Murphy's World

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink

Before I got my CDL, I was delivering bottled water in Jersey. One particular day I was flying around making my stops (about 100 a day), was in a rush, like always, and forgot to close the side doors on the truck.
     Yep. As I made the turn to get on the highway, about 70 giant water missiles came shooting out of the truck, apparently splattering and bouncing all over the road. Some rolled down the embankment, others just landed in the middle of the road.
     I say “apparently” because I didn’t know I had lost my load until I reached my next stop a few minutes away and realized I had no bottles left! As I stood there scratching my head, I received a phone call on my cell from the boss asking if I was a little short on bottles.
     Driving back there and having to fetch all those bottles as traffic looked on was thrilling. Interesting day; definitely the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to me.
     I worked there for three years before I got a CDL. I’ve been hauling flatbed since 2004.
     “Intoxicating”
     Central Jersey

Dear Intox,
I believe it was Benjamin Franklin who said, “haste makes waste.” Of course, Franklin also reportedly advised a young delivery boy that “time is money.” Hey Ben, you can’t have it both ways, certainly not in Murphy’s World. So which is it?
     All kidding aside, over-the-road drivers often find themselves between a rock and a hard place, trying to make a delivery on time while operating their 80,000-pound vehicle in a safe and sane manner. If you really have to choose between the two, there really is only one choice, which brings us to yet another group of words to live by: “safety first.”
     “Flying around” and “in a rush as always,” on the other hand, are a recipe for disaster. Fortunately, the only thing that apparently got punctured in this impromptu dancing waters display was your pride and a bunch of giant water bottles. By Murphy World’s standards, we call that a good day.
     Finally, good choice hauling flatbed. They don’t have doors.

Regards,
Murphy and Lucky Dog