I might have a new job

So I went to see the boss about the deactivation of my account. The boss took a look at my file and said "your record is clean. No client has ever complained, but dispatch has asked me to tell you to stop telling them how you feel about their work" I went nuts. I couldn't believe that I was called into the office because I speak my mind to the dispatchers. I tell them what's going on on the streets. If I get a call to a public place I tell them that I won't even try to get the person unless the call taker included the clients phone number. "No number then I'm not going" I say. The boss liked what I was saying. I told him bout the blog. I even mentioned the CBC bit I produced with Scott Fralik. The boss was happy to hear I was so passionate about the job. Then I told him about the speech and the Vehicle for hire commission. I told him about how I use my camera to protect myself. I told him about the cops and how they jerk off. I told him all this in a frenzy. I went to visit him yesterday morning. Right after I came back from the hospital. I told him about the girl I drove on Thursday morning. He had no idea about most of my issues. He had no Idea that the drivers at night can's survive. He listened to me. Then he offered me a new position. A position that would let me use all my angry revenge talents. He told me that the company is trying to put eight more positions in the budget. He said "we want supervisors, we want someone like you."

I might get fired

So what happened. Well as I tried to log onto the system in the taxi I got a message saying this ID is inactive. I thought for sure I wasn't going to work. Right as I was going to drive my own car home the owner of the taxi pulled up. I told him "if I don't work tonight, I won't pay rent." He called management and Bam! I was back. The night was empty. Rotten, slow, awful. I resent life on these recession streets. I'm broke. I have no money. I have been paying to drive a taxi. I work to work. My life is as of right now officially over. Well I love to drive so I keep it up. I kept it up until 3:30 am. that's when I got a flag. My third fare of the night. As she got closer I saw the tears flowing down her face. She was scared, she was beaten, and as she sat down in the seat next to me I knew she had been raped. I asked "were you assaulted?" She just kept crying. She cried and cried. Her face was a mess. Tears, snot spite and pain were all I could see. She was raped. I'd seen this before. She kept saying it was her fault, she's twenty five she should know better. I knew how she was going to react to my next question but I asked anyway "we going to the hospital?" She just put her head in her lap and cried harder. She said "take me home, I have money, please just take me home." I said I would. On the way to her place I stopped and bought her a pack of smokes. She wanted to smoke. Even though I'm flat broke I took care of her. I wanted her to go to the hospital. She was raped. She insisted I drive her home. I knew from past experience that the police weren't even an option. Victims in her position never want to be violated by pigs. Somehow I convinced her to go to the hospital. She said"I'll go but come with me." I promised her I would stay as long as she wanted me to stay. I sat in the waiting room with her. The nurses thought it was strange. We talked about our lives in that room. She calmed down in that room. She kept insisting there was nothing that could be done. I just stared at her. I knew this would make both of us feel better. The first time a girl got in my cab after being raped I fucked up I said "lets go to the police, lets get the predator." She said "take me home.' The police are intimidating the hospital is safe. When the special nurse came to preform the "Rape kit" I stepped out. The girl wanted me to stay in the waiting room. I stayed. Security thought that was strange, the guards even asked me to leave. I told them i promised her I'd stay, they said "It's gonna take hours, you should go home." I told them I was going to stay. When they finished the tests and stuff she was given pills and sent on her marry way. The police were not called. She decided that it wasn't worth it. She was scared and I bet she felt guilty. Scary. There is a rapist sleeping in the Days Inn downtown drunk and ready to rape tomorrow. I hope he dies. After the hospital I took her to McDonald's to get some liquid to swallow the pills. They were big. I bought her breakfast and drove her home. She gave me her number I gave her the blog URL. I hope we see each other again because we had a strange connection, and we both lived through some serious trauma together. I was scared too. I don't want to drive cab anymore.

Staby staby

Tonight was crazy. While sitting outside the 711 on Stony plain road and 154st I watched a man jump over my hood. The man had just run across the street, he had been stabbed by a group of gang members that were hot on his trail. The victim ran into the 711. The gangsters followed him inside and stabbed him. On security camera I guess. I called 911 because as I watched the incident unfold the clerk in the 711 just kept cashing. Customers service is more important to the Filipino clerk then a man dying on his stores floor. As I talked to 911 I explained where the gangsters were going, I tried to give the dispatcher a description of the assailant but the guy on the other end of the line hung up on me. The cops showed up about 10minutes later. There were several women cops and I noticed lots of pettign and giggling betweent the the boy cops and the girl cops while they waited for the wounded mans ambulance. I don't think female cops can do what a man can do. Just like I don't think a women could drive a cab in Edmonton at night. There isin't any women driving cab at night in Edmonton because it's just something that a man should do. Jesus knows how dangerous these jobs are. I also had a young woman offer to smoke a joint with me. I said "no" but sure did appreciate the offer she paid me way to well. Here is a video about hating the corporate pig.


and here is the link to the photos I shot this weekend ClubZone

Bigger then it should be on me

Tonight was another photo night. I drove the taxi from 7pm till 9pm. In those two hours I made 20$. Jack shit. After that I drove myself down to Woolly Bullies. There I shot the party. UFC was on pay per view. Everyone in the city was interested in it. I don't like watching the fights, it's just not my thing. After that I proceeded to two other clubs, also to shot photos. It was great. As soon as I got back in my taxi I got a call from an old regular. She lives on the north side. I'm not sure why, but she gave me a tremendous tip. The type of tip you thank God for, but this girl is kind of a Satanist. Cool chick. She knows who she is and she know I owe her. Doing the photo shoots is risky. I might be loosing out on business. Well thanks to the huge tip I didn't have to worry. Thank you Vicky you are a very awesome human being. Then I had a flag, this Mexican woman. I pulled over for her cause she was gorgeous and her husband looked alright. Well as soon as they got in they called over two other couples. I told them "No". That's just too many. the guys kept pressing. I said "No" then pointed at the ten cops standing around jerking off while watching the road. The three couples were saying "don't worry they don't care, we'll give you an extra 20$." I said "No." Then they offered 40$ extra. I still said "no." Then they offered an extra 60$ on top of the fare. I was seduced by the cash. I let all six in. The big tip was nice but it wasn't enough to feed the family forever. I got the three couples home, it was a risk but it paid of. I got 100$ from the six people in the car. If I was caught doing that I would have lost my job. I don't care anymore I need to take some risks to survive in this economy. The vehicle for hire commission can suck my dick. They don't know about the blog. If they did they wouldn't have the heart to read it anyway. They're probably spending all the money they get from bribes, those asshole politicians. My last fare was a guy I think was gay. Maybe still in the closet. He told me about his old roommate. His roommate was 5.2ft, my fare said "I used to make fun of his tiny ass. Until one day he came out of the shower with this huge erection. His dick was massive. So big I wasn't able to wrap my hand around it." Then the fare showed me the size of his hand. The conversation started because the fare realized I was short. He said "you're the smallest cabbie I've ever had." I said "But I ain't scared of shit." Then he told me bout his old roommate and said "never underestimate someone who isn't so tall cause you never know how big they really are." I agreed.

It can't always feel that way

Tonight was unreal!. You see I got a job photographing club goers. No not people going to the club in the taxi but people in the clubs. I was hired to go to a club and take pictures of the patrons. It's a promotional thing. I hope I get paid. Well one of the club owners saw me and asked if I would come back tomorrow and photograph the UFC audience. We negotiated a deal 40pics for a bunch of cash and a bar tab. Score! I don't drink. It's funny how things are working out. I started my shift at 6pm last night. I drove 100Km before I was suppose to go to the bar and take pictures. Within that 100Km time frame I made 16$ + a 4$ tip. From 6pm till 10pm I made 20 bucks. Who cares! I'm a fucking professional photographer. I even used my G10 I can't afford a SLR on my current income. If things continue the way they have I'm gonna kick ass. Photography! fuck imaging if I got to make films, man that would be sweet. See I figured out that I'm a storyteller. I was nervous last night but once I got into it people were approaching me to have their pictures taken. Like it mattered or something. A safe ride home is more important, but less fun. I'm lucky. The change in my earnings is forcing me to change. If I kept making money driving taxi I would stay a taxi driver. There is more to me then Taxi Talk. That's something I almost forgot about driving around a dead end career. Taxi Talk is a good friend of mine but she needs tweaking. Change. It's coming. Not just the blog, my life. I'm going back to school. I want a different story to tell. I just have to look at school as a taxi ride. I wonder..........What's the back seat? I know, the other students maybe. What's the road? Well that's easy the God Damn curriculum. The teacher are the law enforcers, they have the potential to make or brake you. I'm just a bum who thinks he knows everything. A guy who knows he doesn't but he thinks he does. My first fare after the photo session was a personal. As fate would have it he called me the moment I was passing him on Whyte Ave. He was a Hoolioes Bario. The weather had turned and the rain was falling heavily. He wanted to go to londonderry mall I told him that that's where hookers go to buy crack. I was exaggerating. It's been a long time since I've seen any body picking up hookers. Most people can't afford the luxury. Crack! I haven't really dealt with any in a while either. It's the economy. Tightened everything up. It's strangling some. I'm not letting that noose choke me but I can feel it. Fuck. That first fare, that guy that I so fatefully picked up, he gave me 60$. Thank God. It was one o clock and I able to pay for Gas. I drove on. I made some money last night. I had a girl try to fit through the window in the shield. She almost made it. I drove Shaun Bogner to and from the bar last night. Always a little bit of good luck out of that. Man tonight felt good.

Dersert Eagle dipped in chrome,

So tonight Kenny Chesney was in town. Probably the only country western mother fucker who decided to leave Calgary. The guy filled the Stadium. That's so many fucking people. His concert was the only place to find people to drive. Most of the audience was from out of town because I drove almost everyone I picked up at that concert to a Hotel/Motel. One of the women in the back seat was a correctional officer at a federal prison for men. I asked her why she didn't work with the women. She said "could you imagine a whole prison full of women PMSing at the same time.?" I said "No." What's up with women all getting their periods at the same time? Did you guys know that girls mature faster closer to the equator? Last night I had a fare to Sherwood park, one of the three dudes threw up on the car. I got lucky because one of the guys in the back seat had a garden hose at his house. He got to wash the old boat down. My last fare was a girl who works at lucky13. She told me that a Spanish looking girl did not want her to serve her drinks because she (the waitress) was white. How often do you hear about that? Reverse racism. It has happened to me. Some Punjabi guy harassed me for no apparent reason, I told him to get out. Yesterday I watched a movie about Def Leppard and I fell in love with the group. Come on, a one handed drummer. God I wish I was a rock star. I would act responsibly and buy aaaaa an army of soldiers to back me the fuck up. I drove a soldier tonight. Like always a fine young gentleman. He told me that before he gets to go to Afghanistan he is going to work the 2010 winter Olympics. He said "the government doesn't want civilians to know that we're out there because Canada is suppose to be known as a perfect place without any real violence." He laughed out loud after saying that. He told me that Canadians aren't just peace keepers anymore. He also told me that a soldier who doesn't get to go to war is like a lawyer who has never seen the inside of a court room. Fuck I want a gun.

The real deal

THis is what happened right after the window was broken

Some past

Finding CBC from taxitruth on Vimeo.

100-150mm of rain over the bulls boys the bulls

Sunday is my kinda day. It's relaxed. My Saturday night was so stressful I was furious. I kept talking shit to the only thing that would listed to my rant, God! I was alone in the cab yelling at the almighty. Cursing, calling the big guy upstairs every name I could think of. I slammed a door on my chest last night, that wasn't Gods fault neither was my bad night. So this Sunday morning I went to church. Not! Screw church for me driving the taxi is church. Tonight was slow. I think I had four fares and three were my own clients. One of the kids in the car tonight was drunk. He needed to take a leak, I stopped and waited for the guy to get out and pee. Well when he came back there was a stink. The mother fucked stepped in dog shit. The worst part was he couldn't smell it. Fuck! I parked that stinky car and went home. What a night. It rained.