Five Weeks Since I Have Returned

Because my day and night drivers requested some schedule adjustment last week, Tom especially wanting a taxi-free turkey zone, I ended up driving five consecutive days, something I haven't done in a long time. Business was certainly iffy, with "Seahawk Sunday" being the best out of the five, though Monday while barely working I still managed a 100 dollar gross over four hours.  The real test will be coming in the "taxi dog day" months of January through March.  That I am not looking forward to it is a complete taxi understatement but joining "she-who-can't-be-named" in Mexico during the last part of January will help alleviate the pain.

Unfortunately, soon after coming back Tom will going on his annual Hawaiian vacation so I am looking at potentially more driving than I have done in a long while.  But like this past weekend I know when and not to "push it," resting and sleeping instead of eking out a few pennies from no business whatsoever.

Understanding that the elongated Thanksgiving weekend had destroyed the Saturday night, early Sunday morning "bar-break," I was asleep by 1:00 AM, figuring that later in the day could potentially translate into beneficial business, a hunch paying off with a first-fare $57.00 Sea-Tac from Ballard, an initial burst blasting me to my best overall take of the weekend.  Especially when business is essentially nonexistent, a good personal strategy can win the taxi day despite the bleakest predictions.  Friday morning, when I scored a $75.00 Sea-Tac run, another veteran driver told me he had one solitary seven dollar run during a similar five-hour time period.  Clearly his report made my up-to-that-point overall gross of $175.00 look so much better.  As any long-term driver knows, taxi can, and will be unforgiving, kicking your butt all over the street at a moment's notice.

As to being back at it for now over five weeks, I have been sick twice and in a general struggle to get anything done other than placating the taxi gods.  No fun, I am not having any fun.  My one and only compensation is eating Chinese food, a small pleasure amidst the madness.  Beef brisket noodle soup, anyone?!  My 62nd birthday arrives this upcoming December 18th.  I have two writing projects I have to finish before that defining date.  I'll let you know if I make it.

Easier Time at the Husky

While only a partial report, only having time for one "Apple Cup" half-time fare, the police presence was the lightest I have seen it in years.  Maybe, just maybe my plea to everyone concerned with game traffic control was heard.  With my night driver Raymond expecting the cab at 3:00 PM, the unusual Friday afternoon game time made me miss the post-game frolics, meaning I do not know what happened when traffic was snarled.  Hoping to not be driving by this time next year, I hope I can never tell you the answer.  Having had enough of all this, I have had enough to last this and any other potential future lifetimes. Taxi in my future?  I hope not.

Beware of the Rabid Upper-Middle Class Woman

While sounding like a the title from a Grade-B horror flick, it was my reality when, after dropping off my brother last night, my call to a local grocery store transformed into this stupid woman physically charging at me because Yellow had failed to send her neighbor a timely taxi.  Pulling up to the store I saw an elderly woman looking somewhat confused.  What had happened is that she had called her next door neighbor to pick her up after waiting too long for her Yellow cab.  Upon innocently pulling up to this situation, the neighbor decided that I should be punished.  Thankfully she pulled up short of striking me because I would have had her arrested.  Who was truly to blame?  None other than a lingering full moon laughing at its earthly victims. In addition to the avenging neighbor, I was twice nearly struck by cars speeding through red lights and two incidents with oncoming wrong-way drivers.  Nuts is all I can say!

Single Owner Seeking Day-shift Driver January 1st-March 5th 2016

If interested call Alci at 253-245-8839.  It is YC 670.  Car is a Crown Vic with only 140,000 miles.

Wrong Boeing!

Saturday, from the Museum of Flight,  I picked up 4 Canadians from Calgary, Alberta in for Sunday's football game.  Everything was normal until they told me that the Yellow cab they had flagged in Pioneer Square had taken them to the wrong Boeing Field.  For those of you unfamiliar with the greater Seattle area, there are three Boeing sites containing airfields, south Seattle, Renton and Everett's Payne Field.  Instead of Boeing Field (King County International Airport), their intended destination was Everett and a tour of its Boeing facilities, a long time favorite with tourists.  Given its popularity, everyone is required to make pre-paid reservations, in the Canadians' case being $250.00.  Not understanding that the dumbbell cabbie had taken them south, not north, they got out at the incorrect location.  Why the Canadians, once understanding the error, didn't go up to Everett I can't tell you.  But the idiot cabbie cost both himself and the Canadians money, the fare up to Payne Field about $75.00. And usually you can arrange to take your passengers back to Seattle.

Making matters worse was the Canadians mistake by not remembering the cab number thus preventing Yellow from figuring out who the culprit was. That the passengers held some blame is obvious but how do you take someone, anyone in the complete opposite direction from where they need to be?  When you have no idea what you are doing is the the simple answer.  And who is ultimately responsible?  The City of Seattle and King County of course.  Do they care?  Why don't you ask them and see what kind of answer you receive. Ha Ha Ha!