Although I drove only three weekends I still gave over 170 rides this month. Here are some of my most memorable moments:
SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO GO GET THE STUPID OUT OF PEOPLE: I can't even tell you what we were talking about, but he made his point and got a big laugh out of me. And, if you think about it, sometimes this is the case.
SHOULD I GIVE YOUR WIFE A GOOD RATING?: I picked up a couple at a hotel in Charleston and mentioned that I drove down from Myrtle Beach. The husband immediately asked me if my wife was doing the same thing and we realized that she had picked them up the day before. He said he hadn't given her a rating yet and then he asked me if he should give her a good rating. My reply, "I always do."
THE HOUSEMAN: I have never heard the phrase before, but a rider told me that he was a houseman with a number others at a hotel. They help the guests get the things that they need on a daily basis. It sounded more like a concierge, but for him, his job was a houseman.
"I THINK WE'RE GOING THERE!" I was bringing a couple into downtown Charleston and I thought I was going to a hotel. I told them a little about Charleston and suggested that they look for the cruise ship that comes into port. That's when the wife said, "I think we're going there." She had to know she was going there, since she was leaving on the ship. I had no idea, but found it amusing I was suggesting they should take a look at a cruise ship they would be on for a week.
"YOU HAVE NO IDEA" To say that the roads in downtown Charleston are not good is really an understatement. It's not just the one way streets, the smaller streets, the very bumpy roads, but also all the carriages that you have to drive behind. I was telling a family from Michigan about the roads and the husband said the roads in Michigan were just as bad. I asked if he meant the highways or the local roads and he said, "both, you have no idea." I'm not driving to Michigan anytime soon.
"OUR GOAL WAS TO PLAY ALL THE MINI-GOLF COURSES IN THE AREA" It was a normal ride (except for the women asking me if I wanted to join them for dinner), but one women told me that her and her husband loved mini-golf. She said over two years they played 57 of the 123 courses in the area. I'm not sure what is more amazing, that they played 57 or there are 123 courses. I would have asked her more about the courses, but the ride ended too soon. However, my son and I are going to play on their favorite course.
'THE SANITARIAN" When I asked the guy from Texas what he did, I had to ask him to repeat it twice. I had never heard the word before and he wrote it out from me. He's actually a health inspector and some people in the occupation are called "sanitarians". He was a real pro and very dedicated to what he did. He had majored in Biology and found his odd-named job online.
"IT'S THE BEST WAY TO SEE THE COUNTRY" When the woman told me she was moving to San Diego, I jokingly told her that I was sorry she was going to have to suffer through all that nice weather. She was getting married to an Army Lieutenant and had been moving all her life. I asked her if it was difficult to do and she said, "it's the best way to see the country." I think that's a great way of thinking about her many moves.
"I'M IN SO MUCH TROUBLE" The woman was getting in my back seat and I thought her male friend was too, but they said goodbye and I started to drive off. That's when this 30-year old engineer with a large company, told me how much trouble she was in. She said the same thing at least five or six times during the trip. Her mom keeps tabs on her and she told her mom she was going home last night, but instead stayed with the pilot she met. "Nothing happened" she told me, she just didn't feel like going home. She lives on her own and also supervises several people. I spent the entire trip boosting her confidence and helping her come up with something to tell her Mom when she called her in the next hour. I had to tell her she should show appreciation to her Mom for being worried, but tell her that she was fine and she knew exactly what she was doing. (or what she wasn't doing)
"THE ATTITUDE ADJUSTER" My rider said he worked at Trader Joe's and his occupation was "attitude adjuster". Having read many positive attitude books and given motivational speeches years ago, I wanted to know how he did that. He works at the front door and greets people shopping at Trader Joe's and gets them in a better mood to shop. It was interesting until he told me where his attitude came from. In high school, about twenty years ago, he was in a near fatal car crash and had brain surgery. His parents gave him a lot of positive feedback and helped him recover. When I left him off at the breakfast place on a Sunday morning, I saw him standing at the door clowning around by waving his arms as if he was flying. It was an inspiring ride for me, he really has a great attitude.
'DO THEY HAVE A SPEED LIMIT?" My young rider watched a motorcycle go flying by me on my left and asked me the above question. When the second motorcycle went past me just as fast I said, "Not today they don't."
"YOU SAID THAT SO WELL" The French-Canadian woman was talking about how she was learning to speak English better, although she spoke it very well. She lives now in the United States and continues to talk French so she doesn't lose it. I told her the only French phrase I could think of,
"Je ne sais pas," and she was impressed with my French. That made me laugh, since I never did well in French. I made her laugh when I told her that my French teacher told me that I had the best English accent speaking French she's ever heard. (it wasn't a compliment)
"YOU HAVE TO BE A MORON NOT TO BE ABLE TO MAKE MONEY DOWN HERE!:" I laughed as much during this ride as probably any other I've had, because it was so unusual. When a single rider is walking up to my car, I open the front door a little and say, "you can sit in the front if you like." Usually people take the offer, but this guy pushed the door shut and quickly tried to get in the back. He was from New York and worked in securities on Wall Street. I didn't think he was going to talk at all, but I actually wound up asking him if he had done stand-up comedy before. He said, "no, but I've had other people ask me." He got on a roll when I asked him if was going to slow down here since he had been in the area only two months. "Slow down? No, I'm going to speed up. Look at the demographics here. You have to be a moron not to be able to make money down here." I wish I could have taken notes, but he had me wiping tears out of my eyes. He must have liked my response since he did give me a nice tip. I should have tipped him though, he was that entertaining.
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