Feb 27, 2010
Who does he think he is getting smart with me
oh gee, its been a couple of weeks since i last posted anything.
i like to look back and remember the recent past. when i thought things were going to change for the better. oh i was so wrong.
the first couple of loads after our home time were ok. we ended up at the end of the week in spokane. we took a 'jit' load (i think it stands for just in time) a much more time sensitive load that 'hot' (or maybe it is miss spelled should be s @#t load) anyway. it was fedex. this time pick up at the oakland airport, to the spokane airport.
the pick up went a little wrong when after being loaded and headed out of oakland, dispatched told us we had to go back fedex forgot something that must go with this load. well by the time we turned around and got back to the guard gate it was 1 hour then it was another hour waiting for the right person to find the right package. this load was timed different. when we take normal fedex loads from fresno to kent. the delivery time is 11pm. this load was timed. they gave us exactly 17 hours. so we got a message that the delivery time was changed to 4:14 pm. we made it ok. the fedex crew in spokane thought this was a live unload. and our instructions were to drop the trailer. it didnt really matter because they got after it pretty fast, before troutdale got back to us on what to do they were done unloading.
we notified toutdale that we had to stay in spokane to recap our hours. will would be available to drive again the next day at 18:00 and i could continue to recap in the sleeper.
well wouldnt you just guess that they sent us a load and the pickup time was 9 hours before will could drive. so i denied the load and in the comment box i wrote. can not drive again until 18:00. the message that came back opened a box full of frustration. the message said 'i dont know why that should matter its a pre-loaded trailer, but oh well' (yea he said but oh well)
i thought who does he think he is getting smart with me......obviously he was never heard of me or talked to my kids. **i took all state and lettered in sarcasm** so i messaged him
' i dont care if it is loaded or unloaded, it is illegal for this truck to move again until 18:00. would you like me to tell d.o.t that my dispatcher said the federal h.o.s law ( hours of service) doesnt apply if we are picking up a loaded trailer'
so the rest of the night the qualcom was quite. the next morning, we contacted our dm and said that will is available to drive again at 18:00 could she find us a load that picks up after that time.
she said thanks for the info and she would start looking.
around noon. we get a message from her that will has missing logs and she gave the dates. i told her last month logs requested that we rescan those logs and we did, but if they need to be rescanned again we would do it as soon as we got to a place that scans. in washington there are only 2 places to scan logs for swift. at the sumner yard and in tumwater. she said we were put on a safety hold until the logs were corrected. i asked her what the problem was, we could fix it and fax them in from the truckstop we were at. she said no we had to drive to lewiston idaho. and have someone look at them there. ...................................oh thats why the qualcom was so quite, they were plotting their revenge.........
we arrive in lewiston and of course the guy we are suppose to see has gone for the night. he'll be in around 8am.so wasted another day of doing nothing and getting paid nothing. in the morning when we see him he brings up the logs on the computer, (so that means troutdale could see them on their computer too) and says the year date is wrong. will needs to correct it from 09 to 10. so they could have told us what the problem was.
we did that rescanned and were taken off safety hold. boom- boom, problem solved. he also told us the way he works log problems with his drivers is if they have the confirmation number from the scanning terminal he can look it up and contact he driver and fix the problem before putting someone on safety hold.
i contacted our dm ---just smoking mad--- told her what he said and told her i always give the confirmation number . that ,that is the way it has worked in the past one time will put in his driver code instead of mine... logs told us what to fix then we rescanned.
why was this such a problem this time.
it wasnt a big problem when we were issued this very important, fedex load.
it wasnt a big problem when we were issued a load just a few hours prior, a load we could not accept.
i told her that it became a problem after we denied the load. and i told her what each of us said back and forth to each other. i told her that we were tired of being treated like we are not in the right click at high school. tired of troutdale playing games with our livelihood. they constantly get smart mouthy with us when we deny a load, or even when we ask a question. if we got off on the wrong foot, sorry get over it. grow up.
troutdale load planners lost sight of the fact that this is a job. we are adults trying to make a living. we were tired of the constant power tug of war with them. i told her we are either quitting or getting transfer to lathrop were they employ adults.
she said we were a good team...etc...need you on fedex... i told her i didnt care about fedex anymore. every time we go to a fedex there are more and more interstate trailers, even some us express trailers. told her that because of the un timely south bound loads from troutdale, they cant keep good drivers on this run. . i told her we have asked her to help us with our low miles. and each time she said she would help. but nothing lasted more than a week.
then i messaged her asking for each of our hire dates. then i asked for the persons name that put us on safety hold. and i ask her who do we see about transferring. i told her we were tired of her telling us we are a good team, the standard line from 'how to deal with unhappy drivers' but only getting solo miles. we can go anywhere are get these crappy miles.
we didnt hear anything from her for 2 days. usually we get a general good morning crew, and a safety update for the day,(how many accidents happened over night ~ i know uh) and a message when she is off line and in a meeting.
kind of nice, kind of scarry.
last night she got ahold of us asked us what time we need our south bound load by in order to get down in time for fedex. she asked if we ever contact phoenix to let them know we are empty and ready for a load. yes mam, (im still mad and dont really want to smart-alic my way out of a job) i was so mad i even wrote my exit letter.
she gave us 3 names of people to contact regarding south bound loads. also the after hours phone number for dispatch in lewiston idaho. one of the names was the person we already deal with in lathrop, i said L%$&&*^said m@%$# (dont want to us their real names.) is not allowed to give us loads when we are up here. she didnt say anything, so i thought i should shut up too.
so once again we have high hopes for this fresno to seattle runs. (im so tired, being hopeful and pissed off at the same time is exhausting)
it just so happens that yesterday we were delivering in kent and the fedex office was so mad. they were swearing, they told will that the other driver called and said he was going to be 3 hours late. will said really well he left an hour before we did. we had hazmat on and it takes longer to make sure all the placards are correct and to contact swift letting them know we have a hazmat load. (extra $35 a piece.) and we still made it on time. fedex said it holds up all their drivers, and all the trailers --probably a dozen trailers waiting to be finished loading. and if they dont deliver their packages on time, it cost fedex. and i am sure that pass that expense on to swift. they said its not so much the cost. its the public opinion that hurts. they are not going to risk people saying fedex use to deliver on time, and now they dont. will said just dont get the trucks mixed up im always here on time. so just because we could we passed that info on the our dm.
lately the good weather has been in oregon and washington. california is getting rain everyday we are there. we stopped in willows for a shower and were soaked running back to the truck. we even waited a little while for the down pour to let up before we started driving again.
the new "tummy pills' seem to be working. only one problem but it was my own fault. i ate a big breakfast buffet and then a hamburger for lunch and sweet and sour chicken for dinner. i knew when i started eating the chicken that it was going to be a long night. just a little reminder not to eat like a pig.
i guess thats about all their is. i think i have figured out how to be home for easter.. if we come home march 5,6,7. then it will be 4 weeks later we can be home again at easter time. even though i dont want to stay out 4 weeks, rather than 3 i guess we will shot for that time frame.
love and miss you all
