1st stopoff in Indiana

Sunday,   7am

   Sunday is a cool morning but just right for traveling. We are up and  out of the Nashville area and stop for a good breakfast of country ham and eggs to keep us full and satisfied until evening when I plan to get us up to central Indiana and be in the small town that we must unload in , in the morning. I have called ahead on Friday and made sure of the directions and unloading time for Monday. We take a couple of roads that really give us a feel for the autumn days that showoff their rich colors as we wind around Amish country homesteads with their all white houses and out buildings. Harvesting is in full swing and mounds of corn spill out of the surplus , makeshift cribs to start the drying process of the crops to finally go to market
blogging 007.
   When we arrive at the consignee’s place of business, there is a perfect place across the street to camp for the night so we HAVE to check out the neighborhood tavern for the a quick burger and a frosty mug or three …. and then map out the next days  route and  plan for a busy day with 2 stopoffs and plenty of miles that will take us into North Dakota for Wed. The stars are out in white on white neon and I always have to recheck them one more time before I close my window and make sure all doors are locked and all is quiet. Down comforter is toasty……. and all is well………..Goodnight  Daddy-o ,    Goodnight  MJ………

Happy Trails!!!     532 miles

Northbound out of Florida with a stopoff in Nashville!

6am,   Friday

   I awake early and make some coffee for Daddy-o and jump in the saddle, ready to get going and load more air handlers for Indiana 1 stop off, Minnesota, 2 stop offs, North Dakota, 1 stop off,and final in Washington state with 1 stop off. That means , I will have alot of deck that needs freight on as I take freight off along the way. The trick is to be lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time for it me to pick it up. (extra revenue). My 1st drop will give me 12 feet of empty deck, the 2nd drop–16 feet, the 3rd drop, 21 feet,– 4th drop, 32 feet!!!! I make at least 4 calls to people that could possibly have something feasible to go on but we’ll see……….most of the time , it doesn’t happen…….but is worth a try.
   As we load these on the trailer,  4 trucks arrive  going elsewhere in the US and wait patiently for us to get done strapping all the units down. “Just strap snuggley but firmly” the shipper says, so there is no damage to the units. I have hauled these before so I know how fussy the consignees can be . Everything looks good as I go in for the shipping papers as Daddy-o checks the straps one last time before we leave and make sure all the equipment is put away like the winch bar, strap protectors etc. We have the rest of the day to move Northward and luckily we must go through Nashville, Tn. so I plan to get there on Sat. and find a place to park so we can go downtown and check out the scene on Sat nite. This is a great place to have a mini, quicky, fun evening  in Music City and feel like youv’e been revived from work and ready to go the next day .I have a favorite place for spaghetti a short distance from the busy streets, so that is what we’ll have for supper. It’s the best!!
Sat……….
   We manage to find a place to park and walk downtown (about a mile)…………….There is a zombie walk a thon for a fund raiser somewhere in town and is a kick to see all the people dressed as zombie’s with bloody faces and antics like a premature Halloween would look like. The downtown really comes alive in the evening with many shops open and all the bars with no cover charges and the best country music around free to anyone that comes in . Maybe a dozen bars with talented musicians from all over trying to be discovered for that one chance to make it big. They play for tips so its vital to help them out if possible!  We just love  being there for an evening!!!! It’s a great town!!!