The Road Home

The road home is a winding, curving, dips and turn fast lane through the Green Ridge Mtn Range of the Appalachians.

The road home is the straightest, narrow road, winding through the tempest heat of Florida orange groves.

The road home is just around the corner, but it is also the road I'm on.

In the blur of 70 mph down the interstate, the two words I can think of after 10 hours is "tunnel vision." It's an odd feeling, your vision is accute and aware of all things in front of you, and it's like a sixth sense of what is beside and even behind you, but you don't consciously see it, or care to, you just know. I'm having a moment -I've had lots of moments over the past 4 months, but this one is the strongest. I have a renewed sense of self and purpose. I chose to step back in the fog of the tunnel and see what is racing by. I am keenly aware of all things past, present and future. As I step back from just me and my circumstance, I now see a new perspective.

Perhaps I heard the most meaningful quote ever uttered in a movie. I'm not a movie junky, so I know there are famous quotes, but this one struck a cord... "sometimes we are looking too close at what is in front of us, but if we step back we see the big picture, we gain a new perspective."  -Soul Surfer was the best movie I have watched in a while. The youth minister is showing pictures of these close ups of objects and the youth are guessing what they are, and of course they can't tell. So, the moral of the story is of course, the quote.

So, what am I saying in all this? Touch, but don't suffocate. Glow, but don't burn up.

~Where we've been~

April 7   Garyville, LA to Selma, AL -337 miles
April 8 to April 9   Athens, AL to New York, New York - 952 miles
April 11 to April 12   Bronx, NY to Hobe Sound, FL -1239 miles
April 13  Fort Myers, FL to Orlando, FL -194 miles
April 14 to April 15  Orlando, FL to Atlanta, GA -446 miles
April 15 to April 16   Pell City, AL to Utica, MI -770 miles
April 16 to April 18  Utica, MI to Grand Rapids MI -189 miles
April 18 to April 19  Benton Harbor, MI to Strasburg, VA -607 miles
April 19-21  Baltimore, MD to Groveport, OH -413 miles

New York, New York -I would have to say the epitomy of all things large. City blocks were lego size in comparison to the skyscrapers that towered over them. Massive amounts of skyscrapers, one after the other in Manhattan. People were everywhere, and yellow taxi cabs about matched their number. I felt like we were driving Shamoo in the midst of a whole lot of Nemos!

The George Washington and Broklyn Bridges are architectural miracles. As much traffic that crosses them daily, it really amazes me that it is in such good of shape. Don't get me wrong, the roads in New York are crazy. By the time we got back to New Jersey, our truck needed two new front shocks, a wheel alignment, and a new right tire. But it was an experience. We ate at deli's in New Jersey. Completely a New England thing - the only other deli's in the south and heartland are in the fancy grocery stores. But they pale in comparison to the locally owned Italian Deli's of New Jersey.

Hobe Sound, FL. A beautiful place of serenity right on the eastern coast of Florida around Jupiter Island. We delivered to a construction sight here. This 80 year old man who owned an elite shipping company was having a house built in a very prestigious neighborhood -one road down from Tiger Woods' house. Well, this was the third time he had the construction company knock down his house and rebuild it, because it still wasn't up to his impecable standards. The ocean was one road away, as was the yacht club. I felt like a Desparate Housewife movie star imagining a daily life that was so rich and exotic. Pinch.

Orlando, FL. We were right by the exits to Sea World, Disney World, and Epcot Center. Of course we didn't get to stop, but the childhood princess again manifested as I imagined getting my picture taken with Cinderella and Goofy. Lol, prolly a good characature to hang beside our wedding pictures . . .

I am purely in love with Florida. From the waves upon waves that crash against the sandy ocean shore to the smell of orange blossoms and oranges in the hundreds of miles of orange groves. I love the flat roads and how there are bike trails everywhere. I love the sunshine and the heat and the salt and the tans. . .

Michigan was cold and snowy. I don't like cold, I don't like snowy. My personality took a dive with the temperatures. I was miserable. So, I hid under the blankets like a child on a snow day.  Lol. I did gain a few pounds because we ate two meals at this awesome truck stop. I usually don't like truck stop food, but the best Tex Mex I've ever ate was at this Roady's Truck Stop in Michigan.

Then, we went to the big city of Baltimore. What a historic area, and the buildings are preserved magnificintly.   Right outside of Baltimore is Grantsville, MD. and the Lighthouse to the World Church -it is a lighthouse that sits on top of a mountain ridge. Truly a beacon of hope. The green ridge mountains in Cumberland, MD and Flintstone, MD were breathtaking. The redbuds, with the pine, and red / black flint was a beauty to behold.

Now we're back in the heartland with miles of farmland being planted and prepared for spring/summer. Barns painted and shored up to withstand another year.

Truly is a grand country. What a privilege just to touch the surface of the splendor.

~Pictures~

New York, New York!

Manhattan

China Town -people shopping at the market on Saturday morning

Nemos

Hobe Sound -The road was lined with these low trees -we had to go really slow...

 

A great day in Tampa Bay!

Cumberland MD from I-68 (the National Freeway)

Cumberland MD

Green Ridge Mtns (photo courtesy of Google)

Green Ridge Mtns in Maryland (photo courtesy of google)

Test post of Colorado Movie

Colorado Movie

Canada to Texas to Florida

Spring has sprung across the US and I have to say that God's tapestry is beautiful!

Where we've been:

Montreal, Canada to Dallas, Texas: 1584 miles
Dallas, Texas to Gainesville, Florida: 1200 miles
Gainesville, Florida to Atlanta, Georgia: 330 miles
Gainesville, Georgia to Thibodaux, Louisianna: 580 miles

Staying busy, and that's a good thing!

We are now on our 4th truck and 3rd fleet owner in 3 months, ugh. But we really like this new fleet owner and truck -hopefully we won't have as severe of transmission or brake troubles with this one.

Ah, Canada. . . at first the boring dead fields and trees mixed with the sludge of the still melting ice and snow was nothing to write home about, but once we got across the border it was a novelty to see the lines of "smoke shops" on the Canada border. It was like a "last call" of them all! I think the number of smoke shops compared to the number of rental cars we've had in the past three months. . . . I'll have to run my stats. . . .

The butt literally stopped at the border! I wish I could have gotten some good pics of them -they were tiny sheds painted all different colors simply labeled "Smokes."  Then all the streets were labeled in French. Um, hello, my Spanish isn't great, but I know zilch French! Michael was asking me how to pronounce things, and I think that's what kept us awake as the sun rose on the border. . . laughing at my overwhelming American dialect. Lol.

On the way out of Canada, we crossed at Alexandria Bay and a place called Thousand Islands (about 16 miles away from Niagra Falls). I have a picture below of the "garage for the jetty."

 It was really neat going over the draw bridge and hearing me exclaim "Lord Jesus" as I climbed to heaven in a mack truck on a draw bridge.  It was a novelty moment and I am learning I have a phobia of high bridges over water. The roads to Texas were good roads, and of course the only road construction I went through was at dark. The Renegade cattle truck behind me blew his air horn at me for the next 3 miles because I drove 50 through the twilight zone of cones (the speed limit was 55.)

Ah, Texas. . . . everything happens in Texas. Let me start by saying I love Dallas and I love the twang. I also loved our God Send of a tow truck driver that was as layed back in that southern way as one could get while hauling us around Dallas at 2 a.m. while trying to find a Freightliner dealership that was open.

Then, Michael took me to a treat of a place -completely Texas style! It was the Texas Rose. Later to discover, this Saloon/ Restaurant is actually owned by Willie Nelson!  We enjoyed a huge lunch of brisket, fajitas, and cherry pie. 

It was also in Dallas we made a deal with Ditto Transport and a man named TC to drive to Florida to begin working for them come Tuesday. TC and his wife Vicky. . .  I really like them. When we were talking to TC on the phone, Michael and I both thought that he was a squatty overweight biker dude and his wife was a stay at home princess. When we met them, we were amused to find a different set of characters . . . Crocadile Dundee and his workin' wife. Lol! They were wonderful! Raised in Corpus Christy, Texas TC ain't sceered of nothin' and I believe one of the hardest working fellows I have met. Vicky was the type willing to give you the shirt off her back and help in any way possible.

So TC and Vicky live in Ocala, Florida -outside of Gainesville, home of University of Florida Gators. I love Florida! Driving along I-10 that runs litterally across the Gulf of Mexico at Mobile, AL and into the panhandle of Florida, my Pices (fish) soul ached. How could I be this close to the ocean and not stop to enjoy the waves of my favorite beaches along Fort Walton, only 30 miles from where we were. Oh, how I moaned and groaned . . . I will someday live at the ocean. My soul belongs there.

Gainesville, Florida was beautiful, we finally drove out of the Georgia / Florida pine trees and into the beginnings of the Palms. Gainesville had sidewalks and bike lanes all across the city -as did Tallahassee, the capitol. I was amazed. Finally! A community that met the transportation needs and desires of its people. Who wants to ride in a car all the time when the weather is beautiful and the commute can be done by bike??? Well, that is until the morning's thunderstorm about blew us away and soaked us to the bone -lol. Only lasted 30 mins. but I did feel sorry for the people on bikes having to fight the wind and rain.

Alas, I found Michael and I a house on Mirimar beach! A condo priced just right! Holy cow I was about to fall hook line and sinker and then read two menacing words. . . . "Time Share." Darn.

From Florida, we went to Gainesville and Atlanta Georgia. . . people are crazy drivers in this monsterous size of a city. Good grief! From Decatur all the way to Atlanta, people jockeyed at outrageous speeds for position on an 8 lane Interstate! This country girl longed for some dirt roads!

Georgia looks great and the town of Pine Apple boast some of the greatest. . .  peaches. Lol.

Louisianna -we are right on the Gulf Coast, and going through it in the dark, you can't tell any oil spill was close by, but the stench of the canals and barges doesn't quite beacon me like the Emerald Coast in the Florida panhandle.  I think of Pam and her living in New Orleans, and I dearly miss my friend who now lives in Chicago...

We weren't by the French Quarter, but I wonder if the recovery efforts there are as slowly progressing as the ones in Haiti, some things are just complete atrosities against humanity and it breaks my heart. . .

The Interstate made me sea sick. Stay off of I-65 and I-10 through New Orleans and Baton Rouge if at all possible. Those roads are so warped! However, I did want to stop for breakfast at the "Cajun Seafood" joint that we passed, too bad it was closed at 4 a.m.! Plus, I don't think I would have had too much fun on the "truck boat" afterward. :(  Get it. . . "Truck boat" /  "Tug Boat" . . .  ok, maybe my humor is wierd in writing. . .

 Hmmm. . . no telling where we'll end up next -prolly Memphis headed to Texas. . .

Here's a couple of songs I love:

Josh Kelley - "Georgia Clay" 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=AqdcOnFBSIY

Kid Rock and Martina McBride -"Care"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGe7nAwrCcs&feature=player_detailpage

~Pictures~

Crossing the Border of Canada

Rush Hour Traffic in Montreal

Thousand Islands and Garage for the Jetty

Murals on the wall of Texas Rose Saloon

Second Mural at Texas Rose

Fajitas and Brisket at Texas Rose

Queen Roxy -Tara's Dog- she's such a joy and I miss her!

Welcome, Spring!

Early spring is one of my favorite times of year, and this spring has certainly not let me down. From Alabama and Mississippi to Virginia and New Jersey, greening plantations, horse ranches, and chicken farms are refreshed.  Peek-A-Boo brooks trickle alongside roadways lined with the grape-like bunches of wisteria in MS. Forsythia and redbuds reveal their splendor in VA. VA has to be one of my favorite states -the homesteads in the valleys along the Blue Ridge Mountains grace I-81 and today, there was a dusting of snow in Harrisonburg, VA adding a reminder that spring is yet a babe.

A lot has happened since my last blog -mostly I got to spend two wonderful weeks home enjoying family. March 5-12 Michael and I returned to St. Louis after a stressful week in a loaner truck with a diferent company. Long story short, the brakes didn't work! So, we swapped our load in Memphis and took the truck back to the company. The reason we were driving this truck is because our original truck's transmission went out (previous blog). 

The week in St. Louis was spent figuring out what truck we were going to drive, and enjoying time with Michael's parents, Nancy and Gerry. We also spent a good two days organizing a lifetime of memories from Michael's room. I loved it! I know Michael very well, but as we packed up baseball cards to high school and college graduation momentos, it was priceless to share in his memories and hear the stories of his youth.  So, now his room is our room and looks completely different!

Going home to West Plains always grounds me and makes my heart swell with pride as I return to the town and family that stands steadfast as my rock and my strength. Plus, I know my way around the city streets! I spent two and a half full days with my grandparents enjoying great conversation and basking in the sunshine. Michael helped Grandpa tune up the ole lawn mower, changing the oil and sharpening the blades. Now Grandpa can tend to the spring plantings of his garden and amaze me with how he still manages to make the lawn look as manicured as a golf course.

Spending time with Mom and Dad and Tara was precious. Mom and Dad are getting a new driveway put in the back of the house, so Michael layed a sketch with the garden hoses to help measure out how many cubic feet of concrete they were going to need. Boy, I need to go back to high school math! I had to Google how to figure square yards for asphalt and cubic feet for concrete! By the way, square yards measures area, cubic feet measures volume, so they cannot be converted into each other. Lol. Hats off to Uncle Google!

Mom, Tara and I went shopping in Springfield on Friday, the 18th  and mom bought me new spring clothes -much needed! They will definitely get their wear as I packed them to wear while on the road. So, as mom says, I won't have to look like a trucker every day. Wink. THEN, as if that wasn't enough of a present, on me and Tara's b-day, the 19th, mom treated us to a day at the beauty shop, getting our hair highlighted and cut for spring, plus new manicures and pedicures. We had a blast yucking it up with the girls at the shop! That evening, the family came over to celebrate # 28 with us and ate cake, ice cream, and yummy finger foods.

I cried all day. I guess 28 hit hard. It started with the dozen roses from Michael being delivered to the beauty shop, and then I cried at the drop of a dime the rest of the day! Lol. I'm going to have to skip the country on the "dirty 30." Perhaps a cruise. . .

Then back to work the next week, we drove from St. Louis to Weyers Cave, VA to pick up our new truck, again with our original company, National Hot Shot out of Fort Smith, AR. The truck is just like our first one, except half of it is brand new from being in a wreck.

Ah, Weyers Cave. . . beautiful country in the valley of the Blue Ridge Mtns. about 30 miles south of Harrisonburg. It is in the middle of chicken farming country. Michael and I said we could see ourselves relocating to Weyers Cave and opening a KOA campground. Food for thought.

We then drove to Ohio to get our Panther decals (March 24). The minute we got all the decals done, we were dispatched to pick up a load in Walloughby, Ohio and deliver to Steens, Mississippi -720 miles. Woo-Hoo!  We then relocated to Birmingham, AL (March 26) and were dispatched at 1 a.m. to drive 130 miles to swap a load with another driver in Chatanooga, TN and take it all the way to Marlborough, MA (our current load). We will deliver this load at 6 a.m. on Monday, March 28.

If you read one of my first blogs, I compared expediting to water, well again I allude to water -no wading, baby, it's sink or swim!

Enjoy spring and as Easter approaches, I encourage you all to dwell on the life of Christ and His love that was not bound by human expectations or social acceptances. He lived every day modeling the essence of pure love. I think often of the disciples of Christ, and the saying "In the dust of my Rabbi." How closely the disciples walked to Christ, that they would be covered in the dust from the ground of which Jesus walked. How I desire to walk so closely to Jesus that I too absorb just a bit of what He teaches. Maybe I can then be a contagious spirit that stains the hearts of those around me.


~Pictures~
These pics are of our second truck, we named it Clifford the Big Red Dog. Seeing that it is a full size semi - tractor, you guessed right -I couldn't drive it for anything! I am too short and a big wimp. Plus, the breaks were crap and we had a headache from the overwhelming third hand cigarette smoke, we cleaned for two days, shampooed carpets, scrubbed walls, etc. and still couldn't get the overwhelming smell out. 

More pics on next blog! Plus, keep reading, I hope to have a very special video posted soon.

New Beginnings in March

Where we've been: 
March 3

• Pick up truck in Ohio
• Clean truck
• Dispatched to first March load
• Ohio to Tupelo, MS

March 4

• Deliver load to Tupelo, MS @ 8 a.m.
• Dispatched to new load, MS to Dallas, TX
• Deliver load
• Eat dinner at Soulman's BBQ (latinos really know how to BBQ -awesome food)!
• Go through first Level 2 DOT inspection at 9 p.m. in the dark!
• Having a new truck, didn't quite know what to expect, but thankfully, no violations were found. Phew! Tickets come out of the driver's pocket.

March 5

• Eat breakfast at Denny's (moons over my hammy has always been my fave)
• Go to the movies ($2.75 -sweet!)
• Watch Rango and The Adjustment Bureau
• Both are definitely worth watching!
• Hmmm, wonder if we'll get dispatched Sunday or wait 'til Monday to get out of Dallas??

By the way, after our other truck gets done, we will be returning to drive for National Hot Shot Services and our first truck. I just feel more comfortable in it.

Keep up the prayers, and know I am thinking of all of you! We are doing great and looking forward to spring sunshine and good weather. Call me often and let me know what's up with you!

Love to all.

True Grit

The sun is setting on another beautiful day in the south. From Mississippi to Arkansas, and Texas, the sunshine has given me a breath of fresh hope. Something that was much needed after me and Michael had to hellish weeks at the end of February. Knowing our truck was broken down, gave us the opportunity to go home. Some rest that was much needed. However, it also awakened the desires in me to return to all I love -including family.

Going to the gym in the mornings, waking up and going to bed at "normal" times, eating real food, taking a shower any time I want, building fires and watching HGTV while snuggling with Michael (who was hoping to watch the Speed chanel). I love life, and I really long to return to having a life. It's very lonely out on the road, so I am thankful to you for calling and keeping our spirits up.

I cried every day for the last two weeks. Then on Monday, when we arrived in Ohio to pick up our loaner truck (long story, so we'll stick with loaner)... I cried even more. I was so hoping for a fancy truck with the bed that folds up and has a tabel and two chairs, a truck that was spic and span clean to our expectations -as both Michael and I are clean freaks. Instead we got a filthy, smoked in, high mileage truck that gave us both headaches to be in. 

As we really pondered if we wanted to stick with the truck, verses going back home, we both cried. Then we realized something -we have a tangible goal that is well within our reach. The most important thing, is that we as husband and wife are there to take care of each other, and we are busting our asses to build a strong foundation for our family and dreams. So, we looked into each others' eyes and dwelt on the strength and grit that makes us who we are. We are not quitters.

We spent two full days cleaning the truck and situating our minimized belongings into their cubby holes. Then, a wave of peace washed over me and Michael and we realized something, we have a powerful tool in our possession -choice. Our choice of how we view our jobs, our life, our marriage determines our success or failure, not only in reaching financial and career goals, but the success and failure of our commitment to each other in marriage, and our commitments to God.

I know that is deep, but it is everything that has been going on in my mind that I have hidden behind a strong, secure voice, smile, and makeup. So, I quote Jeremiah "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to help you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future."

"Therefore, we set our eyes on not what is seen, but what is unseen. The things that are seen are temporary and the things that are unseen are eternal."

"For the greatest of these is love."

Michael and I choose faith. I ask you all to have a faith the size of a mustard seed in us, and we will prove to you that the outcome is real.

Love to all.

Chatanooga

The first time I went through Chatanooga last week, I thought it would be a neat place to visit, little did I know I would soon be spending a week...

Well, this morning I find myself still in bed with the covers pulled over my head wondering if we are ever going to get back on the road. I have to say, at least I have a comfy bed and have showered twice a day -just 'cuz.

I know, you're wondering what's the scoop... well it's not ice cream! More like . . . chinese food -smelly but good.

Saturday morning, we were 300 miles out from our Wisconsin to Georgia run, going through the beautiful foothills of the Chatahoochee National Forest with the sun peaking over the mountain tops and the river running right beside the road all sparkling blue, this was going to be a great day! We would finish the run by noon, then have the rest of the day and Sunday to recharge before our Monday run. Ahh.

Bump, silence, Michael's voice "Here we go again..."

"Great, we've lost power again and we're in the mountains with an additionl 4,000 pounds." I thought, as I wiped the sleep from my eyes. Hard breaking followed with a rumble as we crossed the rumble strip and landed our truck on the shoulder of I-24.

See, our truck had been doing this thing where out of the blue sky it would lose throttle power, so we would have to pull over to the shoulder of the road, turn the truck off, then turn it on and Hirby (see last blog) would be ready to roll again. All along, we've taken it to the shop, everyone thinking it was the fuel filters. So, three replacements later, here we go again, with one kick -this time, the engine lost power,too! All while we were in the fast lane passing a vehicle with someone else on our bailout side. Michael did a great job safely landing our ailing truck.

So, we limped Hirby to the rest area that God so graciously put not even 200 feet in front of us, called a tow truck, who thought the fuel pump was out on the rig, so he helps us limp up to the next exit, but wanted to have us pay $600 to get towed less than 10 miles to the Freightliner dealership/repair shop. Heck no! So we called another tow truck that only charged $285. Well, this time we tried to start the truck and the transmission seized and wouldn't change from 1st gear. Lovely. So we were towed to Frieghtliner.

That was Saturday at 1:30. We waited until they closed at 5 to only find out that Monday the "specialist" woud be in and he would have to look at it, but the mechanic thought that it was a transmission issue. We get a motel at the Hampton Inn, and walk the two roads over with our basics in our duffel bags.  Lovely motel, close to where we needed to be, but no restaurants that would deliver -they were only one exit up on the Interstate, but we couldn't walk the Interstate, and didn't want to pay the $35 to have a taxi come take us that short of distance. So, Dominoe's pizza in the tv light it was.

Well, Sunday passed -a lazy day watching movies and eating more pizza.

Monday, Freightliner takes apart the engine, thinking that it's something with the air compressor and engine -nope. So, Tuesday (today) they are taking out the transmission to see if it is the transmission -yikes!

Well, at least we're in Chatanooga. All kinds of stuff close to us -Wendy's, Wal-Mart, Kangaroo Gas Station . . . ok, I'll stop being sarcastic.

There is a lot to do -we are at the base of Lookout Mountain and also in walking distance of the Incline Railway to the top of Lookout Mountain. We may go do that later.

There is also a Chatanooga Nature Center and Botanical Gardens with miles of hiking and biking trails just one exit down. The Tennessee Valley railroad is also close. After riding the Leadville Mining railroad in Colorado this summer, I love the rail tours -a great way to explore an area and find out the history.

Rock City is also in Chatanooga, more gardens, hiking trails, and spectacular views.

Oh, and the famous Moon Pies were created and are still made here in good ole' Chatanooga! One of my childhood favorites was sitting on the swing listening to the country count-down on Sunday, drinking RC Cola and eating Moon Pies!

Other adventures include: the Tennessee Aquarium, IMAX theatre, River Gorge Cruise, Art Districts and Museums, Classic Tennessee BBQ. . .

Home prices are affordable -downtown is around $200,000 for a 3 br 2 ba home, but other 3 br 2 ba homes in the surrounding areas are around $150,000.

I really like this area, and in April/May, I would love to come back and explore Chatanooga and also delve into the Smokey Mountain Areas of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.

What Day Is It and Where Am I?

Ah, the good ole arm stretch and wrist bend as I sit down to finally type another blog! 

The last post was Jan, 22 and then I was home for a week. It was so great to see family, friends, and church family!  This makes the 2nd welcome at church that our Pastor, Spencer, has mentioned us; first was the Sunday after we were married and we still made it to chruch, and then two weekends ago when we surprised him by sitting in the pew at 8 a.m. Lol.

The past week has been busy in central US. Mostly industries trying to get parts shipped before more
 s-n-o-w came. I dare not to say the actual word. Blah.

Where We've Been

1. Feb. 2
• Pick up load in Troy, MO @ 11:00 a.m. drive 558 miles to Toyota plant in Buffalo, West Virginia and deliver @ 1:47 a.m. 2/3.
2. Feb. 3
• Drive from West Virginia to Logan, Ohio and pick up load @ 6:41 a.m., drive 241 miles to Ford Motor Company in Louisville, KY to deliver @ 12:00 -noon.
• Pick up another load in Glasgow, KY of newspaper inserts @ 8:00 p.m. and deliver to 4 different places in Iowa. This place was slow as blue blazes, but it printed magazines like Play Boy, National Inquirer, and Shape. I at least wanted to get next month's Shape issue! By the way, this was not a small load -it was 3,000 pounds of newspaper inserts! See below info. that I e-mailed to a couple of you. . .
• Delivered final newspaper load @ 3:10 p.m. on 2/4, 685 miles later.
3. Feb. 5
• Drive from Cedar Rapids, Iowa to Milwaukee, WI. Pick up load at 12:00 midnight, drive 377 miles to deliver load in Cincinatti, OH by 11:00 a.m. the same day.
• Drive to Hebron, KY to pick up next load by 3:00 on the same Feb. 5, drive half way to our destination for Monday.
4. Feb. 6
• Believe it or not, Michael and I got to work out at the YMCA, go grocery shopping, do our laundry, catch up on some much needed sleep AND watch the super bowl. Way to go Green Bay!
• http://www.youtube.com/superbowl
• Pepsi -Max "Love Hurts"
• Dorito's "House Sitting"
• Dorito's ""Pug Attack"
5. Today, Feb. 7 -lots to do for a Monday!
• Deliver load from Sat. to Bluffton, OH by 5:30 a.m.,
• Drive to Mansfield, OH 100 some odd miles away to get our next load at 8:00 a.m. then drive 75 mini miles to deliver to the Honda Research and Development center in Raymond, OH. I'm telling you, this place was grand and huge! It's employees were mostly Japanese! I only saw two caucasions going in to work! Not to stereotype, but some things you just notice... delivered load by 10:30 a.m.
• Drive 58 miles to Groveport, OH to pick up load @ 12:00 noon, wait over an hour only to find out this was a dry-run and dispatch screwed up and we weren't supposed to even go there! GRRR.
• So we go to the Frieghtliner dealership to pick up a new shock for the driver's seat, since I can barely drive and keep my foot on the gas without my chair trying to throw me thru the roof! Buy the $36 part and immediately get dispatched to a new load. . .
• Drive 175 miles to Youngstown, OH in north Ohio (we had been in West-Central) to pick up our new load @ 11:00 p.m. and deliver to Geneva, NY (294 miles) by 6 a.m. in the morning.
• Liz, we will be going thru Erie PA for the 4th time!

So, there's the run down! Keep on truckin' although our truck has now lost power 3 times while driving on the Interstate. Michael figured out what the problem was -electrical. The computer wires were zip tied all together and laying right behind the engine! So all the vibration, mixed with the heat of the engine, the wetness of the climate, did not mix.

So, knowing me you all know that I name things that are dear to me.

• Nissan Exterra was lovingly known as Chevy
• My neon is named Dolly
• My neighbor's cat (although oficially named Nimbus) I called Woofie
• My amarylis flowers are my Triplettes -spelled exactly this way.
• My wave petunia was named Rapunzel (she passed away in October)

So, I have an attachment issue! Well, Michael and I have been thinking of a name for our truck. . . and we thought of a few curse words and decided against them. Then, out of the blue, Michael thought of the perfect name. . . . Hirby! See the resemblance???

Ok, perhaps the name is more fitting because it does whatever the heck it wants while going down the road!

_____________________________________

Misc. thoughts along the journey . . .  e-mail to Liz (condensed version). . .

I have a lot to catch up on in my blogs... We stayed in St. Louis 'til Tues. Then between then and now we have been in WV, OH, KY. IA.
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> We passed the place that makes Rocky boots, went thru the home of John Deere, Moline, on our way to deliver to 4 Iowa cities (Davenport. Clinton, Dubuque, and Cedar Rapids). I enjoyed Dubuque - very neat old town with great personality! I'll put some pics on my blog. Oh, we also went by the place that makes the little tree car refreshers - I thought those were made in China -wink!  The Iowa stops were delivering newspaper inserts. We picked up the load @ Glasgow KY @ RR Donnelley where they also print Shape mag and National Inquirer (playboy was being printed too). I wanted to at least grab next month's Shape hot off the press! Oh well...
>
> Believe it or not, the weather is great - blue skies and no snow til we got to IL and IA.

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Fun Pictures from the Road

I love novelty coffee cups!

Too cute! This is a salt and pepper shaker set at a Michigan Cracker Barrel.

Clinton, Iowa -the story of every small town in America this winter -S.N.O.W.

Clinton, Iowa -"If the Lord's willing, and the parking lot don't cave in!" Is what members of this Baptist Church would be saying!

In way too deep. . .

Clinton, Iowa -The worst dock to back  into- It was diagonal, and to get to it, we had to back all the way down a one-way street, turn a sharp corner backward into an alley, and then back in at a diagonal. Thank God for Michael!

Dubuque, IA Museum of Art -a tribute to Grant Wood's American Gothic painting

check out this website for cool info. . .

http://www.artic.edu/artaccess/AA_Modern/pages/MOD_5.shtml

Last but certainly, not least. . .  The Flying Wiener --what else do I need to say? YES!



Many Miles from the Rocky Mtns. to the Boston Harbor

From Salt Lake City to San Antonio  was the last update I submitted. But in the last week, Michael and I have been so busy that we have maybe gotten 4 hours of sleep a night. Not complaining, I still sit with childlike delight in the passenger seat oooing and ahhhing at the various things that I see out the windshield. So here's the nut shell version of where we've been. I'm going to write another blog that will actually be more of a tribute to the marvels of my imagination.

January 16, 2011

• Pick up load in Seguin, TX (outside San Antonio) @ 5:34 p.m.
• Drive, swap drivers and drive some more through the states of Texas, Arkansas, Missouri (Dexter), Illinois, and up to Michigan
• Deliver load on January 17 @ 8:22 p.m. to Woodhaven, MI outside of Detroit

January 18, 2011

• Pick up load in Clinton Township, MI @ 5:00 a.m.
• Drive to the capitol of Michigan, Lansing, and deliver load at 8:30 a.m.
• Pick up next load in Grand Rapids, MI @ 10::30 a.m.
• Drive back toward Detroit (east) and deliver load to Wixom, MI @ 2:30 p.m.
• SLEEP and shower  -yay!

January 19, 2011

• Deadhead from Detroit, MI to Toledo, OH (I love Ohio) -2 hours
• Pick up load in Toledo @ 7:45 a.m.
• Drive $23.70 worth of toll roads through Ohio and Illinois to Glendale Heights
• Deliver load in Glendale Heights, IL @ 3:35 p.m.
• Relax for a few hours
• Pick up load in Des Plaines, IL @ 4:00 p.m.
• Drive through more toll roads in IL, travel through Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota
• Deliver load to Gwinner, North Dakota to the home  of where Bobcats are  made @ 8:00 a.m. January 20.
• Dead Head to St. Paul Minnesota
• By the way, Missouri is like Florida compared to -22 degree temps in Gwinner and St. Paul.  . . .BRRR.

January 21, 2011

• Pick up load in St. Paul, MN @ 10:00 a.m.
• Drive back East on I -94 (we've now travelled 94 three times)
• Pay the tolls as we go through Wisconsin,  Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and finally Massachusetts all the way to the Boston Harbor.
• So driving all day the 22nd.
• We'll deliver this load at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow morning (Sunday, January 23).

Grand total of miles for the week: 3,955 miles, not counting deadhead. AND we have at least one more trip to go to get back to St. Louis!

Happy Birthday, Dad! I wish I could be there to eat cake with you, I would make you a mayonaise chocolatee cake with chocolate icing!

HOPEFULLY, we will be home to St. Louis next week for a reprieve before we do it all over again for three weeks straight.

1,422 Miles from Salt Lake City to San Antonio

The salt in the air, the chill of the lake effect snow, the prominence of the mountains, all played a role in boosting my curiosity about Salt Lake City, Utah. This area is stunning. Staying at a Truck Stop at the base of a mountain reminded me every morning of how small I am compared to the grandure of God's magnificent creation, Earth.

Exploring the geographic variances from state to state and seeing only the surface of these marvels at 70 miles an hour down the interstate still hold my fascination. I want to STOP!! I want to go explore Arches National Park and see the rock outcrops carved by a Mighty Hand, before all the minor (in comparison) historical events comprising the settlement of the United States. I want to explore eras of history that cannot even be fathomed except through a child's imagination at Dinosaur National Park.I want to know the rock composition of the mountains in Colorado, compared to that in Utah and New Mexico. What makes them different? What makes them similar? How did people traverse these imposing barricades and create historic towns that are now huge metropolis centers? I don't know if the gold rush and the promise of the almighty dollar could have made me uproot my family and move to these isoloated parts unkown.
I want to pause and research how Salt Lake City was founded and settled in 1847 by Brigham Young and how it became the International Headquarters of Mormonism.

Then, as we travelled from Salt Lake City to San Antonio with our hydraulic cylinders on board, I drove for the first official time yesterday. Eight hours through New Mexico and into the bordering area of Texas.

I still found my imagination and curiosity yelling Stop! Stop in Roswell and find all the Aliens that adorn fences, billboards, lamp posts, and businesses; stay a night and learn about the UFO sightings, eplore the  thought that crossed my mind -"If there isn't something to the UFO sightings, why is there a millitary fort?"; explore the UFO research institute -why in Roswell?? In a nutshell, as I drove through New Mexico, I can see why an alien space ship would land there -no habitation of land for miles and miles, barren and unchanging for centuries. But, every 20 miles or so, the land would be vaguely titled things like "Last Dollar Ranch."

As Toby Keith sings, "God Bless Texas, I sing "I hate (driving through) Texas." Perhaps it's because the only scenery I observed was scrub brush and mesquite trees, inoperable oil rigs, and bales of cotton that were as big as a railroad box cars for endless miles along Texas Highway 137. By the time we reached the Interstate, I was physically overloaded on Texan miles and my stomach was in knots. Not because of hills, but because of overwhelmingly flat miles that seemed to take an eternity to drive. I would look at the GPS and swear that two hours ago, the mileage was reflecting the same 232 miles to go.

But, when we arrived in San Antonio, my curiosity begin to get the best of my imagination again. And that small voice said STOP! I want to see the Alamo, the River Walk, go shopping and get a feel for the southwestern decor and jewelry and lifestyle. In this huge city, I want to learn about why there is such a blend of cultures between Spanish, Mexican, and American that has been present for centuries, it seems to run deeper than history books reveal about fought wars. I want to taste authentic Tex-Mex and listen to the music that blends with a flare.

See what truck driving does, it makes me want to retire. Lol. Now I want to buy an RV and go back to all these places that I barely saw while flying down the Interstate in the dark. Snippets of burried treasures glamorized in my very colorful imagination.

All this traveling has me pondering other things, too. Many things like WHAT AM I DOING???!!!

So many times, especially when I'm exhausted, I want to throw myself on the bed shake my fists and cry saying this is the most stupid thing I could have ever done. I get bored, I have never been so exhausted, I have no routine! I, I, I, . . . . I'm "better than this."  I miss socializing, I miss 8-5 Monday through Friday, I miss swimming, I miss tanning, I miss pedicures, I miss bills.

But then comes the raw truth. I am focusing on the essence of humanity, the simplicity of being, the joy of fellowship with my Creator, the complication of loving my husband -wink. There could be nothing better.

So, lesson I hope you draw from these past 1,422 miles of my travels. . . LOVE with all your heart, and everything you do, do it for the Lord. Focus on the importance of simplifying and realizing that blessings do not necessarily cost a fortune, and that mystery lies all around you.


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Links you might enjoy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_Lake_City

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Antonio

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Pictures

 Truck Stop across from the Great Salt Lake in Tooele County Utah

 Another view of the snow covered Great Salt Lake on 1-80 headed East into Salt Lake City

I-80 headed east into Salt Lake City

Road outside of Albequerque, NM . . . my truck should never see this much air again! The on ramp to the highway was higher than a plane taking off!

 "Wanna play softball?" -Alien on a fence around a baseball field in Roswell, NM

Roswell, NM lamp post near downtown area -"I'll be watching!"

Status Update

Hey. Wanted to submit a quick blog to let you all know where I am.

• 1/5/11 Parsons, KS: Pick up 5 skids of steel concrete reinforcers, 10,455 pounds
• Drive 11 hours to Denver, Colorado, arriving at 8 a.m. 1/6/11
• Take 10 hour break
• Drive 11 more hours through the mountains to Provo, Utah arrive at 6:30 a.m. 1/7/11
• This was very tough, since we drove 35 max the whole way. We are drained!
• Drop off load at Joaquin University at a student housing construction site.
• Sleeping until 8 p.m.
• Ready for dispatch

Panther still hasn't received my drug test results, so I am not considered a co-driver for Michael yet. Looks like next week . . .

****  Pray for my Grandpa. He is back in the hospital, very weak and sick from CHF.

All in Time

Jauary 4, 2011

I found myself waking up to my alarm at 6 p.m. caught in this middle realm between today and tomorrow. Should I say good morning or good evening?

Time, why has society placed an absolute value on something so relative?

Some cultures, like Belize, consider it customary to be hours late to events, where other societies, like the US, says you are the arse of the evening if you are ten minutes late.  Never mind the crazy traffic or the bad hair day.

Then you have the ultimate double standard. . . daylight savings time and time zones. These imposed rules based on nothing more than a mere idea govern everything from the time the coffee brews to opening of the stock exchange.

Bringing it home, Michael and I work in Eastern millitary time, and live in central time, with the cultural imposition of Ozark central time. If we are late two minutes, our driver rating goes down, but if we are early, no one is offering any extra bonuses, or even a good ole' pat on the back. The joys of corporate eastern time. . .

Uncertainty, perhaps is the only certainty in life. I find myself uncertain of what time to sleep, what time to wake up. My circadian rythm has stayed the same, so although I wake up at 2:30 am., I'm sleepy until 6 a.m. When I wake up at 6 p.m. I still get sleepy at 10 p.m.

More than just my sleep time is uncertain, I find uncertainty in when our next load will be, we had more than we could say grace over, then nothing for two weeks.  I am uncertain of what next week's paycheck will be, uncertain of what part of the country I will be in. . . 

However, one thing I will clarify is uncertainty does not insinuate and is definitely not synonomous with un-stable /instability. The greatest example of us actually answering everyone's question of  "What are you thinking?!" Is Matthew 6:25-34. Or, as my friend Kerri would say, "No worries!"

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life^[a]?
   ²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

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First load of 2011

• January 4,  8 p.m. cst -Leave West Plains and head to Poplar Bluff
• 10 p.m. cst - Pick  up swap load of braced 1x3 frames for Lazy Boy furniture
• Drive all night
• January 5, 7a.m. cst -deliver load to Lazy Boy mfg. plant in Neosho, MO

As Michael says, from one end of the road to the other!

Hopefully, tomorrow Panther will have my status changed to a co-driver for our truck and we will begin the New Year as official team drivers. I passed my Class B CDL on December 29.  There's still (somehow) money in the bank. God really does provide!