30 SHOPPING DAYS LEFT

UNTIL CHRISTMAS

Scary thought, huh?

Just before 1a I picked up 4 latinos from Liquids, an up-scale night club in the Lipoa Shopping Center. They wanted to go across the island, to Wailuku Heights. They spoke English as they entered the cab but seemed to lose that ability when I asked for a $50 deposit up front. So we just sat there, the meter adding 30-cents for each minute. Finally, "shotgun" handed me a $100 bill and off we went. Pulling out of the drive, "shotgun" asked me, in Spanish, if I understood Spanish. I ignored him. He asked a second time. Still ignored him. Then the four of them started speaking among themselves, in Spanish - of course. They said that I was stupid and looked like an idiot in my "Santa" hat. They also contemplated just taking back the C-note when we arrived at the destination. Towards the end of the 27 minute trip, "shotgun" asked me, in English, where I was from. I told him that I was a retired cop from California. Dead silence. He told the others that I was a police officer and probably had a gun on me. A rapid discussion ensued and they decided that trying to get their money back may not be the smartest move. Paid me $41 on the $40.70 fare. No problems. I haven't spoken Spanish in almost 20 years but I do understand it, most of the time. Sometimes being really "stupid" is better than being really "smart".

The past 2 nights we've been plagued with some troublesome young men. They are staying at the Mana Kai. Apparently, Maui Jim hauled them at least once, because they call after he is off-shift and ask for him. We send another cab and they don't want a ride. What they want is for the driver to sell them drugs. The others on the night crew have each turned them down at least once. I told TMR, last night's dispatcher, to give me the call the next time. I was going to have some fun. They did call and I was headed their way when I was dispatched for the "money run" mentioned above. So TMR asked me for the MPD non-emergency number (808-244-6400). When no cab showed per their initial request, they called back. TMR asked them if they were still trying to locate some "smoke" and they said "yes". So he gave them that number and said that the people there would be able to "hook them up". TMR said later that they did call back, highly perturbed about our "trick". We all got a laugh from that.

Besides the Wailuku Heights fare, I also had, early in the shift, a run from Wailea to Pukalani, a town upcountry. That was a mixed blessing. The money was good, both meter and tip, but it came in just as I was headed to Judy's to have a turkey dinner. Kinda the feeling you might experience watching your mother-in-law drive over a cliff in your brand new car. Definitely mixed emotions. The pocketbook, obviously, won out over the gut.

12 fares / 131 miles / 1st quarter $200 bracket

East of me, enjoy your Sunday.

West of me, its time to go back to work.

MAHALO

ALOHA

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Kapalua
Mau'i

***

"Let's all be careful out there!"

A DECENT NIGHT

FOR A CHANGE

Shortly after 7:30p I had my first fare, an OGG out of Wailea. It took until 10p before my second run, also an OGG from Wailea. Added 4 more fares after that, through bar close. Then another 4 during the dog-watch.

One of my overnight trips was a regular. A boyfriend; yes, she has more than one; had been arrested for DUI. She called me to take her to the Kihei Station of MPD, at 3a, I was able to get her at 3:20a. Along the route we stopped by another friend of hers to get the $1,000 cash for the "get out of jail card". I have to admire her. How many people do you know that can call a friend at 3a and stop by their house 30 minutes later to collect the $1,000 cash? Geez, how many people do you know that have that much cash in their house?

Yeah. Me neither.

Today marked the beginning of the exodus of the holiday visitors. It should stay pretty steady through today and tomorrow. Then it is going to become very hard to find something to write about, without whining, for the next 4 weeks.

The entire night crew made money last night. Terry held the phone and I just drove. That was a nice way to spend a full-moon madness Friday.

The idiots were out last night. In force.

We had a solo rollover, auto vs. tree, in north central Kihei. One person ejected and people were "pumping his chest" according to TMR, who witnessed it. Apparently not a fatal, since the road was only closed long enough to clear the scene and MAIT (Major Accident Investigation Team) was not called out.

"Crazy" Brian witnessed two vehicles pass him, after bar close, one in excess of 80mph and the other over 100mph. Then he came across an accident at the new transition from the Pi'ilani Hwy to Mokulele Hwy.

At one point during the night, I made a pick-up from the World Mark, in south-central Kihei. The fire alarm was sounding at the office/lobby with a strobe light flashing on the roof. My passengers told me it had just gone off. I called 9-1-1 and advised them of what was going down. Next time I passed by, there was one firetruck and two police cars on scene. Just a false alarm. Well, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

10 fares / 134 miles / 4th quarter $100 bracket

Those of you returning home from the holiday, this weekend, please drive carefully. Drive like you are the only sober person on the road. You'll probably be right.

MAHALO

ALOHA

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Kahana
Mau'i

***

"Let's all be careful out there!"

THE BEST LAID...

AH, POPPYCOCK!!

I woke up a little past 4p. About an hour later I checked my phone and saw some missed calls and a V-Mail pending. It was George, ONE-NINE's "day" driver, Tuesday thru Friday. He had a special for me to pick up from the Old Lahaina Luau at 8:30p and return to Wailea. Thats about a $90 fare. I logged in at my normal time and "dropped tag" for the special at 7:22p. Its a 45 minute, or so, drive over and I wanted to be early. This would be a good start for the shift. I arrived at 8:10p and people were already exiting the luau. The show had just ended. George had given me the lady's cell number and I called. No answer. Called back at 8:20p and still no answer. Tried again at 8:30p. Nope. Called George, since he had made all the arrangements, and he tried to call the lady. Same results. Called our dispatch number and advised Tree about the situation, just in case she called that number. The end result was that I sat just outside the luau until 9:15p and never heard from the bitch woman. Made it back into Kihei about 10p, having missed 3 hours of dinner runs, with 58 unaccounted for miles on the odometer. It was just 'Crazy" Brian and TMR working and I was lucky enough to snag 4 pu-pus between then and 11p. The dinner runs had come and gone.

The few bars open were ghosttowns. The few drinkers we hauled were going from private residence to private residence.

I had taken over the phone duties at 9p and the 2 remaining day drivers were gone by 9:30p. I am headed back from Lahaina and having to send runs out to others. Missing my chance at what little money was available. Talk about "salt in the wound".

Just past midnight I get a $5 pu-pu. "Crazy" left at 12:30a and TMR was gone by 1:30a. I don't blame them. By that time the only things open were the gas stations and "stop'n'robs".

The dog-watch saved my ass. A south Kihei to north Kihei at 2:40a. A "regular" from Mulligans to Maui Meadows at 3:15a, who took pity on my situation and gave me $40 on a $12.20. I told him that it wasn't necessary and he told me that he knew that. Mahalo, Chris.

Finished the night with a Wailea to OGG scheduled at 4:30a for 1 person. It wasn't 1 but a family of 4. I didn't care. I wasn't going to lose the fare. I stuffed ONE-NINE's truck full with all their luggage and had to bounce my ass (about 100kgs) on the truck lid to get it to secure. When we arrived at OGG, I pressed the interior release button on the driver's door and the lid popped like a jack-in-the-box.

Finally turned ONE-NINE over to George at 5:40a and beat feet for home.

8 fares / 141 miles / 2nd quarter $100 bracket

TGIF!

MAHALO

ALOHA

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Napili
Mau'i

The Pali
O'ahu

***

"Let's all be careful out there!"

CAMELOT DIED

44 YEARS AGO TODAY

Lest we forget.


"Let's all be careful out there!"

TO EACH AND ALL...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!




Allergies were gone when I awoke. The wind was still blowing as strong but it was also raining. In fact it rained, occasionally heavy, until after midnight. The temps stayed in the low 70's all night, which is normal but, with winds blowing a good 20+ mph, there was a damp chill to the evening. As might be expected, business was slow this holiday eve.

You know what I like about Thanksgiving? The fact that there is no pressure or stress involved with it. You cook and/or eat. Thats the only requirement. No worrying about sizes, whatever. Show up hungry and leave stuffed.

As a cop I hated Thanksgiving. I would miss my dinner and it was the night of the worst violent disturbance calls all year. Families who could not normally abide each other would always do the "get together" thing, have too much alcohol, and then every animosity they've harbored since day one of their existence is brought to the forefront. A mix'n'match event with the players changing sides on every call. The most dangerous night for cops in America.

Thank god that most families aren't like that. Just the ones I had to deal with.

Christmas was in second place. The "Bickersons" would just send gifts rather than getting together.

I picked up my turkey TV dinner and a pumpkin pie for later today, like in about 30 minutes.

Made the majority of my fares, and money, on the dog-watch. Of the entire shift, only one run did not consist of a drunk. And every drunk was bitter. No family to share their holiday with and taking their anger out against the world, or me. Whichever was closer to yell at. [sigh]

Tonight it will be ONE-NINE, TMR and "Crazy" Brian working. I'll have dispatch. We should stay busy until the restaurants close, then it'll be just the losers at the bars until 2a.

8 fares / 73 miles / 4th quarter below $100 bracket

Have a gluttonish day and remember it is acceptable to undo the clasp on your slacks for just a few more bites of seconds, thirds, etc.

MAHALO

ALOHA

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

First 2 images courtesy of Maui Action Photos. Mahalo, Van.

***

"Let's all be careful out there!"

MORE VIDEOS

JAWS:
Barely accessible from land and there is no beach. A horseshoe shaped cove with 30m+ vertical walls. You must be towed out to ride. Forget Bonzai, Waiamea, Pipeline, et al. Forget any other place on earth. When the surf is up at "Jaws" the waves normally exceed 100 feet. This is extreme and dangerous surfing.


EARTHQUAKE:
Remember the earthquake we had in October of last year? Here is some video. The cameraman is capturing an image of a beautiful sunrise in Hana, south east Mau'i, when the quake hits.


KITEBOARDING:


WINDSURFING:




"Let's all be careful out there!"

MAU'I RHAPSODY

"Let's all be careful out there!"

A FULL BLOWN...

ALLERGY ATTACK

Eyes were blurred, the nose was a snot factory and breathing was a labor. That is the downside to living in paradise if you have allergies. I never had allergies until I lived in Nevada. Turned out that I was allergic to sagebrush, of which there was plenty.

Then I moved to Mau'i and it turns out that I am a pawn for grass mold. And, duh, sugar cane and bamboo are forms of grass. I live downwind of the cane fields, thus making my sinuses the "Normandy Beach" of the assault. Cane smoke also isn't kind either.

With that said, I took off last night. When my condition gets as bad as it was, it is not safe to drive, what with the blurry vision and constant sneezing. Ever tried to keep your eyes open when you sneeze? It can't be done. And those medications, over-the-counter or otherwise, don't make you very alert. The safety factor outweighed the need for money. Plus the fact that I don't want to put anyone, including myself, at risk.

What we need is some rain to clear the air but that would mean even a greater release of mold, spores and pollens when the sun returned. A true "Catch-22".

***

The spot price for crude oil has exceeded $99 a barrel. Enjoy your holiday trips. This may be the last year that you can afford it.

I wonder if the Somalian people will send us "Care" packages next year?

If OPEC benchmarks the price of crude against the Euro rather than the Dollar, our currency will be worth less than Monopoly money. Dubya took the US off of the M-3 reporting system last March and since has been running the presses 24/7 to crank out as much paper as he can. By being off the M-3 there is no way to establish a true conversion factor between currencies, nobody really knows how much paper is floating around anymore. Reasoned guestimates are that the Dollar is worth 25-cents against what it was 2 years ago. Thats a 40% inflation rate.

Why aren't the politicians talking about this in their debates?

Maybe we should just let China foreclose on us. They do hold 80% of our obligation bonds. Then we could make money shipping/producing toys covered in lead paint and poisoned pet food to the rest of the world.

And speaking of the world, the next global conflict will have nothing to do with ideology. It will be over oil, water and food. The global population is rapidly nearing 7,000,000,000 and those items are being rapidly depleted.

The "Dark Ages - episode 2" may be on the thresh hold.

***

After all that, please have a wonderful holiday week.

MAHALO

ALOHA

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

***

"Let's all be careful out there!"