ROUTE: Canton, MI to Cranbury, NJ: 644 miles (613 loaded + 31 deadhead)
The assignment should have been from Detroit, MI to Cranbury, NJ but I wanted to stop by our terminal to have the mechanics check my truck’s batteries to see if one or more of the four were defective that forced me to need a jump on Tuesday morning. I arrived at the terminal at 17:00 but have to wait two hours for the truck to go in the shop. The shipper closed at 21:00 so there was no guarantee I would be out of the shop in time. Fortunately, there was a Local Driver available and he went to pick up the load and bring it to the yard for me. The batteries were fine but I was improperly using the Optimized Idle function of the truck that maintains the temperature constant throughout the night.
I needed to advance the load at least a couple of hours on Thursday if I was to make the delivery on Friday. The assignment requires 10 drive hours and any hold up for traffic would conflict with the DOT Regulation of 11 Drive Hours Maximum per day. The Petro Truck Stop in Girard, OH was three-and-half hours drive and there’s an Indian Food Truck that is opened until 03:00. I had a Ramen Noodle Soup from a box to tie me over until a proper dinner later that evening.
Unfortunately the truck’s maintenance took longer than expected as they had to resolve an issue with the oil valve that had triggered an engine light. The truck came out of the shop at 21:30 and I started the assignment at 22:00. I could still arrive to the Petro by 01:30 and have dinner. The problem was that I started that day at 08:00 and though I could overcome the 14 Hour DOT Regulation because I had done a Split while the truck was getting looked at but I was pushing my endurance. By midnight I was exhausted. I had worked 16 hours that day. I decided to shut it down at an Ohio Travel Plaza on I-80 and skip dinner.
Friday 11/21 I started my day at 11:00 with a Starbucks’ cappuccino and a bagel. I could not start before 10:00 because the DOT Regulation mandating a break of at least 10 hours. I was still eight hours away from the consignee but I needed to arrive by 22:00, so I was in no hurry. There’s a Russian restaurant, KavKaz, off I-80 which I enjoy and decided to stop there for a late lunch / early dinner. They make a great beef and vegetable soup, Greek salad and bread, which I had. I arrived at the consignee at 21:00 and spent the night there.
BOOK REVIEW: A Slash of Emerald by Patrice McDonough (2025), FICTION – RATING (***)
It’s good, not great and a far cry from the author’s debut novel, Murder by Lamplight.
The first book has incredible chemistry between the two main characters, Dr. Julia Lewis and the secondary one, Scotland Yard Inspector Richard Tennant. There’s a brewing romance growing between them. The plot is secondary and Dr. Lewis shines empowering women along the way.
This book is the opposite: the plot leads the story and the author tries to convey the same woman empowerment with a story that highlights the demeaning of women forced into prostitution. Dr. Lewis’ role is diminished and her feelings toward Inspector Tennant increased, who seems to be the main character this time around.
The collaborative spirit between the two main characters like Sherlock Holmes and Watson is lost in this novel. Though vaguely entertaining and a final twist that is supposed to shock but it doesn’t. The ending is from a five-cent romance novel and cannot rescue the rest of the story.
