Last year one of the Houston Truck Deals guys did a very rash and stupid thing – he forgot Valentine’s Day.  Fortunately for him, she still married him later that year, but he clearly thought he could carry on as he started – he forgot his fiance’s birthday too!

The poor guy quickly learned that the best way not to forget a birthday or a Valentine’s Day is simple – forget either one of them once!

Paying attention is crucial if you are serious about maintaining a relationship whether you are married or not. Life on the road is hard on equipment and hard on hearts too.  You have to both really try that extra hard to make a relationship work and it is times like today that can be made to really count, so don’t fluff this up.

A card, roses and candy may be the traditional way of showing someone special you really care, but take a moment and think this through.

Chocolates and candy are great, but is she on a diet?

That is not a good move she is because it shows you just don’t think about her much.

Buying her flowers?

Does she really like them? Every guy does this and this is where you can show you are really thinking this all through – by being original.

Originality shows you are really thinking about her, and that means you really care and love her too.  But is this going to cost you more money?

No.

Being original does not mean you have to spend more money than a box of chocolates and roses, in fact, it could be even cheaper if you are being a Scrooge.

Think about what she really likes and what is going on in her life today.

What does she do to enjoy herself? Who does she hang out with? What sports or hobbies does she indulge in? is there anything that she has a hankering for or has dropped not so subtle hints about?

Think about tying your Valentine’s Day gift to her into something she really likes to gain maximum points.

Look at some of these suggestions:

Buy her tickets to go see a chick flick playing at the movies with her girlfriend if you aren’t around.

Give her sexy but cozy sleep wear – make sure it’s comfortable and something she is likely to wear a lot so she appreciates who it came from.

How about buying her jewelry or something to put all her jewelry in.

How about a day at a local health spa or beauty parlor.

Perfume is always good, but stick to what you know she likes to avoid a mishap.

Probably the best Valentine’s Day gift you can give is to be there for her today, but unfortunately for most long distance truckers that is simply going to be too much of a dream and the gifts will have to take your place for the day, but not in her heart.

P.S. The HTD guy who did the stoopid thing was me

It’s that time of year – no-one feels like doing any work between Christmas and New Year’s and I’m no different, so instead of being all “serious”, time to let what little hair I have down and do the rounds of the trucker fun spots.

Sarah Palin is in the news of late with her Alaska program, so the following grizzly bear notice immediately caught my eye:

My immediate question is whether Mama Grizzly’s poop smells of pepper

Thanks to the TruckerFun.com blog for this one.

Surfing Youtube brought up a new one for me – Eskimo Sean.  Immediately my wife, who is giving me subtle hints about how Alaska looks nice and we should go for a cruise there, advised me further that eskimos are really innuits and don’t like being called eskimos to begin with.

My only response was a blank stare – a good husband knows when to keep his mouth shut!

Back to Eskimo “Who Really Should be Innuit” Sean on Youtube – nothing particularly funny about these vids but they give a good trucker POV:

The music selection is pretty cool too – for some reason I just got into the whole video stream, and I guess Eskimo Sean should be looking at an alternative career option as DJ.

The Wheatgrass Trucker – for nutrition tips on the road, including make your own sauerkraut and oats and groats, you can do no better than watching what this guy gets up to. I’m not convinced by the oats in a jar being allowed to germinate yet, but the sauerkraut looks so good I can smell it over the video:

Next, a trucker walks into a bar….

Next, a dirty joke: a truck driver is heading out of West Texas and stops to load up on eggs, ham and coffee…

Finally, a word of warning.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)was formed in 1980 right here in Texas by Candice Lightner after her teenage daughter was killed by a drunk driver. Lightner left MADD because voice of the most politically active anti-drink driving group in the country switched from dunk driving to redusing alcohol consumption generally. Lightner is right – there is no need for you to not have a good time during the holidays, but do not drink and drive.

This is the last day before New Year’s Eve and party time to bring in 2011. If you’re partying, remember don’t drink and drive – your career, your CDL and your life are on the line.

If you are working on the roads tomorrow, remember that the thousands of A-holes out there who won’t think about the consequences of drinking and driving and make sure you are safe.

We want to see all of you in 2011!

Etrucker- Essay Contest

Are you a trucker who has always been a fan of writing? Do you spend your hours off the clock writing a novel in your cab? Or do you simply have something to say about driving and the impact it’s had on your life? Have you ever wanted to be a published writer?

 If you’re a trucker who likes to write, your hobby might earn you $1,000, enough money to get some of those chrome accessories for your truck. The Mark Twain Essay Contest, sponsored by etrucker.com, is open to all truckers and their immediate families. Truckers have to write about trucking or something to do with life on the road. Whether you write a romantic story of a trucker falling in love, or an essay about a sad or hard time in your career, your essay could be among the winners. Although unless you have some really good material on hand, it might be to late for this year, but it gives you a good head start for next year’s constest. So keep reading!

Truckers who want to take a look at previous winners can visit Etrucker, where they can read a published honorable mention.

Truckers can write a fiction or nonfiction piece no longer than 2,000 words, a little over six pages double-spaced, and enter it in the contest for a chance to win. First place essays win a prize of $1,000, while second place earns $500, and third place $250. Honorable mentions will also win a free one-year subscription to Trucker’s News. Winning entries will even be published in the magazine.

Winners will be determined by those who spend much of their time writing about trucking, the editorial board of Trucker’s News. Truckers who are interested in writing about their chosen field should enter the contest. Anyone could end up with a publication in Trucker’s News. So if you’re looking to make a name for yourself in fiction or non-fiction, then try entering this essay contest specifically for truckers.

Mack Museum

Whether you’re looking to learn a little bit about the history of trucking or you just want to feel more confident about buying a Mack, visiting the Mack museum will introduce you to the impressive past of one of the most popular truck manufacturers in the world.

Often called “The Greatest Name in Trucks,” Mack has long been America’s leading truck manufacturer, as well as a name that people trust. At the Mack museum, truckers and their families can see how this manufacturer got so far.

Truckers and their families will be fascinated by this illustrious brand’s start as they visit the museum and view the first vehicle to ever be called a Mack—one of the open air busses that the Mack brothers built for tourists to peruse Chicago and New Orleans in the early 1900s.

In addition to the bus, visitors will also see early Mack trucks made deliveries while other companies were still relying on horse drawn carriages, as well as Mack’s contribution to war—the 1918 AC manufactured for WWI, which earned the company’s vehicles the names of Bull Dog.

But while looking at these early models can be interesting, and speak to the longevity of Mack as a manufacturer, truckers and their families can also view hundreds of photographs at the museum, as well as records indicating when certain trucks were build. The museum even allows truckers to contact them when seeking information about a particular model of truck. Displayed in conjunction with the America on Wheels exhibit, truckers who visit the Mack Museum will not only learn the history of Mack, but also the importance of the transportation industry in America since its early days.

Visitors to the Mack Museum can find the institution in Allentown, PA, a convenient route for truckers and their families who tread the major highways nearby. The museum is open on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

]]> http://houstontruckdeals.com/mack-museum/feed/ 0 http://houstontruckdeals.com/big-rig-pulling/ http://houstontruckdeals.com/big-rig-pulling/#comments Wed, 18 Feb 2009 16:46:39 +0000 Truckin http://houstontruckdeals.com/?p=1114

Big Rig Pulling

Truckers have to spend long, hard days working on the road, but that doesn’t mean they don’t want to use their trucks to play just has hard. For truckers that like to try and test the might and strength of their trucks, big rig pulling events can be a fun way to spend off time. And for truckers who just like to see the show, big rig pulling can be a good way to relax from the road and reconnect with why you became a trucker in the first place.

One of the most recent, and most popular, big rig truck pulls happened in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, where famous rigs with names such as “The Killer,” “Silver Bullet,” and “Lady Butterfly” took home titles and prizes.

Events such as the Bloomsberg fair draw trucks from all over the nation. Because truckers travel the major highways in the United States, these events can be great places to spend mandatory time off the road on their way to and from destinations.

Popular events for the summer and early fall, winter’s thaw into spring will most likely see the beginning of such events again, and truckers will be getting themselves in gear through practice and viewing the finals from past championships.

For many truckers, driving a big rig is more than profession; it’s a passion. Most job counselors and life coaches, bosses, and business experts say that finding a job that is also your passion is the best way to gain satisfaction and happiness. For truckers, the machinery, as well as the ability to visit many places and experience life on the open road, is more attractive than any paycheck. Events like truck pulls allow truckers to embrace the fact that their passion is also their hobby. Information about events such as these can be easily found on the Internet.