St. Petersburg cabbie wars

Looking right at a unlicensed taxi at night

There is a real problem in St Petersburg with unlicensed cabs. This strikes at the heart of why all counties need a regulatory board. With the expansion of the bars hours in that city, it is now open season for all kinds of gypsy cabs.

A busy night

This first week of April is clearly the busiest week so far this year. A major convention is in town, and cruise ships everyday. They are running out of cabs at the airport and the streets are loaded with calls. It has been years since we had this kind of volume. I did drive 130 miles of concentated business. Unfortunately, in a few weeks, the heat sets in and things slow down. Oh well, for the first time in years, I now have hope.

Over the Skyway Bridge again

I got a ride to Sarasota out of TIA today from a cameraman from NFL films (I could do his job). There is a practice combine down there that is showing potential draft picks how to put on the best show. He was part of a documentary about this. Crossing the bridge was the hard part. I did like the $154.00 I got for the ride.

Be cautious of flaggers

Always use caution when picking up flaggers

All taxi drivers need to be cautious of flaggers. When you see a stranger on the sidewalk, make sure you go by your gut before you let the person in your taxi. Who knows what may await you if you don't go by the "gut." Don't be tempted by a pretty lady. You may be surprised.

Just to be fair about the matter...its not raining!!

Downtown Tampa at sunset

This is me headed to downtown to avoid the hockey traffic. My fares were going to a strip club on Adamo and seemed in a hurry.

Shoe caught on film

The famous former dispatcher "Shoe" was found on another blog about jogging. A blogger who takes images of where he runs was photographing this Jamacian resturant, and the United Cab was parked out front. The driver loading the trunk is without a doubt Shoe. He has had the owner as a special account for years. Specials are good deals if they put real money in your pocket.

This is Shoe...no doubt

How to annoy your taxi driver

Am I as old as your daddy?

When people just get in your cab I know they are just trying to be nice, but they can say things to a taxi driver that sound banal, but really just piss him off. One the things I hate is in the early morning, they will ask "What time does your shift end?" or "been on duty all night?" I really don't  know why that gets to me but when they ask "is it busy?" That really pisses me off. The reason is because it is only mouthed by some short fair mother fucker who is not going to put any money in my pocket.

If I was busy would I be sitting around with my thumb up my ass

Another thing cab drivers don't like hearing (especially from young women) is "Hey Mr. Taxi Driver" as a default greeting. They are usually drunk and will roar this out at regular intervals. Do I look that old that you call me sir!
 If you have been driving cab for any time at all people will ask you "Can we go to McDonald's?" Well kiss my ass goodbye for the next twenty minutes. Never mind the fact that there is nothing fast about fast food, but, the people are usually drunk and annoying and its during the bar rush of the night. There are fares I could be picking up and making money with. No way now. Since I picked these stoners up, I am now saying "Give me a number three with a coke, and a side order of extra large fries." Then, they spill most of the shit on the back seat. Special sauce from Big Macs is tough to clean up. These people are corporate lawyers by day. dick heads by night.
"Got any tunes?" That one is so messed up. The reason is they will blast the radio and you can't even hear yourself think. Then, they start asking you questions and you can't hear a thing. Its always hip hop music and it sounds like shit.
"I won't throw up" That means within minutes you are hopping a curb and yelling at them to open the door before they toss on the back seat. Some cities now have an extra charge posted on the window for throw up.
"Change for a hundred?" That means they are going to rob your ass and they want to know how much they are going to get.
"Do you take head?" That is when a drunk women has no money and she wants to prostitute herself for the fare. Some drivers I know always take the head. Lets just say, I could get head every night if I wanted. I really need the money, however.

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Why we like "Kim" calls

You got to love ,"Jack Shacks." Between giving massages to horney guys, these girls use our cabs a lot. Getting a Kim call can put some real money in your pocket. The girls have money (hand jobs are $100) and they know how to tip. They often go to the casino which is a great ride. Drivers would fight for these fares if they could. They wwon't do specials, so forget about giving them your cell phone number. I think they know what guys want.

$30 is just what i

 I needed a good ride and today I picked up this HOT young Asian girl who went to the tanning salon. She paid to have me wait and I took her back. While waiting, I hijacked WiFi from local business to kill the time. The salinsalon had the WiFi and it was a strong signal. She was out in ten minutes and we were soon headed back.Twelve bucks on the meter and this is what she gave me. More rides like that, and I would be doing a lot better. Capitalism sometimes works out pretty good.

Motel row and Florida dreams

Many people come to Florida for a fresh start. They will tell you its because of the weather but it usually involves the circumstances of their life. Things will be better in Florida - they are certain of that. In Tampa, most people you meet are from somewhere else. There is a reason for that. They come here with Florida dreams. I got a call around sunset for a middle age couple living out of a cheap motel. They had out of state tags on their car from the north.

They were trying to survive until they had saved some money for an apartment, and were paying out the nose for this dump motel. They needed me to help them with their stuff. They had filled their car up with stuff, but had a tv and other items to put in mine. They also had a cute little dog. The lady said it was just too expensive to stay. I know how they feel. The reason I drive a cab is because I can't work at near minimum wage and survive. I helped them but could see they have a tough road to go. Low wages and few benefits are the jobs in Florida.

The door to nowhere...they hoped for more

They were trying to survive until they had saved some money for an apartment, and were paying out the nose for this dump motel. They needed me to help them with their stuff. They had filled their car up with stuff, but had a tv and other items to put in mine. They also had a cute little dog. The lady said it was just too expensive to stay. I know how they feel. The reason I drive a cab is because I can't work at near minimum wage and survive. I helped them but could see they have a tough road to go. Low wages and few benefits are the jobs in Florida. It was once said that you got paid in sunshine down here. These people found out that don't pay the rent. I hope they make it. Not everyone does who moves to Florida. The good paying industrial jobs of the Midwest are gone. That is why so many people from Ohio, Michigan, and othe states are down here. People often go back, but to what? They seemed like good folks. I learned about that sunshine myth a long time ago.

A peeping taxi driver

The new function on the tablet lets the driver request a call out. I only use this at night...during the day I knock on the door. This morning for instance..

I blew the horn lightly at an address on a dark street. There were no lights on inside and I wondered what kind of call this was. Where they going to the airport? Where they drunk? I got out of the taxi and knocked on the door, nobody answered.

I got back in the cab and requested a call out. Kala called and said the customers did not see me outside the house. Strange. Why didn't they answer the door? I knocked again.

From the porch I could see the street sign in the distance. I walked over to it and realized I was on the wrong street. A good way to get shot. Its happened before.

One time I could see people screwing in a back bedroom while I looked through the window. The women looked up and saw me watching (I was at the wrong house) and I got out of there guick. They may have seen the taxi speed away and wondered WTF.

Feeding wild birds

In the taxi holding area at Tampa International airport the drivers have been feeding wild birds. They have lost their fear of humans and will now land on your car and look at you in a demanding fashion. This video is me telling a bird I have nothing for him today.
Sent from my MetroPCS Android Device

Leaving Walt Disney World

I dropped off at Disney World today after picking up at Tampa International Airport. My fare was going to a beautiful hotel near Epcot...a resort. I could see that the hotels in this area rival Las Vegas in size and grandeur.
I took Lake Buena Vista drive on the way out which swings west and cuts off a lot time. Up ahead I could see the iconic Mickey Mouse powerline symbol. I grabbed my cell phone and tried to get an image at 50 MPH. I got a good one for point and shoot.

Its a mouse!

Unique Video

This video was shot 30 seconds ago. That's what I like about the Blogger function is I can do a direct upload and take advantage of the new media.

Direct video uploads for Taxi Blog

This is the feature that I cannot do with the Typepad blog. I must use YouTube or post only a link with QuickTime video. The Blogger function allows me to direct Android a video by Email or use their video dashboard for unique content. That I like. Why? It gives people a real reason to come back to the blog because they won't find the videos anywhere else. Let me try one now.

This video is funny as the mosquitoes chase George after he ran into 1,000,000,000 of them!

Sun sets over Tampa for cab driver

Near the end of my 15 hour day I was taking folks to the 98 Rock Fest at the Times Forum. From people going to work, to people going out to party, I had put in a long day. I caught this view of the Tampa skyline from the east side on my way home. I hear the Bucs drafted a quarterback from North Carolina.

Let it begin

This is me at the begining of a very long day. I may spend the next 24 hrs in this taxi. Many drivers are doing that and the company wonders why there's so many wrecks.

Cool jazz on a hot night

Late night when its slow and the heat index is over 100, WUSF cool jazz is all you have. Late nights belong to smooth jazz. You can also listen to Coast to Coast and get your UFO and Bigfoot fix.

A cheap motel, a white tee shirt, and a twenty dollar bill

What a cab driver will do to make a living is beyond what most people can handle or comprehend. One thing we do is go into very bad areas of town and pretend it is normal. At least I still think it is normal. Like the Pakistani store owner who sells smokes, beer, lotto tickets and blunts to the people who walk in his door while all the time hoping he doesn't get shot, you begin to think this is normal. I got this call about 4 in the morning today. Things got a little weird. Not to bad, but not what I was expecting.

It was the Downtowner Motel, one of Tampa's swankier joints. Its the kind of place that has "weekly rentals" and calls them apartments; imaine what kind of crowd that will draw. The dude was on the balcony and very anxious to get going, a clear sign that someone wants to buy drugs. I guess his buzz has worn off and he needs to get more. He and some chic with sunken cheeks and a glazed stare get in the backseat. They seem to have a bunch of nervous energy.

After we bound around from one hotel to a back street this black dude on a bike with a white tee shirt does a "fly-by" of the cab; he is trying to determine if he has a customer. My fare tells me the black dude is a friend of his that he owes money. People will tell us anything, it is their boss, their cousin, whatever, he wasn't even being original. I tell him fine, but "get out and do whatever you need to do outside my cab." I tell him. He complies and after about one minute, he returns looking happy. I end taking them back, no big deal.

What bothers me about these people is they think they are slick. They are not fooling anyone; we know what is up. Eventually, they cab drivers will stop responding to the call. However, in today's climate and the need to make money, many drivers will take the call. It is amazing how desperate you can get for a twenty dollar bill.

Late night and Jack Shacks

One of the things you can count on if you work late night is guys wanting a sure thing. It is getting late and they have not hooked up, so they are ready to be taken. In short, they get very, very stupid.
I had a call at a Tavern about 2 AM and this guy from out of town wanted to get laid in the worse way. At this point, he was ready to pay for it. If you want to pay for sex in Tampa, you have come to the right town. This area is loaded with everything from strip clubs modeled after petting zoos, old fashion bordellos, all the way to cheap peep shows. What ever you want.
 He was counting on me to show him where the action was at. That is one thing taxi drivers are good for, finding where all the vice is at for the clients we are hoping will actually give us a tip for accommodating their illegal activities. We can be a live version of NightMoves magazine published in the Tampa Bay area that detail where all those kind of places are at.
I have had fares not really want to go to a whore house. I have had them want me to troll up and down a dark street to see if a working girl is out. I have done that in the past but I will not do that again. There are sting operations going on and a night in jail and loosing my job is not in the plan.
I took this guy to one of our famous Japanese spas where he could always count on a hand job for 150 bucks. He went inside to ask about the prices, I guess. He came out and decided to go back to his motel room. Good choice.
You can tell when fares have money to spend. It is just a sense you develop over time. This guy was a low roller aspiring to move up the chain. Big deal, right? Those girls will take your money no matter where you are at on the pecking order.
He paid me fifteen bucks for a foreteen dollar fare. He needs to work on that high roller thing.

Orlando has wonderful hotels

I had a ride to Orlando out of Tampa International airport yesterday. The fare went to the Hilton near the convention center off of International drive.
I noticed how large the hotels are in Orlando rivaling Las Vegas properties. I also noticed the cab stand in front of the hotels dominated by Mears Taxi.
Like United Cab in Tampa, Mears must be the premier cab company in the Disneyland Orlando area. I wonder if they have a slow time over there.