After two long years of health problems, I am about to go back to work driving a tractor trailer. It's funny how everyone is telling me to go owner operator or lease a truck so that I can make more money. I am through chasing the almighty dollar and it is interesting how this attitude just doesn't compute to most people. They're incredulous and ask, "Why don't you want to make more money!?" The amount of work I would have to do and the amount of stress I would incur would be more than the extra amount of money is worth. There are a lot of things that I cannot control in life, but one thing I can is to live well below my means.
My plan going forward is to live with a 1,000.00 credit card which is to be only used in places where I would need one to conduct business: a hotel or car rental for example. I am planning to save 3-4K between now and March when I turn in my leased car so that I can have a decent used car. I am going to buy an older Mercury Grand Marquis or Crown Vic that was owned by a senior citizen and I've found several with well under 50,000 miles in my price range so I know it's possible. Since the car will be so old, I can get liability-only insurance really cheap. Unfortunately, I still need a car to be able to drive the 20 miles from home to the terminal where my truck will be parked. When my lease is up in September, I am moving from a 990.00 a month 1 bedroom apartment to a 650.00 a month studio that includes all utilities.
Despite having driven a truck before, I have been out of it for a bit so I will be like a rookie all over again. Thus, I am setting my earning expectations low at only about 25-30K in my first year. I will also be learning a new kind of trucking which is driving a tanker to I expect the learning curve to lessen the amount of miles I will be able to drive. Truckers earn money based on mileage. I have already paired down my possessions to very minimalist levels. The road ahead will not be easy but be damned if I am going to have money problems to add to that.
Submitted June 17, 2018 at 11:18AM by TrainMan0303 https://ift.tt/2JSJopC
