Ring ... ring ... ring ... ring

5:30 eastern and the room phone is ringing. I finally get in answered and there is just the sound you hear when the phone isn't working, no dial tone, no silence. I try to call the front desk but all I get is 'Ring ... you are being transferred to the operator ... Ring ... you are being transferred to the operator ... Ring ... you are being transferred to the operator ...' I just went in a circle. So I went back to bed.

Five minutes later the phone rings again, same sound. But this time when I called the front desk I got a real person. They claimed they didn't have a wake up call set for anyone.

... later when I checked out I mentioned the problem to the person who had just came on duty. They said they had had that problem in the past but thought they had gotten it fixed ))) I guess not (((

As long as we were awake, BB got up, I tried to get back to sleep but didn't.

Breakfast was the 'good eggs.' The ones that look like they have yokes and whites. I also had sausage and juice. No yogurt, trying to cut back again.

I thought we'd get going earlier but it still wasn't light, and we were slow. Got going at 7:30 local, but 36 miles down the road we were back in central time.

Also 36 miles down the road we could see the lights of a highway patrol but because of the lay of the land we couldn't tell which side of the road he was on. He wasn't, he was blocking the road ... everyone must exit, no marked detour.

Because of the detour I was able to go past the motel we had planned on staying at last night, if they had had food. I said there were seven motels, there had been. The former Holiday Inn, that became an budget motel is now closed. But a new motel is just about complete so it will be back up to seven shortly. And no food. ???

Because I had my personal navigator with, I wasn't lost. We were through town and back on the freeway at the next exit.

Our first stop was at the Pilot in Bloomington. Two lanes were closed and staff was cleaning up a fuel spill on another lane. I pulled in behind another transporter. A New Way trash truck, no placards, no plate. I met the guy in the doorway but didn't know it was him or I would have asked him who he was running for.

Again, someone in the next lane was sitting there when I got there, the guy ahead of me fueled, I fueled, I used the restroom and got my receipts and he was just starting to fuel. Whoever was behind him was there when I got there.

Before we get to Moline it starts, stops and starts snowing again. Do have to cross the scale at Moline, the one near Champain was closed.

Stopped at Monanta Joe's in Moline. It is where we walk to eat when we are staying at the Quality Inn in Moline. We know they have a small lot so we park at the Quality. Walk past the gas station, across the street, past McDonalds and the La Quinta motel. Joe's in closed. One travel site has their info wrong. Almost fell on the ice getting there but caught myself.

So McD's it was.

Back on the road the plows are out and it has mostly stopped snowing but still lots of it on the road. At one place we counted seven cars in the ditch within a half mile. Two were upside down. Overall between Davenport and Des Moines there were well over two dozen.

Stopped again for fuel at Pilot near Brooklyn but they only had half their pumps open and lines at all of them. There is a TA at the next exit but those aren't my favorite. So I push it to a Love's 30 miles away. Somewhere in that decision, using the restroom didn't come up :(

Made it to the Love's with the low fuel light on. Not getting as good of mileage today running at 65 mph but we need to make it to CA before the weekend.

A little over an hour and we are at a motel in West Des Moines. Sleep Inn. We are in early, we can't go any further we need to pick up a trailer tomorrow at 7 am. BB didn't care for the Fire Grill last time so we thought we'd try the Cabo Sol, we walk there but they are not open, more bad info from a travel site. The Fire Grill is also closed on Sunday's. So we walked to Quiznos. Walking in the streets on snowy roads in our dark jackets.

We decided to get our food to go so we wouldn't be walking back in the dark. I got my usual Honey mustard chicken ... plus soup ... plus a cookie. :)

BB has been watching the weather. Donners pass has been closed to trucks since yesterday. About 5 pm Sunday they started letting cars go through and at some point later they will let the trucks go. I can't call my drop until after 10 am local and by that time we hope to be past Omaha. So we can't take the southern route from here. We may end up taking it at Salt Lake City if needed.

If we go south at Salt Lake we will get to delivery sometime afternoon on Friday instead of first thing Friday AM. If we go south and get hung up for any reason ... we are there over the weekend. Not a bad place to be hung up but Feb was going to be the month we work hard and make money.