Deja Vu

We got our load out of Ontario and this time went much smoother as we came through the border. I still found myself getting uptight and nervous as we got closer but I made sure that I had my drivers license ready ahead of time so I didn't have to relive that trauma!

That load delivered in Middleton, Tn. If you've never been there, you haven't missed anything. It was out in the boonies. After we delivered, we went out of service to do some laundry, eat, and most important, get some rest. 

I think we've done pretty well for newbies but we definitely do not have the stamina that a seasoned driver has. I think the biggest problem we have is trying to sleep while the other is driving. I never thought it would be that big of a problem, but it is. I don't know how to explain it, but imagine laying in bed and your bed is moving, sometimes shaking hard enough to cause discomfort, you can hear cars and trucks passing by, it's still daylight out, your bed moves and stops, moves and stops. Other drivers say that eventually you get used to it and some claim to sleep better in the truck than they do at home.

All I know is that for now, we aren't getting rested when we are on loads so we have to stop and rest when we need it. Safety comes first. This is another reason we decided to go with expediting rather than mainstream truck driving. Company drivers don't have the luxury of going out of service or turning down loads. They get a load sent to them, they have to do it. Period. 

After going back into service, we eventually received a load offer that was picking up in Huntsville, Alabama which was good because it's the same place we picked up at just a few days ago. We won't have the stress of trying to find it since we now know our way there.

The downside to the load is that it again is going back up into Canada. Specifically, Windsor, Ontario. More paid sight seeing for us!

Delivery and a Pick Up in Canada

After our visit from the working girl in Toldeo, we eventually got a load picking up in Dowagiac, Michigan heading back up into London, Ontario. The drive over to the shipper was pretty uneventful but it was snowing pretty good which kept us on our toes.

I can't believe we were already heading back up to Canada. One of the reasons we wanted to do this job was to travel and see places we wouldn't normally get to see, so I guess I shouldn't complain about going back to Canada. I'm getting what I wished for.

The delivery site was a little tricky to find due to some one way streets and some incorrect directions provided by our carrier but we finally found our way there and got unloaded. This time we decided to wait for a load in Canada and see what happened instead of deadheading back out.

It worked and we got a load picking up in Orangeville, Ontario. The shipper that we picked up from quite frankly looked like a junk yard. A small one at that. We had so much fun getting our truck in there and weaving around through the junk that was laying everywhere. John's biggest concern was that we would run over something that would damage one of the tires. We don't need those headaches. In the end, we got in there, got loaded and got out of there.

Before we went inside

After we came back out. Yuck!

Again, it was snowing, but it is still winter so I guess that's to be expected. Can't wait for spring!

We are headed to Middleton, Tennessee for delivery.

Our First Lot Lizard Visit

What a lovely first this is! We've all heard the stories about the truckers getting unexpected visits from the "ladies". Well now we can add our own story. After we left Canada we deadheaded back down to Toledo, Ohio to wait on our next load. We went to the Pilot and parked, had dinner and then were lounging in the sleeper using the computers and surfing the web. I'm not sure what time it was, but it was dark outside, when we heard someone start pounding on the passenger door. We looked at each other like what the heck is that all about? We just sat there without moving and next thing you know, there's pounding on the drivers side door.

At that point we decided John better check it out in case it was a cop or something going on that we really needed to know about. John went up into the cab of the truck and pulled back the curtains just in time to see a "lady" walking away. Guess she got the hint and decided to move on.

Our boys drove a semi for two years and didn't have a single visit from a lot lizard. We are so fortunate to get one after two loads. Lucky us!

The next morning we got up and started to head inside to get something to eat and on the ground between our truck and the one next to us, there laid a nasty used condom. Disgusting! Guess someone must have taken the lady up on her offer.

First Trip to Canada

Ambassador Bridge as you are coming back into the US

With our first load under our belt, we were relieved and left wondering, what do we do now? We were kind of in the middle of nowhere in Tennessee with no destination in mind. We were feeling a little lost. After having regular jobs all our life we were used to a set schedule. We had never been in a situation where it was completely up to us on what to do next. We searched our gps for the nearest truckstop and decided to head that way. We had no idea how long it would be before we got our next load. The biggest difference in expediting and regular truck driving jobs is the amount of sitting and waiting you do. You sit much more in expediting and at that point we were hoping that it would be awhile before our next load because we were physically and mentally drained from the stress of learning a new job.

We drove the twisty hilly back roads of Tennesse until we reached "the truckstop". Second lesson to be learned. Just because your gps says a place is a truckstop, does not mean it is a truckstop. It was a gas station that happened to also sell diesel. While we were filling up, and learning how to use our comdata card which is like a debit card that our carrier put an advance on each time we pick up a load so that we would have fuel money up front, a call came in from dispatch.

Looks like this guy is getting mighty close to the edge

They had a load offer for us, needed to be picked up asap and was delivering in Ontario, Canada. We told him to give us a few minutes to talk it over and we would get back with him. I hung up the phone, talked to John, and then called the owner of the truck. I told her they wanted us to go to Canada, that we did have our passports but because of Ontario and Quebec's laws, we would have to stop in Woodhaven, Mi and have a speed limiter put on the truck. This would limit our truck to a top speed of 64 mph. She said that was fine and if we felt up to taking the load to go for it. We really didn't want to, but being new to the carrier we didn't want to turn down any loads at this point. We wanted to establish ourselves as dependable contractors. I called dispatch back, told them we would take the load and had them give me directions on how to get the speed limiter taken care of.

So much for getting rested up, but we were out here to make money, so off we went. We were really pushing it to get to the shipper on time. I got stuck in a traffic jam, got a little bit lost on the way, thanks to the gps.  The pickup was in Hunstville, Alabama over near the airport. We got there with a minute to spare. Too close for comfort and again feeling like a nervous wreck because we knew it would not look good to be late on our second load.

 We checked in with the shipper and they were ready for us. Backed into the dock and they loaded us. Then came the paperwork. They went over it with us in orientation, but you go over so much it's hard to keep it all straight. We needed a Pars Sticker, which  I had. They gave those to us in orientation. There was confusion on both my part and the shippers part, I can't remember exactly what it was, but we finally got it straight. The shipper faxed the paperwork to the broker for me and I passed the info on to dispatch. Then we headed off to Ontario. I gave a follow up call to the broker and they assured me they got the paperwork faxed to them. I called back a few hours later and was told that the freight was cleared to cross the border. So that all went very smoothly.

Next challenge, we had to find the shop our carrier uses in Woodhaven, Mi to put the speed limiter on our truck. It's right off I75 next to The Detroiter Truck Stop. It was the middle of the night when we got there, but there was a guy working and he came out and hooked up a little handheld computer to our truck computer and set the speed for us.

 All that was left then was to get across the border. We were crossing at the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit. We are so inexperienced that we honestly had no clue how many ports there are to cross into Canada. Had never really even thought about it. John was driving and we managed to find our way to the crossing. All I could think about was that in orientation they drilled into us that we had to make sure the border guard stamped our bill of lading. If they didn't and we were pulled over in Canada without the stamp it was a $5000 fine. John pulls up to the first booth that we came to and the guy asked him for money. John paid him and the guy handed him a receipt. John handed him our paperwork and he handed it back and said he didn't need it. I started panicking and said, no no he has to stamp it!! The guy said he didnt know what I was talking about and then suggested we would need to go to some brokers office but since we were already that far we had to go ahead and cross into Canada and then we could turn around and come back.

I drove past this big truck that rolled up in Canada

 Oh my goodness, the nerves were starting up again. I did not want to go into Canada without that stamp!! John drove across the bridge and on the other end of the bridge there was another booth. He stopped there and  the lady asked for our paperwork. He handed it to her and she put a stamp on it and gave it back. We were good to go, no need to go to a brokers office. The first guy told us wrong. I was so relieved I could have cried. We continued on and it was about 250 miles up into Ontario for our delivery. We made it there without too much trouble, got unloaded and decided to deadhead back to Toledo.

Tow truck getting ready to pull out the rolled truck

We couldn't use our phones or internet in Canada so we didn't want to hang around there and wait. I was driving as we came back to the Ambassador Bridge to cross back into the US. Traffic was backed up quite a ways and the flashing signs were saying to have your ID ready. I started looking for my drivers license and couldn't find it. I went into total meltdown mode, had actual tears coming out. I was screaming at John, what did I do with my drivers license? He was yelling back at me. How could you misplace your license? I just knew they were going to haul me to a Canadian jail and it was going to be an awful mess. Here I was driving, no license and in a foreign country. That was one of the worst moments I've ever had. This drivers license search went on for a good five minutes. I was ripping everything apart looking for it. Turns out, it was right where it was supposed to be and I have no idea why I didnt see it the first 20 times I looked for it.

We finally got across the bridge and it was our turn to stop and speak to the US Border Patrol and convince them to allow us back into our country. Let me tell you something. Getting into Canada is a breeze. Getting back into the US, not so much. They ask the strangest questions, the whole time they are looking at a computer screen and then they look at you like they are seeing dirty little secrets about you on that computer screen. They ask the usual, like do you have any alcohol, tobacco, weapons? But then they have the off the wall stuff. How long have you been driving? What was your prior job? Why did you leave that job? How much do you get paid at this job? Are you two married? How long have you been married? What did you do while you were in Canada? What places did you stop at while you were there? Where do you live? How long have you lived there? Why doesn't your cell phone number match up to where you live?

 My goodness, I would love to see that computer screen they are looking at. Thankfully the torture was soon over and they didn't search our truck.  We were allowed to reenter and I drove us on down to Toledo.

Our First Load.....Let the Fun Begin

Maybe I missed something during orientation. We waited all Thursday night and nothing happened. Friday morning, nothing. Finally I called into driver relations and found out that our qualcomm wasnt activated. They walked me through it and we were officially on the board. I was a nervous wreck. I wanted a load but at the same time was scared to get one.

 It wasn't too much longer and we got our first qualcomm beep. I pounced on it and read the message. It was a load picking up about 20 miles away in Ohio going about 550 miles to Tennessee. I pushed the buttons hoping I was doing it right to accept the load and off we went. John and I discussed it and decided I would be the one to start out driving. I was terrified! I kept thinking, what in the world do we do when we get there?

 I found the shipper, pulled in and saw a sign that pointed the direction to shipping and receiving. Okay, that makes sense, I'll go there. Drove back there, saw the docks, parked the truck off to the side. Me and John got our paperwork, and went into the shipping office together, since neither of us had a clue what to do when we got in there. Walked in, announced who we were with and that we were there to pick up a load. We were told to back into the dock, they were ready for us. We headed back out, relieved that they didn't seem to think we had no clue what we were doing and with John's direction, got the truck backed into a dock. We went in and watched them load the truck, then John secured the freight with load bars. The shipper handed us the Bill of Lading, which we had never seen before, but about 99% of the time you will get with every load. We went back outside, pulled the truck up, John closed and locked the doors, I figured out what messages to send into the carrier and off I went.

I was on cloud nine driving that night. I made it to Shepherdsville, Ky and decided to stop for a break. This was my first experience finding out that if you pull into a truck stop late at night, good luck finding a parking spot. Truck stop was full, but there was a closed gas station across the road from it that our truck would fit in, so I drove over there and parked and took a couple hours nap. All the stress and excitement had worn me down.

I woke up, finished the drive and made it to the consignee. Again, what do we do now? We looked for the shipping and receiving signs, found them, went into the office and we were informed that no one would be there for about 3 hours to unload us. We were directed to a spot that we could park and wait. We parked the truck, set our alarm clock and both of us went to sleep. The alarm went off, we got up and I nearly had a heart attack when I saw the time. I had gotten confused about the time because the consignee was on central time and we were operating on eastern time, so we were an hour later than I had planned to be.

 We were so upset and scared to death that we were going to be terminated! We drove back over to the consignee's docks, checked in again, was told to back into the dock and got unloaded. No one mentioned anything about the time and we never heard anything from our carrier about it. What a relief and a lesson well learned! Just one of many to come I'm sure.

Orientation Completed

We made it through! Yay for us! It really wasn't as bad as I expected it to be. Of course, all I had to prepare me for the experience was the orientation we went to at Conway. Wow, what a difference between the two.

 At Conway, we were treated like second class citizens and they really played with your head. Always letting you know that you could be sent home at any minute and that they thought their company was so good and that if we got selected to be a part of their company we should really feel special. The whole experience left us traumatized and I'm not saying that lightly. I am dead serious.

This time around, it was so much better. Our son Stephen ended up driving us here and we had a blast on the drive there and in the motel we stayed at during the orientation. We had only planned on 2 days but it turned into 4 days due to the extra class we opted for to get our DOD stuff out of the way.

Stephen driving us to Orientation

As we got to the motel we passed a truck going the opposite direction and I pointed it out to John and told him that I thought it looked like our truck. We continued up to the motel and parked the car and as we got out there was a lady next to us unloading luggage from her trunk. She looked familiar so I took a chance and asked her if she was Arlene, the owner of the truck we were going to drive. Turned out that it was her so we stood and talked for a bit and she explained that her friend that drove there with her had just taken the truck over to the truckstop to leave it in the parking lot because the motel wouldn't let them park it there. So it was our truck that we passed earlier.

We made plans with her to meet up the next day and go over paperwork and get the grand tour of the truck and because it was so cold and snowy outside we all headed our separate ways. We got checked into our room and warmed up then we all headed out to eat. We ended up going over to the truckstop and eating there and our son, who used to drive for Conway, showed us around the truckstop and pointed some things out that we would need to know. We were thankful because neither of us had a clue about so many things since we had no experience whatsoever with truck driving, truck stops or anything else related to the job.

The next day was Sunday and we slept in. Arlene called and asked if we were ready to eat. We agreed to meet her at the other truckstop in the area. We found her and she bought us breakfast and went over the contract that we would have with her. The contract detailed how we would be paid as independent contractors. We would be getting 60% of the gross revenue to the truck in addition to 100% of the fuel surcharge since we would be responsible for buying fuel. She would be responsible for 100% of truck repairs and maintenance. We would get a 1099 at the end of the year and be responsible for our own taxes as nothing would be withheld from our pay. It's a pretty standard setup for expediters who are driving for owners.

After breakfast, we all drove over to the truck and she went over how to work different things, like the apu, the ceiling vent fan, which has a rain sensor to automatically close if it starts raining. She showed us where all the storage spaces were located, and how to raise the bed if we wanted to convert it into a dinette table. She gave us a lot of information and it's a lot to process but she said to feel free to call her anytime if we needed to ask questions. The truck is really very nice and well maintained and I think we are very lucky to be driving such a nice truck. Most people who start out doing this job with no experience usually start out driving a "starter truck" and then move to a nicer truck after they've proven themselves.

In addition to all that, she gave us some tips on how to handle different situations that might come up with dispatch and the loads they offer. Being new, we welcome all the help we can get.

After a couple of hours, she handed us the keys and wished us good luck and told us she was going to head back home. What an overwhelming feeling that was to suddenly be responsible for this truck that we had never driven and knew almost nothing about. And we were going to be driving it all over the country to places we have never been and dealing with shippers and freight and oh my...Panic mode set in. Thank goodness our son was there with us. He calmed us down and assured us that we could do it.

The next day was the first day of orientation. We had to be there at 7 AM. Stephen got up and drove us over there since we weren't authorized to drive the truck yet. Until we completed orientation and all paperwork was done, we couldn't legally drive the truck. We were both having flashbacks of our horror at Conway, but we tried to keep a positive attitude.

There were about 20 of us in class. Some of us would be driving straight trucks, some cargo vans, and some tractor trailers. The first day was a lot of paperwork that we had to fill out. Thanks to all the government regulations, there is a lot of information that you have to give to drive a truck. They want 10 years work history and it all has to be verified. We were prepared for it all since our boys had already been through this and we had done it all at Conway so we had our info in order. Others in class were not so prepared and had to make a lot of phone calls home to try and get all the info they needed.

We all had to pee in a cup, get our vision tested, blood pressure checked, and then a physical. They had a Dr. right there on site so that was convenient. We got photo id's made. Lunch was served and was delicious. We got several breaks throughout the day and on the classroom portion of the talks they were giving out valuable information so it was not boring like I expected it to be. We were given company policy and procedures so that we would know how to be legal out on the road and get paid properly.

The second day was more slide show presentations, question and answers, going over how to use a qualcomm, etc. Again, things we really needed to know. A lot of people there already knew all this stuff since they had driven before, but for us, it was all new. Everyone we dealt with was respectful and friendly.

We could have been done at the end of the second day but because we had elected to go for our DOD clearance to give us access to more and better paying loads, there was an additional class that we needed to do. We went back on Wednesday and it was an all day session. Then we were told we would need to come back on Thursday to fill out the application for clearance on the computer. We had no idea what we were getting into on that one. No application in my life has ever been as in depth as that one! We were there from 8 AM until a little after Noon completing that thing. No wonder so many people won't get their clearance. It really is a time consuming chore. I'm not sure how long it will take to find out if we get the clearance, the company said they will notify us when they find out.

The shop took our truck in on Wednesday and added the decals with the company logo's and dot numbers, so it's all legal for us to drive now. We drove it to class on Wednesday and Thursday. Of course it had to be snowing both days, but not too bad.

After we wrapped up on Thursday, we went back to the hotel, checked out and sent Stephen on his way to Indiana. We had such a wonderful visit with him during this time that we will always have special memories of this trip. He taught us how to get the truck scaled and how to get it washed. So many things that truck drivers take for granted but for newbies like us, we have to learn.

We drove the truck over to the local Walmart and set off on a major shopping spree. There is so much stuff you need to set your truck up for life on the road. We got everything we could think of right now, but I'm sure as time goes on we'll find more that we need to make life more enjoyable.

Now we are back at the truckstop and waiting on our first load. Oh My God!!!

Last Day at Walmart

I thought this day would never get here! We are both so happy that our time at Walmart has come to an end and we are moving on to a more exciting career. We have been counting down the days. We both got unexpected surprise parties at work. It was very sweet of our co-workers to do that for us.

Trucks that were on top of our going away cakes

John's Department Manager put a party together for him and had a cake made. It had a semi tractor on top of it. My Department Manager, who has also become one of my best friends and the only thing that I will miss about working at Walmart, also put a party together for me. She had a cake made for me also and it had a full Walmart semi trailer on top. Very cute and very much appreciated!

It was the first time that a lot of my coworkers knew that I was leaving. I didn't tell too many people because I didn't want them to think that I was better than them by leaving, or whatever. Just really didn't want to cause any hard feelings. Everyone who talked to me in private said they wished us well and wished they could find a way out of Walmart. I feel a little bad talking bad about Walmart, but it truly is a lot of work for very little pay. The only way we survived working there was by having almost no bills and no kids at home to support.

We now have 10 days before our Orientation starts in Ohio. We're working on a plan of how we're getting ourselves and all of our stuff that we want to take with us there. Most likely our youngest son will drive us up there in his car and then he plans to drive on over to Indiana and spend some time with one of his cousins. All I know is that however we get to Ohio, it will definitely NOT be on a Greyhound Bus!!