Passing the time when traveling.

Most of the longest trips that I can remember included having little technology and someone to accompany me.. I was raised in the days of audiobooks on cassette to keep my attention on long car rides in places where the radio would be pointless. We all enjoy the radio until we reach somewhere in the boondocks that music seems to cease...

At this point technology has failed you. Your likely going to reach for your phone and attempt to stream your music into your stereo.. No luck.... DEAD ZONE...

What do you do?

On some trips... even shorter trips to Missouri I enjoy delving deep into my driving partners life., I create small talk about the weather... and then attempt to reach into the depths of their childhood. There is something about human contact, understanding that modern conveniences can't seem to touch. I tend to find that the most effective way to learn about someone is from being stuck in a car with them for hours..

Staying awake...

What are some things that you do to stay awake on a long drive. Some people do a variety of things.. High octane energy drinks seem to be the rage with the younger crowd while the older crowd spends a few quarters on coffee. I myself believe in drinking water and stretching.My relationship with Red Bull is like a roller coaster. The first few hours in which I drink it I am wired. The blood from my heart pumps heard and I am energized. However, after a few hours I crash.... and I crash hard.. Sometimes if I want to take a nap I will drink an energy drink early in the day because the down slide is steep when the caffeine and sugar wear off.

My tactic is walking, stretching, and water... Once I start to feel tired I tend to stop and search for a place for a relatively short but moderate walk. Truck stops and small parks remain a easily accessible location that isn't far from my pathway.... the interstate...

Stretching remains crucial because as my arms and legs have been positioned in the same configuration... I tend to feel sleepy.. Arm pulls and toe touches seem to be essential... Although it does seem to get some awkward stairs as people are passing by.

Water is the last defense... I believe in staying hydrated regardless of the weather... However, as you drink water you have to use the bathroom.. It keeps me from wanting to stay in a position of comfort for too long and get sleepy..

In conclusion, I am always doing something... Stay mobile.

I'm posting the above picture because I'm showing you what a moving truck should look like when it is going to its origin. Meaning... all the equipment should be neatly stacked and secured. The above photo came from a random Google image search and the back of the truck is miraculous. Most people that call a moving company desire several things... Speed, Accuracy, and Safe Handling.. My frustrations tend to mount that travelers think that each word works independently of each other..

Travelers and drivers are often in a hurry. Today we gripe about being a few minutes late, being stalled at a light, and having to detour from accidents.. Honestly, those are legitimate gripes. However, when you are dealing with loading someones belongings speed is not necessarily taken at face value... For instance, those who wish to make it to a destination with their belongings intact should exercise loading efficiently.. Most boxes can be stacked directly in the attic or the back of the truck. However, smaller boxes shouldn't be stacked upon bigger boxes.. That is wasted space and it is an accident waiting to happen... Someone attempting to move should spend several minutes every half hour and make the most out of the room in the truck.

Impatience is not a virtue when a traveler is trying to get his belongings from Point A to Point B in one piece. The truck drives better when the belongings are packed tightly into the truck and heavier items are strapped down. There is nothing more awkward than having to stop on the side of the interstate to open the doors to broken glass or dishes..

Love-Hate Relationship about Driving Rigs

So after having some time traveling on the road with large moving trucks I had a few observations and reflections...
Most people are on the lookout for monstrous trucks that outweigh them, and make them look like small Chihuahuas in a dog fight. I learned this aspect when learning how to drive the largest truck that is allowable before you get a CDL. My personal vehicle is a Toyota Prius. On long journeys they are great... Mainly for the gas mileage.... I tend not to enjoy spending half my trip occupied at Flying JJ's truck stop. I can bob and weave around traffic and be able to maintain the speed with the current traffic flow.
In a bigger truck this is harder to accomplish. Once trucks are empty they tend to drive worse... The steering is loose.... the trailer can sway.. but you can maintain a higher speed.
In the beginning when I started to learn to drive large trucks I was always checking my mirrors and not looking at the road as I should.. I quickly learned that I should drive my rig as if I am cruising in my Prius... It is no different... Just much larger and heavier.
Here are a few of my travel gripes and woes..

1. Smaller cars tend to think that I can turn on a dime and merge into traffic like them... This is not possible and normally when I merge unto a street I am splitting the lane.. In traveling this is accomplished by making a turn into a busy street when you have proper clearance and riding the center lane.. Vehicles may get annoyed by this but as I am trying to route myself to the directions to my GPS this remains paramount. Drivers don't often consider that if I only have to make a lane change once it is easier on the both of us.

2.  Honking at me when I am fully loaded going around a windy road accomplishes nothing. Yesterday, I had a BMW proceed to pass me at a normal speed on a two lane... No traffic around... No hard feelings.. But then he proceeded to honk after he passed me.. That seems like highly unusual behavior but it happens daily.

3. On my travels I can't climb steep grades in the road at 65.. Most likely if I am at near weight capacity I am pushing it to do twenty miles per hour... Trust me... I have a fully loaded truck... I am scared for dear life to ascent the hill.

So... in conclusion...

That truck driver that you honked at... the one you flipped off... and the one you passed like a Nascar driver.... has much bigger worries than you.

Traveling without a phone charger..

Does anyone do this?..

Now, when I say phone charger... I am meaning a vehicle charger. ya know........

the little thing that plugs into your cigarette lighter adapter...

I never use a car charger unless it is on a super long road trip... And sometimes in those instances I just use my phone sparingly and charge it in the hotel.

They seem to charge entirely too slow for me....I don't like cords strewn throughout the car. I don't like bad plugs that seemingly render the sync cord...

I'm just not a fan..

What do you take when you travel?

My plethora involves a wallet, some cash, a pocket knife, and my phone... Sometimes... like dog the bounty hunter I carry a large can of bear mace...  However, the thought of having to discharge that thing from the inside of the car seems like it would make me more of a victim than a survivor...

A seat belt cutter and a glass hammer has been my most recent everyday carry in the vehicle. I find that I carry more "what if" tools than things that intertain me.

My GPS rarely entertains me... The radio seems to be redundant with the same reruns of hip hop and modern rock in which I listen to... I don't pay for XM so.... that's out of the equation. Here lately, my desired form of entertainment is the audio out cable on my stereo..

I seem to burn the battery up on my phone as YouTube videos seem to dominate my driving experiences.

I came across this photo a few weeks ago and it brought a memory of a cold winter travel to my mind. In the winter of 2011, I packed a bag for the week and headed to Wisconsin with a friend of mine. We ended up leaving late in the day and instead of reaching a half-way point to our arrival point we drove a few hours and rested in Missouri.

The next day we drove. Having not been a fan of energy drinks I found myself drinking them later in the evening as we approached our destination. It was snowing lightly and my temperature gauge was showing a chilly temperature of 28 degrees in the car.

Frankly, I am not a fan of driving at night due to having seemingly a bad sense of direction even with a GPS. The cold didn't seem to be a worry as the heat was cranked up in the vehicle.

People say that accidents occur most likely in your home, areas of convenience, or your comfort zone.. My story wasn't much different. At around 8pm while I was crossing a bridge a semi was approaching me. This didn't seem to worry me as I was passing a bridge. However, a small animal crossed the road. Quickly, I had to make a decision and with it being slick the animal was struck.

The humor in the situation was limping the car to the nearest police station so that I could get a report for my insurance. Unknowingly, I walked out in under freezing temperatures in a short sleeved shirt due to having been in the warm car for the second part of the trip... The officer quickly thought I was drunk due to my attire and after some weird questions she did the report and I was able to limp the car to my destination.

I'm sure that policeman had a story to tell with others about the traveling walking out of his car in short sleeves... And I definitely had a story to tell due to seeing bigger obstacles after the collision.... a moose..