The launch sequence has begun.....10

There was no robo call cancelling our MOT (mandatory overtime) day for Tuesday, so the launch sequence has begun for our 5 X 12 work week.  At 5:30 this evening we will start our first 12 hour day.

Monday was a dreary, rainy, cold day.....I think the high was 39 degrees.  And, of course, it was time to dump the black tank.  This is never a fun job when it is pleasant outside, and on a day like Monday it was even less fun, but when it's time to dump, IT IS time to dump, so I bundled up and went outside to face the elements for about 20 minutes.  Some are wondering why it takes me 20 minutes to dump the black tank.....don't I just pull up on the valve handle and let the "black" effluent flow down the sewer hose into the sewer connection?  How long can that take, right?  Well, if that was all there was to it you would be right.  Ever since we owned our 1987 Fleetwood Tioga Class C motorhome I have really taken time to thoroughly flush out the tank each time I dump it, and the result of that diligence is no odor, ever.  

After I drain the black tank the first time I close the valve and begin filling the black tank with fresh water until it is about 3/4 full, then dump it again.  I repeat this process at least once more, but most often 2 more times, until I see the water passing through the see through elbow into the sewer is clear.  That has worked well for us over the years and that is what it took Monday.....3 flushes after the initial dump.

Other than taking care of the black tank business we spent the entire day indoors taking naps, doing a little insurance, reading, and watching a little TV.  TLE made some great Potato Cheese soup again for lunch, and then for dinner she grilled up two Buffalo Bleu Cheese Burgers......yummy!

I got a message from a reader (Mike) yesterday asking for more detail in how Amazon works.  Big semi trucks arrive each day, all day long and into the night, delivering everything from fishing tackle to DVD's to cell phones, etc., etc., etc.   Some trucks carry product from other Amazon facilities.....this is called "TRANSHIP".  The trucks are unloaded at the receiving dock, and the boxes are opened and put on what are called U-BOATS, or very large carts....about 6 feet long.  Those carts are assigned to "stowers" who are then directed to where these items are to be "stowed" so the "picker" can come along at a later time and pull them out, put them in totes, and send them on their way to the various packing stations.  The main packing station is called "Crisplant".....named for the guy who designed it.  Here the "picked" items are matched up with the name and address of the person who ordered it, put in a box with proper padding, addressed, and shipped out via FedEx, UPS, or USPS depending on what service the buyer has paid for.  From the time something is purchased on Amazon.com until it arrives at the buyer's address about 2-3 days elapse.....sometimes things are coming from a source outside of Amazon and it takes a little longer.  If someone has ordered next day delivery those items  become "PREMIUMS" and a specific person is sent specifically to the location of the item in that particular Amazon warehouse to "pick" it, return to the packing area and get it out within an hour or two of the order being placed.  That's the basic process.  That "process" goes on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week every day of the year except Christmas.

For now the rain has abated, and there is a hint of blue skies edging toward us from the west.  In a few hours we will become part of the Amazon "process" for 12 hours each day for the next 5 days........then there will be only 5 remaining.

Thanks for stopping by!