Omaha, NE

At Sapp Bros. and since the load I brought to Council Bluffs delivered this morning, they want me to be available for locals runs that they may need me for. This is a slow area for our company so chances are that I'll be sitting all day doing nothing and then go home. Hopefully that's what will happen.

Anyhow, who are these people like the ones in Manhattan, living in New York City and not only are they able to purchase a $500+ swiss army, iPhone, but they can just take a week off to wait in line? Me, personally, I wouldn't wait that long in line for anything unless there was a food and water shortage and you had to wait in line to get your rations, then I'd wait in a long line. But nothing else, let alone a phone that's being hyped up.

It sucks, too, because those morons who do the long waiting in lines get celebratized. Like those Star Wars idiots who camped out months in advance to see it. It's not as if that was going to be the only showing.

Like they're sitting there with everyone looking at them and getting interviewed and thinking that they're somehow cool now. Little do they know we're all thinking what fucking losers they are.

Standing in line for a week for a phone. Come on! I hope it sells out so some of those idiots wasted a week.

Council Bluffs, IA

I cannot stand all this fucking hype over this new iPhone. It's so godddamn stupid. It's all people wanting to be the "first on the block" to have this new "hot" item. I hope all those fucking idiots lining up to get it first are the first people to get mugged for their dumb ass phone like all those dumb asses who were mugged for their iPods when that was marketed to them.

I think there may be 100 people who this new iPhone would benefit, and the rest of them are just trendy mother fuckers. I'd be all for one if I were, say, still in the eight grade trying to find out what's hip.

Do all these people have that much time on their hands that this fucking thing will now improve their lives? "Steve Jobs knows what we want!"

I guess some things on it could be good like WiFi, for certain things, but the good things about them still don't make me want to spend $500+

Я должен пойти.

Chicago, IL

Today was a really hectic day as always in this piece of shit city. Luckily the storm bypassed the area we were at and now we're stuck at the terminal parked illegally because it's jam packed here tighter than a Mexican apartment in LA.

Speaking of, RIP Chris Benoit. Pretty sad stuff.

Walcott, IA

At the Pilot truckstop that is across the street from the "World's Largest Truckstop."

So in an aforementioned blog, I mentioned of the decision that Jeanne and I came up with to, once again, get a coffee maker onboard this here truck, in a much needed attempt to save more much needed dollars. It was found today at a truckstop for the low price of $15 in a re-taped box, which leads us to believe that it's been returned or something. We had bought this same one for a similarly cheap price from the same truckstop (different location) before and it was broken. So hopefully this will work because it cost like $60. Maybe if it doesn't, I may have to do some evil trading tricks. Hehehehe.

I am drinking a cup of Tension Tamer tea and am feeling great sense of relief. I could use this more often.

Reading the Japanese and am really enjoying it. It covers everything (mostly everything, because there's a sequel to this which covers more) about their culture from sex to religion to food. Sex is exciting to read about and their religions are interesting, of course, but the chapter on food is unbearable. I started craving food so much. I hope that we can get a Japanese meal in sometime this next week when we're back in Omaha.

I'm really craving sushi (of course), but steamed rice and tempura and seaweed salad from Blue, the ones they serve in Martini glasses.

As always, I keep finding out that glasses for drinks are that way for an apparent reason and the sake ones are no different. It's that size because it keeps it hot and there is a great imporatance in keeping the sake warm and there was an American baby-bottle warmer that was selling really well in Japan for that purpose.

Anyway, we are supposed to be back in Omaha this Friday until next Wednesday so there's the wedding, the rehearsal dinner, doctor/dental appoinments, maybe an eye exam, some house cleaning, lots of drinking and eating and, hopefully, if time permits, a fucking long ass bike ride. I want to do the Keystone trail and take to that other one that goes down to Bellevue and find somewhere to eat and read and write or something and then ride back.

I really cannot wait to stop trucking and get an apartment again and local jobs and be able to ride my bike daily and get a good workout in and get a Netflix subscripti...arrgghghhhh...You have disgraced me!!!!

Ohtohwoihiaindfa, MN

The sun is out, birds are chirpping (sp), oh, how lovely be thine...Oops!

Hey there, kiddo!

The sky cleared up tremendously. Sucks that I have an overnight run tomorrow, but I only accepted it to get on the next check that is the home-in-Omaha-for-a-week-check. Got to buy a $60 coffee maker. The reason being is that it's that one that doesn't have a glass pot, so as not to shatter while on the truck. But it is $60, so BACK OFF!!!!!!

Just signed the wedding invitation for Justin and Nicole's wedding. I switched the words around because who are they to tell me how to accept or decline? So it says, "Accepts with regrets." I slay me.
rHad a thing with our cooler but I think I've got in order now and I've watched the final episode of "the Sopranos."

I liked the ending. It's one of those things like the episode where X-topher died, at first I thought it to be weak, but upon further contemplation, it was actually a very profound moment.

I thought the same with the ending of the series, though I wish they had taken my advice about him being a nut-case gas attendant seeing his shrink with delusions of grandeur about being a mob boss. Or something along those lines.

I'm outs. Gotta get a magic book

Kansas City, MO

I guess the good news is that our truck had its maintenance service done and there are new tires with good, deep tread on them, which is good considering the weather recently.

Another good news is that we got a run from here to Minneapolis due there on Monday morning which is good because a) right now in that direction we'd have to go through major thunderstorm area which includes tornado area of today and b) we get to stop through Omaha for a day or so.

The bad side to that is that all day was wasted today waiting for truck to be fixed, which is good because it's going to be a long time before we have to be in a shop again. The bad side of it is that I've already not been getting miles in because this truck has been in the shop so at least one day a week has been in the shop and being out of service. Then when we get the truck fixed we get a short run with a long delivery time which keeps us from getting a good check which always sucks because it's always right before home time and then we're home for a few days and, as a result of that, we're back on to a little check to come back to and then it's in the shop and all that fucking shit.

So we've got a game plan and we should be fine but it's going to suck because after several bad checks and this next one to be the same, we're home for five days that includes a wedding and dental, medical, and I was going to get an eye exam and get new glasses, but we'll see how much the other ones are costing us first. I still don't know how the coverage is working out.

Speaking of, I'm not getting into that Michael Moore shit with his new film, but on that subject, I heard Ronald Reagan's radio address on universal health care and the idea he was heading towards was getting somewhere, but on the whole it wasn't on par with what I agree with, with what little I know about the other countries and their deal.

I've heard things about waiting periods and all that, but that could just be people's bad luck or experiences, or just being plain impatient. What I hear most from the Conservative, Right-Wing, Republican types is, "Yeah they've got free health insurance, but it's not really free. You know how much more they have to pay for things there? They say it's free but they're really paying a lot in taxes...."

Well, I pay about $100/week for our coverage and we still have to pay for visits and medicine and co-paying for this and that and not being covered for this and that. I'd gladly pay more in taxes if I knew that I can just go for an appointment and not pay anything. The only reason I've got to go a lot now is because I've got benefits now, so it's cheaper, but I still have to save a ton of money for co-pay and whatever else insurance doesn't cost.

And paying per month what I could be paying to get out of debt and the same amount we could get an apartment per month, I shouldn't have to worry about saving additional money. And it's all so confusing anyway. I've gone through the orientation and I still don't know what we're covered for and all that shit. And I'm told our coverage is good.

London, OH

Yesterday was the closest that I think I've ever come to dying.

We had just come of the Pennsylvania Turnpike heading towards West Virginia. There was talk of passing thunderstorms in the area and I could see ahead some lightning. Then I could see where the storm was. Ahead of us I could see dry area and then a wall of water and within seconds we were in it and could not see anything and had to slow down immediately and turned on flashers and wipers and couldn't stop because other vehicles may hit so had to drive about 20 mph.

It was like driving through a car wash. I turned the weather radio on and it kept saying that winds are 10-15 mph but I didn't believe it as I looked out and saw the trees tossing about like crazy and big fucking branches breaking off and flying around. I seriously thought we were in a tornado or something. In any case, I thought we would die.

The funny thing is, though, the wind wasn't tossing us or anything. I think we were lucky to be in a treed (is that a real word?) area so it blocked all that wind, because when the weather report got to the hazardous warning part of the broadcast it said that winds could be gusting to more than 65 mph. And I've been in 40 mph and have had to struggle to keep the truck on course. I've also been in 85 mph winds which we were told by our manager to just "drive slow." Where the highway patrol and National Weather Service advised to not drive at all.

Anyway, right after storm passed, there was a truck stop and I thought to stop for the night and wake super early and finish the run. I saw the sky clearing and wondered if all was through and saw a sign that said "Ice Cold Beer" and thought, "Dammit," but I also thought about it and at the last second turned back on the Interstate and drove on and almost immediately pass the truckstop, we hit round two of storm. That passed pretty quickly, though, and we headed on and that was the last of all that shit.

So two morons today. Moron 1, I put my turn signal on as I need to be in the left lane to go where I need to go (in Columbus, OH, you have to constantly change lanes due to all the interstates and exit only lanes and all that) so I'm doing it and, of course, cars aren't letting me in. I finally get a break and this car who was just cruising in the back seemed as if he suddenly realized he was letting a truck get in front of him and started speeding up. I had already been in the the changing lanes process, so much so that I was already half way through. I won.

Moron 2. Same situation, I need to get over two lanes since the right two lanes are becoming the loop and I need to stay on the regular Interstate. This takes place in about two miles. I put my turn signal on. Long line of cars and they are not letting me in. Finally a space. A huge space. The only car in that lane is about 10 truck lengths away so I start to merge. The car starts speeding up and I'm already half way in the lane but this car does not want to let me in, even though I was no way near interferring with anything and the lane switch should have gone smoothly. He almost hits me but at the last second he tries to switch lanes, which he could've done a long time ago if he wanted to but didn't since if he kept his previous speed, I would've switched lanes and he still would've been way behind me.

So he tries to switch lanes because he's can't beat me becauase I was already in the lane, basically. I end up pulling back in my original lane because there's no one there, and I saw the lane he was now pulling into and there were several cars there which he almost hit and forced them to swerve into the other lane (luckily there were no cars there) because he was so fucking stupid that he didn't check to see if the lane was clear. This guy's idiocy is just snowballing. I pull back into original lane and he swerves back from the lane he blindly swerved in and speeds up more to pass me only to go into the lane I was in to go onto the loop.

If this fucking Jerk Off was paying attention to what was going on instead of just not wanting to be behind a truck that wouldn't have impacted his driving anyway and almost causing a truck and four car pile up, he could've safely switched lanes to the lane he was needing to go to anyway and let us all get on with our lives.

And these are the types of people I deal with everyday and this is why I think everyone should die!

Fort Worth, TX

I guess it's better to have the air conditioning fixed, again. I talked to my fleet manager and he's going to try and get me into a new truck. It's that thing with trucks that's like a blackjack table. It's either hot or not, and when it's one or the other, it's to the extreme.

For instance, the first truck I had with this company was great until the check engine thing, but it was due for a service anyway so it wasn't a big deal, and we got a weekend in Kansas City as a result. But the entire time in that truck I never saw a terminal. I saw one of the service yards, but only to drop a loaded trailer there and get another one. But never a terminal and never needing to get serviced.

This one, just like the one from the other company, it's just one thing after another and you keep taking it in for the same reason over and over again and that's frustrating for many reasons but mostly downtime, but mostly for having to look for an empty trailer after truck's ready and that fucking sucks.

Need to go grocery shopping soon. Need to order more books and DVD's and CD's and need to send in Minidisc recorder to get fixed.

Last night sucked because of no a/c and not being able to drop load early and having this black dude cut in front of me because I held the door open for him and he didn't have the fucking decency to let me check in first and I therefore was held back 20 minutes, which didn't matter anyway since, apparently, the load I had was some really arduous one that took them four and a half hours to unload and I got out at 0200 and the huge fucking truckstop was full to capacity, but I found a spot anyway.

but the whole thing wouldn't have been so bad if the a/c was working as I could've just gone to sleep for the whole duration and I just ended up watching season 2 of "Arrested Development" in 90 degree heat and eight million percent humidity.

Surprisingly we were able to sleep and the truck blew semi-cool air, which at first was blowing hot air but I called Road Service and learned how to calibrate it but that's the best that could be done. Without a/c, cooler air or not, the fucking humidity will kill you. Even a/c at the very lowest level will kill the humidity.

All right, I gotsta crash. I at least get to sleep in tomorrow but got a two pick-up run in the morning. It's all close by, but these things always fuck up but I'm in no rush and as long as I can get something good after that I'll be happy. I do like being in Texas. I do hate stupid people, which reminds me, I've decided to make another attempt at getting a coffee maker on board.

The last two attempts failed because the first one, made for the trucks that plugs into the adapter sucked. I mean, it's okay if you want to wait literally 45 minutes for a cup of lukewarm coffee. The second one was a good one that needed an adapter but it was broken and it fell and broke while driving through the wonderfully paved roads of Chicago's industrial area.

So we decided to just not have one. But the time for that has to end now because 1) It's obviously costing a lot, like $5+ a day which is just as well as smoking a pack a day and 2) I hate standing in line for 15 minutes or more for a cup of fucking coffee, which totally threw out the idea of getting a french press as you have to get hot water and stand in line to let them know or some places charge you for the cups.

A note about truck stops, there's always a line even if there's none or one person (I can tell you of this if you'd like). Trucker's have stuff that need to be scanned, authorized, and everything else that takes anywhere from 5-25 minutes or more. Employess at truck stops all have to get involved to solve one issue. Truckers are lonely on the road and as a result talk at great lengths to the clerks as if they are a bartender or the likes. No matter how long the line is. And it's stuff about truck maintenance, tire pressure, stuff that's been on their mind and no one else gives a shit about.

I need to stop. I'm getting really tired.

Peace.

the Headley Code

Now, I could be wrong, but "inside sources" have told me either one or all of the following pieces of information to be true. Keep in mind, that they may not be, but for the sake of this blog, they are true...the red pill type of true (if you catch my drift).

Along with an MXPX long sleeve, "Chick Magnet" shirt, a certain person may also have the following:

1) Rollerblades - sometimes he actually may go out in public with these, but prefers his basement as he can blade with hands held behind his back as he graciously...

2) Autographed Dashboard Confessional record - won from Ebay when Ebay first introduced the "Buy It Now" option. I've mentioned before on how I could go on and on about that chump-fest, X Carraba, but I think it was all summed up with his appearance on "the Henry Rollins Show" by the song he played and just him in general. Just imagine him in his stupid Urban Outfitters poster boy outfit but now with Bono glasses. Need I say more? I've heard that Headley owns a pair of those as well. It's refered to as his "reading glasses."

3) Henry Rollins cardboard cut-out - Wait! I think that's someone else's.

4) Autographed copy of Autobiography of a Yogi.

I don't know where I'm going with this. I'm outs.

Shreveport, LA

I guess one good thing came out of all this. We got to get a hotel room. Currently we're watching the Italian Job (edited for TV w/ commercials), Rocky III (edited for TV w/ commercials), and some Jay-Z thing.

I saw a commercial for Best Buy and how you can finance a flat screen HDTV. Now I can condone financing a lot of things and a TV is a very important part of my life. I do not ever believe that I could ever get myself to finance a TV. Especially since you can get one really cheap. Having a high-tech TV isn't that important to me. Not enough to not be able to get it and fully purchase it. I don't even watch TV. All I need is a hundred dollar TV/DVD player and just rent DVD's and be happy with that.

I was really happy that we were getting a hotel room because 1) we get a free hot breakfast buffet and I'm all about free food and breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. But more importantly (even above a shower and air conditioning) we would get to watch the final episode of "the Sopranos." Wouldn't you know that we get the one hotel in the world that doesn't have HBO. I mean such a thing shouldn't exist, should it? Even those Norman Bates type of motels in the deepest part of the Sticks that you could possibly imagine has HBO. It's just as standard in a room as a bed. For this, I'm going to eat a shit ton tomorrow morning and make me a few sandwiches for the road.

I'm glad we don't have to wake up early in the morning. I don't want to keep doing this, though, and am going to definitely get a new truck. This takes up so much time and I don't get to just keep on going and gets into my finances. And I have a lot of DVD's and records and books to get. Not to mention a bunch of weddings and gifts to get.

I haven't been able to and haven't been motivated to work out in the past weeks. I haven't even been able to get myself to be eating healthy anymore. I've been taking vitamins and supplements but it's not the same and I can't wait to get myself to work out daily and eat healthy again.

Haughton, LA

It's so goddamned hot. Our air-conditioner, once again, has bunked out on us. I'm am going to talk to fleet manager tomorrow and make him get us a new truck, on account that this is the third time this has happened and any truck we've had with recurring issues doesn't get better and just keeps on trucking.

I consider myself an easy person, as in I don't dislike many people at face value. A lot of people who I was told not to like by others have turned out to be fun and just misunderstood and based on hearsay. So in other words, I like people unconditionally.

Those I do hate, I give them infinite amounts of chances and try to justify liking them. But then you have fuckers like Dashboard Confessional and, let's see, Deryck Whibley, who I hate, and when I read or hear or see more of them, I just get more fucking infuriated by them and want to kill them.

Speaking of killing, I got a text from a one X Headley the other day. It said something about how he was upset to have missed the MXPX show. I think that's what it said. Tooth & Nail 4 life!!!!

I was thinking of checking into a motel tonight to catch the final episode of "Sopranos." I really want to see it but it'll be there when we get back to Omaha.

I don't know what's going on this time back there. We'll be there for a week, but there's Chaz-core's wedding and all that shite. I'd like to get a bike ride in there somewhere.

Next time in Omaha will be Justin O'Connor's wedding. This has really been an expensive and busy year for both Jeanne and I. Everytime back it's family or friends stuff and there's things to get and do. I'm not complaining, but it's pretty funny, in a way.

Speaking of, I need to call Mike D. I missed his wedding by two days the last time in.

I've been doing a bunch of writing recently. All in scraps, but a lot has to do with the same thing and I'm putting them together in a way that seems, in theory, a good idea and all, but we'll see.

I'm about to pass out from this heat. I've got a six-pack of tallboys and it's hitting me good with this heat and all. I may go check out the casino just to keep cool.

I've started reading two Henry Miller books, but it's hard to keep going. Not that it's bad, but it's just not that interesting at points. I need to just read something I don't have to think much about for a while. Maybe I'll finish The Stand.

Need to set up appointment for new glasses next Omaha visit. That's another thing with visits. It's all appointments, too.

What I Actually Meant Was...

I meant that I didn't agree with stuff and stuff I agreed with, but a lot was stuff that I agreed with the idea of it, but just not where he went with them.

York, AL

I can't help but be attracted to the whole Paris Hilton debacle. Now I know the fascination of tabloid journalism. It's just so exciting. What's going to happen next? It's like supermarket fantasy novels. Sex, danger, sex, danger...I'm all ears.

I was actually disappointed. Not in that she had to go back to prison, but the fact that I was really hoping that, after being denied the chance to make her court appearance via phone, she would have gone on a car chase. America's Princess just tumbling face first into a ball of destruction. First Britney, then Paris, man, I've got to stop wishing things because it's all coming to fruition.

If Justin Timberlake slips during dance class and cancels his next tour...I've gone too far.

I can't help but also latch onto Avril's current hit song. It's so damn catchy. I guess being with that fucking mall-punk Treasure Troll, Deryck Whibley, has had some influence on her. She's getting edgier. She says mother fucker in the song.

I like this new image all these fucking mall-princesses are getting. It's all cute, teeny-bopper, get famous, and then get sexy and don their "bad-girl" image. That way too hard contrived edginess.

Anyway, I'm way glad to be out of Atlanta. Or as I like to refer to as the city full of fucking assholes and bad vibes. I don't even want to get into what a fucking horrible day today started out to be, but it's over and I'm heading to Oklahoma via Texas.

Listening to a tape of Ronald Reagan's old radio addresses. As much as I don't like his administration and what spawned from it and led this country into a horrible downfall of the Moral Majority and conservative fundamentalists, I really do appreciate how much he genuinely cared about the country kept himself up on issues in our society and in the world in general. He also read a bunch about current events and didn't only read or surround himself with conservative material or other information, but, like any intelligent person, all sides of every topic and formulated his own opinions.

There are a lot of things I agreed with him on, but also a lot I didn't. It's funny, too, that a lot of things he stood behind, like a capitalist society and how much more beneficial it is than a socialist one, the party and people that he represented totally distorted his reasoning and took the common man out of the picture and brought in this monopolistic, capitalist society, and yet he stayed blind to all that.

Well, I'm outs. Gonna research some stuff and then watch something and crash.

Peace!

Atlanta, GA

At a terminal getting the truck serviced. Atlanta driving takes more intuitiveness than driving anywhere else. You have to not only do the regular defensive driving, but you have to add to that the prospects of the most far-fetched thing you could think of that would never happen and be ready for that.

My company has a pretty stupid system about servicing your truck that they won't fix certain things here because it's not due for a B-Service for another 3000 miles and they can't do it sooner and they can't do it here because my home terminal is in Kansas City. So they'll spend time fixing the minimum amount of other things so that in a week I have to be back in Kansas City sitting around for something else to be done.

It must be a pretty boring day worldwide since the only thing on CNN all day so far has been Paris Hilton. Will she or will she not be ordered back to her palatial jail cell? Hours of coverage outside of her house to see what's going to happen and the press all lined up outside the courthouse awaiting that brief moment of her passing by them in a cop car.

Can you imagine being a journalist or photographer (wait, scratch photographer because paparazzi make their money on stupid photo ops such as that) and having to cover something like this? Having to cover this famous-for-no-reason-'cept-being-rich fucking girl. I'd much rather be doing about a million other things. Perhaps something a bit more important. Like, say, how long it takes a rock to get kicked all the way across a busy intersection without ever slowing down.

Aw, they showed Paris crying in the backseat of the police car.

I can't wait to get out of this place. But I don't feel like doing anything tonight. I want to get a good amount of sleep tonight and be ready for the morning.

Virginia, Beyatch!!!

"...hand on the pump. Left hand on the forty (Pump it up, Blood!)"

Remember that first Cypress Hill album and how great it was? Then they started smoking weed, or smoking more, and then all the rest of the songs were about that.

Anyway, it's great to be out of the rain.

Had fun in Omaha. Hung out with everybody and went bowling at Kelly's. Funny shit with Justin and the bar situation. I couldn't stop laughing for a while.

Went to Brother's after and ran into Koly. Fun shit. I told Koly how before I moved from Omaha he was recording some Protoculture stuff and after I moved I saw they were playing shows and he said he'd give me a CD of all their releases. The funny thing is he kept reminding me all night saying, "Don't worry, Brett, I'll get you that CD before I leave."

We left before last call, so maybe he was right, but when we left he was (ahem) gone, if you know what I mean...the girl he was talking to wasn't there as well.

I guess I oculd've gone to their last show, but for some reason, I didn't realize we were there for it until after we left. I'm so used to being in town for just a night or so of free time.

Of course I couldn't get a bike ride in again since it was fucking raining. Always the deal.

Next time off we're there for five days and I'm getting a ride in. Gonna call Head...why the fuck does everyone in Omaha have a bowling ball?

Next time it'll be fun as well since it'll be Justin's wedding. So many weddings! I'm glad and all, I'm not complaining, but it gets expensive.

I can't wait to be off the truck.

Saw Blood Diamond. Super good. I'm glad Leo's doing better movies now. He's so great to watch and Jennifer Connelly, forget about it!

Got to get caught up on "Sopranos" and will finishing it when we get back. I have an idea where they're going with it and I hope that one of the things won't leave it open for a spin-off of conitinuation. I still need to (must!) watch the ones with Steve Buscemi. Definitely gold!

I joked with Jeff & Margaret about the ending being Tony being like a gas attendant who talks to his shrink about him daydreaming of being a mob boss. All the rest of the guys are his boss and co-workers and customers or something. His name is like Franky Falsetto or something. I don't know. You could fuck with a lot of people with a bomb like that.

I don't know what or why I'm still blogging, but I'm outs. Gonna eat and crash!

Peace