STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 22582: Gilroy Gathering

Since leaving Vegas on the 6th, Swift has been keeping me busy. No sitting around so far on this outing. I like it better this way. I’m easily bored, and an idle mind can be a dangerous thing.

Now, the chronicle.

Wednesday, May 6th:  I received a PrePlan which picked up in Henderson, NV and delivered in Buena Park, CA. The first order of business was to drive back to the drop yard in North Las Vegas and pick up an empty trailer. After so doing, I drove to the shipper in Henderson, arriving at 1230. The load took about ½ an hour. I then drove back to the WWW for lunch, and to kill a little time. My delivery appointment wasn’t until 2330. Had I left as soon as I was loaded, I would have arrived in the LA Megalopolis right at the peak of ‘rush hour’. I left Vegas at 1700 and drove to Hesparia, CA. I took a quick MMM break here, then drove to the consignee in Buena Park. As it was, I arrived 1½ hours early for the appointment, and had to wait to be unloaded. The unload, again, took about ½ an hour. I then parked on the street outside the customer for the night.

Thursday: Bright and early (about 0900), I received a PrePlan. It was a trailer shuttle trip to our terminal in Lathrop, CA. I drove to our terminal in Mira Loma, dropped my empty trailer and picked up the set of doubles to be shuttled to Lathrop. I haven’t pulled a set of doubles in about 5 years. This was one of many sets being shuttled. A customer in Lathrop bought many of Swift’s old “pups” and dollies. Anyway, after I finished in Mira Loma, I drove to Buttonwillow, CA where I had lunch/dinner and walked the MMM. I then drove from there to Lathrop. Along the way, I received a PrePlan which picked up at the Lathrop terminal and delivered in Springfield, OR. After I dropped the set of “pups” and hooked to my next load, I went to bed.

Friday:  I left Lathrop at 0745 and drove to Corning, CA. I had lunch here, then drove to Phoenix, OR. I took another short break here, then drove to the customer in Springfield. I spent the night outside their facility. While I was en route, I received a PrePlan which picked up in Toledo, OR and delivered in Gilroy, CA. As soon as I saw the destination, I called brother Don and arranged to meet in Gilroy for dinner on Sunday. He lives about 50 miles away.

Saturday:  I did the drop/hook delivery, then drove to Coburg, OR for some fuel. I then drove to Toledo. The only problem with this drive is that the most direct route (US-20) is restricted for trucks, so I had to drive an extra 40 miles through Salem, OR then west to US-101, then down US-101 south, which is full of tourists this time of year, especially on week-ends. It took forever to get there. Once there, it took 4 hours to be loaded. I didn’t get out of there until 1800. I drove to Canyonville, OR and called it a day.

Sunday, May 10th (Mother’s Day):  I left Canyonville at 0830. I drove to Redding, CA where I took a short break. After leaving Redding, I drove to Willows, Ca where I put on some fuel and walked the MMM. I left there about 1530 and drove to Gilroy, arriving at 1900. I contacted brother Don who had been in the area since about noon shopping. We went to the Longhouse Restaurant for dinner.

I had Breaded Veal with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables. I also had Greek Lemon Soup. Desert was Rainbow Sherbet. Their bread was also excellent. Don had Veal Scallopini, and Dawn and Lou split a Garlic Steak. It was all very good. After dinner, we went to Barnes and Noble to browse for a while. About 1030, they dropped me off at my truck. I had a PrePlan waiting for me. After I unload tomorrow, I drive to Fresno and pick up a load going to Sumner, WA.

Life Day 22577: Sagacious Sentences from Sin City

Hola. Welcome back to my BLOG. I use the Spanish greeting because today is Cinco de Mayo. It has no special significance to me, but I try to keep abreast of current events, so I thought I would at least mention it.
I don’t think that I will do the “chronicle” thing again on this post. I’m in my room at the WWW, and my log book is in my truck, and it’s 97° outside, and I don’t feel like walking out to the parking lot to get it.
To finish with Monday, after I finished my dinner in Blair’s, VA, I drove to Cannonsburg, KY. I stopped there for the night, stopping only once for fuel in Fort Chiswell, VA.
The next day, Tuesday, I drove to Higginsville, MO. Along the way I stopped in Mount Vernon, IL. I had dinner at Huck’s truck stop. They have a good restaurant there, and it’s NOT a chain truck stop. I had the “politically incorrect”, but ever so yummy, Breaded Veal Cutlets with mashed potatoes, corn, and some home made diner rolls. It was all delicious.
I drove to the consignee in Ottawa, KS this morning (Wednesday). When I was finished with the drop/hook delivery, I drove to a nearby small truck stop and waited for my next load. It was raining really hard, and walking the MMM in the mud was no fun at all. About two hours later, I received a PrePlan. It was a dead head trip to Phoenix, AZ (a little over 1100 miles). I left shortly thereafter and drove through most of Kansas, all of the little strip of Oklahoma on US-54, and to Dalhart, TX. I stopped here for the night.
On Thursday morning, I drove to Albuquerque, NM. I fueled, walked the MMM, and had lunch. I then drove to Winslow, AZ. I took another short break here, then drove to the Sunset Point Rest Area about 60 miles north of Phoenix on I-17. I ran out of hours (11 hour rule) and stopped for the night.
Friday morning (May Day), I drove to the terminal in Phoenix. Before I left, I took some pictures of some blooming cactus.



I didn’t have to wait long for a load (actually two loads). The first load was a local delivery. The second load was already waiting for me in the yard after the local delivery. It’s destination was Calgary, Alberta, Canada, but it was scheduled for T-call in Salt Lake City, UT. I dinked around the terminal for a while, having lunch/dinner and taking a shower. After that, I drove to Las Vegas, NV where I called it a day.
Saturday morning, I had breakfast at the new Denny’s in the WWW. They didn’t disappoint me. My eggs were cold, the sausage under cooked, and the hash browns had barely made it to the grill. In other words, a typical Denny’s dining experience. On a brighter note, the “pancake puffs” I ordered were quite good, and they were hot. The person who made these will probably be fired if Denny’s Management ever finds out about it. Removing my tongue from my cheek, I’ll now tell you about the rest of my day. I drove to Salt Lake City, UT and T-called the load. I received a Pre-Plan while I was en route. It was Pre-loaded in the Salt Lake City yard. It was scheduled to deliver in Vernon, CA, but I begged for them to arrange a T-call in Las Vegas so I could take some well deserved time off. They consented. Although I still had about 4 hours remaining to drive, I opted to just spent the night in the terminal and leave in the morning. No sense killing myself on a week-end.
On Sunday, I drove to North Las Vegas and did the T-call. Next on the agenda was to get a PM Service done on my truck. I also replaced my air filter. The truck took 2 gallons of anti-freeze. I hope this doesn’t portend future problems. There is no evidence of a coolant leak, so it must be burning up in the engine. I’ll have to keep an eye on it. After the PM Service, I washed my truck. I was skeptical of doing so because of some nasty clouds approaching from the west, but I did it anyway. The clouds never let loose their moisture, so it was OK. My final task of the day was to drive from North Las Vegas to the WWW.
Monday was errand day. First on the agenda was having the MMM groomed. I had a 1230 appointment. After I dropped them off, I  went shopping at the near by “Wally World”. I bought some summer shirts and a new pair of shoes. I also bought a 6 ft. USB cable extender that I needed for my computer. I tried Denny’s again for dinner. This time it was the service that was lacking. I ordered Chicken Fried Steak from the restaurant. I asked if they would serve it at the bar. They said that wouldn’t be a problem. I evidently was a problem after all. After waiting 45 minutes, I went back to the restaurant to inquire about my meal. It was at the desk. He tried to hand it to me, but I made them re-do the order since it had been sitting so long, and reiterated that they were to serve it at the bar. This time they did, but when I opened the meal (they serve meals at the bar in “to go” boxes), the mashed potatoes and corn were all smooshed together. YUK!!! It was barely edible. Too bad I had paid for the meal with my credit card when I ordered it. I had already added a $2.00 tip. Next time (if there is one) I’ll pay in cash so when the service is lousy the server won’t profit from it. When will I ever learn????? In the evening after it cooled down a bit, I went to check my mail.
Today was a total veg and geek day. I just relaxed with the MMM in the room. In the evening, I drove over to the Orleans Casino to eat at T.G.I. Fridays. It was my first visit to one of these establishments. I had a Rib Eye Steak and mashed potatoes. The food was good, but there wasn’t enough of it. It didn’t come with bread, so I had to pay extra for an order of garlic bread sticks. I was unimpressed. Looks like the search for a new, near by restaurant continues.

Addendum to: Blather from Blairs, VA

When I drove the few hundred yards to the customer and checked in with Shipping, I was told that I was to be loaded at their satellite location; their original facility from where they had moved. It was in town about 4 miles away. I was given directions in typical “southern style”, meaning that when I left, I had no idea where I was going. The directions were as follows: “Go out to the highway and head towards town. You’ll go through a couple of lights. After you pass the second light, look for the beauty shop. Go past that and the Post Office, and it’s just a ways down the road. Look for a little Mall and turn there. It’s back off the road a bit. Ya cant miss it.” I found the place despite the directions. I had to wait ½ an hour for a door, and then it took another two hours to load me.
After I was loaded, I drove back to the truck stop. I had dinner at Bojangles. They compare favorably to KFC. Their portions are a bit larger, both in the size of the chicken pieces and the side dishes. I don’t know how many ‘herbs and spices’ they use in their breading recipe, but it is good. Their chicken more resembles KFC’s “extra crispy” recipe, which I prefer anyway. I tried three of their sides. Their mashed potatoes and gravy surpass KFC in every way; consistency, flavor, aesthetics. Their “Cajun” beans are delicious. Spicy with a hint of sweet. I don’t think KFC even offers anything similar. I saved their Macaroni and cheese for a later meal, but it looks delicious as well. Their biscuits are 1½ times the size of KFC’s and they will actually melt butter when served. They are famous for their iced tea, and it lived up to the reputation.  One negative is that they don’t offer corn-on-the-cob on their menu. How can you serve fried chicken without corn-on-the-cob? All in all, it is better than KFC in my opinion. It’s worth a return visit if the opportunity presents itself.

Life Day 22569: Blather from Blair’s, VA

Good morning. I have a little while before I have to pick up my load, so I may as well do something productive. There is not much to write about since my last post on Friday. I’m not even going to use my usual “chronicle” format on this post.
I’ll just say that Saturday was totally unproductive. I basically vegged and geeked all day long. I was tormented by various and sundry miscreants, all with the same basic “sob story” about how they were stuck there and needed money. They aren’t even creative anymore. I’ve noticed that they all want money now. No pretense of asking for food. In fact, if you have the audacity to offer to buy them a sandwich, they become indignant and look at you like you just asked them to fly to Mars. One in particular (I cant remember if he was the fourth or fifth to bother me today) became quite aggressive when I refused him. I had to threaten to call the Police before he finally left me alone. He did not look like the type that would welcome an interview by the local Constabulary.
Sunday started off about the same, but improved late in the afternoon when I was sent directions to a customer where I was to pick up an empty trailer. The problem was that there were no empty trailer available there. While I was waiting for further instructions, I stopped by a local supermarket for consumables. It was called Bloom. They have “smart carts” there that allow you to enter your shopping list into a computer on the cart. The cart will then direct you to the items you entered inside the store. I was browsing, so didn’t use that feature, but it sounds like an interesting feature. The future of shopping?  Anyway, I digress. Their second attempt to find an empty trailer for me was successful. After I picked it up, I drove to a nearby small truck stop I spotted on the way in. I had endured all that I could of the Pilot where I had spent the better part of the last two days. It was full, but as I was passing the Waffle House for the second time, the cook actually came out and flagged me down. He said that I could park in the back of their lot for the night if I wanted to, so I did. Quite naturally, after that, I went inside to eat. Although it was late afternoon, I opted for breakfast. It was good. About an hour after I finished “breakfast”, I received a PrePlan that picks up here in Blair’s, VA and delivers A.S.A.P. in Ottawa, KS. I left Charlotte about 1815 (2015 local time) and drove here to Blair’s. I parked for the night at a small local truck stop. It is quite clean, and has a nice large manicured lawn on which to walk the MMM.
Today, Monday, is a good news, bad news, good news, bad news kind of day. The first good news was that I found this truck stop last night. The first bad news is that my customer had moved. I was not happy when I discovered that this customer had moved. The last time I had a similar situation, the customer had moved 180 miles from a small town in central Pennsylvania to the suburbs of Philadelphia. It took half the day to convince the CSR that the customer had actually moved (they had moved over two years prior), and to get him/her to do their job and send me the correct information. I’m off on a tangent again, so let me come back. The second good news which I found out this morning when I called for directions, was that their new location is directly behind the truck stop in which I’m parked. The second bit of bad news is that this is a “live load”, and it won’t be ready until 1430 this afternoon.  I had breakfast this morning at Bojangles Chicken and Biscuits next door to this truck stop. It wasn’t too bad. I’ll try them again for lunch/dinner and let you know how they compare to KFC in an addendum to this post.

Life Day 22566: Chit Chat from Charlotte, NC

Well, it’s been a few days since my last post. It looks like I have a little time today, so I may as well bring you up to date. The weather has been seasonal for the regions of the country to which I’ve been traveling. The MMM and I are well, but Walter is getting a little shaggy. It’s time to get him to the groomers. He doesn’t like the heat.
By the way, today is Arbor Day. Did you plant a tree?
The chronicles follow.

Today, Friday the 24th:  I was unsuccessful again when I tried to fuel. The computers were still down. I left Decatur, disgusted and frustrated, at 0715. I drove to the Flying J truck stop in Commerce, GA and put on 50 gallons of fuel. After I fueled, I had breakfast. I then drove to our terminal in Greer, SC and topped off my tanks there. The difference in fuel price was about 20¢ per gallon, so I put on just enough fuel in Commerce to qualify for a free shower for later in the week at another Flying J location. I left Greer at noon and drove to the consignee in Fort Mill, SC. I did the drop delivery. The customer had no empty trailers. I drove the 13 odd miles to the Pilot truck stop in Charlotte, NC. Fort Mill, SC is right on the border with North Carolina, or, to use the local vernacular, just a “spit and holler” down the road. I arrived here about 1500, and have been sitting ever since. It doesn’t look like I’ll get a load out today. Oh well, nothing new about that.