Travel
Stop Trying to Cheat Me, Mr. New York Cabbie
You are bringing out my Chicago project girl
“Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.”
New York, New York
We were in New York City at the Westminster Dog Show for my birthday. The show is in early February at two venues: Madison Square Garden and Pier 92/94. The breed shows are at the piers. Pier 92/94 is the second-largest event and trade show venue on the island of Manhattan.
The dog show finale was at Madison Square Garden. The dog show is four days long. My spouse and I were in a hotel off Times Square about three miles from the piers. We had a lot of fun hailing New York City Yellow cabs. It was like a scene from a movie. We were stepping to the curb, raising an arm high, and waiting for a cab to stop for us. After we got one to stop, we took the six-dollar ride to the shows at the piers. Yellow cabs are metered with standard pricing for rides.
Sometimes we would ride in an unmetered black cab, which charged us a flat fee of seven dollars. We rode back and forth four times. Once we walked down and back. One morning we rode a city bus. The bus ride was great, but the route ended one mile from the piers. We walked the rest of the way to the piers.
Cabs Were Scarce
On one of the last days of the breed shows, night had fallen, and it was raining. No cabs were waiting, and an extensive line when we came out of the piers after the performance. The cabs were slow. We don’t mind because we have nowhere to go but dinner. Others are not so lucky; they have defined places and things to do. The line is rowdy.
As the yellow cab line was very slow, the unmetered black cabs started showing up. This was the process of getting a cab from the piers. As you walk toward the black cab, you shout your destination, and the cabbie gives you the price. My spouse and I went for a black cab. It was cold and rainy, and we did not want to get too wet while out of town. As we shouted out our address, the driver yelled back. “I’ll do it for $30.”
Duh, no? We stopped walking toward him and turned away. The dude comes after us. “Ok,” he says, “I’ll give you the family price of $25.” We say no, thank you and keep walking. This guy thinks we are suckers from out of town. Well, we are from out of town, but we don’t want to be taken advantage of. He follows us with the NY voice and banter. He was going to make us ride in his cab paying $25 for a $6 trip.
The cabbie walks behind us, talking louder and louder for ten steps, becoming more and more energetic. My spouse looks at me and gives me permission to do my thing. I let the Chicago project girl out. I stop, plant my feet. I stare directly at him, purse my lips. My arms dangle at my side, a safe distance from the cabbie, but my body is tense. I lean forward.
Bring the Hood Girl Out
“Listen, boo, I don’t know who you think you are talking to, but you better back the fuck up off of us. I know the fare for the trip is six dollars, seven if there is traffic. We are not getting in your cab. Slow your roll.”
The cabbie finally understood what we were saying. We get a different response. The animation is gone. He said in a calm but fast voice, “Hey, sis, I’m just trying to make it.” He turns and walks back to his cab as there are already some new suckers approaching him. That guy is a cheater. He is going to overcharge those people whomever they are.
We walk two blocks away from the piers in the rain to a normal street. On a corner, we hailed a regular yellow cab which took us back to our hotel for five dollars. We are wet from the rain and smiling at New York City.
I love New York because I grew up in another big treacherous city, so we match. I don’t take offense at the people trying to take advantage. It is a dog-eat-dog world when you are a cab driver.
It was a great birthday trip.
Toni Crowe retired as the Vice President of Operations to pursue her dream of being a writer. Toni has written six books, two of which won the 2019 Reader’s Choice Gold Awards. Her bestselling business book, “Bullets and Bosses Don’t Have Friends: How Do You Manage A Man Sitting With His Dick in His Hand?” was one of the winners. Her first book, “Never a $7 Whore” was the other.
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