1 boom truck to Carthage NC (delivered)

... spending the night at Durham NC

Breakfast - Something wasn't right with BB's toast this AM so she popped it up early. That caused the other side, someone else's to pop up also. When BB's was done, so was theirs ... I saw them scrapping the burnt off their toast as we walked out. :(

Almost had a 'throat issue' this AM, from yogurt.

We are getting slower or having to move all of our stuff from the cab to the storage box every morning is taking time. We got moving 15 minutes late again today. Truck started first time with no issues again today. But we did notice that we were missing, as in not even there, a marker light. We're guessing it was never there and we and the DOT missed it every time.

It was a tight wind through the parking lot this AM. Didn't hit anything, not even the curb.

1st stop was next door at the Pilot. Fuel islands open when we got there, fuel islands open when we left. Followed a guy in and out that had his back door open and skids to the back door. But I wasn't close enough to flag him down.

Sun up, and dirty windows. And no washer and don't use the wipers. Being in and out of the hills helped.

1st stop was the rest area near Marion. Not sure if either of us have been on this stretch of I-40 before. Now we have been end to end, but not all in one trip.

2nd stop was in Winston Salem to pick up the rental car. We pick up from a place at the edge of an enclosed mall. Not too busy today. Not sure how many stores it used to have but it still has a Belk's, Dillard's and a JCPenny's. Both Macy's and Sears former stores are still empty.

Plenty of room to park my truck today for us to switch out our luggage.

I only briefly looked at a map of how to get to my drop and the drop itself. I knew I had to leave Winston-Salem on I-74. But when I get on I-74 one of the first exits I see is 59. I'm looking for exit 49 and I am supposed to be an hour and a half from the drop, not 10 miles. So I pull over at the next exit to look at a map. I-74 and I-73 merge ... and then they use the I-73 exit numbers.

Earlier today we had to cross two more weigh scales and both were busy with inspections. By now I was ready to get off the freeway, I kept thinking there would be one more scale and THIS is the one that would shut me down. But there was no more.

20 miles non-freeway on a 2,450 mile trip to get to the drop.

I had looked briefly at the map of my drop also. There was a long closed, park at the door hotel where Google said my drop was. I guessed the map was old and didn't bother to call my drop ahead of time. Hotel is still there, so I had to call my drop now. They live 10 minutes away and no one is at the office.

The told me where to find their driveway, but I was headed the wrong direction and didn't find it. So I pulled off the road and by now BB was behind me. After we talked, she left with the car until she found the drop and called me. Much easier that turning around with a big truck.

When I drop past it the first time, I had seen the big For Sale sign in the ditch, not their small sign on the fence.

Someone was there within 10 minutes and signed. We talked for a couple of minutes and we were gone.

(Opps on my part, if I had looked a little further from where Google pegged the address, I would have seen trucks and their sign. But that is on a different road than their address)

Weather - It is supposed to snow in the hills of TN tonight and tomorrow. So we decided to head to Durham for the night. It is a known, to us. And it has the best chance of giving us work.

Everything that had been on the load board that would have worked is gone. And we did not want to commit to anything until that truck was dropped and we were gone.

Our only stop from drop to hotel was at a Circle C in Sanford. BB needed the restroom and I had not eaten since breakfast. But I didn't want to fill up so I just got a Naked Juice and cookies.

US-1 - We have been on that in the Florida Keys and a few other places. It runs from FL to Canada, 2,390 miles. Fort Kent, Maine is the north end. We were on it today for about 20 miles.

Google had us taking a I-440, but it didn't tell us it was a toll road. We drove about 10 miles further to avoid it.

Comfort Inn in Durham is our hotel tonight. Pomodoro Italian Kitchen was our food across the street. Usually we walk, today we drove. Great food, I only ate about a 1/3 and I am stuffed.

Today I counted 23 transporters, all no-tow. 10 in one group were small 'cable type' bucket trucks. That ended up being 236 no-tows and 11 using a tow car.

23 - 0

49 - 9

39 - 0

74 - 0

12 - 1

39 - 1

Tomorrow will be the first day since before Thanksgiving that we have not had to set an alarm ... we'll likely be up at daybreak.

Load board

US - 165

IA - 4/3

MN - 2

WI - 8

We hope to find work tomorrow. I will call on some things that are already there. There is one in town here, but we are guessing it is also one from the auction house. It is going to St Louis.

If we don't find work, we will head home. We've made what we need to for this month already. It was a piece of junk, but it paid very well.