El Dorado trip done and over with. Always a one day trip - at least - and considering it doesn't pay hardly anything it shouldn't take more than a day.

Only one load going out today.  That's how bad it is right now with the schedule.  Yet, yesterday, arriving in the yard there were only 3 trucks. The schedule has been light since last week so either people are going out on call duty or they are going home.  Otherwise, there should be at least 10 trucks sitting there.

Highly likely I will not get that nice Massachusetts run. I haven't been to that state in forever, would be nice to go just to see it - before winter gets here.  We must have picked up a new contract because I'v heard of this run for several months now.  Not many loads going up there, but it's a nice paying gig.  It's hard to live like this when you have no idea when you're going out next and your manager is never specific when you ask.

Or doesn't reply at all.  Which has always been normal for her, but still. Do you meal prep or not? Do you wait until the end of the day and hope you have a run "somewhere"? For example, if I did get the MA run, I'd want to know the morning before, like right now.  Spend the day cooking some stuff for the road.  It's a 7 day trip I think. 6 anyway.

But, if I'm going to Brownsville, not so much pre cooking. In fact, I can get away with none at all if it came down to it, with the Stripes gas station selling baked, half-chickens I can wing it for eating. Just get some veggies and some heavy whipped cream and a few other oddities for the road and I'm set.

It tout the Keto diet everywhere I go when the subject of diets comes up - and amazingly that subject comes up pretty often.  You see a heavy-set person and they are talking to another heavy-set person about diet and Keto just pops out of my mouth.  I tell them if you've tried other diets that have failed, try this one.  It will work if you follow it correctly.  And it works fast.  I got into that discussion yesterday at the guard shack at the plant I was at.  The drawback for everyone is always when you go down the list of things you can't eat, which is probably 90% of what any given person has been eating up until that point.  Lots of negatives but the huge positive is results.

Today? I have let the back yard go.  I mean, I don't do anything with it now because of the neighbors uphill of us.  They simply will not clean up the years old mess back there and every single time it rains, all of that s*** comes floating over onto our property and I just got to the point where I had had it.

Think of spending hours sweeping or using a blower to clean up twigs, branches, dirt, leaves and debris and then the next day a rain comes and their yard dumps all over yours?   Hours of wasted effort.  Really started getting to me and so I just stopped.  Well, James told me last night that they had finally cleaned up over there. I haven't been outside yet, remains to be seen but I'll go take a look in a few.  If they really did, I'll do a light cleanup and see what happens. Wait, maybe not. It's supposed to rain today so that kind of nixes that plan.  Hard to sweep or blow wet concrete.

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Day over.  Next trip sent. I dunno, I would say my manager screwed up, but this week's schedule is way messed up, light less than half the runs we would normally have.  I didn't get the Massachusetts run, but I didn't expect it.  I did  get a Brownsville run, the other alternative tomorrow was a Houston run. Another worthless run that takes up a day - or if a split trip - 2 days. 

I'm happy to get the Brownsville run. The one I did 2 weeks ago that had me down there 2 nights was worth $1,600. That's just 3 days out. I'd gladly take another of those, but even at mileage and stop pay only I'm good with it.  Oh, and my company did reimburse me the hotel stay.  The next time I get stuck down there 2 nights and my manager doesn't respond to my text for a hotel? I'm going to Marriott.  That's what the company gives - I won't get their rate and I don't care.  I'll get reimbursed and that's that. 

Oh, and yes, they did clean up their back yard next door!! I was shocked.  It was allllllllll cleaned up, the only thing on the ground was the leaves that have fallen off the trees since they did it.  I love trees, I really do, but these trees?  Can burn.  I would say struck by lightning but they are so big they would crush this or their house if they fell on either and anyone in it's way would be quite dead.  These trees are HUGE. 

Well, time to go to bed.