LOST HORIZONS

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

I have been pushing myself a little too hard, of late, and it caught up with me yesterday. Too many long hours, too much coffee, tea and cola. Way too many cigarettes.

I am pretty sure that my alarm went off at 5pm but I never heard it. I keep it across the bedroom so that I HAVE to get out of bed to shut it off. It will "beep" for one hour. I was dead to the world. Became aware of my surroundings about 2:30am Saturday. Lost a whole shift. Did have some surreal but enjoyable dreams.

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CAB #7


Cab #7 is a dream to drive. A luxury vehicle with just about every "bell and whistle" imaginable.





The dashboard is a hybrid analog/digital that is easily readable. All the features appear when you first start the engine and then settle into operational mode.






You can even switch from "English" readout to metric readout, at the push of a button.






It has an older style meter, which uses a different sequence of button pushing to operate.

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MONTAGE OF LAHAINA

Here are the images, in random order. Basically just a "raw" file dump.

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BTW

Foodland, a statewide supermarket chain, is hiring. In case anyone is interested.

Later.....

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

4 Sacramento California United States
4 Palmetto Florida United States
3 Portland Oregon United States
3 Derby England United Kingdom
3 Cincinnati Ohio United States
2 Corvallis Oregon United States
2 Clinton Tennessee United States
2 Sunnyvale California United States
2 Poland Maine United States
2 Chicago Illinois United States
2 Baltimore Maryland United States
2 Reston Virginia United States
2 The Hague Zuid-holland Netherlands
2 New York New York United States
2 Snellville Georgia United States
2 Live Oak Florida United States
2 Saratoga Springs New York United States
1 Seattle Washington United States
1 St. John's Newfoundland And Labrador Canada
1 Victoria British Columbia Canada
1 Kihei Hawaii United States
1 Rochester Minnesota United States
1 Melbourne Florida United States
1 Leesburg Virginia United States
1 Andover New Jersey United States
1 Meriden Connecticut United States
1 Plano Texas United States
1 Los Angeles California United States
1 Bellingham Washington United States
1 London England United Kingdom
1 Laguna Niguel California United States
1 Lewiston Maine United States
1 Santa Monica California United States
1 Tampa Florida United States
1 Novato California United States
1 Rocky Mount North Carolina United States
1 Aurora Colorado United States
1 Edinburgh Scotland United Kingdom
1 Bryn Mawr Pennsylvania United States
1 Stuttgart Baden-wurttemberg Germany
1 Washington District Of Columbia United States
1 Toccoa Georgia United States
1 Tempe Arizona United States
1 Simi Valley California United States
1 Towanda Pennsylvania United States
1 Baldwin New York United States
1 Falls Church Virginia United States
1 Moorestown New Jersey United States
1 Philadelphia Pennsylvania United States
1 Bronx New York United States
1 Kahului Hawaii United States
1 Zephyrhills Florida United States
1 Tuscaloosa Alabama United States
1 Santa Clara California United States
1 San Francisco California United States
1 Ithaca New York United States
1 Ipswich England United Kingdom

Later.....

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

AND HE SHALT SERVE

THOSE WHO WAIT


ABANDONED OR A RUNAWAY HITCHHICKER?

Nothing but empty fields for 300 yards in any direction. It looks to be in good condition.

I already have a vacuum, so I left it for someone who hopefully needs one.

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MY BUDDY, JACK

Jack is one of the first persons I met when I moved here. He is from Boston but has lived here for nearly 15 years. We've worked together in two different jobs and shared a house for 5-1/2 years. Even though we seldom agree on anything, I like him and he is one of the most honest, caring and trustworthy persons I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

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LAST NIGHT

I picked up cab #7 in north Kihei and was assigned as the #1 cab in town. And that is where I stayed all night. Until the end of my shift, I never made a pick-up or drop off in Wailea. Every run was in Kihei Town. I think thats a first for me.

5 cabs were on and the runs for each of us was just enough to prevent absolute boredom.

TMR (The Mad Russian) Alex was tonight's driver/dispatcher. He's from the Ukraine and used to drive cab in Minneapolis, MN.

There was not one notable incident or drunk. A very mellow night.

I had a "special" from the Mau'i Coast to OGG at 5:20am. So I switched to cab #11 about 4:00am, since my relief, Brian M., drives #7 in the day.

Made a "regular" pupu run and then waited for Brian M., to hand over the phone and the one reservation that I had for the dayshift. Then Steve V., The Grand's night valet, called wanting to know where the cab was to take 4 people to the Lahaina Harbor. That was news to me and I diverted Brian to cover it. Since Lahaina is out of our radio repeater's coverage, it made no sense to give him the phone. I would just pass it along to whoever checked in next. Since my "special" was just over a half-hour away I decide to stay in town. Thn Steve V. called back again.

"I am sorry Wil, but that 4-pax just became a 6-pax. Do you have a van available yet? Oh, and the last two people haven't shown up yet and may not. So it could still be just a 4-pax."

I started towards Wailea.

#7 is a Lincoln "Towncar" and can only legally seat 4 passengers (4-pax). #11 is a _small Chevy minivan and can legally transport 6 passengers (6-pax).

"7 come 11", it was now a roll of the dice. The winner was going to Lahaina and the loser was going to the airport. Not bad! The difference in $-fare-$ is just over 100%.

I was the winner!

And my meter almost doubled for the shift!

Oops. I just remembered something I forgot. BRB







There.

Thanks for waiting.

Had to call the boss about those people's 12 noon return reservation. This blog just saved me some serious verbal asswhipping.

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Here is a selection of pics I took, just before sunrise, on my return. I will post more in the next day or so.

Lahaina Harborlight

There go my people.

Off to catch a marlin or an ahi or maybe even the rare ono.

The harbor basin.

The island of Lana'i, about 9 miles away.

Front Street

The reverse view.

Front Street

More Front Street

From a beach just south of Lahaina
Red Hill (Makena) on the left
Kaho'o'lawe on the right
And the islet, Molokini, just barely visible between them

Some nice, gentle "rollers" along the shore

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ONE-NINE, READY TO ROLL

Installed the heater bypass in ONE-NINE this morning, with only one SNAFU.

Here I am, in cab #11, waiting for NAPA Auto Parts to open. So I can exchange the "kit". I needed the next smaller size.


I do qualify as a "shade tree" mechanic. Which puts me at least two notches above our contract mechanic.


Later.....

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

MY NEW WHEELS

TEMPORARILY

Meet Car #7

The problem I had with "ONE-NINE" on Saturday night was supposedly fixed on Monday, or so I thought.

[LOUD BUZZER] WRONG [/LOUD BUZZER]

Oh, our esteemed mechanic looked at it but could not recreate the problem so didn't act on the fact that I had reported a failed heater core. To make matters worse, a day driver drove it all Monday afternoon and never had a problem.

I drove it Tuesday night and received Art's wrath for wasting his money having "ONE-NINE" towed across the island. I really felt like an idiot. She even ran fine for me.

Wednesday night was a different story. On my first run, she started huffin' and puffin' steam from below the glove box. I advised Kimo, Wednesday night's driver/dispatcher, and said "to hell with it". Kept driving until the interior of the windows were so steamed up that I had to hang my head out to see the road. That ol' tongue just flapping in the breeze.

Finally picked up car #7 and drove it the rest of the shift.

After work I went by the auto-parts store and got a "heater by-pass kit" which I will install after Thursday's shift. Lets face it, maybe three nights out of the year do I really need a heater. And I will be compensated for the parts and labor.

Car #7 is a Lincoln "Towncar" and is a dream to drive.

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SLOW NIGHT

12 runs last night. So it was at the top end of "slow". Had an OGG at 5:30am and that significantly increased the "take home" for an otherwise dismal shift.

Scared the living shit out of one drunk at bar close. He boarded at LAB, headed to Kauhale Makai (Village By The Sea). Asked to stop by an ATM so he would be able to pay me. Kewl. Took him to Foodland and then continued the run when he reboarded. As is common, he passed out along the trip and had to be awoken when we arrived. Asked for the fare ($10.40) and he handed me a mini Bic lighter and said "Here's ten dollars."

"No sir. Thats your lighter."

He hands me his cell phone, stating "Here's twenty dollars then."

"Uh, sir. Thats your cell phone. How about some cash?"

"I don't have any cash."

"Excuse me?!? We stopped at the ATM so you could grap some cash. What happened to that?"

"I changed my mind."

"Okay, asshole. How do you plan to pay me?"

"I don't know. I don't have any money."

"That's bullshit dude! I think its time for you to spend some quality moments in Mau'i county jail."

I grabbed "Maggie" off the seat and started around the back of the cab, towards him. He bailed and ran to the front of the cab.

"Don't make me chase you, asshole. Stand up and take the ass-whoopin' you deserve."

He started crying. Begging me to take him to any ATM and he would get cash.

Which is what eventually happened. $40.00 on a $15.50. Thank you very much.

Was I really mad? No. Disgusted would be more fitting. But I have found that feigning angry righteous indignation can be an effective negotiation tool. Never lose control of the situation and adapt as necessary.

I gotta laugh though. I am a 5' 7", 200#, crippled old fart that looks like a cross between Santa Claus and Jerry Garcia and yet I can still be very intimidating when necessary. Some aspects of my prior life just never fade away.



Later.....

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

WAKE ME

WHEN IT IS TIME TO GO HOME

Logged in and was 1^st up in Wailea. The radio was quiet. We only had 4 cabs on duty. Apparently the dayshift had been so slow that as soon as a relief was available, they would leave. One driver worked all day and only had one run and that was just from the Shops Of Wailea to The Grand. About $4.40 on the meter.

By 7:30pm, I needed some coffee, so I went over to the shops.

"click" photo

PIC 1 PIC 2 PIC 3 PIC 4 PIC 5 PIC 6 PIC 7

I finally received my first dispatch about 8:00pm.. A run from the Renaissance to the Four Seasons. Two ladies going out to Spago's for dinner.

Pulled into the Renaissance ("click" photo)
PIC 1 PIC 2


And picked up Allison and Autumn
~Allison & Autumn~

Allison is out of North Carolina, now living in Connecticut. Autumn is the sweetest lil' ol' gal from Tennessee.

Took them to Spago's, in the Four Seasons. ("click" photo)
PIC 1 PIC 2
Did the reverse trip with them about midnight.

The night oozed.

Our competition were the tour buses.

"Head'em up! Move'em out!"
Groups being moved like cattle on a never ending trip, to and from restaurants. At least they are going "off-campus" and someone is making money.

The weirdest run of the shift was right at "bar close". I was parked at Kahale's, the right rear door is opened and a middle-aged male drunk falls in.

He wants to go to the Kamaole Beach Royale vacation condos. Just a hair over a mile away. We arrive and he has no cash. So back we go to the 76 Station, where there is an ATM ("magic money") machine. I'll give him credit, he knew his PIN but just wasn't able to master the intricacies of pushing the correct buttons. When I offered to assist him, after two failed attempts, he did a "Jeckle & Hyde" on me. Finally got paid when he tore a $20 bill in half and threw it on the ground. He walked home and I got a $8.30 tip.

Around 7:30pm, Crazy Brian, tonight's driver/dispatcher, told me I had a 4:45am trip from The Grand to Lahaina. Kewl! By 9:30pm that dream run had vanished like the morning mist. Oh, well. Win some, lose some.

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STEP INTO MY PARLOR

"click" image to go inside
links to all images for location are below picture
* * * * *
SPORTS PAGE

PIC 1 PIC 2 PIC 3
That's Fergie, the Sports Page "floorhost".

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BOCALINO'S

PIC 1 PIC 2 PIC 3

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HENRY'S

PIC 1 PIC 2 PIC 3 PIC 4

Kalani

I mentioned earlier that Henry's is our "biker" bar. It is probably the safest bar to go into. I can't remember the last time the police were called here. That is Kalani on his beautiful white bike.

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MULLIGAN's

PIC 1 PIC 2

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Ended the shift with just 12 trips. And the drunk guy was the best run (and tip) of the night.

Just another boring night, watching the road and glancing at the dashboard.


Later.....

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

THIS AND THAT

JOBS

We have a very low unemplyment rate on Mau'i. Accordingly, the lower paying jobs are always available. Whether it be in the fastfood industry, convenience stores, gas stations or pizza delivery. These positions usually start about $8.00 an hour and seldom pay more than $10.00 an hour, about 2/3rds of the island's average wage of $15.00 per hour.

Have you noticed that the lower paying the job, the more work expected of the employee?

With our rapid population growth, we have seen the introduction of many "big box" outlets on the island.

Besides Wal-Mart and Home Depot, we also have a Costco, a K-Mart and many other mega-corp outlets.



Their appearance forced local competitors out of business. These national chains could retail an item at less than what the local operations paid wholesale. The upside is that local consumer prices dropped. The downside is that many family businesses ceased to exist, after generations of operation.


While Mau'i will never have the blight of over population, at least not in my lifetime, it is rapidly growing. The "old-timers" complain that it isn't like it was during the island's "Plantation" era. "New-comers" take exception to the changes since their arrival. And the State & local government can't keep apace of the infrastructure shortfalls. A problem that all population centers encountered during rapid growth.

The knee-jerk reaction is to enact a building moretorium. Which eventually causes raises in tax rates, since cost-of-services continue to rise on a fixed tax base. Then property owners complain.

Growth is inevitable. I wish I could drop back by here in 100 years to see if Mau'i looks anything like O'ahu (Honolulu) does today.
==============================================

Later.....

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

JOURNALSPACE.COM

If you haven't heard, JOURNALSPACE.COM had a massive hardware failure this weekend.

This is the message on their website:

Monday, 0700 GMT: Down, But Not Out...

The journals and blogs hosted by journalspace.com are temporarily unavailable. Journalspace experienced a hardware failure on Friday. We are making upgrades to help ensure that this problem does not happen again. The process of upgrading the hardware and restoring the data is, by necessity, a long and complex one.

We really appreciate your patience. We know how much you love reading the blogs and journals hosted on journalspace, and we're working to make them available as soon as we can. Cathy, Tiffany, Ellen, Robert, Shane, Natalie, Joe, and the rest will be back soon.

The current estimate for the return of journalspace is Tuesday. We will update this page if there are any changes.

From what I have read, their hard-drive literally exploded. Foolishly, the "backups" were also stored on that same piece of equipment.

A lot of blogs, such as The World, My Playground (see "links" on sidebar) may have lost all their history. And some blogs may be gone altogether, lost in the Twilight Zone of cyberspace.
==============================================

Later.....

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

GOD'S GETTING BETTER

IT'S SAPPY, BUT I LIKE IT

A little girl was sitting on her grandfather's lap as he read her a bedtime story.

From time to time, she would take her eyes off the book and reach up to touch his wrinkled cheek.

She was alternately stroking her own cheek, then his again.

Finally she spoke up, "Grandpa, did God make you?"

"Yes, sweetheart," he answered, "God made me a long time ago."

"Oh," she paused, "grandpa, did God make me too?"

"Yes, indeed, honey," he said, "God made you just a little while ago."

Feeling their respective faces again, she observed, "God's getting better at it, isn't he ?"
==============================================

Later.....

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

KA-BOOM!!

PREPARE TO ABANDON CAB!
THIS IS NOT A DRILL!

On my prior shift, at about 3:30am, I began to notice that I was having some condensation on the interior of the right side of the windshield (windscreen). I could also smell, faintly, the odor of engine coolant. Notified one of the day drivers about it.

When Art, the owner, transferred the phone to me at 7:00pm, I discussed the problem with him and we agreed to take "ONE-NINE" to the car doctor on Monday.

There were 9 cabs in the queue at The Grand and I slowly worked my way to the first position. Finally received a call to transport two people from the Mau'i Prince, in Makena to the Mau'i Banyans, in Kihei. A pretty decent run.

Made the pick-up and had just entered Wailea when a loud "POP/BANG" occurred under the rightside dashboard. The interior of "ONE-NINE" immediately filled with steam and the overwhelming odor of engine coolant. The heater core had ruptured!

I immediately called for another cab to meet me at Tsunami's entrance, lowered all four windows and nursed "ONE-NINE" that last 1/4 mile.

Tina, cab #11, picked up my passengers. I told them they would only have to pay for the ride from Tsunami's, the trip from the Prince was free.

Had lengthy radio traffic with Art and he is now going to have "ONE-NINE" towed to the mechanic in Kahului on Monday. Gave the phone to cab #17, Jim G., and called it a night.

Two hours, 1/2 of a run, and absolutely no income. FECES OCCURS.

It will be interesting to see if "ONE-NINE" is ready when I come back on Tuesday evening. Replacing a heater core entails the removal of the entire dashboard just to gain access. Art tends to be a might frugal and our current mechanic is striving to achieve the "shade tree" level of competence.

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GRADING A SHIFT

0 - 6 runs = "dead"

7 - 12 runs = "slow"

13 - 17 runs = "low-normal"

18 - 24 runs = "high-normal"

25 - 36 runs = "busy"

37 and more = "Holy Shit!"

My typical night is generally in the mid 13 - 24 range.

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Sorry, no pics tonight. Duh!
==============================================

Later.....

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