Spoke to a mate of mine today who is out all week usually, but hed got man flu, and was having the day off ill in bed cos he said he couldnt drive, never really thought about being ill whilst tramping. He says the gaffer wasnt very happy when he phoned and told him he wouldnt be in today 
. is this normal etiquette for sick trampers?
Guess if yer too ill to drive yer too ill to drive, would hate to have a bad case of the trots while well away from home, but it must happen!
Dunno if it is normal but Iāve done it and know others who have. What else are you going to do if you are miles from home, or as in my case a couple of countries away from home? 
Oh yes, if you can stand up and pump blood you are expected to report for duty. I once set off for Italy less than an hour after having two wisdom teeth out.
Letās face it, if men had babies we would be expected to go to work the next day
Coffeeholic:
Dunno if it is normal but Iāve done it and know others who have. What else are you going to do if you are miles from home, or as in my case a couple of countries away from home?
Actually on that note, the Mrs once broke her ankle, dropped all over the UK then went back to NL before getting an x-ray to find out it was actually bustā¦ it was her choice to drive mind!
The mail still has to get through, it is at this point you are normally promised the earth, crown jewels, another use of the bosses daughter for an hour. of course this all changes 5 minutes after you get the original load to its destination. Stick to your original plan pal, see you back in the yard on Saturday. You are on the early boat out on Sunday, cheers.
zippy!:
Guess if yer too ill to drive yer too ill to drive, would hate to have a bad case of the trots while well away from home, but it must happen!
once when working at eccleshall for coop, i wasnt in the best shape below, just before i left the yard my world fell out, then i stopped at keele, sandbach, kuntsford, then what seemed like ages, birch( worst toilets ever) at 1st drop i went again and was all clear 
wouldnt wanna go thro that again when driving
dazaster:
zippy!:
Guess if yer too ill to drive yer too ill to drive, would hate to have a bad case of the trots while well away from home, but it must happen!once when working at eccleshall for coop, i wasnt in the best shape below, just before i left the yard my world fell out, then i stopped at keele, sandbach, kuntsford, then what seemed like ages, birch( worst toilets ever) at 1st drop i went again and was all clear
wouldnt wanna go thro that again when driving
Not a nice experience!
Only happened once, pulled in to Tebay Services turned the phone off and went to bed for 15 hours. Felt a bit better when I woke up. My boss moaned on a bit but wasnāt much he could do by then.
dazaster:
once when working at eccleshall for coop, i wasnt in the best shape below, just before i left the yard my world fell out, then i stopped at keele, sandbach, kuntsford, then what seemed like ages, birch( worst toilets ever) at 1st drop i went again and was all clear
wouldnt wanna go thro that again when driving
Brother, we have all been there!
Harry Monk:
dazaster:
once when working at eccleshall for coop, i wasnt in the best shape below, just before i left the yard my world fell out, then i stopped at keele, sandbach, kuntsford, then what seemed like ages, birch( worst toilets ever) at 1st drop i went again and was all clear
wouldnt wanna go thro that again when drivingBrother, we have all been there!
yes i remember a less than appealling trip back from irun stopping at every aire and using the dreaded spread axles !!! never get used to them they are not natural
Got food poisoning for the first time a couple of months ago, would not want to go through that while stuck in a wagon, having to use a motorway services toilets, youād paint the walls and clear the room.
Working while feeling ill is one of the most stupid things you can do. One day it will all come back to you, with all interests.
Years ago, my dad got a sore throat. Really sore, he couldnāt speak and ate only mushy food, soups and tea. Went to work regardless (tramping over Czechoslovakia), sore throat is nothing a strong young (~30yrs odl) man should worry about. Especially in December, year coming to its end, every factory wanted some more of its stuff to beat the plan (in communist countries beating the plan was absolutely crucial, always talked about). More over, extra money would come handy for Christmas. So off he went with sore throat, did his job that included jumping from warm cab to freezing rain, sweating when pulling sheets and handballing and other joys and came back home āhealthyā.
Right after Christmas his knee got swollen like football so he couldnāt go to work; when his calf got swollen few days later he was taken to hospital - and spent there one month - rheumatic fever and inflamed veins in the leg as a result of uncured tonsilitis. The docs were straight: āif it does not respond to antibiotics weāll have to chop the leg off to save the rest of him; otherwise the infection will attack other organsā. Thanks God, dad got well, with both legs and, hopefully, learned his lesson.
So, feeling ill? Stay in bed for a day or two, get well, upset your boss and even his customers. Your are risking your very self.
we all have a duty to ensure we are fit for work for the sake of the public. if you are not fit to drive, dont drive! if you have an accident because you are not well do you really think the police or courts will be sympathetic? its your licence and livlihood on the line
same as if your fatigued mention that word and bosses cringe cos safety to yourself and the public are paramount, so who cares if the load will be late ā¦not meā¦ and as for having the trotts well its probably a drivers nightmare ive never personally had them whilst driving but i have took many a dump in secluded farmers fields, releaving yourself holding onto a tree cos your legs are starting to ache is a sumwhat compromising position in broad daylight
matt f:
yes i remember a less than appealling trip back from irun stopping at every aire and using the dreaded spread axles !!! never get used to them they are not natural
On the contrary, you dont actually touch anything when using them do you. Better than a seat, upon which every dirty jack has peed over, thrown up over, and splattered 
Some of the factories in Italy have squat toilets combined with a shower head in the ceiling, dual purpose bogs indeed!
I have read somewhere that the squat position is better for the body, and is a natural yoga position. Strengthen up yer thighs lads, its better and cleaner than you think providing you can hold your breath for a couple of minutes 
hi buddy
here is a similar post from a while ago
raised a few laughs as it went on
Co - incidence this.Last week parked up at Lincoln Farm.Went to bed at 2130, 2140 iām thinking oh no. yep just managed to find my bowl in time.2 more times then oh no the other end does not feel good. Into toilets. First time been ill in 11 years.Alarm went off at 0600,didānt feel to bad so set off.First stop Hylton Park,then Stafford,then Keele,then Chester services and thought this canāt go on.Rang in saying donāt feel well will ring when better.Went to bed at1100 woke up at 1800,went back to sleep till 0500 next day ,felt better and carried on.
If I had been at home I would not have gone to work so no difference parking up for a day (apart rom the inconvenience.(no pun intended).
Funnily enough Iāve been ill this week. Usual cold, bad head, shakes and shivers, aches and pains, no voice. Just did what I normally do, load up on painkillers and push on through. To be fair though I donāt have a very strenuous job, the hardest thing I seem to do these days is open the back doors, even that only a handful of times a week.
You really do need to keep an eye on your health. When I was subbing for a certain tanker firm (Pimperne, Dorset if that helps) I got on the Freighter out of Rotterdam to Hull. Great boat really, bar, video, huge solo cabin. Anyway, I had a touch of athletes foot from the tankwashes (no athlete, me) and when I showered on the boat, it cracked ever so slightly.
5 hours later I woke up with terrible shooting pains down my right leg, and I was near delirius. Didnāt know my name or anything. Managed to get off the ferry and went to bed for a few hours, then over to liverpool and the guys in the mill did the blower lines for me as I was so ill. Parked out at the gates for 9 hoursā¦ Later that night I noticed a bruise on my ankleā¦ The guys loaded me for Belgium and I set off. Got to Ashford and the bruise was right around my ankle and I was really ill. Ended up being admitted to Ashford hospital with Cellulitis. Managed to get out of there, get back to the truck and out to tip, but had to come home in a hurry and spent 3 weeks in real danger of losing my leg because the infection was so badā¦ Took a year to really get better.
Do yourselves a favour and take more care, huh?