Blessing In Disguise

Oh where was I??

Sorry Folks, I had to take a bit of a break from even thinking about all of the worries that were weighing on my mind, and heart for that matter...as I do love my job.

 After spending 40 hours in Chattanooga, Tennessee, I was finally set free. All issues had been addressed and for the most part, rectified. Well, there is the one trivial matter of the inverter not working, but all in all, I felt as if I was in a new truck. One with no worries. 

After a short weekend stint at home, I set out for 2 back to back turn around to Southern Florida. I do not know if I have ever emphasized how completely mundane I find the Ronald Reagan (Florida) Turnpike to be, but it lures me into a trance like state and although I am not a napper, it is all I can do to not pull over multiple times and doze for a spell. Don't get me wrong, I love Florida, as long as I can get some sand in my crack and enjoy a few cocktails near the ocean. In a truck, however, it drives me mad.

The first trip was almost uneventful. Full load of extrusion to deliver in Pompano Beach. I requested directions from The Mayor (mistake number one) and he was more than willing to oblige. The only problem with getting directions from him is that he tends to repeat and reword instructions so many times, you can never be sure if you are making 1 left hand turn or 5.

I arrived at the customer around midnight, not exactly sure I was in the correct driveway. I was supposed to back in from the roadway onto a concrete drive...It was asphalt. I was supposed to be at 915, the address showed to be 912...Hmmmm, I hopped out of the truck, to have a look around and after noticing how much foot traffic was about, I decided to wait until the morning to determine if I was indeed at the correct location.  I was..but if I had followed the instructions I had received, I might have been tooling around for another 30 minutes, trying to find 915 with the concrete drive.

Made it back to the plant Monday evening, after bumping into a long ago co-worker. He was heading south, and we agreed to meet up the next day to have a cup of joe and catch up on old times. So, Tuesday, I pulled into Cordele, Georgia to say hello. The Mayor was also coming south, and I was bound and determined to stay one step ahead of him...It was not to be.. He had phoned saying he was 2 hours behind me, I thought I had a good hour to visit with Doc Holliday, but after only 30 minutes, the Mayor pulls into the truck stop!  Jiminy Crickets!!!!  Guess he is on to me bag of tricks. 

Needless to say, the rest of the trip kind of irritated me. I do not like to run with any of our other drivers as they tend to stop way too often, and kill too much time. Besides, it rather restricts me  in other aspects too, as I cannot just be myself. They do not understand my sense of humor, so I just keep my mouth shut and ride. Blech.....I encouraged him on several occasions to strike out on his own, but he would not budge. I travelled long distance with no breaks, hoping he would have to exit for a rest stop..Seems he is pretty good at controlling his bladder. I thought perhaps he might get hungry, but he felt compelled to starve... There was no shaking him.. One of the reasons I detest running with him, is his poor driving habits...He is either on top of my trailer, or running off the road. He cannot maintain a constant speed without the help of his cruise control, and will deliberately set it low so I can keep up..Um, yeah....I tried to lose him that way too!

Boy, am I rambling.....I finally lost him at the end of the second day. We had our trucks washed (horrible result) at a place he was just raving about, and I feigned sick. Took him awhile, but he managed to pull out shortly thereafter, alone!!

Surely, I have not digressed from the point of this post too far to recover....Yikes!!

So,back to the beginning,  after sitting in Tennessee for an eternity, I found out that Volvo had actually paid a visit to our yard on the same day. They had made some computer adjustments to all of our trucks...They had left the truck cabs in complete disarray and infuriated several of our drivers in doing so. Thankfully, I was sitting in a motel while mine was being done at a shop. Everything in the place I had left it, no dust and dirt trampled into the flooring..  This is why I spent so much time in Chattanooga. To have the same process completed in my truck.  Do you realize how extremely upset I would have been if mine had been done at the yard and left disheveled..Along with everything else I was dealing with..

Indeed, it was a blessing in disguise.