Fernando welcomed me on his trip to Birmingham, Alabama, and it turned out we had to leave on Wednesday in order to arrive at the venue by Thursday evening. After a big meal at lunchtime, we got on the road, and ended up in Indianapolis by dinnertime. We stopped at Cheeseburger in Paradise; Fernando had been wanting to stop there. I was still full from lunch! So, I watched him eat. :)
At Cheeseburger in Paradise.
Fernando took over the driving from there, getting us into Kentucky, and to a Holiday Inn in Bowling Green.
Ritzy hotel--plus a military discount, making it the cheapest hotel we've stayed in!
Thursday the 10th.
Fernando drove us through Kentucky, then Tennessee, then into Alabama--my first time ever this far south.
Downtown Nashville.
A rocket on the side of the road; near Huntsville, AL, and the NASA center there.
At the venue (Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center), Fernando got situated and got the dish up on the bird (satellite).
C-USA Conference playoffs (men's and women's).
My creative photo of the trip.
Penelope (Arctek Purple) outside the Legacy Arena at the BJCC.
Then it rained, and Fernando and I shared truck space until he was all set for transmissions the next morning--early).
Friday the 11th.
It's hard to be on-site at 6:00am...
Fernando had four transmissions all day Friday.
Relaxing between transmissions.
At one non-rainy point, I put my macro lens on Bella (my Canon 6D) and took a wandering walk around the edge of the VIP parking lot where we were stationed.
Signs of spring!
Saturday the 12th.
This day is actually our half-anniversary! Since Fernando didn't have to be on-site until 2pm, we had a relaxing morning. In other words, that meant sleeping in (just a little for me--I can't sleep late), tea made with the in-room coffee maker, and the Psalms to start my day.
For lunch, we visited a Mexican restaurant, Cantina Laredo. Apparently, there's one located downtown Chicago, but we didn't know this. The food was excellent!
Then it was a nice walk several blocks to the site once again, for the C-USA women's final. Then it rained. Again.
Sunday the 13th.
Fernando asked me to drive the first leg of our trip so he could eat breakfast (I had some organic instant oatmeal in the hotel room before we left). During my stint as driver, here was my routine:
Press the "wiper on" button every now and then.
Turn on intermittent wipers.
Turn on low-speed wipers.
Turn off wipers.
Turn on wipers.
Turn on fast wipers and reduce speed.
Repeat in various random steps.
Since I hadn't had the Cheeseburger in Paradise experience on the way down, we stopped again on the way home for a late supper. Fernando got some sort of monster burger. I helped him out eating it (meaning, I had a bite).
Fernando took over the last leg of driving, and I took one picture of Indianapolis with some blue sky before stowing my phone and relaxing for the remainder of the trip home.
Our trips may seem boring (no sightseeing, museums, strolling around, relaxing, etc.), but we get to spend time together, I get to be useful as a driver, and we have fun. We're both loving it!
Another week, another city! This time it was south and west to St. Louis, MO for Arch Madness and the Missouri Valley Conference Semifinals for NCAA basketball.
Since Fernando had to be on site in the morning, he let me sleep at home (he had a job at Northern Illinois University Friday night), and he picked me up around 10pm. I drove almost to St. Louis, and he took over to get into the city and to our hotel. We crashed at the hotel around 2:30am and caught about four hours of sleep before our day started.
Then it was off to the Scottrade Center in downtown St. Louis for a morning show-up and set-up.
Inside the production area, Fernando was met with this:
Everything got set up quickly and Arctek Purple got to park front stage, right on the sidewalk, to hook up to shore power.
Scottrade Center.
The rest rooms we used were near the players' locker rooms, and we could peek into the stadium to see the players warm up. Pretty cool, huh?
Fernando did two transmission uplinks, since there were two semi-final games, and I got to hang around with him all afternoon. Before the games began, I caught this awesome picture of Arctek Purple with her satellite deployed, looking like she was harnessing the sun.
We "sucked it up" after the job was done and drove straight home, getting in around 1am (or maybe after, I was pretty zoned from lack of sleep!). I made it to church in the morning, and Fernando decided to have an afternoon family meal at Casa Margarita. We walked into the restaurant and ran into friends, who told us their daughter is a server there! We asked to have Simone as our server, and we had a great time sharing drinks, Mexican food, and great conversation.
With one huge drive--ten hours--under my belt from the previous week, I felt ready to tackle this next one--a mere seven hours or so. Should be easier, huh?
We headed east this trip, through Indiana and on to Akron, Ohio.
It had snowed the day before, and the high winds created some dramatic snow effects along the highway.
At our hotel on Thursday night, we settled in for a good night's sleep. I'm naturally an early riser, which is also a good thing because my body tends to want rest in the afternoon; it's a low cycle in my day when I usually have a cup of tea (iced in the summer) and engage in a low-energy activity. On this new job, it helps that I can sleep in the afternoon so I'm awake for the nighttime driving.
We were expecting a warm-up over the next few days, even in Akron, but we awoke to this scene out our hotel window:
Snow. Plus, Fernando keeps the room cold. I don't think my toes warmed up the entire night. Since Fernando slept in, I went down to the hotel's breakfast area and served myself some oatmeal. One of the hotel workers encouraged me to make up a plate for Fernando, and she even gave me a tray for carrying it all up. Hotels definitely vie for our business, and I think we'll be staying at Fairfield Inn more often.
Back in our room, I read my Bible for a bit, and relaxed until Fernando got up. I made him happy with the food I brought up for him! I love being useful, even more than people realize.
Fernando had a quiet time before heading out to the job site.
Then, I was alone. This is the life of a driver. It's not glamorous, or exciting. It's not all spending time with Fernando, watching him do his electronic thing in the back of Arctek Purple (I call her Penelope, by the way--for this vehicle must have a name!). This life is driving, and riding, snoozing and driving again, eating out as healthy as I can, sleeping in hotel rooms, saying goodbye to Fernando, spending time alone in said hotel rooms, sleeping some more, and driving at night. It's not easy. But it is good.
Bed, slept in the night before and my resting spot for the afternoon.
I didn't go to bed right away, so I broke open Volume One of the complete novels of Jane Austen. It was time to rediscover Pride & Prejudice, at least until sleepy time hit and I could catch some z's.
The seven-hour-plus night drive from Akron, OH to Evansville, IN was tougher than the all-nighter from Tulsa, OK to Muncie, IN. I was surprised by how tired I was this time around. But I made it through, never tired enough to have to pull over other than for fuel (diesel, diesel, diesel!!).
Checking in to a hotel at 4:00am is interesting. I got settled in for the "night," Fernando hung around for a while, then headed out to the job site. I was alone again, to sleep until my body felt refreshed--which was about four hours. Instant oatmeal packets come in handy when one misses the hotel breakfast time! I would be out of my room by noon, to catch a taxi to the job site since Fernando would be working until 4:00 or so, and who wants to hang out in a hotel room for six hours by oneself? Not I.
The taxi ride was my first solo taxi ride, ever. It seems funny that it has taken me this long to feel confident in doing new things, in facing insecurities (I adore sameness!), in walking into the unknown. I've learned that people can be very friendly, if you only ask. The front desk manager called the taxi company and chatted with me while I waited; the taxi driver was chatty as well--I learned all about his beautiful, spunky daughter who is a nurse and married to a great guy. He went so far as to drop me off in the back of The Ford Center, right next to the truck! I tipped him well.
A pause in the action for Fernando to snap my picture.
I am so tickled to be living such new experiences, meeting such interesting people, and seeing life in a completely new way. God is good.
On the way home, we stopped in tiny Neoga, Illinois for fuel and food (Subway--haven't eaten there in ages and enjoyed every bite!). When I hopped out of the driver's seat, I noticed a car parked along the side of the store/restaurant, and a kid (really, he was probably in his 20s) really staring at me--you know, leaning forward, squinting his eyes a little. As Fernando finished pumping gas, I noticed the kid again, obviously staring at me. I wiggled my fingers hello, figuring I'd try to at least be friendly.
He hollered over at me, "Do you work with TV?"
Simple answers are best. "Yes!"
"Can you record me?"
"Sorry, I'd need a camera for that!" with a laugh.
"I have a camera!" Then, "I'm a porn star!!" Ooookay.
One of the two girls in the car leaned out and echoed, "Yeah, we're porn stars!!"
I just laughed and said goodbye, then headed around the back of the truck to hop in the passenger seat. Fernando heard the rest of the kid's hollered reply as I walked:
"You look great! I love you!!!" He probably thought I was a TV personality... (Are you kidding me??!!)
I've learned over the years that God closes some doors, and opens other doors. Sometimes I try to open those He has closed, and sometimes I balk at stepping through those He opens. More recently, though, I've been stunned at the doors He has opened, and I've simply walked right through, venturing on to the next step in Fernando's and my journey together.
One of those mind-boggling doors opened last week, and I ran through. It opened in the form of a phone call: "Can Christine drive for you on the 18th/19th?" Every now and then, a driver is needed to get the truck operator (technically, he's a satellite uplink technician) from one job to the next, if those jobs are back-to-back; the operator needs to sleep between jobs and can't drive. Fernando needed a driver, I had been cleared to drive, and the door opened.
Fernando had a transmission in Tulsa, Oklahoma on the evening of the 18th, then in Muncie, Indiana on the afternoon of the 19th.
Facts: Tulsa and Muncie are 10.5 hours (straight-through driving) apart. The time from the end of the Tulsa job (~11pm ET) to the on-site time of the Muncie job (12:30pm ET) was 13.5 hours. You get the math. This would be a bear of a drive, my first time out. But the door opened, and like I said--I ran through it.
I was hired. I am a truck driver. *goofy grin*
Just in case you want to know just what it is I'm driving.
Wednesday, February 16.
I've never visited the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, but I've passed by it four times now--to and from, two times. Fernando was driving this third time as we headed west toward Tulsa.
Fernando had a hankering for some St. Louis barbecue, and thanks to my brilliance (ha!) with the Google Maps app, I found a local diner for our late lunch.
We switched back and forth driving the SAT truck, and finally ended up in Oklahoma. The next day was windy (an understatement!) with a smoke/fire warning (we smelled the smoke the night before when we arrived at our hotel). Fernando and I knew I would need to be able to get as much sleep as possible that afternoon, since I would be driving all night. He had run out of the sleeping aid he usually used, so we made a trip down the street to Walgreen's. As we pulled out of the hotel and onto the street, the heavens parted and the Lord shone His glowing rays down on a huge ice cream cone with a rotating sign: our hotel was directly next door to Andy's Frozen Custard!!
We got our sleep aid, saw a Chipotle, and stopped there to share a burrito for lunch. Share = I ate not quite a fourth of Fernando's burrito. :)
Dessert was a given.
Back at our hotel, I settled in for an afternoon of trying to get some sleep, while Fernando drove the truck to the University of Tulsa for the NCAA basketball game for which he was providing the uplink. The sleep aid was effective, mostly, and I ended up sleeping on and off through the late afternoon and evening. I ate some supper (microwave Asian noodle bowl--at least it was organic!) and waited for Fernando to return so we could get on the road.
And I waited. He was stuck at the site until another truck moved out of the way...
Friday, February 19.
By the time we were loaded up, checked out, and on the road it was about 12:15am. Remember the windy day? It hadn't let up, and I drove down I-44 East, traveling back through Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain. It was interesting driving, to say the least, and a constant fight against the crosswind. I have a new appreciation for semi truck drivers!
At one point I passed an accident--a semi had most likely been blown off the road on my right, the trailer twisted and mangled at its front, and the cab lying there, all beat up from rolling onto its side. I prayed for strength and safety--and felt the prayers of my friends/family as the Lord buoyed me up and gave me His strength.
Driving all night is lonely.
The view from my seat at a rest stop somewhere in Missouri, 4:13am.
Lonely is okay, though. Fernando slept in the reclined seat next to me, and I sang quietly to the music playing on my phone, and I was filled with His endurance for the journey. Fernando cautioned me that I didn't have anything to prove, and we could tag-team drive if I needed that; I made it to about 9:30am without having to wake him up. I pulled off somewhere in Illinois to gas up (chanting diesel, diesel, diesel!!!in my head), wake up Fernando, go to the bathroom, and drag my spent body into the passenger seat.
Although I didn't sleep until we reached our hotel, the rest of the morning was a blur: driving, talking, stopping at Cracker Barrel for lunch, parking at the hotel. Fernando drove to Ball State University to work the basketball game (1pm arrival for set-up), and I crashed for three hours. Three hours can be completely refreshing!
Then, I had a friend to call--Magy, whose home was exactly 1.8 miles from our hotel. She graciously picked me up and we spent the evening together, talking, reminiscing, and sharing dinner with her and her family. They wanted to see Fernando, and were happy to drive down to the university, just 12 minutes away. We met Mark (I'll get his job title wrong--I think it was the production manager?), who is from New Jersey! Based on the fact that he and I share that birth state (that's what I say, anyway), he gave the L. family and me a mini tour of the production truck.
The L. family took their leave, with an open door for us to come back to their house after the job ended (I left my camera bag there, after all!), which we did before heading back to our hotel.
I experienced my first car rental adventure the next day, since I would drive home while Fernando continued on to Murfreesboro, TN for the next job. The four hours in my rented Toyota Camry was a breeze, for sure!
Back home, I shared lively conversation with my guys, who had (mostly) cleaned my kitchen. I whipped up a quick dinner, which my friend Becki and I shared together (she came to pick up her co-op order and to visit me for the evening.
Later on, as I relaxed on my couch and looked at the family room the guys had "decorated" in dorm-room style, I realized it didn't bother me. I was home, I was useful, and I was blessed. Nothing more was needed.
Today, this very afternoon, I savored the oolong tea I had been drinking routinely just a few weeks ago, while Fernando was gone all those January/February days. Life had taken yet another turn, down yet another new road--employment, for me. And not just a job, not just an open door for me. For Fernando, too. He had longed for this through all those years of travel with his job early on in our marriage: longed for his wife to be able to accompany him, to experience everything--new sights, new adventures--he got to experience.
Fernando left again. He backed the SAT truck out of the driveway, put it in drive, and pressed his foot on the accelerator, and he was off. But something was different this time.
Here's Fernando, below, about an hour away from home, driving south to his next job. This was obviously not a selfie--see both his hands? That's because I took this picture with my phone. This week, I left with Fernando.
The afternoon before, Fernando got the okay for me to accompany him on this trip, which would be a good indicator of my ability to adapt to life on the road, life with my husband while he works, life in hotel rooms and not-so-healthy-but-take-what-you-get food. With just a few hours to prepare, I had suitcase and camera bag in hand. And last Tuesday morning, I climbed up into the passenger seat of Arctek Purple and left home with my husband at the wheel. God opened this door, and I walked through.
I actually rarely used my camera, since most of the views were as we drove along, heading south toward Texas, and work, and friends, and family. That first evening, after a rest, food, and fuel stop, somewhere in Oklahoma, we watched the sun set in front of our eyes. Colors from pink and purple to orange, red, and yellow spread from far to our left all the way across to the sun setting, then all the way as far as we could see on our right. As our route turned south, I opened the window to capture a fragment of the majestic beauty. We were truly on a new journey, to places we've never been, and God's presence is there, too.
This actually was a fun road trip, since I got to spend Wednesday with my dear friend and "sister" Janice and her daughters and granddaughter while Fernando did the uplink transmission for the NCAA college basketball game at SMU in Dallas. We had Thursday and Friday to make our way to New Orleans, so we drove through Houston to visit Fernando's cousin and her family. They fed us (a huge blessing, in my book!), even picking oranges and grapefruit from their backyard trees for dessert!! *happy dance*
On Friday morning, after a hearty breakfast with our cousins, we headed over to Louisiana and New Orleans for the next job. Bayous, swamps, lazy rivers, ponds--water, water everywhere!
Along I-10 in Louisiana, headed toward New Orleans.
We drove across so many bridges! As we headed toward, and past, New Orleans (had to stay outside of the city), we crossed this bridge below.
We missed breakfast at the hotel in order to arrive on site (Tulane University in New Orleans) by 7:00a.m. Arctek Purple is Fernando's work space, and that huge trailer is the production truck. These work together to tape the event (NCAA basketball), get the signal to the satellite, and out to TVs everywhere.
It was fun to watch Fernando work his magic. We like to joke that it's pixie dust that he uses, finding the satellite (the "bird"), tuning things (really, I have no idea), making sure the DSS is working and signals are correct and a whole bunch more of tech stuff I never knew existed.
My Papi Bear paused for a sweet pic before tip-off.
There were down times during the afternoon, so I had to get a picture of myself, too!
As we were preparing to leave, Fernando said his goodbyes to the production crew. One guy, who glanced at me, told Fernando, "You be careful now." A few looks and Fernando understood what he was saying. His response: "Um, that's my wife." The guy was dumbfounded. (Whatever...!) I think others thought I was his, um, "road buddy," if you catch my drift. No wonder I got some strange looks. We'll have to rectify that on the next job site. Sometimes it's funny that Fernando and I look so different, even in age, but sometimes it's tiring. Mostly we just laugh about it.
Seeing that Valentine's Day was the next day, I texted with a friend who has a brother in New Orleans to find a great authentic restaurant where we wouldn't feel out of place in jeans, and where we could celebrate being together this week, and celebrate the love the Lord has blessed us with these past 28+ years.
One lady walking by came up to the truck and I chatted with her, then asked her for restaurant recommendations: New Orleans Food & Spirits. My texting friend Cindy confirmed with her brother that was a good, and casual, restaurant. Even though it was north of the city, we decided to check it out.
Our local beers.
After I took a picture of our--quite impressive--drinks, the waitress offered to take our picture.
The food was amazing, the atmosphere hoppin', and the waitress helpful and so very friendly.
Together, at work and play--well, I was his road buddy, after all!!
Now that a month has gone by, it's time for an update. Fernando's current work with Arctek is indeed a gift, as I called it in the last post. Unwrap any gift, however, and you'll find not only gratefulness and excitement, but responsibility, and sometimes even burden as well. Such is the case with this precious gift of work.
Off on his next job assignments.
Eight days. That's the sum total of time I've seen my husband since he started working from January 4 through tonight.. Home late on a Saturday, or perhaps a Sunday afternoon, then gone again Monday afternoon, or Tuesday morning. Precious days, or just hours, scattered here and there throughout the last month and a half, slivers of time we've held on to because it was trickling away.
Grateful? Absolutely. Bills are being paid, and the household is running more smoothly.
Exciting? Definitely. I'm excited for Fernando, who loves to travel and work with people; I love to see the photos he posts on Facebook, and I enjoy the stories he tells me over the phone of his adventures, the assignments, and the people he meets.
Then there's the responsibility, and the burden--both obviously Fernando's, since he's the one with the job. But both mine, too.
I shoulder the responsibilities and burdens of home, and taking up those things I haven't normally had to do: minor home repairs, new windshield wipers on the car, paying bills, even filling the car with gas. I've become the "business widow," the woman who stays behind while her man goes away to provide for his family. Don't get me wrong--I'm not complaining! There are blessings spread throughout the alone-ness...
Dog-sitting this bundle of (mostly) fun was a delight!
There's less laundry to do...
I'm still making delicious meals, and there are plenty of leftovers!
Our bed looks like this; I flip down a corner at night, and when I wake up, flip it back up and poof--the bed is made!
We've been through so much that I can't not think about those blessings! The Lord has opened this door and ushered us through, each with our own responsibilities and burdens, at the same time walking the road together. And, as the days apart tick away, I start looking forward to our days together.
The weight of Fernando's leave-taking becomes replaced with the anticipation of his return, this particular day being Jake's "Games 'n Grub" party he likes to throw for his birthday celebration late January. I told the boys to make a sign and prop it up in the driveway so Fernando would have a parking space when I got home that evening.
Jake's cake--Almond Cream Cake--became more than just a birthday cake to me, and the celebration became in a sense more than just Jake's birthday. Fernando would be home!
Happy birthday, Jake! (Thanks, Vic, for grabbing my camera and taking this picture!)
This time, we had a day and a half together. Fernando fell into bed 8:30 that night of the party, we attended church services the next morning, and we napped in the afternoon. By Monday afternoon, he was driving away again.
Through the weight of watching Fernando leave, waving goodbye until the SAT truck disappears around the curve and turning away toward the responsibilities waiting for me just inside that front door, I take a breath. Then one more, deep; I hold it for just a moment, then release it. I shut the door, and turn to this new life.
Over the last (almost) three years, the Lord has brought to an end so many things in our lives--employment, homeschooling, self-sufficiency and complacency, even our church home. He carried Fernando and me to this completely new road, not one we would ever have chosen for ourselves, not one we could ever have envisioned for the second half of our life together, but it's His way for us, by His leading. He closed the door on yesterday, and opened a new one, a beginning, for today and tomorrow.
I'm now at the point where I feel like I can breathe again, where I can see His light along the road ahead, while knowing that when I look back I will see the depths of His grace in our lives. It's time, and I step into the future, lit by His grace.
