I also found the foliage along the way to change rather dramatically in Virginia. The leaves are folding out from the winter already becoming a brilliant green. In Pennsylvania however they're only beginning to bud and push through. I'm still amazed at how the scenery develops a slow and gradual change as you travel north or south.Truly God's design is a brilliant display.
After spending the night at a rest area just south of York, PA we woke up to find a beautiful sunny morning. As usual my curiosity always keeps me scanning the horizon from the view of this truck, I witness an accident between a big rig and a cowboy Cadillac (one of those truck Escalade's). I'm just going to put my personal opinion out there for this incident. Objectionably speaking the parking area for the trucks at this particular rest area is insane. The white lines showing the spaces shows without question that the length given to a 53' Trailer and a 15-20' Tractor is not even close to enough length. The white line beginning at the bumper of a tractor and ending before the first set of tandems on the trailer is simply not long enough for these big guys. This leaves only these two options, tractor out in the way so no one can pass or trailer hanging back in the traveled lane by cars. (fyi: Its so much easier for a car to weave in and out than one of these huge tractor trailers its nearly impossible.) A truck pulls in, gets his truck and trailer straight in his parking space being sure not to leave his rig out in the truck travel lane...the trailer with no place else to be hanging out in the car travel lane. The Cadillac backs out from his space without notice of a 65' - 70' truck having just parked behind him (I know he must have been in the blind spot right? We see that all too often on the roads...), he backs right into the trailer. Who gets the insurance hit for this incident you wonder? I wonder too, but after watching so many suicidal people drive on the roads I'm going to go with the guy driving the tractor trailer. When in doubt blame the trucker, he/she is the professional driver after all. Reality would say that the guy who backed into a parked truck/trailer would be at fault we will probably never know but the police didn't respond to a call and the DOT didn't show up so both parties may have come to a mutual agreement in the matter. Awesome!
As I write this entry we're backed to a door at a huge grocery facility nestled in another of those very unlikely places in PA. YES for all of you out there that never knew how that product always seems to get on the shelf in the store, it came via truck! The 'How' and 'why' are my constant questions regarding the placement of these facilities. Normally followed by 'Wonder what they could have been thinking with this idea?' Again Ed, with the nerves of steel, steadies himself and this mammoth rig through sub divisions, horse trails, and blind curves that wind down hills with houses clinging to the roadside like defiant lines in the sand. Suddenly out of the corner of the windshield we see in the distance a large facility sprouting out just beyond a pair of schools! Entry is much like entering a military facility. We're given a road map of the facility and told which two buildings we need to park between until the 'Yard dogs' come and tell us what door to back into. While we're sitting and waiting like soldiers against a wall the traveling vendor shows up. She visits all the areas that the truckers are being held waiting to be unloaded or loaded. She serves the newly arrived guys and hustles away to the next holding area. I think that is what entrepreneurship is all about! Flexibility!
Watching the yard dogs is like cutting the top off of a honey comb to expose all the bees moving about in precise movements consistently making each movement deliver the maximum affect. They move with such ease between the road trucks backing trailers in and out. You may wonder what a yard dog is I suppose at this point. A yard dog or yard jockey is a very small version of a tractor like the big rigs you see on the road. its size allows it to turn on a dime! They can back under a trailer and without leaving the tractor hook air lines up and simply push a button to lift the trailers landing gear off the ground and take off like a shot. The same process for a regular road tractor takes on average including inspection about 15-25 minutes.
I've taken this picture to give you a small glimpse into what I'm trying to describe.
If only the lumper's would work as speedily as these yard dogs we'd be off and on our way to our next load. We've been backed into this door now for nearly 1.5 hours still haven't felt the forklifts moving about the trailer!
I'm going to take the time to see whats on TV in this neck of the woods!
Wishing you all a blessed day!!
Pam and Ed
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