A GAME OF LUCK: How a disastrous morning in the taxi can quickly turn into a shift of dreams
Updated: Nov 6, 2022
We all tell each other to ‘be lucky’, but it’s easy to forget just how important a bit of luck can be in this game. This is a story which shows no matter how bad your day is going, you shouldn’t give up and go home, because you never know what’s around the corner.
How your day can change
This was certainly the case with our member, let's call him Mick, who came in on a Saturday morning to start what was intended to be a long shift. His cab had been in the garage for two days earlier in the week, so Saturday was his catch up day. Picture the scene, its 7.30am and as he comes down Albert Embankment, he is hailed by a couple outside the night club, Ashtar. The couple had obviously had a very long night of drinking, but after sizing up the situation, Mick decided to take them. They wanted Bishop’s Court on Bishop’s Bridge Road.
Pretty much as soon as they got in the cab, they both fell asleep, which was ok with Mick. Everything was fine, until he arrived at Bishop’s Court, when things went dramatically downhill, and fast. As he pulled in, the girl woke up and started making that horrible noise of someone who is about to throw up. He immediately told her not to be sick in the cab and to get out. Sadly, it was too late. She projectile vomited all over the floor. It was obvious there was more coming, so Mick jumped out of the driver’s seat, ran round to her door, opened it and helped her out of the cab, just in time.
From bad to worse
While Mick was taking in the carnage in the back of his cab, the male passenger had got out and was in the front of the cab helping himself to some of the float that was in the centre console! Mick immediately ran round and confronted him. Much to his amazement, the thief decided to square up to him. For obvious reasons I can’t go into detail, but suffice to say, after a short, shall we call it a ‘discussion,’ the low life thief had it on his toes.
Our member suspected that the thief wasn’t as drunk as the girl, given how fast he ran away. With this, he went back round the cab and asked the girl (who was still bent over, throwing up) who the other passenger was, whilst also informing her of the soiling charge. She, now crying, claimed she didn’t know her fellow passenger and had met him in the club. She also informed him that she had no money. Now, the member was faced with a tricky decision of whether to call the Police or just let her go. He definitely didn’t want her back in his cab and he knew he couldn’t unlawfully detain her. He also had a suspicion that calling the Police would only make the whole disaster last longer.
Things can only get better
At this point, readers will do well to remember that this happened to someone else and not you, as I’m sure many of you will be shouting that you would have done things differently! He decided to let it go and headed off to Bubbles Car wash in Kendall Street. The cab was in such a state that he had to pay £100 to have it cleaned out.
Quite rightly then feeling very sorry for himself, Mick called a couple of mates for a pep talk. He decided he was not going home and after a coffee and a calm down, he made his way to Paddington and put on the rank.
After ten minutes, a gentleman with a rucksack came up to his window and said, “would you take me to Merthyr Tydfil in Wales please.” Our member informed him that he had had a very bad morning and was not really in the mood to be wound up. The gentleman then explained that he had flown into the country to visit his long-lost brother, who he had not seen for 30 years and that his request was in fact, a genuine one. There was a train strike that day and he was not put off by Mick’s estimate of how much the fare would be.
As they left Paddington to embark on the more than 160-mile trip, the gentleman asked if it would be possible to go via the Cotswolds. He explained that he had seen some lovely documentaries in the States and saw on the plane that it was sort of en-route to Wales. The driver obliged and they found a lovely little pub in a nice village and the man bought him a very nice lunch! On arrival in Merthyr, as well as paying the fare, the gentleman thanked the member very much and gave him what can only be described as a huge tip. Mick told me that he then floated back down the M4 in amazement.
The moral of this story is that if you are having a day, where it’s all going wrong try to stick to your hours, as things can easily change for the better (sometimes). Be lucky.
