Mayberry Morning

DATELINE: LONDON, OH, 10:50 p.m. EST

Miles Yesterday: 118
Miles Today: 373

My highlights from yesterday (Super Sunday):
- Sleep in (past 8:30)
- Drive to Mt. Airy, NC, parking at a non-name-brand truck stop
- Some reading
- Some walking (for exercise, about 40 minutes)
- Watch the Super Bowl

This morning I could sleep in again...but didn't. I woke up around 6:30 and just could not get back to sleep. So I eventually got up and did some more walking around the truck stop's lot for some more exercise. I admit I wasn't walking very briskly, but it's a start on my road back to some semblance of fitess.

My pickup this morning was scheduled for 10:00, so I set off from the truck stop for the drive over at about 9:15. I arrived at the company at 9:45 and checked in at the Shipping Department. This was the second of two pickups for this load, and they only had six pallets of goods to load onto the back of the trailer. So I was in and out of there right quick, on my way by 10:15.

Now, Mt. Airy is apparently the "real life" Mayberry, NC. The truck stop I stayed at sold Mayberry merchandise in its shop, and passing through town I saw businesses such as "Aunt Bea's Barbecue" and "Goober's 52", which was apparently a bar. I thought that was kind of interesting. Anyway, back to my work day.

After leaving town, my mission was to get to my delivery in Grove City, OH, just to the southwest of Columbus. By my reference materials, it was about a 350-mile drive, so I expected it to take about 7 hours. Which it just about did, driving time, anyway. With stops for fuel and lunch (and other necessary respites), I got to the delivery at about 5:45 p.m.

The delivery was a quick drop-and-hook, and went nice and quick. The only down was the lot where they park the empty trailers (where I had to find one to take with me after dropping the loaded one). It is a dirt lot, and it had rained quite a bit in the area. So I had to walk around in some pretty good mud while hooking up the empty.

After completing the delivery, I hightailed it on over to a TA in this town, about 15 miles west of C'bus. My next assignment has come in already: Tomorrow morning I head into Columbus to pick up a load at 8:00. Then I haul it to Upper Marlboro, Maryland for a 6:00 Wednesday morning delivery. Upper Marlboro is just east of Washington, DC, so I'll have a goodly drive tomorrow after picking up the load. I'm not yet sure where there is to stay in that area, so I'll have to consult my truck stop directory. I may wind up stopping early tomorrow in, say, Breezewood, PA, and getting underway very early Wednesday to finish the drive into the DC area. Check back tomorrow to find out where I wind up.

And now it's late once again, and I need to get to bed. Thanks for checking in once more, and keep on truckin'.