It amazes me how much bullshit I have to deal with as a truck driver. I've been trying to get my truck jumped off since this morning so that I can take it to Volvo to find out what's draining my batteries. That hasn't gone so well so far.

The first people that USX called about jumping off the truck was Bivens Diesel Service in Shelby, NC. I normally don't like to name companies that I deal with on an official basis, but this encounter was just that bizarre.

Long story short, after USX had called these guys, Bivens called me to nail down directions and to give me an ETA. Just in casual conversation (he told me it was going to be a while) I told the guy that I was in no hurry, that I was on hometime and once the truck was started I'd be dropping it off at Volvo in Hickory. Out of the blue, he said “Well, if Volvo's going to work on it, why don't you get Volvo to jump it off?” I figured he was just being persnickity, so I just told him that the Volvo shop was in Hickory (which is a good ways out). He said “Well, if they're not going to let me work on it (meaning USX), I'm not going to jump it off.” I said “Dude, I'm not a politician. I'm just trying to get my truck started.” I mean, hell. Don't they get paid to come out and do stuff like this? It's not like he'd be doing this out of the goodness of his heart, right? He just said “I'm not going to do their dirty work. I'm not jumping it off.” and hung up.

After the initial shock wore off, I called USX. I told the guy in Breakdown that this was a first for me. I've never had anybody just go off the deep end like that. He asked me to hold on while he called Bivens Diesel back, which I did, and in a few minutes he came back to me. He said that Bivens told him that I had said that I didn't want them to work on it, that I wanted someone who was qualified to work on it. I never said anything of the sort!

So I thought Bivens Diesel Service was worth a mention. This guy refused to do a road service, and then told a lie on me to USX about it. That boggles the mind. Does he think that's going to help foster a business relationship with USX? The guy in the Breakdown Department told me that crap like this was the main reason USX disliked dealing with local shops. They got overcharged for the work, were being scammed constantly, and had to deal with people like the one I dealt with.

After that USX called Jones Wrecker Service, which I believe is located in Lancaster, South Carolina. They're the ones who came out the last time the truck wouldn't start, and seem to be nice and reasonable people. As a matter of fact, the mechanic got out here relatively quickly. I'd recommend them. It'd be a cold day in hell before I recommened Bivens Diesel Service to anyone.