See about 3 days ago, a very itty bitty crack in the passenger side window, decided to make its self known and traveled from top to bottom. This made for some interesting maneuvering to try and take photos from the front of the truck. I had to resort to using my side window which always seems to have a nasty glare on it whenever I want to take a photograph through it.
We pulled into the yard, unhooked from the trailer, and I loaded up with computers, our dirty laundry, and of course lunch, and headed to the driver's lounge to relax while the repair was getting done. We enjoyed a couple of hours of solitude and then retrieved the truck with the shiny new window. We advised dispatch that we were ready to "rock and roll" and we were given an assignment to hook up to a new trailer.
Wouldn't you know it, upon inspection, we found pallets in the trailer and a flat tire. Thankfully, getting rid of the pallets was easy enough, we could drop them off in the yard and still collect a few bucks for a pallet drop. The tire, we had to take to the trailer shop, and in a short amount of time we had a new tire put on. They also decided to replace three others while they were at it.So, "where are you going"?, I hear you all asking......... We are off to Kennewick, WA to Columbia Cold Storage to pick up frozen french fries and take them to Long Beach. I think that will set us up nicely for another banana load, but then you just never know.
On a total side note, thanks to Rosemary, we finally broke down and bought a bag of Hershey Cherry Cordial Kisses. They taste just like chocolate covered cherries! Do yourself a favor, don't even be tempted to buy a bag unless you want to give into an addiction that Craig and I will most likely be seeking professional help to kick. In the mean time, don't mind me while I sign off, I need my hands to grab a couple of more out of the quickly dwindling bag.
As we made our way to Troutdale, the skies cleared up and the sunshine emerged, and by the time we were hooked up to our new empty trailer we had received our next dispatch. This would be the third time since being with TWT that we have picked up a non food item. Craig's very first dispatch was picking up lumber, and our next one was when we picked up all those empty oil barrels and some oil products in Portland. This would be a return trip to Portland, but to Chevron instead of Conoco to pick up a hodgepodge of oil products.
Driving to the shipper was a look into why Portland is such a huge trading center. First you have the railways, and then the water ways with the many bridges to cross over, not to mention the downtown area right along the water. The area where we picked up was a buzz with tankers all lined up to be filled up with fuel. It was a non stop parade of them coming and going as we were parked in the dock getting loaded with just an oil spill short of 45,000 pounds of product.
We then headed back to Troutdale to scale the load. The first round showed that we were heavy on the trailer tandems. We made the adjustment and I casually asked Craig if he was going to reweigh to make sure our calculations were correct. I had to laugh when he said, "I'll take that kind of insurance for a buck", and off we went to rescale. It scaled out perfectly and we were headed to Spokane for an 8am delivery Friday morning.
We made it as far Hatton, WA before shutting down after a very long 13 hour day, and just under 100 miles to drive in the morning for our delivery. We had enjoyed our drive along Interstate 84 and the Columbia River and I even got a clear shot of Washington's Stonehenge. Presently we are sitting in the dock at El Jay Oil Company in Spokane while we get unloaded. From here we will head back to the yard to get some work done on the truck, from there it's anyone's guess as to where we will head next.
After giving me time to put away my belongings and then the food I had purchased for the next few weeks, we were off headed north. It was a joy to appreciate the blossoms and wild flowers in bloom along the wayWe pulled into the Flying J in Corning, CA and enjoyed some baked spaghetti that my Mom had prepared for us and watched the President's speech on TV.
What a difference a day makes. We awoke to cloudy skies and as we crossed into Oregon the rain began to fall. It continued that way for the majority of our journey today. We took advantage of the extra time we had on this trip and took several breaks along the way. Always makes for easier sandwich making when not being josseled about in the back of the truck!
Tonight finds us at the familar TA truck stop in Aurora, OR with a mere 25 miles left to the Fred Meyer DC in Clackamas, OR in the morning. From there we haven't a clue where we might be sent, but you can bet I'm secretly wishing for another trip to Tillamook for some ice cream, winter weather or not!
With the house all put in order and the pick up packed, we started our trek back to the Company yard with our usual stop at the Wal Mart for food and a quick run through Jiffy Lube for an oil change in the pickup. Back at the yard, I went about for the second time today, putting our second home back in order by putting the clothes and food away. As much as we love being able to go home for a couple of days and relax, we also love being able to return to the truck and our life out on the road.
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Craig tried taking the metal weatherstrip off the bottom of the door, but that still would not provide the clearance needed to open the door. We think the reason is the weight of the snow on the roof, which made the house settle a little lower than the deck. Thank goodness I had left the office window unlocked. We took the screen off and was able to get the window to slide open. Craig crawled through the window like a good burglar and viola, opened the french doors onto the front porch. Only draw back is hoisting ourselves over the railing to get onto the porch, but at least we found a way in and we are HOME.
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Well, not so fast there Sparky. We did breath a sigh of relief when we passed those DOT guys by the chain sign that had not yet begun to flash. There was yet another sign as we reached the summit and passed a couple of trucks off to the side of the road who decided to put chains on. But as we started our decent down the hill, the chatter on the CB increased and we began to see what the buzz was all about. 
Luckily for us, it was for the traffic going in the opposite direction. A very light FedEx truck had started spinning it’s wheels getting up the hill and had stopped in the slow lane. As other trucks slowed going up the hill, they started losing traction and sliding. DOT did have a push truck to help, but the trucks just kept coming up the hill and it was like a domino effect with them piling up into one big mess. In the mean time, we cautiously made our way down the hill and at the bottom we saw where DOT had completely closed the Interstate until the pile of trucks toward the top of the hill could be cleaned up. 
Oh, and all that snow that was causing the problems? It was no where in sight at the bottom of the hill as we pulled out of the weigh station and drove the last 7 miles into Medford……. without once dragging our anchor! 
All along our route today you could see the blossoms starting to show their colors on the trees in the orchards and along side the Interstate. This has always been a sure sign, growing up in the Central Valley of California, that the bees would be doing their pollinating and that Spring was knocking on the door. Maybe not a good sign for allergy sufferers, but for those who have survived the doldrums of the cold winter months, they could certainly see hope with each blossoming tree. 
We made the long journey on Interstate 5 towards Medford, OR which was our stopping point for the day. Wouldn’t you know it, about 75 miles from that final stop, it started to snow as the temperature dipped into the low 30’s and the wind started to gust. And just like that, there went those thoughts of Spring being right around the corner!
How we managed to get unloaded, drive back to the yard, fuel up and still “legally” get in an 8 hour break before we had to leave for our next dispatch wasn’t anything I would have bet on. Getting a banana load, out of San Diego, was something I would have bet on and lost. Now, add to that a snow storm, just outside of LA, on our way down the Grapevine, and you got yourself a 24 hour period filled with a lot of surprises.
After our drop in San Bernardino of the frozen French fries, we were snuggled into our beds just at the crack of midnight in anticipation of either the preplan dispatch we had received earlier, or the banana load we thought we would get. Eight hours later, after receiving the confirmation on the dispatch to the City of Industry, we drove the 35 miles in un-LA type commute traffic, and arrived right on time for our 9am appointment.
As luck would have it, we were given one of the two easy docks to get backed into and we sat back and enjoyed first some sunshine, than clouds, add in some heavy down pours of rain, a dash of thunder, and oh yes, some lightening , that came freakishly close to frying our laptops as we watched them flicker while on our laps. Happily, after collecting our two hours of detention pay, we were released to go with over 31,000 pounds of soy milk and coffee creamer. 
This is where, as we were leaving the LA basin, we noticed the electronic traffic board flash to expect delays for snow escorts at Smokey Bear Road exit. WHAT???? Heck, the State of Wyoming will let you drive in white out blizzard conditions, but let a few snow flakes start falling anywhere near LA and the world starts coming to an end. In fact, just in case it did, there was a news crew on top of the overpass ready to broadcast it live. We even saw a couple of snow plows out, with a parade of cars and trucks safely following behind. Now granted, the hills and landscape were white, but come on, as soon as it hit the pavement it melted and the minute you hit the bottom of the hill, any traces of the snow was just a distant memory. 
We decided to call it a night in Avenal, CA at one of the cleanest truck stops we have stayed at. Why this isn’t used more often by truckers is yet another surprise to me, but on second thought, maybe I shouldn’t advertise it too much. Don’t want it turning into some of the less than ideal spots we have been forced to stay at in other locations. We now have two full days to drive 950 miles to easily make our deliveries on Thursday morning. Now it’s just time to sit back and enjoy the view from our front window to the world in front of us.
Around 3pm he was given his next assignment to head to Prosser, WA to pick up frozen french fries. I can't believe all the different locations we have picked up these starchy little buggers over the past 9 months. This is a new shipper that we have not gone to before,, but I will surely miss not being with him and stopping at the Starbucks at Exit 82 right across from the rest area in Prosser, when he picks up those spuds.
