Delays, Aggrivation, and Funny Money

Laredo, Texas and French Ellison Truck Center. It has been nearly a month since we were last here. We arrive at 8 am CDT and within 20 minutes our trucks began arriving at the lot designated for hooking up. By 8:45 all four trucks were near us and I had one last truck to inspect.

We were going to get out early today, before noon. Maybe we could even make Van Horn, Texas by tonight - about 430 miles. We could get delivered in Calexico, California on Friday during their normal business hours instead of long afterwards like the last two times.

Noon rolled around and we were about three quarters done. We needed to get cash for fuel and find a place for lunch. With the pickup still down we went to IBC Bank and used the ATM machine. It would not dispense all the money available to us at one time so we went to another bank, LNB (Laredo National Bank) and their ATM. We still couldn't get all available money but we were able to get most of it.

This trip is going to cost us a minimum of $600 for fuel and we needed as much money as we could get right away. I went into LNB and converted all the $20.00 bills dispensed from the two ATMs into hundreds.

Off to lunch we went. The Golden Corral in Laredo.

After lunch we went back to finish the hook up and head out. By now it is 1:30 pm and we are losing time quickly. All finished and heading to a Speedy Stop about three blocks away, instead of 12 miles to the Flying J. We went inside to get the pump turned on. To my horror my driver license was missing. The only place I could have left it was at the Days Inn last night. A call to them confirmed what I had feared. I made arrangements for someone to come to the Speedy Stop from the Days Inn to bring my license. We had to putz around the Speedy Stop; getting fuel, Gatorade, and water; while I awaited the delivery of my license.

Paying for the Gatorade and water I had only a hundred dollar bill, I had given my only $5 to the Days Inn person. The clerk marked up the $100 bill with the counterfit pen and informed me I had given her a fake. By this time my nerves are jangling and I'm about to blow a gasket. We have to go back to LNB and I have to get this taken care of. The bank teller was really great. She checked the bill with her machine and said it was, in fact, good. She traded me another bill for the questionable one.

I forgot, after all the hubub at the Speedy Stop we had to back out of the fuel island because other truck drivers had pulled in too far and stuck out too much for us to make the corner.

We did get out of the Speedy Stop without a wreck, I did get the $100 bill changed, and we were finally on the road at 3:30 pm. Van Horn, Texas was not going to be our stopping place tonight. Del Rio, Texas and the LaQuinta instead if the Days Inn. We are here now and ready to go to bed. We will get an early start tomorrow morning and get this trip going.


-- Post From My iPhone