WAY TO START MY WEEKEND

SHIFT CHANGE

First "day" driver checked in at 4:00am, second one at 4:30am, and the third at 4:40am. I was home by 5:00am. [big] :) [/big]
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ALOHA ALISSA

She, and family, return home to the "Twin Cities" today.

"Here are some parting shots:

Oh, the name is Alissa, not Alyssa. I've been making a "typo" on this all week.

BTW - I think Natalie is one of two "non-blondes" in Minnesota. ;)
Then again, I'm willing to bet that not all those blondes have matching carpets and drapes.
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SERENE NIGHT

After Friday night's fiasco, tonight was enjoyable.

Every one of my drivers were able to make at least one airport run, which made them "happy campers."

It was never busy but it did stay steady. The balance between "calls" and cabs was perfect.

The weather has stayed crappy though. Lots of mild "thunderbumpers" and mediocre "lightshows." We've even had "tornado watches" and "warnings" this week.

There is a huge "Kona" low off to the west of the state and it is sucking up moisture from the equator, right over Hawai'i.

Other than getting wet, rain is usually not uncomfortable. The air is 75f/24c, the ocean is 75f/24c and the rain is 75f/24c.
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MY OFFICE

Here is a shot of my cab's interior, from a passenger's "point-of-view".

Note that "Maggie" is in position.
I spend more time in the driver seat than I do in bed.
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

BUSY NITE - NOT!

TSUNAMI'S

The busiest place last night was Tsunami's.

Unfortunately, no one arrived or departed by cab.

The "Triangle" only generated two runs at bar close.

I got off early at 5:00am and left with only 10 runs on the log sheet. My total "meter" last night was less than my normal "take-home" for a Friday. I spent more at the grocery store than I earned. :(

It had rained most of the day and through the dinner period. The majority of the tourists just stayed in their hotels. Can't fault that. Being "cooped up" on the forty acres of THE GRAND WAILEA isn't really a hardship. ;)

(40 acres is equal to 161,874.26 square meters or 16.19 hectares or 0.06 square miles)
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ALYSSA

Well, she leaves on Sunday. I am really going to miss her.

Here's a shot of her and Natalie, from Thursday night, having some fun for the camera.

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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

NEW BANNER

Do you like it?

When I went to Alyssa's house for dinner on Sunday, it had been raining all day. Stopped just as I arrived. The sky was totally overcast. As sunset approached, I thought that I could see a little clearing of the sky right on the horizon. About every 30 seconds to one minute I snapped a shot. The fourth and fifth shots I took about 20 seconds apart.

Those with digital cameras know that you really can't see much on the 1.5-inch LCD.

Downloaded the pics when I got home and made the post that contains all 7 shots.

It wasn't until I woke on Monday that I really looked at them in my files. That fourth shot was spectacular! You can see how the fifth shot, 20 seconds later, had lost the light, the texture, the splendor.


Kept studying that shot all day. I had been wanting to put a banner here for awhile but never could find the right pic. Used Photoshop to play with it, and you can see the results above.

Also had to make some minor changes in the template's HTML and Javascript. Been playing with that stuff since 1998, so no big deal.

I am proud! :)
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

RAIN

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER DOLLAR

Started at 7:00pm and watched a tropical lightshow developing in the distant northwest, near the island of Moloka'i. Had my first run at 7:45pm. To the airport (yipee!!). My guests and I talked story about how crappy the weather has been these past 10 days.

No rain on the way there but coming back I drove into a cloudburst for about three miles.

I immediately was dispatched to a call when I checked in at the Kihei town boundry. It was nearby. That run took me to the FOODLAND/"Triangle" area. As I dropped, I picked up a run from there to Wailea.

When I cleared I was immediately dispatched back to the "Triangle" for another dinner return to Wailea. Then I had an in-Wailea pupu run.

Cleared it and was dispatched back to The GRAND for another airport run (yipee!! again).

It rained the entire trip there. Heavy at times.

When I cleared at OGG, I was advised to standby for a "meet & greet" at 10:40pm (and again, yippee!!). A family arriving on American 161, going to The GRAND. Met a wonderful family from Chicago. The rain on the trip back to Wailea was steady.

The light show was getting better.

Picked up Alyssa and Natalie about 12:30am and took them to Makena.

After everyone else left, I had some Kihei pupu runs.

Finished the night with another OGG (final yippee!!) from Wailea at 4:30am. Major portions of SR311 (Mokulele Highway) were flooded. But, on my return, the flooding was gone.

At 5:00am, just as I was trying to clear at the airport, our radio repeater went B/O (bad order). I could "key-up" our westside repeater from Kahului, but the eastside one was dead. They are on different channels and have different "footprints" on the island.

When I left at 6:00am, it was still down. Hope all the dayshift drivers have cell-phones.
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WHERE WILL IT END?

This morning's pump price:

Our highest price was in September last year. $4.049 for 87 octane.

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OGG

That's the FAA designation for Mau'i International Airport.

Apparently a Mr. H O G G was influential in having the airport built and the FAA honored a county request to use the last three letters of his name for the designation. Fact or fiction? I don't know, but thats the story I've heard. Sounds good, anyway. I can see why they didn't use the first three letters instead. Everyone wants to go to paradise, not HOG heaven. [groan] ;)

Here is baggage claim (looking east):

These folks are entering baggage claim from the east escalator. They're off an Air Canada flight:

On your left as you enter baggage claim is a display provided by the Mau'i Ocean Center, the world's largest reef aquarium, located in Maalaea. That dark spot is an aquarium:

Here's a look inside the aquarium. It's artifically illuminated during the day:
Well, its "Aloha Friday"!
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

CHARACTER BUILDING

"Sometimes the magic works,
and sometimes it doesn't."
Chief Dan George
Little Big Man

When a driver has a bad night, especially new drivers, I tell them that these are "character building" shifts. Helps remind you that everything doesn't always work right.

Last night was a "character building" shift for me.

Oh, I made money, usually do, but I seemed to get all the fares that just didn't (or weren't able to) tip. Had three runs in a row, total fare for the three was $30.80 and the total tips were $0.55.
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CONTRAST

Made a pickup at the Mau'i Prince around 4:00am this morning. Destination: Mau'i Memorial Medical Center Emergency Room. I usually don't pay much attention to my passengers appearence but this couple was striking in their contrast. He was a high 6 foot (almost 7 foot) tall black gentleman, one of the blackest people I have ever seen. Pure ebony. She was barely 5 foot tall and appeared to have never been exposed to the sun. Blonde, with eyes so pale blue that they were almost translucent (like the actress Meg Foster). Pure ivory.

During the run to the hospital, the gentleman was calling his airline to reschedule their return to the mainland. The customer service person at "1-800-WE GOT YOUR MONEY SO GO TO HELL" was not very helpful. I was amazed at how calm my passenger remained. Most people would have been screaming bloody murder by the run around he received. Never once did he raise his voice, nor did he use any profanity. A real class act. I was impressed.
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ZZZZZZZZZ

A very long and boring evening. Even half the bars in the "Triangle" closed shortly after 1:00am, due to lack of business.
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MAGGIE

Maggie is the night cashier at FOODLAND. She and I spent 1/2 hour talking about how many "weirdo's" there seem to be during the "wee" hours of the morning.
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

BONDING

LOVE

At 4:20am today, I picked up a 45ish dad and his 7 & 13 years old sons. He was taking the boys to Lahaina, where they were going on a deep sea fishing excursion. The trip took about 35 minutes and the boys "nodded" while dad and I talked. They were from "The Gateway To The West", St. Louis, MO., USA.

Dad has a friend, who is one week older than him, dying of pancreatic cancer. Dad said that all his friend can talk about now is all the time he favored his career over his children.

The old "if only" syndrome.

I sure hope they catch a marlin.
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PARTY TIME!

Alissa, Natalie, Leah, Erin, Pete, Al

Picked up Alissa and entourage last night. It was time for their assault on the "Triangle." I think the "Triangle" won. ;)

Leah, Pete, Natalie

"Trinity"

"Princess Leah"

Only Leah was sober. And, by her own admission, not from lack of trying.

Natalie is a lifelong buddy of Alissa.
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LAST NIGHT

Mediocre side of average overall.
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

DINNER CONVERSATION

BELOW SEA LEVEL

This is a Tiger Shark!

But the oceans contain many fascinating creatures




courtesy MAU'I ACTION PHOTOS
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"TALK STORY"

That's pidgin for "conversation" or "story telling."

One of the many reasons I enjoy having dinner at Alissa's house is the stimulating "dinner talk."

Last night, one of the myriad of topics we touched on was early television and the old black & white movies from the '30's and '40's. Especially the THIN MAN movie series starring William Powell and Myrna Loy. Always stop & watch if I come across one of these plums while "channel surfing."
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

DAY OFF

SUNSET SEQUENCE FROM MAKENA SURF







It rained all day Sunday. Finally stopped as I arrived at my friend Alissa'a home about 6:00pm.
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ALISSA (aka "Wiskers", aka "Trinity")

Me and Alissa at sunset at Makena Surf.

I met Alissa right after I started driving cab. She is from the "Twin Cities" area of Minnesota. Her family owns a condo at the Makena Surf, which is about two miles south of Wailea. All the above pics were taken from their lanai. Wouldn't you like to have a view like that?

She was a typical 16 year old teenage girl. Telling mom and dad that she and her girlfriend, Chrissie, were going to the spa at one of the hotels and, as soon as dad had dropped them off, the two of them would go "boy hunting."

I picked her and Chrissie up from a private residence in Kihei, where a party was going on, early one morning in March, 2002, to take them back to Makena. They were both intoxicated.

Our personalities immediately "clicked."

I was worried about their welfare and knew that this would probably not be my last contact with them. I gave both of them my business card (and my personal cell phone #) and told them to call me everytime they went "partying" and I would make sure they got home safely.

As their "spring break" wore on, they would always call me and tell me where they were at through the night so I would have a reasonable idea of where to search for them if they called for help. We "bonded."

Over the years we developed a friendship that extended beyond the generation gap. I became friends with Alissa'a mom and dad (Susan & Ron) and her sister and brother-in-law ("Princess Leah" and Pete). Also kept in touch with Chrissie, who is now in her senior year at Princeton University. I've met and really like Alissa's boyfriend, Joey.

Five years have passed and she is now 21 and has grown from teenage "cute" into a strikingly beautiful woman.

Blonde, beautiful and "brainy", the perfect combination. It runs in the family, her mom and sister are also "B-B-B."

When she decides to wed, the ceremony will be held on that beach in the background. Perfect!

Love you, sweetheart.
XXOOXX
(she reads this blog daily)
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CLEAR SKIES

The upper-level low west of the islands has finally moved on, bringing back our beautiful blue skies. Compared to the northern part of the state, we got off easy. Only two days of rain.

In a couple of days the "brown water" (runoff from the land into the ocean) will be gone from the shores and it will be safe to swim again.

Tiger sharks like to feed at night and also in "brown water." They'll come right up to the waters edge. We had an attack earlier this month and the girl was standing in the surf, just over ankle deep, when she was bitten.

I made a deal with Poseidon years ago. If he kept the sharks off the land, I would keep my "Moby Dick" body out of the ocean.
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MAU'I ACTION PHOTOS

My friend Van, the owner of Mau'i Action Photos (see "LINKS" at right), sent me some recent shots and I thought you might enjoy a few of them.




That's a humpback whale. They winter here every year to calve and breed.
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

EARLY IN MY CAREER

Me, at the age of 26. Definately not someone you wanted to be stopped by, especially if you were DUI.

I was 5 years into my career. Just about where the "John Wayne" syndrome begins.

See, I really had a full head of black hair once. I am about 45% Cherokee indian and 45% Irish and 10% "other" (whatever came over the back fence while great-great grandpappy was out plowing the fields).

That indian/irish combo means that I like to get drunk and "scalp" people. (Please, save the negative comments. This is a joke.)
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

HERE COME THE PICS!

NICK KRAU

This is my friend Officer Nick Krau of MPD. As I mentioned earlier, he was featured when "COPS" did some episodes from Mau'i. He is our local DUI ENFORCEMENT officer and makes more DUI arrests each year than the rest of the department combined.

His "plain white wrapper" (unmarked patrol car).
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GAS PRICE CONTINUES TO RISE

This is the second increase in less than 7 days.
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"WISKERS" AND SOME OLD FART

Isn't she just absolutely beautiful?

More later.
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THIS ADDICT'S "PUSHERS"

THE BAD ASS COFFEE COMPANY (clickable link)
Located in KIHEI KALAMA VILLAGE. Ask for Dave and tell him that Wil sent you.

STARBUCKS
This is the one in the KUKUI MALL. There is another one on this side of the island at the PI'ILANI VILLAGE SHOPPING CENTER, where the SAFEWAY store and MINIT STOP are located.

I couldn't make it through the night without them. :)
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

"ST. 'PADDY'S' DAY" AND BEYOND

BLOGSPOT

Still seems to having a problem. Doesn't seem to want to accept my pic uploads.
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"RAIN

Rained steadily during the day on Saturday. Stopped about the time I left for work, 6:30pm. Started again about 3:45am today. Some ""thunderbumpers" and a mediocre light show.
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ST. PATRICK'S DAY

"Started my shift at 7:00pm and immediately assumed dispatch duties, as well as driving. Also assumed control of 8 other cabbies' fortune, and my own, for the night. It was worse than "New Year's Eve."

I use a "hand free" headset, which I have found to be not only safer but also easier and more comfortable.

It was a "madhouse"! Handled somewhere between 600 and 700 calls for my 12 hours. I was backlogged over an hour most of the time. Except for calls from the 6 major hotels in Wailea/Makena, the "rule" for the night was "If the people aren't there when you arrive, go on to the next call!" It was the only way to do it. I advised all callers requesting a cab of that night's policy. When they called back to complain, after missing their cab, I reminded them of what I had said and then placed them at the bottom of the list.

Three of the drivers called it a night, after putting in 14 hours, about 9:00pm. The other two day-shift drivers hung in there until the bar close rush was over at 2:00am. I thanked them for being "good troopers", since we couldn't have handled all the calls without their presence. They were impressed by my rapid pace dispatch method. Things very seldom move that fast on dayshift. In fact the owner came on the radio about 10:00pm and jokingly asked "Wil, are you answering the phone? It hasn't stopped ring for 3 hours." The landline goes to his home and is "call transferred" to the cell phone.

As the night wore on the majority of the calls focused on two locations, Mulligans and the "Triangle". That actually made it easier for me. Now I only had to manage cabs between these "hot spots", balancing the load.

Shortly after 2:00am four of the drivers called it a night. The other driver and myself stayed busy the rest of the night. He got off about 7:00am and I left at 8:00am. I was asleep 10 minutes after I walked through my front door.

My brain felt like mush. My eyes were tired from staring into headlights all night and then being assaulted by direct sunlight (something I rarely see) at the end. My shoulder and neck muscles were knotted rope.

Most of the drivers "metered" over $300. One exceeded $500!! Everybody went home happy. :)

BTW - I am probably the only resident of Hawai'i who doesn't have a suntan. Have only rarely been out of the house during the daylight these past 5 years.

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SATURDAY

And Saturday was the antithesis of its predecessor.

"Nuff" said.
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E-MAIL

My e-mail addy is on my business card. One of my guests sent me the following:

justa hello


Hi Wil,

I was one of the New York gals who had the good luck to have you as our driver. Arrived home yesterday (17th) midday, just in time to celebrate St. Patricks night with friends.
I read your blog and found it fun and informative..Glad to see that my sister and I were among the "better" tippers..leave it to NY..we do know how to treat people in the service industries.
I'm going to check in every so often since I found the blog site so much fun.
Take care and keep your sense of humor and the sarcasm as well....
keep enjoying Paradise while we freeze......


Madelyn

Mahalo, Madelyn
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LAST, BUT DEFINATELY NOT LEAST

One of my most favorite persons in the world, "Wiskers", and her family, really great people who I truly care about, arrived for their annual visit. I am going to their condo tonight for a "home cooked meal." As with most bachelors, this is a very special treat.

I'll share more about "Wiskers" and me later.
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"

THURSDAY NIGHT FIGHTS

HAPA'S


Know what a "Night Club" is?

Just a bar that has a "cover charge" at the door.

Most are worthy of the name. Hapa's is not.

Hapa's is a "locals" club. At one time in its past is was very nice. Now it is trashy. Always having fights just out front, in the Lipoa Shopping Center parking lot (car park). Monday is a great night to go there though. That's when uncle Willie K. plays. If you are not a resident of Hawai'i or in the music business then you have probably never heard of him. He is renowned in the industry as one of the most accomplished guitarists in the world. He plays everything! Rock, Jazz, C&W, classical, Hawai'ian. Two years ago he was the opening act for the Beach Boys summer tour. All music entertainers who visit here always drop by on Mondays and sit-in for a set or two. To name a few, Prince, Journey, Eagles. Willie and his band put on one hell of a good show. The local punks don't appreciate his talent and avoid Hapa's that night.

The "Ultra Fab" Tuesday night is for alternative lifestyles. Draws a pretty decent crowd also. Locals punks avoid this night also.

"Dolla Balla" is the $3 drink night.

"Ladies night" is trouble with a capital "T". The "local" females love to get in for free and then see how much drama they can create among the males. Which then erupts in fights. As a cop I saw this many times but never on this scale.

Last night there was a major brawl in the parking lot. Somewhere between 50 & 60 people fighting. As with most drunken brawls, there was a lot of "swinging" but very little "connection." The entire Kihei District area police (6 officers and 1 sargeant) responded to the disturbance. Even a State Park Ranger from the DLNR (Department of Land and Natural Resources) rolled. I seldom see these guys on my shift. Took a photo of their "YUKON". Didn't get any shots of the fight since I was enroute to the hospital when it occurred.

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HENRY'S

This is a "grown-ups" fun bar. They usually close around 12:30am. They have a band until about 11:00pm. Owned by a kama'aina leather biker, it seldom has any trouble.

We used to have a cab company, that worked late, named ALOHA. One night the owner of that company was backing up to the curb in front of Henry's and backed straight through the wall to your left of the door. Luckily the bar had closed about 15 minutes earlier and only staff was still inside. The owner/driver then exited his mini-van, surveyed the damage, went back to his cab, reached under the front seat and extracted a half full 2-liter bottle of cheap white wine, which he then tossed into the trash.

I watched this entire incident while calling 9-1-1. Before the police arrived I retrieved the bottle and maintained custody of it until MPD was "on scene" and gave it to them. The owner/driver acted like a clown while performing (and failing) the field sobriety test. And off to jail he went.

6 months later he was parked in front of Hapa's, two doors away from Henry's, passed out over the wheel. One of my drivers reported this to me and again I called 9-1-1. The responding officer, Nick Krau, was the same one who had made the first arrest. He not only took the owner/driver's state issued drivers license but also the county issued taxi drivers permit. Aloha was never on the road again.

Good riddance! Most fares would reasonably expect their cabbie to be more sober than they are.

If you watch the TV show "COPS", you probably saw Nick Krau when Mau'i PD was the featured agency. He's a good cop and one hell of a nice guy. When I catch up with him again, I'll get his pic and post it here.
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MONEY! MONEY! MONEY!

Thursday was very busy and very profitable. What more could I ask for?
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ERIN GO BRAUGH

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all.



May the road rise up to meet your feet.
My the wind always be at your back.
And may you be in Heaven an hour before the Devil knows you've left this earth.
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SO YOU WANT TO MOVE TO MAU'I?

Just a word of advice. It ain't cheap to live here.
(as with all photos, just "left click" to get a larger image).

Milk:

Bread:

Coke:

Cheerios:

Rice Krispies:

ad nauseum.
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POOR BLOGSPOT

They are having some major sysop problems for the past few days.

I wrote this at 0800 hours on the 17th. Lets see how long it will be before I can post it.

Oh, well. Its free and you get what you pay for. Sigh.
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Later.....

Wil
=8^))
"Let's all be careful out there!"