Greetings From Albuquerque: Essay: Taxi, An Unnatural World & Update On Dennis Roberts Fund Raising & Uber's Final Year?

This time around it seems circumstances conspired to keep from writing this week's post.  First back in San Lorenzo, my temporary wifi connection kept disappearing, and today, after flying in from Silver City, my hotel's wifi was down for hours, only now, at about 9:07 PM, did it return. Of course it's getting late and I should be thinking about sleeping instead of sitting here typing away.

And by the way, there is some sacrifice taken making sure I get this done week after week for more-or-less ten years, keeping this ongoing line of communication going.  I'm not whining but I know sometimes my effort is taken for granted, wishing it wasn't the case, looking at least 2-3 hours of work ahead of me.  Enough of that and down to the business at hand, making this blog readable and entertaining for you, the taxi public.

In the essay, my point is a personal one, trying to make sense of something that only seems sane if you pretend it is, both driving a cab and living in our spinning top of a modern world.  Did you know that in the Indian city of Mumbai there are a million people living in an slum called Dharavi in an area comprising only 2/3s of NYC's Central Park, which totals 840 acres or put another way, 1.317 square miles, or in Dharavi, just over 620 acres.  That is their modern reality.  For comparison, the State of Alaska has a 2019 population of 731,545 spread over a landmass of 663,300 miles, or 101 million acres. I just read a Washington Post article about Dharavi and how the "packed like sardines" residents are coping with the coronavirus pandemic.  The answer is not very well, and there I was sitting in the proverbial middle-of-nowhere next to the Mimbres River surrounded by towering cottonwoods all by myself, for two hours only me and the flowing water.  What condition, what reality would you choose?

Essay: Taxi, An Unnatural World

Sitting next to the Mimbres River (Rio Mimbres), wonderfully shaded by tall, leafy cottonwood trees, could seem an odd location to argue the sanity of flying around Seattle, or any city for that matter, in a taxicab.  One could convincingly, I think,  promote that the money is good and, as I know well, taxi is itself a kind of urban human river transporting everyone day and night down that asphalt stream. Yes, that's all true but I know it would be much better if everyone had a wild, unpolluted river to sit by, the modern world suddenly disappearing due to a lack of merit---restaurants, symphony halls, NFL football teams, art museums no longer important.  But of course, that won't be happening, the so-called civilization we have cultivated remaining, sitting here in the sand next to the Mimbres, a breeze rustling branches, better than anything else I could be doing, coming down to, I suppose, what you value, finding nature's acumen superior to humankind's chaos. I know this is true, all other realities untrue, leading to deaths quick or slow, to what purpose, to what gain?  That's why I enjoy the river speaking to me while I say nothing at all, soaking my feet in its persistent, babbling flow. 

Update on Dennis Roberts' Burial Fund Raising

The start has been disappointingly slow, the total so far about $500.00.  Folks, all I can say is that the spirit of a fallen taxi comrade is in your hands. 2 former BYG owners have each sent me $100.00 checks.  Much more is needed.  In addition to the go fund me site, you can send checks directly to me.  One interesting development is that the KC Medical Examiner's Office located a distant cousin in California, someone who will be providing legal permission to go ahead with any burial arrangements possible, which is why your financial support is essential.  This week I will be contacting taxi companies nationwide in an effort to raise funds for Dennis.  Please be generous.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/burial-and-obituary-for-dennis-roberts

My mailing address is J. Blondo, POB 20023, Seattle, WA 98102

Uber is in trouble

Uber has just announced another loss of 3 billion dollars this past operating quarter.  And now the State of California is suing Uber and Lyft over the misclassification of their workers, violating a new state law, A. B. 5, which requires companies to treat their workers as employees if the company controls their tasks or if such activity is a routine part of company business.  Amazingly, Uber has made the specious claim that their business is technology, and the drivers themselves not a key part of their business. Huh? can only be the response to that.  Since the pandemic, Uber rides have dropped by 83 %.  Uber's total loss since its inception must now be close to 45 billion dollars.  With these newly added pressures, how long can they survive?

Hungry in Albuquerque?

Great China, 3143 San Mateo---Good, cheap and big portions.

Brickyard Pizza---avoid the salads but the pizza is great!  And they deliver.

Annapurna's World Vegetarian Cafe---Ate there in November with "she-who-can't-be-named."  I liked it but she not as much, she of two stays in India.  2201 Silver Ave SE.  Near the university.