A traveling display of the Principles and values that the majority of America, and ALL 9-12er's try to live by on a daily basis.
CONTACT: timex39n01@ymail.com
What? No not today, that's what happened last night. Dispatch called at about 1915 last night to say that one of their dedicated trucks was broken down and that they needed us to cover a load to Indianapolis and right back to Atlanta. We were to meet another driver in Indianapolis, with a load from Chicago and switch trailers with him.
By the time the other truck got back to our Atlanta yard it was about 1930. We hooked the loaded trailer, performed a pre-trip inspection, made some small talk with the driver and then we were off to Indianapolis.
We made it to Indy at about 0530, rendezvoused with the other driver, switched paperwork and trailers, performed our pre-trip inspection, caught up on our logbooks, and we were headed back to Atlanta by about 0600.
The trip up to Indy and back was really uneventful. We hit a few spots of rain was all. I did get 1 great picture of the way someone in Kennesaw GA feels about our illustrious government and those in charge. I believe if you'll click on the image it will enlarge enough that you will be able to read the bumper stickers. More and more, all across America, the pot is beginning to boil. People are fed up, tired and disgusted with our tyrannical, out of control, power thirsty politicians.
In the mean time...Here is a novel item for the coming election year. When The Politicians Are On TV, Blowing Hot Air And You Want To Scream, Just Grab Your Doll And Give It A Fling, Let Them Know...Hey, You Work For Me.
BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND A useful, bipartisan doll to give you something to throw while watching the news and listening to the politicians lie with every motion of their lips. Throw your doll and scream while never causing any damage to your television. These dolls now come with a retrieval string for retrieval without moving from your perch on the couch.
All Dolls are bipartisan, Republican on 1 side, Democrat on the other.
In closing, we hope that you can find it in your budget to help with a small purchase or a donation in support of our mission. We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug you we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
We have had a rather busy three weeks. Between truck repairs and lots of fright, there hasn't been a lot of time for blogging. I know, that is really no excuse but those are the only reason I have. I didn't lose an arm, or my vision, I haven't had a lobotomy, though Tina says I do sometimes act like I have. Just very busy and trying to work hard enough to take most of August off so that we can attend Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally in D.C.. We are very excited about the event.
We have had a couple break downs in the last three weeks. We had to have injector "O" rings replaced to repair a coolant leak, which it didn't. We were home yesterday and had a sleeper air bag failure, so I had to replace that air bag. Now, we have either a turbocharger or a turbocharger actuator failing. Oh well, without failures we wouldn't appreciate all the "non-failures". We drive so many miles without failures and just seem to forget those when something does break or fail. We must learn to count our blessing more often.
We are sitting in Columbus Oh today. We arrived here last night and got a good nights rest. On the way here, it seemed to be even more apparent than ever how the awakening of America is taking place. We didn't even got 11 miles from the house and some amazing patriots approached the truck while I was fueling. From there on up to here, it was just 1 car load after another waiving in agreement with the message on the truck. America is Awakening, and D.C. needs to do the same. We are seeing more and more billboards about the coming house cleaning in D.C., the improprieties of Congress, and the incompetence of our chosen leaders. I am trying to get pictures of those billboards but it proves rather difficult at times while I am driving, well, at least without running other folks off the road.
We are sitting here now, listening to our Cowboy Church and Bill Mack's Sunday Social on XM radio. We are waiting on our load going to Irving Texas. We were actually dispatched to Minneapolis last night for today but then we were asked to take this Iriving Tx load that was added with extra freight. Either way, they seem to be running ab out 4 hours behind right now so the load should be ready about noon.
I have no idea what awaits in Irving but we shall see soon enough. My guess is that we will have a dispatch before we even arrive there. That seems to be the way it has been working in recent days. Either way, I will try to keep this site updated more regularly.
We will be traveling down I-71 to I-65 to Nashville TN then onto I-40 to Little Rock TX and I-30 into the Dallas area. Be sure and wave if you see us along the way and smile for a picture as I will be trying to take one if you are waving. If you are in the Dallas.Ft Worth area and would like to see the truck, send me a message from this site and we'll see what we can do to set up a meeting.
In the mean time...Here is a novel item for the coming election year. When The Politicians Are On TV, Blowing Hot Air And You Want To Scream, Just Grab Your Doll And Give It A Fling, Let Them Know...Hey, You Work For Me.
A useful, bipartisan doll to give you something to throw while watching the news and listening to the politicians lie with every motion of their lips. Throw your doll and scream while never causing any damage to your television. These dolls now come with a retrieval string for retrieval without moving from your perch on the couch.
All Dolls are bipartisan, Republican on 1 side, Democrat on the other.
In closing, we hope that you can find it in your budget to help with a small purchase or a donation in support of our mission. We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug you we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
We arrived in Rock Tavern NY at about 0345 on Thursday morning and just about the time I got real comfortable in bed, the phone rang and dispatch asked if we could pull a load to Boston. I explained the challenges of Boston in our truck (ie:too high), and turned down the load. Then zzzzzzzzzzzz.
We regained consciousness at about 0900 and got up to get ready for the day. The is a diner just up the road from the terminal that we have been wanting to try, so off we went for breakfast. As we say in the south...good cracker. I would not have guessed that the food would be that good. The service was great as well.
I would just like to take a minute off subject here. I don't know about you, but I know that I tend to associate anyone in New York state to be the same as New York City dwellers. What a mistake. We sat in the diner eating breakfast yesterday and as always inadvertently happens in a crowded room, we heard a lot of conversation from others in the restaurant. I was reminded, through what I overheard, that people, rural, red blooded, God fearing, gun toting American people are the same all over the country. We love our Country, our soldiers and veterans, and our God. Sometimes I forget that people are people and no matter where they, we, live, we all love freedom and the American way. My point here is that people in New York have the same concerns about what the dirt bags in D.C. are doing to our country as do the people in Arizona or Florida, or Illinois, or Montana. Just a little reminder, to me more than anything.
After breakfast we went across the street for a bit of fuel for the generator. While fueling the generator a fella walked up and just stared at the truck. Considering where we were, I wasn't sure whether he liked or hated the theme. See above reminder. Jeffrey Long Sr., after just staring, reading, and shaking his head, asked if I had a marker for him to use to sign the truck. He is a very proud veteran and a patriot of the first degree.
From there we headed back to the terminal to wait for a dispatch. The call came at about 1400. We were asked to take an empty trailer to Buffalo, NY and from there we would pull a load to Columbus OH. We opted to accept the assignment and get moving.
I located a road worthy empty trailer, hooked to it with the tractor, performed the required pre-trip inspection, caught up our log books and began our trek to the north west side of the north east...Buffalo, NY. We traveled what will be when completed I-86(NY17), to I-81 to Syracuse NY and the I-90 to Buffalo. Our terminal is just off I-90 in Buffalo and is very easy to find.
Again, we were given thumbs up, waves, etc on our way to Buffalo. This is the only picture I was able to snap during the trip but is a prime example of how folks, including kids love the 9/12 Truck.
We arrived in Buffalo at about 2030, dropped the empty trailer and went directly to bed for some rest before we had to leave for Columbus OH. That load was to be ready by 2300.
The message came at about 2215 that the load was ready. Before we could get up and ready to go, there was a knock on the door. It was the terminal manager with our paperwork for the load. We took the paperwork, hooked the loaded trailer, Tina performed her pre-trip inspection and her log book and off whe went towards Columbus. She traveled I-90 to Cleveland OH then I-71 south to Columbus. She said it was a very uneventful trip to Columbus. At that time of night there is actually more wildlife than traffic. The wildlife seems, for the most part, to be more well behaved than the traffic as well, but I digress.
Tina got to the yard in Columbus at about 0415, dropped the loaded trailer, and went to bed. We woke up this morning to a Qualcomm message asking us if we wanted to go to Phoenix AZ, Salt Lake City UT, San Diego CA, or Union City CA. We opted for the Phoenix load. The load is to be ready at about 1800 this evening.
After answering the message, we got up, showered and got ourselves ready for the day. The President is in town today just across the street at the Rickenbacker airport. We are literally just across the street. Police everywhere, fire engines, ambulances, emergency vehicles helicopters, etc. Time to leave the area for a bit. We headed over to the Waflay Hoosay(that Frenchy French for Waffle House) for breakfast and a little relaxation out of the truck. I know, it's Waffle House, but it is STILL out of the truck.
After breakfast we came back to the terminal. The excitement across the street seems to have dispersed and all is back to normal. I just can't believe how the Messiah can come to town in the morning and everyone is back to work and the economy is thriving by the afternoon. Oh, wait, you mean we still have unemployment. Oh man, sorry. Hmmm, I suppose he isn't the real Messiah after all. But I already knew that. I woke up a long time ago, how 'bout you?
We will be traveling across I-70 to St Louis and then I-44 to Oklahoma City, OK. From there we will access I-40 and run that to Flagstaff AZ and I-17 south to Phoenix AZ. We will fuel before leaving the terminal here in Columbus OH and then probably again in Oklahoma City or Amarillo TX.
I'll update here as the trip progresses. Check back often and let us know if and when you see us on the road. You can also make comments here if you so desire.
In the mean time...Here is a novel item for the coming election year. When The Politicians Are On TV, Blowing Hot Air And You Want To Scream, Just Grab Your Doll And Give It A Fling, Let Them Know...Hey, You Work For Me.
A useful, bipartisan doll to give you something to throw while watching the news and listening to the politicians lie with every motion of their lips. Throw your doll and scream while never causing any damage to your television. These dolls now come with a retrieval string for retrieval without moving from your perch on the couch.
All Dolls are bipartisan, Republican on 1 side, Democrat on the other.
In closing, we hope that you can find it in your budget to help with a small purchase or a donation in support of our mission. We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug you we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
Okay, but what happened to the last 9 days? Well, let's get caught up.
We sat in Phoenix until about 1500 on the 13th. We actually enjoyed the down time. Didn't really do much other than just sit around and watch television, napped, talked with other drivers etc.
Dispatch called at about 1400 on the 13th and asked if we could hook to an empty trailer, run it over to Los Angeles, and then load from there to go to Atlanta GA on the morning of the 14th. That sounded pretty good to us, we would head over to L.A., get another good nights sleep and leave for Atlanta the next morning. After fueling, and emptying the waste tank. we headed to the Phoenix terminal, found an empty trailer, performed the required pre-trip inspection, and headed to L.a.. While we were emptying the waste tank a local drove up pulling a portable toilet trailer that he rents out for weddings and other events. This wasn't a porta pot like you see sitting in construction sites but rather a high end trailer configuration. Anyway, I sparked a conversation with the guy, which considering the conversation piece isn't hard to do, and we talked for a bit about the country, the 912 Project and the local groups with which he could get involved. After a brief encounter he signed the truck and we were off. we headed to the Phoenix terminal, found an empty trailer, performed the required pre-trip inspection, and headed to L.a..
We arrived in L.A. at about 2300 that evening and went promptly to bed, knowing that our load was to be ready at 0600.
true to form, the L.a. terminal ran late and the load wasn't ready until about 0930. That was alright though, the sleep was good. Nice and cool outside, not much noise, pretty darned good sleeping.
We received our "load Ready" message at about 0930. We had already been up for about 45 minutes or so, had some coffee, a breakfast sandwich and had already gotten cleaned up for the day. I headed to the office to retrieve our paperwork and then off to find the trailer. After hooking the trailer, I again, performed the pre-trip inspection and took towards the exit of the yard. Our illustrious security officer stopped me, interrogated me( which they are told to do) for about 3 minutes or so, and then checked the seal on the trailer and released me to the free world.
Because we are on I-40 so much of the time, and we get a bit tired of the same old grind, we decided to run across I-10 into Texas and then I-20 the rest of the way to Atlanta. That is neither the shortest nor the fastest route but it is the cheapest route. While it is about 70 miles or so further, I can and do make the case that fuel is cheaper on I-10 and I-20 than it is on I-40 plus the roads are better on that southern route and there are less hard pulls(hills, mountains) on the southern route so we use less fuel going that way. Not to mention, the personal preference of I-10/I-20 over I-40.
So we got as far as Eloy AZ and we had a steer tire starting to fail. The tire on the right had an internal steel belt slipping and causing a pretty bad shimmy in the steering wheel. Now, I knew I needed steer tires, not that they were worn out bad enough to be a safety concern, but I was aware that we would have to put a set on in May when we would be taking some down time at home. Now, with one of the tires failing internally, we would have to move that date forward a bit. I started making calls trying to find the tires I wanted to no avail. Because we are extremely heavy on the steer axle, we are forced, in some states to have wider tires than normal. Of course, however, no-one carries the tires I like in stock. I usually run the Micheline XZA2 315 80 R22.5 tire that is rated at 9090# per tire in a single tire position. Again, no-one stocks that tire because it is so rarely used.
I ended up settling on a Bridgestone M860 315 80 R22.5. While this wasn't the tire I wanted, for several reasons, I had little choice at this point. While the guys were installing the tires an elderly lady came from the inside and was reading the side of the truck. I could see she was interested in the purpose and reason behind what was there. I spoke with her for a few minutes, explained the 912 Project and why we are participating in the project in this manner. I explained the poem on the side of the truck and she got teary eyed. She said "Oh my Gosh, yes, I know who Pastor Niemoller was, this just gives me chills", she continued, "you see, we came from Germany in 1952, when I was just a young lady, and I remember what had happened there and sometimes it seems as though some of the same things are going on here". She cried a bit, read some more and out of the blue turned to me with a tear in her eyes, grabbed and hugged me and turned and walked inside just shaking her head.
It is times like this that makes the tough times worthwhile. Times like this make the naysayers of our mission moot. Times like this restore my faith in the human race and keeps me plodding forward. You see, I don't think anything happens by chance. I think my tire was meant to fail when it did, we were led to that tire facility, and that our meeting with that lady was as blatant of a push forward as anyone could ever have. I was humbled that day, I was moved to plow on. Times like this happen often, though not usually as profound as this. While awakening many or at least letting them know they aren't alone in their feeling, I believe God knows we need encouragement and gives it when needed.
After the tires were installed we moved on towards Atlanta. We arrived there at about 0100 on the 16th and they had a load, a short one going to Raleigh NC with a return empty to Charlotte NC., and a promise of a load back to Los Angeles from there. After a long traffic delay due to a truck fire on I-81 in South Carolina, we made it to Raleigh at about 0900. We took a brief nap, got up, showered and got ourselves ready for the day and headed to Charlotte with an empty trailer. Since there wasn't a need tot be in Charlotte until 0600 the next day, the 17th, we took our time and stopped for some lunch. After lunch we moved on to Charlotte and got there at about 1800.
The load for Los Angeles was to be ready at about 0600, so after a little television we went to bed for a good nights sleep. The load was ready pretty early. Actually at about 0245 is when we were notified and we were hooked to the load and on our way by about 0330. A fight with a very stubborn, bent trailer door was to blame for the delay. It took a pry bar and a hammer to get the latch pushed into place before I could close the other door.
This routing was a bit tricky because they still have I-40 closed at the TN/NC state line due to a major rock slide several months ago. We decided to head for Atlanta on I-85 and then run I-20 to Birmingham and U.S,78 into Memphis where we would access I-40 west and run that all the way to CA. Again, I know there are much shorter ways but why beat the heck out of the truck on mountainous back roads when time permits otherwise? Again, time, fuel, terrain, etc all play a part in our decisions about which routes we run. It isn't always "the shortest is the best" mentality.
Again, on our way to L.A. we were inspired by some passers by giving us the thumbs up and taking pictures of the truck.
We finally got to L.A. at about 2100 on the 18th. We were pretty sure we'd be there all night so we parked, got a good nights sleep after a long run, and got up in the morning and took a walk. Now we never hear from west coast dispatch until about 1600 or so for our load assignment out of LAX so when my phone rang at 1030 while we were walking, I didn't even think about it being them. Kyle from Sacramento dispatch was on the other end wanting to know if we wanted to take a load to San Diego. I really don't like running up and down the coast of California. It is hard enough getting in and out of L.A. unscathed by law enforcement without tempting fate by running up and down the coast. I told Kyle I'd have to call him back but that I really didn't want to do it if he could find someone else. By the time we got back to the truck, about 20 minutes or so, he had found someone else to make the run and we were off the hook.
I spent the day tearing apart the light bars on the rear of the truck and repairing wiring inside the bars. I had 1 light working on the right side and 2 on the left. No need to give D.O.T. unnecessary cause for a roadside check, so I had better fix the lights while we are down. This mandated grinding out the pop rivets holding the lights into the light bar and repairing the wiring, installing tubing around all the wires inside the light bar to alleviate the wire rubbing on the steel and then re-riveting the lights into the bar.
Five hours later, due partially, okay probably mostly, to my anally retentive nature, I had the lights repaired and back in place. Now I could take Tina for a bite to eat.
There is a little burger joint in the area to which we can walk, about 3/4 mile or so away, and they have really good food and great service. The name of the place is Columbia Burger. We really like this place. Just a hole in the wall so don't get excited about "atmosphere" but the food can't be beat for a quick meal and great service.
After sitting all day we found out that we would be headed to Dallas out of LAX. The load would be ready at about 0600 and should deliver in Dallas by about 0900 on Wednesday the 21st. The load was actually ready at about 0630, we were up, ready to go, hooked and inspected and on the road by about 0730. We traveled across I-40 to Amarillo and down 287 into the Dallas Fort Worth area. We went this way, across I-40 this time, because there is a rest area in Iowa Park TX with an RV dump station and we knew it was time to dump our waste tank.
On the way to Dallas, when we were in New Mexico, dispatch wanted to know if we wanted to pull a load to Newark NJ that would be ready when we got to Dallas. We accepted the load, though not overly happily. We arrived in Dallas at about 0730, dropped the LAX load, retrieved the paperwork for the Newark NJ load and took out to find the trailer. After hooking, inspecting and checking out with the guard on duty, we were off to Newark. We decided to travel across I-30 to Little Rock and the I-40 to I-81 to I-76 into Joysey. We'll miss D.C. traffic on I-95 that way and while it may be a few miles longer will probably save an hour or so in traffic. Not to mention I won't be subject4d to the slime in D.C. and take a chance on it rubbing off onto me or the truck. Incidentally, by "slime" I mean the politicians, not the regular citizens. They are mostly great folks in that area.
We are currently in the West Memphis area, Tina is driving and traffic is pretty bad. We expect to be in Newark by about noon or so tomorrow and then hopefully get to Orlando. Our new registration is sitting there and the old one expires at the end of this month.
We hope to see you along the way. Should you see the 912 Truck, be sure and wave and let us know you seen us by commenting here with time and place.
Here is a novel item for the coming election year. When The Politicians Are On TV, Blowing Hot Air And You Want To Scream, Just Grab Your Doll And Give It A Fling, Let Them Know...Hey, You Work For Me.
A useful, bipartisan doll to give you something to throw while watching the news and listening to the politicians lie with every motion of their lips. Throw your doll and scream while never causing any damage to your television. These dolls now come with a retrieval string for retrieval without moving from your perch on the couch.
All Dolls are bipartisan, Republican on 1 side, Democrat on the other.
In closing, we hope that you can find it in your budget to help with a small purchase or a donation in support of our mission. We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug you we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
we got back to the Columbus terminal at about 1215 this afternoon. After we dropped the trailer, and Tina ran the paperwork inside, I fueled the truck and Tina went inside to get some laundry done.
We received a message from dispatch asking that we pull a load to Kansas City MO. We accepted the load and it is to leave here at about 1700. I though that I would pump the fuel right way so that we didn't delay the load by fueling after it was ready.
We will leave here and run across I-70 all the way to Kansas City.
As I sit writing this post, dispatch called again and asked if we had any idea what we wanted to do when we get to Kansas City. My reply was, hmmmm, hadn't thought about it, we aren't loaded in Columbus yet. HE asked if we would be willing to pull a load to Phoenix and then on to Vegas. We accepted the load, so I suppose we are set for the weekend now.
We should, if the Kansas City load is ready on time, leave here at about 1700, be in Kansas City at about 0430 and then get a short nap there. The load from there to Phoenix is actually coming from Chicago by another truck. That load is to be there by 1100 tomorrow morning.
Again, if the load is there on time, we should be in Phoenix by about 0900 on Sunday. I have no idea yet what time we will leave Phoenix and therefor don't know what time we will be in Vegas. I will update here when I know though.
From Kansas City we will travel I-35 south to U.S. 54 west to I-40 west to I-17 south into Phoenix. We will fuel in Kansas City MO when we get there and shouldn't have to fuel again before we get to Phoenix. That means a non stop trip except for driver switches and stop signs or lights. Sounds like a busy weekend, huh?
We hope to see you along the way. Should you see the 912 Truck, be sure and wave and let us know you seen us by commenting here with time and place.
Here is a novel item for the coming election year. When The Politicians Are On TV, Blowing Hot Air And You Want To Scream, Just Grab Your Doll And Give It A Fling, Let Them Know...Hey, You Work For Me.
A useful, bipartisan doll to give you something to throw while watching the news and listening to the politicians lie with every motion of their lips. Throw your doll and scream while never causing any damage to your television. These dolls now come with a retrieval string for retrieval without moving from your perch on the couch.
All Dolls are bipartisan, Republican on 1 side, Democrat on the other.
In closing, we hope that you can find it in your budget to help with a small purchase or a donation in support of our mission. We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug you we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
We got to Carson yesterday at about 1630. Promptly, upon arrival, we were asked to run a load to San Francisco, one that had been dropped at the LAX yard, and then they would get us a load to Dallas from there. We turned that down. We just didn't want to go to San Francisco.
Our trip here was pretty uneventful, except for the weather and road delays in and around Flagstaff AZ. Here are some pictures.
This is a picture of a government vehicle passing me, on the icy roads, with an amazingly safe, courteous, government employee flipping me the finger, the middle one, while passing. I didn't have my camera out in time to get a picture of his courteous gesture towards me but here is the license plate if anyone has the ability to find out who might have been driving and let them know that their picture is online.
We also, on our way to Carson, ran through a pretty bad wind storm just west of Oklahoma City, OK. There was an beautiful, an somewhat unique, cloud formation just above us as we drove. Here are some pictures of those clouds.
And finally, not that you care to see, but here is a picture of our dash top Christmas tree. I suppose it looks a bit tattered, but this little tree has traveled almost as many miles than most vehicles do in 20 years. That's right, Tina and I have had this tree for over 10 years and have used it in the truck for that loang. We usually put it on the dash just after Thanksgiving and leave it there until December 26th. thats about 22000 miles average in the average year and for 10 years that comes to 220,000 miles. The average driver drives about 12000 miles per year and in 20 years that would be 24000 miles. So, though tattered, it remains a tradition, that if Tina has her way, will continue. My guess is that Tina will get her way. I mean...I'm just sayin'.
Finally, we took a call at about 0300 this morning and we were asked to make a run to Denver, CO. I really didn't want to go to Denver, nor did Tina, but sometimes, you are given an opportunity to do something that will better your lot in life, and though you may not want to di it, you have to be thankful for the opportunity. We agreed to take the load if they would route us across I-40 to Albuquerque Nm then north on I-25 to Denver. The normal route would be about 250 miles shorter but would take us through the south western Rockies on I-70 into Denver. They agreed, we agreed, at first reluctantly and later, very thankfully. Somehow, I must find a way to make it a habit to just be thankful as an immediate response as opposed to reluctantly thankful.
Anyway, below is a map of our route into Denver. We have no idea where to from here, but we are hoping to head in the general direction of Orlando or Tampa. The closer vacation time grows, the harder it gets to go in the opposite direction of home. We, however, will do what is needed and take advantage of the opportunities afforded us to make better our monetary position, regardless how hard.
Hey, don't forget Tina's Scream-n-Fling Dolls. Just in time for Christmas. They are available now at Conservabid.com at the bargain price of $6.95 as an introductory offer and that even includes shipping to the continental United States of America. Check out the video.
For those of you that would rather have something other than a doll for Christmas or to give as a gift for Christmas, check out our T-shirts, mugs, mouse pads, etc. at the links below.We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
The load from Chicago to Los Angeles was ready about 2330 last nigh, long before one to Chicago from Milwaukee WI. I checked on the Milwaukee load at about 0001, and they told me it would be about another hour or so, possibly longer.
They finally called us at 0045 and said the load to Chicago was ready. I got up, cleaned up, went to the office for our paperwork, and hooked and inspected the loaded trailer. We were off and running, towards Chicago down I-94, at about 0115.
We got to Chicago at 0235, dropped the trailer and picked up the LAX load. We were out of there by about 0300 and headed south on I-55. About 70 miles south of Chicago, the snow started, and the roads got pretty bad for about 100 miles or so. We finally ran out of the bad weather just north of Springfield.
We stopped in Alorton IL this morning and fueled. We chose that stop because someone in the area had purchased, on conservabid.com, 10 of Tina's Scream-n-Fling Dolls, and we had made arrangements with the buyer to pick them up there.
We are now headed west out of Saint Louis MO and are about 70 miles west of the city on I-44 West.
Hey, don't forget Tina's Scream-n-Fling Dolls. Just in time for Christmas. They are available now at Conservabid.com at the bargain price of $6.95 as an introductory offer and that even includes shipping to the continental United States of America. Check out the video.
For those of you that would rather have something other than a doll for Christmas or to give as a gift for Christmas, check out our T-shirts, mugs, mouse pads, etc. at the links below.We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
We arrived in Chicago at about 1215 Sunday afternoon. We took a call on the way into Chicago and they asked to pull a load out of Chicago to Memphis then an empty trailer to St. Louis and a load, on Tuesday morning to Atlanta. We agreed, to get a little further south and somewhat warmer. The load out of Chicago was to be ready about 2330 on Sunday evening.
We went to bed early to get a nap before we had to leave, it was about 1800 or so when we laid down. The phone rang at about 2130 and the load to Memphis had canceled. They asked us to pull a load to Cleveland Oh and I declined that one due to the ability for us to get into that facility so they had us pull a load to Paw Paw Mi, meet another truck, swap trailers with another driver from Detroit MI, and pull his empty back to Chicago. I agreed to make that move.
Our load to Paw Paw was ready about 0001 and we hooked to the loaded trailer, performed our inspection and headed to Paw Paw. We arrived there about 0315 and the other driver arrived about 15 minutes or so later. We made our trailer switch and turned back towards Chicago.
Once again, before we even got out out of Michigan, we were contacted and given a sob story about needing someone to pull a load to Milwaukee WI and an empty right back to Chicago. The load would be ready about 0500, by the time we got back to the Chicago terminal and we could leave right away. Dispatch told me that they had three other trucks accept the load and then give it back. Two of the drivers put their trucks down for maintenance and the third, according to dispatch, said he was out of hours. Again, we accepted the load.
The snow was falling pretty hard by the time we got into Indiana and the roads were getting slick. I was beginning to regret the fact that we had accepted the load, but oh well, we gave our word. By the time we got back to our Chicago terminal there was about 1 1/2"-2" of snow on the street and they were getting feeling pretty greasy. It was about 0630 when we got there and the load wasn't ready. I laid down for a nap and the call came at about 1130 that the load was ready...5 hours late.
We hooked the loaded trailer and headed north. When we got here we took another call from dispatch and were advised that if we would hang here, for a little while, and wait for a load back to Chicago, instead of hooking an empty trailer and going right back, that they would give a a load to Los Angeles, out of Chicago, tonight. We agreed to wait and they sent the load information. The load, out of here, Milwaukee, is to be ready at 2200.
We will leave here about 2230 or so, assuming the load is ready on time, head back to the Chicago terminal and, if the load to Los Angeles is ready on time at 0200 like they predict, we will head that way at about 0230. We shall see.
I have placed a map below so that you can see the route to Los Angeles out of Chicago. You'll notice that the route takes us south and west to I-40 rather than I-80 east to Salt Lake City then I-15 south to Los Angeles. The reason for this is weather. Dispatch runs us out of route like this, and pays us for the miles, to keep freight moving and not stuck in transit due to poor weather and or road conditions.
From what I can see, the weather, and roads, in Flagstaff AZ is pretty nasty right now but I am hoping that it will have moved north east by the time we get there.
Hey, don't forget Tina's Scream-n-Fling Dolls. Just in time for Christmas. They are available now at Conservabid.com at the bargain price of $6.95 as an introductory offer and that even includes shipping to the continental United States of America. Check out the video.
For those of you that would rather have something other than a doll for Christmas or to give as a gift for Christmas, check out our T-shirts, mugs, mouse pads, etc. at the links below.We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America. Thanks for your support.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
Our load was ready on time last night. We ended up leaving Atlanta at about 2045 by the time we got our paperwork, hooked to the loaded trailer and I performed a pre-trip inspection.
After we left, after we got well on our way and they knew we would go on to the receiver, they changed the destination to the airport cargo area at Washington/Dulles International Airport(IAD). We were about 30 miles or so from the Atlanta terminal when we got a message, via Qualcomm, that the destination had changed and then they sent directions to the new destination. Now, I believe they knew where the load was going in the first place but waited until we were gone to tell us because they know how we feel about going into airports...But I digress.
I called dispatch, and like a child, threw a temper tantrum about the change. I knew it wouldn't do any good. They couldn't care less as long as they get the load moved. I probably would have made the move anyway, but it would be nice to make that decision based on truthful information. Airports can be tough to get into sometimes in this truck because of the length. I just like to look at the facility on Google Earth before I agree to make the move if we've never been to the facility.
We arrived at the airport facility at about 0800 and it ended up being no problem. The area was plenty large and had a lot of room. We were unloaded by about 0845 and headed back to our IAD terminal.
We are now at our terminal, sitting and waiting for our next dispatch. We were assured by dispatch that they would be able to keep us moving from here, but they told us we were going to be delivering to our terminal at IAD and not to the airport too. Wee shall see.
Be sure and check out Tina's brand new, just released for the very first time, just in time for Christmas, Scream-n-Fling Dolls. Below is a slightly comedic infomercial about Tina's Scream-n-Fling Dolls.
In God I Trust Have a Great Day and a Better Tomorrow ADW
I did get 1 great picture of the way someone in Kennesaw GA feels about our illustrious government and those in charge. I believe if you'll click on the image it will enlarge enough that you will be able to read the bumper stickers. More and more, all across America, the pot is beginning to boil. People are fed up, tired and disgusted with our tyrannical, out of control, power thirsty politicians.
We have launched into a couple of apparel stores so that everyone can show their support of the 912 Truck. Click here to show your support, or go to www.printfection.com/912truck. For those of you that would rather have a hat or mug you we have another outlet at cafepress.com/912 Truck. You can also use any of the donate buttons on this page to make a contribution directly to our endeavor to Waking up America.
