ALL I WANTED...

WAS A LITTLE HELP

Last night's sunset and this morning's moonset:

***

My second fare of the night, at 8:30p (geez!), took me from Wailea to OGG. On my return I stopped at Wal-Mart in Kahului. The three bulbs in my "Taxi" roof light had burnt out and, obviously, needed immediate replacement. Thats both a legal requirement and a common sense one, too. If people can't easily identify ONE-NINE as an on-duty cab, I loose money.

Wal-Mart is HUGE, as I am sure you are all aware. I think it exists in every industrialized nation, albeit under different brand names.

Found the bulbs and it struck me that I didn't have a clock in my office area. Except the one in the lower right corner of my PC, which is hard for me to read anymore. I was going to need one to function tonight. Asked one of the people wearing those "May I help you?" vests:

"Where are the alarm clocks?"

"Over there."

She responded with a massive wave of her right arm towards the far side of the interior.

"Uh. Where over there?"
"Other side. You find."
"Okay. Give me a hint. What department should I be looking for 'over there'?"
"Jewelery."

I knew where the jewelery department was located and trudged off in that direction. Cheap gold and silver trinkets. Wristwatches. Low quality gemstones. But no alarm clocks. Found another "May I help you?".

"Where would I find alarm clocks?"

With an identical massive arm wave (is this taught in Wal-Mart employee orientation?), she murmurs,

"Over there."

"I just came from 'over there' because one of your associates told me to come over here. Exactly where 'over there' would I be looking for?"

With obvious disgust she faces the general area and asks,

"You know where furniture is?"
"No."
"What? Why you not know?"
"I am just a stupid 'haoli' I guess."

Her face showed that she thought so too.
She was forced to actually shepherd me to my goal.
Of course, we didn't take the most direct route.

Tracking.

Backtracking.

Going in circles.

She would sometimes just stop in mid-aisle and turn in a circle.

Being a 'guide' was a stretch of her capabilities.

Eventually, her 'drunkards walk' placed us in front of an 'end-cap' display rack and, lo & behold, there were the alarm clocks.

"See! Here they are."

And she turned her back on me and walked away.

"Thank you. Mahalo."

She waved her arm over her head in silent response.

Maybe these hand gestures are just a Filipino "thing".

Oh, its a nice battery (3 "AAA") powered clock with BIG 2" (5 cm) digits.

***

13 fares / 116 miles / third quarter of $100 bracket

Only had 2 runs prior to 10p and then the bar rush started, which gave me 5 trips. We had about a 40 minute "lull" period and then started the bar close activity, 4 jobs. Rounded out the night with 2 pupus on the dog-watch.

Our availability of cabs and the call volume was evenly matched last night. As "day" drivers departed, the activity became mostly "shorties", which are quickly processed. No fares had "wait" time of longer than 15 minutes.

***

I was so "wired", from exhaustion, yesterday that I couldn't fall asleep until about 9:45a. And then I SLEPT! Rolled over at 5:55p and realized that it was time to get ready for work. Really wanted to just lay back down and grab another 90 minutes.

We've all been there.

***

Well, tonight I do my first Sunday of "fixed base" dispatching. It should be fun. I'll let you know tomorrow.

Mahalo

Aloha

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Haleakala Sunrise

Makena Surfers

Rainbow

West Maui Mountains

Banyan Tree
Lahaina

***

91427



"Let's all be careful out there!"

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

Luau

Palms Of Paradise

Double Rainbow

A Secret Beach
Mau'i

***

91186



"Let's all be careful out there!"

GETTING CLOSER

9,000 MILES TO GO

At 8:33p (HST) ONE-NINE hit the 91,000 mile mark.

Remember, you can re-enter if your guess has been passed or you can modify your guess or you can enter for the first time. I will be accepting all "bets" until the odometer reads 99,000 miles. If no one "nails it" exactly, then the entry closest to the correct date/time, without going past the actual date/time, will be the winner. In the event of a "tie", the earliest correct entry will win.

***

A vicious shooting took place on a beach the other day. Definitely pre-meditated. The victim will survive. Police said they had difficulty finding anyone able to identify the faces of the responsibles but had an abundance of physical descriptions.

***

6 fares / 85 miles / first quarter of the $100 bracket

We were going gangbusters for the first 3 hours and then someone threw the switch and everything ground to a screeching halt.

As I was descending into the bowels of the parking structure, where ONE-NINE hibernates in my absence, my cell rings. They need me immediately for that OGG. I thought to myself :

"This is going to be a fantastic shift!"

Boy, was I wrong.

Returned to the southside and had four dinner returns between 9p and 10:30p.

No bar close.

One dog-watch pupu.

Hopefully, tonight will improve and follow the trend that I thought was getting established.

That one late pupu was nice though. A $7.40 fare who gave me $20 and "keep the change". He was appreciative of the fact that I was out there and that he didn't have to walk that last mile or so home.

It is nice to be appreciated.

***

Have a fantastic day and a wonderful weekend.

Hope to see you back here soon.

Its my night to drive/dispatch and play "sheriff" to our "posse" of cabs tonight.

Mahalo

Aloha

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Canoeing At Sunrise

Haleakala

Luau

Lahaina

Rainbow

***

91050



"Let's all be careful out there!"

A DULL NIGHT

BUT STILL MADE MONEY

It took almost 75 minutes before my first run. A dinner fare into Kihei. Then I lucked into a Wailea/OGG. Three dinner returns brought me to midnight. One bar close and three dog-watch trips, taking baristas home. They like riding with me. It gives them a sympathetic ear to bitch into. Lets face it. Dealing with drunks all the time can be depressing and draining.

***

My OGG last night was this friendly couple:
Linda and Matt are from the Pittsburgh, PA, USA area. The "get-away" portion of their honeymoon was coming to its natural conclusion and they were heading home to deal with the realities of the "real" world.

9 fares / 112 miles / third quarter of $100 bracket

***

The solstice occurs at 1806 UTC. Thats 8:06a Hawai'i Time (HST), less than 90 minutes from now. Adjust for your own time zone. North of the earth's waistline it becomes summer. And all our friends south get hit below the belt with winter.

The first day of summer always reminded me that the amount of daylight has peaked and now starts waning.

Our good friend, Dogbait, in about as far south as you can get on mainland "Oz", has been having those wintertime blahs. Cheer up, mate! From now on your "days" will be getting longer as our diminish.

Of course, in Hawai'i thats a rather moot point. 13 hours of daylight in the summer and 11 hours in the winter.

Ain't life a bitch?

***

We have 2 returnees from the "blog-muda triangle"

"Cabbie-X", out of Eugene, OR, USA, has reincarnated Through A Windshield, Darkly. His original blogspot locale was one of the earliest victims of "blog-jacking".

Also rejoining us is Helen. She used to write a blog called Helen's Blog. Then she disappeared this spring. Helen is a fourteen year old lady from somewhere in rural England, UK. Beautiful prose and refreshing insights to her world and the angst of being. Just being. A Good Idea At The Time is really worth your time.

***

Everyone have a wonderful day, or night, and I'll see you here tomorrow.

Mahalo

Aloha

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Haleakala

Front Street
Lahaina

Rainbow

Sunset Watchers

Gecko

***

90965




"Let's all be careful out there!"

A BEAUTIFUL SUNSET

A REALLY GOOD NIGHT

It wasn't very busy last night but I did get some decent fares.

Started the night a little past 7p and was 3rd up in the Wailea queue. We had 8 cabs on the road and "Crazy" Brian was dispatching. The 2 cabs in front of me each got hotel-to-hotel pupu runs and then my number was called. Imagine my surprise when, at 7:25p, I am sent to the Four Seasons for a trip to the Westin, in Ka'anapali. Three people from Japan. Metered out $95.30 on that one, with a $4.70 tip on the 51 minute/30 mile (48 km) journey. Get back to Kihei and sit. By that time we were down to 6 cabs working.

About 9:40p I am assigned a fare from Maui Ocean Center, in Ma'alaea, to Henry's, our "bikers bar". $27.80 on the meter and a $2.20 tip for the 15 minute/8 mile (13 km) trek.

See a trend here? Great runs, lousy tips.

By 11p we were down to just 4 cabs. 3 at 1a. 2 at 1:30a and then just me after 2a. The remaining 5 fares of my shift were all "in-town" but each of them tipped handsomely. Over-all I made good money, especially considering it was a Tuesday night. If the rest of the week continues this pattern it should be pretty good [KNOCK ON WOOD!].

7 fares / 137 miles / top quarter of the $100 bracket

***

If you have difficulty negotiating a hotel's driveway, then you are probably above a blood alcohol level of 0.08%. At least the woman driving this rental didn't injure anyone, never made it to the street and didn't have to puke up the $1,000 cash bail. She was lucky.

***

Shopping carts, the most general term used in the US, have really evolved over my lifetime.
As a young parent, we didn't have them with built-in "child safety seats".
As an aging old fart, I like the new "mini-carts".
Lets face it. I seldom have need to push one of those big ones around anymore. Unless, of course, I am trying to get some passed out fare to their home. Then I typically need a forklift. Never a pretty young lass weighing 7 stone or so.

***

And thus ends another chapter of:

HOW TO BECOME A MILLIONARE IN 100 YEARS

See ya mañana.

Mahalo

Aloha

---

THE PICTURE GALLERY

Kihei/Wailea
From
Ma'alaea

Challenging Neptune

Rainbow

Haleakala

Front Street
Lahaina

***

90853



"Let's all be careful out there!"