Do you have a ritual you do that you would like too share??
 

i'll start.....The towles in the showers at truck stops and hotels. I inspect them CAREFULLY for HAIRS!! I never did this till one day i got out of the shower and dried my face and to my HORRER was a pubic hair :shock: I was sick.....from that day on I inspect every towle and washrag BEFORE I use it!!

anyone else care to share something that maybe others dont think about??

tootie

Good topic for those new guys like me who need to learn all these little things about life on the road (though the towel is common sense really). One thing I'm having trouble with and maybe someone can help, is I take a nice clean shower and back in the truck and an hour later my back is sweating against the seat. I bought baby powder but that stuff gets everywhere. I saw some monkey ass thing in the truck stop but just the name and it doesn't seem legitimate.

I have cloth seats so I'm thinking they have covers or something but I wasn't sure. I've been meaning to ask but I didn't want to start a new thread over that so I guess I'll ask here.

Guess I will be packing towles next time home....I always wear flip flops too. Never really thought about towles except the hair thing....I cant eat at the buffet either and am getting to dislike eating in truck stops and restraunts all together.

I we get our truck we are looking at with the 86" sleeper we will be eating out of the truck full time :)

tootie

One more thing....I NEVER take the top lid for coffee....and we just get hot water (costs about .20 or so for the cup) and then we bought instant coffee, sugar and creamer. This way we dont have to pay over a buck each for coffee or tea anymore.

We dont have an inverter to pull a coffee maker or the room to put one.

so this works just fine.

tootie

Some truckstops coffee isnt that bad like at pilo you can fill any size cup for 99c. Towels and shower shoes are a must. I ea ou of m truck 80% of the time if you learn to use it those little lunch box heaters. Are awesome for cooking. I cook bacon eggs and biscuits in mine. As well as small roasts and cans of soup ect.

I use my own fluffy towels and wash cloths. I'd never consider using the ones in the truckstop! :shock: I also agree with never using the top lid at a fountain or coffee machine. Nasty stuff there! I guess my routine is using just the tip of my little finger for pulling open the restroom doors. Honestly, I'd rather use gloves, but that seems a bit excessive. Why don't more places have push-open doors? Most of these guys never wash their hands and then I have to grab the same handle that they just used to open a 500lb door? Blech! :roll:

Use the paper you use to dry your hands to open the door....then throw it in the trash on the way out.

there are more germs on the faucets

There is no reason to be so afraid of germs. We need some of them to survive. But I agree, there are more than we need out there. I have seen people leave the restroom without washing their hands and then go straight to the buffet. I usually stay away from the buffet, as well. I don't know where some of these people were raised. :shock:

I flush toilets with my shoe if I can. Sorry if you use your hands, as I am further dirtying the handle. Remember though, how many people lay wicked duece (thats slang for "poop") and then go wash their hands and then go back to flush the handle? hah! Thought so 8)

If I can get a paper towel to use on the door handle I will, then make a Kobe shot into the trash can :)

I usually go park after fueling instead of pulling up. Thats my thing. I'm not out in the truck for 20 minutes, more like 2. Never caught any flack from a fuel attendant or cashier.

I never touch anything in a public restroom you never know who didn't wash their hands

[quote="merrick4"]One thing I'm having trouble with and maybe someone can help, is I take a nice clean shower and back in the truck and an hour later my back is sweating against the seat.

Merrick,

That's a common problem. You have to cool off before getting in the truck. Powder doesn't work too good once your wet. Put it on dry.

A couple things you can do is lift you shirt and let the air cool your back OR turn on the A/C and let the air go up your sleeve and around your back OR stick a paper towel in the back of your shirt then take it out once it's moist.

I just carry a mid sized travel mug and the dish soap I use to clean my windows... squirt a little in the cup, go wash the mug (or if the t/s people are really nice and it's the odd ball time I'm in the restaurant, have them throw it through the dishwasher) - then a clean cup with no worries about lids and whatnot for my coffee.

I have to say though, the instant is a good idea, but coffee is one of the things I really didn't complain about paying for. I tried getting one of those beverage heater deals that run on 12v to make instant with... it was more of a pain that it was worth. I figured I was eating in my truck most of the time, I didn't mind paying a buck or two for a hot cup of coffee in the morning.

I always parked between British trucks.... Guarantees your mirrors are still there in the morning

I use a "bathroom kit", a small travel bag with every goodie to help me get out of a public restroom alive and alone (no germ friends thank you)
I will admit that life has gotten a lot better since I have a larger sleeper with self contained mini apartment, but when I have to use the public facilities, out comes the "kit"

well lets see, I pull up to fuel island, get out of truck and go inside and dilly dally around, then go use restroom, go out to truck and pump fuel, one tank at a time, after tanks are fuel I then wash windows and lights, open hood and dilly dally around, then pull up and go inside and dilly dally somemore, use restroom again...then I get into truck and drive around lot 3 to 4 times lookin for that hard to back in spot nobody wants, then I park in middle of lot and wait for more trucks pulling in then I start to back up, then pull up, then back another 2 feet, then pull up, then back then up then finally I shut truck off....

I really see this routine alot, I don't do it but it seems like everyone else does...

Just to make you all even MORE paranoid about using public restrooms, I dispense paper towels BEFORE I wash my hands, then wash up, grab the paper towel, shut off the faucet with the paper towel, use the paper towel to dispense more paper towel, dry my hands, and use the paper towel to exit the restroom.

I HATE restrooms with air dryers, as they are doing nothing but blowing hot, bacteria infested air on your hands, and getting it up to a decent breeding temperature before doing so.

I do the same thing !!!

That's Genius. I never thought to do that. I usually just do the whole elbow thing. Funny thing is I don't know where you people are when I'm in the restroom; seems like I'm the only "wierdo" doing everything possible to not touch anything. It never ceases to amaze me watching people wash their hands and then shut the dirty faucet off.

I was in a W. Virginia rest stop a while back on 77 I believe just south of Ohio, and they had this wheel thing to get soap on your hands. That is you had to roll your palm on the same wheel as thousands of other people. Stupidest thing I ever saw. Barely any soap came out. I ended up getting a paper towel and rolling the wheel as much I could til enough soap built up.

Well, I prefer the blow driers, as they are very easy to use.

Just follow these simple steps, and you'll have no trouble at all!!

Step1.
Push button to activate air dryer.

Step2.
Hold hands underneath the air vent until fan stops blowing.

Step3.
Wipe hands on pants.

I'm not sure of the name of the truck stop, but it's on 95 just a little south of Richmond, it's been there only a couple years now, but they have everything in the bathroom hands free, except for opening the door, hands free flush, sink, and paper towels, definately was a welcome change when i happened upon that place. I've been back driving local now for a few years, so maybe there's some more of these "hands free" truck stops popping up?

LOL, I do the same thing Rev. You just never know where somebody has had their fingers,.....yukkk!!

I'm also guilty of flushing the toilet with my foot. Then I grab some TP and open the slide lock with that enroute to the sink.

Well I am glad to see I am not just plain crazy!! I hate public restrooms...I watched a thing on 20/20 about them and the blow dryer being the worst place for germs (worse than the toilet and floor) :shock: is true. It is a breeding ground for germs.

I got a foot fungus even though I wear shower shoes and the doc told me I was lucky that was the only thing I have caught. I now carry a can of Lysol into the shower and spray down everything then take a shower while trying not to think of the pig who was in here before me....

tootie

Me also, glad to see I'm not the only one. I used to even let some down for the next person till I seen most ppl don't return the courtisy for the naxt person. As for the air dryers, I usualy just shake my hands the best i can. I totaly detest them

My night-time ritual was to top off my tanks-Buy a Pint of Chocolate Milk-Fill up my Thermos with coffee-turn on my tv for about 1/2 hour and then check for eye lid leaks.

I'd like to see all you germ freaks in the bathroom at the same time, OMG I'm lmao! :lol: :lol:

I remember to poop every day

I like to dance in the street in a pink leather thong, only on my birthday tho :lol:

C'mon, pigs actually drive trucks? :-) I know your right! I don't even pick up the fuel nozzle or the windshield washer squeegee without using paper towels either. Waaay to many of these clowns on the road now days have NO clue what hygiene is and I go to great lengths to avoid touching anything that the public masses touch after coughing, hacking, sneezing in their hands beforehand.
And I wipe off my silverware on my napkin first before I start shoveling food in my pie-hole just in case some moron back there isn't doing his job like he's supposed to and my fork spent more than 5 seconds on the floor after he dropped it but couldn't bend over to pick it up within the 5 second rule law.
If by chance I have to resort to handle anything that every other Tom, Dick or Harry has handled as well, I wash my hands ASAP. The good news is I haven't had so much as a cold in years.
Wow, here I thought I was the only germ-o-phobe in this business. Apparently there is a whole underground movement of us out there by this thread. That's pretty funny!

:lol: :lol: :lol: See any daylight? :P

Everytime I get back to the truck from being inside a T/S, or wherever I use Purell to sanitize my hands.

And I never eat at a buffet, I have seen a couple times in my life. Kids eating out of the buffet walking down the line, 1 time with there hands, the second they actually took a fork with them. So I always have that in the back of my mind and cannot eat them.

No SH$T!!!! I think we just nailed down the cause for the high turnover rate in trucking!

This is why I say ex-military are perfect for trucking. Communal showers, eating out of tin cans, sleeping in foxholes, etc...

I found a very small fan at Target that's designed to allow for placing it on the floor and pointing it straight up. You see where I'm going with this? It's small enough to fit in your duffle bag. Keep it going while toweling off for getting extra dry.

As soon to be prior military, I agree we do have quite the resilience for other than clean conditions, but I draw the line at pyramiding outhouses :shock: :cry:

First thing is take my dog out to let him take care of his business at the beginning of the day.

Last thing is take my dog out to let him take care of his business at the end of the the day.

Repeat each day I'm out on the road. ;)