Trucker’s Payday

Thursday is payday for a lot of truckers.  GetAlong is paid electronically using 2 accounts setup by his lease company.  One is for the “truck” and one is for the “house”.  When GetAlong books a load, a certain amount of the pay for that load is put into his “truck” account.  This money is supposed to pay for his fuel and some other incidentals for the duration of the trip.  On the first Thursday following the completion of the load the remainder of the pay, less deductions for insurance, trailer lease, etc., is put into the “house” account, provided GetAlong has done his paperwork and submitted it to the lease company on time.  As soon as the funds hit the “house” account, I draw it out to deposit into the business checking account at our bank.  This is used to pay the truck note, cell phone bill and other business expenses that are not handled by the lease company.  Then he gets “paid” and the household expenses are taken care of.  Are you with me?

Now, GetAlong also has a Flying J discount card that is used like a debit card to purchase fuel at discount prices.  He transfers money from his “truck” account to the Flying J card by phone.  He also uses this for other business related purchases.  He can also pay for fuel using Comchecks that are written on the “truck” account.  Truck stops other than Flying J give discounts for cash purchases so sometimes he cashes a Comcheck and uses the cash to purchase fuel.   Comchecks are really drafts that are filled out and given to a clerk who must call it in and get an authorization number before accepting it.  This takes time folks.  Are you still with me? 

Now, I’m a bookkeeper by trade.  The trained accountant in me keeps all this in line.  If you’re up with me, we are talking about 4 business accounts to reconcile each month – for one truck driver.  To make matters worse, the statements I get for these accounts are cryptic to say the least.  The Flying J account, which by the way covers the 18th of the month through the 17th of the following month, only gives the address where the transaction occurred.  If GetAlong loses a receipt it becomes a memory game.  Were the executives at Flying J drinking when they set this up?  Did they not know they were creating this for a business that must track expenses and uses the calendar month to do its books?  The “truck” account weekly statement will usually say if the purchase was for fuel but it lists the street price less the discount.  The corresponding receipt will show only the net price.  No wonder I procrastinate with the books. 

My point is this – operating a truck is complicated business, not for the faint at heart.  So many think that it is easy work.  If you think you want to be an owner operator, think twice.  If you’re not a diligent record keeper, you better have a wife who is.

Marue

Hello world!

I keep asking myself – Do I really have anything worthwhile to say here? The answer is – yes, I do. I’ve got so much to say that I don’t know where to begin and I hope I never find out where I should end. So I’ll just start with an introduction.

My name is Marue. No that’s not my real name because I don’t feel right using my real name. Marue was my first grade teacher’s name. She was a somewhat older lady in 1967-68 so I’m sure she is no longer with us. I hope she had a long and fulfilling life because she was definitely the best first grade teacher a kid could ask for. She was short and plump and pulled her gray hair into a tight bun every day. She always had a smile and kissed every single one of us every day when we left to go home. I bet no one does that anymore and it’s a shame. There’s a special place in my heart for Mrs. Miller. I will never forget her.

My better half will be hereinafter referred to as GetAlong. That’s his CB handle on the road. He’s an owner operator, meaning he owns his own “big truck” as he calls it. He’s an over-the-road trucker. Long hauls, short hauls, as long as it pays good, he’ll do it. GetAlong is in North Carolina as I write. As you can imagine, we have quite a cell phone bill. I can’t imagine what it was like for trucking families 20 years ago.

We have one daughter who I will call Sweetpea. Sweetpea is 16. That in itself says a lot about my life. More later.

The three of us live on a bit of acreage in an area that is becoming less and less what I would call “country”. The big city is fast approaching. I haven’t figured out if that is good or bad, but we need the space for the big truck when it’s at home. Then there is the horse, Big Dog as we sometimes call her, who requires a good deal of grazing room. The dogs, Mona and Birddog, live here too. And the squirrels…..I thought dogs chased squirrels but I think our dogs have some sort of pact with the squirrels. They only chase them when we’re around and they tell the squirrels to make it look good. Treats are on the line and they do love their treats.

Marue