So as I said in the previous post I arrived home yesterday evening. I drove from Indy to Charleston non-stop. I tried to consume very little liquid en route so I didn't have to stop unnecessarily. I just wanted to get home. Of course by the time I got home I was about to bust and upon pulling into the driveway and racing up to the door I realized my keys were somewhere in my luggage and I had to cross my legs while I searched frantically for them.
But I digress....
In my previous employment experience with this company I had very little time between the end of my training and the time I was expected to pick up my assigned truck and hit the road. So I just kinda figured on the same thing occurring this time around and prepared myself for it mentally.
As soon as I got my car (and my bladder) unloaded I filled the washing machine with my dirty clothes and started shuffling the things I needed on the road into the area I'd designated before I left for Indy as my "trucker pile" in the living room. I wanted to have as much in order and ready to go as possible.
My hubby arrived home shortly after I texted him that I'd arrived home. We caught up with our day, exchanged stories, and then ate dinner and settled in. It was funny when we decided to leave the kitchen and move upstairs to the tv room. I figured I'd go switch out the laundry loads real quick and headed down into the basement. I heard him shuffling from one room to another and back again then head upstairs. I wondered what the heck he was up to.
When I got back up from the basement into the kitchen I saw what he'd been up to. Belated Valentines awaited me on the counter. A giant wooden Hello Kitty face mounted on a bean bag (aka a lap desk) and a pair of knitted pink socks with 3-D pigs sewn onto them.
I was laughing my arse off when I got up to the tv room with my treasures. He said he couldn't resist the socks because they were so ridiculous and he was right. They were quite insane. But I wore them the rest of the evening, occasionally making snorty piggy noises. We'd both then laugh and shake our heads at each other.
And actually right now I'm typing on my laptop which is sitting on my Hello Kitty lap desk. I've been wanting a lap desk for some time now because my laptop can get hot after some serious online time and it's pretty irritating. So I was seriously stoked to see that my sweetie had bought me a Hello Kitty version.
So after a relaxing evening at home with my hubby and a good 10 hours uninterrupted sleep, I woke up this morning around 8 o'clock. After starting a pot of coffee I decided I'd better get on the horn and try to get in touch with my new boss, by the way DBL is what I shall refer to him as in the future and DBL stands for Driver Business Leader.
So I dial him up. I truly expected a hold time. But it rang in right away. But a different person then who I was expecting answered the line. I explained who I was and who I was looking to speak with. After a brief hold I was patched through to the guy I will be dealing with for all my trucking needs.
We introduced ourselves, learned that we're from the same area. He grew up out near where my dad now lives. So after a few minutes of hillbilly chit chat we set to business.
I was informed that I was #5 on his list of new drivers in need of a truck. He asked me if I was certified for the automatic shift trucks and I told him I had driven them before but not recently. I also informed him that I was not inclined to jump into an auto shift unless absolutely necessary. I want a "real" truck. But that also at this point, I want to be able to run freight and if that means I take a auto shift to get moving, then so be it.
We spoke on a variety of other minor topics and then ended our call with the promise that as soon as a truck becomes available he will call me with details of where it is and such. So right now, I wait anxiously for the phone to ring. He said it could be as much as a week before something becomes available since I'm essentially at the bottom of his "need truck" list. It's first come, first served basically.
But then that could end up being really good... but it could also be really bad. Because the drivers before me could all turn down a trashed up truck and I could get stuck with it. But of course I'm just speculating. I could speculate all day really and still not know what to anticipate in terms of what sort of ride I'll end up with.
I guess what I should be doing with my down time is going through a names list or baby name book and start compiling a list of potential truck names. I laughed with my hubby earlier as I said "now watch I'll end up with Kenny or Marge again....".
And that WOULD be my luck. haha
Friday, February 17, 2012
Truck Driver Training Installment: Phase 4.0
Again, it's still Friday but this post references yesterday, the final day of "Experienced Hire Orientation Training".
I may have this confused but here's what I remember about the final day of training.
We had 3 presentations given by 3 different company personnel on 3 different topics. One was about safety. Another about why the company chooses to be union free. And yet another about driver health and fitness.
The first presenter was the Safety guy for the Indy terminal. He was a funny guy with some funny anecdotes about serious issues. He made the statement "I'm the safety guy, I don't have any friends" about 10 times during his presentation. So you know that while he is serious about safety, he does at least have a sense of humor. His talk was both informative and entertaining.
Then in came the "why we're not union" guy. He too was serious about his position and also had a sense of humor, albeit not nearly as funny as the first guy, but he did make some good and valid points while also making us laugh a little.
The last guy, the health and fitness guy, was shier and quieter. He was often hard to hear because he spoke so softly. He seemed nervous to speak in front of a class of even just 5 students. He was, however, thorough in his presentation, answered any and all questions and exuded a quiet confidence. His comedic stance was much more subtle than his two predecessors, but it seemed like he had a hard time recovering to his "schpeel" when he would get sidetracked after making his own jokes.
After those presentations we did little more than sit around awaiting further instruction until finally we were told to go to lunch. After lunch, more waiting around.... we went over some paper work stuff, "sign here, initial there" kind of stuff. Then more waiting. Then I was asked to pick out a pair of boots, and even though I'd intended to turn down the $25 boots since I just bought myself a pair that I liked and fit the company criteria, I decided that for $25, an extra pair of boots would be handy. So I tried on a few pair, found the best fit and had myself a new pair of boots.
After that it was even more waiting. The instructor would have small spurts of activity. More of this and that, getting things wrapped up.
I swear yesterday, while it was the shortest day, felt like the longest day ever.
Of course in the midst of all the other little here's and there's, there was also one student who had still not finished all of the CBT's, who ended up being absent for most of the stuff. There was also an issue with several drivers not having been assigned a driver number, which is how we are identified within the company. Without a driver number you can't get anything else. No fuel card, no truck assignment, nothing.
Luckily I was informed that they could and did reactivate my old driver number and that expedited my position quite well. I was handed a fuel card, my "completion of training" certificate and sent on my merry way just before two in the afternoon.
After gathering up my things and double checking that I wasn't expecting anything else I headed out to the car and hit the road. I left at 2 o'clock on the dot and arrived at my house at 7 o'clock on the dot. And no, I didn't speed.
I was just glad to be home. I figured I'd have a day or two to catch up at the house and spend some time with my hubby before hitting the road... but then... well... that's another blog.
I may have this confused but here's what I remember about the final day of training.
We had 3 presentations given by 3 different company personnel on 3 different topics. One was about safety. Another about why the company chooses to be union free. And yet another about driver health and fitness.
The first presenter was the Safety guy for the Indy terminal. He was a funny guy with some funny anecdotes about serious issues. He made the statement "I'm the safety guy, I don't have any friends" about 10 times during his presentation. So you know that while he is serious about safety, he does at least have a sense of humor. His talk was both informative and entertaining.
Then in came the "why we're not union" guy. He too was serious about his position and also had a sense of humor, albeit not nearly as funny as the first guy, but he did make some good and valid points while also making us laugh a little.
The last guy, the health and fitness guy, was shier and quieter. He was often hard to hear because he spoke so softly. He seemed nervous to speak in front of a class of even just 5 students. He was, however, thorough in his presentation, answered any and all questions and exuded a quiet confidence. His comedic stance was much more subtle than his two predecessors, but it seemed like he had a hard time recovering to his "schpeel" when he would get sidetracked after making his own jokes.
After those presentations we did little more than sit around awaiting further instruction until finally we were told to go to lunch. After lunch, more waiting around.... we went over some paper work stuff, "sign here, initial there" kind of stuff. Then more waiting. Then I was asked to pick out a pair of boots, and even though I'd intended to turn down the $25 boots since I just bought myself a pair that I liked and fit the company criteria, I decided that for $25, an extra pair of boots would be handy. So I tried on a few pair, found the best fit and had myself a new pair of boots.
After that it was even more waiting. The instructor would have small spurts of activity. More of this and that, getting things wrapped up.
I swear yesterday, while it was the shortest day, felt like the longest day ever.
Of course in the midst of all the other little here's and there's, there was also one student who had still not finished all of the CBT's, who ended up being absent for most of the stuff. There was also an issue with several drivers not having been assigned a driver number, which is how we are identified within the company. Without a driver number you can't get anything else. No fuel card, no truck assignment, nothing.
Luckily I was informed that they could and did reactivate my old driver number and that expedited my position quite well. I was handed a fuel card, my "completion of training" certificate and sent on my merry way just before two in the afternoon.
After gathering up my things and double checking that I wasn't expecting anything else I headed out to the car and hit the road. I left at 2 o'clock on the dot and arrived at my house at 7 o'clock on the dot. And no, I didn't speed.
I was just glad to be home. I figured I'd have a day or two to catch up at the house and spend some time with my hubby before hitting the road... but then... well... that's another blog.
Truck Driver Training Installment: Phase 3.0
It's Friday, I'm back home and a little annoyed (that's another blog)...
And since it's not fresh in my mind, I can't even really tell you what exactly went down on Wednesday. But I can say that more than likely it was a lot of sitting around with our thumbs up our butts waiting for things to happen.
The morning was spent on "trip planning", using the company training method which is sure to make your brain slowly start to seep out of your ears as it turns to mush. I'm also sure that just before or right around noon we took a lunch break and then returned to work on more trip planning exercises and/or Qualcomm training. It's kind of a blur at this point.
I know a good portion of our time was wasted while we waited for a couple of the other students in the class to "catch up" after having neglected doing the homework assignment from the night before. I'd say that during what turned into a nearly 10 hour day at the terminal in "training" we actually only spent about 4 hours total actually learning anything.
I believe this was the same day that, upon returning to the hotel I consumed food, watched half a tv show, talked to the hubby on the phone for a while and then was tucked in and fast asleep just after 9pm.
And since it's not fresh in my mind, I can't even really tell you what exactly went down on Wednesday. But I can say that more than likely it was a lot of sitting around with our thumbs up our butts waiting for things to happen.
The morning was spent on "trip planning", using the company training method which is sure to make your brain slowly start to seep out of your ears as it turns to mush. I'm also sure that just before or right around noon we took a lunch break and then returned to work on more trip planning exercises and/or Qualcomm training. It's kind of a blur at this point.
I know a good portion of our time was wasted while we waited for a couple of the other students in the class to "catch up" after having neglected doing the homework assignment from the night before. I'd say that during what turned into a nearly 10 hour day at the terminal in "training" we actually only spent about 4 hours total actually learning anything.
I believe this was the same day that, upon returning to the hotel I consumed food, watched half a tv show, talked to the hubby on the phone for a while and then was tucked in and fast asleep just after 9pm.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Truck Driver Training Installment: Phase 2.0
HOLY CRAP today I would swear I was given a full frontal lobotomy. My brain is MUSH.
This morning at seven a.m. sharp we were herded into a closed training classroom for what was supposed to be a three hour course on the new load processing system we will be using (eventually) while out on the road. The system will be replacing the old 1980's mainframe system still currently in use by the company. It's a time consuming, brain muddling mess that as a re-hire is going to be harder to learn than if I were just some Joe Blow straight off the street newbie trucker.
Having lived in the old system for three years and three months, this new way of life, when it goes fully live and operational, will be a rough transition. I don't want to get myself into a position where I hate it before I have it. That would be like Jedi mind-tricking myself into hating it before I've given it a chance. After the FOUR and a HALF hour presentation and training session we endured this morning, what I can say about it is that there are a few perks to it that will improve a few areas of the overall job, eventually. It's a cumbersome system, with a lot of "tasks" to complete to be in compliance.
But, like with the introduction to the electronic logging system and the learning curve I had when we went live with that during my first round of employment here, it will just take a little getting used to before I am flowing along.
After the class ended on that note, we took a lunch break and then hit the classroom for some more "learning". We had a Check For Learning (CFL aka open book test) after learning about electronic and paper logging and then it was on to the next subject, trip planning.
In the trip planning lesson we are being taught the "old way" of load processing, since many of us will not be going live on the new system for some time. Lucky for me, I know the old system and was not left confused or befuddled at any point during the lesson. My classmates, however, we lost for the most part. After having spent over four hours learning the "new" system just that morning... we were being taught something completely different and of course, with the new system fresh in mind, the confusion for the others was bound to occur.
I think by the end of it they were seeing the slight similarities in the systems and could figure out what was what. But I tell you, the looks on some of their faces as he was explaining how to utilize the old system's macros and such was priceless. It was probably much like the ones on my own face as I sat in the morning class for the "new" system.
Near the end of the lesson the instructor handed out brand new Rand McNally Motor Carriers Atlases to each of us. One of the other students asked if they were ours to keep. And the instructor said yes. Now, I think it's super swell that the company would do such a courtesy to its drivers, but I was irritated at myself for jumping the gun and buying one myself before I came out for training.
So yes, we get to keep the Atlas we got today.
And yes, I hope I still have the receipt for the one I bought so I can take it back. I don't need two of the same thing!
Class was dismissed around 5 o'clock and I bolted for the door. I got back to the hotel and after a nice chat with my hubby on the phone I hopped into my jammies and started relaxing. Well... if blogging is relaxing. I've now cranked out two posts today, making up for having been too pooped last night to post for Phase 1.0.
So now... I will go. I have some homework and then I plan on hitting the hay a little earlier than the past two nights.
This morning at seven a.m. sharp we were herded into a closed training classroom for what was supposed to be a three hour course on the new load processing system we will be using (eventually) while out on the road. The system will be replacing the old 1980's mainframe system still currently in use by the company. It's a time consuming, brain muddling mess that as a re-hire is going to be harder to learn than if I were just some Joe Blow straight off the street newbie trucker.
Having lived in the old system for three years and three months, this new way of life, when it goes fully live and operational, will be a rough transition. I don't want to get myself into a position where I hate it before I have it. That would be like Jedi mind-tricking myself into hating it before I've given it a chance. After the FOUR and a HALF hour presentation and training session we endured this morning, what I can say about it is that there are a few perks to it that will improve a few areas of the overall job, eventually. It's a cumbersome system, with a lot of "tasks" to complete to be in compliance.
But, like with the introduction to the electronic logging system and the learning curve I had when we went live with that during my first round of employment here, it will just take a little getting used to before I am flowing along.
After the class ended on that note, we took a lunch break and then hit the classroom for some more "learning". We had a Check For Learning (CFL aka open book test) after learning about electronic and paper logging and then it was on to the next subject, trip planning.
In the trip planning lesson we are being taught the "old way" of load processing, since many of us will not be going live on the new system for some time. Lucky for me, I know the old system and was not left confused or befuddled at any point during the lesson. My classmates, however, we lost for the most part. After having spent over four hours learning the "new" system just that morning... we were being taught something completely different and of course, with the new system fresh in mind, the confusion for the others was bound to occur.
I think by the end of it they were seeing the slight similarities in the systems and could figure out what was what. But I tell you, the looks on some of their faces as he was explaining how to utilize the old system's macros and such was priceless. It was probably much like the ones on my own face as I sat in the morning class for the "new" system.
Near the end of the lesson the instructor handed out brand new Rand McNally Motor Carriers Atlases to each of us. One of the other students asked if they were ours to keep. And the instructor said yes. Now, I think it's super swell that the company would do such a courtesy to its drivers, but I was irritated at myself for jumping the gun and buying one myself before I came out for training.
So yes, we get to keep the Atlas we got today.
And yes, I hope I still have the receipt for the one I bought so I can take it back. I don't need two of the same thing!
Class was dismissed around 5 o'clock and I bolted for the door. I got back to the hotel and after a nice chat with my hubby on the phone I hopped into my jammies and started relaxing. Well... if blogging is relaxing. I've now cranked out two posts today, making up for having been too pooped last night to post for Phase 1.0.
So now... I will go. I have some homework and then I plan on hitting the hay a little earlier than the past two nights.
Truck Driver Training Installment: Phase 1.0
Monday was the first full day of training. We had a 7 am check-in and got things moving along pretty quickly. We had a good bit of classroom time in when another trainer popped in and asked for one of the Independent Contractor, or IC, students for a road test. Our classroom instructor took that as a sign that he too should pick a student and head out for a road test as well.
Guess who was first to go?
Yep. Yours truly. I got a little bit nervous, primarily because it had been so long since I'd been in a rig, shifted a manual transmission, and driven any kind of combination vehicle. Seriously, I'd not done any of this since I left the company back in Sept. 2010. So I gave the instructor fair warning that I was more than likely a little rusty.
When we got out to the bobtail truck I did at least remember how to open the door and climb in correctly. I got in the seat and couldn't find the seat adjustment bar to slide the seat forward. Then I couldn't find where the damn key went in. After I got my seat adjusted and the truck started, I remembered where the clutch and gear shifter were and managed to slide the truck into second gear without incident.
But... when it was time to release the brakes and actually move I froze. I was so afraid of stalling the truck and embarrassing myself that I just couldn't do ANYTHING. The instructor sat, staring at me from the passenger seat, patiently. He didn't say anything. I just felt him staring at me. I slowly let off the clutch until I started to feel the pull of the engine. I slowly let off the brake and started moving. Easy... yeah. I was doing good.
Then he instructed me to do a u-turn and go back towards the rear of the yard where the trailer lot was. I was hoping I could get away with just putting back there at idle speed, but he asked me to "grab a gear or 4 and get moving already". So I tried to float shift into 3rd only to find the transmission resistant to my attempts. Luckily in my temporary frustration I didn't dump the clutch or stall the truck. I just realized that since the truck was cold and hadn't been run for at least 24 hours that things needed a chance to warm up.
So I pumped the clutch twice as I shifted out of second into third and kept repeating until I was in fifth gear and rolling on towards the trailer area. Once we arrived at where the training trailers were parked he gave me a few instructions and then "coached" me as I coupled to a trailer. I was better at doing that on the first try, even rusty, than I had been at shifting. I set up perfectly in line with the trailer, coupled with ease and was on my way before I knew it. He had me drive around the lot on the way to the front gate, giving me time to get a feel for having the weight of a trailer behind me. Once I was okay with it and he was okay with it... we headed out for the open road.
The road test was somewhere between 5-10 miles and put me through a few typical and a few a-typical driving ability scenarios. I managed to do each maneuver successfully never taking out a curb, a sign or any small children. I call that a successful trip!
Once he'd determined I could still handle a 65' rig, follow directions, and not kill anyone in the process, we headed back to the terminal to go through a couple of backing maneuvers and then the uncoupling process. I have to admit I was most concerned about my ability to back a trailer into a "hole". But I was able to do it with only the need for one pull up and felt very proud of my retention of the ability to get the job done.
The rest of the day was spent having lunch, waiting for other students to complete their road tests and doing Computer Based Training, or CBT's. I swear it felt like we sat there doing the CBT's for 11 hours, but it was really only like four and a half. And of course, we didn't finish them all and will have to complete them either tomorrow or Thursday. (yay, not)
All in all it was a pretty productive and lesson filled day. The things we went over were important even for the most seasoned of drivers, but are especially important for rookies like me. I don't think you can ever have the same information, particularly life saving safety information, fed to you too many times. There is just always a need to refresh yourself with those types of things to make sure you're on top of things and don't fall into a place of complacency.
We ended up being at the terminal past 5 o'clock. When we were released I headed down the street to the local drug store to pick up a few supplies I had neglected to bring with me. I found it insanely hilarious that while en route to said drug store I was stuck in traffic near an intersection, where I watched the light change from green to yellow to red 3 times. I was starting to get a slight bit irritated when I finally saw the reason for the delay.
City bus... Go figure.
I laughed as I finally made my way through the light before it turned red for the fourth time and shook my head at the hilarity of it.
After my trip to the drug store I headed back to my hotel room to dump off all of my crap. Each day, so far, we have been given new books and materials which are adding up to quite a nice armful of things to carry around with us.
As I sat in my room relaxing I was anxiously watching the tracking of a couple of friends of mine on an iPhone App I have. My friends were headed towards Indy and were going to be stopping by the company terminal (as they work for this same company) for a fuel stop and dinner break. They were in route to the south east but had a couple of hours to spare.
When I saw that they were about 15 miles away I threw my coat on and drove back over to the company terminal where I awaited their arrival. My phone whistled at me, as it does when I receive a text message, and when I checked it I had a message from them saying they were out at the fuel islands filling up. I rushed right out.
I was super stoked to have finally met Jenn and her husband Scott, in real life. I have been talking to Jenn online for a few years now. She and I "virtually" met online, I believe initially through this very blog, somewhere back a few years ago. I'm too lazy to dig through my posts and comments and such for a more accurate timeline but you get the idea.
After a while we added one another as "friends" on Facebook and have conversed pretty regularly since. Except for that 8 month period I was on FB haitus, but I think even then we had a few text exchanges between us.
She proclaims that I am the reason she finally gave in and decided to become a "muther trucker" herself. Her husband, she says, was a reader of my blog and already a truck driver himself. And he encouraged her to read my blog.
She has told me on several occasions that she considers me as her "mentor", which is both incredibly flattering and slightly insane. I find the fact that my experiences and tales of being an OTR truck driver can be inspiring to anyone to be ultimately rewarding. I never dreamed my blog would influence anyone. I just wanted to write about my experiences, more for my own posterity than anything. And now, to know that someone I didn't know from Adam took what I've typed, my stories and anecdotes, and found in them the inspiration and motivation to reach out for their dream, to take a risk, to try something new... whatever you want to call it... to feel that and know that is seriously humbling.
I'm super stoked to have finally gotten to meet Jenn and Scott. It was, for me, an awesome experience. It felt like we were two old besties being reunited after a million years apart. When I found them on the fuel islands outside last night, the moment after recognition was followed by a friendly trucker hug and smiles all around. It was awesome. And I'd share that with you in pictures, but not a one of us ever thought to capture the moment. Go figure.
After the initial meeting outside the party moved inside the terminal where we sat exchanging stories over a hot meal. We had, what I think, was a very good visit. I hope that somewhere, some day our paths get to cross again so we can have more face time and get to know each other on a plane other than the virtual one we have lived on until last night.
Thanks for stopping by here guys!!!
I swear it must've been kismet! Here they were going to southwest Texas... but got turned around instead and headed up this way. They weren't happy about having lost the miles on the Texas load but if they had taken it all the way, more than likely they wouldn't have ended up in the Indianapolis area while I was still here for training.
So there you have it. Phase 1.0 (+) from start to finish.
Guess who was first to go?
Yep. Yours truly. I got a little bit nervous, primarily because it had been so long since I'd been in a rig, shifted a manual transmission, and driven any kind of combination vehicle. Seriously, I'd not done any of this since I left the company back in Sept. 2010. So I gave the instructor fair warning that I was more than likely a little rusty.
When we got out to the bobtail truck I did at least remember how to open the door and climb in correctly. I got in the seat and couldn't find the seat adjustment bar to slide the seat forward. Then I couldn't find where the damn key went in. After I got my seat adjusted and the truck started, I remembered where the clutch and gear shifter were and managed to slide the truck into second gear without incident.
But... when it was time to release the brakes and actually move I froze. I was so afraid of stalling the truck and embarrassing myself that I just couldn't do ANYTHING. The instructor sat, staring at me from the passenger seat, patiently. He didn't say anything. I just felt him staring at me. I slowly let off the clutch until I started to feel the pull of the engine. I slowly let off the brake and started moving. Easy... yeah. I was doing good.
Then he instructed me to do a u-turn and go back towards the rear of the yard where the trailer lot was. I was hoping I could get away with just putting back there at idle speed, but he asked me to "grab a gear or 4 and get moving already". So I tried to float shift into 3rd only to find the transmission resistant to my attempts. Luckily in my temporary frustration I didn't dump the clutch or stall the truck. I just realized that since the truck was cold and hadn't been run for at least 24 hours that things needed a chance to warm up.
So I pumped the clutch twice as I shifted out of second into third and kept repeating until I was in fifth gear and rolling on towards the trailer area. Once we arrived at where the training trailers were parked he gave me a few instructions and then "coached" me as I coupled to a trailer. I was better at doing that on the first try, even rusty, than I had been at shifting. I set up perfectly in line with the trailer, coupled with ease and was on my way before I knew it. He had me drive around the lot on the way to the front gate, giving me time to get a feel for having the weight of a trailer behind me. Once I was okay with it and he was okay with it... we headed out for the open road.
The road test was somewhere between 5-10 miles and put me through a few typical and a few a-typical driving ability scenarios. I managed to do each maneuver successfully never taking out a curb, a sign or any small children. I call that a successful trip!
Once he'd determined I could still handle a 65' rig, follow directions, and not kill anyone in the process, we headed back to the terminal to go through a couple of backing maneuvers and then the uncoupling process. I have to admit I was most concerned about my ability to back a trailer into a "hole". But I was able to do it with only the need for one pull up and felt very proud of my retention of the ability to get the job done.
The rest of the day was spent having lunch, waiting for other students to complete their road tests and doing Computer Based Training, or CBT's. I swear it felt like we sat there doing the CBT's for 11 hours, but it was really only like four and a half. And of course, we didn't finish them all and will have to complete them either tomorrow or Thursday. (yay, not)
All in all it was a pretty productive and lesson filled day. The things we went over were important even for the most seasoned of drivers, but are especially important for rookies like me. I don't think you can ever have the same information, particularly life saving safety information, fed to you too many times. There is just always a need to refresh yourself with those types of things to make sure you're on top of things and don't fall into a place of complacency.
We ended up being at the terminal past 5 o'clock. When we were released I headed down the street to the local drug store to pick up a few supplies I had neglected to bring with me. I found it insanely hilarious that while en route to said drug store I was stuck in traffic near an intersection, where I watched the light change from green to yellow to red 3 times. I was starting to get a slight bit irritated when I finally saw the reason for the delay.
City bus... Go figure.
I laughed as I finally made my way through the light before it turned red for the fourth time and shook my head at the hilarity of it.
After my trip to the drug store I headed back to my hotel room to dump off all of my crap. Each day, so far, we have been given new books and materials which are adding up to quite a nice armful of things to carry around with us.
As I sat in my room relaxing I was anxiously watching the tracking of a couple of friends of mine on an iPhone App I have. My friends were headed towards Indy and were going to be stopping by the company terminal (as they work for this same company) for a fuel stop and dinner break. They were in route to the south east but had a couple of hours to spare.
When I saw that they were about 15 miles away I threw my coat on and drove back over to the company terminal where I awaited their arrival. My phone whistled at me, as it does when I receive a text message, and when I checked it I had a message from them saying they were out at the fuel islands filling up. I rushed right out.
I was super stoked to have finally met Jenn and her husband Scott, in real life. I have been talking to Jenn online for a few years now. She and I "virtually" met online, I believe initially through this very blog, somewhere back a few years ago. I'm too lazy to dig through my posts and comments and such for a more accurate timeline but you get the idea.
After a while we added one another as "friends" on Facebook and have conversed pretty regularly since. Except for that 8 month period I was on FB haitus, but I think even then we had a few text exchanges between us.
She proclaims that I am the reason she finally gave in and decided to become a "muther trucker" herself. Her husband, she says, was a reader of my blog and already a truck driver himself. And he encouraged her to read my blog.
She has told me on several occasions that she considers me as her "mentor", which is both incredibly flattering and slightly insane. I find the fact that my experiences and tales of being an OTR truck driver can be inspiring to anyone to be ultimately rewarding. I never dreamed my blog would influence anyone. I just wanted to write about my experiences, more for my own posterity than anything. And now, to know that someone I didn't know from Adam took what I've typed, my stories and anecdotes, and found in them the inspiration and motivation to reach out for their dream, to take a risk, to try something new... whatever you want to call it... to feel that and know that is seriously humbling.
I'm super stoked to have finally gotten to meet Jenn and Scott. It was, for me, an awesome experience. It felt like we were two old besties being reunited after a million years apart. When I found them on the fuel islands outside last night, the moment after recognition was followed by a friendly trucker hug and smiles all around. It was awesome. And I'd share that with you in pictures, but not a one of us ever thought to capture the moment. Go figure.
After the initial meeting outside the party moved inside the terminal where we sat exchanging stories over a hot meal. We had, what I think, was a very good visit. I hope that somewhere, some day our paths get to cross again so we can have more face time and get to know each other on a plane other than the virtual one we have lived on until last night.
Thanks for stopping by here guys!!!
I swear it must've been kismet! Here they were going to southwest Texas... but got turned around instead and headed up this way. They weren't happy about having lost the miles on the Texas load but if they had taken it all the way, more than likely they wouldn't have ended up in the Indianapolis area while I was still here for training.
So there you have it. Phase 1.0 (+) from start to finish.
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