KC, MO

Stopped here at the drop yard at 6 pm. Didn't want to, but USA has been screwing me over ever since around the beginning of my third week. Nothing but short runs. My effective cap, as I showed my dispatcher on his own screen, is 850 miles.

I'd told him that they'd done this to me as a company driver, and that it was the reason I'd quit. He keeps assuring me that there isn't anything in the computer which classifies drivers and filters out loads, but there has to be.

Last night, I was to drop a load here which couldn't be delivered to Davenport early. My preplanned load assignment? Same load. I was to wait two days to deliver it. I went thermonuclear--this was a punch in the face: "this is what you get for complaining".

My dispatcher took the blame. He said he'd thought they could reschedule it. The thing is, the load coordinator knew better, didn't tell him, and set up the fuckover.

I told Matt (my dispatcher) that I was going to quit once I could set something else up (I'm in hell now and won't go through it like before...I saw it coming quickly...I doubt that Matt has ever seen a list of unbroken short runs like that). Told him that meanwhile I was instituting the 1200 mile rule.

I'm slowing down on all loads under 1200 miles. I won't deliver early anymore. I know it will cost me money, but there's nothing else I can do to defend myself.

It's really stupid. I think that some beancounter looks over my first two weeks and sees me delivering early all the time. He decides I should deliver as many loads as possible, so he caps me at 850 miles.

That's a beancounter for you. Nevermind what the driver wants, and don't think beyond what's in front of you.

If they'd let me run the way I'm meant to run, I'd easily rack up 5-800 more miles per week. This pinhead is costing USA one of it's best drivers, and meanwhile about that many dollars every week.

I try not to take it personally--try to tell myself it's just a bad business decision. But how can I not take it personally when they refuse to let me out of this cage? When they ignore me? When I tell them I'm quitting? When I get screwed every weekend with more short loads, some of which can't deliver early? When they force me to sit around wasting miles rather than cough up one crappy thousand-plus mile load? Even on a weekend?

My god it's like a Stephen King novel!

So yeah. I stopped 120 miles short of my pickup and am screwing around. I'll pick up on time, then drag my feet down to Texas. I might get 60 miles away, stop, and wait several more hours to deliver at the appointed time.

Sons of bitches. Let the beancounter check out his handiwork in a couple more weeks.

I'm getting worked up. Can't stand stupidity. (OK well downs kids--that's different. they're innocent and guileless. I mean stupid people who think they're smart. Too smart to listen to common freaking sense.)

No, I saved my money, and I do allright trading and poker-playing too. It's tough for me to shut down and be mediocre like this, but I won't get bored. Anything less than 1200 miles goes slow. I'll run when they allow me to run.

Do you see this? Do you see what they're doing to one of their best drivers?

Well, I'll mark time and screw around, hoping against hope somebody gets a lightbulb over their head and turns me loose. Fat chance. Pretty soon I'll lose a couple of lies off my dmvr and get my applications out. CRST will let me run. the DRIVERS said so.

Congratulations, you dumb bastards. Whoever leases me next should send you a thank-you note.

Little Rock

Christine. The bitch. Had to stand on the brakes with 43,000 lbs. at 70 (I brake for IDIOTS). Blew out a brake chamber diaphram. I bleed out at stoplights--have to use the hand-brake (trailer brakes) to keep from locking them.

Door handle broke off in my hand. I've been sticking a fork in the works in order to escape from the truck.

Another air-leak. Prodigeous. With the engine off, the low-air siren starts screaming in ten minutes. I think when I broke to avoid purifying the gene-pool, the trailer put about 140,000 lbs of pressure on my fifth wheel and blew out airbags or seals there. I think this because when I unhooked to get serviced at Kenworth, the leak stopped.

On my way, the check-engine light added itself to the ABS light in the "always on" dept. All I can do is top off oil and water. Then as I near Little Rock, I smell coolant.

I've added this to the crooked steering wheel which blocks my speedometer, the relentless power steering leak, the vibration and rattling in the front end, the loss of the low side of my com pression brake...

It was a hot load. I know Christine, so I busted ass to get to Kenworth over 24 hours ahead of schedule, then got the load taken off me as soon as I got the news I expected.

Think USA appreciates this?

After a couple weeks of decent runs, I'm now back to where I was when I quit them before. Pickup and deliver every day on one-day runs, and rarely a run over 1,000 miles on the weekends. My dipatcher insists it's random, but the most basic statistical alalysis precludes that.

I'm getting the weekly miles, and can't bitch about that. But if they'd simply let me run the way I was born to run, I'd make MORE miles---for USA, and my dispatcher. I mean, it's STUPID to insist on keeping me short, including on weekends, and make me quit again, but for whatever reason, they're doing it again.

STUPID.

Well I'm in Howard Johnson's again. Waiting for the Browns game. The Injuns whomped the Sox last night (had dough on it). I probably have to hear the Browns on the computer, and can't watch it again--but maybe I'll get lucky.

I'll take the truck if it's ready and roll again today, but won't unless everything is done, including the door-handle. I've got enough unneccessary stress worrying about what kind of stupid assenine loads USA is going to keep inflicting on me.

Well okbye.