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...My Life as 'Drive away' driver
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Trip 49e - GMC - Cargo Van ... to Memphis, TN 7/30/04 - … waiting at the Chev dealer for a cab … I'm less then 10 miles from where I was 25 hours ago … with no paid miles. No cab either … was going to be a 15 minute wait, it's been an hour … they claim my cab got pulled over by the cops and the driver hauled off to jail (do they have a book with all these excuses?) Cab does finally get there ... and … it's the same driver as yesterday. What are the chances of that in the city the size of Dallas … true I did call the same company, but do they only have one driver? $60 later I'm at my van … blind pickup … vehicle checks out, does need fuel but on these moves the boss pays all, pays the fuel, the cab and sometimes ... however you get there. It's now after 5 PM and all I've had to eat today was what I had with me … water and a single breakfast bar … the rest of my usual food stash is at home on the table. So as soon as I clear the city traffic I stop for McD's small burger and fuel up … opps, I had not been paying attention … fuel was almost $2 in TX. Found out a ways down the road that it isn't that way all over TX. Keeping this trip legal I shut down after my 14 hours of (non) work … I was kind of zapped, could have been the lack of food … or the heat, I was outside most of the day … or spending all day in the unknown. AR … my first new state in months … somewhere on the other side of Little rock I found a motel. 7/31/04 - I was supposed to have been home last night … and I still have to drop this van and move another one. Not what I had planned. This van drops in Memphis, I was here a couple of years back for other reasons so I have a general idea of the city … doesn't stop me from having to make a U-turn. Coming in from AR, you have to 'exit' to stay on the freeway … if you stay in the left 2-4 lanes you end up on city streets. One thing I learned last time I was in Memphis is you do not want to make any wrong turns … just like you don't want to make any wrong turns in NY, Chicago or LA. Depending on which part of town, lots of barbed wire … yards are fenced, vehicles are fenced with eight foot high fences. Last time we were here we fueled at a station who had a lot guard … and the street people still got to us. This van actually drops in a suburb of Memphis, so I exit the beltway and start watching for signs … and watching. Finally found my turn and stop for cash … been doing this line of work for over a year and have never had to use a cash machine before, but am not used to having to pay $50+ for cab rides. As long as I'm out of my vehicle I ask for directions to confirm my drop … no one has heard of the place. So I follow my map but I can't find the street … I can find the four major roads on every side and this is in a less than one square mile area. I give up and try north of town instead of south … no such street, do see a fire department but hate to bug those guys, I'll keep looking … and stopping at gas stations for directions. Finally I decide I may as well call a cab … took me some looking in the phone book to realize they are called TAXI cabs … Nope, they have never heard of this street either, so I tell them I will call back for my ride when I locate the place. My instructions are to 'park the van and ring the door bell once before leaving' … so I took that to mean don't bug the customer … but I am now getting close to having wasted two hours so I call … no answer. So I call me travel expert (my wife), no answer … but in a little bit she calls back and after failing to find the street on mapping software is able to find it on Google … the street is in a new development and they have a web site. When all else fails … Google it. But I fail to find it on my first try and see a postman … "Just the guy I've been looking for." … yes he knows where it is, not just the street but also the house, I turned one gated community too soon. Finally I see the number on the mail box and call back the cab … "Calling back about the cab ride to Memphis" … 'what?' … "I've found my drop and am calling back about a ride to Memphis" … 'No, this isn't the cab and I can see you at the end of my driveway' … Opps … I hadn't labeled the numbers I'd been calling. So I made my delivery and then called for a cab. I must have been a good paying run, it was the cab owner who gave me the ride … found that out when another driver turned down the dispatcher on a $5 fare and he got on the radio. Also found out from the customer that Greyhound stops in this suburb (but when?) and that city buses also run (but when?) … so another $50 cab ride. Memphis bus depot … wasn't surprised to see the cops stopping someone with a garbage can full of new items … or to see people sleeping on the street. But was surprised to see it was next door to either a Hilton or a Hyatt … great view from those windows. Yesterday I had only asked about buses leaving before noon, now its late afternoon and I have less than 15 before the bus leaves … and a half dozen people ahead of me, but I waited, patiently / quietly. It's after dispatch time when she sells me the ticket but I run for it just in case … wow … one thing is going right … they are still 'screening' passengers, first time I've seen this outside of Cleveland. But like Cleveland, by the time they get to the last passengers they pretty much just look at you and wave you past. I made it, good thing this wasn't Dallas, where they leave on time, or this would have just added another day to this trip. Four non-stop hours to Nashville. Leg 6 - Trip 49f - Chevy - Passenger Van ... to DC |