Running With Watkins & Shepard

YEP! Both you and Wulfman are correct. I'm home with family and friends and just soaking in every moment!! I had it set up to take from the night of the 23rd to the morning of the 3rd off. This way I have time to both spend with my loved ones AND do all the "things" that need doing while home. Coming into trucking in such a deep hole has made it quite challenging to get caught up.

But I'm happy to say that with each passing month, I'm getting closer to that goal. I feel my initial thought of having to push hard for the first year to get there is right on track. After 4 months I'm just about at the break even point. This months bills were 2 weeks late but now paid. A FAR better place than being 3 months behind on everything. Although it will be a little late, this is the first Christmas in THREE years I can enjoy the feeling of GIVING again. It won't be much, but it WILL be something and that's HUGE for me.

I can't express my gratitude enough to Watkins & Shepard for opening the door for me, giving me the chance to learn and prove myself and working with me (by the way of dispatch and shops) to help me get back on top of life. Although it's impossible to know everything about every truck company out there, I honestly feel I couldn't have made a better choice for getting my feet wet in trucking!

Now after my run from Helena to PA in that wicked winter storm, I had a run from PA to GA. It was a broker load of copper tubing spools. I like broker loads as they are a little more flexible in how I can set up delivery times. I was able to deliver a day early which gave me time to set up my home time with Heather and get another load for the weekend. Dispatch told me they'd keep me on the east coast so there'd be no chance of missing that home time. From my delivery in Stone Mountain GA they had me deadhead to the Dalton Terminal. From there they loaded me with a carpet run to NC. All looked good for staying on the East coast and getting home.

Since the run was so short, I knew I'd be done with it before the weekend was over so I Qualcomm-ed NC dispatch right away to let them know I'd need another run to keep rolling for the weekend. So they pre-planned one for me from the Conover Terminal.....to TEXAS for a Monday morning (12/20) unload. Texas?? ........... well that takes me a little way off the East coast...... Not being one to refuse a load, I took it although I was a bit concerned about being able to get a run back East and thus home on 12/23. Plans and arrangements had already been made at home so changing them wasn't an option. Well, at least not a good one. For personal family matters, it was REALLY important I get there ths year. So before I even left Conover I started Qualcomming dispatch to work out a plan to get me back East. The response (late in the day on Friday 12/17) was, "Texas to Jersey? Not good! Can maybe get you to GA". I was grabbing a shower when this response came in so dispatch was gone for the weekend when I read it. I wrote back how important it was that I get home and thanked them in advance for any effort for ANYTHING headed anywhere East! LOL

So all weekend I was a bit worried. But sure enough, dispatch read my message Monday morning and pulled a broker load out of the hat that took me right back to NC! So again, right away I wrote to NC dispatch and let them know when I'd be there and that I really needed a run to Jersey from there. Sure enough, they called me and said they had a load with my name on it for a 12/23, 07:00 delivery and asked if I could make it there on time. LOL....you BETCHA I can! It was PERFECT!

The only down side to it was it was a driver assist unload. I pushed pretty hard to make all this work out so I was really beat by the time I got there. Plus with my back, I was really concerned about not being crippled for my time at home. But still, dispatch worked hard and fast to get me there so there was NO WAY I'd refuse the load. I talked with the dock workers when I got there and they were happy to take a 20 spot to unload the trailer without me.

I hope everyone had a WONDERFUL Christmas and wish you all the very best for the new year!!

 

It's my honor buddy. Thanks for thinking of my little thread to post it in.

God made my Christmas everything I asked for it to be. I really couldn't be happier or more thankful. I hope yours was as well my friend!