Friday, December 9, 2011

Realizations of futility.

Three weeks ago I was fired from a trucking company I at least came to like to a certain degree.
My time there was a little under a year, but overall things were going quite smooth up until Nov 9th. This was when the culminations of tight driver regulations hours, non-cooperation with an inept shipping department, and the lack of legal parking spaces all came to a head and led to a borderline anger incident.
I've honestly had problems like this in the past, but this was the first instance where police were called, I was handcuffed, and transported to a psychiatric facility for it.
Sure enough, this blow-up ultimately led to myself getting fired from the company and now having to deal with all the other negative fall-out associated with incidents of this particular nature.
Now I'm with my third trucking company in my 8 year history of full-time.
I've looked back and realized that of all the jobs I've had up to this point, truck-driving jobs are the only ones I've been fired from. Everything else I've quit voluntarily.
Sizing up the unique difficulties that commercial driving entails, I feel there are far too many odds stacked against you to ensure a long-lasting, cool-headed approach to making it through the day. Federal motor carrier guidelines, state/local ordinances, and even policies of individual customers you're picking up from or delivering to have their own unique ways of twisting your patience.
After going through all these difficulties and stacking them up against the stresses of other jobs I've held or thought about pursuing, I'm just now beginning to think that I was in over my head when I first pursued and became certified for this particular line of work 8 years ago.
Why I got into this line of work to begin with?
That right there is a complex question in and of itself.
Some of it had to do with money obviously.
The rest of it was a mere culmination of wanting to get away from mom/dads house and perhaps get out on my own in some capacity.
Instead, this particular route has been bumpy from the get-go and has yet to smooth itself out, if ever.
Right now, I'm giving it yet another chance since I'm still able to get hired on with certain companies. But, if I feel that nothing's ever going to be right in doing this, I'm keen on just saving up whatever money I can, get a small apartment in a place I actually want to live, and go back to rent-a-cop-ing.
The money may be less doing that, but if I live in a cheaper area, I could essentially have time to go back to community college and take courses again.
In short, back to the drawing board for the umpteenth time.