Unbelieveable....

You know, it's a hard thing when people don't believe in you. But worse still, when your parents don't believe in you. Take this for example.....

I was trading war stories with a fellow driver recently, who regaled me with this story....

A fare of his from the airport to the university here was a mother and her daughter. They asked him to take them around various places getting the daughter registered for classes at the university.

During these little jaunts back and forth, it became apparent to my friend that this girl was more than a little ditzy.

After dropping her off at her dorm, the mother asked to be returned to her hotel. After a few blocks, my friend asked the woman what her daughter was majoring in.

She simply replied, "Oh, we don't really care." To which my friend asks, "Well, what is she interested in?"

"Well, we don't really know," she says. My friend is flabbergasted at this. Out-of-state tuition has been known to be $40,000 a year at this college!

The woman finally understands what my friend is getting at and says, "Sir, I have no delusions about my daughter's ability. She's here to do two things, get screwed and get knocked up, and I just hope it's by the right guy."

Unfuckingbelieveable. I've said it for years that the rich have some screwed-up values. But this takes the cake......

There's One In Every Crowd....

Gotta love this one just for the irony...

First, let me start out by saying last night was rough. Steady, but rough. Seems like most of the drivers for this company went home at midnight. I guess they were going to turn into a pumpkin...

Anyway, after a string of bad luck, I was sent to a "prestigious" bed and breakfast east of town. People that stay at this place are notorious for being cheap, at least in my experience.

I arrive for the pickup at 3 am. I should have started the meter when I got there. Despite calling their front desk and being informed that the customer had been told the cab was there and waiting, it was 3:25 before we actually got moving, because A) one of these morons had an open beer, which is against state law to transport, B) another of these morons couldn't find her purse, C) once she found her purse, she couldn't find her phone. Are any of these MY fault? NO.

Even though moron #3 was in the cab around 3:15, she asked that I STILL not start the meter. Figuring they would make up for it in tip, I stupidly did not, costing myself $10.00 in wait time.

Long story short, these morons kept me waiting 25 minutes and tipped me less than a dollar. What kept me from giving it back and saying they needed it more than I did, I'll never know. I think I was just resigned to the fact that the night was going to suck.

Where am I sent once I dropped these idiots off? Right back to the same "prestigious" bed and breakfast. Turns out the couple I was picking up that time were supposed to have caught the ride with the idiots I had just dropped off.....

Once I heard that, they got a FULL report, and they were embarrassed by the way their friends had acted. I'm sure they mentioned it to their friends.

I found out that these people were here for a wedding, which was costing them nothing. And they want to fuss about paying for wait time holding up a taxi?! My new rule is: If I come to pick someone up, they get two minutes. Meter starts at that point, and I don't care how much you whine or bitch about it, because I can't count on you tipping that much.

People, when you call for a taxi, it's not the driver's fault if they arrive before you're ready. It's your fault for calling for a cab before you're ready. Every minute you hold us up is time lost from another fare, especially when you're stupid enough to keep a driver waiting nearly a half-hour. You're keeping us from making our living. Get over yourselves.

Everyone Is Entitled To Be Stupid, But Government And Other Authorities Abuse The Privilege.....

Okay, this all started when I discovered that my van seats one passenger more than allowed on a taxi permit. Simplest solution I could come up with was to remove the front passenger seat to stay within that limit.

I discussed this with Motor Carrier Services, AND not one, but TWO state troopers, who saw no problem with this. I removed the seat a month ago. Nothing was said until two weeks ago, when the local airport authority did a surprise inspection and took issue with the seat being removed. They demanded I reinstall the seat and said I would not be allowed back at the airport until I did so.

I informed them that by doing so, they were requiring me to violate code and go against what the state told me was okay to do, and that the two authorities were going to have to work it out, as I had done as the state said was doable.

Now, Motor Carrier Services is agreeing with the airport authority, when THEY allowed this vehicle to be registered as a taxicab in the first place! Virginia's state government is full of shit. They can't even be consistent.

Of course, they wait until I have spent $200 having the van re-lettered. I figured, okay, throw the seat back in to please the airport, and just don't let anyone ride in the front seat.

Apparently, this is STILL not good enough for the airport authority. I thought the part of the seat belt that attaches to the floor was mounted to the seat, so it was forgotten when the seat was reinstalled.

Even though another driver running a 10-passenger limo was allowed to run after simply removing seatbelts, the airport is now taking issue on this. I am convinced that some people are a pain in the ass just to be a pain in the ass. And most of them have government jobs!

I think I am going to simply transfer my airport permit to another vendor who wants it. I am quite fed up with jumping through hoops for the "privilege" of waiting 10 hours to make maybe $40.00. Some might say that I have allowed those who want me gone to win, but I beg to differ. Just how much aggravation is it worth to make $40 a day after expenses?

I am working on offering service to the airport in the next city..... more info at the following link....

Taxi Service From Charlottesville To Richmond Int'l Airport For As Little As $30

Another Reason Unemployment Is High And The Economy Is Soft....

So, I call back today to check on the job I THOUGHT I had lined up. Apparently, the company has their OWN rating system for points on your license, and even though I would be using my own insurance, and will work 60 hours a week if I can, they can't hire me.

The manager said she had 180 hours she had to give to somebody, and I responded, "Well, that's probably most of the reason you have 180 hours available, the company is too picky, especially considering they aren't liable if there's an accident."

When corporations pick and choose who they hire based on irrelevant points, unemployment rises because many people who want that job can't get it for baseless reasons. Hence, the economy suffers because they aren't making money to spend.

Corporations will be the downfall of America. They and the people who run them largely suffer from RCI -- Rectal-Cranial Inversion.... It affects 95% of Charlottesville. Otherwise known as "Head-Up-Your-Ass" Syndrome.

Here's Your Sign..... Again!!!

Now to outline the utter hell I went through in California....

Should have been simple, drop the car off to the lady's family there, and they were supposed to get me to the bus station to catch my train back.... Riiiiight.

I was dropping the car off in Aptos. I was getting very sick, and still had to drive 700 miles in about 12 hours. I had a reservation with Amtrak to catch a connecting bus out of Santa Cruz, near there, at 5:25 am. That bus was to San Jose, about 25 miles away, where I was to catch a coach train to connect with the scenic California Zephyr train back east.

Speaking with these folks the night before, it was agreed that to avoid waking them, I would nap in the car until they woke up once I got there.

Due to apparently insufficient aptitude to look in the driveway, this guy is sitting in his living room, wondering if he should call me. I wake up at 5:45, and my bus has departed 20 minutes ago.

Then it took an act of God to get these idiots to understand that simply dropping me at the bus station was not going to work now, because I was going to have to pay an extra $200 that I didn't have to reschedule my train tickets.... Not to mention the fun of waiting in a bus station for two days!

And they didn't even seem to WANT to help me make my train. Pretty fucked up, I thought, considering I slept in the car to avoid waking them when I got there... Not to mention it was their fault in the first place!

By some miracle, I managed to make my train with 4 minutes to spare. Moral of the story? Want something done right, do it yourself! I am definitely not going to California if and when I relocate.... I was not impressed with anything about the state.