Housekeeping

I'm at home for a week of vacation and I find myself drowning in unfinished business.  You know, all of those little things that you plan to do and have all of the good intention to complete but struggle to get to.  The list is long and most of the items seem insignificant at a glance.  I'm sure you have a similar list for the fall season: fix the weather stripping on the front door, seal & paint front bay window, clean out eaves trough & put up Christmas lights, clean out & cover fountain for winter, change batteries in smoke detectors, halloween decorations up for this weekend, etc., etc.  And that is just a few things around the house.  When I sit down and look at my desk there are dozens of things I have on the go personally that I would like to explore.  All the little details of our lives are squeezed in between the big issues we live everyday.

We all spend much of our time living outside of the present moment wrapped in thought about what was and what will be.  Analyzing what has happened and planning on where we want to be leads us to forget to simply enjoy life as it unfolds.  I don't believe happiness results from the volume of work you can perform or how many jobs you can juggle at once.  But we often fall into that trap don't we?

So I think that right now, in this moment, I will simply publish this post then head out for a run in the sun.  After that, well, I'll just see what comes up in the moment.

Cheers.

Finding My Groove

Today was an excellent day.  One of those days that just hums along as it should.  Nothing unexpected, nothing stressful, nothing out of the ordinary.  I started with a run this morning under brilliant blue sky, no wind, a crisp temperature of 6C, and beautiful Fall colour still in the trees.  The last couple of months have been a grind in every aspect of my daily life.  Truck breakdowns, a cold that dragged on and on, long hours in the seat, longer than usual time away from home - if it wasn't for bad luck................you know how it goes.  Glad I'm climbing up and out of that valley.

I'm on holiday next week then I start on a new gig.  Something with a little routine to it.  I'll be doing regular weekly rounders up to Winnipeg and back.  A five day swing that will see me with a couple of days at home every week.  A first for me in the trucking business.  I've always done open board work and been away at least a couple of weeks at a time.  Often a lot longer than that.  I'm looking forward to the change and getting some routine into my life.  Lot's of positives to look forward to with this.

C13 CAT - My Nemesis

So much to blog about lately but I've been so busy I have not had the time to park myself at the keyboard.  Until now.  I'm officially stopped for a full day.  Seems I've been working the yellow kitty CAT under my hood a little too hard of late and she (he? it?) decided it was time to let me know exactly who is in control out here.

Yesterday afternoon as I was about 20 miles across the Illinois line heading east on the I-94 tollway approaching the Eden's spur. That's when the little yellow C13 let out a hellish cry from under the hood.  That was followed by loss in power and a pretty yellow engine lamp illuminated on my dash.  Yellow had hit the wall and blown a turbo.  I was less than 2 miles from the toll plaza and more or less coasted in there sounding like a broken, beaten up, bucket of rusty bolts.  At least she kicked the can before I reached the Kennedy expressway merge or The Circle in the heart of Chicago.  That would have been a treat indeed.

So I took a ride in a hook, closely followed by my regular ride, up to Peterbilt Illinois back at the state line on I-94.  There she sits waiting on a new turbo which should have arrived there about half an hour ago.  I'm still sitting in the Super 8 in Pleasant Prairie killing some time before check out.  The good folks at Peterbilt provide a ride too and from the hotel for me.  I'll call to have them pick me up shortly and hopefully be on my way by mid to late afternoon.

Ahhhhhhhh, trucking.  If you enjoy living moment to moment, well, this is the life for you.

Cheers.