So the engine brake assembly is not only acting up and stuck open. But the knocking is not normal for it either. SO, yay for not injector...but then again, I would rather have it be injector. Cause now we are waiting for their Caterpillar tech to get back in on Friday to take the engine brake off of the engine head to see if there's damage to the head along with what is wrong with the engine brake.

So till Friday for sure, I am in Greensboro, NC......doing nothing. And I guess half sis is having an episode cause I can't get a hold of her. Ah well, I wasn't expecting anything. I was hoping for a place to hang out, but I wasn't expecting it. I just wanted to at least say hello. Ah well, out of the 3 of us, she's the most unstable sadly. Don't help we were not in each other's lives till recently, so to be fair, I can't expect much other than a greeting when she feels ready to deal with the world.

This month had been a bad start financially. Mainly cause I had to doge a bunch of bad weather that kept coming in right after the other. I found myself working a couple of days, then sitting out to wait out for the storms to pass, then work a few more days again. Then repeat process. Though this weekend been very bad since truck decided it needs work. A new tail light and two new airbags on Saturday. Then this morning before I started to leave for a new run, an injector or two died. So the truck now idles roughly and smokes worst than a chimney. Thankfully the area I am in is a bit warm right now. I can deal with 50 F weather compared to below freezing weather. Bad enough the fuel powered bunk heater died on recently.

Ah well, I get to be towed to Greensboro, NC later in the morning. Too bad I don't know any of my step Dad's relatives in this area. And I doubt my half sister will have the time to drive up from Wilmington to say hi. Heh, ah well, maybe I'll luck out and get this fixed same day I get towed in. I can only hope.

Hop everyone had a good new year. I been doing okay. Work is annoying. But I don't know when it never was. I'll just say that despite the slow downs due to weather issues, I am doing okay.

Random thoughts. I sometimes wonder how my life would have been like if I stayed in the Philippines. Last time I was there was in 95. Yet after losing contact with friends and people I call family there, I been slowly able to reconnect with them due to Facebook. And it's nice that there are people who still appreciate you despite losing contact. Life is too short and precious. And it weirds me out how North Americans are so obsessed with keeping contact and attention that if you slip away for a little while, you are horrible and must be axed. That's just....horrible way of thinking. But then again, I have to remind myself that most of North Americans family were immigrants at one point. And majority of them lost contact with family either on purpose, or not. Either way,there's no sense of wanting to keep trying to keep in contact with people....yet they get so butt hurt if a buddy is too busy with work that they hadn't heard from that person in ages. I just don't get it. But what ever, I guess. I kinda miss that country. But with how stood out like a sore thumb and their current President.....maybe it's best I am in my home country. But then again, we still hadn't seen what Trump could do yet. All I can say and do is wait and see.

So what did anyone do this New Years? I just sat at my sister's home, watching movies with her and her husband. About it really.

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas. I been in Indianapolis, IN for the Holidays. Just visiting my sister mainly. Nothing much more really.

Everyone have a happy New Year.

May next year be much better. Frankly, I am not bummed from all the celebrity deaths this year....mainly cause this will happen. And I recall through the years seeing reports of famous folks passing on....yet they meant nothing to me due to being long before my time. I guess reason most of my generation is feeling bummed from all these star deaths are because they were during OUR time. So I can see it being depressing. But life moves on. And I am sure if they were alive, they would say the same thing. Nope, what makes this year shitty is all the nutty politics around the world for me at least.

Maybe I am being a jerk about this. But it annoys me seeing so much patriotic shit on tv today (Faux News mainly) about remembering Pearl Harbour. Now I like to remind those that I was born on Honolulu, lived on Hickam, which is a cut off section that as part of Pearl Harbour. So yeah, I do take that history to heart.

BUT what grind my gears is everyone here wants to remember it as the all determining factor to jump in. That Japan poked the hornets nest on USA in a cruel taunt. That they attacked the USA soil.

I want to fucking remind you all that Hawaii was NOT a State at the time, it was a Territory. Just like Alaska, Guam, and the Philippines. And during the time Japan blown away our defences on Hawaii, they were seen patrolling dangerously close to Alaska's coastline, even dangerously close the mainlands Pacific coast.

But the biggest audacity that we choose to ignore is Japan conquered Guam and the Philippines, and what ever else we had out in the pacific. We LOST land to the Japanese. We LOST LAND. Stop talking like we never lost shit you fuck tards. If you want to demand us to remember this moment of our past, then get it fucking right. We lost many men and women on Guam and Philippines. Especially the Philippines, we had way more soldiers and civilians there compared to that tiny tourist trap of island chains called Hawaii. I am an islander so I can say this shit. Especially since I have lived on Guam and the Philippines at some point in my life. It's insulting to be swept under the rug of history like that in favour of a tourist trap of a state (Hawaii statehood 1950).

Sorry, I want to remember this politely. But with how everyone is skewing the history to make it look better for their image is totally fucked up.
But then again, I guess we like to screw up our own history since we like to tell our kids we didn't lose Vietnam. And nowadays we only remember and mourn a bunch of business suites in two giant business towers and forget about a plane full of civilians who diverted their plane away from the White House on 9/11. Or even a plane that hit the Pentagon.

Seriously blatant we only care about the elites and business.....Hawaii was and still is where elites go on vacation. Hard for me to ignore that. Look who we clamoured to in hopes to break the mold our politicians games.....an elite.

I was in Washington state for the Thanksgiving holiday.  mikefurry came down to join in on my Mother's little feast. Well, little in choices....but there was a lot of it. And just lounged really. It was a good relaxing week. Even got to see an old high school buddy of mine. Funny, he got into security. Almost everyone I knew including myself had been in security at least once now.

Ah well, about it. I get back to work.....current dispatcher LOVES to keep giving me fucking Wal-mart loads to Hurricane, UT. Thing is, it's an easy load to Hurricane. I made it a day earlier than I planned too despite having fun sliding around Oregon's mountain passes on Wednesday. And I was able to shoot through Thursday without getting into trouble with minor snow fall. BUT once in Hurricane, UT. FUCK.....sit there all day, nothing for work. So once midnight came around, I gave up and flipped a coin on where to go.

Either back to Salt Lake City, which would be 4 hours, and predicting snow here and there....BUT there's lot's of work for me to head out of there. Problem I have going there is my dispatcher....once again...LOVES to send me BACK to Hurricane, UT. Been a couple of times I drove straight back there after drop off in Hurricane that I ended up either trading with a truck, or going to our drop yard near Salt Lake for a load BACK down. SO I am not really excited to shoot there.

Other choice that I ended up doing this time was take the 2 hour drive down to Las Vegas, NV. Only problem with Las Vegas.....fucking time vamp. Both Hurricane and Las Vegas become time vamps for me because they got more loads heading into California than away from it. And my truck is not California legal. SO unless I plan to spend time in Las Vegas (which I never have the funds for) it's pointless. BUT the weather is predicted to be nice this weekend IF I end up being stuck here. And unlike Hurricane where there's little to nothing for amenities for me as a Driver (though they have tones of truck/trailer services there for a dead town), Las Vegas got lots of amenities and even things to do. SO....pick my poison.

Nothing much to do in Hurricane other than go off road in....what ever you could think of. Top 10 list of things to do there is mainly off road.....and bars. SO I guess either go off road or get drunk in Hurricane. SO....why not both? And while I am at it, since they got services for 4x4, bikes of any types, and even go carts.....why not let me let loose with my tractor.....may as well. Frankly, neither interest me, and one of the activities would get me in huge shit due to my license and technically still "at work". Seriously, that area sucks. I'll be honest. It's got everything to make it a hub, yet SHIT available for drivers to move the shit for them. They have two truck stops.....one is out of town south of them for about 15 miles, and it's tiny and always jammed packed. And the one in their area that I was sitting at....is really just a gas station that shuts down at night. Got tiny truck parking....and no showers. And work expects me to be happy to sit there for the weekend? If the place I was at at least had showers, I wouldn't have left and been happy to wait for work.

Ah well, I am rambling. Year is nearly done....and I feel like I still hadn't done much to improve my situation in the last few years of coming back to this damn industry. BUT at least I am living within my comforts. All I can do nowadays. Leave the rat race for the rats. I just want to be comfortable.

Derp de derp derp.

Played by Rob Schneider.

I am late with my thoughts about Trump winning. But I actually saw this happening the moment he popped up on TV and said for sure he's running for President. I didn't want to believe he'll win. But I figured he would at least get as far as run neck to neck with whom ever was the other parties choices.

I am still to this day amazed with how early we start out presidential runs before the actual election day. So damn early to the point the news becomes old and the only thing that is keeping us interested is the dirt found for either candidate. Though the act that both parties offer for the public started off as typical as I had always seen it. A bunch of people pop up to run for their respective parties. Yet there's always an obvious choice candidate who'll pop up and get the most media attention. Hillary was already chosen, if we wanted to believe it or not, despite all the other lack luster choices except for Bernie Sanders. Bernie Sanders STILL have a bunch of people who still wanted him as their choice. But Hillary was obviously chosen before the race began. Subtle hints where all over the place.

Jeb Bush was the Republican already chosen. The not so subtle hints were all over (Fox News anyone?) the place. He was presented as a sound, sane choice over the other nut job choices there was. Both parties played their game of offer us choices despite it was obvious they made up their minds. I think starting so early was the wool over our eyes to get us to grow used to their choices and have us manipulated enough to go with their eventual choices.

THEN Donald Trump jumps in. Before anyone thinks I am pro Trump, I am not. I despise the guy. But I have to give him his credit as much as I give anyone I may or may not like credit. Trump jumps in and ruins the Republican's game. NOBODY in the media or in any political party took hm seriously and thought he'll drop out quickly. But if their choices and how they played the game showed any indication, they truly underestimated AND disrespected the public's intelligence and willingness to choose whomever they want (for better or for worst).

The Democrats during their entire game to convince their supporters to go with Hillary as it was blatantly obvious their supporters were going for Bernie Sanders, admitted they are not worried about Trump and don't see him as a threat. I drive across America for a living and pass through lots of rural and industrial areas. I RARELY saw a Hillary sticker or sign. I have however found many Bernie Sanders supporters as much as I have found many Trump supporters out there. IF the Democrats stopped their stupid game and just went with Bernie Sanders, I bet the race would have been extremely neck to neck till the bitter end. Though at that point, I wouldn't even know the outcome.

The Republicans obvious fought much harder and harder to the point the party is very blatantly split from Trump running under their ticket. Jeb Bush's approval ratings, who was higher than the rest of his colleagues, shot down so fast that the Bush family fought back with every member and their own money they can toss in there along with their huge supporters. BUT of course, it's quite obvious at that point that even their own party supporters do not want another W. Bush like presidency, which was all Jeb Bush was offering. So now we are stuck with nut job Trump vs the rest of the nut job choices. I had little hopes at this point since the other choices in my mind were much more insane than Donald Trump. Frankly, there were many moments even I was hoping for Trump since he was saner out of the rest of them. And then he choose Mike Pence as Vice President. Seriously, the biggest worry I have with Trump is his Vice President Pence. And Indiana is my home away from Home, so I still have a fresh taste of what Vice President could do in the next 4 years.

So of course when Trump won the nomination from his party, I just had to throw my arms up and say we are doomed. And I did the same when the Democrats choose Hillary when it was obvious there were Bernie supporters all over the place. I don't care what anyone says, if you have a large number of people willing to come out of the wood work to demand someone else over the one you chose....there's a problem in your party. Frankly, I find the Democrats are split as much as the Republicans are split. Just the Democrats do their best to cover and spiff up their cast over their wound only to see blood soaking the bandages. Unlike the Republicans who have a huge open gash with bones sticking out and they can't do nothing about it other than scream in pain while still trying to convince us there's nothing to see here, get back to work.

At that point, I figured we were done. So I started to look at 3rd parties more seriously.....I had ranted about it in the past that we have many other choices. Sadly, when I look at the others.....fuck, they are just as insane and un-informed as Trump.

At this point, at least for me, I found myself looking at Hillary the most. Never thought I would, but I did.

So during the rest of the reality TV viewing of the election race, I decided to ignore the news shit fest and try to keep up with unbiased news and compare them to the shit I am hearing with the general public I deal with day to day out there. From Truck Stops, rest areas, shippers, stores, any place I can stop at with a semi truck and mingle. And it was very clear to me about two things.

One, Trump will win. If not the electoral, then definitely the popular vote.

Two, Bernie Sander supporters are extremely die hards. If the Democrats just went with Bernie Sanders, he would have been a worth contender.

Now the other big issues I noticed with this race when it concerns to Hillary is all the Scandals that was on her prior to even starting to run. I honestly believe if she waited for 2020 instead, not only would these scandals had been done and over with (if she is not convicted by then and is allowed to let that rest), she may have a chance for 2020. Instead, Hillary not only lost the election, but I feel due to this loss on top of the public's too much interest in her scandals, it might not be possible to get support for President in the future. Which is quite sad in a way.

The Republicans, despite showing how ugly they can be with their choices and the actions of their choices, maybe seen in a better light due to actually going with their supporters choice, despite being very blatantly clear they do not want Trump as their nominee. I got to respect the Republican party for those reasons alone. Cause the Democrats spat in their supporters faces when it was obvious Bernie was getting the most support. Don't get me wrong though, Hillary was up there for support too. She wasn't on the bottom of the list. Bernie and Hillary was neck to neck, so I can't say the Democrats are pure jerks for taking Hillary outright. But from what I seen across the nation, Bernie Sanders was the top choice by their supporters, and they snubbed it for their obvious choice.

Election day, and watching "Unbiased Biased" news was fun. MSNBC was showing their coverage with a corner dedicated on who they think will win, which was Hillary Clinton. While watching Fox News it was blatantly obvious they figured Trump will win. Frankly, it could have gone either way. But at the end of the election, Trump won by a huge margin.

SO here we are. With a President that the Simpson was only joking about this 16 years ago. Now a reality. The majority have spoken. I hope nothing horrible happens once he moves into the oval office. Yes I am scared. But we all can not say we know what will happen in these 4 years. Hell, I don't even know. I may have predicted Trump will win, but I don't know the future. After all, I went with observation of the public to figure out the outcome. Trump and his advisers are not in my sights and ears. SO I won't know till it happens. I will say he's bringing in some of the nutty nutty nut jobs....so I can only guess it will be bad. But like I said, we don't know till it happens. He may just surprise us supporters and succeed in making things better.

This is a democracy folks. And like anything and everything, what makes something strong is also it's weakness. What makes Democracy great is we the people get to choose our leaders. What makes Democracy weak is we get to choose our leaders. Think about that for a bit. Cause there are way too many people who is willing to argue that the majorities choice was the wrong choice. Maybe, maybe not. But not for me to say, especially at the start, or in the middle of a leader's run.

If Trump wants to impress me, see if he can some how fix Congress so WE the People can choose our Congress leaders. After all, they hold the REAL power. The President is only a chosen representative of the people to voice OUR concerns and wants to these old farts. Lots of things never get done because of them.

I want to comment that those who are making huge protest over Trump winning are really brats. No, I will say it so because it shows there's no respect for our system (stooping to Trumps level of no respect for our system), and having a very self centered view of the world. Sorry if your vote was not THE vote to change the tide. Just because you believe things should be how you see it don't mean everyone agrees. That is why we have debates and discussions about things. Trump is in, like it or not. Instead of fighting that he's not your choice, why not start working on protecting the things he may change or remove.

And finally, the biggest issue I have from this election run is there are so many fake news sites popping up left and right to the point it is hard to find what is false and what is true anymore. I seen too much dirt on both sides that was made up than real. Also the hypocrisy on both sides. Not to mention how people seem to welcome Wiki Leaks as a god send even though they are doing shit far worst than Eric Snowden had done. All he had done was prove American Leaders was spying on their own people. Wiki Leaks IS blatantly spying on everyone AND releasing all forms of calsified information...which is WAY MORE than Snowden had done.

Ah well, that's my ramble. 4 years of Trump. All I can say is be civil (which he is not) and work with the system as best as we can to insure our well being is still the focus. Fighting Trump is only going to make things worst. And the biggest things I worry about is he might cause WW3, alienate us from our allies. That's the worst I worry. The least he could....BUT still a grave concern since I am sure it will happen is we may see Pence's Indiana become the nation. SO start preparing for LEGAL means to voice and protect our friends and family who maybe homosexuals. And also carry your proof of citizenship. It maybe like Cheech's movie "Born in East LA" where an American born Mexican/American guy got mixed up with a group of illegal Aliens and got deported with them due to not having his proof of identification. And he was stuck in Mexico without knowing anyone, nor even the language. I get shit in Florida and Texas by the whites down there, thinking I am Mexican for some fucked up reason. And I have had boarder guards in the past question my ethnicity many times when I come back in from Canada. That shit in that movie is NOT far fetch at all.

SO....hope for the best, prepare for the worst. Though stop kicking and screaming like a brat.

What do I have to show? I guess more than I thought I would. Funny, 4th of July was my 10nth anniversary on FA. Been lots of ups and downs on here....so I have seen. As for myself, not so much. I think there's only been about 3 to 4 incidents on here that left me enraged. But most of the time, nothing much really bothered me. I came on here originally to just watch other artist and keep up with people. I even posted a story to see if it catch on. It never did, but years later I got a bunch of art and even some of those stories drawn. So I guess I was part of the contributing crowd. Even if it wasn't much. Or not even note worthy. Strangely, I didn't make many friends on here either. But the little that still stuck by, I adore you. Though I still adore those who had slipped away, so I adore all. Only about 2 to 3 I rather keep the door shut. At least till I noticed they finally figured out why I slammed the door in the first place. But that would never happen.....after all, it takes a shit lot to get me to do that. SO....yeah, good job there for those special small few.

Anyways, would I make another 10 years on here? Or in ten years this place becomes a shadow of it's former glory like Velar...er.....Vixen Controlled Library have become? Granted, that place was a bitch to try to get onto. I think what made FA fly up the ranks is mainly anyone can join. You could contribute anything....or nothing at all. Just being on here means you are part of a community. It's not perfect, and every now and then some infighting happens that ends up changing things. But in the end, for what it is, I can't complain.

Ah well, about all I have to say. Cheers.

Well, not really. But I been home for a week back in Washington state. Relaxed a little, then  mikefurry came to visit. It was a good visit despite us fighting on his PC to get it to work. I gave him my old AMD2+ board along with the processor that was on it. The big issue was getting his Windows HDD to boot up. Seems to have locked us out since the last time it was used, it was put into hibernation. I have no idea why the hell it would do that, or why it really happened. Nor do I know why Windows nowadays have removed the old FDSK software, yet they kept the old boot manager along with a newer master boot record.....basically there was more than one way to boot windows.....and we had to figure out which it was. UGH, long story short, figured it out, got it booting. After that, worked on another PC from a friend of mine, worked on his van, and in between those....got lost. Ah well, it was good.

Then right after he left, I was too tired to do anything other than sleep day in, day out. And I have to go back to work tomorrow...ugh.

Yeah, about it.

I'll catch up with uploading the current comic strips on here very soon. I don't have the strips on my home PCs, it's on my laptop that I use while on the road.

I am finding this week to being very horrific for a lot of reasons. Though sadly, it's not the tragedies itself that are on my mind, but the REACTIONS toward these tragedies.

Seriously, we all want to point blame at everyone and everything and claim to talk about the truths. But in reality, can't even put into consideration that maybe, just maybe, we have a bit of blame toward these things. That maybe, just maybe we too are just as blind, narrow minded, and even biased toward what we see and hear.

These events are all horrible. And everyone wants to come up with their own theories on why it happened, their fingers pointed at their thoughts on who to blame. And then come up with their loony solutions despite not once realize that we don't truly know why this all happened. Only know what is told from the media. I know for a fact I wouldn't want to be a cop. But somebody needs to do this job.

I won't get into my OPINIONS on the matter of why this happened and what was going through everybody minds. Cause no matter how strongly I feel about it, it's opinions, not fact. Especially when the facts are not fully out there. And our justice system is supposed to let these go to trial and to have it figured out if it was just or not. Innocent before proven guilty....no matter how obviously guilty it may appear.

I will say this. Some says there's a division being made, a disparity. A racial disparity being made by the media. Frankly, there's always been a racial disparity. ALWAYS, regardless what side of the fence you are on. One day you maybe the ones getting the best, next day at the bottom. But it's always been there. I get my fair share of it as much as I at times unwittingly realize I committed some myself. I am not perfect, but I can at least try to be a decent person. Doing your best is better than not doing it at all.

This issues I see with the reactions toward these incidents isn't just racism. BUT more on the lines what a person does for a living, and what neighborhood they are from/in. The Media is making it look like only one group is getting the shaft. But in reality, it's everyone, just more of one group getting noticed... But that particular group is getting the most notice mainly cause they truly are getting the unique, horrible cases. But if this was truly a racist manner, mind if I ask why the shooter in Dallas shot ANY cop? If this truly was a racist, black gunner, I am sure they would have made better shots at non-blacks...or more particularly, whites only. It's my thoughts, my opinion. But this is more of class warfare masked as a racial issue. It's got it's elements, and even fueling the fire. But it's not THE real issue.

The biggest thing I am hearing the most is people bitching about government, regardless what side you are on. After all, the police are part of the services provided or at least partially managed and kept in check. And a lot of these issues seem to be between police and the public. Trayvon Martin is unique since it was not a cop who shot him. But it was the courts who deemed the shooter not guilty. Even though I personally believe the SHOOTER is guilty. But that's my opinion. But there's definitely a disparity between the public and government. Just for some reason, ONE particular group of the public is being used as fodder on news to show this disparity. Cause really, if they showed cops shooting anyone else, it would make the whole nation there's a huge issue with our trusted government. Instead, pin a group as fodder, and everyone but that particular group will just live on thinking everything is okay. You know, okay for all...except for that particular group. And that group I am sure....who knows...may lash out someday?

The biggest issue to me is US. ALL of us. It disturbs me to sit in public places and listen in to people loudly talking about things they don't know, blaming leaders and what not or even blaming the victim. And throughout these rants say some narrow minded shit that is both bigoted and racist. And they have the gull to say that their opinions are all facts. They are opinions, not fact. And that's probably the only thing I'll say that is fact....that our so called facts on the matter we had nothing to do with are really opinions.

Point of all this? I hear people rant away about groups of people, don't matter if it's race, movement, or clan....job...what ever. And fitting everyone and everything is a stereotypical box. And have the gull to say either that cop was racist for thinking that just because that guy is black that he'll shoot him. Or the gull to say that cop did nothing wrong. I can go on and on with my opinions about these tragedies when it comes to the actual tragedy, but I am not going to.

I am seeing too much shit about right wing, left wing. And to me, THAT is the deep rooted problem right there. IF you are so fixated with right side of the political spectrum you are on and are only interested in hearing with what fits under a guideline of a check list that represents your political alignment. Then you are the problem.

WHY I say that? If you can stand there and tell me why such and such side is causing such and such rift. Guess what? YOU are doing exactly what you blame the OTHER side for. And IF you can do that, then you can easily place groups of peoples into boxes and categories. To make judgments based on those categories within a special check list for each.

Want to fix this crazy world? Free your mind. Not just colorblind, but just plain blind towards factions, institutions, and what ever else is out there to "guide" your thoughts and beliefs into a pre-set direction. And importantly, TALK.

This nation have this huge belief that it is a legal thing in courts when it comes to harassment cases is, "It's not the context that you delivered, but how the context is received." In other words, what ever I say, I better say it right for the right ear, or I am in deep shit. This is once again, guilty before proven innocent. And I brought this up cause there's a lot of disparity also between a lot of groups who think a side represents something, but it doesn't. Most people I see who never research "Black Lives Matter" movement think it's a group set on Black superiority. Look it up, talk to people who are in it (and I mean in it deep), just because it reads like it is, it actually isn't.

But then again, everything will always mean something different to other people. I mean, look at the Furry Community. We all see this differently, YET those who are not in it will try to generalize it. Think about that for a moment. I say dig, and look deep into it, at least find the meaning of it at it's core/start of it. At least try to get a better understanding on why this started. Then do the same for every side.

The other issue is we are too busy trying to find skeletons in everyone closet instead of looking at the actual case. Seriously? So this one guy who got shot had a criminal record? DID this guy tried to harm anyone? Did he resist arrest? If the answers are no, then there's no reason for the shooting to happen.

As for Dallas, like I said, I won't get fully into it. But I will say this. IF, IF, IF this is a retaliation toward these past injustices, this was a horrible way to go about it. And may have sparked even MORE unstable cops who'll shoot first then realize they fucked up after. They'll be more on edged officers willing to shoot than take chances.

I want to end this with saying I don't want to hear arguments about how statistic shows such and such does such and such horrible stuff to such and such. That doesn't fix the problem, it just points out how such and such are messed up. I would like to hear solutions for once. Or at least maybe discuss what maybe an issue and how to tackle it. And don't go into clothing either....seriously, just don't. Some of these guys in the past wear shit I would wear and they still got shot. Nope, don't go there about clothing.

WELL, normally I take time off for 4th of July due to slow work on the Independence Day weekend. BUT since I been suffering for more work, I took the chance. So far....slow work. But at least I got a load. Sadly, NOTHING after this. I am unloading at a Kroger DC in Louisville, KY. This industrial park is so dead that by the time I got to the DC, I expected it to be closed. But it's open. So I'll get unloaded. But after that, nothing. SO I am not sure what to do next. But the truck stops been WIDE open since last night. I mean, I parked at one only 30 minutes from here and it's usually jammed pack. Instead, it was barely 1/3 utilized. And from I am expecting (but could always be wrong), it should be just as wide open.

Ah well, enjoy blowing up parts of our nation to celebrate it's birthday.

Canada Day.....enjoy.

Heh, I swear, it's like there was a mass exodus out of Ontario through the Peace Bridge. Cause I was fighting for space on I-90 for a long time till I got onto I-81 in Syracuse, NY. Seriously, it's like as if Canada Day for Toronto is get the fuck out of Canada. I don't know, just something I noticed.

Ah well....now I am in Allentown, PA......nothing more to say other than I am in Allentown.

And not much more to say. Well, other than I been getting slow work this month....partially due to my truck being in the shop a lot. Though I am starting to think my new dispatcher is having issues. I mean, I met a couple of drivers who WAS on the same board as me till they requested a different dispatcher. Granted, I am starting to be tempted to request either a new dispatcher....or get my old one back. Fuck, I had my last dispatcher twice. And they keep taking me off his board whenever I go visit WA/BC. I guess they know there's a high chance I'll have my phone off if I am in BC. Then again, the second time I was taken off his board, there was no phone calls or even word to my dispatcher. Just *poof* I am on another board. Then my dispatcher calling me up all angry at them, but letting me know as nicely as he can what's happening. Heh, whee.

Anyway, since last post, I worked, then visit relatives due to truck break down. Another week of work, same thing, repeat. Though last weekend was planned to come out here to Buffalo to visit  sethtriggs and pick up meds. Got to see Kev too. She was super busy on catching up on work, but got a small moment to let me catch up on Steven Universe. She's got me hooked on that. Well, that, and GamerCat. Ah well, about all. Now I am sitting in Pembroke, NY, waiting for a damn load assignment. And work now all the sudden ranting at me to do my safety quarterly meetings. All it involves is logging onto a web site and watch videos and answer questions. THOUGH, I know I done it 4 weeks ago, but can't argue with them. BUT be nice to know they wanted me to do this when I was at Seth's so I can use the net there instead of using mine. Fuck, I only get so much data a month, and I already went over it before the cycle is up. I can't afford to go over it due to the nice hour long course of video after videos. I love how these guys work. Pay cheap, expect me to be willing to use my own funds to jump their hoops. Then again, supposedly, supposedly I have internet on the truck's computer. YET, I keep telling them mine is not turned on for some dumb reason.

Bah, rambling. The other reason I rarely talk like I used to is I seem to have nothing much to say unless I got something to rant about. And I just feel like I am turning people off from me. Just my insecurities.

Yep, it is. Nothing much to say about it other than I am on the road.

Last two weeks was slow on work. Which sucks. Part of it was cause of customers being a bit lazy with dishing out product like they promised when they made the scheduling (yeah, Nevada sucks for that). Spent a lot in Las Vegas, waiting. And when I finally got a good load heading straight to east coast, I get food poisoned on my way out of Las Vegas. I ended up giving up the load cause of it...stomach virus was horrendous. Sat for a couple days, then got back to work. Not much work since. Ugh, kinda frustrated. But ah well, at least I ended up stopping for a day at a truck stop that go decent food. So I am looking forward for a little good food once I decide to fully wake up. I am only 2 hours from the customer since this morning, and I have to deliver by 10 am tomorrow. So this works. I just hate driving in St. Louis. Ah well, whee, I'll.....go back to sleep.

Well, work got me home later than planned. But in a twist of things, good they did cause I ended up needing to be away longer than I thought I would need to. Long story short, I waited to be called in for Jury duty, never happened. Caught up with people I wanted to see including  Mikefurry. Hang out with him most of the time and even went up to BC to see a friend of ours and his mother. I was glad to visit. Though I was so drained that I think I was more of an annoyance than not. But heh, yay...I think....I am tired.

About it, home now, doing a lot of last minute packing. Once laundry done, get to bed, and then be dropped off to my truck.

This year have been a bit of a bummer. I almost cried for David Bowie, though I was already ready for him to go....just...still sad he left. But no surprise. But Prince. PRINCE? He seemed so healthy, and he's much younger than David. Prince, you were an eccentric. But unlike the other eccentric who became a butt of jokes even after his death, you kept classy in your own eccentric way. I'll miss your sense of humor and grand musical ideals.

http://www.snopes.com/bernie-sanders-truck-ban/


I put a link of this here cause I been highly annoyed with both sides about Bernie Sanders recent comment about taking "Trucks off the road." Totally taken out of context. But it seems the truckers around me seem to want to bash on the guy, thinking he'll ban our job, and bring trains out of the ashes. While the environmentalist think trains are dead and should be brought back to life by removing trucks all together.

I want to says that trains are not dead, but very damn well alive and profiting. They still offer retirement packages for their employees, and I do NOT mean 401k plans. I take loads to and from train yards all the damn time, and I am a long haul driver. They are not hurting for work. Matter of fact, what they ARE hurting is SPACE. Their yards are so damn small, it's frustrating to show up to hub and be told to come back later, they have no room to take my trailer at the moment. Also their infrastructure is sub par and poor compared to other nations out there today with tracks that can handle up to 200 mph while ours can only handle 65 mph....and that's not even 100% of the tracks being used. The other issue is there are many abandoned tracks that instead of trying to utilize these for another carrier to run them, or even set them up for public transportation like Am Track or local commuter trains, they are being ripped out for walk trails. Which is nice in a way. But this brings up the other problem. People demand more rail use, but these same people HATE seeing train tracks in their neighborhoods....especially the ones that are in use. It's a situation of, "I want that...but not in my back yard." WELL, where? Can't make a demand if you are not willing to make the sacrifice. It's highly unfair to demand others to sacrifice their well being and comforts in life if you are not will to do the same. The rail roads need to be upgraded, larger hubs, and more routes placed for it to be functional. They are hurting for an upgrade, but they sure are not dying off. And they are highly in use.

Also, the argument that trains are better than trucks on environment. Yes and no. Depends the time period. When I hear the argument about trains should have never been dropped for trucks, they never were dropped. They have always thrived. Just logistically trucks are more direct and quicker mainly cause of not dealing with hubs and transfer points. It's cheaper to hire me to pick up a load in Sumner, WA to drop that trailer off at a rail yard in Stockton, CA for it's travel to Fort Worth, Texas, than to have me drop the loaded trailer off near the train yard near Tacoma, WA for Fort Worth, Texas. Cause that load will have to jump rail lines to make the destination. Unlike me just taking it to Stockton, CA, and that load pretty much stays on the same line till Fort Worth, TX.

Funny thing about that load I just mention. One time I did that load, pick up in Sumner, WA, drop off in Stockton, CA. I did a bunch of random loads that week from California, to Fort Worth, Texas. I end up getting a load assignment to pick up at the rail yard west of Fort Worth, Texas. It was the same load I dropped off in Stockton, CA. I got to finish that load in Terrel, TX. Either way, I still made my miles that week.

Which brings me to the drivers going up in arms about this. I meet too many who think rail is dying and what little there is, is taking our jobs. It never left. Hell, until the 80s, all trucks were under the same guidelines, rules, and regulations as the rail road industry. Deregulation talked about in the 80s by drivers then is referring to when the trucking industry was split from the rail road industry in the eyes of the federal government. Either way, despite the split, believe it or not, both sides are still dependent on each other. It can't exist without the other. And there will always be demand for long haul drivers. THOUGH if the rail road industry can get the upgrades and improvements it needs, it will definitely drop the demand for long haul drivers. But it won't go fully away. Either way, I think most drivers are just taking what the guy said out of context cause they are bred to believe anything socialist like is evil and an attack on human rights. But hey, if you talk about removing their schools, police, and fire men force, they'll go ape shit.

As for the environmentalist...oh boy. Trains in the past wasn't environmentally friendly as they are today. When trucks started to get utilized more than trains, they were mostly still steam ran. Steam engines may sound great since it's using boiling water to move the train. BUT it needs a huge heat source. And it would burn wood, coal, anything at an alarming rate. There's a passenger steam train that runs in the summer between Denver, CO to Cheyenne, WY. It uses used motor oil in it's furnace to boil the water. It uses 54 gallons of oil a mile. Sit an think about that for a bit, not to mention it holds 14000 gallans of water in it's tanks. And some could store more than that. That's a lot of water and oil wasted. No, they NEVER was a better choice back then. NOWADAYS, I question that. BUT is it way better than the old steam trains. YES. Most trains nowadays use giant diesel engines. Which at first blew a lot of soot as much as semi's USED to. The train industry actually the major contributor in emission standards on diesel engines for decades that the trucking industry (and even diesel cars and trucks) in this country are only NOW starting to utilize since 2011. Both semi's and trains now emit next to nothing in emissions and soot. SO environmental wise, both industry are no longer a huge polluter. But here is were my mind is blown with environmentalist. They think a box truck is better for the environment than a semi truck? NO, it is not, the purpose for the large trucks, and in some states, multiple trailers on one truck, is to lower the usage of fuel by hauling as much as you can on one haul. THAT is actually the big benefit of trains is using one or two engines to haul a giant line of freight in one trip. If you use nothing but box trucks, you are increasing the demand for more trucks to haul the amount of freight a single 53 foot trailer can haul. In other words, when I listen to environmentalist, the arguments they give is not about environment, but about their comfort zones and their picture perfect world to drive their Volvo's through. They won't give up driving a car for a bus. And they want trucks gone, not because they supposedly pollute more than a train. BUT they don't like having to deal with trucks in their little world. They just want to drive their car through a picture perfect park with perfect people in their perfect new cars....cause old cars are fugly. And if you mention that a train line needs to be installed near their neighborhood, I guarantee you they'll be up in arms.....cause these same people probably live far from a train track, therefor it's out of site, out of mind. And it's obvious since they think trains are dead, needing a revival.

Honestly, I agree with Sanders and think we do need to fix up the rail system. It needs to be upgraded so it will be useful. Cause right now, it's only used for freight that really don't need to be shipped and delivered in a couple of days. It's for shipment that can be delivered at a later time. So you won't find a lot of perishable foods on rail road cars. Though there's a few truck carriers that are trying to find reliable ways to utilize the rail system for perishable goods. So you'll see trailers with refrigeration units on them. But non-perishable goods, no problem. Hell, I dropped loaded trailers full of Kraft foods all the time.

Anyway, got that off my chest. I am just amazed how both sides of this issue is so lost in their imagination to realize they got their information totally messed up. Trains were never dead, never was dying. But it does need upgrades. Either way, it will never take away jobs from the trucking industry. Hell, it's another form of freight to and from a rail yard. I'll take it.

I went to Furnal Equinox on th4e weekend. I must admit, it's the first time since I last showed up to Conifur 2004. Wow, it was so long ago that most people never even heard of it. Granted, I been to 3 other cons between 2006 to recent. But it just didn't have that feel that I missed about Conifur that Furnal seems to capture. And it's the friendliness and openness to mingle outside of a group's circle. It actually made me re-consider to try to pop up to more conventions. I was not impressed with my local Con, Rainfurrest. And I was disappointed with All Fur Fun 2009. Granted, I showed up for the last year it happened and pretty much witness a staff implosion before the doors even opened. SO if I have to give them credit for running a con with a last second staff, I say it was alright. I did show up to FurFright 2012...or was that 2011...I think 2012. It was good, but in the end, I still had that feeling of being boxed into a grouping than actually being part of a large picture....the con.

Ah well, I went off tangent. Funny thing is, I am kinda uneasy and shy about just dropping names. I came up to Toronto with  sethtriggs, and also stayed with him. I am not griping, I just find this amussing. But holy shit the block we were on had nothing but steak, steak, steak, STEAK. I love steak....but kinda on a budget. OH, and a buffet and Boston Pizza. Tucker's Market Place Buffet was actually very good.

I met a good number of people. Sadly I can't remember a lot of their names. But I was happy to meet  caroo. Didn't know he was going to show up...let alone was living on this continent.

Also met  Gozob. I think I hung out with him more in the afternoon. Real sweet guy. He mostly did bead art. It was selling well for him, and it was interesting to watch. But seriously, he's a wonderful guy.

Got to see  MaxBlackRabbit. He's always a sweet guy....and busy. I always look forward to seeing him. Also met  gnaw. Also a very sweet guy....and super busy.

 Henbe is a riot. I am amazed with how quick he is with penciling. Especially coloring pencils. He asked me if there's any other video game girls that needs to be "drawn" that hadn't had the "rule 34" treatment. I...couldn't think of any other than Freedom Planet. Anyone want to give suggestions?

 stylewager I always wanted to meet this guy. Been following his Della comic for a long time....despite large gaps here and there and being behind on his Brave New World stuff. So meeting him was good. And I bought a lot of stuff from him....I think I spent the most on him. Still got a lot to go over. He told me to do the con report. Okay, here it is. :-P

Met  LilMissBunBun She's sweet. Didn't want to bother her and her buddy much though, so I didn't hang around much. But just because I said that don't mean they are not approachable. That, and I thank them for the lolipops. Helps if you need quick energy.

I honestly didn't know  theredangel was going to be there. BUT then again, so many I watch, so little time for me to read all the journals. But after leaving Gazob to roam around more, I did a double take past The Red Angel. Only to say I recognize the art. BUT stupid me, I didn't recognize the name. When I look on FA, I just read "theredangel" as one word. SO of course seeing it spelled like it's supposed to made me look like a patient trying to remember his name as I was trying to put the peices together. We chatted a little and she looked at my badge and said, "Oh, I know you. You're the one who faves a lot of my stuff." Of course, silly me, that's when I realized who she is. Heheh, long story short, I got myself on her commission list. Hehehe, she's also a very sweet person and easy to approach. But I didn't hang around much since she's very busy.

 thelivingshadow This guy have some wonderful works. Kinda quiet, but very nice. Seriously, check his stuff out. :-D

Frankly, EVERYONE at the con was very sweet and nice. Even a certain...bushy tailed....feline....was at her best. Certain cat I met many times in the old Conifur days....I'll won't give name. But I am complimenting. Seriously, I am. :-D

There's many others I met and got to hang out with but either never got their names, or I totally forgot. But if you know who you are and you found me, speak up.

Well, not back in Buffalo. Dreading that I'll have to go back to driving in a couple of days.

Well, kinda last minute planning a week or two back. But I'll attend Furnal Equinox. Gonna be staying with  sethtriggs. Should be fun. I'll just be wondering around like I normally do at Cons...when I rarely show up to one. If anyone curious to find me, well, my face is at the front of my profile. I didn't mention this earlier cause I am never show if work will get me to a place on time. But I'll be in Ohio by sunrise, so I'll be close. So yay.

What's up?

Well, nothing new. I been here in WA state for over two weeks. Came to see my doc for my check up. Then got a virus at the back of my throat.....ugh, sucks. I am getting better now...finally. Though it's annoying having to take a bunch of ibuprofen to lower the swelling and pain. But fevers and what not all gone. Even got antibiotics. Yay....hope this don't back fire. Anyway, heading out onto the road again soon. I'll admit, I'll miss the warm weather compared to where I was at the last 3 months near Indiana. I hear that and Kentucky maybe getting another wallop. What do I know?

Also, last comic arch finished, hope people enjoyed it despite my dabble on vigilantism. It's such a huge gray area. And it's both interesting and sad there's such a black and white view on it. But then again, I think subjects like this are more comfortable to cling to an extreme polarizing side than it is to have to sit and deal with the issues of whom, what, why? And even then, in the end, isn't right cause for one persons justice it's another person injustice. For one person's hero is another person's nightmare. Vice versa. And who to say no one is planning to find out what Nikki did and wanting to hunt her down? There's a reason why there's law enforcement and court systems.....and even then they are questioned and ridiculed. But that's the purpose of having a trail with both parties there to voice their side of the story and to decide what should be done about it.....if at all. We would like to believe justice is blind. But if it's run correctly and fairly, it will be blind. And since a good system is blind, if the investigation is done well and what not, who's to say Nikki is in the clear? We'll see.

Like the title says. Hope all is well.

This Christmas/New Years I am taking an official two weeks of instead of the normal 1 week off and all the sudden get stuck an extra week deal. Weather out here be extremely warm than normal this year. From the 23rd I was staying with my Dad in Anderson, iN. Also checked on on a house for a friend of my sisters only half a mile from his place. Easy 100 bucks I made. Christmas spent it with my Sister and her husband's side of the family in Indianapolis.

Yesterday, Dad and I got started on a road trip to Wilmington, NC to visit my half sister. Be the third time I met her since 2009....2nd time I saw her was a couple months go. So yeah....there's some family drama I won't get into. I'll just say that it's good that Dad and her bury the hatchet and I get to know who that "other" sister is. I am 36 years old and I only met her in 2009.....should give an idea how bad that was between Dad and his ex-wife....sis is at most, 7 years older.

Ah well, hoping this visit will go well....and I finally get to look around some places since I am in a pick up truck instead of a large semi.....this is one of the places I wanted to look at.

I think this year might be the last year I plan Christmas in Indiana. I like my relatives there, but since I got back into trucking in 2011, I have not been in Washington state/BC for Christmas in years. BUT then again, considering how nuts weather is in the northwest so far....maybe I should think hard. I avoid the Rockies/Cascades during the winter.

I been quiet mainly cause I am not really happy with how people react and respond to things lately. It disturbs me when people expect tone to be expressed easily over text when there is NO tone at all to give a person a clue if this is seriousness, or sarcasm. Topped off, so many people are up in arms in something. There's no debate nowadays. It's just pure, that guy is right, that guy is wrong. Either get it right or hit the highway. It's hard to get an honest opinion nowadays since everyone believes their thoughts are to be cold hard facts. Let alone, people giving out theories, expecting it to be plain facts. When in reality...it's...just a theory. A GUESS. Or better yet, an opinion. Hopefully trying to be fair with the opinion.

I have no idea why asking a question and wanting to talk about a subject is considered a taboo thing nowadays and instead I get greeted with angry rantings of a persons train of thought being used as facts and getting insulted when either I don't agree. OR I play devils advocate. Which I like to do a lot just to point out there maybe flaws in that train of thought, despite I actually agreed with that person....till the person started to show signs of being a raving lunatic. I really don't want to put up with this. Oddly enough, I only been talking privately with friends lately. Except those in the Philippines on Face Book for some odd reason. I had not seen those people since I was 14 and I can have a debate like I never left.

But I also feel the world is going nuts. The Americas, Europe, Western Asia, and even most of Africa are over boiling with wanting to be right, and make everyone else suffer for being wrong. North Korea have always been nutty. And everyone wants to point at another as the sole cause of the problems in the world. But not once want to sit back and try to figure out where things went wrong and how to make amends. Just want to knee jerk to fight back. And eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. The Jewish, Islam, Catholic, and Christian text have a lot of the same teachings that no one is paying attention and instead are blowing up the minor differences that are questionable. Hell, or ignoring all the teachings all together on how to be a good human being and instead say their version of God is more powerful and shall smite the others who are incorrect.

I guess I am saying I have no patience for Fox News rhetoric. Fox News is not the blame of all this, believe it or not. It's how they deliver their opinions and gossip as facts and figures. Pundits running the information. And ALL news channels at least in my country have followed that style of news coverage. It's hard to watch the news and get the facts. When it comes to watching US news stations, I MUST watch Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, and what ever else out there just to cross reference the actual news. I don't need to know the gossip and opinions that are being passed on as facts about...let's say, The Paris Attacks recently. What I want to know is, when, who, what's going to be done, and what's done? I don't need to know the story of a life of one guy who MAYBE is the mastermind. Hell, I maybe interested in the story if the guy IS the mastermind. But please, stick with the facts.

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Well, I went a bit long there.

I also want to say I finally got the title to my tractor. So I now officially own a Freightliner Century. Now if I can take of the title issues with my Buick Century, I can say I own Centuries. :-P

And finally, I don't mean to come off as ignoring comments on my submissions. I at times don't know what to say...or if I need to say more. Especially if I agree and/or find them food for thought. But I do appreciate comments. :-D Though my rant at the start of this post is mainly about my journal comments. I used to be a very vocal, open individual with my thoughts. But that was back when I can get into debates. And at the end of them, we agree to disagree and move on. And STILL be able to be buddy buddy later. Lately everyone chooses the other option, which is rage till they win, or rage quit. Then they'll ignore that persons existence. Or worst yet, they just ignore that persons existence.

My time on the net, I only had to block 2 people, ever. You must have really done something royally bad to make me want to block you outright. MAYBE I'll remove it eventually. Maybe not, depends if I see change for the better. But that also depends if I even bother to keep tabs on that person. So far, I have not been keeping tabs on those two. SO...yeah....

Mom read the paper work wrong. No calamity with the bank. Still waiting on the title. BUT what she read was my pay stub. This last two weeks I got the debt with Werner down enough that they are starting to ease off on a lot of restrictions they put on me for loans. And I made my first truck loan payment in 4 months. THOUGH, sis paid it off last month. SO I need to call work tomorrow and try to fix that shit before more money get's tossed to the bank. Then I need to call the bank to see if they got the money and what I can do to get it back.

Still, I wonder what made Mom think I owe the bank when looking at my pay stub when normally a BILL from the bank would come from...well...the bank. Ah well, glad this is cleared up. This is still important, but not as horrible as I thought.