Good evening from Attalla, Alabama....and a blog for train lovers!

And what a wasted day it was....200 whole miles!  We left Nashville at 5:15 AM and arrived at our pickup at 8 AM.  I was supposed to be there at 7 AM but since it was a preload, I took a little extra time.  Guess what folks; my load was on the books to be picked up at noon!  I think this is the sneaky way the company slows down the process of getting that 34 hour break.  You see, what hours I don’t use, get added to the next day!  And tomorrow, since I have nearly 13 hours, these extra hours will be added to Monday’s, the day I was suppose to take my break.

To make matters even worse, FOUR trailer tires were bald!  I can’t believe a company driver would drop a trailer in this condition. So I figured, since I am going to lose my 34 hour break, might as well enjoy today and call it quits.  The shop is taking their sweet time (with my permission of course) so I won’t have to hit the road tonight.  They might have to team this load into Canada to make the delivery on time.  And I am due for some well needed R&R.  I have a sore throat and need to rest.

During our morning walk, I came across the North Alabama Railroad Museum!  We talked to Hugh who has been a volunteer for the museum since 1968.  He was born and raised here in Alabama and loved trains for as long as he remembers.  There are currently over 120 members that take care of museum, trains and five miles of rail that the members bought back in the late 70’s. Colonel Sanders and his wife was one of the thousands of visitors that ride this little train in the back country of Alabama.   You can find their website at www.northalabamarailroadmuseum.com to learn more about the museum, train rides and the volunteers.   They are now gearing up for Santa…….their busiest time of the year!  A nice surprise to find on a very nice walk....

We will start at 5 AM……..and swapping this load somewhere, maybe!

I think he approves!

Either he really wants to go or really wants to hide!

She is a beauty!

Hugh is on the right with a fellow volunteer with a BIG smile :)

Getting ready for Santa

The ticket lady!

I think he was a little too early for the exit!

Back in Nashville at my favorite truck stop!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I did get a Thanksgiving meal at at truck stop in the sticks in Indiana at the cross roads of Highway 30 and 31....it was my first Thanksgiving without loved ones or friends so it was a little hard on me .............. until..............

I opened my birthday present! A 19"HD flat screen TV/monitor!  So instead of blogging last night, I enjoyed my new TV and watched a movie :) 

We head north tomorrow to Canada.  They wanted me to take the full route of 1000 miles but I will run out of hours first.  Not sure how far north we are going but I can't wait to stop for my 34, I am tired and need a day to myself.......haven't had a day off in two weeks.  Besides, I still have pictures to load up for you all to look at and the idle letter as well.  So, get a good night  rest and I will see you all at 5:30 AM sharp!

The calm before the storm at McD's in Seymore, IN

And Happy Thanksgiving to my virtual truckers!  We are sitting at McDonald's across the street from the TA truck stop enjoying my senior coffee and sausage biscuit.  Last night I had pizza and tonight, hopefully a turkey dinner somewhere so I will have packed on enough calories to feed me for a week!

I ended up shagging two loads last night and picked up an empty trailer at a Walmart Distribution center in Seymour.  I sat there for a hour this morning waiting on a load and said to heck with it, and drove 1 mile to the truck stop.  Told dispatch to call me when a load is ready....I could be here all day!

I calmed down a little after my little pissy match with myself regarding lack of sleep and the idle issue.  I decided that my health (physical and mental) is more important than this dang truck and I will idle every night for 8 hours so I can get a sound sleep as needed.   I will still draft up that letter for you all to read for just in case I need it during my next 34 hour restart which will be this Saturday. 

McDonalds is quite busy with holiday traveler's and their children stopping for a quick breakfast before heading to their families for the "one time a year" occasion when all loved ones get together to feast together.  It doesn't matter if they are rich or poor, christian or atheist, it is a time to eat, to listen, to forget, to support, to laugh and to love.  And of course.......to be thankful.

I am thankful for that paycheck, not just necessarily how I earn it, I am thankful for my friends and family who listen to the same old rant and raves but put up with me anyway and I am thankful to my virtual truckers as you all make me feel so less lonely.  Thank you!

Reia

And..........we just got a load!

Time to start writing!

Did you know that 68 individuals in the administration occupation died in 2010 while 1115 individuals in the transportation occupation died the same year.  Every time I sit behind that wheel, I am risking my life to deliver a load for this company.  That is why my safety and my rights to a safe and comfortable lodging is so important as I need to be able to drive 48 states with with up 44,000 tons of goods to location to location and not only think about myself but all those other drivers around me.

I am going to draft a letter to the company........and share it with you all for your opinions when the first draft is completed.  Back on the road I go, got an hour to get there and an hour to wait!

The swap driver is still here!

And it is 5:30 AM!  I could have left with that load on time per my ETA to dispatch.  Listen, he just started his truck and left, no bathroom break or coffee, he is a tough one!  He is a lucky man, he has an APU so both he and his dog had a NICE night sleep.  How ironic is that, you almost want to scream "equal rights"!  Dang nab it, why does he get a nice warm truck, all night long, that keeps him and his dog cool or warm why I either sweat it out or freeze because of over idle.............it just pisses you off!

Any way, we are heading to Champaign, IL to pick up a load to take back to the Indianna terminal, a 250 mile day so far.  Grab your coffee, it is going to be a long day of possible..nadda!

OMG.......this is funny!

That driver for the swap showed up 2 hours late as he was dispatched at 4:30 and hit rush hour traffic!  Not only that, his hours are up in 1 hour!  He can get the load there at 4 PM if he runs it hard!  Not only that, his dispatcher is the same as mine!  Not only that, remember me telling you about what I thought my dispatcher would look like with the manners of a drill Sargent.........he guessed everything the same as me, the bleached hair, the smoker, etc.......except the age!  He thought is was funny when I told him what she did look like!

So, any who, I get a brand new trailer, no load, but I am sure to have one........sometime tomorrow!  Yeehaw!

Waiting on a swap only one hour after I picked up the load!

My dispatcher and I did not see "eye to eye" today and SHE knows better!  She isn't messing with some kid that can be intimidated!  I dropped that swap at the terminal and was given a load to take west to Wichita, Kansas.........12 hours away and due at 2 PM tomorrow.  OK....let me share the math with you!

It is 1:30 in the afternoon, I have only 2.5 hours left on my clock, and it is a 12 hour trip.  I used all my fingers on this one and guess what, with the hours I currently run, this load will not be arriving until 5 PM if I hid the road at 5 AM and include 2 hours for breaks/fuel.  I told my dispatcher this.  She stated, in all her "never drove a truck in her life" wisdom, that I showed for arrival at 11:45 AM.  WHAT!?!?!?!?!?

She expected me to park at 4 PM, go to sleep at 6 PM, wake up and hit the road at 2 AM and be at the drop at 2 PM......NOT!  I called her and stated that I could not go to bed at 6 PM with only being awake for 13.5 hours!  I could not get the sleep required to deliver this load safely.  I was told to hit the road and it would be swapped out.  Which I did........and stopped an hour later to milk the few hours I had left.

I had planned on stopping here long enough to wash a load of laundry, hit the road for another 1.5 hours to log out and dry said clothes.  This would have logged me out too late to deliver this load.  But I think she knew I would do this and swapped me out here and here I sit, waiting for the swap that will put me back on my hours of service.  And guess what, they moved the delivery to the time line that I said I could get there! 

Either way, I am getting another load delivered to me, on my time and so be it!  :)