Recession What recession

Back from my trip with james and looking forward to having a couple of days off, i hadn't even been allocated a Truck yet.No such thing i was told come in about 9ish then we will sort out all the rest of your paperwork then allocate you a tractor,sound i thought.Well this is haulage and as we know nothing is that simple,after completing some paperwork stuff i was asked if i could load a trailer at one of the Potato Farms and run it to Moncton,no probs i thought i got my newly aquired truck hitched to a trailer then off i went,message came through the macro when ive done that can i do another Bloody hell i haven't had chance to loads this yet,no probs i sent back (got to start racking the miles up)i eventually ended up staying out in Moncton NB not particularly happy due to not sorting the truck out.Message !!!!does this thing never stop any chance of doing a load down to New Jersey, i thought we were in a recession this company are snowed under,anyway the long and short of it was NO,i need to sort the truck out give it a good clean then i will be ready to roll,so i took the next day and a half of to get everything sorted and now im ready to roll.im heading off to Scaramento, Pa tomorrow this should be ok as i have already been there before, so my first trip out alone is here,im sure there is so much to learn but what the heck if in doubt just Blag It.

God Bless America

The day after i passed my test,i was on my way to indianapolis,via Raynham(near Boston),James was introduced to me, he was going to be my guide for the next couple of weeks,i say guide because this guy knows everything and it was a bit like going on a coach trip, on your left is so and so on your right etc,seriously this guy is probably one of the nicest person i have ever met and he's an American.Over the next two weeks James would give me that much info i felt like my head was going to explode, theres only so much i can store in here.After an indepth pretrip we were ready for the off,to leave Prince Edward island you have to cross The Confederation Bridge which spans the Northumberland straits for 12.9 kms, in winter this can be totally ice covered but due to the mild temperatures at the moment the main channel was ice free.Entering into New Brunswick the sun was shining it felt like a summers day (until you got out of the truck)it was freezing,we ran all the way to the U S border Houlton, Maine you have to be very serious i think to work at these crossing,i dont think they like anybody,we had to go inside because i needed an i 94 pass for multiple crossing, $6 later after a pretty uneventful procedure i came out with a pass which is valid for 12 months NICE!!! easier than trying to get my TWP.I took over the driving and we made it all the way down to our first drop where we parked for the night.We shed a massive 1 pallet of in Raynham,Ma and set off for Indianapolis, well we drove about 200yds into Walmart car park Yep car park we were going shopping, i couldn.t imagine driving into Asda car park back in the UK but its pretty common over here to see trucks parked there.We had a couple of days to get to Indianapolis so it was a pretty easy run down there taking in plenty of stops we shared the driving i was pretty comfortable behind the wheel (still grinding the shite gearbox though),After a little mishap in Ohio we had to move the dolly on the trailer forward because we were slightly over weight on the Drives, moving these forward solved that problem we were good to go,there are scales everywhere you go in North America not like the UK it feels like every 20 mile s there is that many.The U S A has a different weight limit to Canada, you can only gross at 80,000lbs (36287.00 kgs) where as in Canada with the same truck you can gross 84,000lbs (38102.00 kgs),After unloading we headed for Chicago where we were to load for Toronto.Our parking place for the night was Gary Indiana (the birthplace of micheal jackson) these truck stops are pretty impressive and you are treated well not like back home.We loaded and set of back to Canada our delivery time was for 7 am next day we headed for michigan as Detroit would be the place where we would leave the U S and enter into Canada via Windsor.Seeing all these places just opened all the music knowledge in me,Motown was born in Detroit it felt quite surreal all i could think off is martha reeves singing Dancing in the streets.I Backed on to the bay at our delivery point early sunday morning this was where i encountered my first lumper,Back home,we back on the bay someone off loads you paper work gets signed then you leave NO Money exchanges hand,here to get unloaded you get the services of a Lumper where you have to Pay them to off load, $89.00 for this pleasure, i am definately in the wrong job it took 35 mins to empty us Easy money.Finding free internet is few and far between but he Fifth Wheel truckstops have this they give you a code at the counter and hey presto free internet,so i sent most of the day on skype speaking to the beloved.We had been away 6 days and it had flown by, our journey back to PEI consisted of 2 collections in Toronto and 1 in Montreal, how wierd that is running through Quebec everything is french and averyone uses french as there first language,but what a beautiful province, miles and miles of stunning scenery.We headed into Moncton to off load then another load came through, Load PEI deliver Scramento pennylsenvia, Things were coming clearer now and pretty much made sense,we had sorted off ended up driving as a team by now so it was pretty much non stop for the whole of that day until we got down to Bangor, Maine.Unfortunately being away does have it s downfalls My washing had stacked up by now and i was pretty much out of anything to wear so for the next couple of hours was spent doing the laundry, i really could do with a maid.After tipping Sacramento which is in the TRI Valley regions mostly harmish communties we set off for Camden New jersey,this route took us throug h philadelphia, again some of my favorite artist came from this city Teddy pendergast,Billy Paul Al green,so this was pretty neat.Im sure by this time James was fed up of me singing away,sorry mate.After viewing the Land Lizards at Camden we headed for the flying J at Carneys Point for a well earned shower.Our route back to Canada was back through Pennsilvania then through New York State up to Niagra Falls, you can just see the spray coming up of the Falls on the American side hopefuly i will be able to have a proper look one day.Our delivery point was at a food market in Toronto here i witnessed yet another crime,to get into where you need to go to get unloaded you have to pay $30.00 yep thats right,you pay to enter the customers premises how good is that.We met up with another of our drivers I met him boxing day so it was good to meet up again we were both loading then tipping at the same place,so off we went again moncton was our destination taking in a shower and food stops along the way the route took us to riverre du loop where we headed through Edmunston, Nb eventually arriving in moncton.We were just about to head home when wew were asked to do a little job down to Halifax Nova Scotia we accepted and off we went due to the time we were going to arrive we stopped at the Big stop at Enfield for the evening Yipee free internet.So there we go 14 days after our journey started we were heading back over the Confederation Bridge back to Prince Edward Island, my time with James was over i felt a little sad we had built up a pretty good relationship even living in a confined space for that long we got on well (Except for his snoring thank god the reefer drowned him out lol)so thanks for putting up with me mate and cramping your style its been an absolute pleasure,now its my turn to hit the road,a little nervous maybe but another milestone has passed.

Excellent Drive Sir You've Passed Your Driving Test

Well after a hectic week and some promising driving,i went for my driving test this morning,and low and behold i passed.Now their test is a little different to ours the main part of it is the pre trip,this is a verbal talk about the vehicle basically trying to sound knowledgeable about the defects i am looking for etc,i was told it was one of the most in depth pretrip he's seen 1hour 10 mins after we started the test i let him into the cab (it was a bit of a fresh morning only -5 so he wasn't to cold) i left the cab heater on beforehand for him to warm his little tootsies up (i know im so thoughtfull),10 mins after leaving the test place we were back and was told that he thought i was that safe he would have no problem jumping on the bunk and getting some shut eye while i was driving ( i bet he says that to all the boys)Lol.I made a quick call to Blaine to let him know and was told to drive the truck back to the yard,after a celebrateory drink (yep coffee from Tims) i was told that i maybe going out later to load.

This made me feel slightly strange i have been doing the same rountine for the last month taking for granted wifi whenever i need to talk to my family, now i will have to source ones on the road etc and now im going to taken out the comfort zone a whole new learning is about to commence.I was given a job of loading lobsters from Souris this little town is on the other side of the island about 60kms from charlottetown so after a quick washout of the trailer i head east after leaving charlottetown bypass on Highway 2.The tractor i took was an International Prostar and it was rather nice to drive, i won't be getting one of these i will be getting a 1959 clydesdale sorry i mean't 9400i.After an uneventfull run back to the yard i was given tomorrows assignment, bring your stuff your off to Boston and Indianapolis see you at 10am. SO there you go i have been here 4 weeks i passed both my test met some great people, learn't alot (well thats not hard i didn't know much anyway)and now im off to do what i came to do, earn a little crust.

A Little Catch Up

Unfortunately i have got a bit behind so im going to play catch up,so here goes sit down relax and please don't laugh.The week leading up to christmas started very badly, me being a total thick head Failed my air brake test (yes i am the one)i mis read a few questions and hey presto a big fat FAIL,so i went sheepishly back to work with those words ringing out from everyone i spoke to oh you'll have no trouble everyone passes.This gave me more time to work in the shop so i through my self into all the jobs changing tyres helping with servicing etc which helped get over the embarressment.I was asked to move a few tractors around then asked to pick some trailers up and back them into the shop etc which after a bit of practice got quite use to even though i was massively under steering then over steering these things don't half react different to a european truck,there was also the odd occasion where i thought i would have enough room to spin around in the yard then run out of space quickly making myself look like a right fool (i know thats not difficult).Christmas eve came it was mid morning and the owner of the company Jack came up to me and out of the blue said "i don't want you being on your own christmas day please spend it with my family" well i was over come with emotion and literally speechless, i just looked at him with slight wet eyes Thanks ever so much i would love that, it took about 30 seconds to relpy he must of though i was ignorant but i was so over whelmed by his generosity.

Christmas Day 2009.

I set my alarm for 6am so i could watch my family open there presents on skype it felt strange not being there, but a least i could watch.As arranged Jack came to pick me up just after 1pm then i was wined and dined by himself and his Family til evening when i was dropped of back to my motel.I want to say a massive thank you to Jack and his Family especially his wife (what a fabulous dinner)for inviting me they didn't have to i wouldn't of thought any less of them for not inviting me and i truly had a great day.

Boxing Day 2009.

I met another driver just before christmas, Ian, he invited me to his house for dinner boxing day, so i gladly accepted there was another driver there his name was Ian as well with his wife Kim ( i think, im so rude i hope thats her name)well Amanda Ian's cooked an amazing dinner then afterwards put on a fantastic buffet, i again can only thank these people for their brilliant hospitallity it certainly helped being here on my own.

Monday 28th

The sales, off i went into Charlottetown first thing to hopefully find some bargains,i found a satelite radio reduced in walmart to $65 so i bought it, happy as larry i trudged through the shops there i was in the Future shop the same radio i had just bought $49 how gutted was i, so in the heat of it i made a mad dash back to walmart to return the one i bought, the kind lady gave me my money back after my feeble excuse my wife had just bought me one, so i ran (yep ran) back to Future shop to get my bargain, i looked all over the place none left,until i spotted 1 right at the back, a quick sigh of relief i parted with 49 bucks.

Tuesday 30th

I Finally passed i my airbrake test at the 2nd attempt 92% this time so well pleased,off i went back to the shop like a cheshire cat im soooo glad thats over with i was really getting fed up of that book.

New Years eve

My first drive out,Blaine took me out to doing some collections,the trucks we have here are all Internationals,some are 9400i and some are the newer Prostars well i hooked up to tralier with one the Prostars and we were ready for the off.These trucks have cummins engines with an Eaton Fuller Crash box (1970's gearbox),Blaine droved first (off to Tim Hortons for a coffee) to show how its supposed to be done well that looks easy (i have used these gearbox before in an ERF about 20 years ago also used the twin splitter as well so i thought i would get the hang of ot quite quickly)Wrong wrong wrong i left the whole gearbox on the road from Cornwall to Charlottetown then what was left of it on the Bypass.What a stupid bloody thing this is, I was ok when i got it moving not sure what Blaine was calling me but it didn't sound good.

Sat 2nd Jan 2010

I was asked if i wanted to work for a couple of hours in the morning to load a trailer at one of the potato farms on the island, i accepted happily, i need more practice lots and lots of it, so Blaine picked me up just after 8 in a 9400i with a Cat engine in it with an automatic gearbox (yeah right) it still had that crash box in, but i found this easier to drive maybe because half the teeth were missing on the gears done by previous trainees.

Ways of communicating

Thank for the replys to my previous post i have published them so others can see (look at the comments),any other ways would be gladly recieved.

The wonders of the Internet

There are a few things that make me think i really couldn't live without that,but what i have learn't since coming over here is SKYPE is the best thing i have come across since, well i don't know when.I just couldn't imagine being so far away from my family and not being able to talk and see so freely for as long as i like for the massive cost of FREE,it has been my lifeline here, it has kept me in contact with everyone, even the mother in law has spoken to me on it (maybe its not that great after all )Lol.I set my alarm early christmas morning to see my Family open their presents which helped me through that time alone.My wife's aunty emigrated to Canada in 1963 how she managed it is beyond me without all the ways of coummunication we have today.Anyone thinking of moving away from loved ones etc this is a nessesacity to keep in touch.
I Have purchaese a prepaid mobile phone for Canada and looking for info on the best and cheapest ways ways to accept calls from skype back in the Uk any info on how you are staying in contact or did stay in contact with the UK via phone etc would be a massive help this being for Canada and the USA. I will post the comments on here for others to help them in their quest to keep in touch.
Thanks

Welcome Milly Mazda

Since i got over here i have done nothing but whinge about getting about im fedup of carrying shopping bags about(ask the wife her ear is at 90 degrees now its been bent that much),so i have been looking at getting a car,this isn't as easy as one might asume,i only wanted a secondhand cheapish car i didn't really want to start paying dealer prices etc,so here goes you look over the internet,local paper etc and see if anything takes your fancy,if there is something that you like, ring the owner etc arrange for a viewing etc,its easy isn't it we've all done,well no i haven't got any transport to get around to have a look at these cars, why is it all the ones that seem suitable are over 60/70 km's away nothing local,there is no way im going to get taxi's to have a look at that distance so its become a bind for me,i hate having to ask people for help, i like to be independant even though the people i have asked Mike,Blaine ,Donny have all been brilliant and i can't thank them enough for all there troubles sorry for being a pain in the a***e.So Saturday a guy offers to bring his car up to me unfortunately it wasn't for me so its back to the drawing board, then i spot this car on the internet from a guy who lives about 1/4 mile away unfortunately again the car is at his brothers about 45 kms, but if im interested he would gladly drive me out there to have a look,so off we go sunday to have a look and well i bought it.Whats the procedure now i ask, well what a load of mither it is out here, this is what happens when you buy a car so watch out anyone looking in the future.
1,The car needs to have an MVI (like a uk mot).
2,You pay tax on the car whether its seconhand or not, this is done at the registration office, this is there estimation of the price of the car not yours and not what you have paid either its called the Red Book,be prepared when you buy, these cost go on top.
3,Obvisiously you need to insure the car i took my Uk no Claims certificate the company i went with accepted 3 years even though there is six years on there, so this is quite expensive if i had more time i maybe could of shopped about for a better price.
4The car needs to be registered the number plate isn't exchangeable, the plate stays with the seller you get a new reg at a cost of $80 which needs to renewed every year (at $80) then as stated you pay the tax as well.
5,You don't pay road tax over here so yep thats free.
6,You pay $5 for the actual plate
This procedure may differ from other provinces so please check.

Gerald the guy who i bought the car off paid the tax for me so thats a little help but i paid the reg fee, he did all the running around for me so i am truly greatfull for that, when he collected me and drove me to pick the car up as a little pressie he gave me a snow brush and 3/4 tank of fuel what more can i say but THANKS.People over here have been so helpfull and bent over backwards to help me hopefully i can repay them back with the same generosity one day.

The chores of a truck driver

Its been a real learning curve cominig over here,back home to say everything was done for me is an understatement,i paid alot of money for my last washing machine,but i thought it was worth it, it would collect dirty clothes of the floor then 3 days later they would be returned, washed, ironed and put back into my draws,i for the life since i came here haven't been able to find the same machine anywhere so if anyone knows where they are please let me know.So until that time i have had to work out how to do the washing ironing etc,off i went to Walmart and bought an iron and after Brian showed me what to do with the machine etc i was ready to go,throw some cleaning stuff in ,clothes in after that close lid choose setting hot/cold 5 quarters and press go,35 mins later transfer to dryer 5 more quarters press go,wait till dry even i can do this.Here is my makeshift ironing board, piece of cake doing this i have heard people moaning about this (emma)there is nothing to it.So now i make sunday my cleaning and washing day while im still training.

My new home, Cornwall P E I

Since coming over to Prince Edward i have been staying in a motel in Cornwall which is situated on the Trans Canada Highway 1,this is a federal/provincial highway system that joins the 10 provinces of Canada,it is along with the Australia's highway 1 and the Trans siberian highway one of the worlds longest national highways with the main route spanning 8,030
km's (4,990 miles).The highway system is recognizable by its distinctive white on green Maple Leaf route markers.The earliest known settlement in the Cornwall area was by French farmers in the North River area in the mid 1700's,the first English speaking settlers arrived in 1790.The name Cornwall dates back to the early 1800's when the Newson family who came from Cornwall England settled in the area.Cornwall is located in Queens county immediately west of P E I's largest and capital city Charlottetown.The present town was incorporated by the porvincial government in 1995 through muncipal amalgamation which saw the following unincorpoated rural commuities merged:North river,Elliot river, East wiltshire and york point.This part is looking upto the Cornwall Plaza there is a variety of shops inc Tim Hortons,this is coming a regular trek for me to get groceries from save easy,nice stroll up and an awkward one back to my motel with bags of groceries in hand,how i miss having a car,you seem to forget how reliant on a car you really are.anyone who has been to Canada and America will know how far things are spaced apart and how hard it is to actually get around without a gas powered vehicle,now this is top of the pile of things to buy,there really isn't a public transport system the buses run twice a day to Charlottetown but not at weekends (they don't run at all)so its taxi's at$12.50 each way this as you can imagine becomes a dear do on a measly truck drivers wage Lol.My motel is a basic place ive been to a couple in America and Canada they all seen to have the same layout,Bed.Tv (42"plasma yeah right)Fridge, oven, hob,bath/shower etc its warm its comfortable and clean it has internet, its not the Hilton but it will do.There is alot less traffic on the roads over here compared with the roads back in the UK,its unusally to see many traffic jams on P E I, this is about the most queues you get to see. Tim Hortons drive through.