It's gonna be a long long time

As soon as I get in the cab these days I do my routine. I go circle the west end then move downtown. I gotta boot around like a little rocket man. University is gone. Nothing. That's a big deal. I'm gonna have to work it a little harder if I want to survive in this industry. It's like Mars out there, cold as hell. I love the cab. It's an addiction. One that's allowed me to see many walks of life. It's outer space. I picked my first fare up at the bus stop, 102 st and 82 ave south side of the street. He was hitchhiking. I pulled over and asked him " Where ya going?" He was an old dude, kind of a honky cat. Rig Pig, old enough to be my dad. "I need to find a Best Western. I'll get cash." I believed him, and right now it's worth the gamble. My car is running. I might as well try. We move up to 109st, the Safeway. He goes in and it was closed. The security guard followed him out. He got back in my car. I drove him to the Money Mart on Jasper and 108st. Someone named Daniel sent him the Money order, think he said it was his older brother. While he was getting cash, a bum came up to the taxi. I was right there on the corner of the street. He asked me for Money. I told him "I'm trying to get paid by a hitchhiking crack head rig pig that's sleeping in the Strat and fucking hookers." The bum laughed and that Elephant band Turned on the radio, it was a good Boarder song for us. We listened to it. The rig pig came back. He had 50$. He told me that Saturday nights for fighting, he said " Yesterday I blew 4800$." Then he said "when you come back from workin you gotta let loose." I told him smoking crack with Hookers is worse then dancing the crocodile rock. Fuck! I let him off at the corner of Gateway boulevard and 83ave. Told him to get a pack of smokes and go to bed . Buy breakfast in the morning and get on the bus to fort mac." He gave me 20$, said he'd give me ten but that would leave him with 40$. That's what he needs to buy a piece. He took off. Goodbye yellow brick road. That dude was a hit in the dark, a candle in the wind. I got 20 bucks. That's a hustle. Then I drove this 19 year old loner transient Australian kid who told me "Mike Patton A Perfect Twist that's your song." Times are tight but nothing beats driving the Sunday night. Things are gonna get better, you know I read it in a magazine. Maybe its about time I pop a Benny and take off on a Jet. I won't let the Sun go down on me. Not today. Maybe it'll be nice and I can get a tan. Imagine. Oh imagine this, Rig pig dude picking up cigarette butts off the ground in the same spot I dropped him off two hours earlier. I pulled up and asked "you bought a 30$ piece right?" He looked up and smiled this shit eating grin. Nicotine can be picked up off the streets.