Horse drawn herse

The bomb squad on the move.

Horse drawn hearse.
I was getting new tires so I decided to take out the camera when this funeral came down the road. A horse drawn hearse. Very popular with gangsters, but in this case it was a dear old mum.5 limos followed so she must have had a big family.RIP

People of my age will always remember the funeral of one of the Kray twins in London years ago. Bouncers in top hats and loads of "orses pulling erses"with their black plumes.
It is quit a while since I saw them carry the coffin in procession through the streets to the cemetery. Sometimes they carry in for 1/2 a mile or so, just to oblige the last wishes of the deceased, but its very rare now.

Well the Electric Picnic kicks off today look here.
Next Monday all the schools will be back at work, mums bringing the little dears in in their SUVs. Still I won't complain because the teachers will not be out driving their taxis(yes folks teachers on paid holidays drive taxis).

The third level students are flat hunting and I brought 4 ladies from Quait to Henry St. for shopping, I dropped them at the bottom of Moore st only then did I get my instruction for Spire pls..It took a while to explain that Henry st is closed to traffic and I would have to go around Parnell square and back down O'Connell to get to the spire. Strange how they would not get a second glance in Moore st. 90% of the people are non Irish down there. A great place to buy a bit of meat FX Buckleys and Troys is open again. I swear I saw his shop in Burnt Oak near Edgware 10 years ago.
His trademark is to have a tape recording and blearing out to the street"Grand bit of mutton there misses, have a look at me chops they are a bargain if ever I saw one...etc etc.

Talking of food I got sick mid week and had to take the day off, which gave me a chance to reat Alf Townsends book The London Cabbie.
You will find it on Amazom.com.
It was very good gave you a great insight to the "knowledge" You start by learning 400 trips from the "Blue Book" in his time he drove 14,000 miles on his moped with his map propped in front of him.
This test makes the London black cab drivers the best in the world.
Our system is so bad its incredible, drivers not knowing where the most basic places are.
The holding area at Heathrow which sounds like the parrot house at London Zoo, exactly like ours. He spoke of the scams and how the scammers paraded around the canteen like heroes..just like here, with nothing ever done to them.

One story told in the book was of 2 guys who wanted to go to Epping forest a good fare, but he declined as he was reaching the end of his shift. One of the newer guys took them there and they shot the driver dead when they reached their destination.

They were escaped prisoners on the run. But it scared everyone, it could have been any of them. A close shave.

Talking of the knowledge there is a play which was made into a film about 4 rookies doing the test. Its really good. I met a girl here in Dublin and her uncle wrote it.
Bet all he had to do was carry a note book, you might find it on www.blackstar.co.uk.

Remember the American actress who didn't tip?
I must say I was being very hard on her, she did come running from a hospital so the opportunity for there being something wrong with her or one of her friends should allow me to be very sympathetic.

One fare of interest happened when I picked up my last fare of the day today.
A guy on East Wall Road going to Grafton St.
His phone must have rung 50 times on the journey. He also arranged to meet someone en route. I did have a bad feeling about him from the start, all the whispering on the phone did not help.
His mate was slow turning up then this what can only be describes as a model walked over to the car and jumps in...Kissie Kissie followed. She was an Essex girl type.Here you been slumming it with a well known Irish footballer ? No I ain't. A guy with a big nose....Oh yea I only went with him cos he was a good shag...
Then the other suspect arrived he had been transferring cash and off we went to Grafton st.
The fare was something like e14.80 he gave me e50 give me back 30 mate and off they went.

I don't think I would be exaggerating if I compared it to another time a few years ago.
A "Model" got into the taxi I need to go to Church st and then to the airport.
She was drop dead gorgeous,around 18, well her story was that her boyfriend had given her a package to bring over to his mate in Dublin,he had arranged for them to stay in Blooms hotel, but at the last minute he dropped out and rather than waste all the money she came over alone. The guy she was supposed to meet now she had lent money to he was late and it looked like she would have to go to the airport without her money.
Her boyfriends mate got on the phone to her and he went over to the guys house and met us with a blood splattered tee shirt. He forgot about the money so I just had to remind him. Have a safe trip home and tell Johnny I will see him next week.
I drove to the airport seething about hew dumb this blond was, carrying drugs and what a scumbag her boyfriend was in sending her over like that,she really was only a kid.
She would not be as pretty after 10 years in Mountjoy jail locked up with the Scissors sisters and the black widow not forgetting Lying eyes.

Yes the old world is a series of parallel lines, each persons life or reality is so different from someone elses.

Thank God you did not meet some other people when you walked out the school gates, your life and prospects would be so different.