Today I choose life.

  
It is no secret that the truck driving life is not one I have chosen, but one that has chosen me. 

I have days that I choose the negativity instead of the positive. Yesterday was one such day. 

Today is a new start, a new choice to make. The adventure begins down a two lane road leading to our delivery point. 

  
Hidden in the woods is an old house. Occupied or not, it gives shelter to someone. Comfort from the weather. 

  
A little town or hamlet.  Stores and businesses await to serve any who came.

  
Today I choose joy. As a “Fair Weather” friend that I am….I will be on my way home for a few days. A stop in Duncan, South Carolina to pick up trucks going to Oklahoma City. 

Craft room….get ready!  I’m on my way. 

Leslie

Change your thoughts. Change your world.

  
Two weeks ago we were in snow and ice. A week at home to do a few things before leaving once again. This time for the southern stretches of highways that are warmer. 

I was looking forward to having one more week at home in my craft room, but things change frequently. 

I picked up an International day cab from an auction in Blue Mound, Texas to be delivered in Shreveport, Louisiana. We made a stop in Tyler, Texas to get two trucks for Joe, going to Pembroke, Georgia. 

East of Tyler, Texas the trees are mostly pine or some type of evergreen. Grass on the shoulders and out in the fields is still green. 

  
Leaving Shreveport, after my delivery, I watched the landscape open before me. 

A home with a waterfront view outside Shreveport. 

  
Bayou, creek, or stream – whatever they are called in Louisiana. Quite a number of them without an alligator in sight. 

  
A swollen river near Bossier City, Louisiana. 

  
The water table in Louisiana is just below the ground surface. Swamps can be found along I-20 eastbound .

  
Change my thoughts and I can change my world. I’m working on that. *heavy sigh*

Leslie

What is on that truck?!

For many drivers of passenger vehicles, passing a semi truck and trailer is something they would really rather not do. It can be a frightening experience in the smaller vehicles. 

The dreaded feeling of being sucked under that behemoth and knowing you will surely die. 

  
The air displacement made by the semi truck and trailer begins at the nose of the truck as it cuts through the air. 

Air currents run the length of the truck tractor then begin to meet the air being displaced from under the belly of the beast. This causes a vortex of air to spin, or swirl, outwards. The turbulence can make you feel like you are being sucked in, when it actually is pushing you out. 

The continued forward movement of the semi truck and trailer create a tunneling vortex as it moves along the road. That is why you feel the rock and roll as you pass. 

Just get a good hold on your steering wheel, stay straight. DON’T fight the buffeting. Give your vehicle a little gas and keep moving. You will be fine. 

Semi truck and trailer combinations get about 6 miles per gallon of diesel fuel. In an effort to gain better fuel mileage many companies have implemented features on the trailers to streamline the air currents. 

The feature most used by larger trucking companies is to attach a “skirt” to the trailer. 

   
    
   
The air turbulence you would experience will be less terrifying when passing a semi truck and trailer with this feature. 

Fuel economizing features don’t stop there. The back end of trailers have a higher rate of air turbulence as all of the vortices meet. One thing you will see is the tail “Wing” on some trailers. 

  
These features added to trailers have raised fuel economy from 6 miles to the gallon to about 8. Some companies report fuel economy numbers as high as 10 miles per gallon and that is really great fuel mileage. 

Be safe as you drive and be courteous to all others on the road. Passenger and heavy vehicles alike. 

Leslie

Taking advantage of a late morning.

I checked my calendar. We have been on the road for three weeks now. The clothing situation was getting a bit desperate. I did laundry in Colorado before Christmas, it is time to do it once again. 

The hotels we stay in, generally, have a guest laundry. Some things I’ve learned over the years of traveling. 

1. Bring your own laundry soap. Not all hotel guest laundries have a vending machine, nor sell travel size boxes at the front desk. 
2. Same with fabric softener, liquid or sheets.  Best to bring your own if you have fragrance allergies anyway. 
3. Ask for a roll of quarters at the front desk. 
4. Wash cycle is usually 30 minutes. 
5. Drying cycle is usually 45 minutes. 
6. Set your smartphone timer as soon as the machine begins if you will be going back to your room.
7. This should have been NUMBER 1:  check the washing machine tub. I’ve, sadly found crayon melted in my clothes when I transferred them from the washer into the dryer. Blue spots all over our clothes!
8. You will NOT be compensated by the hotel for damaged clothing. 

This is my laundry stash. 

  
A water tight lid on my container. 

  
Laundry soap. 

  
Dryer sheets and change. 

   
 

Happy traveling. 

Leslie

A trip to the frozen north.

  
We were in Montana yesterday attempting to get a crane truck being moved to Dayton, Ohio. That poor truck was in sad shape and we, quite frankly, didn’t think it would make the 1,400 mile trip. 

  
We are returning to Little Falls, Minnesota to get our trailer. There are trucks in St. Paul, Minnesota going to Dayton, Ohio. 

Financially, this trek up to Montana was a bust. Spiritually, is a whole different matter. The beauty up here is what you make it in this vast wilderness. Little pockets of delight in an otherwise boring distance. 

   
    
    
   
On this first Sunday morning of 2016 I worship at the feet of God as I see the wonders he has spread out before me. 

   
 
Enjoy your day wherever you are. 

Leslie

Out of retirement.

Well, I had a year of being retired. Joe needs me back out with him because his arthritis makes it difficult for him to do this job by himself. 

Just before Christmas I got signed on at Coldiron. We saw our kids and grandkids for the holiday, which made it sweeter.  

Joe’s first trip with me was a total bust. Trucks from an auction in Fort Worth and a a Freightliner in Amarillo, Texas going to San Bernardino, California ended up in Flagstaff, Arizona at a Freightliner shop. 

   
 
After visiting our daughter and her little family in Los Angeles we went to Brighton, Colorado for trucks going to Coopersburg, Pennsylvania. 

  
We spent Christmas Eve with our Colorado kids and grandson before leaving for Pennsylvania. These trucks made it all the way to the delivery point. 

In Morrisville, Pennsylvania we picked up three day cabs going to Little Falls, Minnesota. 

  
We delivered them on New Year’s Day. 

  
Follow me on Facebook – Leslie Bockenstette – to keep up with the crazy business of Drive-Away. 

Happy New Year!

Leslie