Not on the List
I didn't work last night, I showed up at the garage too late and there were 28 names on the "extras" list - no cab for me. I could've hung around for a few hours to hear this officially, and then been assigned a cab for Saturday night. This is what I normally do in such a situation, but I just took off today. That's one thing about being a lease driver without a steady - you only work when you want to, but sometimes you want to and can't. C'est la vie.
I was a bit of a tease yesterday, so I might as well go ahead and tell the story about the woman who stiffed me. I picked her up out front of the trailer park at 84th & Flavel, and she was pretty scary. White, mid-20s, shorts and a halter top. But her face, chest, and upper arms were covered in weird scabs. Like incredibly nasty acne, but not. Not psoriasis as I've seen it before, but perhaps a variation, or extreme eczema. What I thought, though, was meth geek.
She had me take her to some apartments by the Clackamas Town Center. Not a particularly good or bad fare - about $8. On the drive there she told me all about how she works two jobs, one tending bar and the other as an R.N. at an Alzheimer's hospice. Only gets 2 hours of sleep a night. And on top of that she's got cancer. We had a pretty good and friendly conversation, given how depressing the subject matter was.
When we got to the apartments, she told me that she'd have to run inside to get the money, and that I could hold her credit card while she did so. I agreed, and she walked around the side of the building. I waited for five minutes, and began to get a bad feeling. Then I looked at the card she gave me. The first name was "Debrah," and the name on the MDT and the name she'd used with me was "Jessica." I waited five more minutes (I had a good comic book), gave up, and ran the card. Declined, of course.
You be the cabbie: Identify my several mistakes (both in judgment and in practice) that could have either prevented this situation or mitigated its negative impact in lost time and money.
I was a bit of a tease yesterday, so I might as well go ahead and tell the story about the woman who stiffed me. I picked her up out front of the trailer park at 84th & Flavel, and she was pretty scary. White, mid-20s, shorts and a halter top. But her face, chest, and upper arms were covered in weird scabs. Like incredibly nasty acne, but not. Not psoriasis as I've seen it before, but perhaps a variation, or extreme eczema. What I thought, though, was meth geek.
She had me take her to some apartments by the Clackamas Town Center. Not a particularly good or bad fare - about $8. On the drive there she told me all about how she works two jobs, one tending bar and the other as an R.N. at an Alzheimer's hospice. Only gets 2 hours of sleep a night. And on top of that she's got cancer. We had a pretty good and friendly conversation, given how depressing the subject matter was.
When we got to the apartments, she told me that she'd have to run inside to get the money, and that I could hold her credit card while she did so. I agreed, and she walked around the side of the building. I waited for five minutes, and began to get a bad feeling. Then I looked at the card she gave me. The first name was "Debrah," and the name on the MDT and the name she'd used with me was "Jessica." I waited five more minutes (I had a good comic book), gave up, and ran the card. Declined, of course.
You be the cabbie: Identify my several mistakes (both in judgment and in practice) that could have either prevented this situation or mitigated its negative impact in lost time and money.
posted by Crabbie at 4:19 AM
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