Working his way home!

Good morning,

Chuck called me at 5am - but I was still sleeping....I tried to call back but he must've been unavailable. So, the middle to end of this last week Chuck's been going from Colorado over to Greenboro, N.C. (quite a switch). He ran into just a little bit of snow in the mountains near Denver, but it's been pretty clear far. He's been getting some good miles. He was a little bit comforted by the weather he's been able to enjoy by driving down south. Even though he missed Thanksgiving he was in West Virginia and it was 68 and sunny! (lucky duck) The picture above is from a town he was going through called Nitro, North Carolina. The mountain, Mt. Pilot, was one of the landmarks referred to in the sitcom "Andy Griffith" - the town that was the model for Mayberry is 20 miles away. Chuck said they have signs posted, but he was moving too fast! :)

Just talked to him and he's real close to his stop in Illinois - to drop off his load. He said he'd call back when they're unloading....a live unload can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 8 hours!! :) Hopefully he'll get the short end...usually a couple of hours. He's in Illinois, though...working his way back home. I'm sure when he calls back he'll have a preplan for the rest of the week. They were going to send him back to New York, but he had to decline because he requested home time for Thursday and there his no way he could get there and back in that amount of time. Looking forward to having him home, but the visit's going to be very busy and seem really short - and the next time we see him is Christmas! It sure does make the time between holidays seem short! He's due back Thursday night/Friday morning. Getting all the decorations up for Christmas - it sure does warm the house up! Hope everyone's doing well! Happy Holidays!

Robin

I'm Thankful for Chuck....who's not just "doing a job"

Chuck and I were talking earlier this week...he got a message on the qual-com computer in his truck from the company headquarters that said they were trying to make an effort to get all drivers home for holidays, realizing the importance of home time and being with family. At the end of last week Chuck was in New York City and hauled a load 1400 miles down to Denver, Colorado...it took 4 days. When he got there he got another load taking him up to Iowa. When I first heard that I was really excited....thinking "maybe they're trying to get him home?!". It took a couple of days to get up to Iowa, and when he got there and made the drop he got another pre-plan....to North Carolina. I guess I was wrong...I'm pretty upset about him not being home for Thanksgiving. It's hard to be thankful when you're worried and missing your favorite person in the world. So we continued the conversation and I was talking about some pictures to use for Christmas cards that I might use the one with him in the truck with all 3 kids...he said "it's not all about me driving truck, it's just a job". This is where the disagreement started. See, it's not just a job. If it were just a job he would leave in the morning and come home at night or maybe work 3rd shift as he did for so long... but when he's not working on the truck he's sleeping on the truck or watching tv on the truck or eating on the truck. He's home 3 or 4 days a month. The truck is his lifestyle, now. I don't know how much more I can emphasize the fact that our life has changed because we have a new lifestyle. I know people probably get tired of me pining for him to come home, or wishing he was here, or feeling bad that he's giving up HIS holiday to be working. TONS of people do it - doctors, police officers, people who work in nursing homes and hospitals....and truck drivers. But this is the first time. I'm entitled to be disappointed. I've gotten very little support from friends and family - I don't know if they just don't want to hear it, or they have little empathy and caring for what our family is missing...I'm not going to get used to it because that means I don't care if he's here or not, and that won't happen. This is an extremely difficult time for us. When Chuck comes home after being gone, now, for almost 4 weeks Sam won't recognize him at first. It'll take 1/2 of a day for them to get reacquainted and he's only home for 2 at a time! So, sorry to bore you with my on-goings. This is our life, now, I'm trying to keep him involved in ours and you involved with his. I'm very proud of the sacrifices he's making. There are many people who make the choices he's made and also choose to divorce their spouses to pursue their careers. Most people are not strong enough to do both. It has not crossed his mind to make trucking a priority, he's out there day after day, in an extremely dangerous occupation (the 2nd most dangerous, according to MSN) and spending Thanksgiving alone so we can have a decent Christmas. I'm thankful for Chuck who is providing for my family RIGHT NOW. Thanks, honey, I hope you find a decent, clean, truck-stop that will serve a decent dinner for you on Thanksgiving. We miss you and love you.

XOXO
Robin

Rocky Mountain Rain....

Chuck should be almost to Denver by now....Last Thursday (I hope I'm right) he left from New York City for a 1400 mile trek to Denver, CO. Every day we've talked for HOURS...he stopped in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Missouri (I might have missed one or 2). He's only driving about 8 or 9 hours a day, even though he can drive 10, because the hours stop when you get to a certain point, so in order to stay driving every day, and not have to sit for 24 hours somewhere, he has to drive less per day. So he leaves about 5 in the morning or earlier,and stops around 1 or 2. At least when there's a long trip like this there can't be any trouble....until he has to drop off! I'm hoping they route him up this way, even for a day. We have 11 more days until he's due home for some length of time (3 days) and he was only home 3 days in the month of November! This is very, very hard on all of us. He's making so many sacrifices. Thank GOD he has a job, but sometimes he goes 2 or 3 days with no shower, if they don't route him near a truck stop that has them. He has to sleep in the cab of his truck - eat there, sleep there, be there 24 hours a day. This is NOT an easy job! So I hate to burden him with news from home that may be less than desirable. Now that the weather is changing I add another worry for his safety...! He had some safety training last week in Kansas and they told him that Swift is the single largest carriers in North America - they have 22,000 trucks on the road - even more than FEDEX ground (the 2nd largest). Last year they logged more than 7 billion miles and had 42 deaths. FEDEX logged only around 2 billion miles and had 9 deaths. He said every day there is news of accidents with trucks. 2 weeks ago Swift made the national news because a driver was in an accident, and a mile later a driver from another carrier was in the exact same type of accident...they were both falling asleep at the wheel! As strict as these companies are about the hours you are ALLOWED to drive it is still very difficult at times to get good sleep....like when you have a refrigerator truck parked next to you at the truck stop all night (right Chuck? :)). Every day we just have to trust that Chuck is smart and safe and will come home soon! Not a day goes by, Chuck... Love you~

Robin

I ♥ NYC!

I Heard from Chuck a couple of times, today....he's a little bit nervous. As you may or may not know he brought a load up to Lancaster, NY, yesterday. Today he was supposed to pick up some freight in Buffalo, sat there for 8 hours and they called him a 1/2 hour before he was supposed to go get it and they told him it wasn't there! So, they told him he could go up to Albany (120 miles away or so) to pick up some other freight....going to the place he has been DREADING since this all began...NYC! Luckily, he's picking the freight up at 9:30 at night (their time, so 3 hours ago, our time) and had to deliver it to the JFK airport terminal where DHL goes out from New York to Jamaica. They told him on his preplan he was going to Jamaica, New York....woops! So, luckily he will be driving there in the early morning hours...hopefully the traffic will be sort-of light....all those trips to Chicago were just working you up to this, my dear! Chicago's going to be a rural town, compared to this! He's really nervous, so let's all pause and say a little prayer for Chuck's safety and most of all patience....that this goes smoothly. I'm sure he'll do GREAT!~ As I told him on the phone, today....would you rather be driving through New York City at 4:00 in the morning, or Cheyenne, Wyoming, right now with 10 inches of snow (in the Rockies)? He picked the city. Good choice. So I imagine the phone will be ringing around 6:30/7:00 in the morning tomorrow with either a HUGE sigh of relief or a VERY angry man on the other end of the line! Time will tell. So, that's the excitement for today. He admitted he's getting used to the hurrying-up and waiting....it's become part of his day. I guess you CAN teach an old dog new tricks! We love that old dog! :) I'll let you know how it went when I hear from him, tomorrow! I need to go work on my benchmark assessment. Instead of writing a thesis for my Master's degree I just have Benchmark Assessment projects at the end of every class. I got the assignment Friday and it's due TOMORROW. I just got the last interview done, today, with an administrator....so I'm drinking a pot of coffee and sitting up until it's DONE!! Have a great night~~

Over and Out,
Robin

HOLY TOLEDO!

Ha ha...we laughed this morning about that word...say it...."Toledo"....that's pretty fun to say! So, last week was so fun - we had a couple of extra days home we didn't plan on. He was home on Sunday and Monday (the 5th and 6th) I think it was, then he went down to the terminal in Inver Grove Heights to pick up the truck and when he got down there he found out he had to get a load up north, in Perham! So, by the time he went up there to get the load and was back down (headed to deliver it in Kansas, I believe), he ran out of hours....so he just came home for the night! BONUS! I brought him back to his truck at 5:00 the next morning and he left, took his load down to Kansas. While he was there he had some safety training and stuff they needed him to do. He ended up getting a load from Kansas back up to Bloomington! So he was home AGAIN! Just for Saturday. Then, Sunday morning early he had to leave to get back down to his truck. The pre-plan this time is to go to Lancaster, New York. Lancaster is 11 miles west of Buffalo. He'll be real close to Niagra Falls. Today he called early...around 7am, bored out of his mind! On the tollway it's really boring - if you've every driven on it, you know....it's very flat, and very boring! 6 hours on the tollway and he will be stopping in Erie, Pennsylvania....just across the border from Ohio. When we were talking about it we were laughing about O-Hi-O!! (yell it like it's echoing, it sounds funny!) He told me he was only a few miles from Toledo, and I said "Holy Toledo!"...so he took this picture for me and sent it...WE had a good laugh....guess you had to be there! :) This is a nice long trip...it's going good....he's got 4,000 pounds of Holiday popcorn balls from Con-Agra foods....what's REALLY funny is that he has to call when he gets within an hour of New York to get a "special permit"....I said...."Oh, you need a special permit to take popcorn balls into New York?"....that's a new one....apparently, HE does!! :) I think this is the reason so many drivers avoid New York, because of the permits needed to come in with certain products. We had a good laugh over it, though. He will NOT be home for Thanksgiving, unless by some MIRACLE he gets a load up here and they schedule him for home time, but he did NOT request it. We need him home for the weekend of Dec. 5th. He'll have 3 days off, then. Marco has a choir concert that Thursday, Friday we have a 40th birthday party for my cousin, Todd....and Saturday's the tattoo party in Strum! We're jam packed!! Then, the next home time will be Christmas....! So we'll have to sneak some Christmas shopping in somewhere, too! :) It's getting a little better...as long as there are no issues like last week. His health card was the big issue - why they wanted him to come home to get it straightened out, because it was expiring - but the Dr. had approved it, it just wasn't sent to Swift for the final "OK". Now that issue is gone, so there shouldn't be anything else to get in the way for awhile. We're only on Tuesday...it could still get messed up. We're trying to be optimistic. He just called...he's going through Cleveland....Cleveland Rocks!! (Any Drew Carey Fans out there?) :) I'll update in a day or 2!

OVER AND OUT,
ROBIN

A Long yucky week...

This week has been really rough. Chuck had a horrible time - he sat for over 24 hours outside of Peoria, Illinois waiting for some direction to come home - he was SO mad! He was ready to pack it up and come home....All I can do is keep encouraging, look for the silver lining....If there's one to be found I can find it (or at least try)! This morning he still didn't have any clue what was going to get him home, but by 1:00 he was rolling toward Gary, Indiana, to pick up a load to bring up to Inver Grove Heights. He should be here by around 3/3:30 in the morning tomorrow...he doesn't care what time it is, just so long as he gets here! He said he wasn't even going to stop if he absolutely didn't have to. The challenges abound with this job. It's not only the time away - there were times when he could definitely feel like he's on his own with no way to figure out what to do - relying on other people to find out for him. He was very helpless and frustrated. I was really frustrated, too...working on homework with Sam destroying the house around me! We have definitely been challenged. Can't WAIT to be done with school so he doesn't have to do this job anymore! He can find something local by that time, he'll have had enough experience. This is a really crazy time, right now. We're having our family Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow evening since he won't be home for the actual day....he won't be home again for 3 weeks (December 5th) when we have a tattoo party in Strum, Wisconsin.....we need that party for Christmas! Anyway, hope things are better for everyone else - we're going to try to enjoy the next couple of days! He will be going out on Wednesday!! Take Care!

Robin

He was ready to pack it up and come home after today....

I felt so bad for Chuck, today....he's having a horrible day. He worked 14 hours and only got paid for 4! Driving around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to get a trailer. He was so angry. He's swearing off Texas....every time he goes there it's a disaster. The last time he was stuck in Laredo for 3 days...this time he spent the whole day in Houston - it took them over 5 hours to unload his truck!Awful. Tomorrow he's on his way to Memphis, then hopefully they'll be sending him toward home.

Looking forward to having him home this weekend. He's scheduled to be home on Sunday. We're going to have our Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday since he won't be home for the holiday.

Well, here's hoping for a better Wednesday!! The week's halfway point.

Hope everyone else is having a great week!

Robin

A little bit of down time

When I talked to Chuck last night he said he was only going to be able to drive for 4 hours today, then he had to stop for the "week" - his weeks end on Monday. He got all of his hours in, so now he has to sit for today, after he delivers his load in Houston. He's been driving through the south - Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, and now, Texas. He's complaining about the temperatures, there...poor guy...needs to sleep with AIR CONDITIONING on! (whatever...rolling eyes) So he'll sit in Houston until tonight when he can reset his hours and go again.

I guess I'm doing much more of this blog for myself than anyone else, I've realized I needed an outlet for all of the ambivalence I have about this. He has an opportunity to do some runs up here between MN and WI, but he still won't be able to stop home until the 2 weeks are up. The worry I have about that is the weather that's going to be starting up here any day. I already worry so much, I might have a stroke! :) It's very hard, here....I'm trying to focus on school and the kids. My friends are all, magically, disappeared, since I need them....funny....when they needed me I was there. Oh well. I should've known. So, trying to find strength to be the best stay at home mother I know how to be (which I have no clue!) and wife to someone I can only see 4 days a month! Okay, I think I got that out of my system - don't want to burden anybody.

Chuck sent me these pictures of an antique race car he saw on the road a week ago - he took the pictures, but didn't send them to me right away. He said he saw it on the highway and was all disappointed he didn't have his camera ready, but then when he stopped to fuel up there it was at the truck stop! TONS of people taking pictures of it. Very cool sighting! A benefit to being all over the country.

Well, Sam and I are going to Menard's ....we have stuff to do....Take care and have a good day!

Robin