All Work and No Play

Whew, I'm beat; another 14 hour day. They sent me all the way down to Monticello, Kentucky today, below Lake Cumberland and spitting distance from Tennessee. Not particularly far for an Over the Road driver, but let's remember that I'm a day tripper. This also came at the end of a very long, intense week. In fact the whole adventure started the evening before, with elements that were ramifications from the day before that; but I'll spare you the sordid details. Let's just say that I was back to work 10 hours from when I'd parked the truck, as soon as the law allowed. Granted, I didn't think that the one pm cut-off for delivery was firm, but I still have my pride.

The trip plan I was given was as if delivering straight from the mill, through Indianapolis, but I was starting from Bloomington. Fortunately there was a driver at the terminal in the morning who was familiar with the area and gave me an excellent route. His advise was golden, and the trip plan might have been OK too, if I'd actually been delivering in Monticello. That's what screwed me up. You see, Monticello is on the eastern side of Wayne County, and Wayne Lumber, my destination, the western side. Of course I waited to call for specific directions until I'd already struggled through Somerset and Burnside. My bad. I'd have done much better to have left the Cumberland Parkway on US 127 instead of going all the way to US 27.

Oh, and just so this story is spinning correctly let me mention that it rained off and on all day, making driving more difficult. But I made it before one pm! Just barely; by a matter of minutes.

There was a guy standing out front of the office eyeing me skeptically as I pulled up. He nodded when I greeted him then said, "We stop receiving at one, you'll have to wait till Monday." I must have looked really dejected because he guffawed and actually put his arm around my shoulder, giving me a manly shake. He was just kidding.

Looking at the map I figured I'd added an hour and a half to my trip what with all the stop lights in Somerset, which were definitely NOT timed. In truth it turned out that it was probably only more like an hour, or forty five minutes, even. You see, US 127 turned out to be the "scenic route." Back at the terminal when we were figuring out how I should go the experienced driver got all the way to Lake Cumberland then said, "Now you need a boat to cross; take the ferry."

127 is a good road, but it's windy, through the mountains. The speed limit may be 55 but practically you can do no better than 45 or so, average, if that. I actually caught myself bitching about it. I knew my weekend wasn't going to start until late but wait a second; "You're in the Mountains, Steve; take a deep breath and enjoy this."

I'm so glad that I relaxed before I got to...the dam. US 127 crosses the dam that holds back Cumberland Lake. I had several cars behind me approaching the 90 degree turn onto the dam. I had to stop until traffic cleared to make the turn. All the oncoming cars kept going onto the shoulder as if afraid of me. I wondered if I was over the yellow line, but wasn't. Perhaps the first one was afraid and the others followed? But no, there was a break, too small for me to go but large enough to stop a lemming. Yet they gave berth too. Perhaps they were trying to be kind, to give me enough room? More likely, but not sufficient. I needed the WHOLE road to make that turn.

I was stressed because I thought I was holding people up, but once I'd finally turned I found that the tailgaters had all come to the dam for the view and parked. I was free to cross at leisure.

And what a view it was. The lake to my right, narrower than some, but bounded by higher hills, and to the left a fucking Gorge. I've always wondered if that's not the etymology of "gorgeous." I guess we could look that up. But the view was of the Cumberland River curving off with a snake of mist above its surface mimicking what? Its future course, or the course of the river that was lost? No matter or energy is ever lost. "Gee, I hope this dam doesn't give way!"

So that was cool but there was another factor that frustrated me on the way back. This too you can look up online: The Worlds Longest Yardsale. Yup, US 127 in Southern Kentucky. Social scientists will be busy for years cataloguing this simian behaviour. It was early enough that it wouldn't have been an issue on the way in, but coming out..."I just wanna go home!" Then I passed KY 55, the highway I'd taken down to the Parkway before I realized it would have been my escape route. So if, which I doubt, I ever have to do this trip again I'll know the way to go, and a couple of ways NOT to go.

It's always easier in the morning, afternoon traffic sucks, everywhere. Imagine what it was like when I got to Louisville at five PM on a Friday, with every major road in that city under construction. "I just wanna go home!" But I made it, in one piece, glad of the overtime and with a story to tell. Yet that's not what I wanted to share with you, that was just blowing off steam:

I was on a back road in Davies County; Amish country. There were some sheep in an overgrown pasture. That was picturesque enough but the puppy bounding toward the sheep, its head rising out of the grass and disappearing again was priceless. Then I saw the two young boys in coveralls coming through a gate into the field to run after the dog and thought, "I must be in a Winslow Homer painting!"