It happened so suddenly. I looked in the mirror and looking back at me was some old guy whose balding head and full beard had turned Grey almost white. I was sure that when I went to bed last night I had a full head of brown hair. That over weight guy looking back in the mirror is not the same guy who played football as a youth and spent some time in the USMC running up and down hills in Virgina while attending Platoon Leader Classes each summer. Yes all of a sudden all the choices of eating an extra slice of pie or extra helping of potatoes and gravy became very visible. The ravages of the years had shown up suddenly yet slowly as the years passed.
As I pondered these things I was reminded that I made choices some very deliberately and some because of pressures that have molded my life. I did make some good choices I made the choice to stop smoking some 32 years ago. I decided to surrender my life to Jesus and to stop drinking. As I thought about the choices I have made some good and some not so good; we all have a choice to make our lives the way they are and it is done with sometimes very little choices that can lead to where our lives go.
Think about it when the one who ended up on death row for killing someone. They did not start out as a youngster saying, "I want to be a murderer when I grow up.". No most kids I know want to be firemen, or policemen, or doctors, or lawyers or Sports stars or as my 3 year old grandson to be a superhero who defeats all the bad guys. Somewhere along the way that one on death row made some small choice to break the law or rebel in some way and then another choice to do it again and then again and then again until they ended up where they ended up.
We all have dreams about our future and we all have choices we can make that will take us either closer to our dreams and goals or choices that will take us farther away. I know I plan on taking more time to think about the choices I make that will take me closer to my dreams and to take care of my health so I can live a long and productive life.
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Monday, May 4, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Seeing the Country
It has been almost 3 months since I have posted anything. Here is an update. In my intial post I talked about the infection in my leg. It got to the point where I was admitted to the hospital where I spent 20 days with an IV tube connected and a constant flow of antibiotics. I lost about 20 pounds and when I got out found that that long being inactive makes one weak. I finally got released from my Doctors and have again resumed my job escorting oversize loads.
After the nearly 8 weeks with no jobs I was getting a bit worried about keeping the bill collectors at bay for a while longer while I again began to get the cash flowing again. The loads I escorted began slowly with some short loads to Kentucky and then the weather began to break and the jobs began to come in. With a job going to Eastern Oregon then to Northwest Montana.
The job of being an Escort or Pilot Car driver is an interesting job. First you must enjoy driving because you might drive 200 to 700 miles a day with restrictions for daylight hours and certain hours of restriction in bigger metropolitan areas curtailing your driving times. Then weather like the last blast of winter storms that recently hit the Rocky Mountain States.
Once you get to your destination you sometimes have to wait to be unloaded. Since I escort mainly Wind Energy components if it is too windy or rainy or snow then you must wait until the trucks can be taken to the job site to be unloaded.
As you can see being a Pilot Car Driver is a varied job with lots of driving and sometimes waiting and then once you deliver your load you get to deadhead or drive with out escorting a load to your next load destination or sometimes a few days home. You meet many interesting people from fellow escort drivers to Truck drivers to the local people you interact with when you stop at Truck Stops, Resturants, Motels etc.. You see beautiful country and get an idea how big and diverse our country the United States of America is. You see breathtaking sunsets and sunrises. High mountain peaks where you get the feeling the tops are touching the very edge of Heaven. You see new homes built along the way sometimes just a short distance from century old buildings that time has eroded that was the dream of a family years before you own existence. Sadly you also see roadside memorials left at the spot where a loved one lost their life.
In the posts to follow I will try to describe some of the sites, feelings and observations that I experience as I travel the country side. One thing you also do while being an escort driver is you spend lots of time alone thinking and observing. Until next time ....
After the nearly 8 weeks with no jobs I was getting a bit worried about keeping the bill collectors at bay for a while longer while I again began to get the cash flowing again. The loads I escorted began slowly with some short loads to Kentucky and then the weather began to break and the jobs began to come in. With a job going to Eastern Oregon then to Northwest Montana.
The job of being an Escort or Pilot Car driver is an interesting job. First you must enjoy driving because you might drive 200 to 700 miles a day with restrictions for daylight hours and certain hours of restriction in bigger metropolitan areas curtailing your driving times. Then weather like the last blast of winter storms that recently hit the Rocky Mountain States.
Once you get to your destination you sometimes have to wait to be unloaded. Since I escort mainly Wind Energy components if it is too windy or rainy or snow then you must wait until the trucks can be taken to the job site to be unloaded.
As you can see being a Pilot Car Driver is a varied job with lots of driving and sometimes waiting and then once you deliver your load you get to deadhead or drive with out escorting a load to your next load destination or sometimes a few days home. You meet many interesting people from fellow escort drivers to Truck drivers to the local people you interact with when you stop at Truck Stops, Resturants, Motels etc.. You see beautiful country and get an idea how big and diverse our country the United States of America is. You see breathtaking sunsets and sunrises. High mountain peaks where you get the feeling the tops are touching the very edge of Heaven. You see new homes built along the way sometimes just a short distance from century old buildings that time has eroded that was the dream of a family years before you own existence. Sadly you also see roadside memorials left at the spot where a loved one lost their life.
In the posts to follow I will try to describe some of the sites, feelings and observations that I experience as I travel the country side. One thing you also do while being an escort driver is you spend lots of time alone thinking and observing. Until next time ....
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