General Motors Dispatcher

   I woke up today in a terrible mood.  I had a nightmare, which I choose not to tell you about, and it jolted me awake.  I looked out the window only to see dark clouds looming overhead and small snowflakes falling from the sky.  I hate snow.  

     I went downstairs and made myself a cup of tea.  Things have been slowly improving over the last couple weeks.  Stores are starting to receive goods, some people are starting to work again, and gasoline is becoming more available.  People are still committed to riding their bikes to work, or the store, or wherever it is that they want to go.  I, on the other hand, do not have steady work.  As a matter of fact, Tom (my boss) called me at the beginning of the week to inform me that I wasn't even able to work the three days a month that GM scheduled.  I was bumped off the schedule due to seniorty.

     Branden and Pauly are still asleep right now.  It doesn't look like we will get to raking the leaves today, especially if the snow continues to fall.  I guess I could work on my windmills.  The income from them has been nice.  I did spend a little bit on parts finally.  I'm still making a nice chunk of change, though.  

     Someone is knocking on my door.  It looks like my neighbor Steve.  He probably has a windmill payment.  He likes to talk so I'll just end this post now.  
    

Current Mood: cold

     Yesterday was pure insanity at it's finest.  In the wake of the cut-backs, I had one driver walk out and another get arrested shortly after my phone post for unruly conduct.  It hurts me to see them so upset because we are a team and I care about how they feel.  They're a part of my family. 

    A few have listened to what I've been telling them all along.  They're keeping up with WWO as well as learning to deal with this crisis through us.  It's good to know that I've managed to help a few of them.  

    I really didn't know what to tell them, but I went to the big boss and asked him what else they had in store for us.  He told me that the drivers with the higher seniority would get work and the others would be laid off until further notice.

   The mouse peeked his head around the corner just after I had the meeting with Tom.  He said, "GM made a deal with the devil to get us a steady fuel tanker to fill up the tractors right after the three days we shipped parts with the cargo vans.  On top of that, GM is paying for our fuel because they want to finish the '07 line.  After they're done with the '07's, they'll be shut down for an unestimated amount of time.  They have to decide what type of vehicle they're going to produce in the wake of the crisis."  

    Well, I'm trying to gear up for one last day of work this week.  TGI freakin' F.  I didn't get my paycheck yet.  Fedex had some problems with moving freight so we're all biting our nails, hoping that's true.  I don't want to work for free. 

Current Mood: awake

    I was at a loss for answers...and words while drivers continue to spout off about the GM production cut-backs.

I received a phone call from our little "mouse" this morning. He had an awesome tidbit of information. GM and other car manufacturer's have been researching alternative fuels for years now. He said that they are rushing development of a new type of car that runs on a hydrogen fuel cell. They want to implement this new car as soon as sales for gasoline powered cars drop to zero. He said that it will be in the next couple of weeks without a doubt and gave me a link to GM's website.

GM's Fuel Cell car:

"The Hy-wire's fuel cell propulsion system is housed entirely in an 11-inch thick skateboard-like chassis. By-wire controls attached to the chassis through a single docking port use electrical signals instead of mechanical links of hydraulics to control steering, acceleration and braking. Without an engine, steering column or other conventional vehicle components, this concept provides unprecedented design freedom."

The car that caught my eye was the AUTOnomy. It's sporty, stylish and doesn't emit a single emmission!  Here's some facts about it:

 

Concept vehicle Fuel cell Hydrogen Technology: Fuel cell and by-wire (concept) Overview: Designed from the ground up around a fuel cell propulsion system, the AUTOnomy is the first to combine fuel cells with x-by-wire technology, which allows steering, braking amd other vehicle systems to be controlled electronically, rather than mechanically. Press release >> Through the combination of fuel cell and x-by-wire technology, design is no longer restricted to conventional configurations.

Copyright © 2006 General Motors Corporation

Ok, so here's the scoop on the warehouse fire. About an hour after I made my post, the boss called. He said he needed all of us to come in. My Mom and Dad didn't want me to go, but I promised them I'd call when I got there.

I grabbed the digital camera and headed off to work. I got off the freeway and the traffic was backed up on route 46. After about ten minutes of waiting in traffic I finally got to our road. I came around the bend and there was huge flames shooting up from the far end of the warehouse. I called Pam to see if she'd gotten there yet. She was just getting off the freeway and got caught in the traffic jam as well. She said that Tom just called (our boss) and told her to meet him in the abandoned RTS warehouse parking lot just up the street. I pulled into the lot and saw him talking on his cell phone. I got out of the car and stared at the flames in awe.

"This isn't good, ya know.", he said still holding his cell phone to his ear. I couldn't say anything at all. I didn't even know what to say. I just stood there. Speechless. "We've got a lot of work to do. We have to set up shop in this warehouse...A.S.A.P.", he said pointing to the run down warehouse, "Our company bought the place about 20 minutes ago."

"My God that's fast. Our warehouse is in flames and just like that the company picked up a new one?", I said.

"Yep. They can't let GM down. We're not going to ship today. We're going to clean and set up computers.", he said. Pam pulled in the parking lot and rolled down her window.

"I can't believe it. Look at that place! What are we going to do here today?", she said.

"We're going to set up a new office.", I said.

"What! Where?", she asked.

"Right here.", I said as I pointed to the nearly delapidated building.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope. Not at all.", I said.

"Great.", she said, "Well at least I didn't drive all the way out here for nothing." She rolled up her window and parked her car.

I went back to my car and grabbed my camera. I turned it on and it said "low battery". I took one picture and the camera shut off.  It wasn't until now that I actually got to view the image because of the battery issue.   
 


Our warehouse is massive and this is just the upper end of it.  My boss said that our offices are untouched and the fires were contained in the nick of time. 

Pam and I leaned against my car, watching the firemen scurry around the scene.  There was that sick feeling in the pit of my stomach again.  The same one I had when I saw the truck burst into flames.    

"I've gotta call my parents to let them know what's going on.", I said as I reached into my pocket to get my cell phone.  

"They didn't want you to come, did they?", she asked.

"No. They were adament about me staying home.", I replied. 

"I don't blame them.  I'd want you to stay home too.", she said.  Pam is my "at work" Mommy.  She watches over me like I'm one of her children.  It's nice to know that your co-workers think of you like their family.  You don't find that too often in this "dog eat dog" society.

My parents were relieved that I was alright.  They weren't happy that we were going to set up a new office.  They've been really upset ever since the attack on that tanker.  My Dad is worried that there will be more attacks by terrorists on American soil.  He said, "9/11 is going to be nothing compared to what will come from all of this.  Don't be suprised."  I hate when he says things like that.  Especially when I know he's right.  My Mom said she was going to call me later to check up before she goes to bed.  I feel bad for making her worry.  I told her I loved her and hung up the phone.  I know she'll be up when I get home no matter what.    

Within a few minutes of me hanging up the phone, other people began to arrive.  Frank pulled in first.  Soon followed vans of computers and the IT department guys.  My boss got the key to the building from a man in a dark blue suit driving a Chrysler 300.  The man chirped a few things in Tom's ear then drove away.  Tom called us over to him as he walked toward the front door of the building.

"Ok", he began while unlocking the door, "here's what we're going to do."  It's up to you guys to set this up.  The IT guys and the computer people are going to install the computers.  Luckily, there's electricity still running to this place.  However, there isn't any water so if you need to use the restroom at all...you'll have to go next door to Superior Beverage.  They know we are without water.", he opened the door after a little key jiggling.  We walked inside the office, which smelled musty and unused, then begin the search for lightswitches.  Pam began flipping every switch she saw until the lights flickered on in the main corridor and office.  There were a couple tables, a few chairs, and milk crates lying around the room.

"Milk crates hurt your butt.", I said.  My boss chuckled.

"Well, maybe we can stack them and put a flat piece of wood over them.", said Frank, "You know, a little makeshift desk of sorts."

"That's all up to you guys.  Do it quickly and efficently.  Now, I have to go down to the dock area and see what we can get going there.  Alright?", said Tom.  We all nodded in approval as he walked through a door that had a dusty sign above it that read "Caution: Tow Motor Traffic". 

We set to work organizing our area.  In a few hours, we had a makeshift office.  The computer guys set up laptops for us to work on as we carried in office supplies like pencils and paper.  By 10:30pm, we had an office.  The docks were coming along nicely.  They had ramps installed for the dropdeck trailers, tow motors in the warehouse, and goods being unloaded from the trucks.  It was amazing how quickly we had set up our new building.

My Mom called me around midnight to see how I was doing.  She told me that my Dad's company called him about a half hour before she called me.  They want him back on the road tomorrow afternoon.  That's a good sign.

I just got home and of course Mom was up.  I told her everything that was going on and she's trying to discourage me from working tomorrow.  I wish I didn't have to go, but we need the money right now. 

Well, I'm beat.  My eyes are hardly staying open at this point.  I wanted to work on the windmill project some more tomorrow, but with all this at work, I'm not sure I'll have the time.  Hopefully I will have some updates on it for you by the weekend.  I have to get that finished and soon. 

Good nite all...and don't let the economy bite.

     Today was by far the worst day in the last five weeks.  It all started when I was ripped out of my peaceful sleep this afternoon by a shotgun blast coming from a nearby neighbor's house.  I lay dazed momentarily, unsure if I dreamt the sound and startled myself awake.  Then came another.  I scrambled out of bed, grabbed my phone off my nightstand and made my way down the hallway.  

     I could hear people yelling from outside as I came to the top of the stairway.  Running down the stairs two at a time I spun around the corner at the bottom of the stairs and dashed to the living room window.  I saw two teenage boys on four-wheelers with gas cans on their laps fly by on the road.  Our front door was wide open, but my mother nor my brother were in sight.  I yelled for my mother and I didn't get a response.  I hurried out the front door onto the porch and scanned the yard quickly, but they weren't out there.  I ran around the side of the house yelling for them again.  Still nothing.  My adrenaline was flowing wildly as the feeling of panic began to overwhelm me.  

     Twenty yards to the left of where I was standing I could see my neighbor, Mike, standing on the edge of his property with a couple other neighbors.  He was screaming and waving his shotgun about angrily.  From behind me, I heard several emergency vehicle sirens whining in the distance, becoming louder and louder as they approached the house.  I proceded to the backyard which was directly behind Mike's house and thankfully I found my brother and mother unharmed.  They were standing next to a flipped over ATV and what appeared to be an injured individual.  There was a gas can on it's side with a majority of it's contents spilled across the dirt driveway in the backyard.  As I got closer, I could see that Mike cleanly blew out both back tires on the ATV with one of his rounds.  Stupid kids.  Gasoline is like gold these days and stealing it could cost you your life.  It didn't look as though the kid had any severe injuries, but he did have some seriously intense scrapes on his back and left thigh.  Looks like is an example of what we're going to be dealing with more and more as the days go by.

     After our statements were made, the police departed and the accident scene was cleaned up, my mom and I sat on the porch drinking coffee as we discussed the events of the past couple days.  I work so much that we don't get to talk as often as we'd like.  I told her about the concerns of the drivers at work. She said my Dad called a couple hours ago to let her know that he'd be home in a few days for his "unplanned, unpaid time-off".  His company is struggling already.

    Fighting back tears, she expressed her concern for our situation.  Money was going to get really tight if my Dad doesn't have any work.  She said he was considering applying at other trucking companies in hopes of attaining more realiable employment for the time being.  In other words...until the oil runs out.  Once it does, my Dad has an extensive resume and he can seek work just about anywhere.  She said he was thinking of applying for work within the military again.  He won't have any problems qualifying for a government job.  He was a police officer, professional canine trainer, detective, search and rescue official and political activist.  He is well known for all of these professions.  If you Googled him, you'd find quite a few hits for websites and articles.  I assured her that I would help out as much as she needed.  I do live here with them and I don't plan on moving out just to struggle on my own at this point.  Additionally, I believe we have to stick together in this.  It's the only way we'll make it.

      The worst part of my day happened right as I was walking out the door at work.  We always finish late on Friday or Saturday (whichever is the last day of the work week) due to the preparations we must make for the following work week.  Paperwork, ugh!  What a bore!  Anyhow, I stepped out of the door onto the walkway when suddenly a diesel tanker truck came racing around the sharp bend of the road that runs around the front of our building.  The driver was going at such a high rate of speed that when he snagged the curb right in front of the building, the truck flipped over on to the front yard of the truck rental place across the street and continued to roll two more times.  There was a flash of light and in an instant, the truck exploded with a force like a nuclear weapon that sent a scorching heat wave making me sweat even at about a hundred yards away.  Sheilding my eyes, I witnessed the driver attempting to climb out of the cab.  Engulfed in flames, he was screaming and flailing his arms.  I covered my ears and closed my eyes.  I was sick to my stomach.  
A few moments later I opened my eyes to view the carnage once more.  Frank and Pam came rushing out the door.  I could see the police lights on the buildings adjacent to our building.  I figured he probably stole the tanker and they must have been chasing him.  Frank asked me what happened.  I replied, "A casualty of war."

      We parted ways shortly after the incident.  Pam called me as I was driving home.  She asked me if I was okay.  I said no.  After witnessing all the events I had today, I really wasn't okay.  I was scared, angry, confused, and distrought.  I'm starting to think that maybe I should just quit my job and find a way to generate revenue within the security of my own home.  I never imagined that there would be this much chaos over a commodity and I sure as hell don't want to die because of it.

       That was my day.  I'm glad it's over.  The only problem is that the sun is rising again as I type.  A new day is about to begin but I'm going to bed to get some sleep before I even attempt to endure anymore stress.  Good nite...and of course...don't let the economy bite. 

Current Mood: crushed

     I was kinda hoping I had "jumped the gun" a little last week by discussing this issue with my mother but it's apparent due to the fact that I woke up this morning to find out that gas has gone up by 13 cents that my concerns are worthwhile.  I know this is only the second day of this alleged "prophecy" now turned reality but I can't help but feel that this trend is not going to fade.

     I observed gas station prices on the way to work yesterday and seeing them made me cringe.   $4.159, $$4.189 and one gas station was $4.219 per gallon.  I have three-fourths of a tank to get me back and forth to work until Friday (payday).  I have less than a hundred dollars right now because I spent $35 dollars on plates for my Pontiac Sunbird and gave another $40 to the mechanic to get it running.  The longer it sits, the more mechanical issues it will incur.  On top of that, my other car is a serious danger with it's issues.   It is an '89 Honda Civic.  It is the best running car I own.  I've never had a mechanical issue with it such as the engine or engine parts.  It is not uncommon for me to get almost 30 miles to a gallon in that little old car.  However, it needs CV joints badly and that's going to cost close to $200 to fix.  It looks as though that would be my best bet in order to conserve fuel.

     God I wish I didn't screw up so bad.  I wish I'd never went do down the wrong path in life for the short period of time that I did. Then I'd have a college degree and a boatload of money to go with it.  But, I press on with my mediocre paying GM job (believe me it's not that great) just hoping I can gain enough experience to get better pay.  Even with the money I make it's difficult to pay bills and support yourself.   Calculating my new budget it looks like I will have to save as much as I can and cut out even the little bit of self satisfaction spending I do.  I love technology.  I buy a pc game or a video game of an inexpensive gadget here and there.  No more of that.  Just gonna get the video card for my computer.  I need that.  Thank God for the internet. =)

     There was a lot of talk at work about gas prices by my co-workers.  Our Project Manager Tom didn't say too much about the prices other than what it was costing him.  He did comment on the amount of money the company was dishing out in fuel right now and said, "they feel it is a temporary situation."  I told him to tell them it's not and they should be coming up with alternatives.  Most of us live relatively close to work except my supervisor Frank who lives 20+ miles away from work.  He commented that he might have to find another job or move closer to work if prices don't drop back down soon.  I told him that they weren't going down and this is only the beginning of the crisis.  I gave him the WWO website and told him to read up.

     That was yesterday...and with the 13 cent increase today I can only imagine the panic that is brewing with everyone.   God I hope the fall isn't too hard in the end.  But all we can do is prepare.

        
     

     Well...here it is.  Doomsday.  Nico was right all along.  Now that it is happening there are so many things to consider.  Things we've never even dreamed we'd have to worry about.  The most difficult part to deal with is adaptation.  Adapting to the change in the economy, in convienience and most of all adapting to our world without oil.

    I had been telling my mother for weeks that the crisis was beginning.  Her retort was sarcastic as usual.  She remarked on the fact that it had begun years ago.  Especially when gas had become a dollar a gallon.    Needless to say when I showed her the spike in gas prices this morning,  we loosely discussed alternate avenues for heat come winter.  The oil heat is going to be too expensive to sustain in this large house.  She mentioned moving and of course I shot her down.  Why move and incur more expenses?  Seems like a waste of money to me.  I explained the possibility of biofuels becoming more available and we also kicked around the idea of converting to electric heaters.  We definetly have some number crunching to do.
     
     Mostly, I wonder how this is going to effect work.  I'm a dispatcher for a company that shuttles car parts to the local General Motors plant assembly line via tractor/trailers.  We don't use outrageous amounts of fuel (the plant is eight miles away) but the price of fuel has got to put a dent in company's pocket.  It already costs approximately $400 for one tank of diesel in a tractor.  It takes about three days of work to burn through that one tank.  That's around  fifteen to twenty trips per tractor per day.  I have probably 13 to 15 available tractors for my shift.  I run ten drivers per shift.  So...15 trips times 8 miles both ways is 240 miles per day per tractor.  That is gonna be rough.  Production at GM has picked up in the last couple weeks, but I'm curious as to what the buzz will be when I get there this afternoon?
 
     If people can't afford fuel, how will they afford to purchase a vehicle?

     I might not have a job in the next few months. 

Current Mood: scared