STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 21825: Around Austin

April 14, 2007 on 4:02 pm | In On The Road, Travelblogue |

Thursday, April 12th:
I woke up at 0330. I walked the MMM, then checked in with recieving. While I was being unloaded, I recieved and accepted a PrePlan which picked up in Wampum, PA and delivered in Laredo, TX. (I know, it’s not in my Atlas either). The directions I got were accurate though. It was about 45 miles north of Pittsburg. I arrived in Wampum at 0630. It was another one of those Industrial Parks inside a mountain like the one I loaded at a few months ago in Kansas City MO.


After I was loaded and outside the mountain again where my QualCom would work again , I did my L-Call and my Log Book. I left about 0745 and drove to our terminal in Columbus, OH. I had lunch and walk the MMM. About noon, I left Columbus and drove to Franklin, KY where I stopped for the night (14 hour rule). It rained most of the day. The temperature never rose above 48 degrees. I was hoping for improvement as I drove south, but it never happened.

Friday:
I left Franklin about 0630. I drove to Hurricane Mills, TN. I fueled here, then decided to have breakfast. I left about 1100 and drove to North Little Rock, AR. I took a 15 minute break here. I finished out my day by driving to Rockwall, TX, just north of Dallas. I finally got out of the rain somewhere around Nashville, but it was still cloudy. Just as I was entering Texas, it began to rain heavily again. I heard on the news of the tornado that hit Ft. Worth. A “light show” was provided by Mother Nature for a while, but by the time I arrived in Rockwall, the rain was gone again. It sprinkled a bit for the rest of the night, but that was it. 

Saturday:
I only have 3.75 hours available, so it will be a short day today. When I woke up, it was still 48 degrees, but there were also constant winds of about 25 mph. That made it seem even colder. I left Rockwall about 0900 and drove the 30 odd miles to our terminal in Lancaster, TX. I fueled and walked the MMM. After that, I drove to Luby’s Cafeteria for an early lunch. I had Salisbury Steak, mashed potatoes, black-eyed peas, macaroni & cheese, carrot & raisin salad, a fruit salad, and Key Lime pie for desert. It cost me a little over $14.00. At noon, I left Lancaster and drove to Austin, TX where I ran out of hours for the day. En route from Lancaster to Austin, a mysterious golden orb appeared in the sky, the clouds began to dissipate, and the temperature began to rise. When I arrived in Austin, it was over 60 degrees. It was still windy though.