Wrapping Up the Year

DATELINE: HOME, Friday, 12/22/07, 8:30 p.m.

Well, I've gotten behind again. I have to blame some more long days ending in deep fatigue and the need to get to bed so I could get up early and do it all again. I just love it when the company assigns me loads with lotsa' miles as my next home date nears and my available hours are running low. But hey, I do need the paying miles. Anyway, on to the recap.

WEDNESDAY: BETHEL, PA TO HOWE, IN
The first thing I had to do on Wednesday was to make my way to Breezewood, PA to swap loads with another driver. The swap was set for noon, and I was only 2 hours away. But I got rolling at 8:00 anyway and go to Breezewood at 10:00.

Unfortunately, the other driver was not early. Also, unfortunately, he wasn't on time, either. I wound up with a nearly 3-1/2-hour "layover" at the TA Breezewood. I planned to take a shower while waiting there (one reason I got there early), but their showers for some reason weren't available. So I settled for working on crosswords and other brain-busters in the puzzle book I had along with me.

The other driver finally arrived, we made the swap, and I was back on the road around 1:30. Then my task was to drive as far as I could within my remaining available hours for the day. I managed a bit more than I expected, making it all the way through Ohio and into Indiana via the turnpikes in those states. I stopped for the night at a service plaza along the IN pike, arriving at about 9:45 p.m., too tired to do anything but get ready for and go to bed. So I did.

THURSDAY: HOWE, IN TO OSHKOSH, WI
I had adelivery appointment set for 1:00 p.m. CST in Green Bay, WI. Since I was around 350 miles away and couldn't start driving 'till 7:45 EST (6:45 CST), it was unlikely that I would make that appointment on time. If everything went well--most notably getting through traffic around Chicago--I could conceivably get there on time. But we all know that slowdowns are inevitable in Chicagoland. So I alerted my Fleet Manager that I'd likely be a little late, but no more than 2 hours behind schedule. Then I hit the road. The drive actually did go pretty well, and I didn't lose very much time to traffic problems on my way to the land of the frozen tundra.

As you may know if you know me or have been a regular reader, I like to see famous sporting venues. This was the first time I've been to Green Bay, and it was a thrill to finally see one of the Holy of Holies, Lambwau Field. I first spotted it from a couple miles away as I approached town on WI highway 172. The stadium from that vantage point dominates the town's skyline--heck, it IS the town's skyline. Then my route to my delivery took my down Lombardi way right alongside the stadium grounds. Very cool. But enough of the Lambeau tangent; back to work.

My delivery was one of the quickest live unloads I've ever had. Within 45 minutes of arrival I was outta' there. Then I drove over to a truck stop at the edge of town to plan for my next assignment, the one that'd take me home.

The pickup was set for 5:00 p.m. in a small town in the middle of nowhere, WI, about 30 miles northwest of Appleton, and about 50 miles west of Green Bay. So I made the drive over, making only one wrong turn in thr dark on the two-lane highways. The pickup took a little while, and when it was done I only had about 1-1/2 hours available to get back to civilization and find a place to park for the night. That wound up being a small truck stop aling US-41 outside of Oshkosh, after I couldn't find the one listed in my truck stop directory in Appleton. Again, I was too tired for anything but bedtime.

FRIDAY: OSHKOSH, WI TO HOME
My new load was headed for Coldwater, MI, where I would do a quick drop-and-hook, picking up an emptry trailer on my way out. But first I had to get rolling. That proved difficult because the lot where I was parked was gravel, but covered with ice. And my wheels just spun. So I "borrowed" some salt from the truck stop clerk, found an implement for chopping the ice, and spent some time getting my truck off the ice. So I finally hit the road about 45 minutes behind schedule.

The rest of the day was pretty much OK. The delivery went swell, no terrible traffic problems (nothing worse than what you usually encounter rounding the Chicago area), and I finally reached the yard where I park my truck around 7:30 p.m. or so. Many thanks to R.T. daughter #1 for coming to pick me up and haul me back home, where I'll get to spend the whole holiday period, with my earned home time and a week's paid vacation. I won't return to work 'til Janury 2.

Thanks for following along with my trucking experiences this year. I likely won't add any new reports to this blog 'til I return to work next year, so have a wonderful holiday season. Drop me a line, and keep on truckin'.