Another cab driving story.
New Year’s Eve sucks. Too many amateur drinkers. Too many high expectations.
I picked up three nicely dressed young women, taking them to a downtown club for some festivities. They knew cabs would be difficult to get after midnight and so asked me for my card.
About an hour or so later I got a call from the ladies, one was already too drunk and needed a ride home. At 9:30, tsk, tsk, tsk.
I met her being held up by her friends in front of the club. What a mess! I explained that if she got sick in the cab it would be fifty bucks extra, surcharge. If she was going to get sick, tell me and I’d pull over. We were off, her and I.
Shortly after we started, she told me she was about to get sick. I pulled over just in time for her to open the door and barf in the curb. Blaah! Blaarf! I hate New Year’s Eve.
After five minutes of this display I asked if we should continue or maybe return to the club. No, she wanted to go home.
I got her home and the fare was $18.80. She said, that’s two dollars more than the trip out. I explained, the meter continues to run while she was throwing up. Outrageous!, she said. She threw eighteen dollars at me. I reminded her it was eighteen and EIGHTY cents (plus tip). She then threw the change at me. Happy New Year, I said as I pulled away, not even waiting for her to get to her door. New Year’s Eve is the worst!!!
Karma is my buddy, for just a few minutes later I heard a cell phone ring in the back seat. Hello, I answered. She said, you found my phone. I said, are you the one who just threw money at me? She said, yes she was, and could I bring her phone to her home? Yeah, right. I told her, per company policy, I would drop her phone off at the taxi station’s lost and found, she could come pick it up in the morning.
The rest of the shift that cell phone kept ringing, all her friends calling to give her wishes. My fares throughout the night would ask, Aren’t you going to answer the phone. I then would explain what happened. We’d all laugh and laugh. New Year’s Eve can be festive, too.