No Buddy and Barney for me

Years ago, my wife and I lived in Tombstone Arizona for about 6 months. As you probably know this little town is of historical significance, after all, who hasn’t heard of the famous gunfight that took place there.

Now it is a major tourist attraction, people from around the globe come to check out the OK Corral, the Birdcage Theatre, the cafés, and gift shops. One of the attractions is a ride in a replica of an 1800’s stagecoach. It takes you past the most important places with narration of the driver. The introduction just before departure always was, and may be still is, exactly the same including the introduction of the horses: “On my left-hand side is Buddy, and on my right-hand side is Barney.” One day he had two different horses, and he still referred to them as Buddy and Barney. He corrected his mistake, but it showed he was used to those same opening sentences.

And it made me think, wouldn’t he get tired of doing that same thing over and over again? I’m not sure how long he had been making those tours, but I got the impression that it had been for quite some time. Hundreds, maybe even thousands of times repeating himself and traveling the same short route, multiple times a day, year after year. Well, if he’s happy with it, more power to him but I couldn’t do it.

I get bored with routine stuff really quickly. Twenty years ago, I had an office job where it was more of the same every day. The pay wasn’t bad, the atmosphere was good, and the boss was a nice person. After two years I had the feeling that I was going to explode from boredom. So, I went to school and became a trucker.

Some people have asked me if driving long distances isn’t boring. No, it isn’t. I have always liked traveling, going places, and seeing new things. Of course, trucking is a job, its hard work and often there is no time to stop and look around.

But I enjoyed every mile, whether it was in the Southwest desert, the wide landscape of Wyoming or the rolling hills of Virginia. Around every bend there is something new to see and every state has its beauty. And the great thing about being a trucker is that no two days are alike.

Some people are happy with safe and uneventful routines, whether it is at work or otherwise. I remember having a neighbor who worked at the same office for 52 years. He rode his bicycle to work twice a day and he totaled about 36,000 return trips.

I have had a wide variety of jobs, from running a store, working at an office, and being an assistant auctioneer to driving a truck. I did a lot of different things, learned a lot and I consider that to be rich. I have encountered difficulties and not every job was a pleasant experience, but I can look back with satisfaction and pride.