Back Office Support & Truckstop Life!

Today was a sort of downtime boring stuck in the truck day for Virago Transport LLC which means it's bills/budget review and back office support day! Definitely not my cozy home office with 4 monitors and plush over priced chair, but we made it work!

The less exciting part of owning your own trucking company is the side that doesn't require driving. It does require a lot of attention to detail in meeting regulatory standards, billing, receiving, budgeting for maintenance/tires/fuel/permitting and a whole slew of other important details.

I think for today's "did you know" I'll touch on truck stop life (since we've been here for 2 days) both for truckers and for the non driver's.

First a small rant then I'll get off my soap box... Why in the HELL are y'all peeing in the parking lots?!? OMG talk about disgusting. I stepped outside to walk across the WHOLE truck stop parking lot to use the restroom and walked right into a dude peeing in between his truck and trailer right next to us and then watched him walk into the store where there are plenty of clean restrooms available... I know, because I've made about 8 trips daily and through out the night since we've been here! Really??? Let me preface this with the fact that I totally understand lack of restroom options or time to stop while driving...but there are options. I also understand having to go when you have to go. But come on!!! I worked 12+hr shifts for years on busy hospital floors or in hospice traveling all over D/FW where there were literally times I wouldn't have the time to stop to use the restroom. I didn't have a mandatory break to stop and go, I just had to hold it, so I get it, but still!

Do you want your wives or children walking through urine filled truck stops? Your dogs? My lord it's absolutely vile. The smell alone nearly made me vomit after we got a little rain and then it heated up . I'm a huge cheerleader and supporter of drivers 110% but that unnecessary behavior just reenforces the stereotype of a "steering wheel holder" or the other negative stereotypes that so many professionals (who don't piss on the concrete btw) are desperately trying to change. Do better! Y'all deserve all the respect for the thankless job y'all do, don't continue give society a reason to not give you that respect because of that!

My apologies if this seems rude, but honestly I'm not sorry lol Do better.

Now that's out of the way I'll continue...

So truck stop showers and bathrooms...it's one thing to stop in at a truck stop or gas station, fuel up, go to the restroom, load up on snacks and continue down the road. But for drivers, when they shut down for the night or for a 34 hour, or longer, reset the truck stop sort of becomes a second home. They shower there (for $8-$20 a piece by the way ....if they don't have shower credits from fueling at that particular chain), toilet there, do laundry there (for $2.25-$3 to wash and $2.25-$3 to dry ). Can y'all imagine spending almost $30 at a time to shower and wash a load of laundry?!? My lord! Just another one of the hardships these amazing men and women face!

There's definitely shower stall hygiene etiquette in trucking. I sort of feel that working in a community hospital for years prepared me for life on the road in public restrooms Christa Copeman you'd be so proud of my barrier prep for showering . Layers of paper towels and towels!

Some showers are clean and have nice hot running water, others are sketchy, moldy and barely have lukewarm water. We've seen a few of each along the way, but either way, I won't complain because after driving and working a shower is a shower! And for the most part, truck stops do an amazing job at providing a clean safe place for folks to clean up!

Daryl has a map of like 8500 rest stops and truck stops with all the amenities he's collected over the years because, well, he's an awesome nerd like that

We walked down the road for a good steak dinner and a beer to celebrate our first week of being entrepreneurs and not strangling each other living in such close living quarters LOL and to get out of the truck lol I apparently entertained the night shift clerk with my excellent dancing skills while on our nightly stroll through the urine soaked parking lot to use the restroom like the fine upstanding citizens we are They have excellent music in the store.

To wrap things up, we'll be headed back out tomorrow from Owatonna, MN to pick up a load that is due for delivery in Portland, OR on Wednesday! That should make for some great picture taking!

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