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[Joe Handley]

7My employer's call centers have been busy for the last 4 weeks anyway, but as we lost staff to school closings  and a lot of staff working from home, things got worse and have stayed busy through the last 2 weeks I've been working from home. Starting 3 weeks ago, we've been working O/T be it in the office or our residences and the only things tht have held me back the last couple weeks was illness and one day that I couldn't connect to Corporate the first week.....luckily I was able to try and sleep off what I had between attempts to log in that day but had to take nearly 2 full days off this week due to what may have been Bronchitis and shortness of breath.......again.

I can say this though, between my tax refund, not really spending money before and after work, the extra hours, and now this pending assistance check, I'vd been able to order the rest of the stuff needed for the 200's tune up and upgrade parts, some new t-shirts, and get Dad a 1/24 scale Axial Scale truck he was wanting with a matching one for myself. Should still have the funds left over to get a new cell phone, once we can shop normally again, since my Galaxy S5 if getting very long in the tooth. May even look at getting coilovers to replace the factory struts in the 200 since those stock pieces are getting long in the tooth too.

[espo]

10 hours ago, Joe Handley said:

7My employer's call centers have been busy for the last 4 weeks anyway, but as we lost staff to school closings  and a lot of staff working from home, things got worse and have stayed busy through the last 2 weeks I've been working from home. Starting 3 weeks ago, we've been working O/T be it in the office or our residences and the only things tht have held me back the last couple weeks was illness and one day that I couldn't connect to Corporate the first week.....luckily I was able to try and sleep off what I had between attempts to log in that day but had to take nearly 2 full days off this week due to what may have been Bronchitis and shortness of breath.......again.

I can say this though, between my tax refund, not really spending money before and after work, the extra hours, and now this pending assistance check, I'vd been able to order the rest of the stuff needed for the 200's tune up and upgrade parts, some new t-shirts, and get Dad a 1/24 scale Axial Scale truck he was wanting with a matching one for myself. Should still have the funds left over to get a new cell phone, once we can shop normally again, since my Galaxy S5 if getting very long in the tooth. May even look at getting coilovers to replace the factory struts in the 200 since those stock pieces are getting long in the tooth too.

Glad you're feeling better. You mentioned getting some parts for your 200. I have bought some items from a local Advance Auto Parts and Auto Zone. If you haven't already I suggest going into their web sites. Do a little window shopping and be sure to put in your cars description and join any of their free only programs. Daily I get E Mails with special offers on parts and spend so much they give you so much off. They both offer a range of products and  brands and the prices are pretty reasonable. I have found them better than Amazon and Rock Auto for the most part.  

[Joe Handley]

1 hour ago, espo said:

Glad you're feeling better. You mentioned getting some parts for your 200. I have bought some items from a local Advance Auto Parts and Auto Zone. If you haven't already I suggest going into their web sites. Do a little window shopping and be sure to put in your cars description and join any of their free only programs. Daily I get E Mails with special offers on parts and spend so much they give you so much off. They both offer a range of products and  brands and the prices are pretty reasonable. I have found them better than Amazon and Rock Auto for the most part.  

Thanks, I'm feeling much better, just a bit rank and will be getting cleaned up after this!

The P.U.G. lower intake I ordered through Summit is because my Advance couldn't get it and I ordered the  gaskets at the same time. I already ordered and received the MSD Coil Packs Champion plugs through Advance before we had to quarentine and got some stuff for the Jeep there before it became a lost cause.......got a good bunch guys at that store, TBH!

[espo]

36 minutes ago, Joe Handley said:

Thanks, I'm feeling much better, just a bit rank and will be getting cleaned up after this!

The P.U.G. lower intake I ordered through Summit is because my Advance couldn't get it and I ordered the  gaskets at the same time. I already ordered and received the MSD Coil Packs Champion plugs through Advance before we had to quarentine and got some stuff for the Jeep there before it became a lost cause.......got a good bunch guys at that store, TBH!

Sounds like you will have enough to do during the quarantine. Summit Racing is another I was going to mention but I didn't realize how far you were going beyond the struts. I have gotten parts from them through the years for different cars. The last thing I wanted to order from them was a K&N setup for our new '19 Charger but was able to get it direct from them for the same money so I went that way. What model Jeep do you have ? Should you need any parts info there we have used several different sources for JK. Good luck.   

[Joe Handley]

Sadly, there isn’t much for performance parts for the ‘08-‘14 Avenger, ‘08-‘10 Sebring, and ‘11-‘14 200 sedans, BC coilovers are about the only strut and spring upgrades out there that would be better than the factory Avenger R/T and 200S struts and H&R lowering springs. To really upgrade sway bars, I’d need to get Dodge Journey bars since it’s a cousin platform and are even thicker since they’re SUV parts!

The Jeep I had was a ‘98 XJ Cherokee Limited with the 4.0l I-6, AW4 auto, and NV242 transfer case that I had for 17years,  plus it was a Non-ABS Truck so it came with the 8.25” Chrysler axle instead of a Dana 35, otherwise known as a D-Turdy5 that was on the ABS equipped  XJs by then. I scrapped it on 3/13/20 after finding mold and standing water in it, the rust was bad enough, but mold made it a health hazard we didn’t need, especially now.  Sadly, that all happened about 6 weeks after Mom passed and hit me nearly as hard and I was boardline breaking down for a week straight.  All I could think after that is that it was good I don’t have a pet too with how things have gone this year!

[Flat32]

For you guys that have a classic 1:1 garaged because you don't want to risk damage in traffic this is a good time to check it over and prep it for a just for fun drive taking advantage of the light traffic conditions and coming spring.  Do a little something for the wife before heading to the garage. This kind of activity relieves stress and gets you away from the depressing TV news watching.

Of course this is aimed at the guys that actually enjoy driving more than showing, but you could actually have a car show by gathering in an empty parking lot with certain rules like must remain in your car and if you park must be spaced at least two cars apart. Even a slow isle parade can be done.  Bring your own food and get an OK from the store who's lot you'd be using.

[espo]

19 hours ago, Flat32 said:

For you guys that have a classic 1:1 garaged because you don't want to risk damage in traffic this is a good time to check it over and prep it for a just for fun drive taking advantage of the light traffic conditions and coming spring.  Do a little something for the wife before heading to the garage. This kind of activity relieves stress and gets you away from the depressing TV news watching.

Of course this is aimed at the guys that actually enjoy driving more than showing, but you could actually have a car show by gathering in an empty parking lot with certain rules like must remain in your car and if you park must be spaced at least two cars apart. Even a slow isle parade can be done.  Bring your own food and get an OK from the store who's lot you'd be using.

Good idea, except if you live in this area. The MHP and KHP just put out the numbers for accidents and fatalities comparing this year to last. The numbers are actually increasing in our area ?? The KCPD said in the last week they have cited four people at over 100 MPH and many more in the 80 MPH range. Seams that with the reduced number of cars on the road there is a number of the population that are getting ready for qualifying for the next NASCAR race at KC.  

[Roadrunner]

I'm willing to bet that the car deaths go up when this issue subsides somewhat; lots of morons will be partying hard to "make up for lost time", then driving like drunken idiots after.

[Joe Handley]

There are already seeing increases in severe crashes, seems that a lot of people are hauling tail and crashing harder when things go wrong.  I've seen it blamed on street racers, but it seems to be random motorists who just seem to think the empty roads are and let loose, but can't handle the vehicle at what ever the speeds were.

[Snake45]

I've heard that suicides are up. I wonder how many of these car crashes are suicide by automobile? 

[Joe Handley]

1 hour ago, Snake45 said:

I've heard that suicides are up. I wonder how many of these car crashes are suicide by automobile? 

I had recently read that somebody has commited suicide already, but they had issues that were exacerbated by the shelter in place order he was under. Now that said, If there is alcohol involved, I wouldn't be shocked.  When Dad was still working in the railroad industry, he mainly worked track maintenence and was present for many car/train collision investigations between the two roads he worked for.   He's felt that many of them, especially when alcohol was involved, were more likely suicides than not. His theory is that many of them are people who are suicidal, but can't just do the deed without alcohol to act as a form of "liquid courage", so they would get tanked and drive onto the tracks figuring what the insurance didn't cover would be covered by their family suing the RR for wrongful death........which always works since the lawyers folded like tacos.

Edited April 7, 2020 by Joe Handley

[espo]

13 hours ago, Joe Handley said:

I had recently read that somebody has commited suicide already, but they had issues that were exacerbated by the shelter in place order he was under. Now that said, If there is alcohol involved, I wouldn't be shocked.  When Dad was still working in the railroad industry, he mainly worked track maintenence and was present for many car/train collision investigations between the two roads he worked for.   He's felt that many of them, especially when alcohol was involved, were more likely suicides than not. His theory is that many of them are people who are suicidal, but can't just do the deed without alcohol to act as a form of "liquid courage", so they would get tanked and drive onto the tracks figuring what the insurance didn't cover would be covered by their family suing the RR for wrongful death........which always works since the lawyers folded like tacos.

I had a friend in SoCal that went to work for the SP and was training to be an engineer. He said they had a couple of instances where they "Kissed the Train". I.E. they would jump in front of the train. He said he was warned about it but there was no way to avoid it so he was told to bring the Train to a safe stop and not lock the wheels. Makes me sad that anyone would ever want to do that. 

Edited April 7, 2020 by espo

[Snake45]

"Suicide by cop" has been widely known and recognized in the law enforcement community for at least two or three decades now, maybe longer. 

[Tom Geiger]

22 hours ago, Joe Handley said:

When Dad was still working in the railroad industry, he mainly worked track maintenence and was present for many car/train collision investigations between the two roads he worked for.   He's felt that many of them, especially when alcohol was involved, were more likely suicides than not. His theory is that many of them are people who are suicidal, but can't just do the deed without alcohol to act as a form of "liquid courage", so they would get tanked and drive onto the tracks figuring what the insurance didn't cover would be covered by their family suing the RR for wrongful death........which always works since the lawyers folded like tacos.

My wife’s younger brother works for a railroad. His job is to investigate fatalities. He has some interesting stories, and yes the lawyers have a field day.

[Joe Handley]

20 minutes ago, Tom Geiger said:

My wife’s younger brother works for a railroad. His job is to investigate fatalities. He has some interesting stories, and yes the lawyers have a field day.

I'm sure he does, listening to some of the things Dad has talked about and your Brother in Law has to be pretty similar stories, it's amazing how aweful these can be and how it doesn't mentally hit the workers harder than it does.

[Flat32]

The job of providing food primarily at home probably falls mostly on your wives by default for traditional households.  I know many men like to cook but for those that don't your job should include any household jobs you're capable of.

I'm reminded of my respect for women every time I contemplate my belly button with the realization that it is what connected to my Mom to give me life.

[stavanzer]

I am blessed to be still employed. Not sure how much longer, though. Trucking may be huge right now, but my company is strictly Flatbeds. And, now is not a good time for Flats. The oilfields in California are slowing way,way down, and that is my primary source of freight.

I wish our company could pivot to Dry Van, but you cannot even think about laying your hands on a spare Van trailer right now. They are all in use.  I'll just keep plugging along. And Praying. Lots and Lots of praying.

[cowboy rich]

alexis are you otr, o/o if so PM  me I've got a friend with a dry van and reefer sitting because he's to busy with his skateboard.

[unclescott58]

I'm employed as a special education paraprofessional for a local high school. I last went to work on March 5th. The next day, we started on a spring break that was supposed to last just over a week. Coming back on the 17th. To say the least, it didn't work out that way. Two weeks ago as of tomorrow, the school started online learning, putting the teachers back to work. But nothing for us paras. I'm getting paid. So this is not hurting from that standpoint. But, I am climbing the walls a bit. Well, I was notified on Friday, they are going start have us paras work with students online starting this week. They're going to start training us, via online, on how to do this work starting tomorrow morning. I'm actually looking forward to it. I'm not clear at this time how I'm going to be able to do my job online. But, I'm willing to learn. 

I hope I get to work with my regulars. I miss the kids I work with. Even when they're a pain in the, you know where. And I'm not happy with what they're doing. I still care about, and like them. Just maybe not at that exact moment. 

Edited April 13, 2020 by unclescott58

[Joe Handley]

A friend of mine is a teacher's assistant for the special needs teacher near where he lived in Michigan, he's missing the kids from his school too, I think he's been home for a month now too.