Thursday, February 12, 2009

C is for. . .

My Mom taught me never to get into a car with a stranger. But, as an adult living in NYC, I do this all the time.

C is for cabs.

Yes, NYC has a wonderful public transportation system, but sometimes a girl just has to hail a cab.

When she has too many shopping bags. If she’s running late. When it’s too cold. Too hot. When her knees hurt. If it's a bad hair day. And especially when she’s crossing a street and a cab just happens to pull up alongside her.



I take cabs. More than I should. And I may be poorer in cash because of this. But so much richer in exotic experiences.



Some crazies have driven me. The guy who talked to himself. The driver who didn’t realize that a red light means stop. The cabbie that delighted in terrorizing pedestrians.

But there was also the cabbie who taught me how to brine meat. And (via cell phone) I once explained a homework assignment to a driver’s ten-year old. There's been drivers who have waited to make sure I safely got into my building.

Our cab drivers come from everywhere but NYC. And I’ve heard their stories about their countries, their families, their dreams.



Yep. I take cabs.

There's approximately 10,000 cabs in NYC. I've probably ridden in them all.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I can never justify taking a cab. Sometimes, I leave the house thinking "When I get out of the subway, I'm taking a cab the rest of the way. I am not walking." And then by the time I get downtown (from the Bronx) I've talked myself out of spending the money on a cab.

Maybe I need you to rub off on me a little!

This is Kim from iamabutterfly.com, by the way. For some reason it wouldn't let me post with Name/URL.

margaret in manhattan said...

I hear ya! luckily, most cabs now take credit cards, which certainly makes for a double advantage - not fumbling for cash, and those rewards points/miles! Unfortunately, it makes it easier for some of us just to jump in and go for the ride ...

stringplay said...

C for Cabs! Of course! Perfect. And they all look so clean! I love seeing all the pictures.

minipurl said...

Well, let's see...I've taken the train,rode on a bus down a rainy 5th Ave. at night (so pretty), many trips on the subway, and hoofed it too many mile of NYC to count. I splurged on a cab once and it was a real experience. Next visit to NYC will have to include at least one scary cab ride.
Loved all the pictures of them :)

cici said...

I love nyc and especially riding in the cabs. Great photos

Anonymous said...

I agree that cabs are one of NYC's indulgences that are great when you need to get somewhere in a hurry or it's late at night. Despite that, they do cause a lot of accidents. As a pedestrian, I was hit by a cab while crossing Park Avenue. The good news was that I was able to stand up and yell at the driver in typical NYC style while I waited for an ambulance.

sherriknits said...

I loved this post! I would be too scared to get into a cab but then I thought I'd be too scared to come to NYC and loved it!
I especially loved the idea of you helping the driver's child with homework! Somehow that just makes sense to me that you would do that.