THE TORTOISE AND THE HARE

We all the know the fable and the moral......slow and steady wins the race. There have been quite a few times when we have quickened our pace to get to our destination only to run out of driving hours. When that happens, we are required to do a 34 hour rest period to reset our hours. Although we haven't minded driving up to 11 hours a day, Craig figured that if we do a slower pace, driving 8 to 9 hours a day, there would be no need to have a 34 hour reset. With the major storm we knew we had lurking in our path, we hoped the slow and steady pace would keep us comfortably behind the storm.

It wasn't until Monday afternoon, after crossing the Pennsylvania state line that the first rain drops began to fall. Yes, the sky was overcast, the temperature cool,and we had a steady wind, but it was only sprinkles. But then the sprinkles turned into snow. Big fat wet snow flakes. The worst was going over a slight mountain range into our next fuel stop in Breezewood, PA. After fueling up we decided to stay there for the night, get our dock receipt faxed to us for our delivery in the morning and relax while the wind gusted and the rain drizzled. Did I mention about the wind? It more than gusted, and watching the local news, the weatherman was telling us we were experiencing category 2 hurricane winds. So we did what we could, sealed down our hatches and snuggled under the covers and watched our favorite Monday night shows on TV.

We were only about 130 miles from our delivery at the terminal in Baltimore when we left the truck stop. The wind had died down during the night,but it was still overcast and cloudy with only a misting of rain on our windshield as we drove on. The majority of the storm had moved North. I even had to replace my sandals with my woolly boots for the day. Arriving at the Port of Baltimore is always an interesting ride. We had to go through the Fort McHenry Tunnel, to get to the other side of the Chesapeake Bay. This tunnel is 7,200 feet long and was opened in 1985 after 5 1/2 years of construction at a cost of $750 million. It is the widest underwater tunnel in the world. We then went through security, found a place to park to get the proper paperwork to the receiving clerk, off load the Genie and then wait to get the paperwork signed. Let me just say we waited a long time to get the paperwork signed. You gotta love these union workers.

So another delivery completed, a new assignment given, and like good students of the long ago fables, we realized the moral, the slow and steady pace will suit us just fine. After all, we consider ourselves retired and on vacation, and isn't that what every job should feel like?