I would like to officially go on record requesting a do-over for my Memorial Day.

My day began about 4:30 Monday morning. Yep, that infernal internal alarm clock. I came into the office and began reading newspapers on-line, blogging, checking fuel card activity and printing reports I would need later in the day.

My first phone call came a little after 8. One of the drivers. In fact it was the driver who faxed me his final two loads of the week but didn't think it was important I had any other pertinent information. When I had called him Saturday asking him about it, he became very short, telling me he HAD to have his paycheck first thing Monday.

I told him he had better back off or the office would be closed Monday and re-open Tuesday. I asked him why he thought he deserved a holiday but he didn't think Krl and I did. I am really beginning to think we are wasting our time with this man. I think one of two things will happen, either he will become dis-satisfied with the job, or he will trip the B.S. meter and I will terminate him.

Yesterday when he arrived, he told me he went off and left some cash tickets sitting on the table, but some of the fuel card activity needed to be reimbursed. I have been suspecting a little shady stuff going on, but I have always been a student of the old adage, give a man enough rope and he'll hang himself.

This driver knows, no cash ticket, no reimbursement. We'll see if he produces them next week.

I had this driver drop off his envelope at the house and I told him to give me somewhere between a half hour and an hour and I would have his check. I told him if he had any where he wanted to go, I could call him when his check was ready.

I had built as much of his settlement as I could using what information we had from load faxes and such, so I needed only to insert shipping numbers/invoice numbers to tie the paper trail together. When I was through I handed it to Krl for proofing and she wrote the check. I made the call.

This man kind of reminds me of a junky. On pay day, I almost expect him to be nervous, shaky, and sweating profusely. Money to spend and so little time to spend it!

I have seen this man take home very good money and I have seen him take home what he has told me is his base requirement. Thing is, it doesn't matter, whatever is there, is gone. I have paid this man in excess of a thousand dollars after taxes, and by days end he has asked for an advance on the next weeks wages.

Patience is getting thin.

The other driver had called me Friday to tell me he was loaded and he planned to meet his daughter in Eloy, Arizona on Saturday to take a grandbaby home. She lives in California. The man asked me if he could draw some cash off his card and me take it out of yesterday's check. On Sunday morning I printed a card activity report and he had drawn $103 Saturday from an ATM in Eloy, Arizona. When I checked card activity Monday morning, he had drawn an additional $104 from an ATM in Yuma, Arizona. I guess something went awry. I know her had some serious miles to put in if he was going to get back to Lamesa, pick up his truck and be in Laredo by morning.

My biggest complaint is, this man's paperwork didn't make it to me yet. Oh well, he can wait on his check. Looks like Wednesday or Thursday to me because I am at the parts store Tuesday, which means I can't begin working on his settlement until Tuesday night at the earliest.

I may join a union.

I am so frustrated. I am a racing addict. If it goes fast or makes lots of noise, it has my attention. Needless to say, my favorite day of the year is the day before Memorial Day. 1100 miles of racing in two installments. Indy and the Coca Cola 600. I got my first race in Sunday, only to have the second one postponed because of rain until Monday.

I watched the early weather, and every report I saw had the entire Eastern Seaboard "green" with rain. Yet at 11 CDST NASCAR started the race. It was interrupted by rain showers most of the day, then in a different twist NASCAR stopped the race for one minute, holding the cars on the tract, in observance of Memorial Day. More rain and they finally red flagged the race and brought the cars to pit road.

David Reutimann was leading. Rains continued. Jet dryers and support vehicles circled the track until finally all of them were called in. In a decision that took way to long, NASCAR finally called the race after 227 of 400 laps. I made the remark to Krl that if it had been one of the more well known drivers leading, the decision would have been much quicker. By the way, Michael Waltrip is the winning car owner! Good job Mikey!

Yesterday morning I had a call from one of the directors of the little pulling association asking me if they could pick up the scales which are loaded on the sled. This is one of those odd deals where they don't belong to me and they don't belong to them. They belong to the old association. At one time they had been loaned out and actually went missing. I had a line on where they were and located them and K.O. called and got custody of them.

I put in a call to K.O. to tell him about the call. Immediately he was a little irate. One of the other directors had called him and K.O. told him he would bring the scales to the show. We talked for a minute and he told me, if they show up, let them have the scales.

Mid afternoon I fired up the barbecue pit. Krl and I had bought some boneless pork ribs that were on 2 for 1. I was trying to busy myself during one of the rain delays. I began burning the grill off while the ribs marinated. Finally, things were ready and I threw the ribs on the grill.

I was about one turn away from a masterpiece when my phone rang. The director who had called me Monday morning, was on the line telling me they were in Abilene.

Thanks for the advance notice.

I slipped my boots on and gave Krl some last minute instructions for the ribs on grill. I made a quick trip to the storage facility and we unloaded and reloaded the scales. Even though things went well, it still took an hour.

Back to the house. Krl had the ribs on a tray on the stove. Baked potatoes were out of the oven, so we threw biscuits in the oven and baked beans in the microwave.

By the time they were ready, Krl and I both were "out of the mood". I ended up eating one rib, one biscuit and a little potato and beans.

Oh well, that meal will live to be eaten another day!

I have not figured my phone out. When it is on the charger, sometimes it will ring, sometimes it won't. Sometimes it will ring and go to voice mail, sometimes it goes directly to voicemail.

This morning I walked by, and it showed new voice mail. I pressed "listen now" and coded in my password. "Hello, Don . . ..... .. ..". And that was it. It sounded like a "robo" voice, all tweaked and echoed out. I looked at missed calls and it showed the call was from the truck driver who had been in Yuma, Arizona Monday morning. No more calls though.

Go figure.

He has all the other numbers. I suppose if it had been important he would have tried them.

The night has been fitful. If I wasn't getting up, Krl was. I think the first stretch I slept was for all of thirty minutes. And that was after I went to bed and got up once.

Crudola!

School is almost out. I don't really know when what school ends where. I think Lubbock is a full day today and then two half days and then a teacher work day. Summer School starts Monday in LISD. No rest for the weary.

During this post, I have been "speed watching" Monday's NBA game between Denver and LA. I'm sorry, but I just can't like Kobe and the Lakers.

Maybe I am just becoming difficult. It is getting where I dislike Tuesday's almost as much as I dislike Mondays! Have a day!

FATHER, I am afraid YOU have YOUR work cut out for YOU today. Sorry.