Trip #2096 Reno, NV > Aberdeen, MD

We got unloaded @ Snapper Power Equip fairly promptly 1st thing on Wed a.m., May 3rd, sent in r mt call & anxiously awaited r next trip assignment, keeping r fingers xed that Crete dispatchers had been able 2 find us a load that would permit r getting back thru Nebr per r special request.

While waiting 4 the load offer(s), we noted the waters in the lake, that lay between the industrial park & the base of the mt just beyond, were not clear. It looked as though some1 had stirred the lake w/ a huge spoon, disturbing the mud on the bottom. We had seen this phenomenon b4 @ Honey Lake, about 70 mi 2 the nw of Reno, near Susanville, CA. There, the effect had been more extreme, as earthquake tremors “stirred” the waters of this very large lake enough that the entire surface of the lake was still in ripples. The water was muddied just as the water in lake x fr us there on the n edge of Reno. We wondered if there might have been tremors in the Reno area the day b4?

Later in the day I logged on the internet @ http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/ 2 ck & found that seismologists had, indeed, detected a 1.8 magnitude earthquake @ a depth of 6.5 mi., 8 mi SSW of Reno a few days prior!

In due time, we recvd r trip assignment. We were 2 pk up a load just 0.2 of a mi away & take it out to Aberdeen, MD by Tues a.m., on May 9th. R rt would take us thru Lincoln, NE & there would be sufficient time 4 us 2 attend not only r granddaughter’s college graduation, but r youngest grandson’s academic banquet on Fri evening!

We were 2 pk up r load @ HVR Company & delv it 2 Clorox in Maryland, both the shipper & consignee new 2 us. The load info indicated that the load would wgh 44,100#s, so we naively assumed we would be picking up bleach. Not so! HVR, we soon discovered, is a food division of Clorox, the letters stand 4 Hidden Valley Ranch!! We would b taking an entire load of Hidden Valley Ranch dressings almost whole way x the country!

We were impressed w/ HVR & their personnel, & were soon loaded & on r way E. We stopped in Fernley, NV to fuel & run the trk thru the Blue Beacon Trk Wash. Doing the latter was a mistake in judgement. It was a beautiful sunny day there in Nevada & we had failed 2 ck what the weather was forecast 2 b along r rt. By the time we reached Nebraska we had run thru a huge swarm of little green bugs, as well as rain by the time we went thru SLC & then snow as we xed WY. By the time we reached Lincoln, NE during the wee hrs Fri a.m., r expensive wash job was 4 naught!

I was due 2 take my Haz-Mat exam, which I did while Lawrence made arrangements w/ the shop foreman 2 have the B-service done on r Peterbilt while we attended r grandchildren’s special functions. He also ran r trlr thru the inspection bay b4 going up 2 the driver’s parking lot, uncovered r car so we could head down home 4 the remainder of the day. While home, we pked up r mail, Lawrence & Smidgen got haircuts, while I did some wash @ home, after which we were able 2 attend the Academic Banquet where r grandson was again being honored—this time 4 his 4.o grade pt average!

The next a.m., we reloaded the car & headed up to Wayne State College, arving there an hr b4 the family dinner being held in r granddaughter’s honor prior 2 graduation. In the meantime, we were able 2 visit the gift store where she had worked during college. Thankfully, it was a cool enough day that Smidgen could wait 4 us in the car.

We watched w/ pride as r 2nd oldest granddaughter recvd her Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry & health sciences as she graduated Summa cum Laude w/ a perfect 4.0 average in a class of 376 fellow students. She will b entering medical school this fall as she continues her preparation 2 become a doctor.

The entire family went over 2 her apartment 4 cake & ice cream b4 heading r various ways. We headed back 2 Lincoln 2 pk up the semi, fueled & continue on r way E 2 dlvr load of Hidden Valley Ranch dressings to the Clorox Corp, located along the edge of the Chesapeake Bay, after a very special break.