Hey, look....I'm updating the thread WITHOUT being hounded to do so!!:lol::lol:
I left out of the house Sunday (4-5-09) and headed south for a first thing Monday morning load in Corpus Christi, TX. I loaded 2 20' cans heading to the port in Charleston, SC. Apparently there were 80 of these cans that "missed" their ship to Iraq so they were all being sent to Charleston to load on a different ship.
I then bounced 10 miles down the road and loaded 3 Humvee's at the base there in N. Charleston heading to the Army Depot in Red River, TX. For the most part the 2 trips were pretty uneventful. I say for the "most part" because I arrived at the base in N.Charleston about 5 minutes after the guys that load went to lunch. So I had to sit (along with the 7 trucks behind me) for the next hour or so. That in it's self is not a big deal.
I have a friend that I used to serve with in the Navy that lives in Summerville, SC which is just up the road off I-26 from Charleston. I told him I was rolling through and we made plans to meet up. Well because I got loaded a little later than I expected, I could only stay an hour or so and visit with him and his wife, which by the way, I haven't seen him in over 6 months, and the wife in over a year and half. After swapping lies for a while, I decide to stay for dinner. After more lies, I decide to stay the night. This now puts me way behind my "personal" schedule. In order to stay on or close to my schedule, I will have to roll early the next morning and run a little harder than I normally do. So, by 3am the next morning I have the wheels turning and by the end of the day I had managed to stuff about 750 miles in my back pocket. I stop in Jackson, MS for the night and once again am up early and rolling down the road to make sure I deliver before noon in Red River.
I get to the depot and wouldn't you know it, I arrived about 5 minutes after the guys went to lunch! So I had to wait another hour or so for them to return and then another 45 minutes or so for "someone" to come lead me to where they are unloading these things at.
All along the way, I was getting load alerts after load alerts with some pretty decent paying loads. But of course by the time I call in, the loads have been covered. I finally managed to snag one going to L.A., CA for Monday. The agent says that it MUST be there no later than noon on the 15th and if I was O.K. with that.....i think to myself....."geeze, come on it's only 1400 and some change miles and I load on the 13th".
Anyways, I am sitting here at some small mom & pop TS in Hooks, TX and will bounce up to Fort Smith, AR tomorrow, reset my log and be ready to rock and roll Monday morning.
. Although there was a LOT of damaged structures and many are without homes now, I hope there was no loss of life or serious injuries.
