Trying To Turn Lemons Into Lemonade

Haven’t had the most ideal week ever. I got decent miles this week but the week has dragged on because of one delay and problem after another. I’m currently sitting at a receiver waiting to be unloaded and it’s annoying because I arrived yesterday but the broker didn’t inform us of the delivery time so we had to reschedule it for today. I did still show up yesterday but they turned me down. I got here this morning for my delivery time and they are just slow as heck and I haven’t even begun to get unloaded even two hours after my appointment time and I’m likely going to get stuck in this town over the weekend because I probably won’t be able to get reloaded anywhere after this because of how late in the day it’s getting.

So I’m playing video games in my sleeper while I wait lol. Got my switch and Firestick in here and my two doggos. What do you guys and gals have in your trucks to pass the time while you wait?

Facebook, Trucking Truth, talking on the phone to friends and family, games on my phone, taking a nap because I'll probably have to run hard after getting loaded. That's just a few of the things. Right now though, I am at home on paid vacation til tomorrow with the container company.

Then on the 18th I go with a new company. Any sitting time with the new company (dry vans) will be the same as above. I ran food long enough to realize that there will be many incidents where I'm going to have to sit and wait to be loaded or unloaded. My years in the Air Force taught me patience and I just don't get nervous or upset having to sit and wait because that's the way it is in trucking, especially on the reefer/food side.

Laura

I spend time making irritating comments on TT, I have an iPad with Netflix, YouTube, I listen to a lot of music too.

And I make lemonade and pick the lint out of my belly button, but not at the same time.

I also try to spend a reasonable amount of time doing cleaning and organizing in my truck.

I end up talking to this crazy flatbedder I know. Aside from that, it's a given that I'll be sitting. Even under ideal circumstances, I'm depending on undepedable people.

Shippers and recievers, the warehouse staff, even a lot of our own staff do not care about their jobs other than the bare minimum to keep it. They take their frustrations out on the company by producing as little as possible. The result is that logistics are damned. Production grinds to a crawl. Inefficency and malingering slackers are the industry norm.

The worst two words I can see on a load assignment are "live load" or "live unload ".

But aside from my rant, because I've been having week like yours. I post colorful and insightful google reviews on the business that is wrecking my day(s). I game, play music, watch movies, read, write. Relax. Plot different solutions to the problems of the logistics world.

Facebook, Trucking Truth, talking on the phone to friends and family, games on my phone, taking a nap because I'll probably have to run hard after getting loaded. That's just a few of the things. Right now though, I am at home on paid vacation til tomorrow with the container company.

Then on the 18th I go with a new company. Any sitting time with the new company (dry vans) will be the same as above. I ran food long enough to realize that there will be many incidents where I'm going to have to sit and wait to be loaded or unloaded. My years in the Air Force taught me patience and I just don't get nervous or upset having to sit and wait because that's the way it is in trucking, especially on the reefer/food side.

Laura

You’re so right, this is just trucking and part of the business we’re in. Having not done otr in a while and doing different freight when I was local I think I’ve gotten a little spoiled.

Congrats on the new gig. Hopefully it’s a great fit!

I spend time making irritating comments on TT, I have an iPad with Netflix, YouTube, I listen to a lot of music too.

And I make lemonade and pick the lint out of my belly button, but not at the same time.

I also try to spend a reasonable amount of time doing cleaning and organizing in my truck.

Yeaaaaah I should spend more time cleaning. It just doesn’t do much good with two dogs, one of which sheds like crazy. I clean as much as I can and then just leave it for the next time.

I end up talking to this crazy flatbedder I know. Aside from that, it's a given that I'll be sitting. Even under ideal circumstances, I'm depending on undepedable people.

Shippers and recievers, the warehouse staff, even a lot of our own staff do not care about their jobs other than the bare minimum to keep it. They take their frustrations out on the company by producing as little as possible. The result is that logistics are damned. Production grinds to a crawl. Inefficency and malingering slackers are the industry norm.

The worst two words I can see on a load assignment are "live load" or "live unload ".

But aside from my rant, because I've been having week like yours. I post colorful and insightful google reviews on the business that is wrecking my day(s). I game, play music, watch movies, read, write. Relax. Plot different solutions to the problems of the logistics world.

I like your setup.. that’s pretty sweet! I’d love to bring an instrument in the truck with me. All I know is piano but I’ve thought about learning a new instrument in the truck like guitar or something else. I would think that would be fun

That drum set is a unique thing to set up in the truck. Probably the only one in a truck, unless I’m wrong and it is common.

My issues with passing time have more to do with loooong driving sessions. It can be soooooo tedious. I notice an increasing tendency to talk to myself without realizing I’m doing it.

Piano man, I’m flatbed and they keep me humming so my down time is typically limited to my 34 hr reset. Laundry, clean the truck on those day. I have my iPad to watch tv/ movie , read a book and chill. If the doggo is with me we will go for a walk and play a bunch of ball fetch as well. Typically I do 34’s in one of our terminal so there is usually another of our misfit flatbedders here as well, we tend to park together. Which scares off the rest of the company. Some days we have all cooked something and just throw it up on our 53 ft picnic table and had a buffet.