Well, we’re approaching the big holiday season. Essentially about 45 days where we celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s, and filter in things like Black Friday, the dreaded Christmas shopping, college finals and college students coming home to sow more wild oats.
Sometimes these are more risky times to drive then New Year’s Eve or Oktoberfest. And yes I’m talking about the overindulgers, and those who drink way beyond their means.
I’ve been very fortunate, as I approach 10,000 rides given (a number I expect to hit before the end of 2017). I’ve only had one person throw up in my car. And in his defense, it wasn’t that bad. We had pulled over and he had managed to get out of the car for Round 1. As he settled back in the car and I verified that he was okay and we were good to go, he grabbed the car door handle and was opening it but just couldn’t hold it in any longer as he splattered the passenger door. His buddies in the backseat weren’t very impressed, and I could tell he felt really bad. But as I quickly surveyed the damage, I realized it was not going to be much to clean up. Instead of giving him a hard time about puking in my car, I busted his balls because of the content of his vomit. It was kind of purplish and smelled pungent and fruity. I told him I was not mad that he puked, but more disappointed in what he puked up. Told him he lost his man card for drinking some purple froo froo drink instead of some tequila or beer. His friends really started busting on him then. Fortunately, we were only a mile or so from their apartment, so I could quickly get them out of the car, roll the windows down and go home to clean up the carnage. That really is an overstatement, because it took me less than 10 minutes, and it was already after 2 a.m. so I didn’t lose any income. And yes, there was a cleanup charge of $100 Uber charged him and gave to me.
But with Thanksgiving tomorrow, the thing that never escapes me is how thankful most riders are. That was one of the first things that I noticed when I was driving. Regardless of inebriation level people are always thanking me for picking them up, taking them home, taking them to work, taking them wherever it was they were going. I wouldn’t say I was becoming cynical and had lost total faith in humanity, but with the way society was being portrayed on TV and with social media, it was easy to dismiss people you didn’t know. Driving Uber and Lyft restored my faith in humanity, at least from a standpoint that people were appreciative and thankful and friendly 90-95% of the time. And after two years and nearly 8 months, that sentiment is as strong as it was the first day I drove.
Part of why I started to blog about Uber and Lyft was to share some of the riders stories. There been so many, and I know I have forgotten some of the good stories of people that have climbed in my car since Day One. Sometimes it’s just people that have a really heartfelt story, or sometimes it’s people that just lead a fascinating life, and then there are people that you can tell they are just plugging away day-by-day and trying to overcome something very challenging.
Just this week I gave a ride to a young man probably in his late twenties, going from a doctor’s office to his work. Come to find out he is eight months removed from surviving a terminal cancer. He said it was kind of a hassle because he lost his license while ill and hadn’t had time to go get it so he was having to take a Lyft to work when he couldn’t fetch a ride. And twice a month he still had doctor’s visits to go get checked out. I pointed out to him that it was much better than the alternative. He agreed. He then was telling me how his 8-year old son and his 2-year old son went through some extensive testing to make sure that this cancer was not genetic and that they were not at risk. During the whole process, his wife left him, but he was somewhat upbeat. He said since he beat cancer he figured everything else would work out. I gave him some encouraging words, and told him from somebody that has been on planet Earth for 50 years and have seen people quit and seen people persevere, I told him his story sounded like somebody who is going to persevere and to keep his head up. We all are going to go through ups and downs in life and that’s how we find out who our true “Foxhole Partners” are. They stick around for the worst of times, and everybody else bails when things get weird, rough, or out of their comfort zone. He’s a good kid, and hopefully I’ll give him another ride soon to see how he’s doing. He said after Thanksgiving he was going to go get his license back and find a car so life would be easier on him and his two boys.
Now to wrap this week’s entry on a lighter note. One of my more interesting early rides was the first person ever passed out in my car. Definitely interesting. It was either a Tuesday or Wednesday night, I don’t remember exactly except I know it wasn’t a weekend. It was a concert at the Cain’s Ballroom, and as I rolled up to pick a guy up, there was a guy that looked totally shit-faced leaning heavily to his left while walking across the street. My initial thought was “Oh dear God, don’t let that be my rider”. It was. Rarely do I get somebody that can’t walk very well and looks way out of it. Honestly I’ve probably only picked up four or five people that were like that and by them self. I’ve maybe only seen another 20 people like that but they were always with a group or at least one friend. Thankfully.
So this guy gets in and he hadn’t entered a destination, so I start the ride and he tells me Brookside, which is essentially four miles south of downtown. A short ride, so this shouldn’t take long. We literally get a mile and a half from where I picked him up and his chin is on his chest and it’s obvious he is out. I thought about trying to get him conscious and alert while I was driving, but figured I’ll just get down to Brookside and figure it out from there. So we roll up to the QuikTrip, and I nudge him heavily with my elbow and say his name and honestly it takes about four tries and a good two minutes for him to say anything coherent. I said dude I need an address. And he said a few things I couldn’t quite understand and then something kind of like hold on give me a minute. So I said, look you have three options I can push you out of my car here and you can figure it out on your own, you can get your shit together and give me an address, or I can just take you to the police station and they can figure out what to do with you. He started giving me directions so we rolled forward. but as we turned down the last street he told me to turn around. I could tell he did not recognize a house. My patience was pretty much gone, but I still in good conscious couldn’t just kick him out of my car in the middle of a neighborhood, but I allowed my anger and frustration to steam out. I said give me a damn house number and a street. He understood what I said but obviously couldn’t articulate a response through his mouth, so he grabbed his wallet and showed me his driver’s license. We were still about a mile away. In that mile of driving, he started to get a little bit more of his stuff together. And as I rolled up I told him I hope he feels better in the morning, then he reached in his pocket and gave me a $10 bill, which is something and tells me he knew he was being an ass. He managed to wobble out of my car and I watched him wobble up to his front door. Thank God that was over. But there’s one more element to this funny story. It was about a week and a half later, when I accepted a request over in Brookside. I believe it was a Saturday at about 5 p.m. or somewhere near dinner time. I looked at the name and saw the location and thought to myself, damn. Do I really want to risk this being the same guy? I decided I’d go ahead and not cancel the ride and pick him up. I was right. It was the same guy. I recognized the house. As he came walking out of his house, he clearly was sober and clearly was having a good day, and very quickly I realized he did not remember me. The Rush concert had been just a few days previously, so I was wearing my R40 t-shirt. As soon as he got in my car the first thing he said was, oh man I freaking love Rush. Did you go to that show? My immediate thought was he’s not such a douchebag after all.
Uber & Lyft: Everyone Has A Story 