 |
|
|
|
|
...My Life as 'Drive away' driver
|
200310 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the night in Livermore CA The odometer says I drove over 200 miles today, and here I am in the same place. Almost, when we checked in, they gave us the keys to the same room but two guys were in there working still so we got upgraded to a suite. And it's a breakdown so we are not paying. Morning, breakfast. Very small area, about the size of a personal kitchen with three tables seating eight people. All full this AM so we took our food back to the room. Thinking it would take about 15 minutes we left the room at 7:15. Sun up was about 7:30. But I was more listening to the directions that looking where I was going and turned too soon when it said turn. I've been this way enough times and it didn't look right but too late. Someone opened the gate when I pushed the buzzer, in the evening everyone has gone home so we have to wait for security. Dispatch had given us a bus number yesterday and the bus was right inside the gate. Coralville, not Coalville. Adds another 100 miles paid, plus a 2nd hundred un-paid. It is that much further from where our van is. 1st thing I noticed was there were two spare tires instead of one. So I call the breakdown number. Nope, not a breakdown issue so I'm supposed to go see the guy at the desk. I do and he says thanks, but doesn't know why there are two but if there are, take them both. Another driver shows up to take the bus next to me, I go over and talk to her a couple of minutes. She is heading to MI. On the southern route. She NEVER runs I-80 in the winter. She had run it a few years ago and she was one of the last people to make it through before a major pile up. BB helped me check the lights and get stuff moved before she headed to return the car. I have to finish my paperwork, drop it off, call for permit, put on my plate and then I'm ready to go. Been here once before and also looked at the map again last night. That didn't stop me from hitting the curb. Now I have my rear tire with lots of read paint on it. Must have rubbed for at least once around but nothing else is damaged. The bus isn't warming up very fast. 46 degrees this AM and the temp inside the bus stayed there for a while. Finally BB started feeling in the vents and it was blowing cold air. The temp did get up to 65 by the time we stopped the first time. I called dispatch to tell them I had picked up the bus this AM, then called the shipper to tell them I had an issue. After getting comments that I should be checking things BEFORE I leave, they told me to come back ... 60 miles. That 1st stop was in Lodi ... I had spelled it Loda and and BB said it was supposed to be an 'i' so I changed it to Lida ... didn't realize the mistake until tonight :) Flying J in Lodi, all the large spots in the car area now say 'reserved.' Drove around the parking lot once and parked in one of them. We stayed there long enough to use the restroom and headed back. 2nd stop was the shipper. They looked at the bus a few different places and re-set a breaker switch and I was good to go. It was 80 inside rear quick and the defrost was throwing heat. That all took three hours and we were heading out again. Doing the math as to if the trip permit would still be good long enough to get us out of the state in time. And how far we could get with the hours I had left for the day. Then before we get to Stockton, BB notices that the heater is blowing cold air ... again. Plenty warm from the sun but wouldn't stay that way in IA. Didn't want to stop in Stockton so I kept going, I was going to keep going to Lodi but wanted to get back to the shipper before they closed. 3rd stop was a shopping center in the last feet of Stockton. I quickly regretted not keeping going to the Flying J. I was able to get in to the parking lot, turned around and not scratching the bus on any trees. I call the shipper again and am told to come back. I then update the dispatcher and we walk to Penara for lunch. We don't know when we'll have time to eat again. I just have soup and BB has a sandwich and a soup. I get a few more calls from the shipper from different people. Heading back to the shipper one of the times ... I was in the right lane as I am driving 55. I notice a truck and cars coming up the on ramp. The truck must not have been paying attention as when he got the the freeway there was another truck right beside him (ahead of me.) I had backed way off to let the truck and some of the cars in. Next problem was there was another semi parked on the shoulder right at the top of the ramp so the truck coming up the ramp had to go somewhere. It hit the brakes long enough to pull in behind the semi already in the traffic lane. At that point he was likely going 10 mph on a CA freeway. The car right behind him couldn't have seen what was going on so they were too close when the 2nd semi hit it's breaks. So they head for the shoulder long enough to the the parked semi. The car was able to get stopped with out hitting any one as was I. At that I realized no one had hit me and looked in my mirror. I guess I was already going slow enough that people were watching out for me. 4th stop back to the shipper. Too late. The shop boss is the only one left, the rest of the crew leaves at 2 PM which is about the time we got there. They must have all been standing at the time clock. Sooooo ... leave the bus and get a motel. They will call when the bus is ready in the AM. Uber has updated their app since we last used them so BB spent the next 45 long minutes trying to get it re-installed and setting up a ride. After watching two drivers head AWAY from us she canceled the ride and re-entered the info. We received a notice the 1st ride was canceled but the 2nd ride responded differently and the car was there in a couple of minutes. Not sure what the issue was the 1st trip. Five minutes later we are back at the same hotel as last night. Quality Inn in Livermore. Six places to eat withing walking distance. More food across the freeway but no safe way to get there. Not sure how I will get paid for today. The 1st issue could have been my fault for not checking before I left, but now that it happened again ... when did it happen the 1st time? Before I picked it up? After? There was now a Davenport bus in the lot but once I am on a bus, it's mine. Until I have to leave it, or deliver it. Not at all like the RV's where we are to stay with it ... if it can be fixed within an hour. NO downtime is paid. BB had sent our paperwork last night after we got to the motel, we were paid by 6 AM local. We are still on the email list for the other company we used to work for and today they sent out an email saying that they are getting a lot of notifications of speeding and careless driving based on on-board tracking devises. So starting today, the 1st time they get a notification the driver will loose any safety bonus. The 2nd notifications will result in termination. Based on prior emails and talking to customers when we were still there, they are going to be loosing a lot of drivers. (Wonder if they will be calling trying to get their old drivers back :) ) Loadboard is hanging in at 50. Now there are three CA runs we'd like, plus a couple of runs to Junction City, OR and a couple more to Salem, OR. But at this point it would need to be two no-tow two day runs to make it pay. And that is if we get going tomorrow. IF we get going in the AM, I would like to make it to Elko, NV ... Oh, I don't think I mentioned. One of the 1st things we found was this bus is governed at 55 mph. NOT going to make delivery Saturday. Drive time went from 30 hours to 36 hours and I only had 38 hours available. AND we need to fuel, inspect, and take restroom breaks. And now after breaking down for a day we for sure will not make it on Friday. And we will be getting a new NV permit. I might wait on the next one until we are closer to the border. Thursday, Rawlins would be the next stop, another 500 miles, Friday in Grand Island, then Des Moines Saturday and Sunday. Wash the bus near Des Moines before heading the last 100 miles to the drop on Monday. So we have time to have issues for another day before changing anything. But why?? Motels at those locations are more expensive or unknown. We have the time, we will likely run fewer miles a day and stay at cheaper motels in area's we know. Elko is a good example. At the Quality Inn, I would have to park on the dirt shoulder of a busy highway. At the Comfort Inn there are two sharp curves to get in. I haven't tried with a bus but thought about it going in, out with RV's. The Best Western has a overhang with a height limit and the bus doesn't display it's height. Wyndham would work but no big discount with them. For food we had talked about Chinese or Mexican, ended up at Wendy's and then Subway (for a cookie.) 200311 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the night in Verdi NV Awake at 4 AM local, mostly awake at 5 AM local, finally get up around 6 AM local. Have breakfast sometime around 6:30. Last time we had a bus and had to leave it at the shipper they called about 7 AM. Not today. Finally at 10 AM I call my contact. They haven't heard anything but will get back to me. ... then I get news that Mom is not doing well. And I'm 2,000 miles away. Same with Dad, the downside of this biz. Upside is we can stay off the road if needed. About 11:30 we decide to walk and get something to eat. Asian, Ming Garden. The person at the front desk had told us last night it was good but we had a burger instead. 11:45 I get the call back that my bus is done. But we order, eat and walk back to the motel in no hurry. I had sweat and sour chicken, BB had curry chicken, both with rice. Good food and close to the motel. Likely stop here again. Back at the motel we are out of the room in about 10 minutes. Uber is there in another 5 minutes and to the shipper in 15. As soon as we start walking to the building I see a Milwaukee bus. I've delivered enough of those I know their colors. Last night there was a Davenport bus. There also was buses for FL and NY. One bus sitting there had plates and placards and a note in the window. Horn blows all the time ... and the drivers number. Let the bus run long enough that it seemed like there was heat. Should be, the breaker didn't seem to blow for 40 miles. 1st stop again was Lodi at the Flying J. No issues heading through Sacramento, just the shortest way wasn't the fastest way. That was based on the speed limit so maybe the shortest way would have been the fastest for me. Did see one semi that had an issue. First I noticed the cop behind him on the shoulder. Then I noticed one of his left tires was off the ground ... and the other end of the axle was laying on the ground. No tires, no rims. ??? 2nd stop was Donners Pass. "NO PLAYING IN THE SNOW" ??? I called for my permit, everything was the same as yesterday so it didn't take long on the phone or long to get. Then I called Best Western to book a room. For some reason the email we got on Monday wasn't good. Only one discounted room per month ... and then they give me a room at the same rate based on a different promo. So another <> $50. Half the price of booking online through Best Western. Saw fuel for $4.29 in CA, 100 miles east it will be $3.00. No fuel gauge but I can get to Kingman before fueling and that is almost 600 miles. Fernley will be 500 so I should be good. Coming down the pass first one semi is on the white line so I hung the concrete barrier. Two trucks later the semi has all his right tires in my lane so I blow the horn until he is completely past. Didn't seem like he made any attempt to get back in his lane. Not a fun place to have that happen. 3rd and final stop was at the Best Western in Verdi. Ate at Mel's. Buffet not open. Had a patty melt and slaw. BB had a club. Good food, we'll be back down in the AM. At 55 mph we need to be rolling before 8 to make it across the state by 5 PM tomorrow. 24 hour permits. Only state I know of that doesn't have a three day permit. WOW, down to 31 on the load board. Three for OR, none for CA. We will likely be off the road for days or weeks depending on how things are at home. Other issues at home that could be brewing too, we'll see. Hopefully we make out better with the breakdown. Without the breakdown we would have delivered on Monday. Now we get a day's breakdown pay, a paid motel and we will still deliver on Monday ... we hope. 500 miles a day if no issues. 200312 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the night in Tooele UT Down to Mel's for breakfast. Third meal here in less than a week. All good. Just as the sun is coming up, we head out. Mostly no issues except when we were going up a slight hill. Full sun in eyes. Not much for traffic coming in from CA during rush hour. 1st stop is the Flying J for fuel in Fernley, 45 miles down the road. Only put in 36 gallons, at first we thought we were getting really good mileage. Then we realized the shipper may have re-fueled it. But we won't know the answer to that until later. Quiet morning so I am able to back into the island and fill both diesel and DEF. 2nd stop is the Pilot in Winnemucca for a break. Another empty lot. Quick in and out. 3rd stop was the Port O Subs in Battle Mountain. We've been here a few times but always coming from the east. I knew how to get there going through town ... but there was a semi at my turn so I couldn't swing wide so I went to the next street and then went through the residential area for a few blocks. I did end up getting there, and coming in the correct direction on the correct street. This place is a lot smaller and busier than the other location ... at 10 AM. Food was good. In and out in our 30 minutes. 4th stop was at the Sinclear in Elko for a break. A few miles east of Elko is an inspection station. Both directions were open today. Trucks just have to pull off the freeway, drive slowly, and if they are not flagged over they can return to the freeway. Three cop cars sitting there, one truck, we all headed back onto the freeway. Somewhere after that we had a conversation about where to stop for the night. Original plan was Tooele, but at 55 mph it was getting to be a long day so maybe Wendover 100 miles closer was a better idea. But that motel is starting to show it's age so we finally were back to Tooele. Had to cross the scale at Wendover but then back onto the freeway. 5th stop was the Wendover rest area in the salt flats ... for about two minutes. The restrooms were closed. 5th stop part two. 40 miles down the road was another rest area. Open, quick in and out. 6th and final stop. 1st I wanted to fuel because the DEF gauge was down to 1/4, it shouldn't have been. Now I know the gauge on this doesn't work either. Also put in diesel. I think I have put in enough to almost get to NE. Fuel is $.50 a gallon cheaper there. And now I know that the shipper did re-fill the bus. I'm getting very close to the normal mpg. Second time today I asked the fuel desk for one receipt for DEF and one for diesel. Both times I got two receipts for DEF and didn't notice it until I was almost to the door. I didn't fill here so I'm guessing with no fuel gauge, but there should be low fuel lights and by the time we would be running low there are stations every few miles. I hope. Across the street to the Comfort Inn. $40 more than Wendover but a much nicer place. Back across the street to Denny's at the Flying J. BB did not want to go back but everything else is quite a hike in the dark. She got the senior BLT and I got the senior omelette. Both were good, no complaints this time. Eleven and a half hour day today. Seems even longer at 55 mph. Did just over 500 miles today. It's a half hour less than that to Cheyenne tomorrow. That is likely our next stop. Not much for parking so we may try something different. AND BB was checking the weather and Nebraska is to get six inches of snow on Saturday. We might just sit Saturday out and then we won't deliver until Tuesday. We'll see how it looks and what the advisories are. Load board was down to 24 tonight. BB only saw two new ones added all day. 200313 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the night in Laramie WY We are safe in our motel, but Friday the 13th isn't over yet ... Breakfast, this place has the good juice and a different type of sausage (turkey maybe?) Before we got back to our room I got a call from a driver from the other company. He was starting on his taxes and had some questions. I had trained him in last summer and he's called a few times. It wasn't a long conversation but any little thing seems to throw us off. We are on a tight schedule so we ended up leaving a few minutes later than usual. So it was a few minutes lighter. We also had forgotten to bring our first bags down when we came down for breakfast. We have so many bags that we can't carry them all in one trip and we don't leave anything in the bus because it can't be locked. DEF gauge hadn't gone up last night after I filled but when I turned the battery back on this AM it was showing full. Not much for 'rush hour' traffic in SLC on a Friday AM. Going up the hills I was able to pass some of the trucks but not others. This bus does not have a lot of power. Gets down to 35 mph on some of the hills. Makes for a long day. 1st stop is Evanston, Port of Entry. I get the new person. I walked them through as much as I could until the next agent was free and then they stood there for the rest of it. I've done this enough times that I have a good idea what they will be looking for, but every state, weight station and agent is different. They did need to the know the weight of the bus and I had taken a picture of that before I walked in so that was good. Otherwise the agent can guess, or can make me go out and drive across the scale. I have had to do that before, here. Other than that everything was on my paperwork, I just have to find that page. One of the things they were looking for I did not have because the states plate I run on doesn't issue it. I've been through that before so I tried to stay ahead of them. $20 and I was good to go. Had thought of calling ahead to see if Terribles A&W was open again but BB decided she wanted to eat at the Mexican place at the Clarion Hotel. 2nd stop is Rock Springs at the Clarion. Not sure the name of the restaurant, but it was busy and good. I think it took us less time there than it did last time at the 'fast food' place, Del Taco, across the parking lot. And the food was much better here. ... but someone was coming out the drive when I got there and I had to go over the curb to get in. No damage, I just try not to do that, it's a fail on a test. I did call the drop twice and left a message, then called the bus dispatcher about how much fuel to leave in the bus. Then when I went to key the notes into my phone I realized they were already there. I could have looked at my notes instead of calling. The big dig east of Rock Springs. We got a real good look at the machine, but no picture. Still a lot of junk laying in the ditches from the big wreck a couple of weeks ago. One place there was a tire, axle and gear case. Likely was buried in the snow when they were picking stuff up and no one has been back yet. 3rd stop was at the TA in Rawlins. Heading west we stop at the Flying J, heading east it is the TA. Faster to not have to cross the freeway. Before BB got to the door of the TA, someone in a pickup stopped and asked her something. Then before I got to the restroom someone ask me if Coralville was part of Greyhound ... then walking back out a 3rd person asked if we were picking up for Greyhound. Guess the Greyhound was a couple hours late and they were looking for a bus ... any bus. But they must not have had to wait too long, before we got to our next stop the Greyhound passed us ... One of the overhead signs said to 'slow down' ... I am ... I am running at 55 mph all day unless I am going up a hill. Online weather said freezing fog past Laramie so we decided to not go past Laramie tonight. 4th and final stop was the Comfort Inn in Laramie. By now no travel is advised between Laramie and Cheyenne. And still snow forecast in NE, now all the way to Des Moines. Shutting down for a day would delay us but anything less than that should be OK. We decided it was an order in night. Pizza Hut, pizza and cookie :) ... our usual spot, the Iron Skillet, had a fairly empty lot tonight. Same with the Flying J this AM back in Tooele. I don't think we have ever seen it with no RV's, tractors, anything, parked in the RV area. I had never parked a bus at this Comfort Inn before. Getting in was no problem, we'll see about getting out in the AM. Loadboard is down to 11. We have pretty much decided we are off the road for now. I'll work for the local company but we'll see how that goes. That means riding in a van for 5 hours with others every day I work. Which means being closer than six feet from someone. As long as we get 200 miles tomorrow we should still be able to be in Des Moines Sunday night. Even if we don't make it that far we might still be able to make a Monday delivery. WY freeway was closed for a little bit tonight then open again when we looked later. NE freeway is closed ... until further notice. 200314 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the night in Kearney NE 6 AM Opps ... now the road is closed between here and Cheyenne ... and if we did get get past Cheyenne, the road in NE for the first 100 miles is ice covered. But, it should be close to 40 by mid-day so hopefully the ice melts off when the sun comes out. Forecast is for the road to re-open between 10 and noon. 8 AM road are open but ice covered. 7 PM ... made it. Sun was just coming up as we were getting going. For a short stretch around Laramie, the sun was right at the horizon and it was also reflecting off the wet road. Very, very bright. But it only lasted a few miles until we got to different pavement. I-80 was only ice covered for a few miles in WY. But there were a lot more miles where the left lane was covered with a two inch mix of snow and sand. For some reason it seemed like most of the cars that passed me were on the stretch of ice. Variable speed limit in this area. Today it was 55 mph so I was able to go the speed limit ... and everyone still passed me. Some times it's 80, we've driven it when it was 45, not much fun. Almost to Cheyenne I could see fog ahead, then I couldn't see the power lines over head. Didn't last for long though. Shortly before our first fuel stop we hit fog again. Visibility was about 1/10 of a mile. Luckily I had looked at the blue info signs because when we got to the exit we could not see the truck stop on the other side of the freeway. It wasn't until I came out from under the overpass that I could see the sign and the truckstop. 1st stop was at the TA for fuel. Pulled into a line where the guy ahead of me had his four ways flashing. When he pulled out, someone from the office came and shoe'ed me out of there. That was the lane they use for filling the fuel tanks. So I moved to the next lane over and was ready to fuel when BB got back from the restroom, so it wasn't long. Put in 60 gallons so we are getting pretty close to 8 mpg. This is the firs time I've filled it and tomorrow will be the last. Good price but will be cheaper tomorrow. If I had a fuel gauge I would have been just putting in enough fuel to get to the next cheaper station. Somewhere before we got to NE, the highway dept listed the NE roads as clear. Used the wipers a good part of the day. Mostly mist. 2nd stop was the Taco Johns at the Loves in Sidney. This was just going to be a restroom break but it was almost noon when we got there so lunch it was. Two chicken quesadilla. We could have eaten our left over pizza from last night. Didn't think about that until we were down the road after. A RV from IA pulled in behind us but they were still busy in their cab when we walked past. And gone before we were done eating so we don't know where they were going. By the time we left there was another RV in that spot. Another transporter from a different company. Coming from the east we usually stop in Ogallala and then Sidney. So for a while that was our plan but then we decided to push on to North Platte. 3rd stop. Restroom in Loves at North Platte. I usually stop at the Flying J across the street but there were too many semi tractors in the RV area so no room. Not much room at Loves either, we just parked along the curb and were in and out in a few minutes. Weight station sign said open, and to exit only if instructed. But the instruction signs didn't seem to be turned on. Saw lots of transporters today. Two buses back at the WY POE but they didn't look like either New Flyer or Gillig. Way more tow away, pulling trailer homes. Shortly after pulling back on the freeway I noticed a red warning light. Red usually means to do something right away and orange is for those things to do soon. But I chanced it and drove until I got to a rest area where there was a place to park. Didn't want to stop on the freeway and NE says no parking on the freeway ramps. First I shut the bus off for five minutes but the light was still on. So I called the shippers weekend number. They did get back to me in a few minutes and after a few questions said I was OK to take it to delivery that way. That was the 4th stop in Brady. 5th and final stop was at the Comfort Inn in Kearney. We've stayed at the Quality Inn and I don't remember any place to park a bus. The Comfort Inn is new so I hadn't seen their lot before. I did look online at an aerial photo and it looked OK. But we didn't make a reservation until we got here, in the lot and parked. Tried to turn down the first row of parking but the turn was too tight with a light pole. With the second row I was able to swing wide into the handicapped spots and even with that I was within a couple of feet of the cars on one side and inches on the other. Finally got parked, it should be easy to get out in the AM. The lot is big, but no wide spots to turn. After checking in, we walked across the street to the Angus Burger and Shakes. Like most places lately, it was almost empty when we got there, but an hour later when we left it was full. Haven't seen that before on this trip. Great food. I had a reuben burger. Didn't realize until I was half done that it was a reuben BURGER. Top half was reuben, bottom half was burger. We didn't a shake, talked about it, they looked good but we still have Pizza Hut cookies at the room. We didn't throw those away. Down to six on the loadboard. Three hundred miles for tomorrow and then the last hundred on Monday. Usually I work for the other company the last week of the quarter. With this virus thing going on, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Find my own ride? (BB isn't interested) Or maybe I will do a solo road trip for them. Or maybe by the last week of the month private business will be closing down and it won't be an issue. If they start canceling US flights, that could be an issue. It will take days instead of hours for the drivers to get back to take their next run. 200315 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the night in Ankeny IA Motels are still serving breakfast. No lock down yet. Some people were scrapping their windows as we were walking to the bus. No ice on the bus. Not sure the best way to come in next time. Same as this time if there is room, otherwise try to back in off the main street? Worry about it next time. Pretty quite day. Misting most of the day. 1st stop is fuel in York at the Petro. Not a lot of trucks so I am able to back in. Put in DEF first. Pump is pumping slow and I'm guessing I'll put in six gallons. So I'm watching the pump not the tank, I look back at the pump and it's running on the ground at four gallons. I stop pumping but DEF keeps running on the ground. The nozzle fits so tight to the tank that the part of the tank that is higher than the nozzle was also full. Opps. Next I put in diesel. Was expecting to put in about 50 gallons, only got in 44 gallons. I was planning on buying a final gallon of DEF but they didn't have gallon jugs, only two and a half gallon. Now tonight I have looked back and I guess I haven't been delivering the DEF on full. So we are good. Oh, warning light is still flashing. Shutting off the battery didn't re-set it, yet. 2nd stop was at the McD's at a Loves in Shelby IA. Shelby ... one of those towns mentioned in the C W McCall songs of the late '70's. In and out in 30 minutes. 3rd and final stop at the Sleep Inn in Ankeny. There are other motels but this one we know and I have a big bus. Not sure it's going to get busier, but no cars at the Holiday Inn Express next door and only a half dozen here. Short day today so we have time for a walk. Stay healthy. Not sure how this virus thing is going to play out. As of now I am not planning to work for the other company the next two weeks. I know they won't want to hear that. But there is no 'do over,' so I am actually taking this seriously. Just heard tonight that OH is closing all restaurants and bars ... and we eat out twice a day on the road. I'm now in three of the five risks I've seen listed. About 5 PM we walk across the street to the Outback Steakhouse. We left the motel moments after the White House briefing mentioned closing down restaurants and bars. We both had the same things we had a couple of weeks ago. Chicken and something. No app and no desert. Plan on getting going about 7:30 AM tomorrow, half hour to the wash, two ?? hours at the wash, two hours to the rental car place. Should deliver about noon. ... then a quick stop at WalMart ;) to stock up on supplies and head home. Earlier today I had heard that Donner's Pass on I-80 was closed. Just now I heard the forecast is for 48-60" at Donners Pass. But we are heading away ... Saw a few RV's and lots of travel trailers. Saw two more of the white city buses in Omaha, no lettering. Wasn't looking to see who was moving them. But they for sure are not New Flyer or Gillig. Yesterday I tallied cars for a while on I-80 in NE. About 20% were from MN. 20% from WI and maybe 10% from NE. The other 50% were from other states. Not many from NE. 200316 CA-IA 1 City Bus to Coralville IA ... spending the nights at home Happy Birthday to ME. Yesterday we saw service stations with gas and diesel both below $2.00. (On the following Tuesday, I saw an article that said it may drop below $1 before it starts going back up) Also yesterday I saw a new sign on the Claas dealer in Seward, but it can't be read from the freeway. Print is so small I'm not sure it can be read from the ground. I was going to email them but I would need to fill out a four page form. They'll figure it out. Today, Monday. Breakfast. Out of the room by 7:30. The Holiday Inn next door finally has a couple of cars in the lot. Last night it still didn't late. Best Western is the usual mostly empty. Back roads to the wash. 1st RR tracks this trip. 1st stop - we get to the Blue Beacon Wash in Altoona and ... pull right in. No stop. If that has ever happened before I don't remember it. Quick rinse and I'm back on the road. Next door is a Flying J that used to be a Bosselmans and used to have a Grandma's Maxine's. Then it changed to Max's diner and now it is closed. I looked online and there are only two left open. Thought this was a non-stop flight to the rental car, but we end up stopping at a rest area, not knowing how long the rest of the trip will take and where there will be bathrooms open. 2nd stop - Rest area in Tiffin for just a couple of minutes. Logged it as a stop but not 15 minutes.* * * * 3rd stop - Rental car pickup. It is right next door to an old Menards Lumber so lots of place to turn around. Good thing because the turns aren't all at the correct angle for a 40 foot bus. BB got off and I started cleaning up the bus. Ready to move our stuff here instead of waiting until we were at the drop. On the last leg I usually need to have notes. But I just right down the basic's so I'm kind of driving blind until I see the next thing I wrote down. Found the drop. 4th stop - When I walk in, they say they were not expecting me until tomorrow. They have been tracking me and I am still in Kearny, NE. :) ... that is where / when I got this Comm Fault warning. So that was telling me that I had lost communication with the office. The person who needed to sign was not there but the mechanic came out and went over stuff. Even looked in the DEF tank but didn't say anything. Also didn't ask about the fuel. I'm guessing I left 40 gallons in it that I wouldn't have needed to. Big $$. Did learn a couple of things while he was looking things over. I tried not to distract him too much. While BB was sitting there she noticed that the car was to be returned to Marshalltown instead of Mason City. When she called, they said they could change it ... but that BB had reserved the car to Marshalltown. No ... BB had looked at the original reservation and it said Mason City. No apology but they did correct it. Because they didn't think I was coming the person who needed to sign had to come from city hall. It took a few minutes but gave the mechanic time to look it over. 45 minutes and we are on the road. BB wanted to stop for food right away but didn't have anything in mind. Any other time I would have stopped at the food court in the Coral Ridge Mall. Just looked at their food list, and yes, I think could have found something to eat. 5th stop - Arbey's in North Liberty. We know where it is, been here before. Easy on, easy off. See a few RV's today but for most of the day the loadboard is empty. 6th stop - The Flying J in Elk Run Heights. Need to find out why my fuel rewards cards don't work. BB's do. Could have saved another $.18 cents. Figured we would use six gallons so to be save I put in six and a half. (ended up that 4-1/2 would have been enough) 7th stop is the RV lot to pick up our van. Office is locked. They will hand the paperwork out the door if you have a trip, otherwise it is on lock down. Very few RV's in the lot, but some. Lots of the no-tow RV's parked in various areas. The other RV parking area is getting smaller. 8th stop - rental car. This lot is full also. What it looks like is that they are moving their cars from the airports to the local offices as fewer people are flying. Maybe not, just a thought. 8th stop - part 2. Target. The Walmart lot looked like Black Friday. Target wasn't so busy but lots of empty shelves. Before we left we had been shopping with the intent to stock up. I used to be really good about following the Ready.gov guide lines. Weeks worth of supplies and rotated. But had kind of given that up and wanted to start again. Half way though shopping last time BB decided 'we could do the rest when we got back.' Opps. We should be set OK at home. We don't run on 'E,' but not well stocked either. We do have some canned goods that are good for another year or so. We didn't hoard, but we did stock up where we could. 9th stop - It was after 6 PM so we stopped in Lakeville to eat at Culvers. Had wanted to stop at Honey Baked and pick up a ham but they had closed at six. I think it was about 5 PM that our states governor came on the radio and said that all bars and restaurants would have to shut down starting tomorrow. Someone had let us know he was going to be on the radio so we turned it on and listened. 10th stop - Stopped and got our meds. Place was too busy to do any more shopping. So we are off until ??? this passes. (Just got word as I'm typing this that our ailing Mothers caregiver has been in exposed to someone with the virus. No idea how this will play out. Hadn't planned on heading up because of me, now it's because of her) My son-in-law is one of those closed down, he runs a fitness center. Haven't talked to him yet. After listening to the governor I'm back to not driving. Listening to others on the radio it sounded more like just be careful. So I likely won't be doing write-ups for a few days, maybe weeks. |
