mustard, your probation may be extended past the standard guidelines."
"I understand." My tone quickly shifted from enthusiastic to solemn.
"Bottom line, everybody's gotta pull their weight. We have the interests of the entire membership to keep in mind. You're allowed to work through problems, to make mistakes, but only up to a point. We need drivers who make money. We don't need drivers who cost us money just to have them on the road. Capiche?"
I nodded soberly. "Yes. I understand." Quite fully.
Chapter 5
Working For A Living
The most remarkable aspect of my first night driving cab was that the weather was downright balmy for early December, death to a business dependent on inclement weather. However, this was a determination made only in retrospect, the basis for normal weather not within my lexicon, though it did indeed become quite aesthetically pleasing when the first snowflakes began to fall.
But for that first night, it proved quite the inauspicious beginning. No matter, had Kern not said to take it slow in the beginning?
He also had said, "We'll be watching you."
I shall never forget my first cab, though, with luck, maybe the memory will fade over the next several centuries. She was not a pretty sight, the exterior covered with dents and mottled with rust - the phone answerer who had given me the keys described the cab as, "rusty but trusty." Indeed! The upholstery was torn and stained, and the driver's seat bore a huge indentation from too many obese drivers. As I settled behind the wheel, a spring pressed into my buttock. I sank down a few inches, making it difficult to see over the cab's hood. Though the night was warm, it took several tries to successfully start the vehicle before it finally whimpered to life, belching a cloud of black smoke. And the cab did not ride any better than it looked. The acceleration was sluggish, and the shock absorbers were virtually non-existent, causing me to wonder if human drivers of this cab would pass blood when urinating.
What had Kern said? All cabs are good cabs? But some cabsare better than others, and over time I did get to drive much nicer vehicles than this. Unfortunately, rookie drivers often find themselves driving the worst cabs in the fleet, partially because, when they select, they lack the knowledge of what cabs to seek and what cabs to avoid. Also, rookie drivers often end up driving what no one else will drive, not wanting to appear too choosy, thus giving themselves the reputation of a prima donna.
Nor shall I ever forget my first call. The cab had been inspected inside and out, all variety of lights checked, mirrors adjusted, windows washed, windshield wiper fluid reservoir filled, charge slips all in good supply, seat belt clasped in place, the microphone in hand and there were calls on the board. I hit the bid button and waited for the dispatcher to respond.
"Fifty," the dispatcher said after what felt like an incredibly long time.
And now for my very first bid. I trembled with excitement. "Back lot."
"Head up, fifty," the dispatcher replied. Either the business was uptown or the dispatcher suggested an improvement of my existential outlook.
"Ten-four," I replied, then shifted into gear and moved with controlled alacrity toward the calls. The dispatcher called off the board, and again I hit the bid button.
"Fifty," he said after calling a few other cab numbers.
I keyed the microphone and spoke, watching for the next intersection. "East Washingtonand ... Patterson."
"Fifty, reading the streets signs, theParadise ."
"Say again?" That was what Kern had said I should say if I did not understand a dispatcher's transmission.
"TheParadise Lounge."
"Where and what is that?"
"Mister Farkus, theParadise is a bar. Just off the Square, at Carroll andMain . Do you copy, Mister Farkus?"
"Ten-four," I said, momentarily annoyed that he had seen fit to use my name twice in one transmission and was using a rather impudent tone. Are these people so insecure that they feel the need to humiliate their betters whenever they get the chance?
Still, excitement filled me because this was my first call on my first scheduled shift, my first chance to actively participate in the rebuilding of my fortune. My first chance to relearn how to fend for myself. Kevin, the operations manager, was kind enough to honor my request to work during the best money-making shifts, while allowing for my "special needs," providing a schedule of 6 PM to 4 AM, Tuesday through Thursday, and what they call "circle shifts", 8 PM to