When I was a little shaver, I used to run all summer long with my Uncle Quint or Bob Whitworth, after Dad opened his office for brokering. This was THE TRIP FROM HELL We loaded a load of watermelons in Nogales, headed for store door delivery all over the state of Montana. We stopped in Wells, Nevada and I got food poisoning from a tunafish sandwich. I had stuff squirting out of me from both ends, all the way to Livingston. We stayed at my cousins ranch there. We were having a great time with a watermelon bust, until I fell out the hayloft onto my head, with only a piece of chunk between the concrete and my brain. Its all fun and games till someone gets hurt! We got our chunks unloaded after 3 or 4 days and went over by Great Falls or Havre to load wheat for the old Pillsbury plant in Vernon. Quint finally had to lay down over around Idaho, somewhere. I was sitting up in the seat driving, and grabbing gears like I always did back then. On the side of the road. Some guy came along, going the other way. And I gave him the lights and the sideways V. And OH, OH! He stops! And comes running back to see whats wrong. I thought I was dead! He didnt get upset or anything. May have cussed me after he left though. When Quinten wakes up. I tell him about how the mosquitoes have been eating me alive, while he was sleeping. Come to find out, I had gotten the measles. I had it coming out both ends again. Ran out of clothes and sheets and blankets back to Vernon. After we got off of the way cool truck lift at Pillsbury. I thought that was the coolest thing I had ever seen. We went to the old Richfield Truck Stop on Alemeda. And ran across the street to get me some new clothes and boots and sheets and blankets. We were parked on the fuel island. And there was fuel all over the place. I had on a brand new pair of white jeans and a new shirt and a new pair of boots. When I slipped in the fuel, trying to get in the truck. Uncle Quint was one of a kind. He never got mad at me, or raised his voice at me. I wouldnt have been surprised if he would have killed me. He never hesitated a minute to take me with him. Or did any of dads drivers. I will never forget you Uncle Quint.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 02:36:07 +0000