Some Days Are Better Than Others

After spending 4 hours sitting and waiting and waiting for our trailer to be unloaded in Englewood, CO, we finally got to our next stop which was Budweiser at around 3pm. We picked up our loaded trailer and scaled it and found it was 160 pounds over the limit for our truck, which is 80,000 lbs. If your truck/trailer/load is over its legal weight you can be fined and given a ticket at weigh stations. Budweiser wouldn't take anything off the load so we called our home office and asked what we should do since we had a weigh station coming up within a couple of miles of leaving the Budweiser plant in Ft. Collins. They said to go ahead and chance it and see if they would give us a "grace" overage amount because we're also hauling a refrigerated trailer, with the refrigerator unit weighing quite a bit. So we said a prayer and asked God for some help and left.  As we approached the weigh station and drove over the scales in the road we held our breath to see if we would get a signal transmitted to our onboard unit to, "pass on by - no need to stop" or "whoa, why don't you come see us."  The pass-on-by signal came through and we let out a sign of relief and as we drove by the station, it appeared that they had just closed because there was a line of trucks in the lanes still waiting to be processed. We might have been the first truck to pass by after they closed. A coincidence? I think not!  That was the good weigh station experience for the day.

Now, here's the bad. The next station in Colorado is located halfway up Lookout Mountain as you held toward Veil Pass (elevation 11,062 ft). I was driving and I was taxing every bit of my limited experience as the approach to Veil Pass consists of miles and miles of extremely steep upgrades and downgrades. The upgrades are so steep that with a fully loaded trailer the fastest ol' Clifford could go was 20mph. The downgrades were equally grueling because you are trying to maintain at a slow enough speed not to go careening off the mountainside and keep your rpms below 2000 at the same time. Did I mention it was snowing and compact ice on the roadway?  Anyway, back to the weigh station. I drove over the scales and we held our breath again, but unfortunately, we received the signal that they wanted us to "come on in for a spell."  So, I slowed down and prepared to exit the freeway but the signage for the weigh station exit wasn't clear. Unlike 99 percent of the weigh stations in the US who have their own designated exits, this particular weigh station used the exit for the town that was located right there. Oh, know! We sailed right on by the weigh station.

I didn't know what to do.  Should I stop on the freeway and back down the on-ramp of the weigh station? Probably not a good idea.  Should I take the next exit and turn around and go all the way down the mountain and back up again?  Couldn't see doing that. We kept watching for sirens and red and blue lights in our mirrors but none appeared. So, after being on the road for a little over a month I'm already a criminal! We don't know what the consequences will be. Maybe Watkins & Shepard will get a notice of my infraction. I'll probably get put in prison for running from a weigh station. Do you think they can take my license? Oh, well, I'll keep you posted on this continuing saga. If I get sent up to the big house, can someone bake a cake with a file in it for me?

I forgot to tell you about the mass suicide we came upon last night as we were driving in Wyoming.  We were heading into Laramie and noticed a semi pulled over to the side of the road so we slowed down to go around him. Just before reaching the semi we saw at least 4 deer, maybe even 5, that were laying dead on the shoulder. It looked as though this group of deer darted out in front of not only this semi we were approaching but we saw two other semis stopped further ahead.  At least two of the semis had front-end damage, headlights broken, and a 3rd semi driver was examining the fuel tanks on his truck, as though a deer might have gone under and maybe did some damage in that location.  It was all very sad!

We need to drive all night and have this load to San Diego by 2pm tomorrow.  Like I said, some days are better than others! 

4 Degrees is Just Too Cold!

Yes, it was 4 degrees in the mountains of southern Utah last night as we made our way from Las Vegas where the temp was around 53 degrees to Salt Lake City. The last time I remember feeling that cold was when I was a child growing up in Danville, IL. My sister Becky and I had received new ice skates for Christmas one year. There was a favorite lake in town where you could skate and meet and talk with your friends from school. Horseshoe Lake was located right next to the hospital where Becky and I were both born. The smell of burning wood filled the air from small fires located at several little inlets around the lake. Skaters warmed themselves a bit before braving the chilly air and icy rude awakenings on their "bums" when one failed to make the turn or caught an edge on the sometimes choppy surface of the frozen lake or when one of the boys careened into you as they were racing with their friends. I can remember taking a deep breath and feeling as though every bit of moisture in my lungs had instantly frozen - something like a "brain freeze" when one has swallowed a particularly cold treat and you get that blinding pain between your temples. Well, that's how cold it was last night, which would have been okay if I'd gotten to go ice skating on Horseshoe Lake, but alas, no lake - no ice skates - and no time! 

Another Blown Tire

This is our 2nd blown trailer tire this month. The first happened on a freeway in downtown Los Angeles, and now this one on I-40 in New Mexico. When they blow it sounds like a muffled mini-bomb going off and as you can see from the picture it leaves a good-size hole in the tire. Apparently a piece of the tread flew off of this tire and sheared off our mudflap so we spent a few hours night before last getting the tire replaced and getting a new mudflap welded on. Did you know it's illegal to drive without mudflaps? I learn something new everyday.

Earlier in the day we were on I-40 about 50 miles from Oklahoma City. We had been seeing evidences of the big snowstorm that we'd only heard about previously on the Sirius weather station. We were hoping that the massive snow accumulations would have been "managed" by the time we got there and for the most part they were.  However, the layers of ice on the roadway had not been. It was anyone's guess which lane you should be in as it seemed the right hand lane would be the most cleared for a period of time and then the "hammer" lane would be better. My belly jiggled like a bowl full of jelly (oops, too much information) due to the ride as we continously went from pavement to patches of 2-3" deep of ice patches. The freeway was busy with cars of families returning home from Grandma's house and 18-wheelers trying to get their cargo to the next destination as quickly as possible. Unfortunately the 4-wheelers didn't seem to fare very well as the pictures below indicate. If they began to slide on the ice I guess they would put on their brakes and that's all she wrote...they were in the ditch. There must have been at least 50-60 cars that were left-overs from the big storm and then fresh ones from that days lack of experience in driving. It was a little scary seeing all of these spin-outs all around us -- and YES, once again I was driving through the ice storm. 

And then we ended the day with yet another beautiful sunset!

The Meaning of Christmas

I'm finding that driving for 10 hours or sitting in the passenger seat for the same length of time you can liken yourself to Charles Dicken's Tiny Tim, "somehow he gets thoughtful, sitting by himself so much..." and you find you now have the luxury of exploring to a deeper level many subjects that you may have only glazed over in the past. I'm ashamed to admit that the subject I'm referring to at this time is the meaning of Christmas. It's not that I haven't thought about the meaning before or that I've just had an epiphany that it is more than just presents, candy canes, or tinsel. I know that at the heart of Christmas is Jesus, pure and simple. Without Jesus at the center, the celebration has a God-shaped hole in it, just as a non-believer's heart has a God-shaped hole in it. Filling that void with presents or parties just leaves one deeper in debt or hung-over.

My "deeper" thinking has led me to believe that Satan is also at the heart of Christmas. Before you burn me at the stake, let me lay out my reasoning. Why did God choose a Christmas at all?  He could have written off the human race as a lost cause and have been well within His creative rights to do so. If I don't like the way something I'm sculpting looks I pound my fist into it, twist the clay with my fingers with a little too much zeal due to the frustration I am feeling at the time, and just start all over again. Why didn't God do that to his human race? The obvious answer and probably the main reason is God's love for us. But I think that maybe another reason for Christmas has to do with Satan. It's foreign for me to put Christmas and Satan in the same sentence, but I think there is reason to do so.

In scripture we see that Satan loves to accuse God. He accuses God of being a tyrannt, a manipulator, a god who cares only about himself. Since God created Satan, why didn't He just take him out...you know the saying, "I brought you into this world and I can take you out." Why didn't God just get rid of this problem of the rogue angels who broke God's heart with their rebellion? Because God is God. God is Not a tyrannt, a manipulator or a god who cares only about himself. If He had destroyed Satan then everything Satan had said about Him would have been true. Because God is God, He did the only thing God could have done. If Satan truly believed what he was saying about God, what would be the last thing Satan would have expected God to do? It certainly wouldn't have been to sacrifice His one and only Son by sending Him to earth to pay the ultimate price for human sinfulness. Nor would Satan have expected God-Jesus to accept that role with its pre-determined outcome. And what if Satan could have imagined such a thing happening would he have guessed the form in which it would take place?  A human baby born to a teenage girl of common birth, with an earthly father whose only claim to fame was a distant connection to the line of David? No, I don't imagine Satan had any idea what God was up to, nor how it was going to culminate at the foot of Golgotha. If Satan believed what he was saying about God, the last thing he would have expected is that God would pay the price He did to reconcile His creation back to Himself.
On that cold and starry night so many years ago in Bethlehem, God did the only thing that God could do - "For God loved the world, that whosoever will believe in Him (Jesus), shall have eternal life."

My prayer and desire for all who have not experienced the love of God in your life is that you won't begin another year without the Lord as your personal savior. Jesus has paid the price of redemption for each and every one of us. All we must do is accept that gift that He offers. I'm adding a link to the Billy Graham webpage on How To Become a Christian. I believe it has the most complete and clearest explanation of how to accept this gift of salvation. He has done a much better job of explaining it than I ever could. If you would like to talk to me about this please feel free to email me or call me at 425-923-8495.  May God bless you!

http://www.billygraham.org/SH_HowtobecomeaChristian.asp

I Drove in Rush Hour Traffic Across the George Washington Bridge Between NYC and New Jersey!

It was an experience I'll never forget -- driving I-95 between New York City and New Jersey, crossing the George Washington Bridge on our way to Sayreville, New Jersey. Manhattan, Queens, and the Bronxs was located to our left. It was harrowing and thrilling. Rows of semis driving just inches from each other as we jockeyed to avoid first one accident where a car "merged" right into the front wheel of an 18-wheeler and then a stalled semi after that.  The CB was alive with accents from the area and languages I couldn't easily identify. One trucker whose testosterone must have needed a release stated that he wasn't going to count the time he spent crawling along as on-duty time, that his company was going to have to pay for this, and bemoaned that he was supposed to be on his way to his sisters in "Joy-sey" where his "old lady" was waiting for him. I also found it surprising that there were a couple of  "peacemaker" truckers who cautioned everyone to just calm down and take it easy. That skewed my preconceptions of what truckers would be like in the "Big Apple.". Of course there was one trucker who took offense at being told what to do and proceeded to monopolize the airwaves with his brawdy singing of some song we won't delve into any deeper.

When we came up to the tollbooth where we were suppose to take a ticket that we would then give to the last tollbooth stop and pay for the privilege of using the bridge, we mistakenly got into the wrong lane and so when I arrived at the last stop I didn't have a ticket to present. I told the tollbooth attendant that we were "hicks" from Montana and he just looked at me like I was an alien from outer space - maybe to him it was the same difference. Oh, well, I smiled and said, "Have a Merry Christmas!"  I think I heard, "Baw, humbug!" as we drove out of sight. 

We Highly Recommend Upstate New York and Vermont

We had a fantastic day driving through upstate New York. We delivered to a company in Syracuse, New York and on the way to the freeway we drove through the historic area of Syracuse and the architecture was absolutely breathtaking. It is painful to drive by these incredible buildings and not have the time or place to pull over or even get a good picture, but you don't just park a 70' plus vehicle anywhere.

Then we made our way to Burlington, Vermont. I could easily spend a month in Vermont, exploring all of the little villages and towns.  Many of the houses look like they must have when they were built, sometime around the Revolutionary War period. Its interesting to note the small square footage of the original houses. Most of them have added additions and unfortunately not all of them stayed true to the architecture of that time. The homeowners who did pay attention and meshed the later additions with the original design have an investment they can be very proud of. When you add wreaths on the doors and candles in the windows during the Christmas season you have a Thomas Kinkeade picture come alive before your eyes.

And I could go on for days about the historical downtowns of these little villages. It actually hurt to have to drive through without stopping to explore but I'm keeping a file of places we want to go back to when we're in a car or camper. I think the churches would stand out as my favorites. We saw white clapboard churches with the graveyards located next to them, brick and stone elegantly built Episcopal, Catholic and Presbyterian churches throughout the region. The majority of these small towns have at least one large, magnificent stone structure as their courthouse and government building and usually stands at the center of the downtown area.

I loved the Northeast and we were in every state except Maine and Delaware but I think I would really like to see it in the spring or fall. Temperatures got down to 7 degrees in Boston, Massachusetts and that is just too cold for me. Shannon and I unloaded 10 pallets of floor tiles in Burlington, VT while it was snowing and the temp was in the teens and by the time we were done we couldn't feel our fingers or toes. But, you know, even in those conditions I realized I was having so much fun climbing in and out of the back of the trailer, hooking the towropes onto the pallets so Shannon could pull them to the back of the trailer so he could forklift them into their warehouse, wearing my orange vest and stopping traffic so Shannon could maneuver the truck and trailer into and out of this itty bitty tiny weeny little warehouse area and just being with my best friend. There have been several times when I've wondered what alien inhabited my body and made me make the life changes I have made over the past few months but when all is said and done, at the end of every exhausting and sometimes frustrating day, I am a much happier person living this nomadic life at this time. I don't see myself taking this on as my long-term, decades long profession, but for now, it is exactly what I should be doing. 

Glorious Sunrise

It was my turn to drive first today so at 5:00am Shannon's alarm clock went off and he started nudging me to get up and get going. He wanted me to have the truck moving by 5:25am, but with the temperature in the teens and our little heater in the truck not working well, it just didn't happen as quickly as that, but I did pull "Clifford, our Big Red Truck," out of the truck stop at 5:35am, which I thought was pretty good. We were in New Mexico on our way to the cold and snowy northeastern states of New York, Vermont, and Massachusetts. I'm very excited because I've never been to Vermont or Massachusetts so this will truly be a first for me.

As I drove east on I-40 the sunrise began to take form and eventually exploded on the scene. The word that kept coming to mind was "glorious." I thought of all the mornings in the past that I have missed the sunrise but it didn't matter if I was there or not, they still happened. I'm sure that many of them could have been described with that same word, "glorious."

As I stared at the magnificent display of beauty dawning before me, it occurred to me that God is like the sunrise. Every morning God, clothed in His glory and splendor, wants nothing more than to begin the day with me, but I don't show up. I miss out on an encounter with the One who made the sunrise because I slept in. God is faithful and is waiting to be with me each day, just as faithful as the sun is to rise.

If you haven't experienced a sunrise lately or met with God in those hours of the dawning of a new day, I encourage you to do so. It had been years since I'd witnessed the "glorious" sunrise and experienced a special quiet time with my "glorious" God at the same time. I've been missing out on something very special.

The Twelve Days of Truckin'

Merry Christmas
and may the God of Creation
be the Center of Your Celebration!

THE TWELVE DAYS OF TRUCKIN'

On the first day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
A Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the second day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the third day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the fourth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the fifth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the seventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Seven gallons of high octane, supercharged JAVA,
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the eighth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Eight Bruce Willis movies,
Seven gallons of high octane, supercharged JAVA,
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the ninth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Nine bags of jalapeno sunflower seeds,
Eight Bruce Willis DVDs,
Seven gallons of high octane, supercharged JAVA,
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the tenth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Ten bottles of No - Doz,
Nine bags of jalapeno sunflower seeds,
Eight Bruce Willis DVDs,
Seven gallons of high octane, supercharged JAVA,
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the eleventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Eleven bottles of Unisom,
Ten bottles of No - Doz,
Nine bags of jalapeno sunflower seeds,
Eight Bruce Willis DVDs,
Seven gallons of high octane, supercharged JAVA,
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits,
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Twelve cases of 5 Hour Energy,
Eleven bottles of Unisom,
Ten bottles of No - Doz,
Nine bags of jalapeno sunflower seeds,
Eight Bruce Willis DVDs,
Seven gallons of high octane, supercharged JAVA,
Six pepperoni sticks,
Five Johnny Cash CDs,
Four gallons of Pennzoil Gold,
Three PowerDrive 2000 Inverters,
Two Firestik Antennae kits
And a Garmin NUVI 465T.

What a life!

Yellow Snow, Trucker Style

Okay, we're going to address an unpleasant topic and you may want to ask the children to leave the room. When I first climbed into this truck I had such high standards -- I took a shower EVERY day of my life, I washed my hair EVERY day, and using the facilities meant there actually was a facility to use. After only a few short weeks my standards have hit an all-time low. I actually found myself looking at the growth of Shannon's beard to determine how many days its been since our last stop at one of those deluxe truck stop showers.

Since we're all adults, I don't have to tell you that a natural biological process of the human body is that when you take fluids in, fluids must come out. Right? There are two hard and fast rules in trucking that I've observed thusfar; 1) Truckers have the need to consume massive amounts of highly caffeinated beverages (super charged coffee, MountainDew, whatever their poison may be); and 2) once a trucker gets on the road, he does not want to get off the road until his next fuel stop. Did you know that you can get from Seattle to Los Angeles on a single tank of fuel in these babies? To date, the largest container we've seen a trucker filling with his favorite java was a one gallon jug. You do the math, one gallon of coffee, 11 hours in the truck, something's got to give!

So, just a word to the wise, never, ever assume that the full bottle of Mountain Dew or container of apple juice thrown carelessly and ILLEGALLY on the side of the road is actually what it seems to be.

Modern Cowboys

My husband Shannon mentioned to me the other day that truckers think of themselves as modern cowboys. I've thought about this over the past week and after watching and listening to our fellow drivers I would have to agree that this comparison is true in many ways. Each evening these modern cowpokes pull their 53+ feet long  "horses" into a number of corrals strategically placed along major interstate trails. These corrals have names such as T/A, Pilot, Petro and the Flying J Travel Plaza.  Each evening these stops fill up with tired, dirty and hungry cowboys who are in need of rest and refreshment after a long day of herding their goods from one destination to the next. At these stops they can get a "homecooked" comfort meal, restock their supplies, get feed/fuel or new "shoes" for their rides, and even a hot shower with soap and towel provided. Some of these cowboys are true loners. They don't seek out others nor give away anything of themselves. Their best friends are their ponies. Other drivers need to sit around the campfire, which today looks like the counter and booths in the 24 hour restaurants located in each of these stops.  They swap stories with others who just came in off the trail. They get into "pissin" contests with each other telling their tales of unparalleled abilities to maneuver their loads in any kind of perilous weather condition or unthinkably tight constraints, they complain about their foremen and the owners of the ranch they work for, and of course flirt with anything that passes for a female. The modern equivalent of the saloon are the taverns, topless bars and exotic dance clubs and casinos that can usually be found along the trail or within walking distance of the "corrals."

There are even modern equivalents to the saloon girl. They are called "lot lizards" and they roam the stops, knocking on the doors of trucks, selling their wares. It is as sad today to see these wasted lives as I'm sure it was for the saloon girls in years past.  Today's cowboy for the most part still accepts fellow drivers as instant members into this elect group. Any group has bad apples and good ones and the same is true for these modern cowboys. The CB radio allows for communication between the cowpokes within a certain distance. On a high level, this communication tool is used to alert fellow drivers of hazards on the trail, getting information on where the next corral is located, disclosure of the location of a "smoky," and sometimes just connecting with another human voice. Unfortunately, the bad apples are also able to push that little button and loudly broadcast their low IQ and crudeness for all the world to hear.

Now here is one of the differences from the past to today. Yesteryears cowboys held convictions and if needed they weren't afraid to make their stand, whether it be for the honor of a woman or a fellow cowboy. If it was the right thing to do they did it. Today's cowboys have lost that courage that earmarked them as mustangs and a force to be reckoned with. Yesterday's cowboys came with a belief system; today's come with a "live and let live" attitude, even if that means a fellow cowpoke is ridiculed for the color of his skin. In my short time in this arena I have met a few true modern cowboys. Happily, I am married to one. Two others I met at Watkins & Shepard. One is an instructor for W/S. Dick is a long drink of water, way over six feet tall, slow to speak, fast to help, and absolutely true to his convictions. The same can be said of Dennis, a fellow W/S driver. It has been my privilege to meet and get to know these modern day examples of the best of what it means to be a cowboy.

The other big difference that I've observed in this world of maverick living is the entry of women into this select group. As I was driving last night three rigs passed me in a row, all driven by women. Wives are joining their husbands on the trail and an increasing number of single gals are saddling up, and I think this will have a dramatic change on this longheld male-dominated way of life. Will it be a good change - I hope so - but a change nonetheless. I, for one, will mourn the passing of  the mustangs of years past; who let their feats and courage speak for themselves, who walked tall, and slept the honest sleep of the fearless and brave.

Signing off for now - Truckin' Tweety (aka Robyn) and Batman (aka Shannon).

Miscellaneous Pictures

We enjoyed the most beautiful sunset today in Oklahoma. I would take a shot and then the colors would reach a new level of intensity or the clouds would make the smallest of adjustments and change the whole scheme and I ended up taking about a dozen pictures. How could anyone believe that this was all just an "accident" when it is so obvious that an intelligent Being had to be the Creator of this majestic palette for the eye.

First thing this morning we drove by another semi accident. It looked as though the driver probably fell asleep while driving and drove into the median and the truck and trailer tipped, spilling all of its goods. It didn't look like there was contact with any other vehicle or object, other than good ole' mother earth. The truck you see in these pictures is one that has been called in to transport as much of the goods as possible from the tipped trailer, which is in pieces behind it.

We took this picture for Gerard and Judi --

Happy Memories!

Thought this was a cool picture with the jet taking off from Atlanta International and the incredible clouds.

This flag is HUGE and proudly flies

over McDonough, Georgia!

Pentecostal Church National Headquarters

in Little Rock, Arkansas

Let Me Show You Around Our New Home

Some of you who know me have been rather surprised that I would give up my home and go on the road in a semi - come to think of it, what was I thinking? It has been a radical lifechange for both Shannon and myself. I've been amused at myself that no matter where I am I seem to try to "nest" and make things more comfy. While at Watkins I was always tidying up the shared kitchen area and much to the dismay of one trucker, throwing away food that looked old. The rule was if you didn't have your name on your food it was fair game to be eaten or thrown away. Well, I was cleaning up and making room in the refrigerator and cupboards for the next class of students to come in and I threw away a couple of hotdogs that were "nameless" and looked old to me but apparently this trucker was planning to eat them that night before he left. He was a rather large man and I didn't want him to be mad at me so I bought him 4 chili cheese hotdogs and fries from Dairy Queen. I was told he could be heard muttering, "Women! Everything was fine until SHE got here."  Oh, well, you win some, you lose some.

Since I've joined Shannon I've been "nesting" away, trying to find the best way for two grown people to live in a space built for two grown canaries! I think I've come up with some good ideas and it seems to be working so far, but ask me in about 6 months how it's going. 

Here is our HOME OFFICE. It is complete with automatic window washers, centralized climate controls, fully computerized data control center, two warning devices (one on the steering apparatus and one located in the upper left quadrant which is the one that children traveling in other cars indicate that they would like us to blow repeatedly), Sirius radio, Garmin GPS, and beverage recepticals. Shannon and I were concerned that we would both want to work in the HOME OFFICE at the same time but it has worked out that whenever he is working there, I am doing something else, and visa versa.  Amazing how it all worked out! 

We move on to our LIVING ROOM. This is where we sit or read or sit or work on the computer or sit or take pictures or sit or get up and get things for the person in the Home Office (what's with that?) or sit. You get the idea. If you look closely you can see one of our special treasures sitting on top of the dash area. It was on top of my going away cake from our Small Group from Snohomish Community Church - Thanks Skip, the Dodrills, and the Seefrieds!  We love and miss you all so much. 

So, here is our bedroom. The bunk is 38 inches wide and 80 inches long (which is good for Shannon who is 74" long). At the foot of the bed I have installed a spring-pressured curtain rod where we drape our extra blankets, since from one day to the next we have gone from temperatures in the high 70s to temperatures in the teens or colder the next day. We need to keep the blankets close and easily accessible.

We move on to our LIBRARY. Here we find books I'm reading for research for one reason or another and our personal finance records are housed here, too. This picture is a little outdated because we no longer store our computer in this location because on a particularly bumpy road the other day it bounced right off and onto the floor. Thankfully nothing was hurt and now the bed serves as the holder of the computer during the day.

Here we come to the KITCHEN. We have a microwave, refrigerator, and a 2 qt crockpot. I've had fun trying to come up with creative ways to cook using the crockpot. I've done the usual things like beef stew and chicken & rice, but the more unusual dishes have been Malt-o-Meal for breakfast and hamburger pie (where I used instant potatoes that I cooked in a ziploc bag). I use disposable crockpot bags that I find at Wal-Mart so no messes to clean up. Oh, look, our garbage receptacle is strategically placed to allow quick clean-out of the refrigerator when needed. 

I have a dream pantry...look at all my storage! 

What girl wouldn't be thrilled with a walk-by closet.  Yes, I walk-by our closet many times a day which allows for constant evaluation of our current style trendiness. If t-shirts and blue jeans are in, we are all over it, baby!

This is our state-of-the-art "DOS" communication center. We keep in constant contact with headquarters and receive up-to-the-minute data concerning our trips, safety, and countless other important communiques.

Hey, if you believe that I have a fine piece of waterfront property in Waterville I want to sell you!

I've saved the best for last...our most treasured possessions - pictures of our grandchildren located on the backs of our visors so that we see them every single day

I mustn't forget the hand crocheted eagle that Madison gave Grandpa when he first began driving. He's had it on the dashboard from day one of this new experience.  Then there is the beautiful flower arrangement that Bailey gave to us to brighten our home. Everyday I look at it and remember how proud Bailey was when she gave us this beautiful gift.

And that brings us to the end of our home tour. We hope you enjoyed it and maybe learned a little more than you ever wanted to know about us!  What was that?  The bathroom?  You're asking about the bathroom?  Well, that would put you astronomically way over the top of knowing more than you ever wanted to know about us. Let me just say that when you are relaxing on the throne of your choice tonight, please say a prayer of thanks to God above.

With that lovely thought we will say farewell for now. 

Happy Birthday to our Beautiful and Brilliant Madison Elizabeth (who turns 5 today!)

Happy 5th Birthday,  Madison!  You are such a joy to Grandpa and me. When we're together I can't wait to hear the next silly thing you say or see the next silly look you give to make me smile. I love spending time with you and watching you grow. God was certainly having a terrific day when He made you. Grandpa and I hope you have a great time with your friends at your birthday party and we wish we could be there for it. Grandpa and I are sending you hugs all day from Dalton, Georgia. Watch the mail for something special from us, too. We are so proud of you, Miss Madison.  Love - the G's.

Ignorance is Alive and Well in North Carolina

As I was driving south on I-85 today, not far from Charlotte, North Carolina, I began to hear chatter about a slowdown coming up in a mile or so. Sure enough around the next bend the brake lights began to light up the roadway as the cars and trucks began slowing down and eventually came to a halt. Whenever this happens, the CB radio also lights up with predictably drawl statements and equally predictably drawl and unimaginative comebacks. The majority of these exchanges are harmless if not just ridiculous but what I heard this afternoon was so vicious that I was ashamed to call myself a truck driver.

A voice came over the CB that was easily identified as belonging to an Aftican American man who asked if anyone knew if the backup went all the way to Charlotte.The next "good ole' boy" who got on the CB said, "Hey why don't you come up here we're burning a cross in the median."  I was shocked to hear such blatant racism. The black man just ignored the remark and kept asking if anyone knew the status of the slowdown. I was enraged at the audacity of this nameless coward who had attacked a fellow driver because of the color of his skin. Unfortunately, I couldn't come up with a good retort until long after the event had happened. I felt like a coward for not coming to the driver's defense. I know that if this ever comes up again I will be ready with some comebacks, i.e., "why don't you crawl back into the cesspool you came from - you give truckers a bad name!"

How Come It's My Turn to Drive When There Is an Ice Storm?

I wish we could have gotten better pictures of this accident. This 18-wheel truck and trailer jackknifed so drastically that the truck (which you can't see in any of these pictures) is embedded into the other side of the trailer. We didn't hear whether or not the driver was injured but these trucks are made pretty tough and seem to protect drivers more than you would expect.

Then there were several automobiles that tangled up with each other and the guardrails. People really need to SLOW down when it's icy. We had one semi zoom by us on the left and the CB lit up with all the other truckers voicing their opinions of that driver (and none of the comments were charitable). As we crested the hill you should have heard the CB chatter when the drivers saw that that same driver was now in the ditch and frantically trying to free himself from the snow slush. None of those comments were charitable either. FYI - never let your children listen to a CB radio!

It always seems to be my turn to drive when these ice storms are happening. Shannon always says, "It's good practice." I think he's secretly listening to the weather channel. Although I would imagine that it may be harder to be the passenger during these times, especially when I tease him and keep asking, "Now, do I hit the brake or the clutch if we start to slide?"

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GREENSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA

We spent the night in the freight companies parking lot in Altoona, PA. On our way here we drove through a couple of little Pennsylvania towns and saw some beautiful old buildings. Again, these pictures aren't the best but you'll get the idea.

Happy Birthday to our Beautiful Sweeties - Annabelle and Bailey!

Bailey and Anna turned 9 years old today! Is time speeding up? Is there a warp in the timewarp? How could 9 years have gone by so fast? I was privileged enough to be allowed in the operating room to witness their births - first Anna and then little Bailey. Well, they were both very little. I affectionately called them Cashew and Peanut. Even though Bailey was the smaller of the two it was Anna who had more trouble with her oxygen. Her parents were grieved when they had to leave Anna in the hospital for additional care but it wasn't long before Anna joined her twin sister at home. We are so proud of them and they have given us more moments of joy than we could ever number. I agree with their parents - they are truly amazing and precious gifts from our Lord.

Happy Birthday, Cashew (Annabelle Rose) and Peanut (Bailey Marie)!

On Our Way to Pennsylvania!

We left Mira Loma, CA on Wed, Dec 2nd from a freight terminal on our way to Altoona, PA for our first stop and Richmond, VA to unload the rest of the miscellaneous cargo we're hauling. We left Los Angeles where the temperature was 82 degrees and drove I-15 up to Barstow and then took I-40 all the way to Oklahoma City, OK. We encountered an ice storm just outside of Albuquerque, NM and witnessed several wrecks after the fact, and watched one person nearly kill herself in real time. She wasn't paying attention and she just missed a head-on with the end of a guardrail. As it was, the car careened into the snow-covered median for approximately 100 yards where she came to rest not far from a very nasty drop-off. She must have been going at least 45 mph when all of the traffic ahead of her came to a dead stop -- and she didn't. I was driving during this ice storm and when I took an exit to fuel, I slid our big rig a little bit before bringing it back under control. If I didn't need to go to the bathroom before then, I certainly did after!

We spent last night in the coolest rest area in Conway, Missouri. Each of the picnic areas had a different building motif. The attendant at the rest area said it was a prototype and that Missouri was hoping to build additional "themed" areas. It was really a fun place and if the temperature hadn't been in the 20s, I would have enjoyed spending more time there - maybe this summer!

We drove through St. Louis this morning. As you can see Shannon got the St. Louis Arch and me in the same picture - how cool is that?! My brother Michael lives in Afton, MO, and we plan to give him a call and try to have dinner and spend a little time with him and Sandy the next time we travel through St. Louis on a weekend. I hope it is real soon!