It's not the one I was looking at, but it's actually better!
This is a small company doing contract hauling. There is plenty of freight, good pay, benefits are acceptable but nothing really special and the only real bad feature is that they currently slip-seat their drivers. But for the kind of money they pay their drivers, I will put up with that little inconvenience. In a few years, I might even have enough money saved to buy my own rig and then no more slip-seating. I can dream, right?!
We are still moving up to Dallas; my wife is very excited to be doing that. She is actively looking at places in the area of my job. Her job is portable and thus she can move it anywhere and still be okay.
Our combined income will be enough to pay our outstanding bills, cover a few wants/needs like finishing my teeth, LASIK for me, a health club membership for her, maybe a new car for her and that RV we've been dreaming of for years!
I am still going to complete my resolution list and this is a big part of it. Next up, get off the cowboy killers! Starting tomorrow!
More updates as they come!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
It's been a while again
I quit my last company on November 20, 2009. It is now January 2010 and I'm looking at several new companies.
I've narrowed the search to one and I'm in the process of applying. This will fulfill my #1 New Year's resolution: Get a better job.
Next up: Stop smoking!
Obviously, I will not identify the new company any more than I did the last one for security reasons. Plus I don't want to get fired!
I am looking forward to driving for a company that treats their drivers as more than an expense. I am also looking forward to larger paychecks. I have such a long wish list of things to spend it on. My wife wants an RV, I want a new motorcycle and some stick time in a plane, which I haven't had since 1999. Yeah, I really want that!
We want to move up to Dallas by the summer and that'll take some serious dough but I need to get out of El Paso. I hate life here. It's too far from anything else and I'm hoping that I can find better doctors in Dallas. Here, there's not a lot of choice and a month waiting list to see them.
My health is improving daily. I've gained weight again, I look MUCH better, my guts are in remission, my thyroid seems to be controlled and I have more energy than I used to. Most importantly, I FEEL good!
I've been goofing off around the house for the most part these past two months. I have gotten my honey-do list caught up, done some things I've been meaning to do, survived another Christmas season, spent enough quality time with my wife (even though she wants more) and generally investigated the darkest corners of the internet. Made some new online friends, reconnected with some old ones, and enjoyed them both.
But.
I'm getting stir crazy here. I'm itching for the open road, to feel the wheel in my hand again. I miss the challenge of delivering a load to some place I've never been before. To meet new people, see some cool trucks, have some new experiences; that is the essence of professional driving. The old-timers called it White Line Fever. I agree. I need to get back to work and not just for the money. I need to feel useful again! I'm sick and tired of just being chief cook and bottle washer and personal chauffeur to my wife. I liked being off for a while but I need to work.
My wife says she makes enough to support us. And she does. But she has to work long, irregular hours to do it. And we can't afford sudden surprises or luxuries. My income is for the luxuries that we want, as opposed to need. RVs are nice to have, but if you can't afford to buy fuel or pay insurance, they are useless. And we'd like to take a few driving tours through the US someday. To run Route 66 from east to west perhaps. See the old towns, the kitschy places that you don't see from the superslabs. We want to hit county fairs and flea markets. We want to meet interesting people and be able to share a pot of coffee and nice conversation with whomever we want. We can't do that from our front porch.
I could stay home. My wife only needs help around the house. Someone to wash dishes, move sofas, wash the dogs, run errands for her so she can concentrate on work. I'm just not that domestic. I'm a trucker and that means I gotta keep moving! I must have some gypsy blood in me.
Personally, I want a few thousand in the bank so we can take an annual vacation for a month. Go someplace new and interesting and camp there. Drive around in the car and visit stuff. Take a bunch of pictures so she can put them in albums. This way, when we're old and gray and sitting on our rockers, we can take out the albums and remember. To be able to say we were there and did that, not that we WISH we'd been there and done that. I don't want to waste any more time; I'm over 40 already. Where did the time go? Seems only yesterday I was turning 30 and still full of life. 40 seemed a lifetime away. Now, not so much.
Anyway, there are some big changes for us this year. We're going to improve our lot in life. We're going to buy that RV. We will start driving places in it. We'll start small, to get the feel for it by going to places close to home for a week. Then move up. I *will* return to the air. I'm most at home when I'm flying free above the clouds. I might even buy myself an old, used airplane if I can. Something to putter around in. Go for a long trip now and then. Just pack up the wife, put the dogs in a kennel and head off to wherever. Rent a car when we're there, get a hotel and see that place, much like RVing but without the portable hotel room. And no dogs! I'll miss them, of course. But they do tend to tie one down a bit. So at least once in a while they get to spend time at the doggie spa and we get to go someplace for some alone time. No walks, no fights over a favored toy or the best nap spot. Just the two of us.
Won't that be nice?
Until next time!
I've narrowed the search to one and I'm in the process of applying. This will fulfill my #1 New Year's resolution: Get a better job.
Next up: Stop smoking!
Obviously, I will not identify the new company any more than I did the last one for security reasons. Plus I don't want to get fired!
I am looking forward to driving for a company that treats their drivers as more than an expense. I am also looking forward to larger paychecks. I have such a long wish list of things to spend it on. My wife wants an RV, I want a new motorcycle and some stick time in a plane, which I haven't had since 1999. Yeah, I really want that!
We want to move up to Dallas by the summer and that'll take some serious dough but I need to get out of El Paso. I hate life here. It's too far from anything else and I'm hoping that I can find better doctors in Dallas. Here, there's not a lot of choice and a month waiting list to see them.
My health is improving daily. I've gained weight again, I look MUCH better, my guts are in remission, my thyroid seems to be controlled and I have more energy than I used to. Most importantly, I FEEL good!
I've been goofing off around the house for the most part these past two months. I have gotten my honey-do list caught up, done some things I've been meaning to do, survived another Christmas season, spent enough quality time with my wife (even though she wants more) and generally investigated the darkest corners of the internet. Made some new online friends, reconnected with some old ones, and enjoyed them both.
But.
I'm getting stir crazy here. I'm itching for the open road, to feel the wheel in my hand again. I miss the challenge of delivering a load to some place I've never been before. To meet new people, see some cool trucks, have some new experiences; that is the essence of professional driving. The old-timers called it White Line Fever. I agree. I need to get back to work and not just for the money. I need to feel useful again! I'm sick and tired of just being chief cook and bottle washer and personal chauffeur to my wife. I liked being off for a while but I need to work.
My wife says she makes enough to support us. And she does. But she has to work long, irregular hours to do it. And we can't afford sudden surprises or luxuries. My income is for the luxuries that we want, as opposed to need. RVs are nice to have, but if you can't afford to buy fuel or pay insurance, they are useless. And we'd like to take a few driving tours through the US someday. To run Route 66 from east to west perhaps. See the old towns, the kitschy places that you don't see from the superslabs. We want to hit county fairs and flea markets. We want to meet interesting people and be able to share a pot of coffee and nice conversation with whomever we want. We can't do that from our front porch.
I could stay home. My wife only needs help around the house. Someone to wash dishes, move sofas, wash the dogs, run errands for her so she can concentrate on work. I'm just not that domestic. I'm a trucker and that means I gotta keep moving! I must have some gypsy blood in me.
Personally, I want a few thousand in the bank so we can take an annual vacation for a month. Go someplace new and interesting and camp there. Drive around in the car and visit stuff. Take a bunch of pictures so she can put them in albums. This way, when we're old and gray and sitting on our rockers, we can take out the albums and remember. To be able to say we were there and did that, not that we WISH we'd been there and done that. I don't want to waste any more time; I'm over 40 already. Where did the time go? Seems only yesterday I was turning 30 and still full of life. 40 seemed a lifetime away. Now, not so much.
Anyway, there are some big changes for us this year. We're going to improve our lot in life. We're going to buy that RV. We will start driving places in it. We'll start small, to get the feel for it by going to places close to home for a week. Then move up. I *will* return to the air. I'm most at home when I'm flying free above the clouds. I might even buy myself an old, used airplane if I can. Something to putter around in. Go for a long trip now and then. Just pack up the wife, put the dogs in a kennel and head off to wherever. Rent a car when we're there, get a hotel and see that place, much like RVing but without the portable hotel room. And no dogs! I'll miss them, of course. But they do tend to tie one down a bit. So at least once in a while they get to spend time at the doggie spa and we get to go someplace for some alone time. No walks, no fights over a favored toy or the best nap spot. Just the two of us.
Won't that be nice?
Until next time!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
SNOW!
Wow! It sure has been a while since I posted anything.
Let's recap the last year or so.
I'm still at the same job, my pay and miles are down to pre-rookie days. And my dispatcher doesn't see anything wrong with that. I do. So I'm headed for the job market. I'm hoping to land a job driving for a major food warehouse in Arkansas. I'll be in Springdale to change my drivers license to a friends' address where I can live until I get a place of my own. Moving to Arkansas isn't really high on my list of priorities but if it pays three times what I make now...
I'm currently trapped in Laramie, WY due to the interstate being closed. There have been many accidents and wrecks, thankfully none involving me. There were NINE last night, crews spent all night and today clearing them. I feel for the poor guys who are sitting in rest areas or worse yet, parking areas up on the highway. No food, basic facilities and no potties for the parking areas. That must be hell.
Trucks are, as usual, parked allover the truck stop where I am. I couldn't get out of my parking spot if I wanted to. This load is only going to Cheyenne but I just can't make it. I'll go after the roads open and the traffic dies down. It's only 50 or so miles and I don't see any reason to jepoardize my driving record for the sake of a partial load.
I have yet another new dog, this one a German Shepherd Dog pup named Gypsy. She's a cutie and learning quickly! Growing quickly, too. She has outgrown the Shih-Tzus that she was playing with and is now taking on the Weimaraner. She's not quite his size yet but she's about half there. Soon enough she'll be just the right size to take the abuse. She is doing very well with her housebreaking with only a few accidents. I love crate training!
I was going to take her along with me in the truck as a companion and foot-warmer but now, should I get hired at the company I'm hoping to, she will have to stay home with the wife. They have a no-pets policy. I guess it's not so much the company as the customers. It's refrigerated food and food processors don't, as a rule, like pets, even in the trucks. Bastards!
My marriage seems to be going down the tubes. My thoughts are that my wife is thinking divorce. She hasn't come right out and said so but she has been accusing ME of thinking that, which to me means that SHE has and is projecting on me. She is talking to a marriage therapist now, and I will take a turn before we do couples therapy. I would like this to work out for the best, but given my pessimistic nature, I'm preparing myself for the worst. I don't know how to face life without my love, but there's a way, somewhere, somehow.
And that's it! Life is boring, and I prefer it that way.
Let's recap the last year or so.
I'm still at the same job, my pay and miles are down to pre-rookie days. And my dispatcher doesn't see anything wrong with that. I do. So I'm headed for the job market. I'm hoping to land a job driving for a major food warehouse in Arkansas. I'll be in Springdale to change my drivers license to a friends' address where I can live until I get a place of my own. Moving to Arkansas isn't really high on my list of priorities but if it pays three times what I make now...
I'm currently trapped in Laramie, WY due to the interstate being closed. There have been many accidents and wrecks, thankfully none involving me. There were NINE last night, crews spent all night and today clearing them. I feel for the poor guys who are sitting in rest areas or worse yet, parking areas up on the highway. No food, basic facilities and no potties for the parking areas. That must be hell.
Trucks are, as usual, parked allover the truck stop where I am. I couldn't get out of my parking spot if I wanted to. This load is only going to Cheyenne but I just can't make it. I'll go after the roads open and the traffic dies down. It's only 50 or so miles and I don't see any reason to jepoardize my driving record for the sake of a partial load.
I have yet another new dog, this one a German Shepherd Dog pup named Gypsy. She's a cutie and learning quickly! Growing quickly, too. She has outgrown the Shih-Tzus that she was playing with and is now taking on the Weimaraner. She's not quite his size yet but she's about half there. Soon enough she'll be just the right size to take the abuse. She is doing very well with her housebreaking with only a few accidents. I love crate training!
I was going to take her along with me in the truck as a companion and foot-warmer but now, should I get hired at the company I'm hoping to, she will have to stay home with the wife. They have a no-pets policy. I guess it's not so much the company as the customers. It's refrigerated food and food processors don't, as a rule, like pets, even in the trucks. Bastards!
My marriage seems to be going down the tubes. My thoughts are that my wife is thinking divorce. She hasn't come right out and said so but she has been accusing ME of thinking that, which to me means that SHE has and is projecting on me. She is talking to a marriage therapist now, and I will take a turn before we do couples therapy. I would like this to work out for the best, but given my pessimistic nature, I'm preparing myself for the worst. I don't know how to face life without my love, but there's a way, somewhere, somehow.
And that's it! Life is boring, and I prefer it that way.
Monday, June 23, 2008
New Additions to our Canine Family
Please welcome Dog 1 through 4, born today to our Shih-Tzu, Princess Buttercup (the wife named that one).
Sunday, June 8, 2008
News Update
I have left the Company. This was not a bad thing, it was mutual. Big Brother was hiding on my truck and I didn't like it. Too many non-driver-oriented rules and policies coming out, miles not there anymore, etc etc etc.
Same old story.
Anyway, I am pursuing more local jobs; jobs that will allow me to spend more time with my beloved wife, four (FOUR!) doggies, two cats (even though I'm not a cat person) and friends. Also, we've moved into a house that needs more than a little work to make it livable. New windows, carpets removed, new outside doors and industrial-type air conditioning are needed. We've already begun remodeling the kitchen with new cabinets and appliances, flooring will come shortly after the cabinets are installed. I want to knock out two walls...one isn't a problem but the other is a load-bearing wall and I don't want to start cutting without a professional carpenter to guide me. I can do without the roof collapsing.
Pictures will be along shortly, as soon as I find the digital camera in the boxes.
Take care out there!
JB
Same old story.
Anyway, I am pursuing more local jobs; jobs that will allow me to spend more time with my beloved wife, four (FOUR!) doggies, two cats (even though I'm not a cat person) and friends. Also, we've moved into a house that needs more than a little work to make it livable. New windows, carpets removed, new outside doors and industrial-type air conditioning are needed. We've already begun remodeling the kitchen with new cabinets and appliances, flooring will come shortly after the cabinets are installed. I want to knock out two walls...one isn't a problem but the other is a load-bearing wall and I don't want to start cutting without a professional carpenter to guide me. I can do without the roof collapsing.
Pictures will be along shortly, as soon as I find the digital camera in the boxes.
Take care out there!
JB
Thursday, March 20, 2008
I'm still out here!
I forgot my password so I've been guessing for a while now. It has taken me this long to discover the "lost password" link. I'm too old!
Anyway, I'm still training new drivers and except for a minor casualty to a ConWay mirror, accident-free. I suppose I've been lucky so far, judging by the horror stories told by other trainers. Stories of wrecked trucks, getting hopelessly lost in nowhere, one told of a student that went trucking down a dirt road and didn't ask for help until he ended up at a campsite ten miles downroad. And having to back it up all that way at night. Tall tale or truth? You decide.
I have been using a Garmin GPS for a while now and I must say it has helped quite a bit, as long as you think it through first. It has tried to run me under an 11' 0" bridge in Memphis and once got me into a car-only (not marked as such) rest area in Vancouver, WA; forcing me to back out with police help. No ticket, either!
My sweetie and I have been getting along famously since our marriage in November. She has been amazingly understanding about my extended absences and enjoys our limited time together to the fullest.
We're now looking to buy a nice house somewhere in El Paso, pictures when we finally decide on one. Thus far, we've made two offers on two houses but both have had serious problems that were pointed out during the inspection. One needed around $30,000 worth of repairs and upgrades and the second needed over $50,000 just to bring it up to code so it can be sold. We kept looking. Next time I'm home we will look at a few more that look good on paper. Fingers crossed!
In recent news, I adopted a Weimaraner pup from a truck stop in Ohio. He was so cute I couldn't resist. His name is Toby "Scooter" McGee. This is a picture of him when I adopted him.
Ain't he cute? He has been neutered since this was taken and he is doing well. He has taken the #2 spot in the pack, much to the chagrin of the Miniature Poodle, Google. Junior is still the King of the castle (at least until *I* get home) and has had little trouble keeping the new guy in his place; namely, out of his food bowl. Toby will be going to obediance classes soon, to help my beloved learn to handle such an active dog.
More posts as they come!
Anyway, I'm still training new drivers and except for a minor casualty to a ConWay mirror, accident-free. I suppose I've been lucky so far, judging by the horror stories told by other trainers. Stories of wrecked trucks, getting hopelessly lost in nowhere, one told of a student that went trucking down a dirt road and didn't ask for help until he ended up at a campsite ten miles downroad. And having to back it up all that way at night. Tall tale or truth? You decide.
I have been using a Garmin GPS for a while now and I must say it has helped quite a bit, as long as you think it through first. It has tried to run me under an 11' 0" bridge in Memphis and once got me into a car-only (not marked as such) rest area in Vancouver, WA; forcing me to back out with police help. No ticket, either!
My sweetie and I have been getting along famously since our marriage in November. She has been amazingly understanding about my extended absences and enjoys our limited time together to the fullest.
We're now looking to buy a nice house somewhere in El Paso, pictures when we finally decide on one. Thus far, we've made two offers on two houses but both have had serious problems that were pointed out during the inspection. One needed around $30,000 worth of repairs and upgrades and the second needed over $50,000 just to bring it up to code so it can be sold. We kept looking. Next time I'm home we will look at a few more that look good on paper. Fingers crossed!
In recent news, I adopted a Weimaraner pup from a truck stop in Ohio. He was so cute I couldn't resist. His name is Toby "Scooter" McGee. This is a picture of him when I adopted him.
Ain't he cute? He has been neutered since this was taken and he is doing well. He has taken the #2 spot in the pack, much to the chagrin of the Miniature Poodle, Google. Junior is still the King of the castle (at least until *I* get home) and has had little trouble keeping the new guy in his place; namely, out of his food bowl. Toby will be going to obediance classes soon, to help my beloved learn to handle such an active dog.
More posts as they come!
Monday, January 21, 2008
It Occurs To Me
That if you choose to get nekkid in your truck, you should have the common courtesy to close your curtains first. Especially if you are fat, hairy and ugly.
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