The USS George Washington, a Nimitz class aircraft carrier, is in port for several months. This is the one that made the news because there was a fire onboard somewhere off the coast of South America, and they came here for repairs. I've been driving a lot of GW (as we call it) sailors out to Coronado to the ship.
One time I heard a group discussing the forbidden list in the back seat. I asked about it, and asked if I could have a copy. They discussed the security of giving it to me, and then decided it didn't constitute a national security breach. I went through a similar thought process before deciding to publish it here.
Without further ado, here's the list the Navy gave GW sailors:
Off-limits at all times:
San Diego -- Club Mustang, Club of San Diego, Get it on Shoppe, Main Street Motel, Vulcan Baths.
National City -- Dream Crystal, Sports Auto Sales
Off-limits at specified times:
San Diego -- 2600 to 3600 block of Main St, including McDonald's and Burger King parking lots on 28th St, from 001-0500 Wed.
Chula Vista -- Denny's parking lot, 692 E St from 0100-0400 Sat and Sun
Off-limits areas from sunset to sunrise:
Otay Mesa
Willie Henderson Park / San Diego City Park
Areas of caution, especially after dark:
Naval Base San Diego (32nd St base) perimeter area.
Trolley stations, especially Palomar St and San Ysidro.
Tijuana:
Libertad (south of Tijuana airport)
Camino Verde (south of city center)
Mariano Matamoros (southeast of city center)
Is it just me, or would a list like this given to 18-22 year-old sailors looking for excitement in port become a must-see list? That Denny's parking lot in Chula Vista must be something to see.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Ana, and going to HQ
I still haven't had the discussion with the cab company owner about Ana, the worst ride thief we've ever had. My last post about her is here.The bottom line is I avoid going to HQ like it's the plague. The problems with going to HQ are as follows:
1. I have to park several blocks away because the owner likes to come out of the HQ building and examine the car. If the car's not there, no spot inspection. Some days he's so nice it's like he's my grandfather, telling me he's glad I'm driving for the company (as an independent contractor). The next time, he'll run a finger along the quarter panel of the taxi and give a lecture about keeping the cars clean.
2. Often an office worker, usually a woman in her low 20s, will come out with a clipboard and "inspect" the car. No offense intended against young women, but y'all don't know the first thing about cars, and I don't like having my taxi evaluated by somebody with zero knowledge.
3. Often an office worker will be sent out to administer a "sniff test." I'm not making this up. A young lady will walk out and up to the car, open a door, stick in her head and sniff. If it's not up to the fragrancy standards of the corporation, the driver will be asked to clean the inside of the car and buy some air freshener. This is humiliating and I don't wish to be subjected to it -- and my car is always clean and always has a new air freshener.
4. If it's inspection day, you may get wrangled into helping clean or even repair cars. I don't mind helping out as part of the team, but if I can avoid it, I certainly will. I drive, I don't twist wrenches.
5. The "uniform". Two years ago a uniform policy was thrown at us, which basically means we need to look neat, clean, and professional. I think the official rules call for black pants and a solid color shirt with a collar. No hats unless they have no writing or promotional stuff on them. I generally conform, but I wear a San Diego baseball cap. Some days the owner sees me with it and he says nothing. Other days I get scolded. I don't take scolding very well.
Our half-joke is that the owner is bi-polar. We even try to gather intelligence as to his mood before we make an appearance at HQ. If another driver just came from there, we'll ask him about the owner's mood. If it's good, we'll rush over to do some paperwork or whatever sort of HQ business might be outstanding. It's much better to appear at HQ when the owner is in a good mood.
6. My "new" taxi, which my cab partners and I got last September with 212,000 miles on it, has had front suspension work done on it at least four times. The owner let slip a comment to me that he thinks my partners are hard on the car. They're not. Generally speaking, whatever happens to the car gets blamed on the drivers. I don't actually hold this against the owner, because we have several meatballs driving for us who have created a bad impression for all of us.
7. Any time spent at HQ is time I'm not making money on the streets. It's a waste of time.
8. Some of the office workers, like Louie, our female, night dispatcher nicknamed for the Danny DeVito character in the TV show Taxi, is in such a foul mood all the time it's a chore to be in the same room with her. This is to be avoided.
9. Our HQ is in a busy part of San Diego. Traffic is usually a mess.
If I have to visit HQ, which is usually only for dropping off work requests for the cab, I do it at 3 a.m., when only a single dispatcher is there. This strategic timing avoids all of the problems I listed above.
Also, Ana has been a model cab driver for over a month. Somebody must have leaked to her that problems were headed her way if she didn't improve. I may not have to do anything.
1. I have to park several blocks away because the owner likes to come out of the HQ building and examine the car. If the car's not there, no spot inspection. Some days he's so nice it's like he's my grandfather, telling me he's glad I'm driving for the company (as an independent contractor). The next time, he'll run a finger along the quarter panel of the taxi and give a lecture about keeping the cars clean.
2. Often an office worker, usually a woman in her low 20s, will come out with a clipboard and "inspect" the car. No offense intended against young women, but y'all don't know the first thing about cars, and I don't like having my taxi evaluated by somebody with zero knowledge.
3. Often an office worker will be sent out to administer a "sniff test." I'm not making this up. A young lady will walk out and up to the car, open a door, stick in her head and sniff. If it's not up to the fragrancy standards of the corporation, the driver will be asked to clean the inside of the car and buy some air freshener. This is humiliating and I don't wish to be subjected to it -- and my car is always clean and always has a new air freshener.
4. If it's inspection day, you may get wrangled into helping clean or even repair cars. I don't mind helping out as part of the team, but if I can avoid it, I certainly will. I drive, I don't twist wrenches.
5. The "uniform". Two years ago a uniform policy was thrown at us, which basically means we need to look neat, clean, and professional. I think the official rules call for black pants and a solid color shirt with a collar. No hats unless they have no writing or promotional stuff on them. I generally conform, but I wear a San Diego baseball cap. Some days the owner sees me with it and he says nothing. Other days I get scolded. I don't take scolding very well.
Our half-joke is that the owner is bi-polar. We even try to gather intelligence as to his mood before we make an appearance at HQ. If another driver just came from there, we'll ask him about the owner's mood. If it's good, we'll rush over to do some paperwork or whatever sort of HQ business might be outstanding. It's much better to appear at HQ when the owner is in a good mood.
6. My "new" taxi, which my cab partners and I got last September with 212,000 miles on it, has had front suspension work done on it at least four times. The owner let slip a comment to me that he thinks my partners are hard on the car. They're not. Generally speaking, whatever happens to the car gets blamed on the drivers. I don't actually hold this against the owner, because we have several meatballs driving for us who have created a bad impression for all of us.
7. Any time spent at HQ is time I'm not making money on the streets. It's a waste of time.
8. Some of the office workers, like Louie, our female, night dispatcher nicknamed for the Danny DeVito character in the TV show Taxi, is in such a foul mood all the time it's a chore to be in the same room with her. This is to be avoided.
9. Our HQ is in a busy part of San Diego. Traffic is usually a mess.
If I have to visit HQ, which is usually only for dropping off work requests for the cab, I do it at 3 a.m., when only a single dispatcher is there. This strategic timing avoids all of the problems I listed above.
Also, Ana has been a model cab driver for over a month. Somebody must have leaked to her that problems were headed her way if she didn't improve. I may not have to do anything.
As Mark's World Turns -- new info
I've been following and reporting on Mark's World, as the drivers in my taxi zone call it. Here's the most recent post. THE NEW INFO: The girl and the new guy moved back East. They're gone.
To bring you up to speed a bit, Mark is a very nice guy who regularly takes taxis short distances. We don't like short rides much, but Mark is such a good guy (and he tips!), I enjoy driving him. He's a waiter at two different nearby restaurants, and he's trying to start his own, home-based graphic arts business. Most of our regulars are DUI cases, so they can't drive, at least temporarily. Given Mark's heavy drinking, I suspect that's the situation with him, but he's never said one way or the other.
Many months ago Mark broke up with his live-in girlfriend. Neither could afford to move out right away, so he had a strange time living with her while they were broken up. The reason for the breakup is the girl cheated with another regular customer, a guy who is a bartender at two different restaurants. Both men are heavy drinkers, but I'd say the new guy drinks a lot more than Mark. I can honestly say that Mark never said a single negative word about her, and I know he was upset and hurting, as you can imagine. He just shrugs and says, "It wasn't meant to be. She's a nice girl."
A few months ago I drove the girlfriend and her new man, Mark's nemesis, and learned she was pregnant.
Mark is working on a new girl, who I haven't met yet. Until he gets something going, this soap opera has stalled! I hear this new girl lives in our taxi zone, so I'll probably drive her alone sooner or later, if she doesn't have her own wheels, and maybe I can put in a good word for Mark. On second thought, is a recommendation from a cab driver going to help or hurt the guy? "Oh, well, the cabbie says your a good guy, so let's date!"
To bring you up to speed a bit, Mark is a very nice guy who regularly takes taxis short distances. We don't like short rides much, but Mark is such a good guy (and he tips!), I enjoy driving him. He's a waiter at two different nearby restaurants, and he's trying to start his own, home-based graphic arts business. Most of our regulars are DUI cases, so they can't drive, at least temporarily. Given Mark's heavy drinking, I suspect that's the situation with him, but he's never said one way or the other.
Many months ago Mark broke up with his live-in girlfriend. Neither could afford to move out right away, so he had a strange time living with her while they were broken up. The reason for the breakup is the girl cheated with another regular customer, a guy who is a bartender at two different restaurants. Both men are heavy drinkers, but I'd say the new guy drinks a lot more than Mark. I can honestly say that Mark never said a single negative word about her, and I know he was upset and hurting, as you can imagine. He just shrugs and says, "It wasn't meant to be. She's a nice girl."
A few months ago I drove the girlfriend and her new man, Mark's nemesis, and learned she was pregnant.
Mark is working on a new girl, who I haven't met yet. Until he gets something going, this soap opera has stalled! I hear this new girl lives in our taxi zone, so I'll probably drive her alone sooner or later, if she doesn't have her own wheels, and maybe I can put in a good word for Mark. On second thought, is a recommendation from a cab driver going to help or hurt the guy? "Oh, well, the cabbie says your a good guy, so let's date!"
Coronado Bridge and the Voice of San Diego
I've been meaning to include Voice of San Diego on my sidebar for some time -- it's there now, in the San Diego section. I recently received an email from a writer who has published several articles there, Randy Dotinga, regarding the Coronado Bridge. He has done a number of interesting stories on the bridge (such as this one). Check out the site, and Randy's articles. I think you'll find them interesting.
My own posts that mention the Coronado Bridge are here.
My own posts that mention the Coronado Bridge are here.
