Made it to NY

Well, for he first time we have been sent to NY. As we sat on the George Washington bridge for 3 hours at 2:30 in the morning in a line oftraffic...we wondered if we were really missing anything by not beingsent to NY. But then it just got better from there.

We found our delivery and parked for the evening. Finding a parking spot in NY isn't easy for a car let alone a 73 foot vehicle. Jeff backed the trailor probably 1/2 a mile in-between an abandoned looking warehouse and the subway. We were both so tired that sleeping wasn't a difficult task. We off-loaded the next morning around 9:30 and headed toward

Plainsview on Long Island. Through the Bronx, and over the Long Island Expressway bridge. Picked up from the customer and headed on out of the City. It is exhausting driving in NY because there is absolutely nowhere to park or even stop for a minute, so you are constantly on duty. By the time we got back over the bridge and into NJ it was time to just stop and take a breather. It is amazing how 24 hours can happen in about what seems like 6 hours.

Leaving NY heading towards the Long Island Bridge.

Driving through the Bronx.

George Washington Bridge Toll

Crossing over to Long Island

Winter has arrived

We have been traveling up northeast lately and had to deal with Old Man Winter. Our run to Spokane from Dalton was great on miles, but sure was crappy weather for the second half of the trip. From South Dakota all the way through Wyoming and then all the way through Montana, nothing but blizzard and cold cold below zero weather. Pretty to look at, but it sure takes a longer time to drive through.

Once we ran to Spokane we went from Lewiston, ID

with a paper load to North Las Vegas on Thanksgiving weekend. Before we made it to Vegas we already had a load picking up in LA with a stop in Myrtle MS then to Conover, NC and then NY.

Food and Friends

When in Dalton, GA you must make an effort to Pollo Allegre. We found this place on accident and what a great accident to have. We were looking for mexican food and just looked on our phone and chose this place and drove there. If you look at the pic you can see a screened in building on the left. As we approached the steps to the restaurant all we could smell was BBQ'd meat...yum! We walked in and sat down, no menu. Most of the people inside were hispanic...always a good sign that the food is good at a mexican food place. The waitress walks up to our table and says, "half or a whole?" Both Jeff and I looked at each other and weren't quite sure what she meant. So I explained that we had never been there before. This restaurant serves chicken...half or a whole, brought to your table directly off of the grill. We opted for the whole chicken. It was served with a side of refried beans and rice as well as homemade corn or flour tortillas. There was a fresh salsa bar with at least 6 different kinds of concoctions...we of course tried each one. I'm telling you what, this was the best grilled chicken I have ever had. No BBQ sauce or no spice overpowering the meat, just yummy grilled chicken. We walked out of there for $20 with one of the best meals we have had in a long time. Now when we go to Dalton, we have to get there before 8 pm....otherwise, no chicken!

When passing through AZ we had a chance to stop and our friends Devon and Rhonda. Devon went through the 10-day training program with us at Watkins as a solo driver, but we had the chance to meet his wife as well down in Santa Fe Springs. It was nice to catch up with them and have a meal and great conversation. Devon used to have his own pool cleaning business in LA, which he was very successful at, but decided he wanted to learn how to drive a truck. Rhonda will be on the road with him soon, once they get their youngest (14) raised and on his own.

Okay, so this isn't a meal, but this is the best thing about going to Spokane, WA that I have found so far! This is like a big hostess cupcake, filled with the white cream and all, but it is a Krispy Kreme....cannot recommend this one enough. I haven't ever seen this one in Denver, but if you can find it, buy one...YUMMY.

Clearwater Paper and Idaho

So coming from the printing industry and then picking up actual paper pulp in Lewiston, ID....pretty cool. I had no idea that when making paper it smells so bad. I have been told that it is the smell of money, but I think it still stinks! This run goes through Idaho and Nevada, highway 89, all the way through the desert. Two lane road and a beautiful drive, but in the winter it can be quite a challenge. This paper pulp is a great load because it is really light weight. It is used to make toilet paper and kleenex...interesting.

This is a photo that we actually captured

some awesome rainbows in Idaho. I didn't think that these would turn out, but Jeff took these with his phone. All day long we would be in rain a nd then come over a hill and it would be sunny and several rainbows would appear. Very cool.

Shades of Fall

I would love to be able to show you pics from PA or even I-70 in Colorado, however, both of these places were driven in the dark. I imagined how pretty the colors would have been. Maybe before the snow flies we will be able to make it back to both places in the daylight....I will share.

These pics are all in Montana. From Helena to Great Falls.

Our Lady of The Rockies - Butte, MT

This statue which is 90 feet tall sits on the mountain overlooking the Butte Valley. It was erected by a man, Bob O'Bill whose wife was dying of cancer. He had prayed to the Virgin Mary to let his wife be cured from the cancer. He promised Mary that if his wife was cured

he would build a statue in her honor on his property. Well...his wife made it through the cancerand he started erecting the statue. Many people in Butte became involved in the proj

ect and decided to make the statue on a bigger scale. It is made out of concrete and as I said sits 90 feet, almost as big as the Statue of Liberty.

When passing through Butte, MT you cannot help but notice this bright white statue up on the mountaintop. It is truly majestic and makes Butte, MT a stand out city.

All for now, but should have more fall photos coming soon.

Sad Day....

This is truly a sad day, my Baby Girl Isabella has passed away. She was eleven and was truly the best dog I ever had. She will truly be missed. It doesn't seem a reality, but I know when we return home again it will be. We just saw her last weekend and she was happy. She died in her sleep on her favorite rug in front of the swamp cooler....just as we all wanted it to happen. We are now down to only one puppy dog, Sampson. He is a golden and fourteen years old. It is hard when your dogs get old. You know the inevitable is going to happen. My best advice for anyone with a pooch is to enjoy every moment you have with them and give them all your love and the best care you can. When their time comes, you know that they had the best life you could give them and they were spoiled rotten. That is all that you can ask of being a good doggie mom and dad.

Here is a pic of our old man dog Sampson. Happy and spoiled as well. One of our boys takes care of our dogs at home and has been such a life-saver. He has been fantastic at taking care of the house and our puppies. We appreciate everything he does for us.

Introducing Cybil

We made it out of Jersey with the new Big Red Volvo and here she is in all her glory. I don't think I haveto go into too much detail on the name, which is by the way very appropriate. She looks the same, but will never be the same as Dorothy. Same engine, 10 speeds instead of 13, 2 years newer (2007) with half the miles 368,000. The inside is in much better shape and the more modern cupboards instead of shelves and all of the netting to hold things in is all intact on her. Which is very nice for going down the road and not having anything fly off of the shelves. We are getting used to her. Has to be driven much different than the 13 speed. It has been a couple of weeks now and I think we are starting to bond. She needed a bunch of TLC when we got her, but she is coming around. She still does some weird, quirky things, some electrical, not on a consistent basis...hence the name Cybil. We have already put 12,000 miles on her since we picked her up. Don'tthink Jersey has a lot of elevation so she is in for a whole new ride. No Grapevine yet, but Vail pass at 40 mph...not bad! You just have to stay on the shifting more adamantly than Dorothy, but with more practice on a daily basis, she's gonna work out just fine.

We were recently driving through Idaho and noticed a lot of corn still growing and pretty short. Stopped to refill on coffee and the woman at the truck stop informed us that they have had so much rain that they lost all of their first planting so they had to scrap it and this is the 2nd planting, hoping to get something out of their crops this year. Maybe this could mean more good corn later in the year for everyone. What a sucky situation for the farmers there this year.

Waiting for Fall to arrive, which is coming BTW, to take more pics of the color. Leaving for NJ (Good miles, but we must be being punished for something) tomorrow from LA, just waiting to get 2 tires changed on a trailer. We will be taking I-70 so maybe we will get some good Aspen shots.

To the left: 58 in CA heading north from Bakersfield. It is mesmerizing to see all of them spinning on the mountain while

you are moving toward it...kinda hypnotic. You can all rest easy...I wasn't driving :o )