Alrighty Theydies and Gentlethems, Large Marge is no more: Long Live Large Marge. Without further ado, may I present….MAD MAXINE THE ROAD WARRIOR!

Let me start out by saying, god I love her. I loved Marge, don’t get me wrong, but I really love Maxine. She’s quiet, smooth, and will cut a bitch if they get too close. Honestly though, I’m not sure what the purpose of having spike rims are except to look more badassed than I already do.

There are several differences in this truck. Some of it is placement of my switches and instruments, some of it is interior layout, and some of it is comfort. For me, the biggest difference is the bed. It’s wider than in Marge and that makes this driver very happy.

Also, I have a door that opens up from the outside that gives me access not only to my under-bunk storage but also my bunk. This makes loading in groceries super easy.

One of the things I’m not crazy about is the fridge; It’s small. I’m talking very, very small. Because the fridge is built in, there’s no way for me to get a bigger one in there. The good news is there is more than enough space under my bunk for my cooler sized freezer. The freezer used to live in my passenger seat but that’s no longer a possibility because I’m now a certified trainer.

I’m currently sitting in Salt Lake City where I just picked up Beth, my first trainee. I lucked out with the first one. She’s a former driver who got off the road 21 years ago to have a family and is just now coming back to driving. She’s a smidge older than me, but not by much so we have plenty in common. Tomorrow is our first day out and she’ll be taking the helm in Maxine. Because switching schedules is easier for me, I decided to take the first night shift. We will slowly be rotating shifts because that’s what you sometimes have to do in this job, and I’d rather she gets the experience with me than having to jump in feet first once she’s on her own.

One thing about Beth is, she’s a vegetarian. She doesn’t have a moral issue with meat but chooses not to eat it for her personal health reasons. I can totally respect that. She does, on occasion eat fish, so she’s not completely Vegitarian or Vegan.

One of the things I wanted to teach her, and she in turn wanted to learn, is how to cook on a truck. Tonight I made vegetarian Tikka Masala to give her a crash course on the fact that all you need is one good pot and you can pretty much do anything.

Being off for two months, it’s been hard to get back into the swing of things. Add into that a new truck that I have to learn the ins and outs of and, well I’m happy that I needed to come to Salt Lake City from Springfield, MO to pick up my student. Those miles allowed me to adjust a bit to my new normal.

Beth will be with me for the next 30,000 miles. Let’s see how long it takes us to knock that out.

Until next time, you beautiful humans.