Day 227 (I'll Be Headed To Houston, Hopefully Soon)

We are still here in Tulsa, OK, waiting to get loaded, then we'll head to Houston, TX for tomorrow morning... or at least I will. Clinton will probably be meeting up with his nephew in the Dallas area, and catching a ride to Memphis, TN. He's not quitting (at least I hope not), he just needs to get to his home in Memphis to take care of some business. Which means, once he makes his rendezvous with his nephew, I'll be solo again... at least until I get home this weekend.

It's been a long (nearly) 4 weeks. I don't usually stay out this long, I did so this time for reasons that are only known to my wife and I (no, we are NOT have marital problems - in fact, quite the contrary... we enjoy each other's company). When I do make it home, I think I'll go back to my usual routine of being out 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 weeks. But I am looking forward to going back up to the northeast again, which I hope will be soon... very soon. The weather up there is much nicer, and I can get away from this awful humidity. The temperature isn't as high now as it was the last time I was in Tulsa (about 108°), so you can bet that the 70° temperatures I drove through in Washington were very welcomed indeed. Though, with temperatures like that, why would anybody want to live in Washington.

I definitely would!


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Day 226 (Here In Tulsa... Until Tomorrow)

We arrived here in Tulsa yesterday late-afternoon, and made a semi-scheduled stop at a Super Target not far from where we are delivering. We went there mainly at my request, Clint was there because I was. My purpose was to pick up a new shower curtain (at my wife, Tikvah's, request) and to get a 5-quart Crock Pot. I have a 2-quart on the truck, but the only problem is it leaks (not so much on the floor, but along the side and into the heating element area) while I'm driving. I bought a 6-quart oval Crock Pot a few years back (with a sealing/locking lid), but the inverter I had then was inadequate, so I left it at home. Tikvah said I could take it with me on the truck (now that I have a reliable way to power it), on the condition I buy another one that she can use at home. Since my 2-quart is a little too small for her and Nathan (our youngest son) - and there was nothing in between - I bought the 5-quart... and the shower curtain.

When Clint and I picked this load up, we had to send our company some p.o. (purchase order) numbers off the shipping bills, so they could schedule the delivery time, which we did on Thursday. The time wasn't scheduled until today, so we are here until our appointment tomorrow. I haven't been here 24 hours yet, and I'm already missing the weather from the northwest (70° in the middle of the day - even for a couple days - can easily spoil you... now I know why Terri Nakamura lives in the Seattle area - and it's also VERY beautiful). I was able to get some coffee from the customer's cafeteria. It may not be as good as my Starbucks grandé triple Marble Mocha Machiatto, but at least it's still better than that swill that's served at the Pilot truck stops that they try to pass off as coffee.

I did get TWO cups from Starbucks yesterday, so it's all good.


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Day 213 (What Do You Expect From Tyson?)

We arrived here in Broken Bow, OK at around 2330 last night, and (as is par for Tyson) didn't begin loading until 0300, finishing at 0445. This load was scheduled to deliver at 0800 this morning in Clarksville, AR. This obviously didn't happen, since our 10 hour break isn't over until 1445.

Once we do start rolling, I'll drive us to Clarksville (though I've already informed dispatch that I have less than 9 hours left on my 70 hour clock). The weather has already kicked into high gear, but, hopefully, this means we could be in for a cold Winter - which is what I hope for. My wife calls me a lizard because I prefer dry heat, but in Winter... well, let's just say, that's my favorite season. Driving in snow doesn't bother me. Ice is a bit trickier. In either condition, the stress comes in when idiots drive the same as they do on dry roads... Hello, McFly - that's how accidents happen! Like last year when there was the "Snowpacolypse" that hit Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, etc., a moron (and a "fellow" truck driver) didn't think I was going fast enough for him. He barreled past me on the ice covered roads in Missouri, probably doing about 60-65 (which is not a good idea). About 15, maybe 20, miles later, guess who was in the ditch - that same moron.

Need I say more?


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