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other dog

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Blog Entries posted by other dog

  1. other dog
    might as well talk about the garden...ain't been doing any truckin'. It's really growing and looking good. Even the upside down tomater in the bucket looks pretty good...bucket's kinda ugly though. Got some herbs in the round things. Waitin' on Paul to tell me what to do with 'em. And squirrels are already eating the peaches, and they're not even close to being ripe. Why don't these squirrels eat all these acorns and hickory nuts around here, like real squirrels?
  2. other dog
    Crap!..This week STILL ain't going too good so far- I went to the doctor today and he told me to come back tomorrow (again!) so he could look at it and change the bandage (again!). Only tomorrow i've got to see him in Lynchburg. The doctor couldn't believe the amount of stuff that was still in there. He said "I think we've about got it!.. no, wait- spoke too soon." He said maybe tomorrow I would be good to go with just a band-aid. Same thing he said yesterday. And the day before...and the day before. Meanwhile, no income, and i'm getting crankier all the time. Had to pass up a load going to Fremont, Ohio today. I try to tell myself it's best to do what he says and not risk having even bigger problems with it, or having it get infected or something, but this is getting old fast. I feel fine, but he's had to work on it every day this week. Good thing I can't get to it, or I might monkey up
    And how about David Carradine (Kung-Fu)? Just saw where he had hanged himself in a motel room. So many people in the world struggling to live...and he kills himself.
  3. other dog
    Crap!..This week ain't going too good so far- I was supposed to deliver that load of beams in Birmingham tomorrow, but I went to the doctor today and he told me to come back tomorrow (again!) so he could look at it and change the bandage (again!). So, I finally had to give the load up. The doctor couldn't believe the amount of stuff he got out of it today-it had filled up again. He said it had to be a golfball sized amount of nasty stuff that was still in there. He said maybe tomorrow I would be good to go with just a band-aid. Same thing he said yesterday. But he said it was one of the largest cysts he'd ever seen, so I feel very special. Going broker every day, but special.
  4. other dog
    I was supposed to deliver that load of beams in Birmingham today, but I went to the doctor yesterday and he bladed that cyst and stuck some kind of drain in it, then told me to come back today so he could look at it and change the bandage. So, I tried to get the delivery put off 'til today so I wouldn't have to give the load up, but they said to bring it Thursday. Worked out real well because the doctor told me to come back again tomorrow. I think he's gonna pull the drain thing out and I should be good to go with just a band-aid. It's in a bad spot because I can't reach it or see it. Or maybe that's a good thing!
  5. other dog
    I'm trying to remember where I went the first of the week...oh that's right, took a load of beams to Syracuse, N.Y. -Beautiful country up in that area. Then I went down rt. 15 from Corning, N.Y. to Trout Run, Pa. (near Steam Valley) to pick up a load going back to Lynchburg. That's another of my favorite rides, from Corning down to Williamsport, Pa. All routine, except the load tore my tarp all to pieces.
    But the next trip, a load of pipes to Paintsville, Ky. was a horse of a different hue. The directions said to meet the contractor in the K-Mart parking lot in Paintsville. I told Jeff before I left that that was never a good thing, "meeting the man in the K-Mart parking lot- he's probably gonna take us up a dirt road right up the side of a mountain". And sure enough, that's exactly what we did. It was too steep to get up the hill going in, and I had to be pulled the rest of the way up with a bulldozer. They could only get one truck up there at a time, and there were 5 loads. After I got unloaded-I was first-I eased back down the hill and turned right on rt. 40 because I couldn't make a left like I wanted to, or i'd have taken the guardrail with me. Had to go past the entrance going in, up to an intersection, and turned right and then backed up into the road to turn around so I could turn left into the jobsite entrance. The front axle on the trailer was dangling over thin air when I turned in as it was. I got all the way over by the guardrail on the right and dumped the air on the rear trailer ax axle so I could turn a little shorter, but as soon as I turned I started climbing, and the rear axle was the only one touching the ground.I had the power divider in and poured the coal to it, but still couldn't make it all the way up. You can see where the truck was spinning in the picture taken on the right side. That's Kentucky rt. 40 down at the bottom of the hill, and it was a really tight turn- should have walked down a little further and took a better picture. Oh well, bring on the bulldozer...
    when I finally got unloaded I saw one of the other trucks that had tried to turn around, and got stuck in the process. He had to call a wrecker to get out. And i'm sure everybody else had to be pulled up the hill too. Once again, when it's bad, there's always somebody worse off. Nice looking wrecker though.
    I also hit a bird on the way, and the passenger window was down about 2 inches-what a mess!..feathers all up in the cab...bird parts all over the window.
    Loaded with beams now going to Birmingham, to deliver Tuesday. I have a doctor appointment Monday to get this huge cyst on my back looked at. It's been there for years, right up between my shoulder blades, and i've had it "removed" a couple times, and had to have it lanced several more times, but it's always come back. It'll be fine for several years usually, then all of a sudden it'll get sore and very painful, like it is now. Can't lean back in a chair or sleep on my back at all.
  6. other dog
    Not too bad a week this week, better'n last week anyhow! I left Sunday going to Orchard Park, then went to Cleveland and picked up a load of coiled wire ( or "welfare wire" as Big Jim calls it ) going to Summerville, S.C. That's just outside of Charleston. Todd took the loads because he had loads going to N.B.Handy in Lynchburg at Nucor Steel in Huger, which is just outside of Charleston.
    After I unloaded at Handy I could have reloaded a Charlotte load, but I declined because it's race weekend in Charlotte, plus the Memorial Day weekend traffic on top of that...so I came home and cut the grass.
    Went to Petersburg yesterday and got a load of beams going to Syracuse. I'm already dreading the traffic going up 81 Monday. Got home and "weed eated" for a while then planted a few more tomato plants that I pulled from the plant bed. Got a little room left for a few pepper plants, but they're not quite big enough to plant yet. Then the garden will be packed full. Saw a rabbit out there yesterday looking at it through the fence, but Otherdog (the fearsome beagle) ran him off.
    pics. of the week-Lake Erie from the truckstop at North East, Pa.
    Diamond Reo wrecker at the truckstop in Mt. Airy, N.C.
    "welfare wire"...(Big Jim)
    ready to unload at Handy in Lynchburg
    N.B.Handy truck
    latest creature seen roaming around in the yard
  7. other dog
    Not much good to report. Been at home since Tuesday, but just got a load going to Orchard Park, N.Y.
    And how about the ticks this year? More around here than i've ever seen. Can't get Diazanon any more, but I tried some other kind of poison and it doesn't seem to have any affect.
    But everything i've planted so far came up, and the garden is growing like crazy. I put a second picture of the garden, taken from the back porch, because it's raining again-first was taken Friday,second Sunday morning. The beans have nearly doubled in size!
    Now not only do we have lots of ticks, I have to worry about creatures like this when I go outside! I think it's a non-poisonous garter snake, but i'm of the opinion the only good snake is a dead one. The dog was barking at it about 4' from the garden, under the rose bush where Jo was cutting flowers yesterday. I applied the shovel to it's head.
  8. other dog
    I unloaded a load of lumber at Byesville, Ohio Monday morning and deadheaded home-after sitting all day Monday and most of the day yesterday. First time ever there wasn't a load to be found. Another truck was in Hubbard, Oh. and one was sitting at Dallas Pike,W.V. and everybody came back empty. Todd said "if you're gonna sit, you might as well sit at home". I said "yeah, at least I can watch tv until they cut the lights off".
    I took a few pictures while I was parked at the Go-Mart truckstop- nice looking Lonestar International, some oversize loads, a cabover Pete, a polar bear (I think), a colorful Pete, nice looking old KW. Never seen a truckstop so empty this time of day!
  9. other dog
    Several years ago I was talking to one of P.L.Duncan's drivers in Sparrows Point,Md. I was telling him about my old cement mixer and my love of old trucks, and he told me about all the old trucks Mr. Duncan had, some packed in a building so tight you could hardly walk between them. He said they were all old, and most of them were running. I told myself then, "self, you need to get down there and take a look at those trucks". Well, after about 5 or 6 years, I finally did Friday. It was a great trip. I called Mr. Duncan before I went, and he told me to come on down. He's a very nice man, and when I got there I saw that his driver I talked to was understating if anything- he has all kinds of antique trucks, stuck everywhere! I took some pictures, then stopped to see an old friend of mine before I went to see mom and dad, and he owns the old 860 GMC that was a wrecker at the garage I worked at in Cumberland when I first got out of high school, in 1974. It was great! You can still see "Cumberland Auto Service" on the doors. Always loved that truck- 6-71 Detroit, 5 speed, with 2 speed rear. Just wish I could have driven it again! But, it was a great day!
    p.s- the wrecker body and winch that used to be on the 860 is now on this 9500 GMC, still in use to this day!
    Here's some random pictures...
  10. other dog
    I know everybody gits tired of seeing pictures of these delicious and tender slow cooked ribs, but here's todays menu. Had just put them on the grill here...chunks of hickory wood on the charcoal. I actually smoke it over indirect heat for several hours, then smother it in BBQ sauce and wrap it tightly in aluminum foil to finish it. And I saw several of these creatures while I was cooking the ribs, they're sauteeing in the smaller pan, with garlic and butter.
    The end result...
    ...and how about that cabbage? it's really grown since yesterday!
  11. other dog
    Hauled a couple of loads this week. I unloaded in Lynchburg Monday morning and went to Moneta and got a load of lumber going to Conneaut Lake, Pa. Then down to Pittsburgh to load steel to Lynchburg. Then got a load of lumber off the yard going to Oberlin and Norwalk, Ohio. Back to Pittsburgh-back to Lynchburg. (yawn...)
    I did see a gray Mack dump in Pittsburgh-had a "for sale" sign in the window. I actually saw another Mack for sale on rt. 51, but I didn't get a picture. I don't know what model it was, but it was a fairly new looking cabover with a set back axle and a van body. Weather's getting warmer now, so you see some nice looking new cars on dealer's lots .
    And I got a little better view of the B-model dump with the chrome radiator shell in Pa. And this old shovel must still work, i'm pretty sure it's been moved since the last time I was by there. I think this is where they park blimps in Akron, Ohio. This building used to be in the Guiness book of world records as the largest ...largest ...I don't know what you call it, but it's all open space on the inside, with no columns holding it up in the middle of it. And some old units on rt. 14 in Ohio.
    And how 'bout that cabbage, eh? This was when I put the anti-rabbit fence up a couple of weeks ago, and now.
  12. other dog
    I went to Roxana, reloaded in Calvert City, Ky. for Ambridge, Pa. then loaded in Pittsburgh for Lynchburg. Nothing unusual or exciting, so I took some pictures of it...
    well, this might be unusual-looks like a broken power pole with the transformer dangling from it.
    Anyone know what this is? I see lots of them along the road,especially in Pa. This is in W.V. They're purple and triangular-i'm thinking some kind of insect trap.
    Self explanitory- Ansted, W.V.
    The old Smith's Transfer terminal on rt. 60 near Charleston, W.V.
    I think the plan here is to connect these things so you can drive across it.
    some of the piling we've hauled to Roxana.
    A red Mack.
    A white Mack.
    A blue Mack.
    And a colorful Peterbilt,loading storm debris in western Ky.
    huge debris pile, and more debris cleanup.Looks like this will be going on for a long time.
    B-model dump, (far left) rt. 40 and I-70 in Pa.
    A bulldozer climbing a huge coal pile, Calvert City, Ky.
    Superliner Mack, Moorefield, W.V.
    Deer in Lynchburg, Va.
    Purple Mack
    And finally, dog at rest with his head in the fireplce.
  13. other dog
    I must be off now-going to Roxana again with piling. Good thing they're building that pipeline from Alberta. Hauling the piling to the refinery has really been good, keeping us a little busy anyway. Haven't been making but one round a week lately, and deadheaded back to Knoxville and Rome, Ga. the last two times I went to Roxana.
    We lost 2 of our regular hauls lately, the treated lumber out of Moneta and return loads of steel to Roanoke. A large flatbed carrier, like the mickow corporation, cut the rates and just took the hauls. Bidness is bidness I guess...a dog eat dog world.
    ...And how about Miss California? I saw the headline yesterday on the yahoo home page but didn't read the story. It just said her answer to a question may have cost her the Miss America title. Then I heard the whole story on the news this morning. I thought she had stumbled on a reply or something, like standing there saying "well, uh... mmm, duh- d'oh!"
    That wasn't it at all-she replied to a question about gay marriage and the faggot-can you say that here?-judge that asked the question didn't like her reply that marriage should be between a man and woman. So he scored her low or not at all. She gave a good answer I thought, and her personal opinion shouldn't be held against her either way. Just my opinion.
  14. other dog
    Well, I mowed the grass early this morning, had to wait 'til daylight to finish though, because the batteries went dead in the flashlight. Then I went to Concord and finished putting that hood on the mixer. Don't remember when it was last started, but it fired right up. I dumped about 800 gallons of water out of the drum and let it run about 15 minutes.
    Then I stopped at Carson's Store and got 2 rolls of chicken wire and made a fence around the garden. The chicken wire was way more expensive than I thought it would be-$28 for a 50' long, 3' high roll and I needed 2 rolls. I could probably go to the vegetable stand in Gladys and buy $56 worth of produce and get more than the total output of my garden, but I can't let the creatures get the best of me, right? They're already eating my cabbage plants! I feel like Bill Murray after the gopher in "Caddyshack".
    Fence looks pretty good too. I left some extra at the bottom, folded it out on the grass, then laid 4x4's on it. The owl certainly doesn't do his job, the pepper spray didn't work, Other Dog the beagle won't work, so maybe this will do the job.
    I hope so, because there's only one option left that I can see- fried rabbit...squirrell stew...rabbit pot pie...squirrell and dumplings...rabbit on a stick...sauteed squirrell with peppers and onions...marinated grilled rabbit...barbecued squirrell-what am I saying?!!I couldn't do that!..could I?..maybe
    Saw 3 doves at the bird bath...no squirrells reported in the area.
  15. other dog
    Only made one round this week. Thought I was going to Lisbon, Ohio or Mercer, Pa. with treated lumber Tuesday, so I lollygagged around here in no particular hurry to leave, but when I got to headquarters I had a load going to Roxana, Il. WTF?!! If i'd known that I would have left 2 hours ago! Brought lumber back to Moneta.
    Some of what I saw along the way-
    some trucks on rt. 60 in West Virginia
    this used to be known as "dead man's curve" on rt. 60. Used to be a lot of truck traffic on this road before I-64 was finished.
    trucks at the truckstop
    W.V. coal train
    a colorful Peterbilt
    barge on the Kentucky river, near Paducah, Ky.
    a cement mixer at the Pilot in Oak Grove, Ky.
    a field of dozers
    a load of big yellow engines
    The Peaks of Otter from rt. 122
    there's still lots of ice storm damage visible around Paducah.
  16. other dog
    I'm running out of titles- might have to go back to stealing Paul's
    I got out Tuesday and went to Roxana with a 60' load, then deadheaded to Knoxville and picked up 60' rebar going to King George, Va. Can't unload that until Monday, but I have a dentist's appointment Monday too.
    Even ran into some snow when I left Tuesday-it was snowing off and on most of the way across West Virginia.
    And I saw a 2-story forklift in Suffolk, Va. last week.
    And I saw the Volvo plant in Dublin,Va. yesterday.
    And I saw a dog in the yard.
    And I saw this Euclid when I was coming from the dentist's office.
  17. other dog
    I took those two coils to Suffolk Monday morning, but didn't get a load out until Tuesday. I could have loaded in Petersburg Monday, but the load was going to South Plainfield, New Jersey so I whined and cried my way out of it. Had to spend the night in Petersburg though. Then I ended up going to Moneta and loading treated lumber anyway. That went to Mercer, Pa. and I loaded at Masury, Oh. for Roanoke. Then Thursday I loaded more treated lumber going to Alliance and Kent, Ohio. Picked up a big single coil, 45,000 pounder, at Ohio Steel Slitters in Canton going back to Suffolk, Va. for tomorrow.My son Morgan and his girlfriend came over yesterday so I grilled some hotwings and a hamburger or six-very good! My cabbage plants are really growing too. Was gonna plant some onion sets, but I gotta let the garden dry out some. I'm afraid they'd rot before they start growing if I put 'em in the ground now. I did put some tomato and pepper seeds in a plant bed though. Even got a plan for the rabbits this year-chicken wire. So maybe i'll have some corn and beans this year too.
  18. other dog
    Geez, I can't remember anything...oh, it's coming back slowly now. Made three rounds last week for the first time in a while. Took some treated lumber to Akron Thursday and thought I was coming home empty, but got a load out of Malta, Oh. late Friday evening going to Bedford, Va. When I unloaded in Bedford Monday I went to the shop and got a Conestoga and loaded Kyanite for Chester, W.V. Sat all day in Chester after I unloaded Tuesday-didn't have a return load. I did get a load Wednesday going to Roanoke, but it was next week's load, so I just brought it to the shop and dropped it. Then Thursday I loaded treated lumber going to Middlefield, Oh. and reloaded in Canton at Ohio Steel Slitters. I don't know if everyone who works there is an a-hole, or just the guy that loaded me. Probably just him, odds are against everyone there being one, but he was certainly an arrogant, hateful jerk-pure a-hole, like he holds it against you for coming there to pick up a load in the first place. Unfortunately, that's most often the case where ever you go to load steel or make a delivery.Big Jim loaded there too. I was already backed in when he got there and he walked over and asked me where the shipping office was. As I was telling him, mr. hole walked over and told us we need to quit talking so I can pull out, he's on a tight time schedule, blah-blah-blah. I had 2 big coils, 20 and 21,000 lbs. so I put 1 chain through the eye of each one and pulled out. Put 2 more chains on each outside, then tarped the load and left. I was heading south on 77 down below Dover when I was talking to Jim on the phone-they still hadn't started to load him.Makes it hard to be sympathetic when they close the doors because people decide to get their steel from China or Brazil. Gotta deliver in Suffolk tomorrow.
    And I got started on the garden yesterday-planted some cabbage. Gotta pick up some onion sets this week, and i'll be good for a while. I'm going to start some tomato and pepper plants in a plant bed.
    took a few pictures last week, nothing spectacular-
    loaded with lumber at the truckstop
    couple of Macks in Fairplain,W.V.
    closer view of the b-model, Fairplain,W.V.
    sitting in Chester,W.V.-you have to blind side through that gate to back up to the dock.good picture-if anyone wants to learn to drive that truck that just passed by,just call that number.
    Mack dump on a dirt pile
    strange looking VW crew cab bus van pickup thing in Moneta.
    Old White on rt. 20 in W.V.
  19. other dog
    I left here Monday and had to go to Petersburg to load a Roxana, Il. load. That makes a long day. It's about 100 miles east to Petersburg. I didn't get to Roxana until about 3 o'clock Tuesday evening, and didn't get unloaded until Wednesday morning. At least I got a return load out of Granite City, only a few miles from Roxana. Bad part was it was going to Baltimore, scheduled for Friday morning delivery. Then I had a load to pick up in Sparrows Point, about 2 miles from where I unloaded. Good load too, 2 coils going to Lynchburg. Then I could deliver that tomorrow, but...they screwed around so long unloading me in Baltimore it was too late to load it and I had to come home empty and pick up a 2 stop load of lumber at the yard going to Ohio. The stops are nowhere near each other either, one's near Marion and the other's near Akron. So i'm leaving today.
    And, on top of that the tool box door on my trailer decided to come open on the way home Friday and I lost most of my beveled wood, coil racks, a roll of plastic, some corner protectors, and i'm not sure what else was in there. Usually it took a jackhammer and a crowbar to get it open, but this time it just came open on it's own. Couldn't say for sure that somebody didn't check it out to see if there was anything in there worth stealing and then didn't fasten the doors good when they saw there wasn't, but who knows.
    Got a few pictures this week too-
    the capital building in Charleston,W.V.
    driving piling in Roxana
    locomotive in Roxana
    some old tractors in Illinois by I-70
    the cut in Sideling mountain on I-68 in Maryland
    closer view of the cut
    Baltimore,from the Key Bridge
  20. other dog
    Made my 2 stop deliveries in Oberlin and Vermilion, Oh. then went to Brookfield again and back to Roanoke. Delivered there late Friday night and got to the south Lynchburg truckstop about 2:30 am. Saturday.
    It's snowing pretty hard here now. Calling for 4 to 6" . Nice to be home on Sunday for a change, especially with the snow coming down-cooking some wings, got beer in the fridge, the race is coming on TV...nice...UNTIL THE POWER WENT OUT!

    I didn't take any pictures this week but Big Jim sent me some. He went to Miami and went across rt. 41 through the everglades. He stopped somewhere and took all these alligator pictures. They weren't in a cage somewhere, they were in the wild. Looks like he was getting a little too close for me, but I guess he just zoomed in on them. I know he has a good camera. In fact, unlike myself, he's actually a real photographer. I sent one back to him showing what the 'gators were thinking when he was taking pictures of them. He also took these pictures at Calvert City, Ky. when he loaded there just after the ice storm.
  21. other dog
    Got home last night, but now i've got to leave again. After I left Roxana Monday I picked up in Calvert City, Ky. going to Neville Island, Pa. then I went to Brookfield, Oh. and loaded for Roanoke. Unloaded yesterday and reloaded treated lumber at the shop.It's a two stop load going to Vermillion and someplace else in Ohio. Both are near Cleveland. I was running short on hours yesterday, so i'll be leaving today...shortly.
    This is the entrance to the old tunnel on the West Virginia turnpike.
  22. other dog
    Slacking off a little on the old blog here. Except for sitting for 10 hours Monday waiting to get unloaded in Roxana, Il. I had a pretty good week. I was supposed to pick up a load in Jackson, Tn. and deliver it in Pounding Mill, Va. at 12:30 Tuesday, but it took so long to get unloaded there was no way I could make it. Earliest appointment I could get Wednesday was for 1:30, so then I had time to kill. I could have gotten there about 5:30 or 6:00 Monday, but I stopped at the Davy Crocket truckstop in Tennessee. When I unloaded in Pounding Mill I reloaded at the same place going to Chattanooga, then loaded in Chattanooga for Lynchburg. Then to the yard and loaded up for Roxana again to deliver Monday.
    got a couple of pictures here-thought I saw nocluejoe driving the buggy truck in Knoxville, but it wasn't him. It was a cabover Pete buggy truck....
    speaking of cabover Petes, saw this unit for sale in Montvale, Va. Don't see this setup in the east much. I thought about winning the lottery, buying this truck, and moving out west and be a hay hauler. Or move next door to Rob just to annoy him.
    pretty neat picture of the PC screen-nice background picture,eh? (that's Canadian)
  23. other dog
    Guess I should catch up a little. I went to Chesapeake Monday and came back up to Petersburg and loaded another load for Roxana,Il. Delivered there Tuesday evening and loaded in Pittsboro, In. Wednesday morning for Petersburg, Va. Hit snow in Charleston, W.V. coming back, but the turnpike was pretty clear. When I got off on 64 east at Beckley it was a different story. Completely covered. I waited on top of Sandstone mountain for a couple of hours, hoping the snow would stop...and a plow truck would come by. I think there was one truck working the mountain, and it's 5 miles down it, 7%. I got caught in the snow a couple of times there last winter, and why they don't try to keep it clear I do not know.
    Sandstone is as long, and a lot steeper, than any of the mountain passes I crossed going to Puyallup. I know they might measure snowfall out there in feet instead of inches, but when Sandstone is completely covered, not even 2 tracks clear, it can be pretty intense going down it. I finally eased on down about 15-20 mph. and made it OK.
    I unloaded in Petersburg Thursday, then reloaded for Roxana again with a 60' load this time. It delivers Tuesday.
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