Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Chasing the Sun
Well my DOT physical was passed and I'm on the move. Before leaving North Dakota I decided to check out the Red River. These pictures should have been posted then, but no hot spots were present. There were two informational posts one of which explains what the solitary column parting the river is. It's an interesting read of over engineering.
A few hours later and I was waiting in line to cross the Canadian border into Manitoba. Registering my firearm was simple. One form, $25, and a few questions later I was driving again. Apparently Manitoba was hit by the same storms that hit the upper east coast of the U.S.. Waters had risen to within a foot of the highway's shoulder. Everything along the road was a muddy icy mess.
My first night in below zero temperatures was actually pretty plesant. Such cold temperatures finally provided me the chance to try out my -30 sleeping bag by The Backside. It's hard to find this bag, but if you can get your hands on it it's worth it. Mine was purchased at Gander Mountain for about $60 on sale. It's a mummy bag with a hood illiminating the cold head issue I was having with my rectangular bag. I'm a pretty large guy and I fit in it with no problem. Granted there wasn't much arm space for me so I had to lay in true mummy fashion with my hands on my chest, but this didn't keep me from being comfortable. So far I can vouche that it withstands up to -1 degree Celcius. Tonight I'll test it at -4 and let everyone know how that goes.
As my trip progressed Northwest the small patches of snow slowly grew into a solid white blanket. Even approaching mid April these parts aren't showing many signs of spring. Flurries were forcasted in some parts of Canada including temperatures as low as -13 Celsius. At one point earlier today I made the mistake of using my windsheild washer fluid. It froze in seconds. Needless to say I now own an ice scrapper again. Once I got out of the mud and into some snow covered terrain, things began to look a lot nicer. Too bad nothings started to bloom here yet. There must be some amazing colors on the rolling hills and distant mountains I've passed later in the season.
Currently I'm in Edmunton, which is the halfway point of traversing Canada for me. If things go well I should be in the Yukon if not Alaska sometime tomorrow. It sounds like the roads are still pretty rough there though. If it's too bad I'll have to hold short. My poor truck took a beating today and these aren't even large mountains. Most of the roads in Canada have been two lanes up until about Saskatoon. Every time a truck drove by in the opposite direction it would shake the crap out of my little car. At one point a truck with an oversized load knocked my CB antenna off the cab with the turbulence. Luckily the radio kept the antenna attached. I held on to the cable until I found a safe part of the emergency lane to pull over. There was ice on portions of the emergency lane so caution was required. Once I was able to pull over I saw that the antenna was almost at the end of the camper shell.
Well it's off to bed. Tomorrow will be the most challenging portion of the entire trip. My driving schedule is long. I'm still on EST and the sun stays up long since my direction of travel is east. There is still one more hour to gain.
A few hours later and I was waiting in line to cross the Canadian border into Manitoba. Registering my firearm was simple. One form, $25, and a few questions later I was driving again. Apparently Manitoba was hit by the same storms that hit the upper east coast of the U.S.. Waters had risen to within a foot of the highway's shoulder. Everything along the road was a muddy icy mess.
My first night in below zero temperatures was actually pretty plesant. Such cold temperatures finally provided me the chance to try out my -30 sleeping bag by The Backside. It's hard to find this bag, but if you can get your hands on it it's worth it. Mine was purchased at Gander Mountain for about $60 on sale. It's a mummy bag with a hood illiminating the cold head issue I was having with my rectangular bag. I'm a pretty large guy and I fit in it with no problem. Granted there wasn't much arm space for me so I had to lay in true mummy fashion with my hands on my chest, but this didn't keep me from being comfortable. So far I can vouche that it withstands up to -1 degree Celcius. Tonight I'll test it at -4 and let everyone know how that goes.
As my trip progressed Northwest the small patches of snow slowly grew into a solid white blanket. Even approaching mid April these parts aren't showing many signs of spring. Flurries were forcasted in some parts of Canada including temperatures as low as -13 Celsius. At one point earlier today I made the mistake of using my windsheild washer fluid. It froze in seconds. Needless to say I now own an ice scrapper again. Once I got out of the mud and into some snow covered terrain, things began to look a lot nicer. Too bad nothings started to bloom here yet. There must be some amazing colors on the rolling hills and distant mountains I've passed later in the season.
Currently I'm in Edmunton, which is the halfway point of traversing Canada for me. If things go well I should be in the Yukon if not Alaska sometime tomorrow. It sounds like the roads are still pretty rough there though. If it's too bad I'll have to hold short. My poor truck took a beating today and these aren't even large mountains. Most of the roads in Canada have been two lanes up until about Saskatoon. Every time a truck drove by in the opposite direction it would shake the crap out of my little car. At one point a truck with an oversized load knocked my CB antenna off the cab with the turbulence. Luckily the radio kept the antenna attached. I held on to the cable until I found a safe part of the emergency lane to pull over. There was ice on portions of the emergency lane so caution was required. Once I was able to pull over I saw that the antenna was almost at the end of the camper shell.
Well it's off to bed. Tomorrow will be the most challenging portion of the entire trip. My driving schedule is long. I'm still on EST and the sun stays up long since my direction of travel is east. There is still one more hour to gain.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Last update from ND.
For better or for worse this will be my last day in ND. If I pass the physical I'm going for broke and heading towards AK. If not, it's back to FL. The physical should be fine and so long as this job in Fairbanks works out it should be mission accomplished. Otherwise I must sell off what I can and take a flight back. Wish me luck, this is nerve wrecking.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Alaska trip update.
It's been a bit since my last post, but that's because I've been in a holding pattern of sorts. When I woke up this morning, aside from having ice on the windows, my truck was completely dead. I was able to get a jump, but it took forever to to charge. There's an O'Reilly's Auto Parts near where I was staying so I got the battery tested. Sure enough it was bad so I ate further into my funds and got a new one with better cold weather starting. Temperatures dropped to 27 last night which was a little too cold for my bag. Fairbanks will not be any better with a low hitting 11 in the evening.
My best bet for work here and in Alaska is to go back to driving. Unfortunately my DOT physical card is expired. No place was able to take me same day to complete this. To top it all off I know it's time for new glasses so I may fail the vision portion of the exam. An eye appointment was canceled at a Walmart optomitrist where I checked availability. Luckily I passed my exam and got a prescription for glasses as soon as I can afford them. On Friday I have an appointment for the rest of the exams. In the mean time I've tried to be productive and have applied at various places ranging from Arby's to a fiberglass shop that makes blades for windmills. Below you'll find a picture of one of these blades. All the while I've been in contact with a company in Fairbanks who is interested in employing me. Assuming I pass my physical tomorrow, I will cross into Canada and start trucking towards Fairbanks. All this potential employer has left to do is my background screening which should be no problem since my record is clean.
My best bet for work here and in Alaska is to go back to driving. Unfortunately my DOT physical card is expired. No place was able to take me same day to complete this. To top it all off I know it's time for new glasses so I may fail the vision portion of the exam. An eye appointment was canceled at a Walmart optomitrist where I checked availability. Luckily I passed my exam and got a prescription for glasses as soon as I can afford them. On Friday I have an appointment for the rest of the exams. In the mean time I've tried to be productive and have applied at various places ranging from Arby's to a fiberglass shop that makes blades for windmills. Below you'll find a picture of one of these blades. All the while I've been in contact with a company in Fairbanks who is interested in employing me. Assuming I pass my physical tomorrow, I will cross into Canada and start trucking towards Fairbanks. All this potential employer has left to do is my background screening which should be no problem since my record is clean.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
In the Inn.
I've decided to relax some and splurged on a hotel. I'm staying at a Budget Inn that looks unique compared to the others I've seen . When I arrived I noticed a few guys working on some wood outside. Walking up to the reception desk I observed it was unattended. One of the workers that was noticed outside walks in with a toolbelt on and asks "Can I help you?". "I'd like to know rates and if there are any vacancies." I replied expecting him to go find the attendant. To my surprise he walks behind the counter, fires up the computer and gives me the required information. It's a pretty neat Inn with two computers in the lobby for guests to use, free wi-fi, and laundry. There are daily, weekly, and soon to be monthly rates for the rooms. Surprisingly the monthly rate is reasonable. Given that the rooms are furnished and contain a small fridge, microwave, and TV this would be a good place to live should I remain in Grand Forks. I let him know that I may be staying one more day and he gave me his business card so that a room could be reserved once I knew. On it was the name of his PC repair and sales business. It's a rare occurance to run into a hotel attendant that handles most aspects of the business. In my opinion that is a great way to run any job. It keeps management in touch with the way things really work.
A voyage in jeapordy.
Well, some serious doubts about this whole trip have arisen due to mechanical problems. It's been two days and I'm stuck in Grand Forks, ND sitting in a GMC dealership. Here is a quick overview of the troubles my vehicle is experiencing. For the entire trip I've experienced sputtering that I attributed to a spark plug getting fouled up. This has reoccured now even after putting in a new plug at the problem cylinder. In the northern states the speed limit is usually 70mph. Any kind of incline would drop me down to a dangerous 50mph. It became this bad on Easter Sunday, which means all the auto shops in the small towns I was traversing were closed. Being frustrated at my very late schedule, I decided to push on to Fargo, ND and simply call AAA if I broke down along the way. Night was starting to fall about 50 miles from Fargo so the headlights were turned on. All of a sudden the sputtering disappears. Hah! That's an amusing coincidence. I turn the lights off, it starts sounding like a poorly tuned go-kart. Lights are back on and it sounds like a proper small block. No way!! This can't be it. Lights off, and it performs like an RC car that is low on batteries, lights on and the blue beast comes to life. Ok, so the lights stay on and I continue on to Grand Forks. Two days later and the GMC mechanics can't figure it out either. And to top it all off I was hearing some noises that could have been as bad as transmisison or brake issues. This turned out to be the drum brakes and the rear axle seals. My drums are so bad that the have to be cut. The most challenging terrain is yet to come and my car, especially the brakes, must be in order.
On a prior post I mentioned how nice this dealership is. Let me go into detail on that now. After arriving and checking in the car was passed on to the mechanics. They thouroughly inspect the vehicle and provide a print out of any issues that were found, how urgently they must be taken care of, and the pricing of the work. It is all highlighted accordingly in either green, yellow, or red.
Although this is taking forever, I have to give the mechanic here credit. He tries a fix, takes the car for a drive, comes back, tries something else, goes for a drive, and does this the entire shift. He has not quit. If Tire Kingdom had been this thoughrough maybe this would have been resolved then. They were very quick to say "it's the plugs, here you go, give us money" in not so many words. It is my suggestion after my last experience that everyone should avoid Tire Kingdom. Most of the mechanics there seemed inexperienced and there was no one knowledgeable guiding them.
Although I'm stuck at a dealership I'm not miserable. Rydell Auto Center provides wi-fi, soda fountain drinks, slurpee like drinks, hot chocolate, cookies, TV, and faxes all for free.
The garage is unlike anything I've seen before except at my old central truck terminal. Everything is indoors. When you approach the service area there are several big garage doors. One drives up close and they automatically open. Inside, depending on the lane, customers either pull over a trench where the mechanics can stand underneath the car to change the oil and filter easily These are the regular maintenance bays. For service due to issues, customers pull up to stand alone registers where your problems are explained to the representative. You simply leave the car there where it is passed through another set of garage doors to the proper service area. Most garages are dark, oily, relatively small grimy caves. This place is immaculate for a shop. Not quite like some of the Nascar garages, but not too far.
Due to all of my expenses lately, I cannot continue to Alaska with my current funds. It's too risky because if I do not find employment there quickly my money will be exhausted and I will be stuck without a means to return home or anywhere else. So as things stand now they may go one of two ways. First, I get a job offer by tomorrow in Alaska. While I've been sitting at GMC most of my time has been devoted to finding work. This will insure income when I arrive which means there is no concern of not having shelter, sustanance, and funds to bail out if needed. There is a company that is VERY interested there so this is likely. Scenario two, I don't get a job in Alaska but I get one here in North Dakota. This will allow me to replenish my bank account some buying me time to search for work in Alaska and have plenty for any further repairs along the way. I'm already half way there so I don't need to save as much. Three, this turns into an all out bust and I return to Florida with my tail between my legs and become an over the road driver again. This third option is not really much of a thought right now. It would be much too embarrassing after all these preparations, talks, and planning to return home. I'll have more news tomorrow. There will most likely be another post tonight related to the hotel I'm going to stay at, but that's an entry in and of itself. Salutations from Grand Forks to all!
On a prior post I mentioned how nice this dealership is. Let me go into detail on that now. After arriving and checking in the car was passed on to the mechanics. They thouroughly inspect the vehicle and provide a print out of any issues that were found, how urgently they must be taken care of, and the pricing of the work. It is all highlighted accordingly in either green, yellow, or red.
Although this is taking forever, I have to give the mechanic here credit. He tries a fix, takes the car for a drive, comes back, tries something else, goes for a drive, and does this the entire shift. He has not quit. If Tire Kingdom had been this thoughrough maybe this would have been resolved then. They were very quick to say "it's the plugs, here you go, give us money" in not so many words. It is my suggestion after my last experience that everyone should avoid Tire Kingdom. Most of the mechanics there seemed inexperienced and there was no one knowledgeable guiding them.
Although I'm stuck at a dealership I'm not miserable. Rydell Auto Center provides wi-fi, soda fountain drinks, slurpee like drinks, hot chocolate, cookies, TV, and faxes all for free.
The garage is unlike anything I've seen before except at my old central truck terminal. Everything is indoors. When you approach the service area there are several big garage doors. One drives up close and they automatically open. Inside, depending on the lane, customers either pull over a trench where the mechanics can stand underneath the car to change the oil and filter easily These are the regular maintenance bays. For service due to issues, customers pull up to stand alone registers where your problems are explained to the representative. You simply leave the car there where it is passed through another set of garage doors to the proper service area. Most garages are dark, oily, relatively small grimy caves. This place is immaculate for a shop. Not quite like some of the Nascar garages, but not too far.
Due to all of my expenses lately, I cannot continue to Alaska with my current funds. It's too risky because if I do not find employment there quickly my money will be exhausted and I will be stuck without a means to return home or anywhere else. So as things stand now they may go one of two ways. First, I get a job offer by tomorrow in Alaska. While I've been sitting at GMC most of my time has been devoted to finding work. This will insure income when I arrive which means there is no concern of not having shelter, sustanance, and funds to bail out if needed. There is a company that is VERY interested there so this is likely. Scenario two, I don't get a job in Alaska but I get one here in North Dakota. This will allow me to replenish my bank account some buying me time to search for work in Alaska and have plenty for any further repairs along the way. I'm already half way there so I don't need to save as much. Three, this turns into an all out bust and I return to Florida with my tail between my legs and become an over the road driver again. This third option is not really much of a thought right now. It would be much too embarrassing after all these preparations, talks, and planning to return home. I'll have more news tomorrow. There will most likely be another post tonight related to the hotel I'm going to stay at, but that's an entry in and of itself. Salutations from Grand Forks to all!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Yesterday's belated, today's third.
This post should have been put up yesterday, but finding internet access has been a little harder than anticipated. One of the pictures below has a view of the Chicago skyline. All of the others were from a restaurant near the intersection of I-94 and I-29. It reminded me slightly of D&B. What I chose from the menu sounded like it had the potential to go either very badly or very well. There is no in-between with a mix like that. I ordered the chicken and spinach wrap. This included a somewhat sweet sauce and egg. It was actually quite delicious. Like the rest of the establishment, the food was presented in an alien motif. An odd brightly painted tray held the fries and two dipping sauces one of which was a cajun ranch variety. According to one of the employees the owner has been collecting items, memorobilia, and artwork related to aliens for years. A large 3-D space scene decorated the roof in the center of the building. It had a feel of Space Mountain at Walt Disney World.
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