Hey, I am alive...I think!

Good evening from Hermiston, Oregon!  It has been a very busy but very enjoyable past few days and I am still on the move………..back to Canada, they do love me ;)

I am doing my dang nab it best to stay awake as I am back on Pacific Time and ready to hit the sack while it is only 6:15 PM…..and it is one heck of a battle.  We had a great trip to Calgary and the scenery coming back to the states via the Idaho border, FREAKING EXCELLENT!  I so want this route……summer only of course.  I broke in Popeye with mountain climbing (he can’t compete with Rust Bucket) and joined a line of RVs either vacationing or on their way to the Calgary Stampede.

The land was amazing in with its mixture of wilderness, farmland, and grazing cattle.  Sure, it can be compared to Montana but as we know, each little piece of land on this earth is unique in its own right.  So I will tell you, please take a late summer road trip to Calgary and enjoy this beautiful land just north of Idaho, you won’t regret it.

We drove through Crow’s-nest Pass and back in the late 1800’s, the nest broke and sent thousands, it not millions; of pounds of eggs into the valley below, see the pictures attached.  Now let me tell you about rest stops in this side of Canada………they never mention “no trucks” and my truck, took 8 car spaces!  And……Gonja picked up a hitchhiker, a deer tick!  I opened up the truck door and here was this ugly fat bug…….fat with Gonja’s blood, looking for a way out of the truck.  EWWWWW…..  We had a serious discussion and Gonja is not allowed guest without my permission!

So tomorrow morning we head back up north, past Seattle into Canada, to drop off a load of corn and then, home time!  Yeehaw!

Stormy night in Hardin!

Good evening from Hardin, Montana!  I ran out of hours before hitting Billings and this place is a little on the rough side but I can handle it.  We have 11 hours to reach our drop so I am hoping that I will wake up to that many available hours in the morning or we will be doing a very early morning run the following night.  I am not too worried about it as I know the store doesn’t open until 9 AM even though I am scheduled to be there at 5 AM.  It is an employee unload and I know they won’t be there until the store opens.

We have been pre-assigned another load that will take us from Calgary, to Kingsgate BC, to Eastport ID, to Springfield OR……..all to be completed by some unknown hour on the 18^th.  Busy, busy!  No interviews, no pictures, we just took our sweet time enjoying the view of Wyoming and now, Montana.  Dang DOT pulled me over when I entered Wyoming and when I left it......I think they liked me ;)  Oh!  I had my first hot breakfast in months.......yogurt and hard boiled eggs do get sooooo boring!

And another item, who of you might cancel your membership with Netflix over this separation of streaming and DVDs?  I am only streaming as I am never home but before I left, I was on the 5 at a time for DVD and streaming was free.  Greed you think?

Fresh cut hay and ripe cow dung...the country girl is back home!

Good evening from Vivian, South Dakota!  We drove 630 miles today and are only 15.5 hours from our drop in Canada.  That means, we will slow down a tad bit the next two days to let hours catch up so I won’t be forced to do a 34 hour restart before we arrive or at least, enjoy the time off (34 hours) while in Calgary. 

Waves to my Australian friend, Rory, for finding the Truckabout, not the Walkabout Reia.  It is kewl that I still have friends down under that are keeping tabs on me since my departure 2.5 years ago.  In full honesty, I would gladly hang up Truckabout if I could return to Walkabout, it was a wonderful two months!  I gotta go back!

We are in the heart of farmland and cattle here in Vivian.  The laundry is cheap and the conversations very entertaining.  We will be off to walk in a bit while the sun is still out.  Nothing new or exciting to report except that Charlie and Mom love my blog and love mapping out my trips.  They are my biggest fans……love you!

Good evening from Pilot on 35 North!

Great news my virtual truckers, we got a load that is traveling 1700 miles!  We are on our way to Calgary, Canada and hopefully be on my way home soon after.  It is only 6:30 PM and I could have drove another 3 hours but I am dead tired after getting up at 4 AM in hopes of having a load.  I wasn't dispatched out until 10 AM so I am running a little behind.  We will make up miles tomorrow and Wednesday as the load is not due until the wee hours of the 15th.  So be ready at 4:30 Central time to hit the road..........yeehaw!

Yes, I love my Gonja!

Just because...... ;)

OH!  Kel and Josie are buying their own truck and working for the company until their year is up! The turnover rate for the company is really starting to show!

A snail is faster!

Good morning from the same location as yesterday morning and we haven't moved an inch!  I think I am being punished as they tried to drop a load on me yesterday at 3 PM that I stated I couldn't move safely.  I don't know what is up with these dispatchers.  They figured that since I was parked since 11 AM, my 10 hour clock would end at 9 PM and I should be ready to drive!  This load was too heavy for one truck and since I am 800 pounds lighter, I should take it, scale it, and drive 6 hours to deliver it.  I stated I had been up since 6 AM, it is now 4 PM and there was no way I could get enough sleep to drive until 4 AM.  I guess they think that when we are not driving, we are sleeping!

So they pulled the load (didn't want it anyway) and I was up at 4 AM ready to drive.  It is now 8 AM, I am fed, showered and waiting.  Life of a trucker!  There was 8 company trucks here last night and I think I am the only one left.  AUGH.................

If Gonja could only OINK!

Good morning from the Flying J in Kansas City!  I moved the truck a whole 15 miles today L  I was up at 5 AM, at the door of the client at 7 AM, unloaded my trailer and while doing so, another company driver took my empty!  He arrived late in the night, woke up while I was with the client, dropped his load, and took my trailer after the client TOLD him it was MINE!  I reported the SOB but I doubt anyone cares.  So we waited for them to unload my trailer (they got right on it) and now we sit, waiting for a new load.  Gotta love down time…….AUGH!

None the less, it was a pleasant night and Gonja and I had a great morning walking in a mixture of forests and farmland behind the airport.  Now Gonja being Gonja, decided it was too hot of a morning to turn down this so inviting mud puddle that he plopped himself in the middle of it!  I yelled “Gonja!” and of course, he looked at me and decided that meant he could roll in it!  I should of grabbed a picture instead of his collar because he was so damn cute pretending to be a pig in a puddle!  We will be leaving the truck shortly to find some shade and give him a good brushing!

Looks like I will finally be eating that leftover steak from Friday for lunch today.  I was going to clean my windows but that will wait until it is much cooler outside.  Enjoy your Sunday everyone!

Cute little bugger!

I love how I caught the wings in motion!  It looks like he is wearing a leather jacket!

Another shot of the wings in motion with better details, I am getting good at this ;)

Gads, I grab the camera and he just has to look!