# my super shitty trip from oakland to tucson



## hassysmacker (Jan 29, 2011)

So, last monday, I decided to head down to Tucson to work at the gem and mineral show, from oakland, where I had been squatting for a few months. Trip out of oakland was relatively uneventful, daily junk reefer porch, arrived in Roseville around 2am, found a spot to camp, and slept.

I think I may have woken up to a morning train down to Colton leaving, so I had to wait around roseville all day, jumping strings, and tracing a billion train cars that said industry delivery dates, no locations. Also, an incident occured with my trying to pry the one drop top off a glass habanero hot sauce bottle to transfer to a plastic bottle, and it squirting me in the eye, and me screaming and crying for like a half hour at the trees. Finally, after talking to workers, I found out which string my train was on and got in a gondola with some big wire wraps, and flat space to sleep on.

The next morning I woke up in the super ugly, monoculture industrial agriculture central fucking valley, and uneventfully passed through bakersfield. At a siding I switched to a DPU and rode it down to COlton.

Now having never been to Colton, I didnt know exactly what to look for or when to get off, so I called NickCophfee from STP, and he talked me through it, and I saw that big stuid american flag on the hill, and the train curving into the yard, going at 13mph (fuck yeah dpu odometer). I shoved my cell into my pocket, threw my pack, and attempted to hop off going 13mph right after passing over 1-20, and ate shit, not too hard. BUT I lost my cell phone battery, and my headlamp, so I wasnt able to look for it!

Anyhow, after going to the valero, at 2am, I hiked over to the 4 way crossing thing, and caught an EBD DPU IM train, and crashed out.

Spent all morning riding through the desert, fuming about my cell battery, and just as the nothing started to turn into something, I suspected I was near Yuma, which I was a little freaked out about. I hopped out on the nose of the DPU to look around, as there was no visible yard near me, and just then I see two UP workers on the tracks west of me. I scramble back into the DPU, but I'm fairly sure they saw me...

When the DPU pulled up to the yard office and stopped to cc, the cops were waiting for me.

"I am an armed police officer! Come out with your hands up!"

I do as directed, and they search me, and find a bit of pot and take me to yuma city jail, charged with possession of marijuana and trespassing. After letting me shower, they locked me into my cell in the classification unit, where every other cell could see the TV but me, and wouldnt let me go to the bookcart. Luckily while going to the book cart, "Primo" hooked me up with a little kids mystery novel, "The Three Investigators and the Mystery of the Stolen Treasure", hah! Ate terrible shitty pizza, and went to sleep in the annoying fluorescent light.

Next morning they served the worst breakfast ive ever had at 5am, and I went back to sleep. The COs woke me up for my arraignement at seven, where I at shackled for like 5 hours unti the judge saw me via video conference.

For the charges, she gave me, two 6 month sntences in jail, each suspended for 5 mos and 28 days, with time served for the 1.5 days I spent, a mandatory 8 hr marijuana treatment program, and a 1400 dollar fine, and they releaed me several hours later, at 2.

After being released, I picked up my property, where they took and confiscated the most ridiculous shitout of my pack, my derrick jensen book, toothpaste, echinacea tincture, toothpaste, etc.

So I try to hitch on i8 to tucson, and shortly the Hwy patrol runs me off, and tells me I cant hitch on the onramp either. So I go to the entrance to a mcdonalads directly before the onrampm, and hold my TUCSON PLEASE! sign.

After about an hour, this guy pulls u, going all the way to Tucson. He smokes me out to get rid of his last roach, pre immigration checkpoint. It comes up that hes on couchsurfer.org, and so am I, and he offers to put me up for a night maybe a few. We get to Tucson, and he leaves me in his house with some beers, goes to a party, and I crash out.

Today, I wake up at 8am, and he gives me a 9am tour of downtown tucson, and brings me to a shitty dive bar that opens at 6am! We drink a pitcher, and he gives me the tour. He brings me back to the house, after...CUTTING ME A KEY and saying I can come and go as please, and he loans me a nice roadbike, and tells me to eat whatever, and gets me pot, and drinks beer with me all day, and here I am now, happier than a pig in shit, ready to try to work tomorrow.!


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## Doobie_D (Jan 30, 2011)

fuck dude. I dont think i would ever consider riding a unit on the sunset. But as with most bad situations, at least it worked out good for you in the end.


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## veggieguy12 (Jan 31, 2011)

Damn, that got really low and ended really high (and drunk). They didn't permanently keep your book and tincture, did they?
Thanks for telling the story.
Cheers!


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## hassysmacker (Jan 31, 2011)

Actually they did permanently keep the book tincture. As well as the unidentified mushroom chocolates! Yeah I know, I shouldnt have been riding in AZ with so much illegal crap, but, yeah. the kept that stuff.


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## Deleted member 2626 (Jan 31, 2011)

Ended okay anyway, I ate rocks too last week hoppin off. . . Kewl story though dude


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## GLASZ (Jan 31, 2011)

I'd be pissed about the jensen book and the unfortunate series of events but it seems like you are in good shape now, good luck with the mineral show, it's fucking huge!


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## hassysmacker (Jan 31, 2011)

Yeah it is, but Im finding out that the real work is in the setup. I've scored a gig during the job, part time, but its only like 7 bucks an hour cash.


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## streetlight (Feb 1, 2011)

What's up with that jail time, seems like alot for Trespassing and Possesion of pot. I guess the weed laws are alot more strict in AZ?


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## hassysmacker (Feb 1, 2011)

Poss of marijauana in small amounts is a class 1 misdemeanor here. But they were gonna put me in jail for jut the trespassing anyway, before they fond the pot.


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## Animus (Feb 14, 2011)

that sucks man


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## Deleted member 125 (Feb 15, 2011)

glad yer alright man!


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## shittickit (Feb 15, 2011)

fuck i hate the sunset well at least until san antonio then its cake


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## Trains (Feb 15, 2011)

I dont understand the sentencing.. two 6 months, but your not in jail for 12months? 5 months suspened? what does this all mean. Was it Compass that took you on your first train? How come you just didnt look out the windows instead of the nose? Glad to hear your alive and good.


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## veggieguy12 (Feb 16, 2011)

Two six month sentences run concurrently (at the same time - in contrast to consecutive, which would be one after the other) with time suspended for the period after the days in.


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## TBone (Feb 16, 2011)

If you get spotted on the walkway of a unit, DPU or not, and they conveniently stop in front of the yard office and cops are there. That's not a crew change bro, that's an arrest.


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## hassysmacker (Feb 20, 2011)

Oh I know. But it was also is the CC point. And it was an intentional arrest, i i know.


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## hassysmacker (Feb 20, 2011)

I got out on the nose also patially to check the weather.But at the same time, yeah shoulda checked out the fucking window. Oh well, I own my stupid mistake.

And no, Compass did not take me on my first ride.


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## Jimmy James (Mar 1, 2011)

I'm just curious, do you have a story about how you ended up w/ a Raccoon head on a stick? There's got to be a story behind that one... I once killed a coon & ate it when I caught it stealing what little food I had- I was pretty hungry though, it was one of those situations...


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## Storm Smokes Rocks (Aug 17, 2011)

crazy shitty story man but atleast you made it to your destination and you got to meet someone badass to help ya


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## plagueship (Aug 21, 2011)

i read the title and came ready to post something about how any trip that leads to tucson is shitty by definition.

case in point !


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