Flying Across the States

Today was a traveling day.  We woke up at a Love’s in Tennessee around nine in the morning and started driving shortly after.  Z encourages me to keep my camera at hand.  You never know when you’re going to see something worth shooting.  He’s right.  The road we were on was extremely picturesque.  For a short while it ran between a cliff side and a river.  I tried to capture it on film but that’s a challenging task at 60 mph.

He is sweet though.  He pulled into a scenic overlook not far from Ooltewah, TN.  I snapped off a few shots but I must admit, they could have chosen a better location in that area for a pull off.

Right now we’re driving along the I-59 in Mississippi towards Texas.  We’re unloading our first job in Houston sometime tomorrow. I have an old friend who lives there I haven’t seen since I was 12.  A few years ago he found me on MySpace of all places, and we’ve kept in contact ever since.  I hope we can all meet up, even for a short while.

We’ve been driving for a few hours now.  These roads are so dark.  Lit up occasionally by a towering cross (or three). 

I’m getting pretty tired.  Its becoming easier and easier to fall asleep to rumble of the engine.  At first it was sort of annoying.  This incessant noise that sort of drilled itself into my head.  Now it feels strange when I don’t hear it.

Who I am and Why am I in a Big Rig?

Well let me start off by introducing myself.  My name is Jesenia and I am 31 years old.  I recently decided to quit my job and head out on a road trip with my boyfriend and my younger brother.  I cannot recall a time when I didn't have a job.  So this whole unemployment thing is new to me.

This is my first time Blogging.  I am not a writer so please bear with me as I try to put into words my experiences on this journey.  I plan on using this blog as a sort of travel log/record of what I see and experience on the road.

A little background information:  Up until about a week and a half ago I was working as a front end web developer for a DVD distribution company in NJ.  I graduated college and landed the job after interning then temping for them.  I was there for nearly two years when I decided to quit.  I was not making very much for the job I was doing and decided to take some time to do freelance work, teach myself javascript and photograph the country while I traveled.

For quite some time my boyfriend (I'll call him Z) of three years had been asking me to go with him.  He works as a contractor for a moving company with my brother Jon.  He drives an 18 wheeler cross country for most of the year so we don't see each other very often.  Ours was pretty much a long distance relationship.

About two years ago I took a month off after graduating college to try out traveling with him and nearly flew home from Cali because we drove each other insane.  Seriously, I jumped out of the rig in the middle of CA, somehow got myself to an airport, purchased a ticket and then decided that maybe I was being a little irrational.  So we talked things out, decided our arguments were way too expensive and decided never to let one get that far again.  So far so good...

Ok enough background info, let's get back to the present.

Tonight marks the end of the first full day of my 2010 travels back and forth across the US.  We left yesterday from NJ after loading half the truck.  Today we finished loading in VA and are now on our way to unload the first job in Texas.

We are traveling on I-81 right now, about 30 miles from the Tennessee border.  Z plans on driving till he gets tired so we'll probably be on the road for a few more hours.  Then we'll pull over at a truck stop to shower and eat.

I must say the two truck stops I've been to so far were pretty "Eeew" (not surprisingly I'm sure).  I don't remember them being so gross.  The showers remind me a little of the one's I experienced in the Army.  Always wear your flip flops!

I guess I can't complain.  My brother says the toilet seats are broken in every men's room he's been to and that the bathrooms are disgusting.  The women's bathrooms are pretty skeevy but at least our plumbing fixtures are intact.

That said even though they can be gross at times they are much appreciated.

All in all my first day on the road has been with out incident.  Breakfast at a TA truck stop in Maryland, early dinner at a Fatz cafe in Virginia (food was good here) and now lounging in the rig listening to Z extol the services and products offered by our nations travel centers.

Life is good.