Ok sorry for the very long hiatus. I was making a whole bunch of changes.

First, I’m still a trucker. No worries there my dears. I really do love what I do even if I really wish I could legally squash most drivers on the road under my tires. Sorry, I know that’s not nice but that’s just the way it is.

Secondly, while still working as a trucker I’m no longer on the long haul. That’s right ladies and gentlemen, I’m now an Intermodal Driver. As an OTR (over the road) trucker I would pick up deliveries from the shippers and take them to the receivers usually in different states. Now I pick up deliveries from the shippers and take them to the rail yard to be put on a train. Once near their final destination, another driver will pick up the trailer and take the product to the receiver.

What this means in the long run is that I get to be home more often. Not my home of Washington, but my forever and always home of Chicago.

By the age of 48 I’ve lived in 9 different states. No matter where my drivers license said I lived, if someone asked me where I was from I always said Chicago. I will always and forever say Chicago. Chicago is where the incarnation that is me was born and it is forever branded on my soul. I will always want Chicago thin crust pizza over anything else. I will always love the Cubs, Bears, Bulls, and Blackhawks (sorry Sox suck) even if I don’t consider myself a sports fan. I will always think that Lake Michigan has magic, Sue the dinosaur is just sleeping, and the lions outside the Art Institute will come alive to protect the city if needed.

This is my skyline…ok it’s not the best shot but I don’t drive on water and you’re just gonna have to take what I give you. Oh sorry, I slipped into mom mode there for a moment. You have no idea how happy it makes me to see these buildings everyday. When I moved back to Chicago in 2014, I didn’t really move back on my own terms. I was running away from something and someone and I came back with no plan in mind and no real thought about what I was going to do or even who I was anymore. All I knew was I wanted change. I left in 2016 after being here for 2 years and after a bit of a walkabout I became a trucker. Now, I’m back and man am I back with a vengeance. Ok not a vengeance but…you know what, I am back with a vengeance. Rawr!!!

So what’s different about, as I like to call it, running the rails? Well for starters I seem to be going to the same places time and time agian. This works for my brain beacuas it allows me to make connections with people. Maybe it’s my winning smile. Maybe it’s the purple hair. Maybe it’s my puppy wiggle butt at being able to make friends and get to know people again, but it’s been pretty easy for people to rememeber me. That, is of course, just how I like it.

Many intermodal trailers are these huge box affairs that have to be placed on a chassis. Our trailers are just like normal trailers and don’t require any additional equipment. A giant crane comes by and picks up the trailer to load it onto the train car. It’s all pretty neat if you ask me.

All in all, while the work is the same, it’s also much more physical. Where before I might have the same trailer with me for a week or two, this one involves multiple drop and hooks. I’m constantly out of my truck, winding up/down landing gear, crawling beneath my trailer for pre-trip inspections, and I do this multiple times a day.

That’s been some of my delay on updating you, my lovelies. It’s hard work. Much harder than just driving down the road. The best part of this new gig….NO MORE HAVING TO DEAL WITH ATLANTA DRIVERS!!!!

I have a few things to update you all on, and I will try to get back on a better schedule to keep you all in the loop.

Xoxo