"On the Road" with the original florida kid
Hello again fellow truckstars! It's Week 32 and.....
.........you're on the road with the original florida kid......
Grandma, Barbie, Pup the wonder dog and the whole gang here at the ranch
say a big cowboy howdy "HEY"
KITCHEN TABLE TALKIN'- Well don't just stand there - grab a cup of Grandma's famous cowboy coffee, a chair and an ashtray and have a seat around the table.....we have a lot to talk about this week!
Okay soooo - this shut down or protest or whatever you want to call it, is still scattered across the country with different areas and drivers doing protest drives near or at state capitols or grouping together on the road and at specific locations. The media still has yet to really grab ahold of this thing and I believe it's because the organization of it is really not what it needs to be.....I think it's safe to say that the public is very much on our side, after all fuel prices affect every aspect of their lives too, and let's also keep in mind that it's not only about fuel prices, it's about cheap freight, it's about the ability of bigger trucking co's who don't have the same insurance structure that everyday drivers and O/O's have to pay thereby giving them an edge in operating costs and undercutting freight prices, it's about corrupt brokers and fuel surcharge scams.....it's about a lot of stuff that affects us as drivers every single day, hell, every single mile!
And listen to me.....THE CO'S AND THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN RAPING AND PILLAGING THE DRIVERS FOR MANY YEARS KNOW - THEY KNOW - 99% OF TRUCKERS WON'T FIGHT BACK , AND THEY ALSO KNOW THERE IS LITTLE, IF ANY, ORGANIZATION WITHIN THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE WHEN IT COMES TO DRIVERS THAT WOULD GIVE THEM A VOICE AND THEY'VE BEEN VERY HEAVY HANDED OVER THE YEARS IN TRYING TO SUPPRESS IT..........YOU OLD ROAD WARRIORS KNOW WHAT I'M TALKIN' ABOUT DON'T YA..........
And let's not fool ourselves, seriously, [most of] the big trucking co's are raping the drivers worse than anyone........What? you might ask....just talk to any of the newer drivers when you see him or her getting out of a company rig at a truck stop. On an entry level, for a new driver that is, the job doesn't pay a whole lot more than delivering pizzas or working at McDonald's. The trucking co's love the new driver labor pool, that's why they know they don't have to pay more per mile to keep more experienced drivers on the payroll, and, sadly, these new kids coming up look at this as just another job, not a career or a profession......ask one you'll see........(when I was a company driver the miles I logged and the miles I got paid for were always different, less, a lot less and if you say something suddenly your miles go way down, AND AFTER SITTING ON YOUR ASS FOR A FEW DAYS YOU LEARN TO KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT......and the co. I worked for was "in business" with all the co's that were deducting from my paycheck....health ins. and other stuff.......sound familiar truckstar??
Dan Little from the U.S. Cattle Haulers Assoc. is a human dynamo when you're talking about stepping up to the plate here in this battle.....(www.uscattlehaulers.com) also a spin off of this site is - (http://www.uscattlehaulers.com/strike.htm) - check this out to stay on top of the latest news!
I've spoken with Dan Little from the U.S. Cattlehaulers Assoc., and truckstars let me tell you if you want to get involved this is the guy we need to look to, he tells me he's even suing some of the big trucking co's, on our behalf, so they have to pay insurance like the rest of us... trust me...........check out the website and GET INVOLVED! TODAY!
I just finished a haul and back-haul to Virginia then I picked up a back-haul in South Carolina headed south to Florida, Thank God I got lucky getting a back-haul because the fuel prices are affecting my bottom line so much at $4.00+ a gallon that I'm really feelin' it.......BAD!
In the boat hauling business it's tough getting a backhaul, it's not impossible but it is hard to line up the timing......
I know you are too truckstars, believe me, I talk to a lot of guys on the road and it really breaks my heart and kicks my ass at the same time to see decent working people getting beat down so bad by a profit margin greed thing.......the "Good Book" says not to worry and I'm tryin' not to.......but I'm workin' harder and harder and still comin' up short! Man..................what the hell...........
I'm micro-managing my driving, I'm going slower, I'm shopping fuel prices, I'm on the phone all the time trying to line up more work....
and I still struggle to pay my bills............and all the while the government is LETTING big business rob the people into poverty.......where's it going to end truckstars? Where? When? I hope we can all get together on this thing, there's a lot of drivers out there trying to make a go of this thing and we ALL need to get involved. I feel bad for the company drivers whose co's aren't into this because of their corporate clients or for whatever reason and they've threatened drivers with losing their jobs, co's like Swift.
I know these guys and girls want to help out but a lot of them will lose their jobs if they sit out a day or a delivery - it's a tough call but these trucking co's should also know that they will benefit from lower fuel costs and happier drivers - Hey, here's a novel idea! - How about a driver who can pay his bills at home?? I'd be happy...................................so what's it going to be truckstar? Are you in, or what?
HEALTH DEPARTMENT- I want to talk about the "endochrine system" in your body, that is, your glandular system, to put it simply Your testasterone(for us guys) and other really important chemicals your body needs to be able to produce to keep your hair your, uh, giddyup, let's just say, brain function and a whole lot of other functions that begin with glandular chemistry. Now, here's the thing, when we get older and start losing a few hairs or whatever else, let's call it losing a step or two, and maybe some health issues come into play also, well, these can be traced back to years of poor diet and exercise, not to mention drinking and smoking or even drug use and the endochrine system suffers and becomes almost inactive. just like your colon and arteries get layered or clogged your endochrine system basically can shut down or at least be marginally functional. This is why older guys not younger guys get ED and go bald or lose their sex drive and muscle tone. I'll go more into this in detail as the weeks go by but for now I'm just telling you that eating a low fat diet, lots more fresh and steamed vegetables, whole grain breads and cereals, a good "whole food organic" vitamin, Muscle Milk Protein drinks. Watch the lunch meats and other products with additives like nitrites and nitrates, which have been linked to cancer, drink low fat or non-fat milk. You can bring your body back, I've seen it, I've done it....you don't have to be old while you get older!
Think it over truckstar.....get this book and read it - "You-The Owners Manual" Dr. Oz also has more books out on how to take care of yourself and eat...any good bookstore has them, even Wal-Mart and Target (Target has a much better book section and they discount too).
Once again this week I have to cut it short, I'm leaving in a few minutes to take a couple of boats up to the northeast and maybe do a backhaul from Conneticut if I get lucky........
To find your Representative - www.house.gov - ( just enter your zip)
To find your Senators - www.senate.gov - (scroll to your home state)
Write them often, tell your friends to write them often......when? right now !
Before anything else happens I hope we can all get together on a National Truckers Prayer Day.....the bible says - "if God is for us - then who can be against us?"
Do you think for one second that God would be on the side of some mindlessly greedy, earth raping corporation? Do you?
I bet He's wondering why 2 or more have not gathered in HIS name and asked for HIS intervention.........
Tis' the season for Chuck Wagon Cook-offs!! (http://www.chuckwagon.org/),check their site for the 08' schedule, and truckstars if you only go to one event or take one vacation this year, and you're a fan of the old west, then you have to go to the big National Cowboy Symposium in Lubbock in Sept. 4-7th(http://www.cowboy.org/ ) the Chuckwagon Cook-off Championship is held there!!
Take a minute and PRAY for our troops around the world - with me - truckstars....whether you agree with the war or not - I think we can ALL agree that these are OUR men and women over there, our KIDS, and, the politics involved is way over my head, not to mention the idea that there's probably a lot going on we DON'T know about, so......and let's not forget about GOD in this equation....it's HIS will I want done, not some profit crazed business man's, not the government's, and damn sure not my own, I'm just not capable.....how 'bout you truckstar?
Okay truckstars - I gotta go - I'm trying to find a haul and a back-haul....(truck payments....know what I mean vern?)
so until next week
Remember - NO load and NO paycheck is worth dyin' for !!!!!
Pray for us all, our nation, the world and the lost..... and try not to worry!!
God hears prayers, trust me - I know.
As always I want you to remember - I love ya' and I'm prayin' for ya' !
Play nice, drive safe and pull it on home...........
Are you ready? Let's roll..........
......you're on the road with the original florida kid...............we gown..........
