A Taxi Hodgepodge: Ephemeral History Worthy of the Mayfly

Sitting here exhausted though I did have eight hours of collapsed sleep, my commentary tonight will be on the brief and usually unrecorded history that is a given fare or shift.  One might say that all human existence be it solitary or interactive is history in both the personal and collective sense.  The difference here is that I am recording what is usually passed by and given little to no thought whatsoever. What can be quite fascinating about the taxi fare is the instant meshing or collision of sometimes quite disparate personalities.  Sometimes the interaction is very successful yet often it is disastrous, a spontaneous combustion searing the mind.  I will give you a couple examples now and continue with more tomorrow.  My first two fares of the weekend amply the too typical entering and exiting of the taxi interior, moans and cries and profanities etching the night. 

I always hate responding to what is truly a corner call, in this case the White Center Walgreen's at 4:10 in the early morning.  Too often the fare has disappeared though also the reverse is true, that I wish they had found another form of transportation.  But there they were and not going very far, just a quick jaunt to 108th and 1st Avenue South.  Just as I turned onto 4th Southwest the male component of the couple announced he only five dollars which prompted me to hit the brakes and begin turning around, prepared on returning to the Walgreen's.  This prompted the young lady to announce that she had fourteen dollars which allowed the ride to continue.  Why, I asked the man, did you have to do that?  Thankfully another 60 seconds brought us to the destination and the six dollars that was owed.  What was his point?  That he disrespects everyone?  I kind of knew that already.

Again, near the Walgreen's a feminine arm shot,  a "well-known local prostitute" as she described herself, my U-turn prompting the attention of a King County Sheriff, who proceeded to banter with the lady of the not-so-good night.  After making some promises to that "keeper of the law" we continued on to her connection, telling her that five would do, ten not being necessary, kindness a balm to the earlier insult.  It was my beginning but her summation upon a dissatisfactory essay