Found and Lost

Around 1am last Monday morning I carried home an Irish girl and fella from the City. The woman sat directly behind me next to her mate on the passenger door. We dropped her first and proceeded to his place a few kilometres away. Being drunk he screwed up the directions meaning we had to backtrack, so I extended him a five dollar discount.

A few minutes later I picked up an Irish barman from a Paddington Hotel and almost immediately a phone started ringing on the back seat, where the woman has sat earlier. The phone had been on the seat next to the Irish lad but he never saw it.

I asked the passenger, ‘Mate, can you get that phone for me, it must be my last passengers’. He grabbed it and answered, ‘Hello ? No, I just found this phone in a taxi. Colleen must have left it here...who’s this ? Ah Fergus, that’s a crack, this is Shaun. Yes, they were in the pub earlier but I’ll hang onto the phone. Tell Colleen to come by tomorrow and pick it up’. Unbelievable ! In a city of over four million people you can trust the Irish to find each other. Call them lucky.

An hour later I came across a young couple sitting in the gutter at deserted Bondi Beach. Reluctantly they wandered to the cab and climbed in for a local address. They were Kiwis on vacation and returning home later that morning. Earlier in the evening they had left a camera in a Silver Service cab containing all their holiday shots and had been waiting in vain for the cab to return. Needless to say they were shattered, resigned to never seeing the camera again.

The taxi base had broadcast an appeal to drivers but to no avail. Most probably the Silver cabbie had knocked off by then and gone home. All I could suggest was they leave a contact number in case he handed it in the following day. A big 'maybe'. So I decided to waive the $6.50 fare in recognition of their misfortune before heading home. Instead the fella handed me a tenner insisting I keep it. He deserved better luck.

Comments

[Nathaniel]

Adrian said above: Being drunk he screwed up the directions meaning we had to backtrack, so I extended him a five dollar discount.

Your a better or wealthier man than I, in my opinion they gave the direction, I followed it as requested and if they made a stuff up of it, all the better for my back pocket.
I'm not having a go but just think how much he spent getting christmas mist. He wont miss the fiver it's better off in your pocket.

Just my 2 cents

[Shadow]

Sometimes when your driving cabs, you become quite generous to people. It depends on a few things. Their attitude seems to be the main thing.
If it was an honest mistake, you compensate a bit. It's human nature.

[adrian]

Nathaniel, normally I'm not so generous but I'd done all right on the night and...well, what the hell, it made me feel good ! Plus Shadow's explanation was also a contributing factor. Ironically the bucks soon came back anyway with the Kiwi fare.

[Lee]

Individual circumstances control any given situation and one acts accordingly. Good on you, Adrian! :)