Field notes
Short pieces from desks we have sat. They are meant to be argued with in a dispatch room, not framed in a hallway.
Late gate is not the same as a missed window
Clerks often stamp both events with the same red mark. The clock, the customer, and the detention claim treat them differently.
Reading empty miles without a colored chart
A printed route sheet already shows the deadhead if you know which stop numbers to subtract. You do not need a wall of graphs to start.
A night board that still makes sense at 06:10
Shift change fails when the night clerk narrates and the morning clerk nods. The freight does not hear the nod.
Weather holds: write the reason, not the sky
“Weather” on an exception slip is an argument waiting to happen. Name the hold that actually stopped the gate.
OS&D notes clerks will actually finish
Over, short, and damage notes die when the form asks for a story. Ask for counts, photos of the seal, and a door number.