Costasiella kuroshimae
Photo Source Lynn Wu

If you have been following either my personal blog or my truck blog, you may be scratching your head and saying "What the hell?" Don't be alarmed, I did change the location. I have a really good set of reasons for doing so. My previous personal and professional blogs were hosted by LiveJournal and Wordpress. In both cases, my vistors were subjected to advertisments that I found offensive. Specfically, they were told that it may be a good idea to help retain the current administration. In other words, they were faced with "Trump 2020" advertisements. I find this offensive. But that was only the breaking point. Those two sites would limit and potentially censure my images and content. This would not do. So, my faithful followers, welcome to the new and improved Journey of Christopher Klein.

What does this mean for you? It means that if you have been following my two blogs, now you only have to follow one. And now, I can put in what I want, as much as I want, without the text being cut off because I am a windbag, or chancing that I may offend the great gods of the internet and find myself censured. This original welcome post if kind of raw, because I have not installed my ProWriter or Grammerly, so there are some errors. Tough! Deal with it, things will get better, I promise. But also what this means is that now, this Blog is maintained on my server, hosted by HostGator and on my website Triumph Media (you can find the link on the right side-bar is you are curious). Now, I have full creative control. I can tell my story, take you with me on my journey, tell bad jokes and even say "nipple" without having three dozen nuns with rulers calling my host and demanding that I be spanked like an unruly monkey. I guess I have to pay for the nuns now. Oh well, you take the good with the bad I guess.

Finally, there are no storage limtits so that will mean, hopefully, more pictures, more text, more things that you may or may not want to know. I hope you enjoy your stay. The Blog is posted with the must current events on top, so you get to read backwards. I will be moving the other two blogs over as soon as I can, but that is a bit of an undertaking. I am a bit of a pontificator at times. Each month, I will add a new Blog and archive the old. So you can still get to them. No fancy follow buttons or anything like that...at least not yet. But who knows what tomorrow will bring.

I almost forgot, if you are wondering about the slug at the top of this post, you can thank my wife for that. We have emailed every day, from the same two accounts, for over 20 years. We have rarely missed a day, and every once in a while, she will send me something that will make me spit coffee all over the place. When you wake up to a slug in your inbox, that qualifies. What a woman.

I will be tweaking the interface, but I really like it in the black and white, so that is not going to change.

Photo Source: Christopher Klein

I made it to California, but nothing was ready. I was able to drop my trailer, but the depot would not allow me to take an empty, because they needed all of them. They did say that I could take a full one since the depot was running behind, but dispatch just told me that they would find me another somewhere else. Of course, this means I have to sit for a day. There are times that it does not pay to get ahead of things. Running ahead in California is one of those times. So I sat down in Perris, CA. Not in a Love's or even a Pilot travel center. Those are miles away. I am in what is barely a truck stop, a 76 travel plaza with a dirt parking area. And I am unsure how long I will be here. Time will tell.

You will, of course, notice that my spelling and grammar have undergone considerable improvement since yesterday. I installed and configured Grammarly and ProWriting aid to work in tandem with the Brackets software. So I consider that a positive change. However, we are now talking about software. And you know what? We are getting mugged by software companies, such as Adobe and Microsoft. In the days of old, you would purchase a piece of software, and then it would be your until the next major upgrade released, and then you would buy that. You could always continue to use the old product until it wore out its welcome or was so obsolete that it would no longer work right. But now, if you want to use these products, you have to buy a subscription to the software. Sometimes by the month, sometimes by the year. But you have to continue to pay. The catch is that the company does not have to continue to improve. They just sit back and cash in. But that is the American way, right?

You take what you can get and shaft whomever you can to do it. Another problem exists. I wanted to share that beautiful photo of the California Windmills with you, my constant readers. To do this, I had to issue some minor edits. That means sparking up my Adobe Photoshop 2020, one of those subscription services. Ooops, no internet where I am. So I have to use my phone, with a limited data plan, to start Adobe. But then, it wants to authenticate; then, it wants the user name and password. The entire process required 18 minutes to start the program. I feel that Adobe should pay me for my time.

The rest of the day will be cleaning my truck, doing some writing, and making myself a nice meal. I am unsure what that is going to be right now, but something will come to me. I am thinking about something with potatoes or noodles. There is a Walmart about 3.3 miles away, but it is over 100F outside, and I am not up for that kind of walk.

Photo Credit: Christopher Klein

I am sitting in Perris CA with little to do exc except think. There is little nearby except a Buddhist Temple about a half a mile away, but the thought of dealing with the Monks, well, is not appealing. So I get to sit in my box.

This is as good a time as any to answer a question or two that has been brought to me over the years. Today, it will be the question, "Why Trucking?". This is something that I have heard many times over the past 12 years since I received my commercial driver's license. The answer is straightforward... fate.
I ran away from home three times when I was in my teens. But the last time was the most significant, and most adventurous. Not to mention, the most successful. Forty years later, I even remember the date. September 17, 1980. I only remember this so well because I considered this exodus my birthday present that took place a day later. I don't think that I believed that I might make it away from Harry and Marge. But I did.
I was not a good kid. In fact, toward the end, as I begged for any attention, good or bad, I would do horrible things. Granted, when I did get attention, it was of the negative kind, but that is okay because what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. And that September night, I must have been along the lines of Hercules. Anyway. I knew the location of an all-night arcade near the White Flint Mall in Silver Springs, MD. But there was something else that I knew, the location of my dad's wallet, and the PIN to his ATM card. And I was going to treat myself for my birthday. This sounds bad, but I could justify it because, with the despicable plans that Harry and Marge were coming up with for the soon-to-come visit from "the other," they had little time for me. And no plans to get me anything for my birthday - or even remember it. So I took it on myself. So once I was sent to my basement room, and I heard them finish up their nightly grunting and groaning, I set out on an adventure. I stole up the steps, listened to the animal-like snoring of both of them, and grabbed the ATM card. I pet the dog, part of my undoing, hit the back door and was down the street on my bike, lickety-split. I hit the ATM right down the street, and with my ill-gotten gains ($100), I was off to the arcade. I spent until close to 3:00 am playing "Space Invaders," the pinball machine. Not the electronic game, but the actual pinball machine. And I did not even spend 10% of the money thanks to the inner loop extra game. When I finally left, there were more than 20 credits on the machine, and I was a bit tired.
I got back home, put my bike behind the house, and slipped in through the back door. Well, I was going to. When I pushed against the door, there was a metallic scraping noise. Something had fallen against the door. At least that was my first thought. I forced my way in gently. I got to my room, turned on the light, and pet the dog. The dog... I looked over to the overflowing bowl of food. I had forgotten to feed the dog. But Marge didn't. At some time, she woke from her slumber, realized it, and (probably) bellowed down to me. Not getting an answer, she came down, found my bed empty, fed the dog, and then, I am sure, all hell broke loose.
I went into pure panic mode. I grabbed my backpack. A pair of socks and underwear, my little boom-box, and my treasured "Kiss Double Platinum" cassette. I tossed a jar of peanut butter and a half a loaf of bread into the pack, and I was out the back door, feeling as if I was running for my life. I did not get that far. Only a mile or two. I pulled into an ancient churchyard that had a breezeway, put my pack down, turned on my cassette, and rocked out a little before chaining my bike to my ankle and dozing off. When I awoke, of course, the pack and my boom-box were gone. I was lucky that I had chained the bike to my ankle, or that would be in the wind as well. I mounted the bike and started, hungry, tired, and with no goal in mind. The day passed quickly. As the sun began to set, I found myself on the beltway. I was just riding along past the speeding traffic. No idea what I was doing. And then I felt the rear tire give way. Only an insignificant "pop" sound, and I knew that I was done. With little thought, I chained the bike to the fence beside the road and began to trudge. Then the game was over. The lights came on behind me. The ones that I had been expecting. Because Dad had always told me that if I ever tried to run (again), he would have every cop in the state looking for me in minutes. And here was a Maryland Police officer. I turned around and faced him, prepared to be hauled back home. Then fate kicked in. The officer asked me what I was doing "up here", meaning on the highway. The lie flowed, "just walking up to that exit to meet my dad," I said. He looked at me, looked toward the exit, and then something snapped in the universe. His eyes looked startled, he keyed his radio, and just said, "get off the highway kid" and was off, engine revving, siren blaring, lights flashing. At least five more passed me before I took the exit, as mentioned above. But I still had no place to go, no food, and for some reason - no money. Yes, my friends, I had emptied my pockets in my room, and guess what I left behind.
I was done. It was time to call dear ole dad and resign myself to my punishment. I walked up the offramp and headed toward the bar with half the neon sign inoperable. It really could have been a country song. I was headed toward the phone booth in the parking lot. Yes, folks, a real booth. I am old. I was only a few yards away from it when I heard a sound that I hear every day now. Like a "Whoosh" of air. The sound of the air brakes of a tractor and trailer as both brakes are set. And then there was a hand on my shoulder. I turned and looked at someone. I was only 16, at least since it was my birthday, and he did not look much older than me. "You wanna make some money?" he said. Terror filled me; I knew what he was after. But before I could protest, run and even scramble away, he pointed back to his rig. He explained that his partner quit, and he had three days to get the truck unloaded. It was a 53 foot Mayflower Moving truck. There was no whisper of caution in my ear (aka Neriki), no warning bells going off in my head. I mounted into the jump-seat and was off.

I spent three days with this unknown, unnamed person. We unloaded the trailer, and he let me use the upper bunk in the cab. I told him my story, all of it, and without lies. And he told me his. He was gay, but never hit on me. His family hated him, and he took on trucking because it was a home on wheels. He fed me; we ate a lot of Denny's and McDonald's. He showed me all the controls of the big-rig. Ironically, a Freighliner, the same thing I drive now. He spoke of the road with passion. The over-the-road life of a true road warrior. A modern-day cowboy. A hero of iron and steel. I never developed that level of passion, but until 12 years ago, I always wondered about the road. Now I live in a box, rolling down the road. I would love to say that I am a cowboy or a road-warrior. But that is not me. But I do enjoy my job. I have wondered about him a few times. I wonder if he is still out here rolling the same highways as I. He was a hero to me, and he never knew it.
No, I won't leave you hanging. When we finished unloading, he gave me $80 for three days work and dropped me at the Greyhound station. I bought a ticket going "anywhere" as the old Journey song goes, but it did not leave out until the next morning. With a little help from my constant companion, I was able to get a motel room across the street before heading off to New Jersey - but that is another story.

The past couple of days have given me time for reflection. The reason is that I remain stranded in Fontana, CA. Not with a broken-down truck, or a health issue or anything like that, but because of a lack of the proper equipment to do my job. I dropped a loaded trailer at the Home Depot Center in Perris CA., and they would not release an empty trailer because "they need them all" even though they are over the pool. Over pool means they have more trailers than they are allocated, but they still will not release one. I have been over there twice. Then I was sent to a freight company to retrieve a trailer that did not exist, and then to the Fontana Depot just to "see if there is anything there". There was not. So I sit until they figure out what to do. This is known as "the trailer chase".
Now, about California. I am right near Los Angeles. I understand that California is one of the most populated states in the country, but I do not see the appeal. There is a constant haze in the air, everything is dusty, and there is a film on everything. There are way too many people pressed into such a small area, at least here in Fontana. At 10:00 am pacific time, three truck stops were full with no parking available, except of course for reserved parking. I don't understand how people could find this appealing. I am parked in a Flying J, that does not have internet, and there are more than 40 people in line for showers. But people choose to live and work here. I don't understand that. Could you give me a nice mountain?
Finally, the computer has been acting up, so the past 60 hours have been very mental for me. I don't know if meditation is cumulative, but if it is, I should be well-stocked up for a very long time. I have spent the time is calm reflection. I have not come up with the answers to the universal questions of life, but maybe a few personal questions of life. Nothing serious or significant, though. But perhaps I understand the color blue a bit better.

The present looking toward the future

If you have been following this blog, you will notice that I have made some minor changes to the format. Where I do like the crisp black and white of the setup, I found it hard to follow because things were running together. I added a box around each day just to keep things separate. I hope you like it.
The above image is our current house just outside of Memphis, TN. We call it the dollhouse. It looks very much like a dollhouse, hence the name. I like the house. The family likes the house, but I am Colorado dreaming. That is kind of funny since I am still sitting in Fontana, California, after three days of West Coast hell.
I am hoping to be out of here today. I have kept my temper, always good. I have not let the situation stress me out, upset me, or annoy me, for the most part. But that could change today if there Is not a resolution. Time will tell.
Now, about California Dreamin'. I just don't understand why people would have a desire to live here. As I stated previously, there is a dusting on everything. It reminds me of some horror movie from the 70s, but I don't remember which one. The people are just plain nasty, for the most part. Yesterday, when I went over to a box manufacturer to drop off a load of paper, my foot was about 3 inches over the yellow line on the dock. The dockmaster came running at me like a hound of hell screaming in Spanish until he realized I could not understand him. Then he spent five minutes berating me for not being able to read the sign. I should mention that this sign was behind me and covered with a safety vest. Knowing that this man was master of his domain and conflict would work against me, I just looked at him until he ran himself out. Feeling satisfied and with a big smile on his face, he proceeded to have seven trucks that arrived after me, unloaded before me. Guess he taught me a lesson. Then there was the 45-mile drive back to Fontana. I-10 and I-5 and a few smaller roads. The people. Well, we have figured that out already haven't we?
The pseudo-downtime has allowed me to get my paper done for school. I just have to spell, and grammar check it, and it is ready to roll. I am more than halfway done this course and only have three more scheduled. I have to contact Anna at Ashford to find out about my transfer credits. Right now, I have a tentative completion date of May 2021, but I have a feeling that is going to shrink significantly. For now, on with the game. See you in the funny papers, folks.

Photo Credit: Christopher Klein

I never knew that there were actually sand dunes in the United States. But sure enough, along I-8 near the Mexican border, there are real sand dunes. Go figure.
I finally made it out of California. Yesterday, I busted tail after a few close calls with our Southern Cousins. The pickup was right on the Mexican border. The first site that I was sent to was way too small for my truck. It was made for day cabs hauling short trailers. I managed to get into a dock, only to be sent to another pickup point. That was when the fun began. I followed my GPS, and the next thing you know, I was in a cattle chute, facing the border into Mexico. Thankfully, another driver that had just left the same dock saw what happened. He was headed into Mexico but knew that I was not. He gave me a bit of insight, and I took a quick turn through a construction site and was back in the United States without incident. Then it was a quick load and down the road toward Texas. I pulled into Anthony TX. with about 15 hours to spare, so I sat down at the Love's Travel Center. But what a trip.
I did see the border wall. Both the wall between San Diego and Mexico, and the one that runs next to I-8. The one in San Diego is impressive, but I would not say it is unscalable. The one that runs along the I-8 corridor I could jump. Shrugs.
Right now, I am running recap. I need a 34-hour break, but I am headed to Iowa after I drop here in Texas. Maybe then I will get some downtime. I did have time to get my paper uploaded to school and make my responses for the week. I have two more weeks to go in this course, then just three more scheduled. I should be home in week six, though, so that is something. I have a lot to do when I hit home time.

I am physiclly and emotionally tired today. I spent most of the day scooting around Texas working on borrowed time. In other words, doing recaps. That is never a fun thing. I landed, exhausted and grumpy, in an abandoned gas station in Corrizon, New Mexico. I just had little or no, get up and go today.

It is time to head North. I am still rolling recaps, but now I am heading into Iowa. But that is after I roll through Texas tomorrow.

I am finally out of California and headed to the great State of Texas. El Paso to be precise. I was able to get another close up look at the Mexican Border wall. As well as the agents that seem to be parked about ever quarter of a mile. Interesting.
So something struck me as I headed out of El Paso, heading toward Cedar Rapids IA, that this country is falling apart. The route that I am on takes me across I-54 North and then I-54 East. The run through New Mexico was a jaunt through dozens of tiny little towns, mostly boarded up. Granted, this worked in my favor, since there are no truck stops or even siding or rest areas that I could pull off in. I managed to find an abandoned gas station in Carrizozo NM to spend the night. It was a rough night. But all good. Today, I wandered through the rest of New Mexico and Oklahoma then North and East through Kansas, the home of Dorothy. In fact, I fueled in Liberal KS that claims to be the home of Dorothy Gale. Shrugs, I do not remember. But I did not run over a little mousey dog, so we will call it a win. I set down in Cunningham KS, which has been a horrible experience. I have 1 tiny little bar on my phone and cannot make or receive calls, they break up. But to top it off, the Love's internet is about 3Kps, which is slow slow slow. We are talking slower than AOL dialup. But I am making the best of it. I managed to get some sleep, and that is always helpful.
I did manage to load up one of my Lucid dreaming programs before I went to sleep. I have removed that one from the queue because I dreamed about white pants, big key rings and unwilling BDSM. Not sure what that was all about, and honestly do not want to think about it.
I have two more weeks left in my current class at Ashford. I am hoping that when I set down this afternoon, I will be in a better position. Then, once I drop off first thing tomorrow, I am pretty sure I will be on a 34-hour break, hopefully in a much better place. So I will have some time to get some stuff done. And then, this time next week, I should be rolling into home.
Quick addendum. I will have a lot of posting to do tomorrow with a bit of luck. I am in Iowa and due for a 34-hour reset before I start into my final week before home time.

I hit General Mills right on time, but it took them more than five and a half hours to get me unloaded. That took a big chunk out of the day and by the time I got out of there, my time, and patience, were wearing thin. I did a quick roll into Waterloo, Iowa and shut down for the night. Tomorrow is another day.

Photo Credit: Christopher Klein

It has been a rough couple of days. The run finally ended in Cedar Rapids, IA, but only after I got stuck in a dock site for more than five hours. It was very annoying. I finally got out of there and headed to Waterloo IA, for a 34-hour break. It is a nice Love's Travel center with a primary parking lot and a secondary lot. All together they can hold about 250 trucks. Very nice
Once I set down for the day, I figured I would lay down for a couple of minutes and then get some stuff done. That turned into six hours. I think that I may have been tired. I am missing home as well, so I am sure that does not help. But that will be fixed next week. Only six more days and I will be home.
There will be more to come, probably later today after I get school done. But for now, I have added a new feature. A memory block. Instead of mixing the present with the past, it will now be a block itself. As you see below.

I made it to La Cruse, Indiana right on time, but I could not get to the dock because of construction that had the lead-in road shut down. I was immediately dispatched to a second site that could not load me because of the shape of my trailer. Seriously? The shape of the trailer. The USX trailers are tapered at the top and the shipper requires a squared top to be able to load the product. I tell you, things just can get weird once in a wihle.

Photo Credit: Christopher Klein

This has not been the best week. In fact, it has not really been the best month. First I was stuck on a 34-hour reset with very little internet or even cellular service due to local storms, then I headed out to Wisconsin. I was a young squad, with everything to prove (sorry, Furturama reference), and hit my target right on time. Sadly, the warehouse that I was picking up, was inaccessible. The road was not there, meaning, NOT THERE. It was torn up with construction. No worries, they will send me to the secondary warehouse. Sadly, they could not load my truck, due to the shape of the trailer. Yep, you read that right. So I am 4 days into the new pay week and have not gotten a single paid mile. I should be mad, pissed, at least irked, but I am not. And that concerns me a bit.

As with every story, there are ups and there are downs. The up of this situation is that I had my first trip to a Kwik Trip fuel stop. And that is where the picture above comes from. A $1.99 bacon wrapped filet, some of my potatoes, corn, mushrooms and onions. A meal firt for a jester. Not feeling all kingly today.

I should be headed down to Ohio today and then it should be time to start the trek home.

One other irksome piece of information. I did find out that Ashford will not accept any of the Strayer credits as they have been used for my previous Master's. So my new graduation date is May of 2021. Sounds like a goal date to me.

What a boring day. I am tired and grumpy, even with a hard push day. I wound up in Waverly, Ohio, and by the time that I shut down, I had time for some sloppy Joes before I went to bed for the night. I am starting in on a seriously boring grind.

Someone got out the stupid stick. I rolled from Ohio down into the Louisville, Kentucky area, and I almost got into two accidents because people were not paying attention on the road. Thankfully, I was paying attention and I was able to avoid both of them. Not the greatest day, but at least I am homeward bound.

Another boring day, with a hard roll. I made it to my goal and got shut down. I tried to do an early delivery, but General Motors will not accept early shipments. What a day.

I am at home, but the day was not restful. First I did my visit with Dr. Wong, and all is looking good, so there is that. Then it was a run over to the clinic to update my annual physical. With that out of the way, I tried for a run into the DMV, but they were way too crowded, so I am going to put that off until tomorrow. I need some downtime.

I made it into the DMV and got that out of the way and still had quite a bit of the day left. I spent most of it setting up my computer even though I am tired as hell. This grind is starting to get to me. I briefly considered moving to another industry, but right now, we are not in a financial state for me to do that. Sigh.

I was back in the truck a bit early and got right to work. I am still tired as hell, but I am rolling out on a 600+ mile run, so maybe things are looking up. We shall see what the next few weeks bring.

I am on a Kohl's run right now, so it is one of those that must be there on time. So I rolled hard and did an early morning shut-down in a rough Mom and Pop shop. I was so tired that I did not even do food, I just went to sleep.

I made it to Kohl's right on time. The check in was a bit weird with my paper license, but I was able to get it taken care of. They have a fully automated system and you have to have a barcode for things to work right. Since I have a temporary license, that tossed a wrench into the works. But I got through it. I did a drop and swap, grabbing another, outgoing trailer from there. So I am running Kohl's back to back. What fun!

I made it into the second Kohl's depot and got dropped off right on time, again! The weekend is here and I am on a slow roll toward Salem, Missouri for some charcoal. Because of time and distance, I get a bit of extra down time. So I will take it and relax.

I am still on my slow roll, with a 370 mile deadhead. I think that is a record. But it is okay. I shut down in Rolla, Missouri. Not the greatest place, but this is one of those "any port in a storm" situations. At least I had internet and I was able to knock out a bunch of school, so I will take it.

This is what is known as a breakdown day. I got a DOT inspection for my truck and spent more than six hours in a Love's getting repairs. It was a pain in the ass because it was a wheel and they did not have the proper tool to get the hub off. These are STANDARD tires, and a professional shop did not have the tool to get the hub off. That is silly. But it wasted half my day and made me grumpy as hell. You have to remember, when at Love's, you have no access to your truck. They don't let you get in the cab, so that was more than six hours standing out in the parking lot watching them stare at my hub wondering what to do. OYE.

I rolled into the Kroger distribution center and hit "lumper hell" because there were problems. Part of the problem was that no one knew what the problem was, but it had something to do with counting. Because of the delay, I hit DOT violation for the first time, EVER. I had to go for the closest safe-haven, which was the Ellenwood terminal. I shut down in the back lot and had good food and watched a movie. But I am very unhappy about the delays.

I want to point out that this entry was added post-dated so that it can encompass the past few days. I was slack on my micro-entries because I was in a mood.

I know that you missed me. Everyone missed me. I did not realize how many people were following this blog until I received several messages over the past few days asking if I was okay. But no worries, I am fine, just a bit overwhelmed.

Last week, I was pulled back into work a day early. One of the problems with logistics right now is that many drivers are out with CoVid-19 or simply staying home. Their reasons? I cannot answer. But it has put a strain on logistics companies. While home, I was able to get my license renewed, my physicals done and my meds filled. So everything is in line. Then I came back, and they have been running me hard since then. This is the first time that I have had time to breathe in a while. And this is only a small downtime before I head over to Pennsylvania in a few hours. Variant has kept me mostly on the Eastern side of the country. Fun times. But I am almost out of hours, so I will get a break here soon.

To add to this, I have finished my marketing class and moved into my new course, Human Resource Management. When I first saw the course, I was not happy. This will be my third course on this subject, and when I considered the other two, watching paint dry is more interesting. Then the course went live. The professor, Dr. Kathleen Bates, is amazing. She is intelligent and engaging. The course has thousands of reading links and text and the subject is approached from an analytical and evidence-based perspective, instead of all those nasty feelings. It is going to be challenging. We are already a few days into the course, and out of 27 students, only a few have popped their heads out.

Finally, I know that there is not a picture here. Everyone is loving the pictures. I have a few, some spider pics sent form home by the wife, a bit of ambiance and a wreck in Georgia. But I need time to edit them while I am doing everything else. I will get to them, I promise.

Until then, stay safe everyone!

I almost forgot. Those that have asked about Triumph Media and Ancient. I know, I know, I am behind. Having problems with the HTML5 / CSS3. But they are coming.

Right now, I am very tired and have no get-up-and-go. I am doing my best, but there is little joy going on right now, and I am missing it. Nothing is happening at work, in the personal life, or even school. Things are just hum-drum. I am not sure how long this dry spell will last.

I feel like a drone right now. Or a broken cog in a large machine. I know that things will change, but right now, I am just trudging without purpose, from one day to the next.

Here we go again. Nothing happening, nothing to say. Nothing going on. I am not in the mood for work, for play, or even for this journal. Gawd, I hate these moods.

Something has to give, and it has to give soon. Something has to happen. Evil hampsters take over Washington. Aliens invade. A small animal talks to me. Something, anythings. The ONLY joy that I have going for me in my own personal hell is my writing. But I am not going to share ANY of that for now. I am working on something that I have been working on for quite a while, but I have promised that I will not share details until it is done. And that is a long way off, probably more than a year or more. Closer to five if I were to guess. It will depend on how much work I can put into it. But right now, it is keeping me sane.

Photo Credit : Christopher Klein

I am just finishing my 34-hour downtime in Statesville NC. It was relaxing and helpful. So there is that. The picture above is a fun one. When you put your head down on your steering wheel while waiting to be loaded, and wake up to see this. It makes you think.

In about an hour, I am headed toward Connecticut. Almost 900 miles, but I have to go through New York. I have been hearing horror stories about that state, but I don't know how many of them are true. I guess I will find out.

I did get both of my discussion postings for this week done in my Strategic Human Resource Management course. That course is a bear. There is a lot of work required, which isn't so bad, but the professor is a bit of a slave driver. Don't get me wrong, I am keeping up, but I can hear it in the tone of my fellow students, that they were not ready for this.

I was finally able to take the time to move a large portion of the files. The other computer only shut down twice, so that is something. I did a bit of writing, went through quite a few of my magazines and watched a movie. Kinda of a boring time down, don't ya think?