Newbie me, be kind 
An interesting read daidog, unfortunately, with my job here in the Vendee it would be hard to produce one post as eloquently as yours!! I go to my quarry, I load my lorry with a 23 tonne Volvo excavator, I drive back to the factory and tip my load - voila 28Kms 8 times a day. Have you fallen asleep yet 
I am a disgrace to the lorry driver world, I drive an actros as for the numbers on the side of it I ain’t got a clue. I go in, put my card in the mouchard (sp?), have a slurp from my coffee flask and off I go, 28 Kms, 8 Times a day, Zzzzzzzzz!