Drove through half of Utah, all of Idaho and finished my shift in Hermiston, OR. (Yes, Marshall, we drove through Caldwell, and no, they've never heard of you...:-) How GREAT it was to be back in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest!! I had forgotten how beautiful it is coming through Ontario and La Grande. The amazing green-brown of the hills (or is it brown-green...) that look as if they were sculpted for the sole purpose of offering spectacular views. They appeared as if a giant forested blanket had been thrown in the air and lighted on earth with all the valleys, hills, troughs, and wrinkles of a perfect, singularly unique landscape. It struck me that the features of the terrain had been there for thousands of years, unchanged, except the ribbon of interstate that was only recently (relatively speaking) cut through its valleys. It reminded me how transient and insignificant we are, while the broader portrait will exist for years after we are gone, hanging in God's gallery. It also made me appreciate the opportunity to enjoy it.
Unfortunately, rather than continuing into the Columbia River Gorge and on into Portland -- which i longed to do more than i can describe --we hung a right at I-82 and crossed over into Washington, ultimately to connect with I-90 and over to Kent, WA. At least it's still the Northwest, which feels like a clean, pure spring breeze, especially after the dreariness of the Midwest (the weather) and the Northeast (everything about it).
Enjoyed a lightening storm coming through Wyoming the other night, with bolts seeming to come uncomfortably close to striking the truck. Very intense and cool.
Found out today that a CR England truck experienced a roll-over earlier today, killing a trainer and a student, just like us. Apparently the trainer fell asleep at the wheel and went over a highway median. The company reminds us tirelessly that excessive speed and fatigue are the two most dangerous things for professional drivers, and that we have to be constantly on guard to ensure we don't let either creep up and cause catastrophe. It's very possible the student was one from my class, but we haven't heard any names. Sure does remind you that this is a dangerous profession that needs to be taken deadly serious.
But at the same time, we are encouraged when we hear about drivers who have reached the marks of one or two million miles of driving without an accident or even getting a ticket.
Oh, getting annoyed at F/M....he throws his trash out the window. He ate a pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream after lunch today and threw the whole container out the window of the truck when he was done. Astounding. Apparently that's ok in Haiti.... Thankfully he did that in Idaho.
Not sure where we are going next, but it may be our last trip before moving on to Phase II of our training. At least, MJM and i sure hope so. Had lunch at KFC today and it sure was a sign that we've spent too much time too close together -- we all sat at separate tables.... lol.
Stay safe everyone.... Never drive faster than the conditions dictate, even if that's slower than the speed limit. Speed kills.
KWA
Glad your back Ken!! I'm afraid I would have blown a gasket at the trash thing. I see idiots down here throw their beer cans and cigarette butts down on the beach and I want to dis-patch them with a .44 Mag. Amazing to me how someones' brain can tell them that that is OK. Once it gets really hot I wouldn't mind seeing the green of the NW just couldn't take it in the winters there. Well stay safe and Keep ON Truckin'!!
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