Getting Ready to Hit the Road with Magnum

West side down near Fulmer Parkway

 

Hey there....

In case you have been wondering what happened to me (and if you didn't, you wouldn't be reading this), I am still here. Been doing a lot of driving and making miles. And my "social schedule" on the phone keeps me pretty busy at night. Plus trip planning, cooking (oh I have the coolest setup in my truck), and of course, sleep.

Anyway, I am just south of Minneapolis right now and tomorrow morning I deliver in central Minnesota, then pick up and run back to NC by Monday morning. So I will have some time to get caught up here on the forum.

So until then....

Big arf!

 

Yeah, everyone is surviving so far. THey did close the office early today though. But I talked to a few of them and they said it is everything as bad as what they are portraying on the news.

Now, how much do I like my dispatchers? Yesterday, I was heading to Willmar, MN to do a delivery and I talked to the dispatcher. He gave me my choice of loads. "I have one going to North Carolina, and I have one going to Fargo.... which would you like?" hehehehe can you guess what my reply was? So now I am on my way to the Carolinas.... hehehehehe. And what makes it even better, today I received my loadout after I deliver on Monday. Charlotte going to Appleton, WI.

Actually, there are a lot of GOOD companies out there. But what it comes down to is how you approach it and how you deal with it. Is Magnum flawless? I should say not. But you are going to find that everywhere you work. The trick is.... How do you deal with it? Me? I chalk it up as another adventure.

Let me tell you... I have been stuck on docks all day.... I have waited for dispatches.... I have had to swim through the "trucking muck". But the way I look at it, I am paying my dues, and the lessons I learn will help me deal with things better next time it happens. And I am sure it will.

My dispatchers treat me well and keep me running. In turn, if they need a trip handled..... "I'm your guy!" (tail wagging). Sure, there have been a couple shorter trips, but you know what? I could have been sitting in a truck stop, making a pitance they call Layover Pay. Instead, I am driving down the road getting closer to "the big one".

A company is as good as you let it be to you. Period

Good luck

Hey there Red.... yup, I have got what I consider to be a very cool and inexpensive setup. Pilot had a deal on the Cobra CPI1000 invertor. I paid 99 bucks for it. It is a 1000 watt unit with two receptacles. One is plugged into a heavy duty extension cord that goes to the microwave. The other is plugged into one of those cords (we all have them) with the three plugs in a little block. Like you use with the Christmas tree. I also have another invertor that plugs into a cigarette lighter and that powers my TV and my laptop. 200 watts. 30 bucks at Walmart.

I bought my TV at Walmart. 13" (which is all you really need) Magnavox with built in DVD player and it is Digital ready. On sale for 130 bucks. I also have one of those little mini crock pots, which is perfect for cooking a can of soup (large can)(Chunky or maybe Ravioli). To end it, I bought a Rival S11P electric skillet (Thank IronRydr for that tip). I can cook literally ANYTHING in that.... eggs, bacon, hamburger, steaks, hot dogs, WHATEVER.

One 14 day run of eating at the TS's will more than pay for all of this. And you can eat better too. Not to mention you dont ave to spend time talking to someone who likes you a lot better than you like them hehehehehe.

So there you have it..... my advice...... (that'll be $19.95)

I'll have to tell you some of my "recipes" sometime.