Paradise Driver: 06/23/07

Saturday, June 23, 2007

WOULD YOU BELIEVE....

I GAVE UP AN OGG

Moonset
Just Past Midnight

17 fares / 136 miles / 1st quarter of $200 bracket

It really started slow for a Friday night. Waited almost one hour to finally break out of the starting blocks. One of our regulars, headed into Wailea to work. He made a reservation with me to pick him up at 4:10a, take him home, wait while he got his luggage and then take him to OGG. I figured that was going to be the cap for my shift.

WRONG!

Had 8 cabs in the corral when I started but that quickly diminished down to our 5 night people by 9p.

4 fares between 8p & 9:30p.

The 10p bar rush was a surprise. People coming out of the woodwork, ready to get intoxicated. Do some dancing and flirting and, if lucky, a little "he'n & she'n". That not just they guys talking but the young ladies also. In fact, the distaff side of bar patronage usually has an agenda set and goals established for their night and are not shy about discussing it, in graphic detail, with other females in ONE-NINE. They know that I must be deaf, dumb and blind.

Or I am just a non-person. Someone of such low regard that they feel no conflict about sharing their most intimate sexual thoughts with each other in front of me. And guys, "size" is always 1st or 2nd on the list. Don't believe the myth.

4 in-bound bar runs between 10p and 11p

As is the norm, the 11p to 12:30a period was morgue-like.

Tina (#05) bailed about midnight. She has early morning plans for today.

Bar close started about 12:30a and we were rolling "hot & heavy" through the 2a period. "Crazy" Brian (#11) flew the coop at 1:45a but Hardin (#25) and TMR (#27) kept rolling until about 2:20a.

Racked up 7 bar close fares.

As everything was winding down I fielded a run from far south Kihei across the island to the hamlet of Waiehu, north of Kahului on the northeast side of Mau'i. Thats a 30 minute trip, one way, and also was my only time to leave town all shift.

On my return to the southside, I covered 2 more dog-watch fares.

Compiled up the reservations for today and realized that it was going to be tight covering all the early jobs.

There was that aforementioned 4:10a to OGG from Wailea, plus 6 more that had to be covered between 5a and 6:30a. Luckily, all the day drivers checked in early and I gave Wally (#5) the OGG. Thus allowing me to turn ONE-NINE over to "Murph" in a timely manner, with eager dispatch. If I had taken the OGG, he would have been screwed until 5:30a. As it turned out, he covered two fares, one to OGG, before 6a. "Murph" and I agree on absolutely nothing. We have nothing in common and very differing views on life. We don't dislike each other but we each respect the other. Our differences actually enhance our working relationship. He is just a few years older than me and is the epitome of "laid back". Next to him I look like a chimpanzee on "ice". He is a very, very mellow person. Oh, he is smart, too.

I don't know what the afternoon activity will be but the dawn was profitable for everyone.

***

I didn't get much sleep yesterday. Was sawin' logs by 8a. 1:30p rolls around and I am wide awake. No disturbance or anything but it is a wee bit humid here past noon. Okay. It is actually steam bath humid in my bedroom as the sun transitions past the eaves. Its like this every summer. I have a fan blowing directly across me but still the pools of moisture accumulate in the body depressed areas of the mattress. Not usually a problem but yesterday it was an awakening irritant. Feces occurs. I accepted the fact that I was going to have to function all night on minimal sleep. And I did. Handsomely.

***

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend and I'll be back, after work, on Sunday morning.

Til then.

Mahalo

Aloha

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Haleakala Sunrise