I hate being sick on the road...I really do. I just want to be home, stay in my pajamas and snuggle under my covers and have Larry fix me chicken noodle soup. I had to throw that in, but I know he would do that for me.
On the road I still have to do my job and, even though Larry does understand (since he's the one that was sick first) he really can't do anything for me. He will drive an extra hour or he will go into the truck stop and get me food so I don't have to, but there are things, like bathroom duty, that requires me to bundle up and get inside. I try hard not to cough or sneeze or act sick around others while I'm in there. In this paranoid age of swine flu, etc., one sniffle and you get the dirty look, and the women grab the bottles of antiseptic cleaners out of their purses. Men don't seem to be bothered as much, since they hack and cough all over without so much as turning their heads away from you.
Anyway, the truck must move and the products must get there. I'm sure if I was really sick, we would just tell dispatch that we need a few hours break, but as long as I can sit in an upright position without toppling over in fever and pain, then onward I must go.
Still, I have driven with a high fever and coughing my head off, and it isn't fun. Let's just hope this will go away quickly.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Today I'm doing what I just love to do. NOT. But it's part of trucking - sitting at a truck stop waiting for our appointment time to pick up a load. It is a beautiful day in Sparks, NV, - the temperatures in the low 90's. The truck is idling, even where there is a state law that says you can't idle more than 15 minutes. We do have a tendency to ignore those laws most of the time. Now, when a cop comes by and hands us a $500 ticket, we may rethink that one. Actually, the fines vary from state to state. I know in some states, like Utah, you can do jail time.
I have a pet peeve about anti-idling laws. I would like just one law maker to take a ride with a truck driver and see what he has to deal with AND what he has to live in when the temperatures are hot or cold and you have to eat/sleep/relax in the truck. They wouldn't even think of leaving a pet in a hot/cold truck so why would PEOPLE be lower than animals???
Back to waiting: This is when the truck starts feeling extra small, depending on how many hours of sitting it is. Nonetheless, there isn't much one can do while waiting. Reading a book is an option, calling people, or do what I do, get the laptop out. If we had the room, we might have a TV to watch. When we first worked for Werner we had a TV but seldom had time to watch it, so it went home.
Somebody just walked by with food, which makes me realize that it's been a few hours since breakfast and that it might be about time to go in and grab fast food at the Wendy's. I don't know if I can handle the excitement. But it's just another day of being on the road.
I have a pet peeve about anti-idling laws. I would like just one law maker to take a ride with a truck driver and see what he has to deal with AND what he has to live in when the temperatures are hot or cold and you have to eat/sleep/relax in the truck. They wouldn't even think of leaving a pet in a hot/cold truck so why would PEOPLE be lower than animals???
Back to waiting: This is when the truck starts feeling extra small, depending on how many hours of sitting it is. Nonetheless, there isn't much one can do while waiting. Reading a book is an option, calling people, or do what I do, get the laptop out. If we had the room, we might have a TV to watch. When we first worked for Werner we had a TV but seldom had time to watch it, so it went home.
Somebody just walked by with food, which makes me realize that it's been a few hours since breakfast and that it might be about time to go in and grab fast food at the Wendy's. I don't know if I can handle the excitement. But it's just another day of being on the road.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
OK, So trucking is a boring subject
I know why truck drivers sit around and talk to other truck drivers -because it’s an audience that appreciates what they are saying. When I talk to non-truck drivers about things, I get a glassy look which either means they don’t have any idea what I’m talking about or they don’t care, or both. Some jobs you can discuss with others and get some kind of dialogue going, but when the only response you get is a grunt and a shrug you know you are in the wrong arena.
I try hard not to subject my loved ones to my diatribes, because, frankly, I don’t want them to run when they see me coming. But there are times I need to blather and they’re just going to have to put up with it, even if I get the glassy looks or the silence on the other end of the phone, or, “Uh, I need to go now.”
And they know better than to ask me how things are going because that just opens the floodgates and away I go. Well, they asked, didn’t they? Find a good game on your computer and listen up. Or if the conversation is in person, just nod politely and say, uh-huh, every once in awhile. It works for me.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
July 31, 2010
The other day we stopped at a TA truck stop for dinner. As I was gazing out of the windows of the restaurant I noticed that a semi was parked in front across the car parking area. There was a large group of people with handmade banners, balloons and hats, and gave the impression that there was some kind of celebration going on. I also noticed that in the restaurant there was an area cordoned off with balloons and banners and the look of festivities ahead.
Back to the crowd my inquiring eyes went, and a van from a care center had pulled up. There was someone sitting in the cab of the truck that seemed to be the focus of attention. There was cheering and hugging, which seems to be a natural output of celebrations, and then it looked like they were trying to get the passenger out of the cab of the truck.
Of course, I didn’t go up to anyone and ask them what was going on, so I used my best imagination as the crowd moved en-masse into the restaurant. There in the middle of the group was ushered a wheelchair whose occupant was a very old woman, donned with a baseball cap with a truck logo on the brim. Right behind her was a young girl holding a die cast model of a semi truck wrapped in blue ribbon.
This is how I saw it: She was probably a resident of the care center. It was her birthday. Maybe she was turning 80 or 90. Maybe even 100. She looked pretty old. Like a lot of old people, (I know this because I’m looking at the downside of the hill) they think about what last thing they would like to do before they leave this earth. Maybe it’s going sky diving, or maybe it’s, “I’ve always wanted to ride in a big truck.”
I know, that doesn’t seem like a very exciting thing for some, but maybe it was for her. Maybe her husband used to drive a truck and she missed those days, or maybe it was just something she always wanted to do. And today was the day.
If that was what happened, I wonder if she liked it. She did seem a bit frazzled. I know that the first time I crawled on one, it was very intimidating.
I thought about the simplicity of it, and how the awesomeness of the early days of driving one of these big rigs has long gone. It’s a job and it’s an oversized car, and most of the time there’s nothing real special about it. To think that someone would want to take a ride in a big truck for their birthday seemed kind of neat.
Now, I know that when I turn 90, going for a ride in a semi will not be on my list, but I can tell you that going sky diving won’t be either.
The other day we stopped at a TA truck stop for dinner. As I was gazing out of the windows of the restaurant I noticed that a semi was parked in front across the car parking area. There was a large group of people with handmade banners, balloons and hats, and gave the impression that there was some kind of celebration going on. I also noticed that in the restaurant there was an area cordoned off with balloons and banners and the look of festivities ahead.
Back to the crowd my inquiring eyes went, and a van from a care center had pulled up. There was someone sitting in the cab of the truck that seemed to be the focus of attention. There was cheering and hugging, which seems to be a natural output of celebrations, and then it looked like they were trying to get the passenger out of the cab of the truck.
Of course, I didn’t go up to anyone and ask them what was going on, so I used my best imagination as the crowd moved en-masse into the restaurant. There in the middle of the group was ushered a wheelchair whose occupant was a very old woman, donned with a baseball cap with a truck logo on the brim. Right behind her was a young girl holding a die cast model of a semi truck wrapped in blue ribbon.
This is how I saw it: She was probably a resident of the care center. It was her birthday. Maybe she was turning 80 or 90. Maybe even 100. She looked pretty old. Like a lot of old people, (I know this because I’m looking at the downside of the hill) they think about what last thing they would like to do before they leave this earth. Maybe it’s going sky diving, or maybe it’s, “I’ve always wanted to ride in a big truck.”
I know, that doesn’t seem like a very exciting thing for some, but maybe it was for her. Maybe her husband used to drive a truck and she missed those days, or maybe it was just something she always wanted to do. And today was the day.
If that was what happened, I wonder if she liked it. She did seem a bit frazzled. I know that the first time I crawled on one, it was very intimidating.
I thought about the simplicity of it, and how the awesomeness of the early days of driving one of these big rigs has long gone. It’s a job and it’s an oversized car, and most of the time there’s nothing real special about it. To think that someone would want to take a ride in a big truck for their birthday seemed kind of neat.
Now, I know that when I turn 90, going for a ride in a semi will not be on my list, but I can tell you that going sky diving won’t be either.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Pet Peeve of the Day
It's late at night and I need to use a rest room. I could pull into a truck stop, but it takes 15 minutes and I want to be quick so I pull into a rest area. I pass one that is only half full of parked trucks taking their 10-hour rest period. I think maybe I should have stopped there, but I'll just hit the next one. Not to busy tonight. I pull into the next one. Every space is full!! Wait...I see a one at the very end. I go to pull in. There's a car parked in it!!!! One space and there's a car parked in it when he has the whole other side to park in!!! I'm tempted to run him over, but I leave the rest area and find a truck stop instead.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
The Perks of the Job
I love it when we are routed off the interstate. That's the problems with working for a company that tells what roads you have to travel on. It doesn't allow for any creativity. And it usually means the Interstates. After all, they were built to get you to your destination quickly and two-lane side roads don't meet that criteria.
On Sunday, May 23, we were dispatched from Phoenix, AZ, to Cheyenne, WY, which meant going up US 89/160/163/12, up through northeast Arizona and southeast Utah. We've never been on that piece of road before and so it we were pretty excited. However, that day there were high winds for much of the region. I-40 was shut down east of Flagstaff because of blowing dust. As we headed north we could see the wall of dust and realized that we were headed right for it.
Oh great, we finally get to see a new piece of road and we have to deal with a dust storm!!
Out of the red dust emerges ghostly images of rocky formations.
This was around the Monument Valley area. The winds had to be 20-30 mph, maybe with gusts up to 40-50 mph.
Mexican Hot Rock
This is what the road looked like at one point ahead of us. We then realized that we were getting a fine layer of red dust inside the cab, especially on passenger side where the wind was hitting the hardest.
The further north we went the less of a dust cloud we were in but it was still very windy.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
I was realizing the other day how there is a whole different language for the trucking industry. We not only have general terms, but a unique trucking lingo. I especially know this when I get glazed looks from people when I talk about the road and what we do, which could be from boredom. It’s kind of like hearing someone’s vacation stories. I have to say, though, that a lot of the real colorful verbiage (I don’t mean cuss words here) has disappeared and only the “Ol’ Timers” remember the way it used to be.
I’ll start with the truck itself. Oh, this will be interesting, I’m sure. Pay attention – there will be a quiz.
First of all, you are either an owner-operator – one who owns, or is buying, the truck and either works for a company or for himself, or a company driver – one who drives whatever the company gives them and has no control over what you get or what you can do to the truck. We are company drivers, so we get what they give us.
Names of trucks: big rig, semi, 18-wheeler, tractor/ trailer.
Types of trucks: day cabs (no sleeper), condos (tall inside so you can stand up and usually has bunk beds), mid-roof (not as tall, no bunk beds), slope nose (how most of the new trucks are shaped), long nose or big hood ( the classic look)
What tractors pull: flat bed (what it says, a flat bed with no sides), dry van (what is mostly out there – carries anything that’s dry), reefer (refrigerated unit that hauls produce, frozen foods and anything that needs to stay cool), bull wagon (hauls those stinking cows that leave messes on the road), parking lots (hauls cars), covered wagons (hard sides with a tarp covering that usually hauls grain and dry bulk), tanker yankers (any tanker that hauls liquid products)
What’s on the truck: chicken lights (those lights on the truck and trailer that make some look like Christmas trees and they are usually owner-operators) marker lights (the yellow lights on the tractor and trailer that let others know that you are big and will be running over you if you don’t move out of the way), stacks (those big chrome things that belch out all that black smoke that makes California go absolutely apoplectic. Okay, you don’t see black smoke anymore because of California going apoplectic.)
Tires: steer (2 front ones) drive tandems(8 on the back of the tractor), trailer tandems (8 on trailer), which makes us a 5-axle-18 wheeler. Got that?
The trailer is hooked to a fifth wheel (if you pull an RV you know what this is) and is connected to the electrical and air system by glad hands. And that doesn’t mean happy hands. Actually, if they came undone we wouldn’t be too happy. The truck would come to an immediate halt in the middle of the road, and all unsecured objects inside the truck would become projectile missiles.
We have a jake brake that we set when going down hills so that we don’t have to push on the brakes as much. Most jake brakes are quiet and don’t send people jumping out of their seats or rushing to the nearest town hall for mandates on no engine braking allowed, but there are a few older trucks that do not have a good muffler system and thinks it’s macho to go barreling down a road, flat or hilly, with a full throttle jake brake on.
Bob-tail means that the tractor is travelling without a trailer hooked on behind. I don’t know the origin of that term but it may have something to do with the horse and buggy days.
Wasn’t that interesting? I thought so.
I’ll start with the truck itself. Oh, this will be interesting, I’m sure. Pay attention – there will be a quiz.
First of all, you are either an owner-operator – one who owns, or is buying, the truck and either works for a company or for himself, or a company driver – one who drives whatever the company gives them and has no control over what you get or what you can do to the truck. We are company drivers, so we get what they give us.
Names of trucks: big rig, semi, 18-wheeler, tractor/ trailer.
Types of trucks: day cabs (no sleeper), condos (tall inside so you can stand up and usually has bunk beds), mid-roof (not as tall, no bunk beds), slope nose (how most of the new trucks are shaped), long nose or big hood ( the classic look)
What tractors pull: flat bed (what it says, a flat bed with no sides), dry van (what is mostly out there – carries anything that’s dry), reefer (refrigerated unit that hauls produce, frozen foods and anything that needs to stay cool), bull wagon (hauls those stinking cows that leave messes on the road), parking lots (hauls cars), covered wagons (hard sides with a tarp covering that usually hauls grain and dry bulk), tanker yankers (any tanker that hauls liquid products)
What’s on the truck: chicken lights (those lights on the truck and trailer that make some look like Christmas trees and they are usually owner-operators) marker lights (the yellow lights on the tractor and trailer that let others know that you are big and will be running over you if you don’t move out of the way), stacks (those big chrome things that belch out all that black smoke that makes California go absolutely apoplectic. Okay, you don’t see black smoke anymore because of California going apoplectic.)
Tires: steer (2 front ones) drive tandems(8 on the back of the tractor), trailer tandems (8 on trailer), which makes us a 5-axle-18 wheeler. Got that?
The trailer is hooked to a fifth wheel (if you pull an RV you know what this is) and is connected to the electrical and air system by glad hands. And that doesn’t mean happy hands. Actually, if they came undone we wouldn’t be too happy. The truck would come to an immediate halt in the middle of the road, and all unsecured objects inside the truck would become projectile missiles.
We have a jake brake that we set when going down hills so that we don’t have to push on the brakes as much. Most jake brakes are quiet and don’t send people jumping out of their seats or rushing to the nearest town hall for mandates on no engine braking allowed, but there are a few older trucks that do not have a good muffler system and thinks it’s macho to go barreling down a road, flat or hilly, with a full throttle jake brake on.
Bob-tail means that the tractor is travelling without a trailer hooked on behind. I don’t know the origin of that term but it may have something to do with the horse and buggy days.
Wasn’t that interesting? I thought so.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Nightmare on Ice
What happened Friday night, March 5, 2010, was the scariest thing that ever happened to me as a driver. It is one of those things that every driver faces but you can never really train for it. You are taught basic things to remember but you can’t practice it. Only when it happens can you rely on instincts and just a little bit of luck. And, I believe in my case, divine intervention. And that’s getting into a skid. In my case, it was a double skid on black ice.
We had stopped in Billings, MT, for fuel, food and showers. Larry was a little concerned because he had been monitoring the weather and it looked like we could be headed for snow and possible freezing rain. I wasn’t too worried. It’s not like I didn’t know how to drive in snow.
We took off after it got dark. We take the highway 212 cut-off from I-90 which eventually meets up with
I-90 down in S. Dakota. It cuts off about 50 miles. It was smooth sailing for an hour or so and then I started noticing a skiff of snow along side the road. The roads were still in good shape. One thing we watch for is the water spray from the tires and if it looks like sand or salt has been put down. Everything looked fine. A little bit of snow was on the roads but the traffic ahead of me was making tracks so I wasn’t worried. I did slow it down to about 45-50. Then the roads got better and I pretty much ignored the tiny bit of drizzle on the windshield, even though the temperature was showing 30 degrees. Then I crossed the Wyoming border.
I was noticing how dark and quiet the road was. Maybe one truck went past west bound. I was feeling pretty secure about the roads. I didn’t see anything to indicate any problems. I sped up to 60, though not on cruise, thankfully. Then I turned a slight corner with a very slight rise and found myself heading in the wrong direction. My “lost traction” symbol began flashing on my dashboard. Instinctively I turned into the skid but then the truck headed in the other direction, into the other lane and heading for the edge of the road. I turned into that skid as I let off the throttle but did not put on the brakes. I didn’t think that truck would ever slow down. Somehow I was able to ease it over to the right side of the road and park it. And then the shaking started. I couldn’t stop shaking. Larry popped out of the bunk wondering why I had stopped and found a blubbering hysterical wife. I finally blurted out, “I almost killed you!!” He finally got me to tell him that I had hit black ice and almost ended up in the ditch. He was so sweet. “But dear, everything’s fine. We’re still upright!” Yes, we were and that’s the miracle of the whole thing. It took at least a half hour before I stopped shaking.
He tried taking it on up the hill and that was when we noticed flashing lights from other vehicles on up ahead. He couldn’t do more than 15 miles an hour and once we passed the group of 3 cars and 1 big rig, we realized that we weren’t going to get any further ourselves. In fact he couldn’t get the truck over to the shoulder. We had spun out. He climbed out and literally skated as he put a couple of chains on, which helped us get over to the side of road.
Then we noticed flashing lights up ahead and realized that other trucks were parked on the side of the road as well. We figured we were there for the night until the sand trucks came, if they ever would.
So we went to sleep, or at least I tried. I would wake up from nightmares and wondering if we were safe parked where we were. Amazingly, there were a few cars and a few trucks that seemed to be able to maneuver the roads, but I don’t know who they did it.
As the sky lightened, we decided to try the hill again. But we were stopped at the top by a Highway Patrol car saying that no-one was going anywhere and that sand trucks were on their way. About 15 minutes later they did arrive and we were able to make our way once again.
We had stopped in Billings, MT, for fuel, food and showers. Larry was a little concerned because he had been monitoring the weather and it looked like we could be headed for snow and possible freezing rain. I wasn’t too worried. It’s not like I didn’t know how to drive in snow.
We took off after it got dark. We take the highway 212 cut-off from I-90 which eventually meets up with
I-90 down in S. Dakota. It cuts off about 50 miles. It was smooth sailing for an hour or so and then I started noticing a skiff of snow along side the road. The roads were still in good shape. One thing we watch for is the water spray from the tires and if it looks like sand or salt has been put down. Everything looked fine. A little bit of snow was on the roads but the traffic ahead of me was making tracks so I wasn’t worried. I did slow it down to about 45-50. Then the roads got better and I pretty much ignored the tiny bit of drizzle on the windshield, even though the temperature was showing 30 degrees. Then I crossed the Wyoming border.
I was noticing how dark and quiet the road was. Maybe one truck went past west bound. I was feeling pretty secure about the roads. I didn’t see anything to indicate any problems. I sped up to 60, though not on cruise, thankfully. Then I turned a slight corner with a very slight rise and found myself heading in the wrong direction. My “lost traction” symbol began flashing on my dashboard. Instinctively I turned into the skid but then the truck headed in the other direction, into the other lane and heading for the edge of the road. I turned into that skid as I let off the throttle but did not put on the brakes. I didn’t think that truck would ever slow down. Somehow I was able to ease it over to the right side of the road and park it. And then the shaking started. I couldn’t stop shaking. Larry popped out of the bunk wondering why I had stopped and found a blubbering hysterical wife. I finally blurted out, “I almost killed you!!” He finally got me to tell him that I had hit black ice and almost ended up in the ditch. He was so sweet. “But dear, everything’s fine. We’re still upright!” Yes, we were and that’s the miracle of the whole thing. It took at least a half hour before I stopped shaking.
He tried taking it on up the hill and that was when we noticed flashing lights from other vehicles on up ahead. He couldn’t do more than 15 miles an hour and once we passed the group of 3 cars and 1 big rig, we realized that we weren’t going to get any further ourselves. In fact he couldn’t get the truck over to the shoulder. We had spun out. He climbed out and literally skated as he put a couple of chains on, which helped us get over to the side of road.
Then we noticed flashing lights up ahead and realized that other trucks were parked on the side of the road as well. We figured we were there for the night until the sand trucks came, if they ever would.
So we went to sleep, or at least I tried. I would wake up from nightmares and wondering if we were safe parked where we were. Amazingly, there were a few cars and a few trucks that seemed to be able to maneuver the roads, but I don’t know who they did it.
As the sky lightened, we decided to try the hill again. But we were stopped at the top by a Highway Patrol car saying that no-one was going anywhere and that sand trucks were on their way. About 15 minutes later they did arrive and we were able to make our way once again.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sleep - perchance to dream
I decided that if an earthquake ever hit while I was sleeping, I would probably sleep right through it, and that's from my years of sleeping on a truck.
No, we don't stay in motel rooms. It seems almost silly to me that people would even think we did that. How many trucks do you see parked behind Motel 6? (Since, if we did, that's all we could afford.)
As a team, we keep the truck moving as much as possible so most of our sleep time is when the truck is rolling down the road. It's hard to find a comparison for those who have never experienced what it's like to ride in a truck. Imagine four-wheeling over mountain dirt roads, and then imagine sleeping as you are traveling over mountain dirt roads. With rocks. And potholes.
Anyone that questions whether or not this country's road systems are in bad shape, spend a few days out there. The country's road systems are in bad shape.
Back to sleeping. While one driver drives, the other driver is trying to sleep. The trick is to get into the rhythm of the bumps. If you can ride with it, like a surfer riding the waves, it can lull you into sleep and once in oblivion, it's not a bad ride. Some roads are smoother than others and so it is easier to get into the groove.
Depending on how rough the road depends on how I look in the mornings. I can get up looking like I was whipped by an egg beater or I can wake up in pristine condition.
It also affects the back. If it was a smooth ride, I wake up without my back needing a major visit to the chiropractor.
It took me a few years, but I finally discovered ear plugs. Ear plugs have saved me. With ear plugs I can drown out most of the noise of the road, radio, CB, weather, and literally sleep through anything. Well, maybe not everything. But it helps.
There are times when the truck is stopped for the night, even if it is for only a few hours. This is where it can get a little touchy. Larry likes to sleep in arctic temperatures and I like it, let's just say, warmer. I made another great discovery. It's called a mattress warmer. It is like an electric blanket only it goes on top of the mattress, not on top of you. I turn it up before crawling into bed and by the time I crawl under the covers it's all toasty warm. It plugs into a 12-volt socket and barely draws any power from the batteries so you don't have to have the truck running to keep it going. I wished they made something like that for my mattress at home!!
That has helped make it possible to have the bunk area colder than I normally like it. All I do is crawl under the covers like a bear in his den and I'm happy.
Needless to say, sleep quality is an issue. But it's all part of the job. And I do have to say that when I get home it's sometimes very hard to fall asleep. Too quiet, and the bed isn't moving. Maybe I need to get one of those vibrating beds.
No, we don't stay in motel rooms. It seems almost silly to me that people would even think we did that. How many trucks do you see parked behind Motel 6? (Since, if we did, that's all we could afford.)
As a team, we keep the truck moving as much as possible so most of our sleep time is when the truck is rolling down the road. It's hard to find a comparison for those who have never experienced what it's like to ride in a truck. Imagine four-wheeling over mountain dirt roads, and then imagine sleeping as you are traveling over mountain dirt roads. With rocks. And potholes.
Anyone that questions whether or not this country's road systems are in bad shape, spend a few days out there. The country's road systems are in bad shape.
Back to sleeping. While one driver drives, the other driver is trying to sleep. The trick is to get into the rhythm of the bumps. If you can ride with it, like a surfer riding the waves, it can lull you into sleep and once in oblivion, it's not a bad ride. Some roads are smoother than others and so it is easier to get into the groove.
Depending on how rough the road depends on how I look in the mornings. I can get up looking like I was whipped by an egg beater or I can wake up in pristine condition.
It also affects the back. If it was a smooth ride, I wake up without my back needing a major visit to the chiropractor.
It took me a few years, but I finally discovered ear plugs. Ear plugs have saved me. With ear plugs I can drown out most of the noise of the road, radio, CB, weather, and literally sleep through anything. Well, maybe not everything. But it helps.
There are times when the truck is stopped for the night, even if it is for only a few hours. This is where it can get a little touchy. Larry likes to sleep in arctic temperatures and I like it, let's just say, warmer. I made another great discovery. It's called a mattress warmer. It is like an electric blanket only it goes on top of the mattress, not on top of you. I turn it up before crawling into bed and by the time I crawl under the covers it's all toasty warm. It plugs into a 12-volt socket and barely draws any power from the batteries so you don't have to have the truck running to keep it going. I wished they made something like that for my mattress at home!!
That has helped make it possible to have the bunk area colder than I normally like it. All I do is crawl under the covers like a bear in his den and I'm happy.
Needless to say, sleep quality is an issue. But it's all part of the job. And I do have to say that when I get home it's sometimes very hard to fall asleep. Too quiet, and the bed isn't moving. Maybe I need to get one of those vibrating beds.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Living Space
Imagine a room about the size of a small bathroom. Imagine spending most of your day and night in that small of a space. Imagine sleeping and sometimes eating and having all your personal items stored in a small space like that. Then imagine sharing it with another person. Can't imagine that? I couldn't either until I went as a passenger with Larry when we first got married. I had no clue what it would be like and packed a weeks worth of clothes, personal care products and a few items to keep me busy. Nothing much, I thought. Needless to say, half of it stayed behind, much to my chagrin.
I still didn't get the full picture until I joined him as a co-driver. In a way I felt sorry for him because he had been a solo driver for 13 years and like any man's space he had is own storage system and his own way of doing things. Enter Miss Organizer. It took him awhile to accept my obsession with plastic storage devices, an organized filing system and clorax wipes. He's even come around to clean rugs on the floor and flowered sheets on the mattresses.
However, it wasn't easy for me either to find the right balance of life's necessities, like clothes, that could fit in a few small cupboards.
Our truck is a 2010 Frieghtliner Cascadia and is a condo, which only means that it has a tall ceiling so that we can stand up in it without bonking our heads on the roof of the truck. It has two mattresses, like bunk beds, lined up on the back wall. Right behind the driver and passengers seats there's a column of shelves and cupboards, and a tiny refrigerator. So everything we need is stored in those shelves and cupboards and under the bottom bunk. We've squeezed our life down to what fits into those spaces.
We do have a microwave which is now residing under the bunk because of lack of anywhere else to put it. Unlike a lot of drivers, we do not cook on the truck. I have an aversion to fixing meals in a 2x2 space. I much prefer to have someone else do the cooking and cleaning for me. It's more expensive but much less stressful. We do, however, have emergency rations for times when we can't get to a truck stop or other food establishments.
I still didn't get the full picture until I joined him as a co-driver. In a way I felt sorry for him because he had been a solo driver for 13 years and like any man's space he had is own storage system and his own way of doing things. Enter Miss Organizer. It took him awhile to accept my obsession with plastic storage devices, an organized filing system and clorax wipes. He's even come around to clean rugs on the floor and flowered sheets on the mattresses.
However, it wasn't easy for me either to find the right balance of life's necessities, like clothes, that could fit in a few small cupboards.
Our truck is a 2010 Frieghtliner Cascadia and is a condo, which only means that it has a tall ceiling so that we can stand up in it without bonking our heads on the roof of the truck. It has two mattresses, like bunk beds, lined up on the back wall. Right behind the driver and passengers seats there's a column of shelves and cupboards, and a tiny refrigerator. So everything we need is stored in those shelves and cupboards and under the bottom bunk. We've squeezed our life down to what fits into those spaces.
We do have a microwave which is now residing under the bunk because of lack of anywhere else to put it. Unlike a lot of drivers, we do not cook on the truck. I have an aversion to fixing meals in a 2x2 space. I much prefer to have someone else do the cooking and cleaning for me. It's more expensive but much less stressful. We do, however, have emergency rations for times when we can't get to a truck stop or other food establishments.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
The Truth
When I thought about starting this blog I was asking myself why it was even needed. I guess it's a way to express some feelings about what I do which is extremely unique and of which most people have no clue what being a long-haul truck driver is all about. And especially what it means to be a woman truck driver. It stems from a population of people who think we pull into a motel parking lot each night and enjoy a quiet evening with the TV and soft beds and have our free continental breakfast in the morning. Sorry, it doesn't happen like that. And no, we don't get to stop and see the sites. We drive by and wave.
There's so many misconceptions that it's hard to get any respect from, not only the general public, but the government as well when they are trying to pass laws and regulations. Especially California. But that's another issue for another day.
So I will rant and rave for awhile and try to explain things as I see things, which can be distorted at best and a little prejudiced.
There are a lot of trucker blogs out there. It can get a little lonely on the road, and there is a great disconnect from friends and family. Through cell phones and the internet it's a easier to keep that connection going and keeps a lot of truckers from going nutso, even though most of them are there anyway, like yours truly.
There's so many misconceptions that it's hard to get any respect from, not only the general public, but the government as well when they are trying to pass laws and regulations. Especially California. But that's another issue for another day.
So I will rant and rave for awhile and try to explain things as I see things, which can be distorted at best and a little prejudiced.
There are a lot of trucker blogs out there. It can get a little lonely on the road, and there is a great disconnect from friends and family. Through cell phones and the internet it's a easier to keep that connection going and keeps a lot of truckers from going nutso, even though most of them are there anyway, like yours truly.
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