My Christmas 2011!!

Well, we just got back from my parents' house in Sierra Blanca, Texas.  It was so much fun.  We went Thursday night (instead of the planned Friday morning) to beat a snow storm that was headed that way.  It snowed some while we were there, but El Paso (just 70 miles West of us) got 7 inches of snow in some parts.  7 inches!!  Snyder had a white Christmas as well while we were gone.  They got about 3 inches but it melted before we came home. 

Sierra Blanca, TX

We got to eat like kings!  We had some of the best home cooked food around.  My mom is an excellent cook.  We ate chili rellenos, Chimichangas, tacos, sour cream beef enchiladas, mexican rice, a pot of beans, it was amazing.  Christmas morning we had a green chili/egg/cheese combo with home made cinnamon rolls.  Does your family do anything special for food around Christmas?  Most families do ham or turkey.  Not us!!  We sure love our mexican food. 


Our Christmas dinner looks more like this!

We had sugar cookies, rocky road fudge, 7-layer bars, buckeyes, oreo balls, cheesecake bites, and chocolate pepermint cookies for Christmas treats.  Soooo good!!  Do you guys have special Christmas treats you make? 

We did some roping, but mostly hung out with family & visited.  Christmas morning was great.  Little Lindsey was a hoot opening presents.  It was cute.  She would exclaim "Oooohhh" when she would open each present and jump up and down.  She got a tricycle and a doll and a play kitchen among other things.  What did you guys get?  I got some new jeans, and a cool light tester among other things.  It was a great Christmas. 


Some lights in Downtown El Paso, TX

I hope you guys are having fun with your families in this time away from school.  Make the most of it and have some fun!  I'm back to work tonight running to Midlothian.  Have a safe holiday break!

--Mr. Walker


Snyder, TX snow



CB Radio

This is what my radio looks like

So, my wife said I should tell you guys about my radio.  Most ALL truckers have CB radios in their trucks.  I use mine to talk to other truckers about dangers or accidents on the road.  We truckers have almost our own language on the CB.  It's funny, so my wife thought I should tell you guys some of the terms we use. 

Alligator - tire in the road
Bear - police
Bear cave - police station
Parking lot - truck that hauls cars
Bull Wagon - truck that hauls cattle
Skateboard - truck that pulls a flatbed
Chicken Hauler - truck that hauls frozen foods, usually chicken
Chicken lights - extra lights all over a truck
Deadhead - driving empty without a load
Bird Dog - cb radio or radar detector
Chicken Coupe - scale house
10-4 - okay
10-100 - bathroom break
10-20 - your location
Triple Digit Ride - truck than can go over 100 MPH
Braile - the bumps on the side that make that noise when you drive on it
Coloring Book - trucker's log book
Freight Shaker - Freightliner (my truck brand)
Yard Stick - mile marker
Wiggle Wagon - double trailers
Seasame Street - Channel 19 (used in the city because of all the goofy monsters on there)
4-wheeler - car
Big D - Dallas
Cowtown - Fort Worth
Music City - Nashville
Alamo City - San Antonio
Motor City - Detroit
Windy City - Chicago
Mile High City - Denver
Big Apple - New York City
Ankle Biter - small child
Disco Lights - emergency vehicle lights on top
Hammer down - petal to the floor
Go-Go Juice - fuel
Choke & Puke - truckstop restaurant
Insurance Convention - accident

These are just a few I could think of.  Most drivers see me and call me "Monster" because the brand of our trailers is on the back, and it says "Mon-Star".  You can really get to spending a lot of money on those radios.  I have mine peak & tuned.  That way it can reach out a long ways.  About 10 miles away.  Some guys put echo boards in them so it sounds like they're in an empty gym when they talk.  There's all kinds of add-ons they could do! 

Well, it's the week before Christmas!!  My wife made some of my favorite treats.  Oreo balls!!  My family makes all kinds of awesome Christmas treats.  Cheesecake bars, 7 layer bars, Christmas cookies, it's soooo good!!  What are some of your favorites? 

Very creative Christmas cookie

I hope you guys are having a good time!!  --Mr. Walker

Uh-oh!!

Well, I had my first boo-boo.  My first boo-boo since 1998.  I've only been at fault for one accident in my life and it was in 1998 when I was a young driver and I was following too close and rear-ended a car in a pickup truck.  It wasn't too bad, I paid a few hundred to fix the victim's trunk and bumper and it was over with. 

Last Tuesday, I laid my trailer over on it's side.  It was awful.  I was dumping in the very back where we take certain loads that set of radioactive alarms.  (Side note - they have always turned out false, we don't haul or take in ANYTHING radioactive!)  I was dumping like normal on some muddy ground and I got 3 1/2 cylinders up out of 5 and nothing had come out.  Almost every time, it falls after 3 cylinders.  So, I stopped and began bringing my trailer down to see what was going on.  It started to lean to the right a little.  So, quickly, I released the brakes and put it into 1st gear to pull forward and change the momentum from side to the back.  But, it was too late.  It wasn't coming down fast enough and it fell over on it's side!! 



Trailer on it's right side, still hooked up to the truck, tilted in the air.

The wrecker was called out and he had it set upright by 7:30AM.  The trailer fell over at 1:30AM.  Not too bad.  It cost $1,550 to have the wrecker do that.  OUCH!  I drove the rig back to Snyder.  Last week, the insurance adjuster came out and did looked it over and ordered the repairs.  Friday, I took the trailer to Lubbock, TX to get repaired.  The truck is in Abilene getting it's repairs.

The trailer's frame is mangled pretty bad.  It is estimated to cost $20,000 to $30,000 to fix.  The truck's frame and cab are damaged as well.  Possibly $7,000 to repair.  Luckily, the truck stayed upright, but it was still damaged.  It all came down to unstable ground (mud) that gave way, the load being packed in way too tight (the load didn't even come out when it was flung down on it's side!), and me not getting it down fast enough. 

I gotta tell you, it was pretty scary.  I am fine.  It was sure loud!  But going forward, you can never be too careful!!

So, on to happier things.  It snowed!!  I know it's common to have snow where you guys live maybe once a year.  Out here, we get it maybe 3 to 6 times per year.  We have to be careful when driving on snow especially when the temperature dips below freezing (32 degrees).  Ice is formed where moisture collects on the road and makes it very dangerous to drive on.  It's hard to stop, steer, or change lanes on ice.  The roads are usually kept clear with snow plows, sand and salt put down on the road making it safe for drivers.  (SALT?!? - Salt keeps water from freezing so easily.  It would be a cool easy experiment in class.  Check out the difference between water freezing with and without ice in it!)  But we make sure we slow down and drive with careful attention when it's like that! 

Yeah, it got cold out here in West Texas!!  If you want to check out your map, the snow stopped in Santo, Texas.  If you went WEST of there, there was snow on the ground.  If you went EAST of there (towards Saginaw/Fort Worth), no snow.  Funny, Santo.  Santa.  Snow.  Hmmm......are we going to have a white Christmas??

I am in truck #10, now.  I've still been running to Midlothian, TX about every night.  I'm trying to make these night runs easier on me and my family. I've been trying to leave earlier (7:00PM) and getting back earlier (4:00AM).  It means I'm awake with my family more during the day!

We replaced an old toilet in our house.  That left us with a big box, so I had an idea while I was hanging out with Lindsey.  I cut the top off and cut a door and some windows in it.  Talk about fun!!  She has been running in and out of it, throwing balls in and out of it, and sitting with the cat in there!!  Funny how the simple things can be so fun!! 

I hope you guys had a great weekend.  I'm sorry it's been a while since I last blogged.  My sleep patterns and week had been VERY BAD after I had that layover.  I'll be better!!



Christmas is almost here!!!  Are you guys excited?

I know you have Christmas break coming up soon!  I will keep trying to blog through the holidays.  So, if you're at home and want to keep up with me, you can!!  Have a great week!!  --Mr. Walker

Back from Thanksgiving!!

I hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving holiday break!  Mine was exciting.  I've been running every day up until the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.  I saw some interesting things, too!!  I ran back to our Snyder, TX yard on Saturday and got loaded, then went right back to Midlothian.  I spent my Thanksgiving there in Midlothian with my wife's family.  I dumped my load last night (Sunday night) and got back around noon here in Snyder today (Monday). 


SOOO....what did you guys eat for Thanksgiving?  We had an AWESOME turkey that my wife made.  She does it soooo good.  We had all the sides from stuffing, to mashed potatoes, to green beans, to homemade rolls, to pecan pie!  What are your favorite Thanksgiving treats? 



Geico NASCAR truck!!

So, NASCAR's season wrapped up in Phoenix, Arizona, then down in Miami, Florida.  (Can you find those cities on the atlas?)  I saw a LOT of the trucks that haul the racecars going down the road the last couple of weeks going to and from those races.  Let me tell you, even the trucks go fast!!  This is the Geico Toyota Nascar Truck for Casey Mears.  This was him headed West, most likely to the Phoenix race.  Pretty cool, huh? 


Big truck leaving a spray of water from driving on the wet roads.  Sure makes it harder for cars to drive through that!

We finally got some much needed rain as well this past week.  It makes it a little tricky to drive in sometimes.  Visibility is lower and you have to give yourself more room for stopping.  It sure was nice getting all this rain, we sure need it!!  My truck is sorta yucky now with road grime.  It always gets that way after driving through rain. 

NFR starts this week!!

Some of you remember, I'm a rodeo fan!  I grew up doing it when I was your age.  The NFR stands for National Finals Rodeo.  It's when all the top performers from each event get together for one last rodeo for the year to see who the champion is!!  It starts on Thursday and you can bet I will be recording it so I can watch it when I'm at home!! 

I hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving!!  I hope school is going well for you!  --Mr. Walker

Not been keeping up!

Hey, guys!  First off - big sorry for not keeping up on here.  Things have been wild!!



This is what things have felt like lately!!

I went to Guymon, Oklahoma - where I used to live.  We have a house up there for sale still.  I replaced an awning and did some yard work.  We loaded and moved that last of our things up there.  That was a VERY busy three days. 



Guymon is actually closer to Denver, Colorado than it is to Dallas, Texas!

When we got back, we had to remove a wall just to get our couch through the door.  So, I've been doing some construction on the house to get it back in good shape.  Then we had to find a place for all of the rest of our things we brought back.  It was a chore, but we got it all in.  We have a small bunkhouse and most of it went in there. 


How many times have you guys ever moved?


Things have been very busy lately with working on the house & getting it in good shape.  Also been driving every day to Midlothian.  It's been very busy and I haven't been near the computer much.  I'll try to be better about it in the coming days.  Are you guys getting ready for the Thanksgiving holiday?  Going anywhere exciting?  How many of you are going somewhere else and how many of you are staying home for Thanksgiving?  I hope you guys are doing great!! 



--Mr. Walker

Assignment done!

My assignment on Brazos County is done!  I hope you guys like it!!  How did your reports go?  I'm sure you guys probably did better than I did!!  I hope you turned yours in on time unlike me.  I did have a lot going on.  So, let's catch up....



I hope your homework isn't doing this to you!

I got my truck 24 back!  It has a new Air Conditioner compressor.  It also has a new starter and fires right up now!  Truck 9 was a good one and treated me well.  I have been getting into a good routine at work.  I've been leaving around 8:00 - 9:00 PM and getting back around 6:00 - 7:00 AM.  It's been dark still when I get home.  It makes going to bed easier when it's still dark instead of being light out!  Have you ever tried to go to bed when it's still light out?  It's hard!

Truck 24 and my trailer (#122) has had some tire troubles.  Hauling scrap is probably one of the most demanding on truck tires.  We drive over small pieces of metal and have to back up to large piles of scrap.  Most of my tires have small pieces of metal stuck right in them!!  It started when one of my trailer tires went flat and came off the rim.  It got patched and I went on my way.  Later in my trip back to Sweetwater it went flat again!!  The patch came off.  The tire guy came back out and put a different tire on it.  Another one was leaking on my trailer and I was having to fill it every other night to top it off.  It got replaced as well. 

Some bad tires and how it would be caused.

On my truck, I had one go bald on me.  My shocks on my truck have been out since I've been in it.  It makes my truck ride rough and can make my tires go bald.  So it got replaced as well.  It sure feels good knowing I have three tires that are in much better shape. 



Did you know - truck drivers call pieces of tire on the highway "alligator"?  "Watch for the alligator Westbound at mile marker 344 in the middle and right lane." - would be something they would say.  Funny, huh. 

 I have cows on the farm again!!  The farmer that farms the cotton on our farm is using some of our haygrazer to graze some of his cows for a while.  They won't be here long, since there's not a lot for them.  Just enough to hold them over for a while.  Since there isn't much feed around here it was good for him to have somewhere to put his cows for a while. 



Black baldy calf

Well, I'm off for another run.  I hope you guys are having a great week!!  The holiday are coming up, what are you doing to get ready?  --Mr. Walker

More breakdowns

This has been a trying last couple of days, oh my!  I had the door to truck #24 break.  The guys at our scrap yard in Sweetwater broke it.  Not sure how & I'm not all that concerned about it.  I spent about 5 hours at the repair shop in Abilene, TX getting it fixed.  I wasn't really thrilled about that.  It was interesting seeing my door tore all apart at the shop.  They found a plastic fork, part of a magazine and some coins in there.  I guess after 8 years, some interesting things can fall into our doors!


The inside of the door on truck 24

I've been running solid going on 9 days now, no days off.  So, I've been a little tired lately.  It's important for me to get at least 6 hours of sleep.  You guys should be getting at least 8 hours of sleep.  Your bodies are growing like crazy so it's important to get lots of quality sleep.  Running at night and dealing with breakdowns that keep me out later than usual really cuts into my sleeping or home time.  It's been hard to get on here & blog lately! 
On Monday morning at about 5:45 AM I had a small fire in truck #24.  My air conditioner has been out for about 2 weeks.  I have left it alone since it's been cool at night.  I had my guess that the compressor was no good and I was right.  It caught on fire!!  I pulled the hood open and put it out with my fire extinguisher.  All 18-wheelers going down the road are required to carry fire extinguishers.  I'm sure happy I had mine!! 


Engine view of the Air Conditioner compressor.  We cut the belt on it to bypass and tied a tension pulley up to get it going again.



Front of the Air Conditioning Compressor.  The 3 bolts on the front.  That's what caught on fire.  It's black & crispy!

The repair man came out and we did some field repairs to get it to the shop.  The repair man went rapid-fire on my starter and burned it up.  So the starter had to be replaced as well.  I've been driving truck #9 in the meantime.  It's a day-cab.  The trailer is like mine, but it has a flat bottom instead of a round bottom.  That means I can only haul scrap iron in it and not shredder material.  I've been delivering to the mill in Midlothian, TX and it takes a LOT longer to get unloaded some nights.  As you can see, things have been very hectic for me lately!!

Slag pot of hot molten steel lighting up the night!  These guys really brighten up the night at the steel mill.

 So, outside of trucking - How about them Rangers!!!!  3-2 lead in the World Series!!  Now, that's one television program I wouldn't be upset if you guys stayed up late to watch!!  I know those games are played late which is a bummer.  But how exciting!! 

Also, a very large piece of history has played out since the last blog.  On October 20, Muammar Gaddafi was captured and eventually passed away over the weekend.  He siezed power in Lybia - a arabic country in Africa, back in 1969.  He was a dictator tied to several terrorist activities.  This will be something you guys will be able to look back on when you are older. 

So, I have an assignment and I'm very late on it.  I PROMISE I will get it to you.  Free time hasn't been something that I have had a lot of lately but I WILL get it to you. 

Halloween is coming up!  Are you guys doing anything for it?  I'm not really big on halloween but there are some pretty funny pumpkin carvings out there!!  I hope you guys are having a great week!  --Mr. Walker

Funny pumpkins