over 5 weeks, with all those dropping and swapping of loads, and that fact that I did want to be dropped off here before Craig takes some home time in August, We decided that I would leave the truck during this stop. With that in mind, we hit the Wal Mart for food supplies to last Craig the next three weeks, and of course a mandatory stop at Starbucks.I plan to stay with Craig until he leaves for his next assignment. So far he has not been dispatched on anything, but that is okay with us. That gives us plenty of time for truck clean up, laundry, showers, and a while longer to enjoy each other's company before we part ways. I'm looking forward to getting back home for a couple of weeks and then taking the last week before Craig comes home to visit my best friend Cori in Walla Walla, WA. Then I'll be more than excited to drive back to the yard to pick up Craig so we can enjoy a few days of rest at home!

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

WILL WE EVER GET OUT OF OREGON?

Not that I'm complaining, as Oregon is a beautiful State, but except for Craig having that one run down to LA where the alternator went out, we have not been further south of Salinas in over a month. That is quite rare, and it seems we have been doing alot of swapping and dropping of loads, which surprisingly, has been more profitable than we would have thought. Not too shabby getting $125 for 3 hours worth of worth this morning, but let me go back a few days. After getting another 34 hour restart on Craig's hours Sunday, we started the first of three deliveries Monday morning at the Safeway in Clackamas. we actually had two drops at the same location, one at their meat warehouse, and the other at their frozen warehouse. Had we looked at the invoices a little better, they might have been missing some Sara Lee cheesecakes that we had chilling in our trailer.

From Safeway, we made our last appointment a block away and four hours early at Kool Pak. They were happy to unload us and we were happy to let them. After going empty and not hearing anything right away, we took of to our usual resting place at the Big K-Mart a few miles away. After a couple of hours there, and knowing that if we waited any longer, parking would be a premium at the truck stops in Troutdale, we took off to find us a home.

As luck would have it, the truck stop was completely filled up at 1pm, but as we neared the corner, I spotted an open spot and Craig could even pull through, instead of having to blind side back into it. The trucking Gods were with us for sure! As we were getting comfortable, we were beeped with an assignment to pick up another team load headed to Phoenix at the Fred Meyer DC in Clackamas Tuesday morning and get as far as we could.

As soon as the office was open this morning at 5am, we headed to Fred Meyer and received our trailer assignment. This particular load was only 15,000 pounds and we were hooked up and headed south in no time at all. Having only gone a little over 100 miles, we were told to stage in Coburg, OR at the TA truck stop and await the team that would taking over our load. When they finally arrived we swapped loads and we were now in possession of a banana load destined to be delivered in Puyallup, WA on Thursday morning.With our drop yard in Pacific, just 8 miles from the delivery location, and only 250 miles away, we informed dispatch that we would be there by 4pm today and that if we could drop the trailer and receive another load for Wednesday it would make us very happy. As soon as we arrived, we were told to drop the trailer and await a new dispatch in the morning.Like I mentioned previously, these runs are short, but everything dispatched under 300 miles is a $125 payout. Not too shabby as we have had quite a few of those and sometimes two in one day! So what seemed like a pattern of consistently staying in Oregon and swapping and dropping trailers, we are happy to have finally made it into Washington. The weather is great, a cool 55 degrees, and I know a great little coffee shack right around the corner for in the morning. You'll hear no complaints from us!

Sunday, July 05, 2009

THE WILLAMETTE HIGHWAY

Here's hoping you all had a fun and safe 4th of July with lots of BBQ and cool drinks. It has stayed pretty warm here in Oregon over the past few days as I suspect is has in your neck of the woods too. After our 34 hour break in Weed, we took off very early Friday morning (3am) and drove into Salem to drop off the transformers. Upon arriving at the Consignee, they were closed, but we do have access to their gate code. We made quick time of scaling the load on their scale and then dropping it into an open dock. Within seconds we were told to bobtail to Aurora and pick up a team load out of the Fred Meyer DC in Clackamas first thing Saturday morning. We had showers on our mind, so we stopped off at the Pilot in Brooks, OR for a little clean up and then walked across the parking lot to a coffee shack for a little caffeine. Then it was off to the TA truck stop in Aurora where we got the perfect spot for people watching up close by the fuel island and store. That's one of the great things about bob tailing, you can literally park just about anywhere. I was able to get laundry done and we enjoyed our left over Mexican food we had enjoyed previously the night before in Weed at the Dos Amigos Restaurant. If you are ever in the area, you really should stop by there. The service was excellent, the portions huge, and the food was fantastic, and on top of that, we even had seats with the million dollar views of Mount Shasta through the window. Take exit 745 and it's right on the main street between the McDonald's and the truck stop. You won't be sorry.

We enjoyed a good night's sleep for once, and arrived in Clackamas at 7am to pick up the team load headed to Phoenix. Given the trailer number in the office we went in search of the load, hooked up, and sent in our loaded call. We were quickly advised to head to Klamath Falls, OR to swap loads with the team that would take it into Phoenix. Our routing would take us down Interstate 5 and then cutting across Oregon on the Willamette Highway (HWY58) to get to Klamath Falls. This is about the third or fourth time was have had the pleasure of traveling this highway, and I have got to say, as long as you don't have a very heavy load, (ours was only 22,000 pounds), it is a nice way to spend a few hours. You can't beat the scenery as you take in covered bridges, lakes and streams, mountains and pine trees to your heart's content.

As luck would have it, the other drivers arrived from the opposite direction at the same time we did and we went to work exchanging paperwork and unhooking and hooking up to our new trailers. And just like that we were back retracing our route through Oregon and made it back to Aurora before Craig's 14 hour clock ran out. Here's the beauty of it, this load doesn't deliver until Monday morning, so we will be able to get another 34 hour restart on his driving hours and have a boatload of hours available for the new week. Today will find us relaxing and maybe taking a walk down the street. I saw a sign for a berry farm and a BBQ place that just might be calling our name later today. Enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend!

Thursday, July 02, 2009

DISCOVERING WEED FOR THE FIRST TIME

Alright, alright, calm down people and get your minds off the illegal weed and start thinking about the City of Weed, CA. It has been written about how this little town of 3,000 still has it's city signs taken by people prone to enjoy the illegal stuff. They even sell copies of the sign in the "Weed Shop", which has t-shirts galore, proudly exclaiming..."Got Weed"? We visited the tiny store on our little exploration walk this morning and many more sights of interest.After sleeping in a little this morning, we hit the restaurant next door to the truck stop for breakfast. We figured we would need the nourishment on our two mile walk into the town. It was a pleasant walk, with the morning air still cool and a nice breeze and by 9am we had hit the main drag and were the first customers of the day at the Weed Store. I was amazed at how many people came and went during the short time we were there, but we had other sights to see and we left to go explore them.The next item of interest was the Weed Arch which is located at the entrance to Main Street. The original arch built in 1922 was built of concrete, and after it started getting surface cracks, and the city engineers could find no blueprints of it's construction, they tore it down for safety reasons. The new one was erected in 1989 and we were even able to find a USDA survey benchmark on one of the columns of the arch.Traveling further down Main Street, we came upon City Hall and an unique sculpture of the city founder Abner Weed. Mr. Weed thought the area was perfect for his lumber mill, due to the wind currents and their ability to help the drying of green lumber. In 1897 and for the price of $400, Abner was able to purchase 280 acres of land where Weed now sits.Completing our circle down Main Street, we ended up at the intersection of where Highway 97, historic Highwy 99, and Interstate 5 meet. In the parking lot of a grocery store sits a rather large totem pole. Originally it was built to mark the start of the Alcan or Alaskan Highway. When Safeway opened a grocery store at that location, they put a large spinning "S" on top of the totem pole. The "S" was removed when Safeway closed their store and Ray's Supermarket took over the building.By now the sun was out in full force and both Craig and I were feeling the heat. We purchased some water and Gatorade for our two mile trek back to the truck and tried to smile and wave as I had to stop and rest in the shade and a group of preschool children, tethered to a walking cord, walked happily by us. It seemed the walk back took so much longer than the walk there, but we were both happy to climb inside the truck and enjoy the cool air conditioning! The down time here in Weed has been nice, and we did enjoy the sightseeing on our walk, but both of us are ready to hit the road again. When we arrived in Weed yesterday, another driver was waiting to take our load and we inherited a transformer load, exactly like the one Craig had last week. We will take off around 3am and deliver the trailer to Salem, OR Friday morning. From there it's anyone's guess what we will get for the Fourth of July weekend.

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

RUNNING HARD

I don't know how everyone else is running these days in the trucking business, but I can say that we have been run hard, and Craig will find himself completely out of hours by the time we get to Weed, CA in a few hours. Also, in order to arrive at the deliveries on time, we've had to get running immediately after our 10 hour breaks, which has resulted in driving in the middle of the night and trying to sleep in the early afternoons. I can't really say that I'm disappointed that we will have 34 hours to rest and do some exploring while in Weed. In fact I think we will both enjoy the down time while Craig accumulates fresh driving hours. We made the delivery in Walla Walla, WA Tuesday morning. We were hoping to meet up with my friend Cori and her husband for breakfast after we were done, but we had already been sent a pre plan for another load as soon as we were empty. This load required pallets, so off we went to Pasco to first pick up pallets, and then to the truck stop to get a light weight before heading into the shipper in Richland, WA.

We arrived an hour early for our appointment, and saw that there were at least 8 trucks ahead of us waiting to get loaded. One after one, they were directed to open docks, and shortly after our appointment time, we had a dock and were getting loaded with frozen french fries for Trader Joe's. This is by far, not the heaviest of loads we have had recently, and after using their on site scale, we were pleased with the axle weights and made it back to the truck stop as Craig's 14 hour clock was running out. This morning, once again we were up and on the road by 2am. We have 460 miles to cover of which almost 300 of them are already behind us. We should arrive in Weed before noon, and we are still waiting to hear about swapping loads. No matter what we get, we won't be able to start driving again until around midnight Thursday night/Friday morning. Until then, we'll be exploring Weed and maybe checking out the Mexican Restaurant next to the truck stop.

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