2/7/09

IT AIN’T ABOUT THE MONEY: LEARNING TO SAY NO!

Late December of last year, I pulled my pay envelope out of my mailbox and glanced at the year-to-date total at the bottom corner, something I rarely do.

“Holy Geez, are you kidding me?” I remember thinking at the time. It was a fairly big amount and I wondered where it all went! A Wife and five kids, along with a fairly nice home are completely acceptable ways to soak it all up.

What really got to me, was the fact that it never seemed like so called ‘work’ to rack up such an amount of change in twelve months time! Lucky me, to have such a job that is so enjoyable that it’s hardly like work. In my eyes, I drive around in a very nicely equipped 2008 Volvo truck that is a dream to drive and is near a work of art going down the road, at least when it is clean and not made disgusting by the wrath of winter. The money I make is simply a byproduct of all the good times I have out and about.

Quite often, I still think how lucky I am to have an opportunity like this so early in my driving career, especially in this economic climate! I still truly believe I have fallen into a proverbial pile of poop. Good equipment to use, great people that support me in the field and good pay and benefits equals up to a great company. I am fortunate indeed!

Let me set aside my pom-poms for a second and say as much as I love it, every now and again, it does have it’s moments. Few and far between, but there are times when it’s not all love and fluff!

This week for example was fun, but it was also a rare week when I began to hit the wall as Friday rolled around.

“Ah ha, it’s not all roses and large pay checks as you always write about” my detractors might be thinking..... Allow to me to explain, what a rare (and I stress rare!) week looks like:

This week I did not have to depart till Monday since my first stop was in Elkridge, Maryland. A short jaunt from Leesport, so I could stay home and watch the Superbowl! Unfortunately I was tired and wasn’t a fan of either team (darn Eagles) so I retired early, a five o’dark thirty wake up call comes too quickly anyhow. Get my three stops off Monday and head back to Leesport. Called in to find out I had a five thirty in the morning appointment for Tuesday morning. And two more stops after that ending way far away in Hudson, New York. Quickly headed to the customers front door so I would be ready for the early morning appointment time.

Finished Tuesday’s stops, called in empty and got a back haul on the way home. Foam for the warehouse, so they can make more of what I go out and deliver everyday! I inform my dispatch I’ll get back into Leesport with about two hours left on my clock. I secretly actually have three hours left to work with, but always keep one in my pocket to allow for food, traffic, prayer time or all of the above!

Call in For Wednesday’s load and get assigned four stops, starting in North Syracuse, New York and ending up in Watertown. I also am told “Start this load on Wednesday when you are legally able and keep us updated.” Forget leaving on Wednesday, I’ll leave immediately and use those three hours to hustle up to Binghamton, New York. Using those three hours now will make all the difference in getting back to Leesport legally after tomorrow’s run. I do prayer time on the way- as in “Please Lord, let there be one parking space left for one tired driver when I get there!”

For you non-eighteen wheel drivers out there, parking at a truck stop after dark on the East coast is near non-existent. They are simply filled to capacity, and then some. It’s a constant problem unless you enjoy parking on the side of the road where you have to try and sleep with the constant worry of someone slamming into you or what course of action to take shall nature call. Lately, I have been rolling the dice and going right into the fray of a late night arrival at one of these truck stops. On the way I will visualize that there will be a space open and it has been working and did on this night. I even scored a lovely high dollar piece of real estate right near the door of the joint! Unreal!

I finished Wednesday’s stops in plenty of time but was starving by the time I was done. I had two choices, walk up the hill to the Wendy’s or drive up to the little truck stop that makes the best subs ever and even has that oh-so-darn-good carrot cake. I decide the sub is healthier then the burger and hit up the truck stop. Eat way, way too much. Still learning the trick to moderation. But it was sooo good!

On the way home I stop off again for more foam and here is the beginning of where it all starts to fall apart. The are no trailers ready yet. There is one other Ashley guy already there and he says he has been there for two hours. I know him to be a bit of an exaggerator, so I figure he might have only been there about an hour but I waited almost two.

While waiting, I called in for Thursday’s load. Four more stops, starting in Southington, Connecticut and ending up in Easthampton Mass. Again, the instructions to “Start this load when able and keep us updated.” This time I will have no choice but to start it Thursday morning since even making Leesport tonight is questionable with the hours I left, but I do manage to get back.

Normally, I may go and enjoy a night at home since it’s only twenty minutes from the yard. It’s always nice to see the family but sometimes it can be hard to get proper rest. If the kids getting up during the night don’t get me, the snoring Wife will! I decide I’m better off catching a shower at the yard and hitting the sack right in the truck so I’ll be fresh and ready to roll not too mention I am in love with my brand new APU and how quiet it is! It’s so quiet I could hear the Yard Jockeys dropping trailers all around me, all night long!

Here is the thing I’m faced with on this load: I can’t leave till 8:15 am and it’s roughly four and half hours just to the first stop. I’m thinking it is highly unlikely that I’ll get that last stop off since they close at four in the afternoon. I’ll give it a shot and the worst thing that will happen is I’ll get stuck overnight and be forced to wait till the next morning to “Git er’done!” That’s actually not so bad, the way things have been going I could use a little break!

I also begin to second guess why I am getting these loads that are constantly chasing time? It’s not so bad though, I’d rather be going where I am going versus some less desirable, easier made (time wise) areas like Philly or somewhere in gritty Jersey. I also guesstimate that even if I can get them done, it will be so late that I’ll never have enough time to make Leesport and therefore this will most likely be the last trip of the week. That’s okay too because I have good miles and a halfway decent amount of stops for the week. Either way, the end is in sight, and a break is near! These things are on my mind, but barely audible.

I arrive at stop one at 12:30 in the afternoon and end up having to wait till the customers lunch hour is over to even begin unloading. I make use of the time by calling the last stop to let them know I am running behind schedule and is four o’clock the absolute latest I can show up, after all, I only have 3 items for them? The gentleman informs me that will not be a problem, he’ll be there till quarter of nine.

Fiddlesticks! Now I’m really gonna have to work! I arrived in Springfield for my second to last drop at five thirty. I’m tired, near starvation, and navigating a big truck in a less then truck friendly city after dark, to a customer I have never been at before. I found it okay but it was a little hairy getting back out of it.

After we unloaded, I was waiting for my paperwork and paced around the lot deciding just how I would manage to get back out. There were snow banks all over the place. A civilian looking at such a big truck in such a little space would have sworn it couldn’t be done. I wasn’t so sure myself, and walking around getting a mental picture of the surroundings will be a big help later. While all this is going on the phone rings.

A name appears on the screen- it’s my planner. Truth be told had it simply said “dispatch” I would have let them leave a voice mail and called back in later, but it was the planner herself, who I have a deep respect for and happen to personally like, so I take the call. She only wanted to know if I would get empty, and I said I thought I would. I remember saying “please don’t feel the need to abuse me, if you have no other loads, don’t be afraid to send me home and let me rest!” She laughed and informed me after all this time working together, how often has she abused me? She was right, never has.

That last stop in Easthampton? That’s a real bugger getting into. You have to wait for opposing traffic to clear, swing all the way over into that lane and swing back right into the driveway. If not done correctly you risk hitting a huge concrete retaining wall on your left or their building on your right. It’s a hold your breath, go real slow and hope for the best kind of arrival down a slightly steep grade into the back area. Once inside, I marvel at the interior of the building and learned it was once a button factory many moons ago. Unload the three pieces, sigh in relief the work is done and call in empty before I inhale my sandwich in the fridge that has been calling my name for I don’t know how many miles.

Me: “Hi this is Jason, finally empty in Easthampton, Mass.”

Dispatch : “Okay, hold on a sec.”

I patiently wait for the head back to Leesport or go get more foam somewhere instructions.

Dispatch: “Okay, we have you on seven drops for tomorrow, starting in Pendel, PA and ending in Philadelphia.”

Me: “What?”

Dispatch: “It says start this load on Friday and keep us updated.”

Me: “What? Are you sure you are talking to the right guy?”

At this point I became convinced that there were several dispatchers gathered around this lady’s desk listening to this conversation and barely holding in their laughter. This had to be a joke! I told her I would not even make Leesport till eleven Friday morning and she said that may be a problem since the first stop is only open till noon. She said she would send some messages to people and asked me to call back in later. I agreed.

I was now feeling the effects of the week and decided to visualize a spot at a truck stop about one and a half hours away. Time to get going, the truck and I swing around and head up the very narrow driveway. We made it halfway before we slipped on the ice. Back up, try to gather more steam. We go about half way again. And repeat. And repeat again. It’s so tight that a running start is out of the question but after a few more attempts we finally crawl to the top and make trails towards some rest.

Driving down 91 south towards Connecticut, this whole Friday, seven stop load in the Philly area is now firmly in my mind. I can’t help but to keep thinking that this simply, cannot be happening. It just doesn’t add up! I glance at my laptop GPS- yes I really am way the heck up in Massachusetts right at this very moment. I glance at the clock, yes it really is just after seven at night. THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING!

As I roll south down 91 I begin to think, maybe it is not. Maybe it’s not really happening at all. Is there a chance that this could be a dream, and not even a good one? Perhaps I should do something crazy, just as a test? Could you imagine?

“911, what’s your emergency?”

“I’m sitting here on interstate 91 near the Connecticut border and traffic is completely stopped”

“What’s the emergency sir?”

“Well there is an Ashley tractor trailer completely stopped in the middle lane of the highway, no flashers or nuthin!”

“Why, why is he stopped, has there been an accident?”

“No there hasn’t, but some guy who I think is the driver is running around banging on peoples windows and asking, yelling rather, is this a dream, this isn’t really happening, right?”

Would have made for a great story in the paper the next day, how some driver was taken in for a mental evaluation after creating such a stir on the interstate. I figured the best course was to continue on to the truck stop all the while envisioning a space for me, as this was an even smaller truck stop and a spot at this hour would be scarce.

I pulled in to a scene of the usual chaos, trucks parked everywhere that was a sign that I may be out of luck. I swung to the right for a better look and just as I did I experienced a moment of divine intervention. A truck began to back out of a spot just ahead and to the right of where I was, and I immediately backed right into the empty whole. I felt like I had just hit the easy button at the end of a difficult day! This whole visualization practice is really great!

I called again to see if they still had me on the load. They did. I could not even think about it anymore and hit the sack, completely exhausted.

The next morning as I made trails towards Leesport, I began to have severe second thoughts about pulling another load this week, especially another ‘leave when you can and hope for the best’ type of thing. I was feeling slightly off, the feeling you get when your on the verge of being ‘under the weather’. I don’t think my planner was abusing me by assigning me that load, she most likely saw it as an opportunity to pad my paycheck even more for the week. She also might have really needed to get that load done and thought I was the man for the job. Given the circumstances, would it be fair for me to say no?

I hate to say no and haven’t said no but three times in my three years here. I wasn’t near death like I was those other times, but if I keep going like this I could be. If I’m not feeling one hundred percent on the ball, is it worth the risk of pulling another trailer anywhere?

It took me till I was within twenty miles of Leesport till I mustered up the courage to call in and simply say that I felt unable to safely take the load as I am physically and mentally exhausted. Without the fanfare I had imagined in my mind, I was promptly taken off the load and free to go about my weekend.

Parked the truck, went home and enjoyed a delicious plate of food my wife had left for me, then I hit the sack. Well, not exactly, before I went to bed I emailed my planner and apologized for not taking the load and explained why. I felt I owed her that and for some reason felt I could better do that in words then over the phone.

After a solid three hour nap I felt much better but later that evening I began to get that wiped out feeling and went to bed unusually early for a Friday. As bad as I felt about calling off on a load, I still think I made the right decision.

In the end, after what ended up seeming a difficult week, a lesson also presented itself to me. As truck drivers, we have 70 hours to use up in 8 days before we are required to take a 34 hour break. Doing what we do is also a little bit unique compared to other truck driving jobs. We get into a lot of areas where trucks might not belong and that requires a lot of extra care and attention. We do multiple stops in these places and manually unload our product from our trailers ourselves. These are also reasons we are paid so good for what we do, and why I enjoy doing what I do. It’s neat to have everyday and even every week be so different. I also came to realize that even though as a commercial driver I am obligated to give my company 70 hours of my time, we do a heck of a lot more here then just driving from point A to point B, and that can take a toll, both mentally and physically. This week I could only do 57 hours (not to mention 2250 miles) till I felt I needed a break. Thirteen hours short, but if I had taken that load this story could have possibly read much differently. Sometimes it is better to choose a break over a little more money, safety over a possible accident, and health over being worn down and missing more work the following week. Sometimes, you gotta say no!

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