As much as we hated leaving our sacred parking space at Pilot this morning... we had to arrive at our delivery at 8:00 am. We slowly left our spot and it was quickly filled!
I gave up the "sleep" ghost as soon as we were docked. The trailer started rocking pretty soon thereafter. Our unload went quickly and we sent the necessary unloaded call on the qualcomm and we were number 12.
Oh well... we decided to drive back to Pilot and check out the parking, but to (not) so much of a surprise... all spots were full. Our truck needed a minor repair so we drove on down to the Kenworth shop, got the necessary go ahead from headquarters, and checked in at Kenworth.
The Waffle House, directly across the street, was sending high frequency vibes to Trapper (he loves their grits) and all of a sudden we were in Waffle House.
Our waitress was right on cue and we had breakfast ordered and coffee in front of us within a couple of minutes... it doesn't get much better than this... and then... she reappeared with bad news.... "Hi Sweetie, she says to Trapper, The grits are like soup and the cook won't sell them if she wouldn't eat them. Can I get you something else?"
Trapper had his heart set on those darn grits, but he's a gentleman and suggested she bring hash browns instead. We also had to ask for hot coffee vs. the luke warm in front of us. She graciously accommodated and we enjoyed our breakfast.
Our waitress appears again and as she lays the ticket on the table she explains that due to the mix up on the grits she discounted our ticket 10%. She goes on and on about the discount and how sorry she was for the mishap. For me, I'm thinking this is cool, every discount counts!
She walks on to another table and Trapper is looking at the bill and starts laughing. He slides the ticket to me and asks, "What's 10% of $13.94?"
I looked at him and replied, "Roughly, $1.40." At which point I have the ticket in my hand and it shows..... $13.89 total, 10% discount .14, total bill $13.75. We both just laughed. I guess it was the thought that counted.
The Kenworth place finished with our truck and due to the inclement weather expected for this region today and tonight, Trapper calls Headquarters and they dead headed to Joplin, MO. We were number 2 on the board at this point, but being sent to Joplin was fine with us for this trip. The weather was calling for freezing rain, sleet, snow mix... schools were dismissing early... we were ready to leave Springdale, AR.
We headed north on 71 and the further we drove, the worse things were getting. It was 28 degrees, light sleet/rain, the roads didn't look bad, but the windshield was freezing up, icicle on the mirrors, etc.
We arrived in Joplin and checked our truck into the garage (for a windshield wiper relay) and we decided to walk to the drivers part of the terminal. This ice storm came out of nowhere. By the time we arrived in Joplin the surfaces were ice! Walking was more like ice skating and that point was made clear as I fell and busted my butt! Luckily I went down slow and easy, so I wasn't hurt... a little shook up, but not hurt. I just don't bounce well!
Little did I know our trip back to the truck would prove more challenging! The wind had started blowing, it was sleeting bad, freezing rain, and you could not get any traction at all on your feet. At one point, my feet were moving, but I wasn't going anywhere. There's a slight slant on the grade of the parking lot, the wind was blowing, and I was slipping backwards. The only way out of this mess was to start moving as if I were cross country skiing (without the skis)... It was actually hilarious watching us... or at least me...
Here's the parking lot when we arrived in Joplin.
And 30 minutes later...tracks are gone...
A huge icicle, which actually slid off the mirror arm and then froze solid.
The qualcomm message finally came.... to all trucks at Joplin, we are experiencing a severe ice storm, you will not be going anywhere... to trucks in OK, AR, MO, or KY... if you are experiencing icing, stop safely and shut down.
I doubt anyone argued the point. Here we are in Joplin with all our siblings...
And the best picture of all... you know it's cold and nasty when the tires have icicles on them!
WHERE HAVE I BEEN?
10 years ago
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