Gypsy Running

Just got back from running Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvaia, New York, Virginia, Ontario, and good old Montreal. I may have missed a few provinces or states. I am so tired I can hardly see straight.
We pulled into the lot for one delivery in Chester, Virginia, singing along with Pat Benatar on the tunes from space and were greeted by two armed guards. Turned out to be a Phillip Morris tobacco manufacturing plant. Security was kind of tight by Canadian standards. Watched how they actually mass produce smokes. Had the dual thoughts that I was observing pure evil and could I ever use a butt right now.
Hung a rat at four Mennonites as they drove by in a car. The wannabe's should be in a horse drawn carriage. They didn't react at all to my John Thomas flapping in the wind at them as we passed them on the next corner. My trainer was not amused. I'm kidding in case you're challenged that way.
I never really feel like I'm where I am anymore because I am now so many places on a regular basis. Except for the exhaustion I really like that feeling. Nothing bugs me too much because at most in a matter of hours I'm out of there. And now I'm getting a salary to wander.

I like that:

'I am now so many places
On a regular basis'

'Something... something...'

God I'm tired.

Home Again

I appreciate my circumstances much more after running for a week here and there. I love the US. I have been down there countless times. Things are very different in some areas now compared to when I was there before. Butter Detroit. It's toast. What a difference a few years can make. Go Toyota. My home city of Ottawa is like an oasis in many ways to me now. Toronto is starting to grow on me a little more. I was in and out of quite a few areas of the city these last few days. Come Monday or Tuesday and I'm back at it again. I want a Texas run, then Quebec city.
The guy training me weighs 280 lbs, but he's in great shape. The cadence to his speech patterns and disposition is the most similar to John Wayne than any other person I have ever met. When the exhaustion kicked in we were howling with laughter a few times. At 4:15 pm Eastern time just after the market closes I am required to turn down the Sirius satellite radio so he can check how his stocks did that day on his Blackberry internet feed. If we hear something that pricks his ears up on one of the all finance channels he's on the Blackberry to his broker in Ottawa to move and shake a few shares. Surprised the hell out of me. I met a man who declared 77 million dollars in profit last year for his family owned business. He owns the company I work for. You'd think he was just another driver to talk to him.

Pink Houses

Seeing a great deal of the north eastern part of the US these days. Also south western Ontario. Chicago smells like fat Elvis and napalm. Not sure why they regard this as one of their signature cities. I'll take NY or Miami over Chicago any day. When we stop for food at a restaurant anywhere south of the border here I like to yell, "I bet THAT motherfucker has a gun on him!" and point to the roughest guy around us. Keeps my coworker on his toes. Actually, everyone has been very civil so far. CB banter cracks me up. Most of it is driver complaints or directions requests. Then one guy will come on and whisper, "I aint got no panties on..." again and again every five minutes for about an hour.

Scene:
A guy is driving a rig. He is stuck in traffic. He looks in the mirror of another rig just ahead of him to the right in traffic and sees a guy who looks identical to himself. The guy even has the the exact same sunglasses on, and shirt, and ball cap, and holy fuck that is me. How could that be? The guy gets on the radio and says, "Hey, you..." And waves at me before he pulls away.

That's how the movie starts. I know enough about this very strange sub-world of long haul truck driving to write a brilliant horror movie about it. Or a porno.

Trucker's Log

Drove to Virginia, then West Virginia, then Pennsylvania before coming up through Buffalo to Toronto. Rural Pensylvanians are some interesting folk. Going to Chicago tomorrow.

Virginia In The Morning

I'm off to Virginia tomorrow morning. Then it's Quebec city from there. Not sure what my third stop is.
Toronto wasn't all doom and gloom. I ended up in the odd situation of asking directions from two Japanese women in Japanese while standing in downtown Toronto. We spent some time together. I am supposed to meet up with one of them the next time I'm in town.
Later today I am going to the Winterlude festivities taking place here in Ottawa. Some of the ice sculptures and quite stunning.

Hello From Toronto

I am currently in Toronto. Tomorrow I start a three day orientation down here for a job I have accepted. The job isn't in T.O. The orientation is. I still can't get excited about this place. I walked around downtown for a while this aft trying to be enthused about being in the centre of the universe and all. Still seems like a shithole city to me. A lot of people seem to need a shower here and the kids are not alright. Nothing compared to downtown Vancouver though. Toronto is cute compared to the great unwashed you get accosted by walking around downtown Van. I'd still trade Vancouver over Toronto in a heart beat. And Montreal beats them both by a mile.
I have been offered a job teaching at a university in Shanghai through a Chinese woman I know in Ottawa. Bastards. Just when I thought I was out, of ESL, they drag me back in. I have no intentions of taking the position. This new job seems to hold at least some earnings promise.