Always in The Way

**Wingfoot** · May 18th, 2009, 08:45 AM

No matter where I park my work truck to do my job locating, I'm always in someone's way.

I had an evening water main break at an apartment complex during my weekend on-call. The large, 3-story parking garage was 80% empty and parking spaces A1 thru A9 were all vacant. A7 & A8 were the 2 the most close to the blowing water. I parked in empty space A9 thinking "With my luck, if I park closest to the work, I'll have to move." While I was checking all my prints, many vehicles were leaving the garage and very few were returning. After I pulled all my equipment for the locate and started throwing paint, I hear a tenant yell above all the idling diesels, "Will the GUY who parked in my SPACE PLEASE move!" It never fails.......... I knew the tenant was referring to me. Even though the garage was mostly open spaces, I moved my truck half way down the alley next to the dumpsters. I was at the locate a little over a hour and the only space that was re-occupied was A9.

Every day, I park in the way............

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**Mke** · May 18th, 2009, 09:13 AM

on the airfield, its stated in the rules that "all unattended vehicles must have keys left in the ignition" I Parked outside the Terminal near a construction staging yard and went inside to do my locate, when I got out my truck was no where to be seen. I set all my gear down in the nearest Mechanical room that locked and walked around a bit, and finally seen the beast on the other side of the construction yard behind a larger truck.

Its a given when your in a hurry, you always park in the wrong spot.

mke

**underground quester** · May 18th, 2009, 09:20 AM

A while back I parked in front of a construction site and had left my truck running (it was winter).

I started my locate and just happened to look up in time to notice my truck being driven away. Got the old ticker started I have to say.

Anyway, it was just the concrete guy moving my truck so he could back his in to deliver the load.

Now I have a second set of keys I carry daily and lock the sucker every time I leave it.

**Wingfoot** · November 17th, 2009, 09:48 PM

Now I'm po'd..............

Today it's raining and I'm parked on a 2 lane paved road behind 2 sand-bagged "ROAD CLOSED" barricades. The barricades are each 3' into the road. In front of me, a block down the road, are 2 more "ROAD CLOSED" barricades in front of a track-hoe with the arm extended completely across the 2 lanes. Behind the hoe is a bridge out.......

As I'm locating, car after car squeezes past my parked truck only to turn around to go back. I'm marking my 10" gas main and I'm more than 100' away from my truck. I hear a 2-ton roll-off wrecker staged behind my truck not able to go between my truck and the barricade. I'm thinking, "this guy must be wanting to pick up construction equipment to transport to another job sight and stupid me - I'm Always in The F'ing Way."

I drop my equipment, hot-foot it to my truck and move it 3 foot onto the soft shoulder of the closed road. As I'm walking back to my equipment, this pant-load is nosed up to the track-hoe barricades (same as the scores of cars before he arrived), waits a couple of minutes, puts it into reverse, and backs completely past my truck to leave in the same direction as he came in.... And I'm thinking WTF?

This idiot, in the roll-off, had to pass a "ROAD CLOSED AHEAD" sign, a "DETOUR" sign with an arrow and past my barricaded truck (that he made me move!) to get to the barricaded track-hoe at the end of the road! The epitome of a STUPID truck driver!..............

When it was time for me to move on, I realized the reason why I originally parked on the asphalt. It's been raining here for the last 4 days with more on the way. The shoulder is grass & mud! If it wasn't for the gravel at the bottom of my rut and the "limited slip" rear axle of my work truck, I'd still be there on that "closed road".............

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**Goldenboy** · November 18th, 2009, 05:42 PM

It never fails. Everytime I need to mark out a long side gas service I wind up parking right over the service and have to move my truck forward a couple feet.

**beyond help** · November 19th, 2009, 07:02 PM

God I hate when that happens

**yahoo** · November 19th, 2009, 07:10 PM

i am always parked in a bad space even at the gas pumps...... just cant win???

**Locator5000** · November 21st, 2009, 10:35 AM

You just can't win for losing. When I was still doing locates in my area 99% of the houses are rear-easement, with an alley only wide enough for one car. Logical decision, back into the driveway. Blocking an alley around here is like the end of the world for these homeowners, they feel very inconvenienced if they can't get their 90k dollar car into the garage of their 500k dollar home.

Never fails, park the truck, get out to do a 10 minute foundation repair locate, and the homeowner will either come home during that time, or want out of their garage. I've never had anyone get angry, even using a neighbor's driveway, but it always results in me setting my equipment down and moving my truck...

**JMilbragen** · November 22nd, 2009, 03:56 PM

That's why the world is my playground. If there is enough empty grassy space nearby i just pull up off the road completely, not really caring whose land it is LOL.

Once I had to take a cell phone call about an emergency locate and I pulled off a state highway (not interstate) onto the front lawn of a woman's house, sure enough not 5 minutes later she's out there screaming at me OMFG GET OFF MY LAWN MY LAAAAAWWWWWWNNNNNN and all I can think is "Seriously? You live directly next to a heavily traveled state highway and you actually care that deeply about the first 5 feet into the grass of your precious lawn?"

Some people, dude.

**NINJA** · November 22nd, 2009, 07:57 PM

Originally Posted by Wingfoot

Now I'm po'd..............

Today it's raining and I'm parked on a 2 lane paved road behind 2 sand-bagged "ROAD CLOSED" barricades. The barricades are each 3' into the road. In front of me, a block down the road, are 2 more "ROAD CLOSED" barricades in front of a track-hoe with the arm extended completely across the 2 lanes. Behind the hoe is a bridge out.......

As I'm locating, car after car squeezes past my parked truck only to turn around to go back. I'm marking my 10" gas main and I'm more than 100' away from my truck. I hear a 2-ton roll-off wrecker staged behind my truck not able to go between my truck and the barricade. I'm thinking, "this guy must be wanting to pick up construction equipment to transport to another job sight and stupid me - I'm Always in The F'ing Way."

I drop my equipment, hot-foot it to my truck and move it 3 foot onto the soft shoulder of the closed road. As I'm walking back to my equipment, this pant-load is nosed up to the track-hoe barricades (same as the scores of cars before he arrived), waits a couple of minutes, puts it into reverse, and backs completely past my truck to leave in the same direction as he came in.... And I'm thinking WTF?

This idiot, in the roll-off, had to pass a "ROAD CLOSED AHEAD" sign, a "DETOUR" sign with an arrow and past my barricaded truck (that he made me move!) to get to the barricaded track-hoe at the end of the road! The epitome of a STUPID truck driver!..............

When it was time for me to move on, I realized the reason why I originally parked on the asphalt. It's been raining here for the last 4 days with more on the way. The shoulder is grass & mud! If it wasn't for the gravel at the bottom of my rut and the "limited slip" rear axle of my work truck, I'd still be there on that "closed road".............

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Wing, I have to tell you that with the way my life has been going the past few years it seems to me that there are times when I feel I have no reason to laugh or smile now I have to admitt some of your posts in the past rubbed me the wrong way a little but most of the time I can count on you to make me laugh even if it is just a little Thanks please keep it up.................