Wednesday, February 25, 2009

"What country is this???"

Jes?..Can I hlp jew?? What? My name is not Jes and I am not a jew. Oh I get it, I am at a fast food counter and I am now going to try to order something from someone that does not either know very good English or just refuses to use it.

I was in a Pilot truck stop the other day doing something that is so easy and requires the minutest use of the brain. I pulled the truck on the CAT scale and then went in to get the ticket, While on the scale I was asked for the truck number and I gave it and then was told to come to get the ticket. See how easy this sounds...."NOT". Now the stupidity starts. There are two women, no I am not putting down women so calm down, behind the counter. There are two lines each with 10 people in them, I know because I counted them. Now there is 11 in one because I am in it....but as the story of my life goes, it is the wrong one and the other one is moving faster. Anyway, after a good 15 minutes I reach the front of the line and get ready to pay the $9.00. Jes, can I hlp Jew? It is not only fast food places that hire these people. I say yes, I want to get my scale ticket. Jour what? Jew want a scale ticket? Yes, I want my scale ticket. Oh sir, I m sory, I cnt do that. Jes have to go to the other lady to do that. I say, ARE YOU FRIGGIN,(not the real word) ME, I JUST SPENT 15 FRIGGIN (again, not the real word) IN THIS LINE AND NOW YOU TELL ME I HAVE TO DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN????!!!!!!!!!???!!???? Jes, I m new and don't no how to do it...LOOK, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TAKE THE DAMM TICKET OUT OF THE MACHINE, PUT THE COMPANY NAME ON IT AND PUT THE TRAILER NUMBER ON AND TAKE MY FRIGGIN MONEY..ANY FRIGGEN CHILD CAN DO IT, EVEN A MEXICAN. I m sory, I cnt hlp you...

Nope, I did not wait in the other line, nor did they get my money. We left and went to another truck stop and scaled the load and I went inside and managed to do this extremely hard transaction with amazingly ease.


I am so tired of having to work with incompetence and this so called free trade, free right to work, free open boarders bull that I cannot see straight. Call me what you will but the way I see it we have literally screwed ourselves out of jobs and homes.

Free country my ass. It used to be that we had a say in what was what. Now, if you are not a minority you are a minority. What this country needs is a swift kick in the ass. We need to close our borders, If you want to be an American, then you need to file your papers, go to immigrant classes, and be sworn in. And guess what, we speak ENGLISH here. Learn it or get out. If I wanted to speak a different language, it would be because I was going to a foreign country and wanted to be able to communicate. Get it, a different country. This is America, I am a American, I speak English...learn it.

I think also that we should cut back on the export and import business. Grow it, build it here then eat it and buy it here. I feel that this would make us solvent again. Helping our own is what we should do. I feel sorry for those in other countries but our products and our money should be applied to our own. The goverment spends billions of dollars each day. I thin we should have a say in that matter. Perhaps we should work for the goverment, they have all the money. Wait, they wor for us, that IS our money, hey dammit, I want some of my money to pay these bills. United we stand until it is time to stand up for what is ours. WE THE PEOPLE
demand our country, rights and voice back again. Democrate, Republican or what ever, this is our country and if you are not n American and are here for more ten just a short vacation then please, get the hell, and come back again thank you

Another thing...this war crap really mystifies me. We are at war, with the enemy. They kill and maim us and we do the same to them. What the hell is this..

WE ARE GOING TO REBUILD YOUR COUNTRY crap? How about all the lives, the wounded, the destruction of our equipment that they destroyed and harmed. Not even an "I am sorry". Bullshit, rebuild their country my ass.

HHHHMMMmmmmmm...guess Brad is having a bad day. No, not really, just that this stuff really gets to me and I get really tired of it. Like this company we work for. Our IFTA permits are due on the truck by the 1st of March. We told them a few weeks ago to send them to our terminal in Olive Branch,MS. When we got there, the Fed Ex truck had not arrived yet so we waited there most of the day. It was getting late and we had to drive about 350 miles to pick-up our next load and we had to leave. About an hour latter we got a message that the Fed Ex had come. We, I , sent the terminal a message saying that we were to far away now and for them to please send it to Colton,CA, another one of our terminals as that is where we would be next. Guess what, when we got to the Colton area we called and nope, there was no Fed Ex there for us, oh, Ruth Ann had also called the main Office and told them that we would be in Colton and to make sure it was sent there. Now it is two weeks latter and it is now the 25th of Feb. We went thru this ordeal again on the way back out here, to Colton, and then when I called Colton I was told...ready for it...nope, not here. I called Olive Branch and you guessed it, they are still there. Ruth Ann called the main office and told them where we were again and they said that they would send it and that it would be here tomorrow..yeah, I really believe that. But here we are sitting not making any money waiting on them.

Oh, while we sit in California, you cannot idle your truck so you pay for IdleAire. For 24 hours of that service it cost $65.00 . If you go to the yard you cannot idle there either and with Baby Girl and both of us in a non-running truck..well it is just not the best of things. Yes, there is a terminal you can go in, people..not pets. IdleAire has a thing you put in your window that allows you to have electric outlets, phone outlets and data ports along with your own air and heat, so you pay and pay and pay and you do not get re-reimburse.

And then to top it all off I was an asshole yesterday..all day yesterday and really bad lastnight..yep, I am telling on myself, and now I have to figure out how to get back in my wife's graces. If I called myself an asshole then you better believe that I was. I guess if you want to take sides I could not blame you because if I had a chance I would take her side also. I could say I am sorry, but I say that a lot..I can be hard to live with at times...so if I put it in writing and the whole world..well anyone who reads this...will see it. I am so sorry for being me Ruth Ann, please forgive me, I Love you very much.

I will close with these last words...................2 $$@$#####@^&*((*&&^^^$%%#%##@@$$%%%....there, that should take care of it for awhile.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

" O...M...G "

Well, here it is, a beautiful sunny day, a little chilly but what the heck, it is winter after all. We just left Nevada and are now in California headed to Porterville, CA to deliver. We are taking our time and enjoying the ride and scenery as we have lots of time. We come to one of the highways that are on our route and it says that trucks of a certain length are not advised, but we are from WV and are used to twisty roads and since we are routed that way... venture on. No big deal, yep..had a couple tight turns but no problems. Now we are at Lake Isabella,CA and it is gorgeous. Big lake surrounded by mountains and it has a cute little town. This is where we pick up a different highway, HIGHWAY???, more like someone's driveway. As soon as you turn onto it you are going up an 11% grade with "S" turns and switchbacks and it says for the next 14 miles. The truck must have read the sign also because all of a sudden it did not want to deal with it anymore and we had just got started. On up, up, up we go and then a sign reads.."Winter Conditions May Exist". HHHMMmmmm,well like I said, it is winter..so onward travelers, onward. Every once in awhile, there is some snow and ice on the road but we have no problems..hehehe, this is going to be a cake walk...(Never ever never say that)...We are now but 2 miles from the top, 2 miles and 50 miles from delivery. The truck must know that because I can hear the RPM's going up and the truck is getting all excited and huffing and puffing and even dancing.....wait a minute...the truck is not going faster, just the engine, and that huffing and puff sound is really the transmission changing gears back and forth and the dancing is us sliding side to side and backwards.. we are on snow and ice about 100 feet for dry pavement..."OMG."..we have lost traction and are lo longer going forward...."HOLY CRAP"....we are going backwards....(remember me mentioning that it is a 14 mile hill with "S" turns and switchbacks and oh yeah 11% GRADE?????) and the friggin brakes are of no use....think think think....try to jack-knife more then you already are and put the back of the trailer into the snow bank on the mountain side. Alas, we are stopped with the rear doors of the trailer in the snow bank and the tractor jacked a little into the middle of the road but not enough to block traffic, oh yeah, during this fun ride backwards the passenger side bumper was able to stop BEFORE we did, and now has ridded its self of extra weight like braces, brackets and some useless plastic. Okay, I have stopped peeing my pants and was able to pry my hands from the steering wheel. I need to get out and view the situation. Just as soon as my feet hit the snowy icy pavement they decided the view would be much better if they were above my head and they take flight and my butt makes a nose dive for the frozen earth...wwwwweeeeeeeee...oh just fun...BAM...not so funny..I get up and scold my feet for their prank....perhaps I should not have been so harsh with them as they retaliated and did it again a little later. We carry chains because we have to, it is the law in some states, but we do not use them. If it is bad enough to put them on then it is bad enough not to go anywhere. But here we are, in a very bad situation and I am going to have to put these #Q@$#%^$$#@ things on. Now the fun begins, while trying to get them out of the basket and bags they are in I have managed to bloody most of my knuckles, the tops of my hands and my fore arms, now I have a long sleeve shirt, a heavy coat and thick gloves on so I am not sure how all these wounds came about, oh yeah..I also broke 5 finger nails. But I get two chains out and as I am putting them on the tires...OUCH %%$#@&*&$#@#@$$#@ my head my head my head, the bottom of the trailer is really friggin hard..dammit...as I stand-up I punch the side of the trailer...OUCH....@##@#$%^%$##@ the friggin side of the trailer is hard also. Anyway, I have the chains on the tires and Ruth Ann now has to give it just a little gas so that the end of the chains will rotate around so I can secure them. Yea, I have them all hooked up. So now I climb back in the truck and very easily try, notice I said try, to get up the hill. The truck starts to move then..the truck makes these wired sounds "Nope,I am not gonna go no where cause I did not wanna come up here to begin with !!!"..and we don't. I get back out..remember what I said about the retaliation feet..well there I am again looking at the sky. I get back up and check out the chains..CRAP, broke one...get it off and now I got to dig out another one when I catch movement out of the corner of my eye..I turn and see that the Calvary has arrived...a CHP officer is walking my way. He says...What's going on? OMG I wish I had a sign right then so I could have said that I was in the area and wanted to install a new ride for the kids....here's your sign. But I thought better of that and told him that well, we were stuck and that one of my chains broke and we lost traction. He said yeah, but what are you doing up here...again, I thought about another sign thing..but knew I should not. I said we are headed to Porterville and that this is the way the company told us to come. He said NAY NAY, driver, no trucks over 65 feet in length are allowed on this highway ever, we are 75 feet, then the words..."LET ME HAVE YOUR DRIVER LICENCSE, MEDICAL CARD AND TRUCK REGISTRATION". CRAP, I know what that means. He did say for me to continue what I was doing...lucky for him he did not say to continue what I was thinking....Anyway, got a new chain on and low and behold...nope, it broke also. I am now ready to have war with the world and everything and everyone in it when he, the CHP, comes back and see's or feel's the raging maniac within me and kindly says now Sir, this does not go against your license. and that he is sure that the company will pay the fine as it is their fault for sending us this way and hands me the ticket..Oh thank you sir, I will send this into the company..ggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. As it turns out he can see that we are in a position that is going to take more than chains and he leaves and goes and gets a road crew. They plow and throw some sand and hook their grader to us and pull us up to the cleared spot in the road, 100 feet, where we can make a "U" turn. They give us the thumbs up and I think laugh as they turn away. The CHP said that he would follow us and make sure we were okay, If he is so worried about us why doesn't he drive the damn truck down the mountain and let us drive his car?. So we start down, now we have an automatic transmission which means it is crap. We have Jake brakes but they only work in 6th or 7th gear at a faster speed then dead turtle, which is the speed I plan on taking. I put it in 1st gear and lock it in and start off, the RPM's go from 0 to 2500 in a heart beat, the engine is screaming, and I think I can make out the words it is saying.."WHAT THE F--- ARE YOU DOING TO ME????" I simply reply, better you than hot brakes. We drive, if that is what you want to call it, for about 2 miles that took nearly 30 minutes and get to dry pavement. I pull over to the side in a little pull off area and the CHP pulls up along side of us and said that we should be okay now for the rest of the way down, I get out and take the three chains I have on off and we continue the rest of the way down. We take the route that the CHP told us to take and 90 miles later we are on the back side of the mountain we were on and still 20 miles from delivery. Remember that when we where almost to the top we were but 50 miles from delivery? But we made it and all is well. The next day we put the truck in the shop to get the bumper replaced and also to fix a leaking windshield, nothing to do with the mountain. The bumper parts have be ordered so the company says to forget the bumper for now but to go ahead and fix the windshield. While they are taking the window out they break it and now it has to be ordered. So here we sit in a motel not making any money because some stupid computer programmer that has put a routing program together for us to follow has has (Politically Correct phrase) made love to us...think about it, think about it...aahhhh, I think you got it. Have I ever mentioned WHAT A GREAT LIFE A TRUCKERS LIFE IS ?????
AMEN !!!

Friday, February 6, 2009

oooOOOOOOCCCCCHHHHHHHH

Well here is it the day after the BD and nothing has changed. Lets see, got up and came downstairs and had my first cup of coffee as I try to focus my eyes on the screen on my pc. So far so good. My lovely sister Wanda came out and brought her dog, a very very happy dog that wants to show it's love by jumping into your chest. Oh yeah, did I mention that the dog is a small horse and weights about the same. Some how I kept my footing and survived. The next little item is to go to the Post Office. I jump into the car and turn the key....nothing. Crap!! Get Wanda's keys and go to the Post Office. Oh, if you do not already know, the Post Office is my Xanadu. I arrive to retrieve my bounty only to find that they have changed their hours and there is 45 minutes to wait. I go back home and jump start our car off Wanda's. I wait the allotted time and go back to the Post Office and retrieve our mail..yeaaaa!!!

Next is to bring the dirty laundry in from the truck, which I do and about have a heart attack carrying all that grime down out of the truck into the house and up the stairs.

Now, for the main event. We have a new truck and with all we carry I must make a shelf to hold it all. I climb up and down and in and out till I have all but one, mind you ONE screw left to put in and the job is done. Did I mention that I only had one screw left to insert into the wood? The wood puts up a fight, the drill is at max RPM, the screw is trying to penetrate, the body and arm is pushing with intent. Then, for no reason that I can think of, the drill bit decides it has had enough and jumps out of the screw head, did I mention that my arm and body was pushing hard on the drill?, and it leapt to its death bringing the drill , arm, body with it. Oh, fear not, it did not accomplish its suicidal death because my thumb broke its fall. Drill still engaged and bit still spinning and yet my thumb was able to stop all this rushing force..oooOOOOOOCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhh. The drill was no longer a drill, it was now a ##$#@%^&**%$#@#$. Blood gushing, thumb throbbing I make my way out of the truck and into the house....RUTH ANN!!! RUTH ANN!!! get me the peroxide and bandaids.

Peroxided and bandaided, I return to the scene of the crime and with determination, put the last screw in the wood....screw by the screw I screw the screw and it was good and they all said amen.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Once again..All about ME

Well.....here it is, another birthday....ugh..well not really ugh, I don't feel any older and as Ruth Ann will quickly tell you, I don't act any older either. I refuse to get old or be or act old. I have always said that age is but a state of mind. It is not a nice day outside but in the house it is warm and cozy and I can smell the beans n ham coming from the kitchen. I have gotten a few presents, more then I deserve I am sure, and they are fantastic ones. See, if you would have come here you would also be able to enjoy my bounty, but NNNOOOOO...you had to work, or lived in another state...yeah yeah yeah...lol....really, I do wish my family and friends could be here, it is very scary with all these candles flaming...lol,

Anyway, I wont bother you anymore with this BD stuff.


Happy Birthday to me...Happy Birthday to me...I get to eat, drink and play with all my stuff..Happy Birthday to ME !!!!!!! .

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Where has all my stuff gone?

Driving for the company that I, we, drive for reminds me of when I joined the Navy. In Boot camp, they give you a comb, then cut all your hair off. Next they give you a tooth brush, and pull your teeth. Next, they give you a Jock strap and well, I said goodbye.......

Here they give you a truck and take away your clutch, just as well, they take the gear shift also. They give you all kinds of outside mirrors, then take them away. They give you a view camera to replace the mirrors, then forget to install it. They give you fuses and don't tellyou how to find them. They give you multi cabinets but leave only room for a note pad. They give you a special motor that only runs on special fuel and is suppose to burn it off through a special thingamajig and does not. They give you wipers that do not have fuses for when they stop working. They give you catwalks and then take them away so you can hardly attach your air lines and light cord. They give you a space under your bed to store stuff then fill it with their stuff that is some kind of heater that no one knows how to tell you how it works. They give you a communication device that will allow them to say stuff to you while you drive but you cant respond till you stop. They let people type in directions that can't even spell S P E L L.

They say they are all about the driver and family, but just not yours. You can have home time in for 2 months and they still can't get you there on time.


But we are at home now and thank God for that. Tomorrow is my Birthday and Ruth Ann is fixing my favorite food...beans n ham over cornbread....love it love it love it......LOVE HER...wish you all could be here, but you can still send presents....lol.......