tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23539332595315593742024-03-13T20:54:42.166-07:00Taxi WarsA short time ago, in a desert not so far away...TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-65082957373460726292021-06-21T14:11:00.019-07:002021-10-16T13:56:08.576-07:00The Folly of Medical Hyperventilation<p>Medicine has made great progress abandoning harmful treatments since its accidental euthanization of President George Washington in 1799. But modern medical practitioners are still figuring out how to optimally treat many conditions. </p><p></p><blockquote><i>An <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achilles%27_heel" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Achilles' heel</a> is a weakness in spite of overall strength, which can lead to downfall. </i></blockquote><p></p><p>My stories of the <a href="https://taxiwars.org/" target="_blank"><i>Taxi Wars</i></a> are of humanity's struggles against the machines we've created for ourselves. One of my common observations was of people who are not helped (and often harmed) by standard medical practices. While this post is not directly related to my experiences as a taxi driver, it is highly relevant to humanity's struggle against our Medical Machine. <br></p><blockquote><p></p></blockquote><p>Modern doctors sometimes decide their patient's tissues are low on oxygen and prescribe various amounts of supplemental oxygen. A little extra oxygen is sometimes helpful. But investigators have
repeatedly confirmed this fundamental fact: <i>oxygen in excess is always
toxic</i>. </p><p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperventilation" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Hyperventilation</a> is when someone breathes too rapidly. This causes too much carbon dioxide [CO2] to be expelled from the blood. As discussed below, medically-administered oxygen also removes too much CO2 from the patient's blood, resulting in <i>Medical Hyperventilation</i>. </p><p>While <i>certain </i>patients may seem to initially benefit from oxygen therapy, the science is clear enough to this simple former taxi driver that I do everything I can to caution people to not let their doctors hyperventilate them to death. I further believe there are perfectly reasonable therapies for poor oxygen saturation levels that incorporate the antidote for oxygen toxicity and thereby prevent Medical Hyperventilation. The evidence for these positions is summarized below. <br></p><p></p><p>There is no polite way to point out to the medical
guild that their cavalier use of pure oxygen is not so different from
the bloodletting, calomel (mercury) and blister agents that were used to
finish off President Washington. The media will not jump to the cause
of holding Medicine to account for their anti-scientific use of oxygen.
Alas, I offer a proposal for a distributed second-guessing of the
medical industry's backwards practice. </p><p>If enough of us inquire whether
a hospital routinely inadvertently deteriorates their patients with pure oxygen, the
hospitals will hopefully stop harming patients with anti-treatments
that <i>Paul Bert </i>and <i>J. Lorrain Smith</i> precisely identified as harmful 143 and 122 years ago. <br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2021/06/folly-medical-hyperventilation.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-277324416930646462020-10-10T09:07:00.010-07:002020-10-24T13:07:19.780-07:00False Prophesy<h2>
An anecdote on the toxic mix of gullibility and false authority</h2><p>
Somewhat recently I went to visit my mother. I'd seen reports of a <a href="https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/total-lunar-eclipse.html" target="_blank">lunar eclipse</a> that night. We went outside at the appointed time and watched the moon turn red for a while. While watching the progression of that eclipse, I remembered the time I'd amused myself by becoming a false prophet. <br>
<br>
On a night with a total lunar eclipse, maybe 5 years before, I picked up a group of three people in their 20's - two males and a female. I gleefully told my passengers about the imminent eclipse. I don't remember my exact delivery, but I made an effort to be a 'goofy taxi driver' to amuse my passengers. I was kind of like the crazy neighbor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmo_Kramer" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kramer</a> from the 90's TV sitcom <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seinfeld" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Seinfeld</a>. <br>
<br>I might have said, "... and tonight, on your taxi ride, THE MOON IS GOING AWAY." <br>
<br>The guys recognized my faux seriousness. The woman cautiously asked, "What does that mean?" <br>
<br>I might have responded, "Everyone needs a vacation, the moon is no exception. The moon is going to dim for a while. "<br>
<i><br></i>
She said, "I DON'T LIKE THE SOUND OF THAT". <i></i><br>
<i><br></i>
<i>"It's not like it's getting moon-napped, it's just taking an involuntary break from its duties, of lighting up our night sky." </i><br>
<br>
<i>"THAT SOUNDS AWFUL....</i><br>
<br>"It's completely normal, it's called a blood moon." I tried to explain a lunar eclipse, but she didn't have the references
to understand my explanations. </p><p><b>Failing to explain, I sensed an
opportunity to amuse myself. </b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wVtgjkpBQas" width="560" youtube-src-id="wVtgjkpBQas"></iframe>
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</p><a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2020/10/false-prophesy.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0Phoenix, AZ, USA33.4483771 -112.07403732.5107944715789543 -147.2302873 64.385959728421057 -76.917787300000029tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-76356409507455091222020-01-05T22:55:00.000-07:002020-01-09T18:06:36.554-07:00Small Acts of Kindness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
A few months ago I got a txt message from my one-time taxi passenger. It said she'd passed: </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9FSWWdZvqd3okoNWNWQLikcZLiz-OlEj75QvEM5Mr5L3-o4ieisgHGhytlkiG7petZHUP2nXxEXiou9F7cRzYzBsjljvUHZhmU0YEeFx0BSGTFWMe_BaqJVPPInodfxUxGPNcqdeaHF4/s1600/Cab-Lori.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Screenshot: txt message from 'Cab Lori Terrified Hot Flashes Calmed Down'" border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="720" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9FSWWdZvqd3okoNWNWQLikcZLiz-OlEj75QvEM5Mr5L3-o4ieisgHGhytlkiG7petZHUP2nXxEXiou9F7cRzYzBsjljvUHZhmU0YEeFx0BSGTFWMe_BaqJVPPInodfxUxGPNcqdeaHF4/s320/Cab-Lori.jpg" title="" width="320"></a></div>
I sometimes saved passengers' phone numbers with little notes to jog my memory, if I thought they might call me directly for a ride. But it's been years since I was active. 'Who was this?' <br>
<br>
I tried to search my notes, but I put most of them in a file format that's not easily searched. I recently heard about <a href="https://phiresky.github.io/blog/2019/rga--ripgrep-for-zip-targz-docx-odt-epub-jpg/" target="_blank">ripgrep</a>, a command line tool for searching all types of files. I thought back to Laurie again this afternoon, installed ripgrep on my linux machine and used it to find the note:<br>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>216241 - 15555 N XXth Pl Pho - Lori 602-888-1111 - drove up, called, pulled forward, found her sitting on the back of a red truck. Totally spooked - first cab ride ever. I turned around, she got in, wanted to go to 2212 E Bell Rd, the QT, to redeem her winning scratchers. Got back - she has hot flashes. Later called me to thank me for helping her feel safe. </b></blockquote>
She'd never taken a taxi before, and had a problem with anxiety. I tried to get all my passengers to laugh, usually adopting a 'goofy taxi driver' persona. Some did not appreciate my antics, but they apparently were calming to Laurie. I'd made her entry bold, probably because she was one of those passengers whom I had the impression was sent to me specifically. <br>
<br>
I recently saw this tweeted picture from CALM magazine:<br>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0AvRnWx_x1LVKXEJPYJh2W2ZFrxfjsSgBec_98FPF3cDZcgokeBRYtZwGtiEe7awKWepJYhFRKDjT9eg2jAf2BarDejDOmK7oQirvcCuNe3xwi8xkY5yI8dRUBpyoJF_ePbyyEvfajGs/s1600/no+such+thing+as+a+small+act+of+kindness.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Quote: "No Such Thing as a Small Act of Kindness"" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1412" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0AvRnWx_x1LVKXEJPYJh2W2ZFrxfjsSgBec_98FPF3cDZcgokeBRYtZwGtiEe7awKWepJYhFRKDjT9eg2jAf2BarDejDOmK7oQirvcCuNe3xwi8xkY5yI8dRUBpyoJF_ePbyyEvfajGs/s320/no+such+thing+as+a+small+act+of+kindness.jpg" title="" width="282"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quote from cartoonist/author Scott Adams</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
— Dede Willingham (<a href="https://twitter.com/inkiwell" target="_blank">@inkiwell</a>) <a href="https://twitter.com/inkiwell/status/1209877081259155457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 25, 2019</a></div>
</blockquote>
Not all of my passengers needed "small acts of kindness", or big acts of kindness, but I tried to take the opportunities when they presented themselves. These moments were satisfying in a way that a normal job would not have provided. <br>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2020/01/small-acts-of-kindness.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-34964414562414876852017-10-08T13:14:00.002-07:002019-10-20T15:21:10.935-07:00Ordinary Rendition: The Public Servants' QuagmireMedia reports about the predicaments of public servants remind me of the passenger who brought my <a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/04/origin-of-tcj-moniker.html" target="_blank">efforts as a taxi driver</a> full-circle. <br>
<br>
She started out like most the others: the buzz of a fare offer and "835 yards" as the distance. When the address came through I turned around, turned right, and arrived at the apartment complex in about 4 minutes. I called the provided number. A woman's voice gave directions to a building in the back of the complex. <br>
<br>
A group came out; a woman in her 20's got in the cab. An 50-ish male stood outside and gave directions to where his truck was parked. As we pulled away the passenger said, in a flustered voice, “I don't know why he messes with her, she's like 20 years younger...”, and this wasn't the first time they'd had to take a taxi or a bus to get the truck back. <br>
<br>
I didn't care, because I was happy to have a longer trip than someone going across the street with groceries. I broke into my standard line of questions.<br>
<br>
Before long she asked me her own question: "Did you ever pick a girl up downtown, take her to [West-Valley city], and <i>she wasn't able to pay?</i>"<br>
<br>
'I would do that. Let me think.... ... .. .' I glanced at my passenger to jog my memory. Recently: no. Semi-recently: no. Then I remembered, 'THAT WAS A LONG TIME AGO!' I looked at my passenger again, 'Was that... YOU?', and cautiously confirmed that I had. <br>
<br>
She said with glee, <i>"THAT WAS ME!"</i><br>
<br>
I remembered her trip well.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2017/10/ordinary-rendition-public-servants.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-28520390310752075872017-09-22T17:50:00.001-07:002018-05-07T08:37:53.963-07:00America's Make-Work Sheriff: The Anachronism of Joseph ArpaioThe name given to the <i>Arizona Department of Corrections </i>expresses society's hope that we can help people who cause problems for others learn to make better decisions. At some point over my 3.5 year taxi driving career I came to appreciate the harm that is perpetrated on people in the name of "justice", and began to think it more appropriate to call this the "Department of Gratuitous Punishment".<br>
<br>
Make-work programs are "jobs that have less immediate financial benefit to the economy than the job costs to support." No one is overtly harmed by make-work programs.<br>
<br>
Make-work justice uses the criminal justice system to traumatize people who make mistakes, who get caught in the system through 'circumstances', or for 'doing what they gotta do, to survive'. The usual effect of putting people through the Justice pressure-cooker is not to correct their behavior, but to trap them in a destructive feedback loop that frequently prevents them from ever figuring out how to correct their own behavior.<br>
<br>
The deposed-but-still-Notorious <i>Sheriff of Maricopa</i><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2353933259531559374#note1"><sup>[Note #1]</sup></a>, Joseph Arpaio, branded himself "America's Toughest Sheriff" and instituted a cult of personality around his antics. Really he was a tin-pot attention whore <sup><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2353933259531559374#note2">[Note #2</a></sup><sup><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2353933259531559374#note2">]</a></sup> whose greatest skill was attracting media attention and outrage for his actions against politically-disadvantaged groups: depressed people who turn to the street pharmacy to ameliorate their physiological imbalances ("drug addicts"), <a href="https://books.google.com/books?isbn=1626566763" target="_blank">economic refugees</a>, U.S. citizens who happened to be minorities, etc. He was popular enough to get re-elected a few times, was long under investigation for civil rights violations (costing the county millions for his defense and payments in settlements), and was finally ousted in the 2016 election.<br>
<br>
The recently-convicted & pardoned Arpaio was really just a figurehead for the United States' failed approach to helping people 'correct' their problematic behaviors. Other states have justice programs which are just as cruel & ineffective as Joseph Arapaio's brand of make-work justice. These programs don't have a firebrand as a figurehead, so they get a pass from regular media attention.<br>
<br>
<h3>
Justice Trauma: The Predicaments of the Accused and Punished</h3>
<br>
<div>
As told by my passengers...</div>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2017/09/americas-make-work-sheriff-anachronism.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-82240881182693309242016-09-02T18:51:00.000-07:002016-09-22T09:52:21.385-07:00The Perpetual Quest for Decent FaresMost taxi fares are short trips. The taxi company's meter started at $2.95; some people's fares only got up to $3.20. The minimum for an insurance-paid trip was $6. It’s hard to make money with a bunch of $6 fares.<br>
<br>
Every taxi driver has a strategy for getting large fares. Some drivers will spend hours in certain areas hoping for a 30-mile trip from a resort to the airport. Some will stick to the areas where they’ve gotten lucky before. There are good fares everywhere, so I went to the areas my passengers took me and listened to my intuition.<br>
<br>
A friend of mine recently pulled up to a random house in the east valley. The passenger started to bring her bags out. He asked for her destination, so he'd be ready to depart. She was <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Mesa,+AZ/Snowflake,+AZ/@33.8841907,-111.4912228,9z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x872ba7c2c0c592c1:0xd10fc215694e771b!2m2!1d-111.8314724!2d33.4151843!1m5!1m1!1s0x872f3c5a7ae9d803:0xb640425546bb2730!2m2!1d-110.0784491!2d34.5133698" target="_blank">going to Snowflake</a>. My friend was floored: “you know that’s a $300-400 trip, right?” The passenger had been quoted a price by the dispatcher, so she knew what to expect. My friend couldn’t take her because he would have been 2 hours late getting the cab to the night driver. But he transferred the passenger to his friend, who appreciated having a nearly $400 fare.<br>
<br>
In my 3.5 years of driving, the best fare I ever had was a trade. It was a relatively short trip. I made out like an bandit.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2016/09/the-perpetual-quest-for-decent-fares.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com1545 E McDowell Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA33.4654495 -112.06542159999998-15.8644745 165.31739090000002 82.7953735 -29.448234099999979tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-12810904485173764892016-07-30T09:09:00.005-07:002016-09-22T09:58:58.320-07:00Introduction The current posts and pages here were originally posted as diaries at kuro5hin.org (K5). I'd started blogging about my taxi passengers at K5 in March, 2012, after my eighth lease. My original intention was to help me better remember all the interesting people I was meeting. I posted at K5 because I wanted to be anonymous, and was not looking for attention (the site had already shrunk to a skeleton core of users at that time). Kuro5hin.org went down when the site's owner neglected to prepare for when the data center hosting his site moved.<br>
<br>
K5 users voted three of my story submissions to the site’s front page, and one to section.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/electronic-taxi-dispatch-v1.0/">Electronic Taxi Dispatch, v1.0</a> is about how the taxi company’s pre-smartphone/pre-tablet GPS-enabled computerized dispatch system matched passengers with cabs.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/who-are-your-lifelines/">Who Are Your Lifelines?</a> is about the time that I bailed my passenger out of jail. He was a down-on-his-luck tech worker, who could have been anyone. He’d called me because he remembered my phone number.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/humanitys-second-best-hope/">Humanity’s Second-Best Hope</a> is about the dreadful seasonal job that I had just before I started taxi driving, mixed with some 2012-era political commentary.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2016/07/introduction.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-26978581681750402242016-02-25T16:53:00.001-07:002021-03-03T08:16:17.692-07:00the difference between boys & girlsOne night I pulled up to the now-closed 7-11 convenience store near 35th Ave and Thomas. The taxi computer said the passenger's name was Blanca, and did not provide a phone number. A ~20 year old Hispanic woman, whose name was NOT `Blanca', was sitting on the curb. She concluded the sale of her Nintendo Wii to her new friend, who also prepaid me for her taxi fare. The woman got into the cab and we departed towards her destination. After I said a few words, my passenger remembered me and said, "I've had you before." Hmm? "You put your hands on my head."<br>
<br>
What? I never do that... Sometimes, when passengers were stressed, I would tell them how to put <i>their own hands on their own heads </i>in a specific manner to help normalize blood flow, thereby helping them process stress better. I briefly looked at my passenger. I remember places not faces, not even faces with distinctive tattoos, and drew a total blank.<br>
<br>
"Where did I pick you up?"<br>
<br>
"At the Dream C___."<br>
<br>
"Where's that?"<br>
<br>
"On Grand Avenue."<br>
<br>
I still drew a blank. After a bit more of the exchange, the night I'd almost taken this woman somewhere came back to me in a flash. "Oh yeah. How ya doing?"<br>
<br>
She was much better - She was proud of having quit meth, and said she just had to kick the blunts and she'd be good.<br>
<br>
It'd been about two months since I'd met this woman. Previously she'd been in the middle of an emotional crisis.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2016/02/the-difference-between-boys-girls.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-18447377218589746182016-01-02T00:33:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.161-07:00Imaginary WorkplacesWhile reading on the internet recently, I was reminded of a passenger...<br>
<br>
The pickup address was at the <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/Schumacher+European+Ltd./@33.6520282,-111.9254475,3a,75y,90t/data=%213m8%211e2%213m6%211s-qE7ScTDAqSo%2FU6yOlxxhaNI%2FAAAAAAAAAJI%2F5ftllds3Aso%212e4%213e12%216s%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2F-qE7ScTDAqSo%2FU6yOlxxhaNI%2FAAAAAAAAAJI%2F5ftllds3Aso%2Fs86-k-no%2F%217i857%218i857%214m5%211m2%212m1%211sMercedes+Benz,+scottsdale+az%213m1%211s0x0000000000000000:0x9394290e1fc91fef%216m1%211e1" target="_blank">Mercedes Benz dealership</a> on Scottsdale Rd just north of Frank Lloyd Wright. The passenger was a single gentleman who I estimated to be in his mid-70's. I asked if he'd dropped his car off for service. He said that he'd dropped a car off at the auction, across the street, and was going back to his condo for the other car that he was selling.<br>
<br>
One of my standard questions was to ask people if they'd lived in Phoenix all their life. If not, I'd ask how they found their way to the desert. Then I'd just go with my intuition to figure out if this person had something to share that I'd be interested in.<br>
<br>
Maybe because he was old, or because I was just a random taxi driver, he told me of some things that younger retirees with security clearances would have never even hinted at.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2016/01/imaginary-workplaces.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-73195048116295058402015-12-20T12:16:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.213-07:00electrolytes help people survive the heat50C (122F) is a a hot day in Phoenix. It's only ever made it to <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/weather/articles/20130629phoenix-heat-records-weather-brk.html" target="_blank">50C once in the last hundred years, in 1990</a>. We lived in the northern part of the state at the time, but grandparents had a flight that day, so I was present for the record.<br>
<br>
Most summers it doesn't get past 49C/120F. Parker and Lake Havasu (along the Colorado River) get slightly warmer. 125F is a hot day in Lake Havasu, 128F is the record. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullhead_City,_Arizona" target="_blank">Bullhead City</a> (of Airwolf Helicopter fame), gets up into the mid-120's too. Someone who used to live in Parker told me that the water pipes are very close to the surface, so all their showers were hot showers in the summer.<br>
<br>
Poll: heat, humidity, or cold?<br>
<div>
</div><a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2015/12/electrolytes-help-people-survive-heat.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-71338094610838899552015-10-14T13:43:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.210-07:00Computer Maintenance When I <a href="http://www.kuro5hin.org/comments/2015/7/30/204650/758/12#12" target="_blank">borked my laptop with the Windows 10 preview this past summer</a>, I was in a bit of a pickle. My Windows Vista desktop was in my ministorage, and even if I got it out, I had no internet but my phone and wifi hotspots. (tl/dr summary of my k5 comment: After the Win10 installer booted, I thought better of experimenting with my only functional computer and clicked 'cancel'. My old Windows 7 install never booted again...)
<br>
<br>
My father wondered why I supported myself by driving people around in a taxi, when I could certainly have made more "fixing computers". While I'm not a hacker like my cousin, my credentials (degree, expired certifications [CCNA/CCNP], etc) could probably get me a tech support position somewhere. Before I moved back to Arizona, I almost had a job at a community college, and was the only person to recognize one of the items in the box of parts they tested candidates with. Maybe the Taxi company would hire me, if I wanted to be an employee.
<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2015/10/computer-maintenance.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-80695128471487054802015-03-30T12:39:00.000-07:002019-04-28T21:56:58.269-07:00Airplane MaintenanceMy father had the news on when I went to visit him a few weeks ago. Did you all hear about that Delta flight to NYC that slid off the runway, when it landed in the snow? This reminded me of a pair of passengers.<br>
<br>
The later passenger was going home from a neighborhood bar. It came up that he was going to work tomorrow. I offered a guess at his profession, but was not correct - he was an airplane mechanic for Delta.<br>
<br>
"Really? Let me tell you about this other passenger..."<br>
<br>
A few months earlier I'd pulled up to a condo in a gated community. A woman came out of the house and said to take her to the airport. Then she said that this was her second trip to the airport in a cab that day, and that she hoped that she'd get on a plane to Hawaii that evening, as she only had 9 days to spend with her family there.<br>
<br>
She'd gotten on that day's first Hawaiian Airlines plane to the Islands... But the pilots found something in their preflight checks. Hawaiian Air has a maintenance contract with Delta, and the mechanics came over. After a while they all got off the plane to wait in the terminal. The passengers were told that the part their plane needed was in Los Angeles, and to just wait.<br>
<br>
My airplane-mechanic-passenger sighed and said, "yeah, THAT plane..."<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2015/03/airplane-maintenance.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-32644266342397274572014-09-24T14:51:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.176-07:00Twilight Missile LaunchA few months ago I noticed that my laptop's LCD backlight powered off if I leaned the screen most of the way back. The image was still visible in direct sunlight, there was just no power to light it up. At the start of September I bought an external hard drive, imaged my laptop, then sent the laptop off for repair. It was returned a week later. They'd restored the factory image to my hard drive. I might've preferred otherwise, but at least this takes care of the OS-decay problems I was having. For example, Windows Explorer wouldn't always load the desktop when I first logged in. I'd have to ctrl-alt-del, start the task manager, kill explorer.exe, start explorer.exe, and poof, the desktop would appear.<br>
<br>
I've been using Dropbox to back up my taxi notes, and to store my keepass password file. The network-sync feature quickly moved these files across the network to (and from) the loaner-laptop I'd borrowed from my dad.<br>
<br>
Yesterday I restored my photo directory from the external drive, and was reminded of one of the cooler things I've seen while out and about in the taxi.<br>
<br>
Inside: photo gallery, and the back-story.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2014/09/twilight-missile-launch.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-17693206790722457802014-03-09T03:05:00.000-07:002016-07-22T10:26:09.510-07:00The Predicaments of Imaginary PeopleFor some time I have quipped when asked for an id, "You're not a real
person if you don't have a plastic card." This was mostly to
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/placeholder-link">acknowledge the plight of illegal people</a>, but I guess we're all illegal if we
can't demonstrate otherwise.<br>
<br>
Two fellows were trying to buy beer at the convenience store I visited
at the end of my shift today. One had his plastic identification card.
The other offered a card decorated with a hole punch. The clerk did not
accept it for their beer purchase. This aspiring beer purchaser pulled
out a second card, which the clerk examined and also declined because it
was expired. I don't know if they ever got their beer, as another clerk
appeared to take my gas money.<br>
<br>
In the cab was my passenger with his own plastic card dilemma. I met him
over a year ago, at the QT on Bell Rd. near Cave Creek Rd. in Phoenix.
He'd said someone had stolen his car, and he has been without a plastic
card ever since.<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2014/03/the-predicaments-of-imaginary-people.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-1780691174904515082014-02-23T12:33:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.159-07:00Spontaneous Restaurant ReviewMy third passenger this morning was going home from Dialysis - she's on the 3x/week maintenance program. While sitting at the light at <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/@33.6096556,-112.2680117,3a,75y,268.43h,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1siWgdObjvLxCCw1wA2nVCxg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en" target="_blank">99th Ave & Thunderbird</a>, the passenger gestured to the restaurant's sign avertising 2 tacos for 99-cents:<br>
<blockquote>
Those tacos - they look good, <i>and they taste awful</i>. Never again. And I like Tacos...</blockquote>
The very next passenger had basically the same voyage, from a little farther down Bell Rd. to 99th Ave & Thunderbird, approximately (he was helping out his 90yo grandmother). When I drove past the restaurant the second time I told about the prior passenger. As the restaurant passed out of view I thought to take a picture. Fortunately Google has a streetview image.<br>
<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOkpFrb6RiThqPkYd5rnhWNK9MxjCTkuXa1bdRTfAhV5IernY1aqtz0lqvaQ1QX6xvnXe-67kpivRK2aEMhdXDD7o8XPFO-I0l4A5W1JcyZa_6WtpoLEhI4LaFhCMelMvGqRauFiF-Xh0/s1600/awful-tacos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="102" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOkpFrb6RiThqPkYd5rnhWNK9MxjCTkuXa1bdRTfAhV5IernY1aqtz0lqvaQ1QX6xvnXe-67kpivRK2aEMhdXDD7o8XPFO-I0l4A5W1JcyZa_6WtpoLEhI4LaFhCMelMvGqRauFiF-Xh0/s200/awful-tacos.jpg" width="200"></a></div>
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This was an older kidney patient - in her 80's, probably. I had recently had another who was only 40 - she'd lost her kidney function at 26, iirc. She was exhausted - the doctors had removed her ... parathyroids (?) in December.<br>
<br>
Sometimes people offer to buy me fast food, but I always decline.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2014/02/spontaneous-restaurant-review.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-26700349099368180452014-01-10T14:11:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.167-07:00Italian car, BMW engineSaturday opened with a prosaic series of fares. A woman going to work stopped at the Shell station for Powerade, as she'd been drinking the night before. Her fountain drink was very blue - not something that I'd drink myself, but to each their own. My next three passengers were going home from two different Frys Food with their groceries.<br>
<br>
I had to go to the post office for a flat-rate envelope. The line was long, so I took the envelope back out to the cab to fill, and gradually made my way over to a different post office for the mailing.<br>
<br>
The second post office was near 20th St & Camelback, which is one of the more popular areas for the company's taxi drivers. I told the cab computer that I was taking a 10-minute break. In theory, breaks allow us to save our position in line. Before this break I was in Position 2, but when I returned I was in Position 4. This annoyed me greatly, but before long I was offered a fare 4 miles away - in one of Paradise Valley's zones. It turned out to be a rather short trip, but it was interesting enough to take a few pictures to share with you all.<br>
<br>
Inside: link to a few pictures, and a poll.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2014/01/italian-car-bmw-engine.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-1019642298046451802013-12-02T04:30:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.150-07:00Instant Taxi, Part II: the overly-ambitious rookieI recently posted a diary about how I am sometimes able to appear instantly. This happened again last Monday night. I only had six fares (and a cancellation) over the 12 hour shift. Much time was spent waiting between my 'appointments'. One good fare is worth 10 small fares, so at least I didn't lose money.<br>
<br>
Usually taxi driving is a solitary occupation, but on this particular night I was sent to offer advice to an overly-ambitious rookie.<br>
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<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/12/instant-taxi-part-ii-overly-ambitious.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-16107546896428978482013-11-10T17:08:00.000-07:002017-02-10T10:56:07.852-07:00The passenger who was fired for using birth controlYesterday I was going through a box, and found an envelope with some cash. These bills were received in payment from a few of my passengers. I like to keep some cash at home, and prefer crisp bills for my personal bank. <br>
<br>
There was a $2 bill, some sequentially-numbered $1's received from the guys who were going home from a strip club. And a pair of sequentially-numbered $5's, wrapped in a piece of paper. The note had an address on the road that surrounds a local mall. Hmm?<br>
<br>
Then I remembered her: the passenger who was fired from her new job at Fry's Food because she was using Birth Control. But they didn't know the woman's back-story, and I didn't figure it out until the end of the ride.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/11/the-passenger-who-was-fired-for-using.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-31150762380181531272013-10-21T01:34:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.173-07:00checking in...Usually I like to develop my diaries a bit. But since kuro5hin.org is on time-out right now I'll keep it short.<br>
<br>
After my shift today I was working on my notes when the night driver showed up. He said he was very busy last night, and barely made it to 6am. He had to refuse a passenger because the passenger couldn't tell him where to go, couldn't produce an ID with his address, etc. "just get out."<br>
<br>
Then he told me about the big fellow at state fair who wanted a ride to 27th Ave & Camelback. The other taxi drivers refused him. My recruit said, "that's a $15 fare, I'll take you for $10." Upfront. Guy gets in the cab, and they drive off...<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/10/checking-in.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-80642385241323839932013-10-13T03:00:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.227-07:00Clockwork universe: instant taxiEvery so often I get a fare where I can show up very quickly. One night I pulled into a Circle K to work on my notes. It was well after 2am, so I was not expecting any fares until people started to wake up at 4am. After a few minutes the computer buzzed with a fare offer: 19yds. I accepted, and noted that I was to go to the Circle K I was already parked at. I pulled over to the door, the passenger got in, and we drove off.<br>
<br>
Two weekends ago I was driving north on Scottsdale Rd when I was offered a fare. It said it was "900 yds", but this was based on my position 30 seconds or a minute before. I accepted, waited a few seconds, then looked down and noted that I was to go to the Scottsdale Plaza Resort. I looked up, checked the two lanes to my left to verify they were clear, then snapped left and proceeded to the lobby.<br>
<br>
A woman saw me and ran over. The bellman was right behind her, as it was his job to open the taxi's door. The bellman said "I hadn't even finished logging the call..." Usually our scheduling center says 15 minutes, and these people were impressed at my arrival within seconds of their hanging up the phone.<br>
<br>
Poll: Have you ever been intentionally misled by Skynet?<br>
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<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/10/clockwork-universe-instant-taxi.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-33850509497781832472013-09-27T16:40:00.000-07:002017-06-13T09:49:45.560-07:00The Providential Clockwork Universe: Choice QuotesSometimes I am sent to passengers, and sometimes they are sent to me. I have learned any number of things from the people who have stepped into my cab. Sometimes they drop one-liners that are insightful, profound, or just make me wonder: "... Really?"<br>
<br>
The other afternoon I pulled up to a Tilted Kilt, which is a restaurant / sports bar with a female wait staff in skimpy uniforms. The woman who was to be my passenger had a slight smell of alcohol about her - maybe she was an employee, maybe she was a patron. Not all passengers talk back, but she asked questions, and I answered as appropriate.<br>
<br>
When we got to her apartment she paid her fare, and dropped a gem: "Now I've got to go deal with the boyfriend, who's a Drunkasaurus-Rex. He's kind of an asshole." I would've compared notes about how to deal with alcoholics, but we were at her destination. I bid her adieu and went back to work.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/09/the-providential-clockwork-universe.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-43919846550422310642013-09-16T16:01:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.184-07:00Making connections, one passenger at a timeDrivers who have one of the company's wheelchair vans usually have a list of people who they are to pick up at appointed times. I also have an itinerary, but this I discover one passenger at a time.<br>
<br>
The universe has an impeccable sense of timing, and an uncanny ability at arranging for my connections. Sometimes paying passengers appear to take me between my various 'appointments'. Othertimes I get a feeling that I am to go somewhere specific from where my cab is currently sitting. Sometimes non-paying passengers appear to take me in the direction I need to go, or to insert a 'delay' in my schedule, as needed.<br>
<br>
Recently I was assigned the fare of a rather old man who was going to Denny's. This he said was his usual Saturday routine, except that day was a Sunday.<br>
<br>
His neighborhood was relatively new. I'd gotten to the end of the street and still hadn't found his house number. A jogger coming off the trail said there was an elderly fellow just out of view. I drove over the sidewalk and down the trail. The passenger's property was secluded and seemed very old, and did not-at-all blend with his neighbors' houses. The satellite imagery shows an antique homestead surrounded by a modern development:
<br>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCfYlwyzBDzUUnBRdi7o3Y3L9oyBlxLlveT4X8M470Cf5wgKvpWiMFSNO518OBJeUTDQiy3E7uOwH_jgTxKVkOQJkiCvBihmG9Q9KpanD2wp5qLZ0nBrHpE9KXWIiuaeb2NHzbh0IcpLI/s1600/Desert_Homestead_wide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCfYlwyzBDzUUnBRdi7o3Y3L9oyBlxLlveT4X8M470Cf5wgKvpWiMFSNO518OBJeUTDQiy3E7uOwH_jgTxKVkOQJkiCvBihmG9Q9KpanD2wp5qLZ0nBrHpE9KXWIiuaeb2NHzbh0IcpLI/s320/Desert_Homestead_wide.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the square is about where I found my passenger with his walker</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/09/making-connections-one-passenger-at-time.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-58832149585287236642013-08-22T14:03:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.201-07:00not just a tobacco shopA few months back a passenger & her daughter had me go to a "tobacco shop". I recently moved closer that shop, and my roommate smokes, so we dropped in to check it out.<br>
<br>
Their selection of tobacco was quite limited. Their selection of glass, powdered vitamins and porn was extensive. The guy didn't want to tell me what "niacinamide" or "inositol" was for, but eventually my roommate learned that these are used to cut cocaine. "oh."<br>
<br>
Poll.<br>
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<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/08/not-just-tobacco-shop.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-80165219475675980552013-08-16T23:30:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.224-07:00harvesting life's gardensYesterday I went to the local Hallmark store to browse cards. Before visiting Mr. Crawford last November, I sent a rainbow & glitter card to give a heads-up that I'd probably swing by the following week. (Someone here pointed out that card's irony, which I hadn't considered.)<br>
<br>
This time none of the cards seemed appropriate. I laughed at "congratulations on your new home", but that probably would NOT have been well-received, so I went back to the in-store post office to buy a stamped envelope for a regular letter.<br>
<br>
It was there that I found the rack with <a href="http://imgur.com/a/J5DGH" target="_blank">gardens-in-a-card</a>. There was a card with flower seeds that had a nice design, but then I noticed a card with edible plants. I thought it would be better to supplement our friend's prison diet - sometimes flowers can be hard to grow.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/08/harvesting-lifes-gardens.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2353933259531559374.post-87441012317340724562013-08-12T16:39:00.000-07:002016-07-30T08:04:47.242-07:00An anthem for taxi-drivingA few months ago I had a passenger ask for tunes, so I turned the radio on. This <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7HmzwI67ec" target="_blank">anthem for taxi-cab driving</a> came on. At the time this song was playing regularly - it took a few repetitions before I caught the key lyrics ("hop in to a cab, take me anywhere"). Mostly I listen to <a href="http://kbaq.org/" target="_blank">KBAQ</a> now. I used to say "no one ever complains about classical music", but as real-Jesus taught, "Ask, and it shall be given you." That passenger was the sort of person who could complain about anything.<br>
<br>
In other news, the new British heir-to-the-throne's non-royal grandparents apparently weren't worthy of crown-coordinated transportation: <a href="http://www.eonline.com/news/442488/royal-baby-birth-carole-michael-middleton-s-cab-driver-from-hospital-says-experience-was-really-exciting" target="_blank">Carole & Michael Middleton's Cab Driver from Hospital Says Experience Was "Really Exciting"</a>. I wonder what it takes to declare one's family to be royalty.<br>
<br>
I haven't been posting much, but I do read all the diaries. <a href="http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2013/8/6/131358/1778" target="_blank">Thank you for letting me know</a> that our friend Michael Crawford is apparently back in jail. I am working on a letter - these were much-appreciated last time.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.taxiwars.org/2013/08/an-anthem-for-taxi-driving.html#more">Read more »</a>TaxiCabJesushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12025601879993418281noreply@blogger.com0