Paradise Driver: HOW NOT TO START YOUR DAY...

Saturday, May 19, 2007

HOW NOT TO START YOUR DAY...

REALIZING THAT YOU ARE ALREADY 30 MINUTES LATE TO WORK,

WHEN YOU WAKE UP!

I thought I had set my alarm, guess not.

Usual routine, grab a cigarette, semi-panicked phone call, speedi-shower, brush tooth, leave an open can of kitty food out for Bear, make sure I haven't forgotten anything and a short hop to the garage.

I was dispatching 30 minutes later.

Not a very interesting night.. But there were a lot of people out. Every parking space at the "Triangle" was occupied and I mean EVERY one of them. There was not a vacant space in the FoodLand parking lot, either. The sidestreets that border the "Triangle" on the north and south had cars parked at the curb over 500 feet back from Kihei Rd.

The Joint Was Jumping!

But only a few arrived or departed by cab. Even with starting an hour late, I still managed to garner 15 fares. Meter was lower than Wednesday and Thursday, though.

Bar close was very mellow, with the exception of one caller.

He requests a cab, about 1:45a, pick up at LAB, going north. I send a cab. 10-13 [no show-no load].

Calls back at 2:00a. Same request, same results.

Again at 2:15a. Had a cab headed past that location, on his way to pau, and he went by. Again, 10-13.

2:20a this "Hanzel" calls again, demanding where his cab is. I told him that I had sent three different cabs and his party never got in any of them and, no, I wasn't sending another one.

It took 20 more calls from him over the next 40 minutes, each with the same decline, before he finally gave up.

He and his compadres faced a 2-1/2 mile walk home. I hope they enjoyed it. Bet they were mostly sober by the time they arrived. What a waste of a drunken stupor.