STRAYCAT’S DOGGONE BLOG

Life Day 22280: Wilted in “Lost Wages”

July 12, 2008 on 7:16 pm | In On The Road |

Once again, it’s been a while, since I last made a post to this BLOG. Lethargy is the primary reason.

When last I posted, I was just about to leave Salt Lake City for Los Lunas, NM. My load was ready about 1400, and off I went. I survived traveling across the “Devil’s Highway” yet again, and arrived in Los Lunas about 0300 on the 27th. After dropping my trailer, and taking the K9 kids for a walk, I went to bed. I was up again around 0900, with a PTA of 1300. I checked in with the Planner. He was under the mistaken impression that I was going to work out of there (Los Lunas) for the rest of the weekend. I politely explained to him that I was going directly back to Corinne. I finally received a Preplan, which was a load with a stop in Albuquerque, then Durango, CO. The load was finally ready about 2000. I spent the intervening time hanging out at the Walmart store about 2 miles from the terminal. It was for the sake of the MMM. There was no place to walk them in the terminal that wasn’t covered with stickers (the old goat-heads of my youth) or other assorted thorn-bearing flora. I had lunch at a Chili’s across the highway. I was thinking about Enchiladas with beans and rice, but I couldn’t find it on the menu. The only thing that was “Mexican” on the menu was Fajitas and Nachos. I forget what I settled for, but it was good. I know it included Potato soup. Anyway, I made the first delivery barely on time. It was a “noise ordinance” store, meaning that they can’t unload between the hours of 2100 and 0700. The second stop in Durango went off without a hitch. I arrived there a little before 0200. When I was unloaded there, I was free to proceed back to Corinne at my leisure. On US-191, I stopped at Wilson Arch for a picture or 2, or 3.

I then drove to that nice, peaceful little Rest Area about 10 miles farther north (about 15 miles south of Moab).

I decided to take my 10 hour break here. When I got back to Corinne, I did a local run to finish the day.

On the 30th, I did a load to Vegas for a few days off. I returned on the 3rd of July.

On the 4th, I took a 3 stop load to Billings, MT. I didn’t get to see many fireworks, but I did see a few from a distance as I was driving there. On the return trip on the 5th, I stopped at a rest area on US-287 about mm-18. It was adjacent to the Madison River. After letting the K9 kids wet their paws, I took a few pictures.

About 10 miles farther south, I came across a field of wild flowers that I couldn’t resist.

After my return from Billings, I did a few local runs coupled with a few loads to Las Vegas until I arrived here in Vegas for my current home stand on the 11th.
Saturday, the 12th, has to be the most miserable I’ve been in quite some time. It started right after midnight. After I did the delivery the evening of the 11th, I went to the Wild, Wild, West as usual. It was raining when I left the casino a little after midnight, so I got wet walking back to the truck. The air-conditioning was blasting to keep the MMM comfortable, and I got cold, so I turned it off. I took the MMM for a walk, and kicked back for a while. About an hour later the rain had stopped, and I had dried off, so I turned the A/C back on. It blew only hot air!!! Big Time Bummer. I drove to the TA truck stop because they have a shop there. Naturally, the A/C technician wasn’t scheduled until 0830. I found a parking place and tried to sleep, but to no avail. It was just too *&# hot. Anyway, to make a long story short, I was awake all night. My computer, more accurately, Zone Alarm wouldn’t let me go online. So, I sat there playing solitaire and cribbage until he arrived. The problem turned out to be low Freon and a clogged cab air filter. It took until about noon to get me back on the road. I returned to the WWW, but by this time, sleep was impossible. I have a hard time sleeping when the sun is shining. A “techie’s techie” at Sprint finally figured out why I couldn’t get online. Zone Alarm is sometimes too good. About 1000, I went into the casino to eat. I sat at the bar as usual and had a 1/2 lb bacon cheeseburger. That’s a heart-attack on a bun, but it sure is good. I finally went to bed a little after midnight.