How Did That Stuff Get Here?

I was asked to be the keynote speaker at the annual Truckload Carriers Association fundraising gala for Wreaths Across America. I didn’t hesitate to say yes and was honored to do so a couple weeks ago in Washington, DC. I agreed without hesitation, because, first, I have the utmost respect for over the road truck drivers and second, because this year will be the tenth year I will have participated in Wreaths Across America. I also hold WAA in the highest regard but could not do them justice in explaining more about who they are and what they do in a few sentences on this blog. This blog will be about over the road truck drivers. Next week I will devote my entire blog to WAA because their organization deserves an entire blog. If you are not familiar with them, please take to Google or wait patiently for next week.

It’s no secret that I have spent extensive time on the road over the last several years. I have driven the highways and the bi-ways all over these United States. I am very observant when I drive, paying close attention to my surroundings, noticing things most people don’t, like the types of vehicles that are with me on the road. Here’s a hint, it’s not Toyota’s or Subaru’s or Chevrolet’s. It’s semi’s, and I have come to know the names of the company’s whose names I frequently see; J.B. Hunt, Wal-Mart, Schneider, ABF Freight, Werner, Landstar, etc. I can also recognize most by the color and design of the trailers.

I once heard someone say,“The United States would not be the industrial nation it is without the trucking industry.” This was long before I had racked up so many miles on the road, yet I didn’t forget, and am reminded of it everytime I take to the highway. When you spend enough hours on the road, you will see some interesting things being transported. I have seen modified homes, firetrucks, (hook and ladder trucks too), windmill blades (these are WAY bigger than they look!), ginormous industrial equipment parts (like oil rigging stuff), bridge sections, amusement rides, animals and so much more. These are all things visible and identifiable, but most of the semi trailers are enclosed and you cannot see what they are hauling.

I am not qualified to give statistics on the exact quantity of goods that are delivered to retailers or what arrives via semi trucks versus other means. If I was, this would read more like an assignment for Marketing 101. Instead, I will just talk about what I know and see as a consumer and one who has shared thousands of highway miles with truck drivers. I am a single person, so I don’t “consume” much, but I still have to shop and choose things off the shelves to purchase. Imagine yourself in WalMart or Target (or anyplace you shop) and the number of items that are in EVERY aisle. There are literally thousands in every aisle, millions in the entire store! Have you ever wondered how it all gets there? It’s not by midnight fairies or magic storks making special deliveries. It’s semi trucks!

Picture yourself as a consumer and the places you visit daily, weekly or however often you shop. Where do you go? Grocery store, convenience store, gas station, coffee shop, fast food? What about infrequent, but necessary places like clothing or furniture retailers? Ever thought about how all that stuff gets inside those doors? No midnight fairies there either.

It’s almost overwhelming to imagine how ALL THAT STUFF gets there, but it does, one truck load at a time. When I see semi’s on the road, I like to guess what might be in the back of them. It’s a pretty silly game because the only way I would find out is if I followed the driver to their next destination or by shouting at them while driving, “Hey, what’s in the back?” (I’m sure they would think I was nuts.) But, I can imagine what they might be carrying. Spices? Socks? Salmon? Chocolate? Vodka? Cigars? Diapers? Shampoo? Dog food? Snow scrapers? Notebooks? Aspirin? Cold medicine? Refrigerators? Computers? OR all of the above, or a million combinations of a million different things.

Comedian George Carlin made fun of the “boxes of stuff ” we, as humans possess. He was referring to our houses and the places we live. Look around, where did all of your stuff come from? Why do we have so much stuff? I think you get the point. I can be a bit of a thinking nerd and wonder about things I think no one else would. My grandfather told me this was inquisitive and meant I had an appetite for learning. That may be true, but I still think I am a bit nerdy when it comes to this. Now I am getting off track because this is supposed to be about the semi truck drivers who deliver stuff to us!

None of our stuff would get to us if it wasn’t for semi drivers. No matter what the weather, they are on the road 24/7 and often sleep in the cabs of their trucks, which can be very nice, but I am not so sure I would want to sleep every night in the same place I worked every day!?

Did you know there are drivers who have racked up 1,000,000 miles? One MILLION miles. The average person drives 12,000 miles per year. The average semi driver can log 500 miles in one day! When I see them on the road, I let them in, I move over, I send gratitude for the traffic jams, toll booths, bad weather, bad drivers, bad roads, animals who don’t look before jumping in front of them, and all the other things they endure by being on the road ten times more than me. When I see them on the road, I send gratitude for whatever stuff they are carrying across county and state lines to keep all the shelves full of stuff in all the places we shop.

Next time you see a semi truck on the road, be me for a minute and wonder, if it’s not obvious, what they are carrying. Is it something you’re on you’re way to get or on your shopping list for the weekend? Next time you see a semi truck on the road, please offer thanks, even if in your head or in a kind gesture to let them in the lane ahead of you, even if you’re in a hurry. Chances are, they’ve been on the road for hours or have hours ahead of them, to get their stuff to the place where you buy your stuff.

The United States would not be the industrial nation it is without the trucking industry. Have you thanked a trucker today?

One thought on “How Did That Stuff Get Here?

  1. This is an awesome reminder Jill. I’m usually one of the people so afraid of trucks. I feel like they are out of control and going to fall over on me. With your perspective I will try to be more patient and respectful of those 18-wheelers.

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