chapter 2

The next morning Amber was surprised to see an Email from American Logistics. She expected some system generated email, but instead it was a real email asking if she were available to talk over the phone today at noon. Amber replied that she would be happy to and got herself ready for the call. In college she had taken classes on interviewing and had interviewed for positions before. It didn’t matter if it was in person or over the phone, she always worked to look her best.
“Ring Ring”
“Hello?” Amber made sure she sounded polite and energetic.
“Hi, this is Melanie with American Logistics, is this Amber?”
“Yes, hi Melanie. How Are you?”
“Great, thank’s. And yourself?”
“Great.”
“So, Amber I see you are interested in becoming a professional driver with out company. What drew you to us?”
“Well, in my initial beliefs I thought that the industry was very male oriented, and I was interested when I found a company owned and operated by women.”
“And we are very proud of that. We hire women of all backgrounds and ethnicities and military service. Now Amber I see you don’t have any experience before. I have to ask, how do handle long car trips?”
“Ohh, no problem at all. My college was about six sates away and I drove that regularly. That and I have done a few road trips in the past.”
“Not bad, and how are you physically? What I mean is well, drivers don’t just drive. You may have to help with loading or perform maintenance on your vehicle.”
“I feel pretty confident there, I can deadlift about 250 lbs. right now, and I have been taking care of my own car for some time.”
“Well, it is a bit different with a rig, but we can send you to school for that. We cover the cost, and you receive a stipend while you attend. You just have to promise to complete a series of probation rides with an observer and then stay with us for two years. After that if you stay on longer, we offer additional bonuses.”
“That sounds great, honestly I’d love to get started right way.”


Amber sat in a small classroom with five other students, all males, and a male instructor. She heard plenty of giggles when she came in.
“Ughh, seven weeks of this.”
The instructor came in and looked her and the rest of the class over, then at her again.
“Listen up, there is so much more to trucking these days then simply driving, so if you can’t handle it don’t waste my time.” These last words seemed to fall on her. She was determined to prove them wrong.
For seven weeks she worked hard to learn everything she could about driving, maintaining, loading a truck. She was at the gym less and less as more time was spent in the classroom, on the trainer trucks, and at home studying. She tackled this course with a sense of passion she had not had in some time. One of the guys attempted to ask her out, but after shutting him down, he must have spread the word that she was a lesbian because no one else tried. “Screw it, better off this way. Fuck men.”
Her parents had not een thrilled by this development either.
“A truck driver, really honey? Those men are all so gross”
“Do you even know how to change a tire?”
“I don’t care about what the men are like, I am by myself, and yes dad I can change a tire.”
“Where are you going to sleep, what are you going to eat?”
“The trucks the companies use all have beds, some have twin bunks for the evaluator rides. Plus mini fridge and storage space.”
“You have to share a truck with a man?” Her mother said aghast.
“No, it will be a woman, the whole company is women.”
“Heh.” Her father scoffed.
“Whatever.” Amber said as she left the table. “I have to study.” She said as she grabbed a bag of chips.
She found herself snacking more and more as the course went on. A coffee in the morning, cream, and sugar of course, and a donut. She bought lunch most days, Mc Donalds, Subway, Chinese. There was a breakroom, but she didn’t want to hang out with the boys. Dinner she ate quickly to minimize the time with her parents followed by snacks in her room while she studied.
Amber never ate healthy, that was what the gym was for. You worked out so that you could have the brownie and the body. But that body was getting less and less toned in some areas. She kept up with her weights and focused on squats. Exercises she figured would help with maintenance and lifting loads. She even kept up with her work out shakes to help build mass. But as the class was coming to a close, she noticed that her well-toned arms and thighs came at the expense of a slight paunch. She didn’t think much of it. After all who was she trying to impress. “This is for me.”