Boston and Beeps

This week has just flown by. I cannot believe that it is Friday already. Right now we are sitting near Dallas, Tx. Our friend, Ralph is only about 45 miles from us. We are hoping that we can meet up, but you just never know in this business. But anyway, here’s where we’ve been and what’s been happening:

We got a load out of Harrisburg that picked up in Upper NY, it was going to Oswego, NY. Oswego is right near Lake Ontario. It was a hazmat load and going to a Nuclear Power Plant, cool! The weather was cold and a few snow flurries, but not too bad and calling for nicer starting on Tuesday.

We entered the Power Plant on the exact opposite side (thank you, Gypsy) and was directed on how to get to the other entrance. We could see the huge cooling tower off in the distance. We arrived at the gate and was handed a map of the plant. We were told to drive literally right alongside the cooling tower. That was awesome. Those things are huge and underneath of them is all steamy. It was almost like driving right up to a space ship or something. Anyway, we got our load off and back out through the gate we went.

On the way out of the Power plant, we saw so much wildlife, We saw at least 50 deer and too many turkeys to count. They were everywhere. And I think I saw some moose, but the guard told me that they were just deer. What does he know anyway?

After that we were given a load picking up in New Jersey and going to Maine for the next morning. So we scooted off to our pickup. We still had a few snow flurries here and there, but nothing to really hold us up. I am so ready for this snow to be done.  

It was dark by the time we reached our pickup. We got there and it was a really big place. We were told that our load had a very high theft potential, but we didn’t know yet what we would be carrying. We were told that if we stopped along the way that we were to back our truck up to a building, fence or another truck so that no one could get the doors open to steal our load. Wow, what are we carrying, gold or diamonds? No, appliances. Refrigerator/freezers, dish washers and washing machines! 29 of them. Pops called me while they were loading and told me that they weren’t going to fit on our truck and that this was probably going to be a dry run. Oh yay, little pay.

I could feel them in and out of the back of the truck. It wasn’t long before my phone rang again. Pops said that the shipper was going to get them all on, he stacked them. Well ok, then. Let’s go to Maine.

I wanted to go moose hunting. I want to see a moose so bad. Last time we were up here I had a kink in my neck the whole next day from looking out the window for a moose. But I did the same thing this time.

We stopped at a TA truckstop for fuel. We have stopped here before, there is a woman that works there that I really like. She is so friendly and funny. Well, she’s friendly to me, she picks on Pops. Anyway, I asked her where to go to see a moose. She told me that I was likely to see one anywhere, but she couldn’t guarantee that I would. She said they are all over, “just don’t beep your horn at one or it will charge your vehicle.” Oh, ok, I won’t do that. Well we didn’t see any moose this time either.

After our Maine trip we were offered a short little run into Rhode Island and then back to Mass. I haven’t been to RI yet so we agreed to the load. This is my third new state this trip out. I am excited when I get to color one in. It wasn’t much of a visit though because the entire pickup and delivery took us less than 3 hours.

We have had a pretty good week so far and it is only Wednesday. Too bad that is the thought that went through my head, because I think that I jinxed us. We were offered a good paying load picking up in MA and delivering in Rochester, NY. We do really well from Rochester, so we agreed to the load. What we didn’t know until later was that it had 3 pick ups on the same load, all of them in Boston. In Boston! The actual city, not the suburbs, not the outskirts, not the easy industrial parks. Oh well, I put my game face on and was optimistic. How bad can it be, I drove through Chicago?

So we set off, I was driving and Pops was navigating under Gypsy. We got to our first pick up. It was a little one-lane side street with a small parking lot. We pulled into the parking lot and I wondered how difficult it was going to be to back this thing back out and around the corner. Oh well, I’ll cross that bridge later let’s just get this picked up. Where are the docks? Pops went inside and came out with some papers. “This is it. Let’s go” You have got to be kidding me? I could stayed on the street for that. Well, he helped me get backed out and turned around and off we went to our next pick up. This is when the nightmare begins….

We were going to the Logan airport for a pickup. We were following Gypsy’s directions. Suddenly we saw detour signs and road construction and we couldn’t continue the way Gypsy wanted us to go. We took what we thought was the correct detour. Gypsy got offended, “Out of route!” she said. And then she tried to reroute and couldn’t so she just shut down. “Communications failure.” She shut down! We drove following the airport signs and the detour signs and ended up in between some really tall buildings and a one way, one lane, dead end street. No, I am not making this up. We could see the airport, we could see the runways, but there were some really big, tall chain link fence in the way.

A nice man saw our dilemma and came to our rescue. He gave Pops some really good directions, moved his vehicle so we could turn around and got us on our way. Thank goodness.

Gypsy came back with us again and tried to send us down the same streets so we were so upset with her, we just turned down the volume. If we could turn her off, we would have. Well, we did find the airport, good. But we didn’t see the turn off for the cargo pickup so we ended up going toward the actual terminals. This is not good. There were signs everywhere, No Trucks. Oh no, we couldn’t stop and there was no where no go except keep going, so we did. Before we knew it we were on our way back out of the airport, through a big long tunnel. By this time we had FedEx hook us up with directions and the lady from the airport was telling me, “You’re in the tunnel? Good, when you come out you’ll be coming into the main airport.” I told her we were at the airport and had gone through and now was in the tunnel. “You’ve already left the airport and NOW you’re in the tunnel, oh this is not good. Hahahaha.” Well, I DID NOT see the humor. She gave me directions on what to do once out of the tunnel and how to get turned around and back to the airport and then she hung up.

When we came out of the tunnel we were smack downtown Boston, running along the big, lit up skyscrapers. Oh my, I could really enjoy this if I wasn’t so extremely mad at the world right now.

We did get turned around, and we did get back to the airport and we did find our way this time and we did get loaded, finally. Now one more pick up and we’ll be on our way to Rochester. We were 6 miles to our next pickup across town.

Gypsy decided that she would grace us with directions so we got going, following her command. She brought us right downtown, into the financial and government district of Boston. Cars and people were everywhere. I could see a strange looking bridge ahead. I found out later that it is the Tobin Bridge. Look it up on the web, it is pretty neat. Well, Pops and I figured that Gypsy had messed us up again, this couldn’t be right. We are looking for a freight company. They wouldn’t be here, so we went around a couple of blocks and got away from the city. Gypsy had shut down on us again and would not come back on. We had both totally lost our patience and life was so not good right now. Oh yeah, did I mention that it was 5:10, rush hour?

Pops drove us out of the city, saying that once we get away from all of that we can get our act together, calm down, get good directions and try again.

We tried calling our company for directions, no answer. Pops tried on his phone, I tried on mine, still no answer. I sent messages on the C-link computer. The computer is down, no response. We had nothing. No customer phone number, nothing. Finally, FedEx called us. We got hooked up with someone named Clint and he eventually got us good directions and we made it there. But let me tell you, It was not pretty in our truck for that period. The poor dogs were cowering in their corners trying to be as good as gold so as not to be the object of our wrath. Looking back now, I am kind of ashamed of the way we acted. I know Pops is too. But we both understand the stress and we move on. I was never so very glad to have a load on and be driving away from someplace. I don’t care to ever, ever go back to Boston.

I put the miles between us and Boston as fast as I could. We were on the open highway again and everything was going to be okay.  I drove my share and then when Pops drove, I slept. I woke up and he had already delivered and we were at Walmart. Wow, just like that it was over.

I went into Walmart to pick up a few things and when I came out I cooked us some food. I had picked up a cold so I wanted to make some chicken noodle soup. Just as I finished the soup, we got a load offer picking up in Buffalo, NY and going to Tyler, TX. Oh, yeah, I am so all over that. We waited to see if we would get the load and we did. Yeehaw, out of the snow.

They were actually giving us more time than what was really necessary so we didn’t have to rush. We took our time, stopping along the way to rest and fix a good meal. We laughed about our adventures of the week, but still both agree that we don’t want any more Boston. We spotted the factory where Fruit of the Loom is manufactured. It is in Bowling Green, Kentucky. I do love seeing things like that. And two good things about Boston, I did get to see The Old North Church. This is the church where Paul Revere sent the “One if by land, two if by sea” signals. And I saw the Necco Wafer Factory. I love Necco Wafers. Necco stands for New England Confection Co.

While Pops was driving through Little Rock, AR, I heard a horn blow. Who was blowing at us and why? I heard it again and again, What the world? I got up out of the bunk and ask him what was going on. He was looking around, confused. He didn’t know who was beeping at him or why. There it was again. Is someone behind us, so close that we can’t see them? Is one of our doors open or is something else wrong? The horn keeps beeping. “It is our horn.” Pops says. It is our horn, I can tell now. Hahahahaha

Beep, beep, beeeeep, the cars pass us and gas it to get by. Here comes another car, beep, beeeeep, hahahaha. “It’s not funny,” Pops says. Well I think it is. I wonder what all those cars are thinking? This goes on for several miles. Finally he pulls over, locates the horn and yanks the wires off. There! No more of that. Hahahaha.

We get back in the truck, I head back to the bunk, he takes off down the highway and beeeeep. You have got to be kidding me. What is this? The movie, Christine? No, it’s Pops messing with me, we have two horns and he was blowing the other one just to get me going. Oh that man!

So, here it is, Friday morning, we have unloaded and are at a TA truckstop. It is sunny and the temperature is 75 degrees. I am sitting with a tank top on, my window down, the truck is clean, I have a cold bottle of water and life is good. I wonder how it is in Boston.