Lots to Catch Up On

DATELINE: VANDALIA, OH, Friday, 8/24/07, 10:00 a.m. EDT

Once again I must start by apologizing to my faithful readers for not updating you about my activities for several days. I've been back on the road since Monday, but have been very busy and under the weather. By the time I've ended my work days I've been too exhausted to do anything but hit the sack. Then I've had to get up the next day and do it all over again. This morning I finally have a few hours before I need to get started, so I can give you a brief summation of my goings-on this week.

MONDAY
Start: Home
1st Pickup: Noon, Canton, MI
2nd Pickup: Immediately after, Romulus, MI
Delivery Destination: Robbinsville, NJ
Stop for the Night: 10:00 p.m., Somerset, PA
Total Miles: 377
Comments: Rain all day. I started feeling ill--stomach flu symptoms--on Sunday, but nothing severe. But it did sap my energy, and I was wiped out by the time I stopped.

TUESDAY
Start: Somerset, PA, 8:00 a.m.
Delivery: Robbinsville, NJ, 1:15 p.m.
Pickup: Paulsboro, NJ, 5:00 p.m.
Delivery Destination: Apex, NC (just south of Raleigh)
Stop for the Night: 7:00 p.m., I-95 rest area between Baltimore and Washington, DC
Total Miles: 458
Comments: More rain all day. Still fighting the same symptoms, but a wee bit better.

WEDNESDAY
Start: MD rest area, 3:00 a.m.
Delivery: Apex, NC, 10:00 a.m.
Pickup: Wilson, NC, 2:00 p.m.
Delivery Destination: East Liberty, OH (WNW of Columbus)
Stop for the Night: 6:00 p.m., I-40 rest area near Smith Grove, NC
Total Miles: 602
Comments: No more rain. Still slowly getting over the physical malady.

THURSDAY
Start: Smith Grove, NC, 6:00 a.m.
Delivery: East Liberty, OH, 8:00 p.m.
Stop for the Night: 11:00 p.m., Vandalia, OH
Total Miles: 525
Comments: Stopped at 8:30 a.m. for 3-1/2 hours at a Flying J in Fort Chiswell, VA for fuel, breakfast, rest, and--finally--a shower and shave. Also had to Mapquest my destination since I couldn't find it--or the roads given in my directions--on my map. I couldn't do that at the rest area last night because I couldn't get a signal for my laptop's phone card. A large part of the reason I stopped for so long in Fort Chiswell was the delivery customer would not take early deliveries, so I had to pace myself to arrive at the appointed hour. I got a bit worried en route on the West Virgina turnpike when traffic came to a complete standstill for over half an hour. 'Twas an accident that had blocked the road. But I had enough wiggle room in my plan to still get there on time. After the delivery, I was out of available work hours for the day, so i just boogied on over here to the Vandalia terminal to spend the night. Speaking of the delivery, it was a drop-and-hook, but they didn't have any empty trailers immediately available, so I had to wait about an hour for one before I could leave.

TODAY
I have a pickup scheduled for 2:30 this afternoon in Columbus. Then I retrace my steps back to North Carolina, as the load is headed for Charlotte, with delivery scheduled for 12:30 tomorrow afternoon. So I'll head out at noon and hope I can make the pickup an hour early (it'll take about 90 minutes to get to Columbus). I'm finally feeling (just about) completely better today, so I'll write up another update when I stop for the night to let you know how today went.

Thanks for patiently waiting for this overdue update. I'll try not to let such big gaps happen again. Please resume your questions and comments, and keep right on truckin'.