DG: Woke up at 5:30, half hour before alarm was set to go off.  Guess I’ve gotten in the habit of early rising. Sinus problems are about all gone. Feeling much better.  Anxious to get on the road to go pick up my sweetheart. It’s been a lonely week.  

Annie – Precious woke me up at 7:30 again.  I’m going to have to get used to getting up early again.   Ready to get on the road with my sweetie! 

DG:  Well, I was all set to got. Had my truck. There were a couple of little issues I had to have taken care of and even had a load. Went to my truck to start my journey and got an error message on the On Guard system. That’s an accident avoidance system new to these trucks. And a new technology that can go haywire and mine did. So I have been at the dealership now for over two hours. Lost my load naturally as I couldn’t deliver on time now. So, it’s looking like I may have to spend another night in the motel. We’ll see what happens here in the next few hours. 

DG:  I’m back in the hotel. It will probably be tomorrow before it is ready. Another day. 

Love to all.  Good night and God bless. 

Slept until 9:30 (thank you NyQuil) but woken up by an anxious dog bouncing on me needing to go outside.   Now she’s back asleep on the couch and I’m wide awake.   

DG:  Another rainy day in Mississippi.   

Hope this stops by tomorrow.  

Sitting here thinking how long the week looked when I got here last Sunday. Every day seemed to drag by.  But tomorrow’s the day. 

Annie – Going to turn in.  Didn’t hardly do anything today which I guess is good sometimes.   

Goodnight y’all.  

DG:  Thunderstorms predicted for tonight. Should make for some good sleep.

Good night and God bless.

DG:  Up and out of there. 6:45 I woke up from a dream I was back on the flight line, not in service, but the fire department nonetheless and I had a jerk for a chief. No one from my past that I recognized. They were reopening an old military airfield to make it a flying museum. That is instead of static displays of old military planes all planes on display would be operational and would give demonstration flights throughout the day. I wasn’t going to be working there, but rather part of a group that was getting it ready to open. The last thing I remember of the dream was a flyover of P51 Mustangs. About six of them. All shiny and new looking. And behind them was an F86 Sabre. Then I woke up, shot out of bed, brushed my teeth, got dressed and headed out the door for Wal Mart. Passed a Burger King and decided to have breakfast first so I called to get the pharmacy hours since I need a refill on my prescriptions.  They don’t open till 10:00 on Sunday’s. I couldn’t lay there any more but now I will probably go back to bed for a couple hours. Just had to get out of the room for a bit. 

Annie – Sounds like someone is finally starting to feel better.    Yay!   So glad.  

I slept in since it’s Sunday and no plans today.  

DG:  I am feeling so much better thank you.  Felt good enough to go get something for it. Not a bad day to be stuck inside. They were having tornado watch till this evening and it rained really hard for a little while. And there were three auto races on tv today. Dang, sorry you missed it dear.  

Tomorrow is Memorial Day so everyone remember someone whose sacrifice enables us to have holidays.

Love to all.  Good night and God bless.

Annie – Glad you are feeling better honey but so glad I didn’t have to watch the races with you today.  

Me and mom got out for a bit today.   She wants a mimosa tree to replace the dogwood that died but everywhere we went today was closed.  Will try again after the holiday.

Turning in shortly so I will say goodnight.  

Well, my sweetie is still sick this morning.  Hope he feels better soon.  We facetimed last night and he looked miserable.   Good thing he doesn’t have to drive today and can just stay in bed.  

Mom had her bone density test this morning and they said her bones were terrible.   Not what you want to hear.    She will have to stay on the Prolia for a while longer. 

Lindsey spent the night and is thinking about going to Crossfit again this morning.   Boy, to have that kind of energy again.  

Me and Lindsey made a day of it.  She wanted to go to the movies so we saw Pitch Perfect 2. Now I can’t unsee Clay Matthews and some of the Packer players dancing and singing.   Just not right.  

Also went to Victoria Secret for a sports Bra for her as an early birthday present.  She’s 14 soon. 

Then she wanted to go to the cemetery to see Dee’s grave.   Said she had only been there once since Dee passed.  So sad!   She took her some blue roses and there were no flowers on anyone else’s graves so she broke some off and put in the rest of them.   That was sweet.  

  
Then to Crisps for ice cream.   Definitely made a day of it.  

DG:  Thanks to my dear sweet wife for keeping this blog going. I have been in bed since early yesterday evening.  I did get out to get some dinner around 5:30 local time and felt better after I ate. Gregory called and said the girls wanted to talk to me. They had been to a birthday party for the daughter of a fella Greg works with and were so excited to tell me everything that happened. Also got to talk to Kaiden. He is excited about another camping trip coming up next weekend. They are such good kids.  

Well, back to bed. Be thankful you are not around to hear me whine.  Not that I do that.  

Goodnight and God bless. 

Annie – Just talked to my sweetie via FaceTime again.  Boy he looks and sounds miserable.  Hope he feels better soon!   

I am turning in too.   Talk to you tomorrow.  

Goodnight y’all. 

DG:  Day five of orientation. This should finish up all the paperwork and information we need to operate for KLLM. All that’s needed after that is a truck and a dispatch. Then it’s “On The Road Again”.

Nursing some sinus congestion this morning.  Don’t know if it’s allergies or the extremes in temperature we have experienced the past few days. Hot, then rain, then cold. Something’s stopping me up.

Getting a greeting from the top dog of this yard this morning.  Word is he is a good guy. His company seems to reflect that.

He did not disappoint.  He has been with the company since college working his way up from a dispatcher and turned the company around after the crash of ’08.  The lease program that I am now a part of was his idea and design. I like that he projected honest concern for drivers and is pasionate about his mission.

Well, I’m still nursing some sinus issues but with nothing really to do until Tuesday I can concentrate on ridding myself of this malaise.

Good night and God bless.

Annie – so sorry you still feel bad sweetheart!   Wish I was there!   I love you!

Had some fun with Abby, Lindsey and Jake today.   Also took Lindsey for her first Crossfit trial.  She loved it and is spending the night so I can take her again in the morning.  So glad she likes to exercise.  Abby and I got tired just watching.   LOL

Watching TV a bit and then going to bed.  Mom has bone density test at 9:30 so up and out early.

Goodnight everyone.

DG:  According to the news this morning we had thunderstorms last night.  I will have to take their word for it. I was asleep. 

Waiting for the van. We are starting a little later than usual and that gave me an extra hour of sleep. 

More paperwork today. 

Rain is in the forecast. That means it should be cloudy. Good news for a bald guy who forgot to pack a hat. I am actually a redhead at the moment. And I don’t mean the color of my hair. 

Missing my sweetie awful bad. We were not meant to be apart. Love you sweetheart.

Annie – Miss you too sweetheart.   Enough of this mess already.   Hurry home! 

Rain here too and 50 degrees.   The flowers will appreciate it.  

Going back over to the house today to work some more.   

So excited.  Found a watermelon with seeds.  Hard to find these days.   Those seedless ones are tasteless!  

DG: Looks yummy. We get lunch everyday from a place called Momma’s Kitchen. They are only open from 11:00 to 2:00 each day and their slogan is “Nothing out of a can”.  Good home cooking. Today we had roasted chicken. Very tender. 

Annie – Well, my sweetie is in bed with chills and sniffles and I am too far away to help.   So sorry honey.  Hope you feel better in the am.  

Goodnight everyone! 

DG:  All hurdles cleared, now for more info absorption and sometime in the next couple of days, picking out a truck. Have looked at several comparisons on web and am leaning toward the Volvo. Yes I am at that age where comfort is a major concern and hopefully old enough to choose wisely.  The consensus seems to lean toward Freightliner mainly due to parts availability and cost. However most post I find are several years old so here’s hoping the bugs mentioned have been worked out. I hope to corner a mechanic at some point to get his opinion on the reliability question.  

Annie – Been working at the house trying to get it cleaned up and ready for sale.    Renter left us a mess.   First said he had someone to clean house but she hasn’t cleaned in months.  Six inch cobwebs everywhere.  Garage is a mess.  “Oh, I don’t want that stuff anymore.  Just throw it away”.  Ok thanks.   I’ll do the work for you.    And last but not least is the garage door.   I think someone has hit it.  There are two places on the front where it is bent and when I opened it to clean garage I couldn’t get it back down and its bowed in the middle.    Took us forever to get it shut.  Asked renter.  “I don’t know what happened” 

 We sold the furniture so the guys have been there taking apart stuff so that will help with the cleaning too.   

  
On the bright side I get to look at my garden while I’m there.   There are so many blooms.   I keep taking a bunch home and still the garden is full.   

Yesterday was Maddi’s birthday!  4 years old.  We weren’t able to be there but I got to call her and Gregory sent me pictures.  So beautiful! 

DG:  So beautiful.  Miss my grandkids.  We’ll get there soon.  

Nothing else to report today.  I will most likely get my truck tomorrow so tune in.  Love you all.  Good night and God bless.

4 am.  Can’t sleep.  It’s weird. You get used to someone snoring beside you and it’s hard to sleep without it.   Miss you sweetheart!

Happy 4th birthday Maddi!  Wow.  Can’t believe it.  

I didn’t write anything yesterday.   Sorry.  Got busy with the house and then Abby and Lindsey were able to spend the night which is nice.   Mom and Lindsey crashed early but me and Abby talked a while.  She really is a young adult now.   Her mom would be so proud.   

Going to try to get some sleep.  Busy day tomorrow cleaning up the mess the renter left in the garage.  

DG:  I couldn’t sleep either. And you who know me know that’s unusual.  The hardest part about doing this job is being away, but I am comforted by knowing that soon we will be together again in our own little space traveling the country. I miss you sweetheart. By the way, Doc says hi. 

Second day of orientation.  Glad I didn’t take the van driving job offered to me yesterday. I was tempted due to the fact that I would have a van at my disposal in the evening, but that guy is making about five trips morning and evening to and from the hotels. That’s like having a part time job. I can make the same money just attending class. Think I’ll stay where I am. 

Logs, macros and road test today. Praise the Lord I’m still here. Passed driving and parking tests. Not sure what’s next but I’m ready. 

Good night and God bless. 

A cold rain falls on this small Mississippi town as the driver steps from his room and heads for the lobby where other drivers, some alert, others foggy from lack of a good night’s sleep, gather to begin a new chapter in their driving careers. The coffee flows freely despite previous cautions against loading up on caffeine prior to the physical and drug test that is scheduled for first thing this morning.  In preparation I ate nothing after midnight and drank nothing this morning except for a little water. 

Sitting in the lobby listening to the conversations in the background there is one fellow from Florida, beginning his driving career, who has never seen snow. Not that he is likely to see any any time soon, just thought it notable that there are still people who have never seen the fluffy white stuff.  

Time for the van. No van. There looks to be around 14 drivers waiting for a ride to the terminal to begin orientation.  Someone said there were over 30 in the last class. Hard to believe that many new drivers are added each week. There appears to be a lot of jumping from company to company.  

There were around 30 drivers taking physicals and/or drug screens today. That’s a lot of new drivers to add each week. And from what I can gather it is industry wide. They’re not all new as most of us come from different companies. I heard several talking about my first company, Werner. Seems they had less than perfect experiences. 

10:00 am and on my way to orientation.  Female van driver with an Austrailian accent. Curious to know her story but situation is not conducive to casual investigative conversation. 

Arrived at orientation and more waiting.  Got a new stack of papers and a fancy new pen.  Lunch first. 

Lunch was a step up from what I’ve previously had at the two former companies I worked for. A hot lunch of hamburger steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and a roll. And a big glass of sweet tea.  We are in the south after all.

Lunch was followed by the usual videos and test regarding mostly safety.  I think these were the same videos they showed in trucking school.  I dozed a bit but I’ve seen these before. This was followed by a mountain of paperwork.  

Don’t remember what time class let out but by the time the van returned for its third trip it was after seven local time.  And I was hungry.  Good thing I went to Wal Mart yesterday and stocked up.  Turkey and cheese sandwich with dill pickle wedges while watching Triple D making believe my sandwich was one of the gourmet meals I was watching being prepared.  

I want shrimp and grits.

Love ya all, but love my baby most.  Goodnight and God bless.

Taking my sweetie to the airport at 5 am.  Not happy about it but time to move onward.  Really hate to see him go but hopefully it’s only for a week or so.  

DG:  Up at 4:30. That would be am. Got to the airport in plenty of time. Good thing too. It was hard pulling away from the car. Did not want to leave. But, this is the path we feel we were led to so feel obligated to see it through. Got to Charlotte early, next flight doesn’t leave for 3 1/2 hours. Plenty of time to walk to Bojangles for breakfast.  

Wanted to get a picture of the Michael Jackson impersonator that got on the plane in Huntington, but he moved too fast. Not kidding, this guy looked ready to do a show, red jacket, black hat, makeup, the whole works. Never know what your going to see these days. 

Got to Charlotte and there was a Guy Fieri wanna be. Then, got on the plane and there sat Medusa. I’m serious. Girl had a burr cut all around but on top the hair was long and twisted into what looked like a head full of snakes. 

What a trip. 

Got to the hotel around 1:45pm local time. Flight was smooth and uneventful. 

Shower and a short nap and off to explore. Just down the street there’s a Wal Mart. Stocked up for the week. 

Well, here’s a couple of pics. Hope you enjoy. 

This is a mobile of flying machines at the First in Flight Bar inside Charlotte Airport. 

This is me getting a pedicure in the airport. This was a treat long overdue.  

  
That’s the Queen City in the distance there. 

  
Inside Jackson-Evers, MS airport, named for Civil Rights leader Medgar Evers. 

  
Looks like rain. 

 
Here it is folks, the “Crawfish King”. Too bad they were closed today. Too bad too, i had a real hankerin for some craw dad. 

 
This is a sign no trucker wants to see. Means stay out you. 

  
Finally, I’ve found them. Lips anyone?  

Well that’s all for me. Another early morning tomorrow. Good night and God Bless. 

Annie – not much going on on my end.   No impersonators or medusa.   Just watching tv.  I think me and mom have watched hallmark channel movies all day.   Must be because I’m missing my sweetheart.   Hopefully tomorrow I will feel like moving a bit more.   

Goodnight y’all.