Okay, I'm sitting in my hotel room after the first day of truck school. Man, was THAT a blast! I actually drove one of those giant rigs I've seen on the road all my life, and it was FANTASTIC. The shifting was a little rough, but I'm not complaining, after getting to actually drive the first day of school.
I also got to talk to one of my instructors for quite awhile on a personal level. We discovered that we're both Christians, we're both BIG fans of 80s music, and we've both been divorced. From what I know so far about him, we could easily be best friends in a parallel universe. He also complimented me on how fast I picked up on shifting, and didn't yell at me when I ground the gears. If I wasn't married, I'd probably have to ask him out on a date.
They seem to have low expectations at this school. I missed the first day (by prior arrangement) and I had to catch up. They seemed surprised that I had not only read the proper chapters for yesterday, but today as well. I figured that would be simply par for the course. I buzzed through the tests and stuff, participated in class discussion and generally did all I could (including skipping lunch) to catch up with the only other classmate I have (Russell, who seems a very decent guy).
I had a chance to quiz my instructors (Joe and Jim) on real-life issues related to trucking, like how they use the CBs, some points of trucker culture, the trials and travails of balancing a life on the road with life on the road, I got their opinions on what companies may be best to work for, and so on. In general, it was a really good day of learning, getting to know the people around me and starting a good routine which I will be following for the next three weeks.
An auspicious start, if you ask me.
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