Gordon Lightfoot kept me out of trouble
Kathy was the type of girl a guy like me could fall in love within a heartbeat. She was a much older woman: she was in grade 11, and I sadly was in grade 10. The rule back then was
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On the Road with Mike Murchison
Alberta trucker Mike Murchison shares his experiences on the road through music, photography and humour.
No one wants to work anymore
Can’t find anybody to work. Or no one wants to work anymore. It’s a common thread. Not just where I live, but seemingly every place I travel.
I cover Alberta and the Northwest US states, and this discussion has crossed my table a lot. Employers can’t find anyone to work.
I’m sure there are a variant of factors involved. The wage that’s being offered, the hours as well as the expectations. Tie that into the cost of living and you might just have a perfect storm brewing.
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40 years waiting for Northern Ontario roads to be improved: “Not in my lifetime,” career driver says
by Mike Murchison So, let’s weigh in on the shape of the highways in Northern Ontario. I’m referring to Highways 11 and 17. The “Trans Canada” highway. The main east-west corridor that gets you from the Manitoba border down to
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Humility, and all that crap…
Loading cows into a trailer (a semi-confined space) is not natural to them. They get nervous and anything to calm them down helps.
Me! I talk to them, sing to them. Treat ‘em like I’d want to be treated. Then when I have them loaded, I ease on the accelerator, softly on the brake, gently round the curves.
We don’t want any cows falling. That’s called a ‘downer’. And if one goes down it can get trampled by the others. I’ve been lucky or smart. None down on my loads.
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A dead driver delivers no loads: take care of yourself
“Deep Fried Medicare” Photo: Mike Murchison by Mike Murchison Nothing like the rhythm off the road. Wheels humming, pistons stroking…. but what happens when YOU have a stroke…? Driver health is often put on the back burner; it’s often neglected
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Why now, brown cow? Well, why not?
So why now? Why haul cows at my age? Hell, I’m 61 years old. I should be looking for the least amount of physical stress that might be available to me.
But no!
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Breaking down
Winter can seem longer when there’s no heat. Worse when its dark.
You think life is picking on you, and you can drift into the Negative realm of your mental capacities.
Breaking down in what seems “The Middle of Nowhere” (don’t bother punching it in Google Maps) can seem inconvenient and maybe cruel.
“Why me? Why now?’”
Well.
Breaking down near the house doesn’t really count in my books. You’ve got to be at least 150 miles from anything for it to count on your fortitude scale.
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Cowboys and Truckers, running against the wind
It’s out here that Cowboys did and still do make a go of it. Moving the stock from one grazing pasture to another. Punching holes in the watering hole so cattle can access the water. Spreading hay bales across a white landscape to feed the herd.
It still goes on, and I see it all the time. Day and night. The art and business of cowboyography is alive and well. You just need to know where to look.
Trucking is similar in many ways. You’re out there. Cutting through those windswept acres in the dead of winter on a concrete trail.
Growing up Canadian, to Ian Tyson’s music
Ian Tyson was 89 when he passed away December 29th. He will be missed by those who knew him, loved him and those who absorbed his music. Ian Tyson was a phenomenal songwriter and a great singer up until a medical issue took his voice. But even then, he kept singing, playing and recording.
What did he do for me? His music and his words helped a young kid from a big city settle his nerves and showed him, little by little, that he could make a new home. A fresh start in this “Land of Shining Mountains” under that big Alberta sky.
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