Out with the old and in with the new

I have been driving under restrictions for a few months but only self imposed restrictions.

After getting into trouble about a post I put up I decided that the old adage silence is golden made perfect sense and so stopped taking pictures and having opinions. I actually stopped having opinions.
I was like a robot, going from A to B to C and sometimes as much as Z without even a thought about the people I met or the scenery I was driving through.
Then it dawned on me, I wasn't happy driving anymore.
I did it for the money.
Well the money doesn't matter as much as it used to anymore thanks to a brilliantly talented wife, so Ive took the plunge and stopped lorry driving.

I have a friend that collects cars and I have offered to help him when hes stuck so I'm sort of self employed again and my own boss.
Its already a great feeling and I cant wait for the weeks ahead looking after the kids and also keeping busy with the car collecting.

Ill miss Lorry's and I will drop back into driving them after the summer I'm sure but for now I'm happy doing this and that's what its all about eventually. Happiness.what I'm doing now
and where I'm blogging about it

A new year and a new start ?

This blog had stalled lately,partly because of me letting the Job wear me down and partly because the places I were going to were not interesting enough to blog about.
This year I want to make the blog more than a photo album and also a place that's useful to drivers.
I've been trying to get some technology into the blog and report on thing that could help drivers do the job better.
Technology isn't easy to get your hands on unless you buy it yourself of course so thanks to Truck & Driver and my host RT.com for getting me some gadgets to report on. I'll post my reveiws from last year here in the next few days.

I'll still put up pictures and I'll not be able to resist having a moan and a rant but I'll also try and highlight a few issues and reveiw any technology I can get my hands on as well.




Another post from Lorryday.

Lost blog.

After a few years writing this blog I'm finding it more and more difficult keeping up with it.


I still post pictures I take of things that interest me out on the road but less things interest me or excite me these day.


This was a ford escort Mexico and still had mud over the arches and was being used for rallying still.



Now you see him.



Now you don't. Unloading wag and drags.



Missed this sign the first time and couldn't find the bell.


The amazon gate looks busy.



So does the holding cage at Doncaster Amazon.



It's emptied out but I'm still not going anywhere.


Iconic livery on show

Halloween

As it was Halloween on Sunday I put my pumpkin near the window to show my solidarity to the trick or treaters and to let them now that my household was partaking in the American custom of demanding money with menaces that has swept the UK in the last few years, but for some reason no one arrived.

I sat for the next few hours stuffing all the treats  that my kids and wife had left out to tempt the tricksters away.

This left no time to write a blog about the past  week .

You should know that it was much like the last week and the one before that, but with different scenery.

The people were very much the same and the people I work with lived up to expectations.

I did get one small crumb of comfort with Newcastle 5-1 thrashing of Sunderland.

I have been doing a regular run up to Washington and they were a very awkward bunch of lads at a particular site last Friday were the red and white was rather prevalent, but come Monday morning when I was back up at 8 am, the atmosphere had somewhat changed.

I did find a part of the south that I like though. It was full of orchards and the roads had names like Pipin lane and Breaburn drive Cox corner was a good one as well.

I wasn't delivering apples though i was delivering wood and although not always easy to find, you will always get a warm welcome of a joiner. They seem a cheery bunch, happy with the world and their surroundings.

A lorry drivers delight

Night driving is a delightful experience.No traffic, no TM ringing every few minutes and a simple A -B route.


 I had a great drive down from the lakes last week after a night out at the number one truckers choice truck stop on the M6 at Junction 38 . It wasn't as good as the write up in the magazine and I witnessed  one if the strangest practices I have ever seen inb a cafe. As I was eating , I was glancing up at a TV in the corner of the room showing the weakest link when one of the waitress started putting chairs on the empty tables, right in front of mine and other diners view. It was a really strange situation because, being early evening and  with the room filling up, it sent out a strange, unwelcome message, as if they didn't really want you there.

The food wasn't great either and at £6.99 just for a meal  (drinks extra) a £2 discount voucher was very welcome. I chose a curry but they couldn't provide a full portion of rice and offered a 50/50 mix of rice and chips instead. The waitress made sure I wasn't getting more than I was allowed and actually shook a few chips off the scoop when she gathered  up to much.

Anyway here's the pictures and sorry for taking so long between posts. Its been emotional !

 These pictures were taken at the new BAE bullet factory in Washington, but don't worry , they only make the shell casings here, the explosives are added later.

 As usual I was messed about by the security on site but I was eventually proved right. It was for your site and its OK no need to apologise!

 After my day in the North East it was time to follow that Roman Emperor wall and travel over to Whitehaven.

 OK , you don't get to see any of the wall but us trucks cant get near it.Sorry.

 One thing that Cumbria is good for is wind farming, it doesn't look very pretty and I'm told it doesn't make that much electricity but apparently it shows that we care about the environment, so that's OK then !

 This all lead to my night out at the Services mentioned at the top of the post.