I have a very good friend who is a truck driver. You’re points are all true, but you’re also missing some.

It’s a lot of “hurry up and wait”. Often times he’ll drive 6+ hours at a time, then have to wait another 6+ hours at a warehouse for them to accept the shipment. This can be for a variety of reasons, whether them not being open, too busy, or just waiting on clerical tasks.

It’s also extremely regulated. I don’t know the specifics of it, but he always complains about having to keep a detailed logbook, and how if he doesn’t he can’t face major fines and lose his job. Cops are pretty eager to hassle truckers because of this. Not to mention weigh stations and trucks constantly breaking down due to being built for low cost and efficiency (mpg) rather than quality.

He’s also gone at least 4 days at a time. He has a wife and kid, and at first loved the appeal of getting away and seeing the country. It quickly faded and now regrets not being a major part of his child’s upbringing (and has another child on the way).

He also gets very lonely. He hasn’t admitted this to me, but it’s pretty obvious. He’ll call me just to talk on the phone in the middle of the week. This is something he’s never done before driving, and doesn’t do when he’s home.

He’s only been doing it for a year, and has already talked about possible career changes.