My Favorite Phone Calls

Ok, so my husband isn't the most outgoing person in the world. He's a self-proclaimed loner. It's one of the reasons that he thought a life on the road would be good for him. He doesn't have a huge need to have people around. With that being said, one of the most surprising things about him since he hit the road, is his ability to talk your ear off on the phone.

I have learned so much about the industry from these phone calls. I can explain logbook rules in great detail. I know which truck stops he likes and why. I know how long he sits and waits to be loaded/unloaded. I know how many birds have committed suicide by flying into the truck (13). Heck, I even know how his good friend and fellow trucker, Harvie, is doing and where he's going.

It's become a bit of a joke around our house. We love to hear from him, but just because he's bored and alone on the road, doesn't mean we can sit and chat. We know that if we hear my cell phone ring in the other room, there's no need to get up. He'll either call the house or he'll call Josh. I particularly laugh when he calls Josh. He'll look at the phone, see it's Dad, and say "thanks Mom." If it's a particularly eventful day, he'll call me and tell me the half hour long story and then call Josh and tell him too. Recently, when Josh asked him "what's up with the Happy Friday, Happy Tuesday, text messages," I found out he sends us the same text messages too. Gee.. and I thought those sweet messages were just for me.

Ok, so we give him a hard time about it, but I am truly grateful for MOST of his phone calls.

Last night I got one of the phone calls that I don't like to get. The ones that outline near misses, traffic mishaps and tempts of fate.

Last night he was right behind a huge accident. For some unknown reason the truck in front of him plowed into another truck that was hauling little trucks/tractors. The truck in front of him actually rode up on top of the other trucks and them came crashing back down. As it came down pieces and parts went everywhere. Luckily hubby was far enough back that he could avoid the tractor and trailer, but he had to drive over road debris instead.

Then, he got out and helped the trapped trucker out of his cab.

Now, if he would stop there, I could be all proud of him. He used to be an EMT and he is the "goto" guy in an emergency. I love him for it, but that little personality characteristic also means that he puts himself in harms way.

I've talked to him a few times since the accident and I keep getting more details... like how close to the edge of the road, his own truck stopped, the fact that the other tractor was only on two wheels when he climbed in to help the other driver, the spilling diesel fuel, the scrape on his leg from slipping on said fuel.

It's hard enough knowing he's out there on the road all the time. I really don't need all the bitter details about how close he comes to death.

So today hubby is in Dallas, TX. He dropped off his load and is on his way to a mechanic to get the truck checked out. He and the cops visually checked it out last night after the accident, but with all the pieces of debris he had to drive over, he and the company decided it would be a good idea to make sure something wasn't damaged in all the fun.