Once again I have to ask......

Yes to Lover's Point, no to 17 Mile Drive (way too expensive, plus the last time I was there I took my mother on that drive, not much has changed since then).

My point is just to embrace the great parts of the job. Yes, many parts suck royally, but other days you have to just shake your head in disbelieve that you are actually getting paid to do it.

One of his friends runs Western Regional, so he is in and out of Salinas weekly. Mark was talking to him about this and that about Salinas, and this friend has never left the Pilot! Why? There are so many beautiful things to see and do on your downtime, why would you never leave the nasty truckstop?

 

I have recently switched to the regional/ local thing.
I have to say it is allot more work than my old OTR job, or other local jobs I have had over the years.
I had never done flat bed much. Worked for a truss company for a while when I was much younger, but hauling steel is a whole different ball o'wax.
Lugging chains and binders does not bother me.
Taking back highways everywhere in PA, gets a little old. There just are not enough interstates running North south, and the company hates the turnpike.
Had a real issue today. I delivered in Maine this morning early. Went to my next pick up and was like wtf.
It was several pieces of machinery. Took a while to get it on the trailer right, but got it on and tied down well. The guys at the company all left for the day as I was finishing up. Then I went to tarp it. I knew the largest piece was tall, I just had not realized how tall. Started to tarp it, then realized it was several feet taller than the 7' ladder I was standing on to get the tarp on top........

Grabbed a tape....... It was standing over 9' above the deck of my flat bed...the deck is 5' off the ground....I am not going anywhere.

I call the office, and lucky for me the dispatcher has not left. I am ticked. We talk it out, and I am now in a hotel room, paid for by the company, since the nearest truck stop was 30 miles away, and I needed a shower. I am 1 block from the shipper, and will have to get the stuff unloaded in the morning.
Sorry that was so long winded, I needed to vent to people that would understand.

Anyway. Back to the original point. I like being home more often, but local is allot more work. I usually never worked 70 hours a week while OTR, and I still made good money. Now I am working 65 to 70 hours a week. All legal and logged. Allot is load and unload times. That 65-70 hours is in a 5 day work week. Do the math 70 devided by 5= 14. I work almost all 14 hour days now. For about the same money. But I am home every weekend and several nights most weeks.

But I still love driving and would not want to do anything else. Maybe I will need to eventually look for a company that I can be home weekends and burn less calories, but for now this will do. I need to loose a few pounds anyway, and my wife is already comenting on how fast my arms are growing.

 

Cruddies! I was in Salinas (for a few minutes) then I spent most of my day (Friday) in Castroville. Seeing as I was getting loaded at a cold storage place, you know it wasn't a short process.

As a rule, I hate California (despite??) Aftershock. But I will say that drive between San Jose and Salinas is outstanding. Particularly Hwy 17.

Of course, then I had to deal with traffic. Friday afternoon traffic in the bay area.A drive that took me 2 hours in the morning (Sacramento to Castroville) took me 5 hours in the afternoon going back. In fact, I never made it as far as Sacramento before I ran out of time.

If I'd been smart, I'd have finagled a way to get 2 more hours at the cold storage place and called it line2 for 8 hours. Hindsight.

Anyway. Glad you had a good weekend.

ONE of these days,I'm gonna run into a fellow board member,and the universe will implode

 

I look for them every time I see a trucker with a laptop.
No luck yet.

 

Once I start riding with him, I would like to meet some forum members. I think that would be fun. Heck, the town I live in now has 3 different truck stops, who knows how many forum members are settling in for the night right down the street at this very minute?

 

I have never made money as much as I have on the road (except stripping), I like travel, I love being in new places everyday, I've seen all the states now, and I got paid for it! Who else can say that? Plus now I know the person that has made my life a living hell can't follow me anymore, which is a BIG PLUS.

Its not perfect, I have serious opinions on the pay. I believe that we should get something for the non driving part of it. Like for instance, everytime I have to drop and hook, or it takes more then 2 hours to unload, or I spend an hour trying to slide tandems, fueling, etc. I honestly think the way we are paid is retarded, I am not sure the whole miles pay is at all fair to the driver, considering that if a dispatcher wants to be a prick they can seriously hurt your pay just by making you sit. And since we are not moving when fueling/unloading/hooking we aren't getting paid for that time...

I am considering going to Mclane grocery cause they are saying around 23 hr, but I will miss OTR. Its not always pretty, there have been days where I've wanted to just quit, and there have been days I've been very happy. It happens with any job really, it just makes it more irriating when you are not amused and you have to stay in the company truck you can't go home and cool down after work.

Heck I took a week vacation on FL and all I paid for was the hotel and food. Travel was free. If I want to take off in CA, I can! I can go to Maine! I can go anywhere in the lower 48 I want to take off, and chill out by the beach, or at a national park!

LOL

 

I actually thought about taking a job as a CEO for a major banking firm, for a couple of weeks.

But figured it would actually be more work, trying to spend the 19.1 million golden parachute than it was worth.

Truth be known. What other job can you whine all day about how bad it is...and your boss not overhear you? If it was a McDonalds job...which sucks even more. We would be fired on the first day for whining.

It takes years of practice to get as good as I am, at whining. Whining is not for sissy's. Whining should only be done by 3 methods...via CB, on the phone with your dispatcher, or at a truckstop.

Or it doesn't count.

No sir...whinning is not a job for everyone. But it pays my bills. And my wife says it makes me happy.

 

I've never met a state I didn't like SOMEthing about.
Might not agree with their laws and/or politics, or even the people though.

But California has some beautiful scenery.

*chuckle*

That's what I was chucklin' 'bout.

Ya reckon.

HeY!
You left out the internet.

Whine Onnn
Whine onnnn
Silver Moon --------

I know
I know
Don't quit my day job.