Friday Night 04/12/09

Friday Night was a non-stop smorgasbord of fares heading for either downtown, the bus station or the airport. From the time I sat down in my cab, I never stopped moving. With the tree lighting ceremony, the last class bash, and throngs of Christmas shoppers, everyone was kept busy.

I drove vanload after vanload of students down to the bars tonight. With as many people I had in my cab and as drunk as they were, I was very lucky not to have one puker. I did however have just one snotty little bitch. I was almost to the point of forcibly removing her from my cab and leaving her ass on the side of the road.

I picked her up from a party on Windsor st. at 4:30 this morning. She was standing there with another female. They both got in and said they were going different directions.The bitch pipes up and says "We want to go through MacDonalds drive through" The friend says that she is heading northside and can't go through MacDonalds because she hasn't got enough cash.

So I ask where Northside and she tells me. I ask the bitch where she's going and she looks at me with this "Are you stupid?" look and blurts out "Just drive!" This sets my tone for the next 10 minutes.

I raise my voice just a bit to let her know that I'm not going to play her little games and ask "Where to?"
"Just drive, I'll tell you when and where to turn"
The brakes come on and the van comes to an abrupt stop. I turn around and look her in her crossed eyes and tell her that the van doesn't move until I get an address, and if you don't like that, you can get out and wait for another cab.

Meanwhile the lady she is with is trying to get an address out of her and this bitch is raising her voice and telling her that "The cab driver is a fucking prick and should take some classes in dealing with the public and that she's going to report this asshole and get him fired", and on and on and on...Then she yells at me and says "PRIESTMAN!!!"

So now at least I know the bitch lives on Priestman street. I start making my way to Priestman street and she's still going on about this terrible cab driver that she had to deal with. I asked what number on Priestman and she says "26"

Now I have been up and down Priestman Street probably 57,982 times in the past 9 years and I can tell you for a fact that there is no number 26 on Priestman Street, and I tell the bitch this.

"Well I can tell you for a fact that there is a #26 on Priestman Street, because I live there!"
"And you just went by it"
I look to my left and see a street sign Abbott Court. There is a 26 Abbott Court so I put 2 and 2 together and turn around for Abbott Court.
"So, you live on Abbott not Priestman?"
"Same thing" she blurted out as she threw her change for the ride onto the front seat.
We pulled into the driveway for her apt. and she looks at me says "You really blow as a cab driver, I'm gonna report you...who do you work for anyways?"

"I work for myself"(which was a lie) I said as I put the van in gear.
"Thats not true, no one works for themselves you cabbies all drive for a company"
"I bought this van (another lie) This is my cab" (yet another lie)
The bitch just stuck her nose in the air and went "HMMPPHHH" and walked away.

The lady this bitch was with couldn't stop apologizing for the behaviour of her friend.
"I just cannot believe the attitude that she had!" She was genuinely embarrassed for her
"She in my class and she's from P.E.I. like I am but she is not my friend"

I told her not to worry about it because I deal with people like that on a daily bassis. She got me to stop the cab so she could move up front. We had a great talk on our way accross the bridge.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE

Wednesday Night, Thursday Night 04/12/09

Boy was it slow for the last two nights!! I did most of my work between 2:30 and 5:00 each night. I spent a good portion of the first half of the night sitting, waiting for a call.

Friday night coming on, the end of the week, last class bash, and best of all...It's the last night of my week!! I took Saturday night off to go to my wife's work Christmas party. It's that time of year again when I get all spiffied up in my Sunday go to meeting clothes, try to remember how to tie a tie and head out for some drinks and dining and dancing.

You can bet your bottom dollar that we will be cabbing it or have a designated driver. You should too if you're going to be out and about this weekend.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE

Tuesday 01/12/09

Welcome to the last month of 2009!

The other night a passenger asked me what kind of things I find in my cab after my shift. I told her that she wouldn't believe the kind of stuff that gets left behind in a cab.

I wrote an earlier post listing some of the things I found, but lately I keep thinking about a commercial on the television with a guy running in a giant exercise wheel. Here is an explanation...

About three or four years ago half way through my night I started hearing this random squeaking coming from the back of my cab. I figured one of the back seats were vibrating. With the new studded winter tires on the cab didn't ride as smoothly as it did, making the seats shake slightly.

As the night went on I heard the squeaking from time to time and never gave it another thought. Then I happened to be sitting still waiting for a call when I heard that high pitched squeaking again. I was just about to check it out when I got a call to go to.

I heard the squeaking again and again throughout the night but never really thought much of it. Coming into the last quarter of the night I picked up these two ladies heading downtown. They were at a party and heading home. As we started down the hill, this irritating squeak started up.

One of the ladies asked me what that annoying noise coming from the back of the cab was. I told that Ive been hearing it all night off and on and didn't know what it was. The lady in the middle seat asked me to turn the dome light on and started looking around.

Twenty seconds later I heard this scream coming from the back of the van. "Oh my god!!!" she squealed, "Who would do something like that?"

"Like what??" I asked as I slowed the van to a stop.

"Who would leave something so cute in the back of a cab?"

I looked back and couldn't believe what I saw...the lady in the back lifted up a small cage with a hamster in it running like a mother inside a squeaking exercise wheel!
I had no idea who or when they left the little creature in my cab but someone obviously didn't want it as it was left in the very back of the van wedged into the corner with a bag of hamster food.

The two girls asked what I was going to do with it. I told them I had no clue. They offered to take it off my hands and give it a home, so I asked the dispatcher if anyone called to claim it. No one had so the two ladies inherited a new pet...two problems solved, the annoying squeaking in my van and a home for a homeless hamster!

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE

Sunday Night 29/11/09

Its been a long week, but a fruitful one. We were busy every night and that alone made it worthwhile putting in extra hours. Ive done three twelve hour shifts one eleven hour shift and one nine hour shift since Wednesday. I will probably be in tonight as well, with the snow and rain forecast, it should be busy as well.

Almost every person that got into my cab is starting to get that Christmas spirit, although some of them were concerned about how they were going to afford it. Nonetheless they were starting to catch the spirit.

The staff Christmas parties are in full swing because I have had four different groups going to or coming from four different parties. This is also the season where people believe they can drive home safely after having some Christmas cheer. PLEASE DO NOT fall into that belief. If you have had anything to drink, call a cab, stay at a friends, have a designated driver, but do not drive yourself.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE

Saturday Night 21/11/09

Just as expected, Saturday got off to a slow start. Once 10:30 hit it started to pick up, by 11:30 we were going straight out.

This was the first weekend I noticed staff Christmas parties going on. I had a group in tonight heading for the capital winter club for their party. They were quite worked up and ready for a night of partying. I told them I would pick them up at the side door of the police station at 4:00! They thought that might be a good plan!

All in all it was a good week and it seems to be getting busier the closer we get to Christmas.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE

Friday Night 20/11/09

Got on the road at 6 p.m. and never stopped until 5 a.m. I had a fairly decent night, no idiots, no pukers, no cheap dumbasses that didn't want to pay and practically everyone that got in left a tip of some sort. Everyone was in a good mood and I only had 1 dead head the entire night.

Its nights like this that make the job worthwhile. Its nights like this that make me look forward to Friday and Saturdays.

Now that I'm home and have a beer cracked I find myself winding down. When I'm busy and going straight out, I don't notice myself getting tired until I'm off the road. Once I am done it doesn't take long.

Saturday night coming on and I'm hoping that it will be just as busy. Typically Saturdays start off slow and then end with a bang.

I had the same girl in my cab 3 times tonight. The last time she got in I told her that we have got to stop meeting like this...people are gonna start talking! She laughed and said "Ya I know!! I think I spent more time with you than I did with my boyfriend!" Then she said with an evil smile "I should just go home with you!"

I told her she was more than welcome to but I didn't think my wife would understand.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE

Wednesday Night 18/11/09

I was sitting inside the tannery tonight when I heard a commotion coming from Nickey Zee's. A waiter was yelling at a man that was known for causing trouble. This man had been barred from Nickeys and the waiter was telling him to get off the property.

It took 3 guys to forcibly remove him from the patio. All of a sudden this guy turns around and swings at one of the bouncers. He didn't connect but quickly decided to move on.

20 seconds later I hear a commotion coming from Dolans pub. I turn to look and see its the same guy getting into a fight with someone standing outside the pub having a smoke. The guy having the smoke punches the guy in the face a couple of times and then walks away.

30 seconds later, the same guy walks over to someone else, says something that pissed him off and gets punched in the head again!! That's 3 fights this guy fought and lost within 2 minutes.

I thought to myself, what would ever make a guy be so hateful and obnoxious to get himself into 3 fights in less than 2 minutes?

As I sat there watching him stagger towards my van, I think to myself that this guy woulld be better off staying home when he drinks. I lock the doors to the cab as he approaches and I could see the look of total ragesweep across his face. He grabs the door handle and lifts up...with the doors locked he tries again...nothing.

"Let me in you stupid cocksu*&^r" he yells at the top of his voice. I roll the window just a bit and ask him if he's gonna behave himself

"I'll behave myself after I kick the shit out of you!!...Now let me in" I just sort of laugh at this idiot and tell him "Boy, its just not your night is it?" as I drop it into gear and pull away leaving him standing there all by himself with no one to pick a fight with.

At the other end of the spectrum I had two regular customers in the cab that usually take us to and from work everyday. They're both chefs at the Blue Door, a very trendy restuarant on King Street.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE