I read my MP's blog regularly and look forward to the posts. Glen Pearson uses this medium to express his feelings and opinions on many issues in an honest, intelligent, and non partisan manner that I find refreshing. Today he put up a post entitled The Swing Is Gone. Glen describes the effects of how time away from the people he loves effects him. You can read the post here. He shares thoughts in the post that truck drivers can empathize with.
Time away from home and from family is part of the job we do. You can't escape it, you have to find a way to cope with it. I have a couple of advantages over Glen. My wife and I no longer have young children at home so I do not have to juggle those needs and commitments. Neither do I have the degree of responsibility that Glen does as a public servant. That been said it still does not make dealing with the isolation that comes with the job any easier to cope with. In fact I struggle with ways to give back to the community I live in and the industry I work in. I believe this is a big part of the path to happiness, personal liberation, and personal freedom in our lives.
Reading Glen's post made me glad that I am now spending regular time at home with my wife. In fact I am also expecting my daughter to arrive in a few minutes for coffee which is becoming a regular weekly routine for us. Another benefit of regular home time. After doing open board work and spending so much time on the road for the past several years I did not realize what I had been missing. I'm very thankful for the change and for the ability to find my own swing.
Thanks for the great post Glen!!
Friday 19 November 2010
Monday 15 November 2010
Waiting In The Peg
As usual life has been more than a little busy of late. The good news is I'm getting into a groove I have not been in for many years. I'm developing a routine. At work and at home. I like it. My sweetheart of a wife likes it. Life is good despite the hectic nature of it.
Last month I started to do a regular weekly turn up to Winnipeg and back. I leave on a Saturday morning arriving in the Peg on Sunday evening. Then it's a day of delivering freight in and around the Peg before dragging my now empty trailer across the border and reloading for home, usually getting back on Wednesday evening. As I said I'm just starting to find my groove with this run and it's a positive change. I actually have the hours of service rules and my new electronic on board recorder to thank in large part for this change. More on that in a later post.
Today (Monday) was a little different. I dragged an LTL load for Brandon/Regina/Saskatoon up here and switched it off last night with a full load out of Edmonton. That gave me some time this morning as I sit at a dock here in Winnipeg unloading. Does not pay as well as my usual run but a change is as good as a rest right? Rest is good, that's something I'm discovering with my new found 'routine'.
I had completely forgotten what it was like to know what you were doing week in and week out. There is a certain freedom about it. That may sound like a bit of a paradox but I'm finding it's true for me. Knowing where I will be each week is allowing me to be free of many planning stresses I have dealt with regularly out here on the road. The regular miles also bring a regular pay cheque, again freedom from planning stress. Then there is the regular days at home. Already my wife and I are finding that many of the routine jobs around the house that have been put on the back burner in the past due to time constraints are now been looked after on a weekly basis and are no longer on the to do list. This all may sound rather silly to those of you that don't drive for a living. Believe me it's not. You may think that routine leads to stagnation but on the contrary I'm finding that routine is reducing my stress level and improving my personal productivity. Maybe now I can squeeze out some more time for writing.
BTW, for those of you on my email list, sorry but I have not been posting my monthly columns here with any regularity of late so they are headed your way now.
Cheers, Al.
Last month I started to do a regular weekly turn up to Winnipeg and back. I leave on a Saturday morning arriving in the Peg on Sunday evening. Then it's a day of delivering freight in and around the Peg before dragging my now empty trailer across the border and reloading for home, usually getting back on Wednesday evening. As I said I'm just starting to find my groove with this run and it's a positive change. I actually have the hours of service rules and my new electronic on board recorder to thank in large part for this change. More on that in a later post.
Today (Monday) was a little different. I dragged an LTL load for Brandon/Regina/Saskatoon up here and switched it off last night with a full load out of Edmonton. That gave me some time this morning as I sit at a dock here in Winnipeg unloading. Does not pay as well as my usual run but a change is as good as a rest right? Rest is good, that's something I'm discovering with my new found 'routine'.
I had completely forgotten what it was like to know what you were doing week in and week out. There is a certain freedom about it. That may sound like a bit of a paradox but I'm finding it's true for me. Knowing where I will be each week is allowing me to be free of many planning stresses I have dealt with regularly out here on the road. The regular miles also bring a regular pay cheque, again freedom from planning stress. Then there is the regular days at home. Already my wife and I are finding that many of the routine jobs around the house that have been put on the back burner in the past due to time constraints are now been looked after on a weekly basis and are no longer on the to do list. This all may sound rather silly to those of you that don't drive for a living. Believe me it's not. You may think that routine leads to stagnation but on the contrary I'm finding that routine is reducing my stress level and improving my personal productivity. Maybe now I can squeeze out some more time for writing.
BTW, for those of you on my email list, sorry but I have not been posting my monthly columns here with any regularity of late so they are headed your way now.
Cheers, Al.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)