PM Time

Time for a PM (preventive maintenance) on the truck tonight so that means I'm shacked up in the local hotel the company uses.  This also means that I could do an update to this thing, dust it off while I'm at it.

Driving has been going well.  My girlfriend is supportive which is a huge help.  She helps prepare meals for me while on the road so I don't have to eat out every night and can be relatively healthy while at it.

This PM is adding back to us drivers, is manual mode for hill descents. The company completely disabled this function and locked the transmission in Econ mode auto for fuel savings.  This is understandable but on steep descents or even on turns, I just didn't feel real safe when the truck would shift into higher gears before going into turns and then I would have to slow down before safely executing the turn.  On hills, if you start down on cruise, the truck would go up to 65 mph and then apply the engine brake to stop the truck from excessively gaining speed but sometimes the grade and the weight you are hauling just would be too much and you would need to apply some brakes to keep the truck at a safe speed.  The issue with that, is that once you hit the brakes, is that it disables the cruise and the auto engine brake so if you don't pay attention and get off the brakes, the truck will not try to slow itself down since the cruise and auto engine brake is disabled.

This will be much safer to me, in my honest opinion.

Flip Flops Part Deux

I committed this gem months ago unto paper with pen, with the sole intention of it making it on here shortly thereafter but I'm lazy and have been busy with things.  The particulars of what those things are of no concern for you so don't think too much on them.

I've been driving a truck now since May, through the bulk of the summer, the heat of the summer and it has been a hot one.  One thing that I have noticed lately, more than lately but mostly, is that other truck drivers sure do love their flip flops and not just for the express purpose of wearing them in the shower to protect their feet from the funk but just to wear.

Why?

Why is it so important to wear flip flops all the time?  The only time they should even be approved attire in a business type fashion is if you a) work on the beach b) work in a water park c) clean pools d) professional grape stomper.  See a trend there?

Yet, everyday there goes some driver climbing out of his/her truck, trotting across the parking lot with flip flops on.  I know many companies require closed toe shoes, safety tread, non slip, non skid, safety toe, steel toe shoes but when not at a company facility all bets are off, right?

Wrong.

First you look like a beach bum with your flippy floppies.

Second, you are just putting your personal safety at risk with this choice.  Do you think workmans comp is going to pay for any injury if they find out you weren't wearing the proper footwear?  Do you think Safety is going to laugh it off that you are a dumbass that violated company policy?  Are those that depend on you to make a wage going to be happy?

No.  This is the answer that correctly fits here.

Is it possible if you are injured to be able to collect workmans comp?  Yes.  Do you really think that money will be able to offset what you could be making if you just wore the proper footwear in the first place?  I highly doubt that.

Just wear some closed toe shoes when you step out of the truck and trot across a wet rain soaked parking lot.  You'll have a much lesser chance of losing a shoe and busting your ass while ending up on "trucker busts ass in love's parking lot" video on YouTube.

Coffee

The saying goes that the world moves by truckers and they are powered by coffee.

Or something to that effect.

Since beginning this new adventure I've begun consuming that dark be once again.  I had stopped for a time while I was heavy on the Herbalife but no money prevents that from being heavy, to an occasional type of thing.

Coffee, in and of itself, is an expensive habit when you buy the daily from the truckstop from whence you awoke at from the day before. Go into a regular convenience store and you'll only pay about less than a dollar for a refill.

Truckstops are not that cheap. You are looking at around a buck fifty eight for a refill. If you have that truckstops particular brand of cup, you can pay less but not by much. $1.58 x 30 = $47.40 No thanks, I can do other things with that money.

The plan was to purchase a Stanley press mug to be able to make coffee in the truck but things change.

My girlfriends father found a similar thing at the Goodwill. Instead of being a French press, this drains the coffee from the bottom into another cup. So far there thing works pretty good. I've been getting hot water from the truckstops in the morning with the yeti cup, that my girlfriends father found as well, and put the water into the coffee maker and let it steep. Drain the coffee into the yeti and then put more water into the maker to finish filling the yeti. After the initial filling, I put the rest of the hot water into another cup until I need it in a few minutes.

You only put the scoops of coffee into the maker, which is about three tablespoons. A small can of coffee cost about three bucks and makes 90 6oz cups. I use the same three scoops for both fill ups and there coffee tastes fine to me.

The best part is fresh coffee everyday. No need to worry about if the truckstop has cleaned their equipment lately or if that coffee is older than dirt.

Off The Newbie Board

That's right and that's good news.  For those that don't know, if you are a new driver with a company fresh out of CDL school with no real world experience, you are put on an inexperienced driver board.  Basically that just means your dispatcher or driver business leader can help you out much more on a one on one basis as opposed to you being lost with a dispatcher or dbl that has more experienced drivers and many more of them and you get lost in the mix.

Now the slight hitch, my new DBL is new with the company but so far they are good.  Some hiccups but they are able to communicate more quickly since they probably don't have as many drivers on their board quite yet.

How new?  Maybe a few weeks with the company.

They scheduled preventative maintenance for the truck but the truck being new, it took longer than normal.  This caused me not to be able to make delivery but DBL knew this and communicated that with receiving company so all should be good there.  So I get put up in a hotel for the evening, no idling truck, get a nice shower and free continental at the hotel, plus free coffee; that probably tastes better than some truck stop coffee that usually tastes of burnt mud.  If I wanted that, I would buy Starbucks, no, wait, I wouldn't, truck stop burnt mud would still be cheaper.

Not sure where I'm headed to tomorrow once I get back to the truck at this time.

That is all for now.  Maybe more in a couple days or weeks or months.

No telling with me.

Thoughts

I've run across a ton of trucking videos on YouTube and I thought about starting such videos and chronicling my thoughts and experiences but I realized that many of those videos just ramble on. They don't get to the gist of the title and when some do, it happens to be just a little blurb and that's it. You wasted 25 minutes of your time just waiting for them to talk about the one thing that you clicked on in the title and only spoke a few sentences about it before credits roll.

That is mostly why I don't plan on doing videos, I would be going of on random tangents and not even covering the title of the video. That and my crippling shyness that would prevent me from doing them in the first place. Then the reviewing of them I would consider them silly.

So I plan on sticking to this for the time being.  I can ramble, you can skim through the crap without worrying about missing anything important and that doesn't cover the things that aren't even about trucking because that isn't what this is about entirely.

Been Awhile

Sporadic would be the best way to describe my updates to this little slice of heaven that is mine but aside from the excuse of being busy, it really is a weak excuse.

Yeah, that made no sense at the end but what do you expect from me?

So starting from my last real post; real as being of actual, factual, belonging to my real life and not any fantasy that I may post from time to time, I managed to make it past the three week orientation at Schneider National.  Aside from getting a short medical card, everything went well and I have been on the road solo since getting my new truck on Cinco de Mayo.

For those that don't know, a medical card or DOT card is required for CDL holders. It bascially states that you are in general good health and are not going to stroke out while behind the wheel and go careening into a school bus full of orphans.

Yes, you did read that I got the keys to a brand new truck.  2015 Freighliner Cascadia with an automated transmission....basically its an automatic.   Only had 30 miles when my fat ass plopped in the seat.  Now it has over 16k.

Made it past the month end training as a new driver at the beginning of this month, June.

I have come to the realization that the navigation for the truck should be double checked and quite possibly re-routed via a paper atlas so as not to be going down any goat trails in the middle of nowhere.  The navigation prefers the shortest route as opposed to the fastest which usually means small tight roads that are twisty, hilly, roller coasters of fun.  I mean that very sarcastically except for Mo-B which leads into Meta, MO.  Heading into Meta, B was not much fun but on the way out pulling 41k in the van, it was kinda fun, mostly like a roller coaster.  Climb the hill, coast down the hill, break before the curve, go down a hill, coast down the hill, coast up the hill and back down the other side.  I think I saved .1 mpg on that road.

The being away from home sucks, as my girlfriend reminds nearly nightly, when home, when leaving and when not home when scheduled.

She does support me though and that I appreciate very much so.  She also cooks meals for me to take with me so we can save money while I'm out five days a week, or more days than that.

I'm going to start bringing my laptop out with me so I can hopefully update this blog more often; I know I've said that before  but I'm going to really try it this time.

Ok till next time and all that jazz.

New Start

It was a wet rainy morning; but then with rain, things tend to be wet, nobody has heard of a dry rain; when my girlfriend and I loaded up a couple bags into the car to head to the nearest Greyhound for my new job.

I boarded the bus around 730 to start the long journey to Atlanta; 11 hours to get there, depending on the weather. At the time of leaving, the weather was raining up to the first stop of Panama City and the rain continued a bit more after leaving Panama City.

Two hours later, running behind, the bus arrived in Tallahassee for us to transfer to the bus that will take us into Atlanta with several more stops in between.

The rest of the trip was uneventful, just four more stops before Atlanta with one being a meal stop at Umadilla, Ga at a little; I'm not sure truck stop would be the correct nomenclature for it but I'm using it, truck stop that has a restaurant with buffet attached. I didn't eat there being as I'm broke and trying to save what money I can.

Getting to the hotel after arriving at Atlanta, I got a roomie, ate a little bit of something, showered and tried to get some sleep.

Now to see how the rest of the week goes.

Shooting

I shot someone today.

I'm not proud of it by no means but it happened, nothing can change that fact.

Here's what happened.

I'm sitting in my crappy car in a parking lot, doing a few things for work. Mostly writing down numbers for banquets this week and then waiting for the girl to open a safe in room. While I'm waiting I'm just watching the traffic in the parking lot move about when I notice a guy try the drivers side door; I'm sitting on the passenger side for the extra room so the drivers door is locked. Guy walks around to my side, opens the door and tells me to get out. I notice the guns and get out. He tells me he's taking the car and don't try anything but I'm pissed that this guy thinks he can just take something that is mine and I go for my gun in the car, which is when he quickly pulls his gun and tells me to stop. I do, and slowly get out of the car while he walks to the driver door to get in. Once he gets in the car, he had his gun in the holster in his hand but another one on a shoulder rig holstered. I grabbed the one in his hand and proceed to unholster it and point it at him. This surprises him and he says, "what the fuck are you doing?"

I already have gun pointed at him and cocked back. He decided to call my bluff and reaches for the shifter and I pull the trigger.

Them I wake up.

Unemployement

I've been unemployed since the end of Oct of last year; 2014, and have yet to find any decent employment during this period of time.  I've been looking, filling out applications every week but to no avail.  Not at the end of the term of my unemployment benefits I am looking to start anew with my career.

I have been looking into getting a WIA (Workforce Investment Act) grant to go to CDL school.  I believe that this should open many more doors for me as far as employment goes seeing that all I currently have going for me is a HS diploma and work experience for the last 18 years.  The main issue that I have been running into in my job searching is that there are very few positions in the field that I was employed in for the past several years; purchasing for a resort.  Many other similar positions that are in the realm of purchasing are in other work fields that do not recognize hospitality purchasing experience, not to mention that every position that I have read require a four year degree, that is something that I do not have.

Only hitch to this plan of getting a CDL, is that many local driving positions are looking for a minimum of one year experience of driving and that experience should be verifiable.  Now what that means is that there is a possibility that I may have to go OTR (over the road) for at least a year, before any local companies would even consider me.  This does not mean that local jobs are not there but those not looking for experienced drivers are very far and few between those that are looking for that experience.

I am not excited if I have to go OTR, but being without a job and only getting a few interviews here and there for local non-driving jobs is stressful and depressing.  If it wasn't for my girlfriend helping to keep my mind off of much of this unemployed mess I would be drowning in my own self pity right now.

Until next post.