Good morning.  Up at 5:30 this am headed to florida.   No rain yet but still cloudy and dark looking.  It’s nice and warm though.    Didn’t need our jackets which was nice.  It’s 69 degrees here in southern Georgia.

The magnolia trees are blooming in southern Georgia!

Got to Florida early for our appointment which is fine since its a drop and hook.  No wait time!   It is 91 degrees and sunny.   I’m ready to go back to the mountains!  Greg is happy as a clam to be back in Florida.  Now we have 42,000 pounds or 1,600 cases of pure orange juice from Coke.   Headed to Ankeny, Iowa.  Don’t think we have been there before. It’s north of Des Moines.

The truck in front of us at the check out point. They inspect your trailer coming in and going out.   Make sure you aren’t stealing anything or bringing anything in.   Then they put a seal and a big lock on the back that is removed when you get to your stop.

We have Plenty of time on this trip so may try to stop in a bit and do some laundry.

We stopped at a Pilot in Ocala, Florida.    Got a shower but unable to do laundry.   We must have stopped at the one Pilot without laundry facilities.   Shoot.   Hopefully tomorrow.

We are ready to turn in.   Got 1300 miles to do in 2 days.    Sleep while we can.    Goodnight, y’all.

DG:  1300 miles.  I can do that standing on my head.  Well, figuratively speaking of course.  In two days?  Not a problem. 

Florida is nice. And it did rain. You can almost set your watch by it. If someone says the rains came early this year they are not talking about early “IN” the year but rather early in the day.  Every day.  

Saw a C-17 Galaxy doing some low level maneuvers today.  I understand the science of flight but I tell ya it still amazes me to see something that big in the air.  We also saw the Met Life dirigible in a field attached to its moorings.  Couldn’t tell if it was getting ready to take off or had just landed.  Neat site though. You never know what you’re going to see. 

Have seen several armadillos by the side of the road.  It’s like they have been following the opossums across the highways and byways and it hasn’t been good for them. 

Our truck’s name is Cheby by the way. This is from a story Annie’s uncle Kenny used to tell about her when she was just a little girl.  He owned a Chevrolet and one time when they were riding in it and Kenny put on the brakes Annie said, “Whoa Cheby”.  He got a kick out of telling that story and even though our truck wasn’t made by Chevrolet we named her Cheby to remember Kenny.  And she still says Whoa Cheby several times a day. But then I’m driving so what do you expect. 

That’s all for now. Bedtime.  Good night and God bless. 

Got to sleep until 8 am this morning.  Yeah!  LOL.   Headed to Conyers, Georgia.  Sun is peaking through a little bit but it still looks like rain.

The trees along the way have really filled out and are such pretty greens.   Six flags is also open when we went by.  Guess spring really is here.

Got to our stop about an hour early.   A little worried though.   They gave us a sheet of paper to put in our window to let the unloaders know who is who and what time we arrived.  The truck to the right says he arrived at 8 am. It’s now 2 pm.   Hope we aren’t here all day!

Finally got a dock about 4:30.   Our appointment was for 3 so we are doing better than the guy next to us.

Got done at about 5:40. Not bad.  Now to find a Pilot so we can park and await further instructions.  No plan as of yet.

Well, 3 hours later and we have a plan.   Headed to Auburndale, Florida for Coke products and back to Iowa.

Been a long day.  Turning in.  Have to get up at 5:30 in order to get to florida for our appointment.

Here is a picture of the sunset earlier.

DG: Pulled into a Petro in Atlanta.  340 parking spaces.  That’s big, but still 1/3 the size of Iowa 80 the largest truck stop in the world.

I sit atop my throne, high above the fray and watch the four wheelers try their best to kill each other. It’s like a battle for land none of them can own yet they fight over it every day. On and on. A fruitless struggle to occupy a moving space. I see it all from my lofty perch. Fools I say. You will never win. This road is not yours. It is mine. I am the lord of all I see and I control the speed and the distance all around me occupy.

Just a little poetic license there. It came with my CDL.

All right. Love you all.

Good night and God bless.

Up at 7:30.  WooHoo!  No big hurry today since we will make it to Georgia in plenty of time for our appointment tomorrow.   Looks like it’s going to rain.   Sky is gray and cloudy.   Here’s hoping we miss it!

There is a field with horses in it where we stopped for the night.  One of them took a shine to Greg.   Kept licking his hand and trying to eat his jacket.

Well, I dont have a lot of pictures.   Sorry!  It has rained this entire day.    It is supposed to rain tomorrow too as we get in to Georgia but I hope it is over.

Only got about 190 miles to go tomorrow.    Turning in.   Goodnight, y’all.

DG:  Made a new friend today. Horses don’t usually take to me but this one did.  There were about eight horses lying in this field next to the truck stop. As soon as we walked over to the fence this beautiful horse stood up and walked over to us. He let us pet him and I held out my hand and he started licking my hand. A couple of times he tried to bite the buttons on my jacket.  He was very friendly.  I’ll miss him.  

We drove through rain until just before crossing into Alabama.  We’ve been this way before so didn’t miss anything because it was dark.  Got a good parking spot and as late as it was that’s rare. 

Arkansas was really beautiful.  We got to enjoy it for a while before the rain came.

Weather report says it will be ahead of us by morning so we will be driving into it.  Good thing I out Rainex on the windshield this morning. 

Time for bed. Good night and God bless.

Up at 4:30 to head to National Beef Company to get our load.   Nowhere else on earth are you going to hear these directions except Liberal, Kansas – “Turn left on Yellow Brick Road”.   I love it!

Well, after 5 hours we are finally on the road.  While doing the trailer inspection on the trailer we picked up Greg noticed it had 2 tires with bald spots on them.   Then he found two more.   So, long story short, we had to go to a tire shop and wait while they put on 4 new tires.

After we got the tires replaced we drove through Oklahoma.   We went from one end to the other.   We found a Pilot that is onliy about 10 miles from the Arkansas border.    Should make it to Georgia tomorrow or early Saturday.

These pictures are all of Oklahoma.   The field of yellow flowers are canola.   I looked it up after seeing field after field of them.   Apparently, weeds can get in the wheat field and they become resistant to all of the pesticides they use on them so they plant canola in order to cover the ground and so they can then use stronger poisons to kill the weeds.   Ok, this wheat is what our bread is made from.   I tell ya, no wonder there is so much gluten intolerance these days.   Never heard of it before now and now it seems its everywhere.    Could this be part of the reason?   Hmmmmm

http://kfor.com/2013/05/13/yellow-flowers-helping-oklahoma-wheat-crop/

Well, going to turn in and get ready for the long drive to Georgia tomorrow.   Goodnight, y’all.

DG:  Made it with 10 minutes to spare. I have a good navigator.  She’s pretty too. And makes the journey enjoyable. 

Well, you’ve seen Oklahoma and Kansas as many times as we have so what’s to say. They’re flat. They go on forever. One interesting thing I heard the other day that we didn’t mention and I never thought of until I heard it. A lady at the truck stop we stayed at in Liberal, a lifelong resident went to visit her daughter in Denver and got claustrophobic in the mountains with all the trees around her.  After looking at the openness of Kansas I began to understand her point. 

The Great Plains is an interesting place. I can only imagine what the European settlers thought of all the land available for ownership a concept totally foreign to them until then. 

Also surprised the Spanish didn’t settle this country before the English as they were here 100 years ahead of them. 

That’s all for now. Good night and God bless. 

Up at six to check on load.  It’s still not ready so back to bed!

10 am.  Load still not ready so we decided to go back to Dorothy’s house and take the tour. So much fun!    You can purchase a yellow brick for the road.   Ronald and Nancy Reagan have one and so does Liza Minelli.

DG:  All I can say is “Thank goodness there was only one flying monkey and they had it tied down”.  This was really fun. A pleasant surprise.

Well, we have sat all day.    Finally at 6 pm they told us the load was ready but since Greg has been up all day we cant go until he has some sleep.   So, off to bed in a bit.

We are not going to get to see the kids this weekend.   Very disappointed.   Because we sat all day today it throws the time table off so we wont be able to make it by the weekend.

So, off to Georgia in the am.    Goodnight, y’all.

DG:  It was good being a kid for a while today. The presentation in the Land of Oz was very entertaining.  The guide did a good job telling the story and acting out the scene.  It was accompanied by light and sound effects. Lots of fun. Lots of interesting facts as well.  The munchkin cast used to come every year when they had OZ fest. Only one of them is still alive and if you saw the movie you may remember him as the one that gave the lollipop to Dorothy. They also have the original house used in the tornado science. It’s just a small model and the guide said they threw it off of a  balcony and then played the film backwards so that it appears in the movie to be taking off into the sky. 
An enjoyable day overall.  We will long remember our day in Liberal, Kansas. 

Good night and God bless.  

Up at 4 am and headed to Dodge City, Kansas with 31,000 pounds of pallets.    Just wooden pallets.   Seems odd.  The trailer is completely full though.  We are taking them to a meat processing plant.

As we get closer to Kansas the hills flatten out and we start to see all the farms again.   A lot of grasses are starting to grow and there are big dark green fields now where there used to be brown.   It doesn’t look like the corn has been planted yet so you still see fields of brown.

There is also a different smell crossing over in to Kansas.   Yes, we are now back in cattle country.   First thing we saw at the line was a stockyard of several hundred cows.   Boy, that was pungent.

I saw the first red fox today.  It was sitting back from the road a bit just looking around.   We went by too fast for me to get a picture though.   Hope I see another one and can get a picture!

We also saw two grouse as we went down the road.  We must have flushed them out when we went by.   Such colorful birds.

Arrived at our stop, Cargill, the beef processing plant.   There is not enough essential oils out there to cover up the smell from these places.  Not only the plant but the dozens of trucks with cows on them that are just – WOW!  What a smell.

Traded trailers and headed to next stop at National Beef in Liberal Kansas.   We go to check in and order isn’t ready.  It’s so not ready they don’t even have a trailer number assigned to the load yet.  Lovely!   Well, time is about up so we go in to town and park at a gas station for the night.   Chinese buffet next door looked busy so we went over and had dinner.   It was ok.  Good hot and sour soup. I don’t know why Chinese places use dark meat in all their dishes.   Eewww.

We decided to go for a walk and turned right in to Dorothy’s house.  We are in Kansas after all.   It’s a cute little house and yard that several people in town decided to put up and their names are the yellow brick road.   We missed being able to go in since its late but walked around.   So cool.   There were no flying monkeys we could see so Greg was okay.

We are turning in.   They told us to call every couple of hours and see if our load is ready.   Probably just going to wait until morning and go from there.

DG:  Well, we didn’t see any flying monkeys, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t there somewhere.  Probably up in the trees watching our every move.  Don’t like those things.  Ain’t natural.  Flying monkeys.  Huh.  Anyway, pretty neat little attraction.

My navigator did it again.  Got us stopped with about eight minutes to spare.  I think she just does that to watch me squirm.

Seeing Kansas for the umpteenth time I am getting more and more drawn to it.  There’s something about seeing oceans of farm land just as far as the eye can see.  Coming through Texas we swore the horizon was farther away than anywhere we had ever been.  Guess it was just an illusion or the fact that we were in Texas and every thing is supposed to bigger there.  It was pretty sparse in the upper left of the panhandle.  New Mexico, wait, did I tell you this already?  Seems familiar.  Oh well, I’m not going to take the time to look back.  I’ll just tell you now.  This will serve two purposes.  One; it will be new if I haven’t told it already and Two; it will prepare you for what’s to come as I repeat myself often.

New Mexico is definitely the Land of Enchantment as stated on their license plates and the welcome sign as you cross the border.  Just looking at the sky and landscape gives you a sense of awe and a feeling that spirits live there.  They would not be crowded if they did as that has to be the most sparsely populated place we have seen yet.  Beautiful though.

Colorado, and the Rockies?  Wow, every body has to see this before you go.  Didn’t care much for Denver though.  Too crowded.  In spite of the crowding the town did seem rather truck friendly.  The Wal Mart had special parking for commercial trucks.  A place set aside just for us.  A lot of Wal Marts won’t even let us on their lots.  Many do, but there are some that don’t want us in there.  That’s fine.  We’ll just go to Kroger.  I guess Denver has to be truck friendly as there are a lot of trucks going through that place.  We dropped off the Coca Cola syrup to a place there, in Denver, that is based in Rocky Mount, NC.  Imagine that.

I had some philosophical thoughts I was going to lay on you but the Chinese Buffet blocked my thought processes somewhere around my belly button.  Can’t think with a full stomach.  I was probably just going to go on and on about abandoned farm buildings and machinery.  There is a lot of that out there you know.  And I wonder……..at what point does one just walk away from a house, a barn, or equipment that has served one well for so many years.  I will ponder this some more and get back to you.  Perhaps after the sweet and sour chicken, hot and spicy squid, shrimp and sushi wear off.

Oh, did I mention there were still piles of snow along the roads in Denver?  Not for me.  Oh, and Pueblo, CO, so much poverty.  Anybody remember those Public Service Announcements that used to be on TV and how they always said they came from some government office in Pueblo, CO?  Well, this is the place.  Could explain the poverty.  I don’t know.  It was just very sad seeing all of the run down housing and closed businesses.

On a more cheery note, we are on our way to Florida to see the grandkids, woohoo!

Well, time to chill and digest.  Hope all are well.  Good night and God bless.

Up at 5 am to head to Denver.  We can’t see the mountains we parked in front of last night but I feel pretty sure there are some to see as we go north.

We passed through Pueblo, Colorado.  Saddest little town.   The houses were very tiny, stacked on top of each other and very run down.   There wasn’t a city that I saw or any commerce just miles of these tiny houses.   So sad.

Just a few miles down the road and you hit Colorado Springs which is a big metropolis area of ski resorts, huge houses, restaurants, car dealerships.    What a difference just a few miles make.

We got to our first stop and it was a live load which means we sat for over three hours. They told us to go on over to our pick up so at 2:30 we show up and are told they can’t load is until 5.   We have to get the trailer washed out too so we go do that while we wait for 5 o’clock. Back at pick up at 4:30.  Sitting…..   Got call at 5:15 to bring trailer around so they can load it. Sitting………

We were able to get out about 7 o’clock just in time to see his clock read 18 minutes of driving time left.   Great!

We had gone to a TA earlier to get the trailer washed out but there were over 200 trucks there and even parked on the road so we found a Flying J not too far away.   Took a while to park as this was one full too but a guy pulled out right in front of us and we were able to park.  Got a shower, ate a slice of pizza, now time for bed.  Heading to Dodge City by 10 am.

Greg is already asleep.   So goodnight, y’all.

Up at 6 and heading to Colorado with our assortment of syrups.   We have 44,000 pounds of Diet Coke, Sprite, Coke zero, fruit punch, lemonade and mountain blast.   All we need now is some carbonated water and we are set!

I kept seeing these pretty black birds.  At first I thought they were just crows but they have a longer fancy tail and a really pretty song.  Not at all like a crow.  Looked it up and it is a great tailed grackle.

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great-tailed_Grackle/id

I also keep seeing birds around all the overpasses and these little nests stuck up under there with little holes in them.   Looks like it is the cliff swallow.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_cliff_swallow

We may be getting a little goofy going through Texas.   We have turned on Willies Roadhouse on Sirius radio and listening to Marty Robbins, Dottie West, etc.   oh my!

Stopped at a rest area.   This is always a lovely sign to see.   Thankfully we didn’t see any.

Pictures in the rest area.

We made it to Trinidad, Colorado this evening before the time ran out.    What a trip it has been.   We went about 500 miles through Texas.   The Texas landscape changed every few miles.   We would be in trees and lush green grasses and then dry open areas and then rolling hills and then taller hills and buttes.    There were so many wildflowers along the highways in Texas too.   Thousands of yellow, pink, white and purple flowers.    At one point we went through a small dust cloud.   They had plowed up the land on both sides of the road for what looked like cotton and it was so dry that the wind was moving it across the road.   You can see how thick it was in the pictures below.

Then we crossed in to New Mexico – another new state!!   New Mexico was amazing.   The hills and mountains, landscape.  It was all so beautiful.   I took over 270 pictures today.  I had the hardest time trying to figure out which ones to put in the blog tonight.   Some of the mountains you see in New Mexico and the black rocks are all part of a volcanic chain through the area.   It is part of the Capulin Volcano National Park.    See link below.   Who’d have thought there were volcanoes in New Mexico!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capulin_Volcano_National_Monument

Then we got in to the lower part of Colorado and the  mountains through there were awesome as well.   We saw several pronghorn in several spots.    We saw 3 elk on the side of the road but I was so surprised to see them that I didn’t get a chance to get a picture.   They were so close to the road, just standing there eating.   Wow!

This has been one of the prettiest days on the trip.   We go through more of Colorado tomorrow.   I cant wait.   If you all cant find me at some point I will be in the mountains in Colorado.

For now, I am turning in.   Got to go 300 miles by 10 am.    Goodnight, y’all.

DG: Wind, wind, wind.  Good thing I was loaded, the truck that is, or we may have ended up on the side of the road, on our side.  I was quite literally steering into the wind to stay on the road.  Some rain, but nothing serious.  Not like last night in Dallas.  That was a storm.  We Texas panhandle is really beautiful.  This leads right into New Mexico, land of enchantment.  And it truly is.  Just looks spiritual, sky and land.

Tonight we are parked at a rest area facing some mountains.  Can’t wait to see them in the morning.  Tomorrow we go right up the east side of the Rockies and hope we can see Pike’s Peak from the highway.  Will let you know if that happened tomorrow.

Like the lady said, up early so we make Aurora by 10.  Good night and God bless.

Up at 6 and getting on the road.  Texas and Louisiana today!   So far it’s not raining but the sky sure is gloomy.   Looks like we are going right between two storms.   We have been so blessed weather wise.   I think we have missed every major storm around us.

Since we are going through Mississippi it got us thinking about Jerry Clower.   We love to listen to his comedy and have for years.  We used to listen to him for hours on car trips and stuff.   When Gregory was a little boy he was a big fan.  We surprised him one time by taking him to see Jerry in concert.   He was so excited and couldn’t wait to meet him after the concert.   Gregory had just gotten his hair cut that day, which meant shaved real close to his head, and Jerry gave him a dollar for having the best hair cut.   Tickled that boy to pieces.   He kept that dollar and the signed tape for years.

Made it to our stop at Lowes in Texas.  Thankfully it’s a drop and hook so we shouldn’t be here for hours and hours.

Wow.  In and out in less than 30 minutes.  Awesome!   Now we are on our way to Dallas to Coca Cola and heading to Aurora, Colorado.

Got to Coca Cola. What a trip through Dallas.  That was fun.   Yikes!   Now we have to go get a wash out that they didn’t tell us we needed so off we go to do that so we can go back to Coca Cola again to get our load.   Are we having fun yet?

We had sunshine for about an hour today and then this evening we had one of the worst thunderstorms I think we have been in.  You could see the rain moving across the highway in big sheets.   Couldnt hardly see the road except when the lightening light up everything which was quite often.   Wow, what a storm.   Glad it didnt last long.

Turning in.   Talk to you tomorrow.   Goodnight, y’all.

DG:  Called my best friend that I was stationed with in Blytheville.  He lives in Dallas so I wanted to meet up with him even if it was a short visit.  Every other Sunday since we’ve been on the road we have sat all day on Sundays. The one time I wish we were sitting so we could visit more with Doc, we have a load. Oh well. Next time. And there will be a next time. Here’s a shot of all three of us at dinner.

It was a really good visit.

That’s all for now. Had to park in the fuel isle as there were no other spots. Praying they don’t run is off.

Good night and God bless.

Up at 6:30 and getting ready to get on the road. I pulled my Diet Coke out of the fridge, opened it and it exploded all over me and the truck.  After cleaning me and the truck, I poured what was left of the slushie Diet Coke in my plastic jug and immediately knocked it over.  What a way to start the day.   I don’t think I’m quite awake yet.  Glad I’m not driving!  DG: me too.

Around Duncan, South Carolina a lady who works at the Pilot told us to be sure and stop at the Pilot in Commerce Georgia to eat.   She said the restaurant had been taken over by an individual and that the food was good old fashioned comfort food.  So we decided to stop when we went through.   Needless to say, it didn’t live up to the hype.  Greg had the catfish special which was dry and over cooked.   I ordered the open faced turkey sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy.  The turkey was right out of the package slices of turkey you buy in the deli at the grocery store.   It was awful.  After two bites I sent it back.   I wanted actual turkey.   Oh well.  Won’t stop there again.

Getting around Atlanta was a treat again.  It doesn’t matter which way you come from or what time of day the roads are a crowded mess.  I am so glad I don’t have to drive in bar every day.

Sweet Home Alabama.   Stopped at a rest area and saw this.  Awesome!

We went through North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and in to Mississippi today.    That’s probably a record for us for most states in a day.   Going to finish going through Mississippi tomorrow then Louisiana and in to Texas.   This makes a total of 22 states so far just in 80 days.   Now we need some new ones!!   The route today was supposed to go north back to Nashville and then Arkansas, and Oklahoma and then down in to Texas but we wanted to see something other than Tennessee again so we headed south.   Works out great since we haven’t been through Mississippi or Louisiana in a long time.

We have stopped for the night in Forest, Mississippi.  I thought we were southern but the girl at the restaurant tonight kept asking if yeeeaaawww doing okay?   It goes beyond y’all.   Good place to eat.  I had the barbecue ribs since me and fish don’t get along.  Tonight was the seafood buffet of all things.

Well, going to turn in.   Getting up about 6:30 or so.   Need to be in Mount Vernon, Texas by 3 pm.   Goodnight, y’all.

DG:  Sorry about yesterday and not writing.  I was tired, but not from driving. I was wore out from the stress.  Couldn’t get a load.  Then they wanted me to take the trailer to Thermo King to get the refer repaired. The company thought I would be able to leave the trailer there and bobtail to pick up another.  Well, they should have checked with the shop first because when I mentioned leaving the trailer I was told they had no room.  Guess what, we had to wait for it to be repaired.  Another two hours out of my driving time.  We made the best of it though by going to fuel and get supplies at a truck stop nearby. Next a wash out, then to Stanley for a truck load of power tools going to Lowes.

We try to go as far as we can each day with what time we have as determined by the Department of Transportation that august body of bureaucrats who in their infinite wisdom have determined the limits and capabilities of all truck drivers regardless of age, physical condition or stamina.  Annie uses her trucking app to find rest areas and truck stops near our outer limit of travel based on speed limits and time remaining on our DOT clocks. We try to cut as close as possible leaving ourselves about 30 minutes to spare. Well sometimes you have to push it as the distance between rest areas or truck stops are such that the closer one may leave you with an hour or more on your clock, safe but not good enough, and the next one is right at the limit of getting there in time without speeding.  Well, without getting caught.  “Seriously officer, if the government is going to set limits on how far I can go they should at least give me a break on how fast I get there”.  Yea, I don’t see that argument flying.

Long story short we pulled into an unmarked, on the app anyway, truck stop with 6, count ’em “SIX” minutes to spare. Way to go babe. That’s my girl. Keeping things interesting.

We got an added surprise as there is a restaurant, Penn’s, right behind the truck stop.  Parking lot was full, which is a good sign, so we went in. I know I had catfish for lunch but the catfish and shrimp dinner here was so much better.  See below.

Yes that is mayonnaise by the fries. A taste I acquired while stationed in Germany.

One more thought before I close. I figured out why so many people cut in front of my truck while I’m barreling down the highway.  These are unmarked cars driven by DOT officials testing my breaks and reaction time.

Hope you all are well. Good night and God bless

PS:   We wanted to say a big thank you to the guardian angels tonight who were with Gregory today when he fell off the truck while working with a pallet loader.   That could have been a lot worse than a sprained hand.   Thank you Angels!