The Question of Questions

I Actually like to drive, and I like overtime.......oooops......... LOVE OVERTIME

 

I don't have the wanderlust that I used to have as a young man, but I'm definitely not into being holed up in a cubicle or working a retail job. I like driving, being on the road, but more than anything, I love trucks. Love being in a tractor that sits tall and gives me a view down the stretch, love shifting the gears, love all the instrument gauges on the dash, love the sound of a jake brake. Love the look of trucks, the sound of trucks, how a tractor trailer feels when driving one. And, I love that I can make a good living driving one of these things.

 

Now, THAT'S what everyone is in search of......the love of something that makes us happy...giddy. God, how I envy you.

 

$65,000. that's my motivation. for that money I am willing to work hard, conduct myself in a safe courteous manner, be polite to others I encounter during my day, take care of my equipment, do complete pre and post trips, basically make myself an asset to the company, to be worth the money they pay me. In other words, if you work for a man, work for that man. My satisfaction lies in the fact that I have given that man his honest days work for his honest days wage. I take pride that the tractor I drive has more work orders written than any tractor they own, not that it has more problems than other units, just that nothing escapes my attention. They appreciate this also. The brakes on my tractor are always in adjustment, also my trailer, any trailer I pick up that I have not pulled for six weeks gets its brakes adjusted. This list goes on and on, Im sorry if the fact of earning a wage is not a valid reason for doing the job, that I must love what I do to make it worth while that's not me, But I have earned the respect of every old hand I work with, also those I meet along the road, the respect of the guys in the shop and the owners of the company I work for. That makes me pretty darn proud of what I do. Doing a job, any job, WELL, is its own reward.

b

 

In truth I drive for the sense of pride, of being an O/O. The chicken lights and chrome have always called to me. Money has little to do with my decision,we all know it takes a certain amount to survive. Cattle is mostly all I ever hauled, I have tried other things with my truck but always end up back under that Merritt cattle drive. It's about doing it right I guess. Don't think however that because money has little to do with my decision that trucking hasn't been real good to me, because it has. Changes are coming that ol Wore Out here may not can accept but I will be thankful for being able to do it while I could. Nothing like hitting the throttle on my ol B model and hearing everything come together

 

I do this job simply because of some of the characters you meet out here (most are great people), job stability, and NOT being couped up in an office. Ultimately doing a job safely and with some pride in workmanship.

 

I liked truck driving, I always drove by myself, because if I did my job right, the boss knew it, & I did not have to pull other peoples load.

Sure are many jobs out there when you worked with others who are nothing but slackers, & it makes it harder on you, & many times they will get credit for the work you did.

 

Freedom of the open road. There is old country song White Line Fever. I have always been a rambler. Never happy being in just one place. Love to travel. Did office fig for 10 years. Everyday was watching trucks roll by and wondered where they were going or had been. Think there is something neat of waking up in a different place everyday. I guess I was born a ramblin man.

 

I do it because I love it .

I love the sound she makes when I fire her up in the morning and the sound she makes on a good pull and evn the jakes rattling as we slide off the top .
I love the sunset in the desert.
I love watching the sun come up over the ocean .

I love the feeling of solitude I get during a snow storm in Montana.
I love the sight of the fresh planted fields of corn in Nebraska .
I love to see the trees changing color in Virginia .
I love to stop and get fresh peaches in Georgia in the summer .

I love the peaceful feeling of a morning drive through the Navajo Reservation with all the red rock formations.
I love the feeling of a job well done when I back into a spot and the guy says wow you did that like you have done it before .
I love the rush of going to a new place and the feeling I get when I hear hey I see you are back again .

I even love to get my tools out and fix the old girl when she needs some tender loving care.
I get a kick out of the people I meet .
I love the look of total over load in a new guys eyes .
I remember when I was that new guy and had just bought a truck I had no idea how to drive .

I love the sound of rain on the sleeper in the spring time .
I love to wake up and see 6 inches of snow on the hood .
I still smile when I see a truck all lit up with chicken lights .

I love to sit around and talk trucking .
I love the job I do .
I love the company I do my job for .

Heck I can even say I really like my dispatcher .
I can't say I love him yet he has only been here a year !LOL
I can say I loved my last dispatcher because we had 13 years together . LOL

I can on for hours about all the great things about trucking that I love .
Yes it is allot of work and it can be a real pain at times.
But it is the best job in the world in my mind .

So I guess I do it because I love trucks and trucking plain and simple .
I know this makes weird and a freak in today's trucking world where whining and complaining is the norm .
I don't care because I do it because I want to not because I have to or it pays more or because I cant find a job doing something else .

I started trucking because I loved it and 33 years later I still love as much if not more than I did on my first day .

 

I drive because I am a misanthropist.