STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 22146: Casper Communique

February 29, 2008 on 12:00 pm | In On The Road |

Happy “Leap Day” everybody!!!!

Well, it looks as though Spring is nigh upon us. Sitting here in Casper, WY, i’ve made a few observations. The signs of Spring here in Wyoming are not the obvious ones we all think about, ie: birds singing, grass getting greener, buds forming on thr trees, etc, etc. They are much more subtle than that. The fact that on the last day of February it is 55 degrees at noon is a definite sign of Spring. The fact that the roads are no longer a solid sheet of ice is another sign that Spring is on the way. The fact that one is not wading ‘calf deep’ in snow and sludge is yet another sign. All this adds up to better days ahead. There will still be some snow and nasty driving conditions for another month or so, but the snow will melt of in about a day or so rather than lingering for months.

As I mentioned earlier, i’m in Casper, WY, taking my 10 hour break. To bring you up to date, I drove back to Corinne on the 27th. I encountered no adverse driving conditions or weather, except for a little wind over Elk Mountain, which didn’t amount to much. Yesterday, I took this load to Casper. I like to deliver to this store because there is a Perkins Family Restaurant in the same shopping center. They are a chain of restaurants similar to Marie Calendar’s. A refreshing change from truck stop fare. This morning, I had Double Bacon Eggs Benedict with Hash Browns and a Bran Muffin.

When I return to Corinne today, I will have only 1 1/2 hours remaining on my 70 hours for the week. As a result, i’ll be taking a day off tomorrow. My next load will be to Las Vegas. I plan to go car shopping. My poor Jeep has served me well, but it needs a transmission, and a new head gasket. I’m not going to put any more $$$$ into it. Better to buy something more reliable. My preference is to buy something built in this millenium, but if I find a late 90’s model in good condition, I may buy it. This time I have up to $4500.00 cash to spend. I have no particular make, model or color in mind, but a van or SUV is what I will be looking at closest. I would also like to stay with white due to the Vegas heat in the summer, but it is not a requirement. The only requirement I have is regarding accessories: What ever I buy must have power windows, which the Jeep doesn’t have. It makes it so much easier to appease the MMM’s desire to stick their heads out the windows. Keyless entry would also be nice.