ALL veterans give some; some veterans gave ALL. It makes no differance what your political beliefs are - left or right; republican or democrat; conservative or liberal - but your right to have and VOICE an opinion on just about anything exists today because of the proud service of our veterans.
If there is one good thing to come of the Vietnam Conflict (we never did 'declare' war) it is the un-mitigated support for our troops regardless of the situation. We may not agree with the decision that places them wherever they may be but these young men and women have taken an oath to defend our country and have made great personal sacrifice for us. Never forget. So on this Memorial Day be sure to thank a vet.
I am a veteran. I served in the Air Force from 1972-76. I will admit, I did not enlist because I was motivated by nationalistic pride. Truth be known, my draft number was eight! There wasn't much doubt in my mind that the Army was anxiously waiting for my 2-S deferment to be recinded due to my grade point falling below 2.0 the prior semester. Four years in a guaranteed job with the Air Force seemed like a better alternative to the Armys putting a rifle in my hand and sending me to some rice field in SE Asia.
But with-out a doubt, I am a better person today for it. Military service teaches you a whole lot; not just about yourself but other people, regardless of race. In some respects, I wish I had stayed more active in the reserves after I got out of active duty. But then my life today would be extrememly differant too and I'm not sure it could be much better, so life is fine as it is. But what if......
I am in Belleville again. I ended up getting a car out of FL that took me with-in 80 miles of where Jareds HS Graduation was last Thusday night. I was going over to my friends 50th birthday party Saturday afternoon (500 miles away) but it didn't work out. I did have a car to pick-up coming into STL and grabbed that over in MS Saturday morning. I spend that night in Memphis.
I just wasn't in that big a hurry to get to Blvl. Most folks I know are out of town. So I parked the truck, rolled the bike off and headed down to the gambling boats in Tunica, 25 miles south of Memphis. After dropping $30 (ya, I know, last of the big spenders!) I rode back up to Beale St. - home to some of the best blues bars in the world. I will withhold printed comment on the rest of the evening. And it has nothing to do with the law, just personal opinion. Ask me about it face-to-face.
I got on in here Sunday and went out and properly celebrated our veterans sacrifice to maintain this way of life. Thank you -- thank you! Today I deliverd the car (they were closed yesterday). Tomorrow I have three places to load in STL going to two stops in central IL. Relatively short trip but the load is heavy and the rate is first class.
I plan to be around here for a week or so. Maybe short trips out but then back within a day or two. I'm hoping the contract my mother has on her house here goes thru. That should be resolved - one way or the other - by the end of the week.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Time to Go ... But I Don't Want To!
My last post, at the end, I joked about my 'sleeping sickness'. Unfortunately the joke was on me. What I thought was just allergies evolved to a knock-out for me by the weekend. I met some friends for dinner and drinks on Friday night. We were going to 'paint the town' but I only made it to the sofa after I cooked dinner.
I spent most of the next 36 hours in a horizontal position either on the sofa or in bed. The worst part was the cough. Fri and Sat nite both I thought a lung was coming out, I was hacking so bad. I had more success stopping the runny nose with some sinus pills. By Sunday I felt like I might live. There is only so much of 'doing nothing' that I can stand. Must get that from my mother. At 80 she will still go out and rake leaves or cut the grass or move a queen size bed into the garage by herself!
I am looking for something to move me out of FL and into AR by Thursday. My youngest son is graduating HS. I am monitoring a couple of load boards now. Nothing so far that gets me where I want to go. Other than loading my motorcycle I am packed and almost ready to go. Need to do a bit of a clean-up around here first.
Since losing my parking space across the street for my trailer - new lessee at the marina - it has become a bit complicated getting my bike loaded. My trailer is about 6 miles away. My bike and truck are here. The best is when I can get a ride from the trailer back here to the house and then take the second vehicle over. There is plenty of room there to put my 13' ramp out for loading the bike.
I have driven the truck over there, got my trailer and come back here, parking a few blocks away on a side street. Then I walk back to the house, get the bike and go load it and take off. It's more complicated but it works. Hard to complain though when this is the toughest part of your day.
Finally, in the continuing saga of my AT&T air card, I am - at the moment - using my original card. You may remember, this is a poorly designed (in my opinion) USB device that sticks several inches out of the side of my laptop. It gets bumped and banged and finally, about 2 weeks ago, bent so badly that it quit working.
With my oldest sons help, I found a card on eBay that slides into a slot on my laptop giving it more strength. And it was a fraction of the $250 AT&T wants for a new card. The new card came in a sealed box with AT&T all over it and the seller had a 100% rating. The new card did not work. I agonized with the thing for almost a week, thinking my laptop was at fault. Finally, I went to the AT&T store - very helpful, friendly people - and they deduced that my new card was no good. (They installed one of their cards off the shelf and it worked, but I'm not paying the $$$)
I returned my defective card to the eBay guy and he has since shipped me a new one that maybe in today. I took my severely bent, original card and severely bent it the other way - back straight (almost). I figured nothing worse could happen. Amazingly it is now working. But it seems to be VERY flimsy and I don't think it's long for this world. But today it works.
I spent most of the next 36 hours in a horizontal position either on the sofa or in bed. The worst part was the cough. Fri and Sat nite both I thought a lung was coming out, I was hacking so bad. I had more success stopping the runny nose with some sinus pills. By Sunday I felt like I might live. There is only so much of 'doing nothing' that I can stand. Must get that from my mother. At 80 she will still go out and rake leaves or cut the grass or move a queen size bed into the garage by herself!
I am looking for something to move me out of FL and into AR by Thursday. My youngest son is graduating HS. I am monitoring a couple of load boards now. Nothing so far that gets me where I want to go. Other than loading my motorcycle I am packed and almost ready to go. Need to do a bit of a clean-up around here first.
Since losing my parking space across the street for my trailer - new lessee at the marina - it has become a bit complicated getting my bike loaded. My trailer is about 6 miles away. My bike and truck are here. The best is when I can get a ride from the trailer back here to the house and then take the second vehicle over. There is plenty of room there to put my 13' ramp out for loading the bike.
I have driven the truck over there, got my trailer and come back here, parking a few blocks away on a side street. Then I walk back to the house, get the bike and go load it and take off. It's more complicated but it works. Hard to complain though when this is the toughest part of your day.
Finally, in the continuing saga of my AT&T air card, I am - at the moment - using my original card. You may remember, this is a poorly designed (in my opinion) USB device that sticks several inches out of the side of my laptop. It gets bumped and banged and finally, about 2 weeks ago, bent so badly that it quit working.
With my oldest sons help, I found a card on eBay that slides into a slot on my laptop giving it more strength. And it was a fraction of the $250 AT&T wants for a new card. The new card came in a sealed box with AT&T all over it and the seller had a 100% rating. The new card did not work. I agonized with the thing for almost a week, thinking my laptop was at fault. Finally, I went to the AT&T store - very helpful, friendly people - and they deduced that my new card was no good. (They installed one of their cards off the shelf and it worked, but I'm not paying the $$$)
I returned my defective card to the eBay guy and he has since shipped me a new one that maybe in today. I took my severely bent, original card and severely bent it the other way - back straight (almost). I figured nothing worse could happen. Amazingly it is now working. But it seems to be VERY flimsy and I don't think it's long for this world. But today it works.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Running Faster than my I-net Connection
This past week has been going 100 mph, it seems. And my AT&T internet card is giving me fits, as usual. The good news is that I am back in Paradise! Home in Florida for the first time since early March. YIKES! So that part is really good. I got to see a sunset last night, one of my favorites things to do.
I actually got in here last Friday night. My neighbor Don was having a party so as soon as I had the truck emptied, I invited myself over. It's always nice to see him and his wife. She and I had a most interesting conversation about being the executor of a living will for a loved one - which we both are. HEAVY stuff for a Friday night.
Saturday was running around town, on two wheels, taking care of some odds and ends. I also had to collect my money for the car I brought down here from the Savannah area.
I ended up leaving Southern IL Wednesday night about 9 pm. Much later than I wanted but it's just the way it worked out. I had booked two pieces on Tuesday coming out of the STL area and going toward FL. One went to the Atlanta, GA area and the other came on down here to FL just outside of Gainesville. I spent all day Wed getting them loaded and then went to Belleville to move my few (I thought) possessions out of Brackett St. This is a vacant property my mother had for sale. I stayed here when I was in town. Very convenient. But it just sold and the closing is June 15 so I gotta get out. I had a lot more clothes there than I realized - mostly winter stuff.
It was 550 miles to my first stop and I figured if I could get even 2 or 3 hours start Wed. nite, I could easily make delivery by 3 PM on Thursday. And that's exactly what happened. Unfortunately my AT&T POS (Piece of S^*t) Internet card was not working so I was unable to look for something to add on out of Atlanta going to FL. I was not a happy camper. I also was not excited about riding around Atlanta rush hour traffic. It is about as bad as it gets there. So after my delivery, I hightailed it (as much as I could at 4 PM) south.
I stopped on the south side of Atlanta, at a motel, where I logged onto their internet. Of course I found several things but ALL of them were back on the NORTH side of town and I wasn't going there. So I continued south not sure exactly where I was going besides towards FL. I ultimately made a left turn in Macon and drove 160 miles east to the Savannah area and dropped in to see my dad Thursday night.
My mother had been in IL dealing with the sale of the property so he had been alone for more than a week. I figured he'd appreciate the company. Besides he needed milk, eggs, and bread.
Friday morning I found a car about 20 miles north of Savannah going to Clearwater, FL - less than 10 miles from my house. So I went and grabbed that and drove the 6 hours down to the St. Petersburg area. I dropped the car that evening on their lot but had to go back Sat morning at 10 am to get my check. At 11 AM Sat morning the guy calls me to say he won't have my check until 1 PM that afternoon. Why does it seem like it is ALWAYS the driver that gets the short end of the stick when something is whacked? I'm going to write a book someday on all my tribulations as a 'Delivery Boy" except that would have so much negative karma that I get depressed just thinking about it. And my life is WAY to good to be bothered with negative crap.
Sunday I did what I love to do best - ride my bike! I went with a couple of friends to the Blueberry Festival near Citra, FL - about 160 miles away. They had a band and several thousand people there, we were told. Unfortunately, the festival was the day before! But you know what? They still had a bunch of blueberries to be picked. and we did!
On the ride back we ran into some sprinkles until we were about 20 miles from home when the sky turned very purple and I decided we needed to seek cover RIGHT NOW. We got off the interstate and were discussing options in a parking lot when the heavens opened up and made our decision for us - Burger King was right there. But, as usual, the storm passed within 15 mins and the roads were dry enuf in less than an hour and away we went.
Yesterday - Monday - I went and delivered the 2nd piece I brought out of STL. It was not scheduled for delivery until Monday anyway, even though I tried to take it to them Friday when I passed thru. They weren't even there. Today was going to be a beach day - gotta get my vitamin D. But I developed a sleeping sickness and pretty much haven't left the house. No sweat, there's tomorrow.
I actually got in here last Friday night. My neighbor Don was having a party so as soon as I had the truck emptied, I invited myself over. It's always nice to see him and his wife. She and I had a most interesting conversation about being the executor of a living will for a loved one - which we both are. HEAVY stuff for a Friday night.
Saturday was running around town, on two wheels, taking care of some odds and ends. I also had to collect my money for the car I brought down here from the Savannah area.
I ended up leaving Southern IL Wednesday night about 9 pm. Much later than I wanted but it's just the way it worked out. I had booked two pieces on Tuesday coming out of the STL area and going toward FL. One went to the Atlanta, GA area and the other came on down here to FL just outside of Gainesville. I spent all day Wed getting them loaded and then went to Belleville to move my few (I thought) possessions out of Brackett St. This is a vacant property my mother had for sale. I stayed here when I was in town. Very convenient. But it just sold and the closing is June 15 so I gotta get out. I had a lot more clothes there than I realized - mostly winter stuff.
It was 550 miles to my first stop and I figured if I could get even 2 or 3 hours start Wed. nite, I could easily make delivery by 3 PM on Thursday. And that's exactly what happened. Unfortunately my AT&T POS (Piece of S^*t) Internet card was not working so I was unable to look for something to add on out of Atlanta going to FL. I was not a happy camper. I also was not excited about riding around Atlanta rush hour traffic. It is about as bad as it gets there. So after my delivery, I hightailed it (as much as I could at 4 PM) south.
I stopped on the south side of Atlanta, at a motel, where I logged onto their internet. Of course I found several things but ALL of them were back on the NORTH side of town and I wasn't going there. So I continued south not sure exactly where I was going besides towards FL. I ultimately made a left turn in Macon and drove 160 miles east to the Savannah area and dropped in to see my dad Thursday night.
My mother had been in IL dealing with the sale of the property so he had been alone for more than a week. I figured he'd appreciate the company. Besides he needed milk, eggs, and bread.
Friday morning I found a car about 20 miles north of Savannah going to Clearwater, FL - less than 10 miles from my house. So I went and grabbed that and drove the 6 hours down to the St. Petersburg area. I dropped the car that evening on their lot but had to go back Sat morning at 10 am to get my check. At 11 AM Sat morning the guy calls me to say he won't have my check until 1 PM that afternoon. Why does it seem like it is ALWAYS the driver that gets the short end of the stick when something is whacked? I'm going to write a book someday on all my tribulations as a 'Delivery Boy" except that would have so much negative karma that I get depressed just thinking about it. And my life is WAY to good to be bothered with negative crap.
Sunday I did what I love to do best - ride my bike! I went with a couple of friends to the Blueberry Festival near Citra, FL - about 160 miles away. They had a band and several thousand people there, we were told. Unfortunately, the festival was the day before! But you know what? They still had a bunch of blueberries to be picked. and we did!
On the ride back we ran into some sprinkles until we were about 20 miles from home when the sky turned very purple and I decided we needed to seek cover RIGHT NOW. We got off the interstate and were discussing options in a parking lot when the heavens opened up and made our decision for us - Burger King was right there. But, as usual, the storm passed within 15 mins and the roads were dry enuf in less than an hour and away we went.
Yesterday - Monday - I went and delivered the 2nd piece I brought out of STL. It was not scheduled for delivery until Monday anyway, even though I tried to take it to them Friday when I passed thru. They weren't even there. Today was going to be a beach day - gotta get my vitamin D. But I developed a sleeping sickness and pretty much haven't left the house. No sweat, there's tomorrow.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
My West Coast Trip - by the Numbers
I was gone for 26 days and drove more than 7,600 miles in my truck (another 400 miles or so on my bike) on this west coast trip. I went thru 12 different states – seven of them twice or more – and burned more than 600 gallons of diesel fuel. I prefer not to think about how many dollars that represents. I delivered 13 different loads on my travels and generated a fairly decent income considering I sometimes took a load for less than I might normally consider only because it moved me in the direction I wanted to go. I saw 12 different family members and met many more friends along the way. I have added more than 260 new pictures in my album.
Overall I would rate this trip as FANTASTIC. Every stop was memorable. I was welcomed so graciously by all my family that put me up along the way. It was almost like they enjoyed seeing me! I have seen all of these people within the last 3 or 4 years – except for my cousin Sherita, a bit longer for her – but it was still as if I hadn’t seen them in 20. And it was such a good feeling for me. The only negative thing I can say is, I did not get as much motorcycle time as I wanted.
The weather was cold and rainy in several places I was hoping to ride. Three days in LA and the bike never came off the trailer because of the rain. Another four days in Boise and I only rode a couple of hours one afternoon because it was so cool (mid 50s) and very windy.
I am planning a return visit to California with my youngest son in mid-July. My older sister’s husband has a son (grandson?) getting married and there will be even more family on my sisters side – including her – who I have not seen for a long time. The fact my almost 20 y/o son wants to do something with his dad is reason enough by itself in my book, tho!
I have not been able to update my blog since I broke my internet air card a few days ago. This poorly designed device plugs into the USB port on the side of my laptop and sticks out about 3 inches. It bumps into EVERYTHING. A particularly bumpy road across IA caused my laptop to inch its way off the back of my center console landing in the passenger seat – on its side. The air card got bent at a 90 degree angle and works no more.
My oldest son suggested I get a different style card that plugs into the PCIA (?) port rather than the USB port. It will not only work faster but only sticks out less than an inch. Because it fits inside the laptop almost 2”, it should be a much more durable situation. That and the $50 price – versus $250 from AT&T – make it acceptable.
I have been in Belleville since Thursday, as has my mother coincidentally. She has a contract on the last piece of rental property here and is in town to wrap up some loose ends. Today being Mother’s Day allows me to entertain her for brunch, which we are leaving for in just a few minutes.
I will be making a qwik trip to Elkhart, IN early Monday morning for a friend. It’s about 400 miles each way so I will leave here by 5 am and hopefully return before dark. He has a small cargo trailer going up and an even smaller one coming back and was having trouble finding a way to make the exchange in a timely manner. I happen to be standing in his office when he was trying to work out the logistics and volunteered to help since I had nothing else planned.
Tuesday my truck is scheduled for some preventative maintenance stuff so I plan to start looking for something to take me to FL by mid-week. I need a vacation.
Overall I would rate this trip as FANTASTIC. Every stop was memorable. I was welcomed so graciously by all my family that put me up along the way. It was almost like they enjoyed seeing me! I have seen all of these people within the last 3 or 4 years – except for my cousin Sherita, a bit longer for her – but it was still as if I hadn’t seen them in 20. And it was such a good feeling for me. The only negative thing I can say is, I did not get as much motorcycle time as I wanted.
The weather was cold and rainy in several places I was hoping to ride. Three days in LA and the bike never came off the trailer because of the rain. Another four days in Boise and I only rode a couple of hours one afternoon because it was so cool (mid 50s) and very windy.
I am planning a return visit to California with my youngest son in mid-July. My older sister’s husband has a son (grandson?) getting married and there will be even more family on my sisters side – including her – who I have not seen for a long time. The fact my almost 20 y/o son wants to do something with his dad is reason enough by itself in my book, tho!
I have not been able to update my blog since I broke my internet air card a few days ago. This poorly designed device plugs into the USB port on the side of my laptop and sticks out about 3 inches. It bumps into EVERYTHING. A particularly bumpy road across IA caused my laptop to inch its way off the back of my center console landing in the passenger seat – on its side. The air card got bent at a 90 degree angle and works no more.
My oldest son suggested I get a different style card that plugs into the PCIA (?) port rather than the USB port. It will not only work faster but only sticks out less than an inch. Because it fits inside the laptop almost 2”, it should be a much more durable situation. That and the $50 price – versus $250 from AT&T – make it acceptable.
I have been in Belleville since Thursday, as has my mother coincidentally. She has a contract on the last piece of rental property here and is in town to wrap up some loose ends. Today being Mother’s Day allows me to entertain her for brunch, which we are leaving for in just a few minutes.
I will be making a qwik trip to Elkhart, IN early Monday morning for a friend. It’s about 400 miles each way so I will leave here by 5 am and hopefully return before dark. He has a small cargo trailer going up and an even smaller one coming back and was having trouble finding a way to make the exchange in a timely manner. I happen to be standing in his office when he was trying to work out the logistics and volunteered to help since I had nothing else planned.
Tuesday my truck is scheduled for some preventative maintenance stuff so I plan to start looking for something to take me to FL by mid-week. I need a vacation.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Saturday Morning
It has been a pretty laid back visit. The weather has not been motorcycle friendly. In fact, I'm wondering now why I even unloaded it since all I have done is drive into the garage. The highs have been in the mid-50s and very little sun.
Yesterday, I went and loaded a 2009 Harley going back to IL near Champaign. I decided to turn my bike around and put the two side-by-side facing forward rather than sideways like I carry mine. This Harley has a windshield and I was a bit concerned how it might ride with the wind coming at it sideways.
I also loaded another SUV from an auction going to IA. There is a hot tub coming out of Salt Lake City - which I will pass thru Monday - that I am trying to add on. I found it Thursday but was hesitant to call about it until after I had loaded the other stuff and was sure I had space left. The SUV has to go on the tail since it comes off first. When I did call about the hot tub Friday afternoon, the shipping guy thought it might already be covered. I'll follow up Monday morning on my way thru.
Last nite my uncle took me to Game 1 of the Idaho Steelheads Conference Final playoff hockey game. The seats were AWESOME! Front row on the ice right next to the home teams bench. The good guys scored the first 4 goals and then held on to win 4-2. Great fun.
Today we head back downtown Boise and walk around the Saturday Morning market. And I'm praying for sunshine and some heat!
Yesterday, I went and loaded a 2009 Harley going back to IL near Champaign. I decided to turn my bike around and put the two side-by-side facing forward rather than sideways like I carry mine. This Harley has a windshield and I was a bit concerned how it might ride with the wind coming at it sideways.
I also loaded another SUV from an auction going to IA. There is a hot tub coming out of Salt Lake City - which I will pass thru Monday - that I am trying to add on. I found it Thursday but was hesitant to call about it until after I had loaded the other stuff and was sure I had space left. The SUV has to go on the tail since it comes off first. When I did call about the hot tub Friday afternoon, the shipping guy thought it might already be covered. I'll follow up Monday morning on my way thru.
Last nite my uncle took me to Game 1 of the Idaho Steelheads Conference Final playoff hockey game. The seats were AWESOME! Front row on the ice right next to the home teams bench. The good guys scored the first 4 goals and then held on to win 4-2. Great fun.
Today we head back downtown Boise and walk around the Saturday Morning market. And I'm praying for sunshine and some heat!
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