Back Home, MN

I got home last night at 8:00 pm. It's been an eventful 3 days, and now I have 3 days off to recurrence.

From Ankeny, IA I went to Cedar Rapids, IA to pick up rolls of paper. Since I was close to Dubuque I decided to stop for the night near there and try to see Kathy et al. We were able to meet in Cascade, IA (20 mi from Dubuque). Jenna, the boys and a friend of theirs also came. Elias played in the truck and we went to Subway so I could get something to eat. It was a good time.

The next morning I drove to Red Wing to refuel. For the first time since driving trucks I went thru Decorah. At Red Wing I needed to have 2 new front tires put on, and put in 222 gallons of diesel fuel. At a truck stop that would have cost over $1,000. After that I drove to White Bear Lake, MN to drop off rolls of paper. I was then sent to Eagan to pick up a load of Coca-Cola products which I drove up to Virginia, MN in northern Minnesota. Once there I picked up an empty trailer which I needed to take to a paper mill in Cloquet, MN.

This is where it got interesting. I was close to being out of hours and needed to find a place to stop. I saw an abandoned truck stop in Canyon, MN and turned off the Hwy onto a frontage road. The turn however was quite sharp and I wasn't able to make it without taking out a sign. So I instead went into a business that had a large grassy area next to it's building. I attempted to turn the truck around, but in the process the front tires went into a soft spot and settled 8-9" into the turf. I was stuck. Embarrassed and a bit upset. I needed to find a way to get out. No one was around, but finally the owner of the business drove by. I was able to get a phone number for a wrecker. An hour later I was pulled free. It was an expensive mistake however. Wreckers are not cheap and I gave the owner some money to repair the area of grass where the truck was stuck. Besides that I was concerned that this incident might effect my employment. I am just a week away from the end of my 90 probationary period. I had visions of being fired or needing to start over with the probationary period. I didn't sleep well that night (Thur). Yesterday morning with trepidation I call Monson and spoke with the Safety person. I explained what happened and how I took care of it and asked if I needed to fill out an Accident Report. He said no. He thought I handled it well after getting stuck. I was extremely relieved as you can imagine.

After the call I drove from Cloquet, MN to a town in WI called Combined Locks. It's close to Appleton. It was a 6 hour drive. After unloading I went to Menasha, WI, 10 miles away and picked up another load of rolls of paper and was told to take that to the terminal in Red Wing. That took 4.5 hours.

For the week I drove 2700 miles. A good week.

Tristan spent the night with me and we watched the new 'National Treasure' movie just out on video.

I hope you are all doing well and are enjoying your weekend. I intend to take it easy and rest up. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Ankeny, IA

I'm laying down in the sleeper berth of my truck waiting for my trailer to be unloaded. It could take 3 to 4 hours. I'm in Ankeny, IA. I brought a load of Solo cups (light load).

It's been a strange couple of days. Monday afternoon I needed to drive from Chicago to Baraboo, WI which is an hour north of Madison and pick up a trailer at a Slumberland Dist Center. I then took it to Champaign, I'll for a 8:00 am delivering yeaterday. I was then sent upo to University Park, I'll just a bit south of Chicago to pick up the load of paper cups. I arrived there at 2:00 pm, but the load wasn't ready until Midnight. To make my hours work the best I didn't leave there until 4:00 am this morning and arrived in Ankeny at 10:30 am. So, I've been sitting around a lot taking naps, reading. books and watching DVD's.

I was able on Monday night to visit with Erika, Pat, Sydney Kate & Elsa in Madison. We went to a mall where the was a McDonalds. This time the girls each wanted their own milk shake. We also had to visit the Children's section of the neighboring bookstore. It is so much fun to see them looklng at books and stuffed animals, etc.
The weather has been great. Sunny and warm. I hope it lasts. This weekend I get an extra day off because of the Holiday. I think Tristan and I will hang out together. I also bought a WW II German Style motorcycle helmet (black) which I will be wearing when I put the top down on my PT 'Cruiser' Ragtop. I still need to get some goggles. I think I'll look pretty goofy. Tristan has threatenned not to ride with me if I wear it.

I hope you are all doing well. I'll let you know where I'm headed next. - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )

Chicagoland, IL

Hello from Chicago. I'm currently at a 7 Eleven somewhere near O'Hare airport waiting for my next assignment. I've got my Cubs T-shirt on and my Bears cap, so I feel right at home. I had to make a delivery this morning at 9:00 am of paper products from Boise Cascade.

The last few weeks I've been entirely in the Upper Midwest crisscrossing the states of MN, WI, SD, ND and IA. I'm getting to know the secondary roads pretty well. I've been getting home on the weekends which has been what I've wanted. Monson is a good company. Being smaller it isn't so impersonal. Unlike Schneider where I was driver 49123, here I'm known as James.

I'll have been working for Monson 3 months the beginning of June and at that point will be out of a probationary period. Benefits will kick in, as well as getting a significant raise. I'm driving about 2500+ miles per week which is good.

I hope you are all doing well and are enjoying the Spring weather. Having left the Winter season we are now entering the season of Road Construction. Take care - James (Jibs - Dad/Papa )