Last day of May

Dusk on Dublin bay


Entrance to the Beggars Bush barracks


This wonderful flower opened up this week in our house, the plant is well over 100 years old,
Good eh?


Wow today I had an enchanted day.

I diverted from my normal routine and I started to click, a run to the airport with a Swedish guy and a run back to Kilmainham Hilton with a whiz kid bass player.

I think 4 times it happened that one person got out and I picked up again within 5 minutes, this is unheard of good luck.(Did Euromillions)

After lunch I had the same good luck.
I went to the port to Irish Ferries and just missed the people coming off the boat.
Then I spotted some people at the Stenna line so I drove over.
No one flinched when I pulled up.
I hate to behave like some sort of Pimp so I turned the wheel to drive away when one of the women stopped me.
Her story was that the last time she came over her boat ticket brought her to the bus station, she had no euro only sterling and the bus driver would not let her on to the bus.
So she had been stuck there for over an hour with her daughter.
So I loaded them up and brought them to the Statoil garage at the port where Euro was taken from the bank machine. She was going to Limerick and I told her that only a few euro more she should go directly to the train station, saving time and money.
I cut her a deal as they had started badly.

That Stenna line operation will have no luck.
Surely it would make sense to bring them into town and let them pay on arrival rather than leave them stranded.
Such is life.
Then I picked up a lady who works in the movies, as it transpired.
I asked her if she knew the actress Britta Smith, "She was a good friend" she said, after a few more sentences I said to her. Did you say was?.
Yes she died of cancer 4 years ago, didn't you know?
I had spent 2 days working with her around 12 years ago, a really wonderful lady RIP

Come on boys and girls this is no dress rehearsal.
Live your life to its fullest.



On the radio last weekend Marian Finucane spoke with Dr.Gary O'Toole

You can listen to the programme here it is very interesting.
The main part of the show was taken up with how he fought for years to uncover a pedophile ring which was operating in the Irish swimming board.
If you have children it is important that you give it a careful listen to.
It also explained how the abusers operated in spite of all effort to have it stopped and how the courts failed him in the end.
Magill magazine THEN published the story in the end hoping he would sue them.
If the story was lies he would have been well compensated IF HE SUED THEM, he didn't sue which proved his guilt.

A certain young Billionaire Internet whiz kid who recently got married is in Italy, so I hear.
It is alleged that he went into a restaurant and had a pasta meal,nothing wrong there.
The bill was €32 and it is said that he paid it leaving no tip.

He could spend €1 million a day for the rest of his life and still not spend it all before he dies.

Bank holiday again.

F1 Poster for the big event.



Club orange had a campaign a few years ago.
"I've got you under my skin"
Some wag put a diget 4 on the posters, end of campaign.

I wonder will someone put in a "T" on this one (I know it is crude. BUT)



Sea scouts head back into the den to change.


Dollymount strand 25 minutes out of town on the 130 bus.
Heaven in the sunshine.

The sun shone and we all came out to play.
Overcoats vanished for a week, though the rain is heading back.

There was a Dublin charicter who went round shouting "Damn the weather"

He was right!


Well it looks like next weekend will be A "Perfect storm" for traffic.

First of all you have the womens mini marathon. (Lots of hot girls there)

Then you have Bloom in the Pheonix park(our Chelsea flower show.)

Then Baveria street F1 racing on the street.

GAA in Croke park.

A 3 day music festival at Kilmanham

The Cat Laughs festival in Kilkenny

Racing at the Curragh

Plus a firemen march.

And many more things going on.

I am sure there will be many other things happpening as well.

So if you are making plans, leave a litle bit of wriggle room.


Something to think about.






So if a guy takes your parking space, chill out.
Don't be like this fool.



So you invent an act and you go on TV and someone comes along and STEALS IT !
JUST TAKE A LOOK AT THE 2 ACTS SIDE BY SIDE.
What can you do?

Coming very soon

On Monday the Afro Cuban all stars preform in Dublin, I saw a group of them on Camden St today..
This I hope to go to see.



It was the grey haired guy with the beard I saw.
Age is no barrier for true talent

Yes folks the Bavaria street racing is coming
Click here to see the map.
This is part of what it is all about.



So Blonds, fast cars and loads of cheap beer.
So nothing could go wrong ?

new builds

It is very strange ow how someone can pick up an idea and the whole world runs with it?.

Wow on TV 3 tonight they ran with the Green light is racist idea.
Even though many people spoke about how the only people on their rank were Romanian !

Do you have children?

Well there is a story called "Henny Penny" In this story the hen Henny Penny thinks that the sky is falling when an acorn hits her on the head and she squaks that all around the town.

The moral of the story is that the hen was an ejeet !

But she did start a panic !

So if you see a green light on my taxi it's not because I am from Venus,
I am just looking for a fecken passenger like the other 12,000 empty taxis.

Still hanging in there

Still not got my photo software sorted out

Here in Ireland we are very lucky to receive quality radio programmes from the UK and elsewhere..
As we drive around in our taxis we listen to radio programmes constantly.
I listen to Lyric FM for a good part of the day, it is really relaxing music.
Using your computer or an internet radio fantastic radio programmes can be listened to from wherever you are in the world.
The big trick is to learn to turn off the doom and gloom merchants, they drag you down.

Radio is great, you can have an army of hundreds of marching soldiers just by bouncing dried peas on a tray! Or a BIG eagle flapping its wings opening and closing an umbrella

There is a trend of thought which states.

NEGATIVE THOUGHTS BRINGS NEGATIVE ENERGY AND THAT

NEGATIVE ENERGY BRINGS BAD THINGS TO YOU.

SO

GOOD HAPPY THOUGHTS BRING GOOD THINGS.

Here is a wonderful programme on traffic lights By Martin Cassini a great insight it is, have a listen to it.

One big thing that was in the news was this video clip



Look at how they went on to the wrong side of the road missing trucks by inches.
After the "race" the police were surrounded and they had to retreat.

By the way trotting a horse on a hard road like this gives them chipped bones, they need to trot on a soft cinder or grass track.

You would be better off surfing.

Things which are coming up

The Afro Carabean allstars are coming to town again.
I went to see them the last time they were here, I had tears in my eyes they were so outstandgly good.



Remember how good the Buena Vista social club were?
The piano player Ruben Gonzalez was remakable for a man of any age never mind a man in his 90s

Another great show which is coming to the Bord Gas energy theatre
Midnight Tango something to look forward to.



Well the story of the lady who grazed off my car door took a bad turn.
The insurance accessor called to her and offered to replace her car and arranged a hire car for a week to give her a chance to buy another.
Today she has had a change of heart and claims whiplash and soft tissue damage.

There was contact, yes.

But no impact which could have caused any harm to her.

Well lets see what happens next.

Green means ?

Some air head with no brains wrote an article saying that the "Green lights"on the taxi roof signs are really a signal to let people know that the driver is Irish.

You would have to ask Noel Byrne why he imported them.

The thinking public agreed and now the minister Leo Varadka has decided that shuch lights should be banned in future.

If logic had been used one might think that if a Nigerian was using the green for hire sign you would be accusing him of false advertising.

"Henny Penny" is alive and well

Thank God I can see the funny side.

Crash Bang

This is the workshop of Noel Byrne in Walkinstown. The bay is empty, he is the agent for Metig taxi meters. We are due a review of rates, petrol is going up in price all the time, but business is falling as well.

I had a veryv polite lady in the car who runs her own chauffeur company click here, nice site.
I wish her luck.

Anyhoo,
Apart from everything else I have hit a bit of a setback !

I was in Crumlin village late on Sunday night when my back seat passenger suddenly opened the back door into traffic !
He struck a passing car and damaged the front wing,took off the mirror, damaged the drivers and passengers door.

"Sorry about that! The wind caught the door"

Now it comes back to MY insurance to pay for the damage to the other car and I must pay for the damage to my own car as well!

Thats a real Bummer that is.

Here is a must do for you all today.
Do it now.
Put the child lock on the door that opens into traffic.
If they are getting out that side at least you can open the door for them.

By the way there is a link on the R/H side of my blog "Save the yellow cab"
It is a radio show that is well worth listening to.
It ties in nicely with the other video.

New York day in the life

A day in the life of a new York taxi driver


By the way MADRID has a population of 10 million people and has 16,000 taxis, the number is capped.
In Dublin whe have close to the same number of taxis for 2 million people.

Weekend AGAIN

The fox who lives in my sons garden in London.






Diner special train journey from Heuston London



Another cruise liner arrives into Dublin

All these short weeks, Bank Holidays.
No wonder the banks are in trouble

The other day I had an enchanted morning, hardly empty for longer than 20 minutes.
Lady luck rode with me all morning, €120 by noon.
I hope she comes to you soon as well.
Without good luck you will make no money.

One pair of Germans gave me an address in Walkinstown which I did not know, but the Garmin sat nav found it.
While we were getting there the woman was on the phone.
She was ringing people "Hello this is **** we are in Dublin today, could we call over to meet you?"
Now, they were selling building materials, doors or windows.
First things first.
There is no demand for building materials at all now.
Builders merchants are going bankrupt by the minute, so you have the added problem that you will loose a lot of money if you advance them credit.

Better to think things through and get all your little ducks in a line before you set off.

I would have brought them to a company I use and have them talk with the lads there for a while.
When they arrived at their destination they told me that they were going to Cork today 254 kilometres, wait 2 hours and back to Dublin airport another 254 Kms.. How much would that cost ?
Off the top of my head I reckoned at €500 for time, fuel, food and tolls and 500+ Kms driving.
The guy said he was thinking of €300.
I told him he would get what he would pay for,
I checked with a few other drivers, it was near enough.
Then again I had contacts in Dublin who would have pointed them in the right direction.

A big nest is built slowly over time with small sticks, taking care as you go.

Oh well !

Then I picked up on East Wall going to Clondalkin, this lady's life is in helter skelter mode, a real roller coaster of emotions.

Sometimes when someone gets a chance to open up the emotions burst out like a tidal wave.
I will not go into details but it is more involved than the plot of a soap opera.

I really do hope that things back to normal son for her.

I went into Liffy Valley to get a hamburger as it was well past breakfast time.
Wow! Pitza hut is closed down, note on the door
"Contact administrator"

Rents in shopping centers are really high,if business dips down you get into trouble very quickly.
Rents in have got an "Upward only" clause.
If a lower rent was negotiated for say 3 years there would be less empty units around.

On the way back into town I got on to the taxi rank at Heuston.
One frequwnt fare is to Crumlin Childrens hospital.
The lady had a very sick child with an enlarged head and she was wearing a mask covering the lower part of her face. I would reckon there was a deformity too shocking to be seen, so she wore the mask to stop people gaping at her.
Her own car had blown a cylender head gasket a few weeks ago and a frend had sold her another car which she was getting today.

I send my best wishes and prayers to them.

It is hard to understand why sick people have to come to Dublin to be examined, they could arrange reagional clinics perhaps

But she did tell me that she went to a hospital in Cork a few weeks ago and it was filthy and run down,like something you would expect in India.

Too many people going round with clip boards counting the number of buttons on the doctors coats instead of doing proper work.

When I went to have coffee today I picked up 2 business men from Argentina,to the airport.
€21.20 so I asked for €21., he handed me €20 and we got out of the taxi while he looked for the other euro.
"Oh I have no coin,only notes"
Using my best Tango step I stood in his way and said that I had change.

He took out his notes and peeled off a €10 and he got €9 back.
That guy haad been staying in the Westbury hotel 4* and not by any means cheap.

The lady with the sick child insisted on a €2 tip much against my wishes.

I thought that this man was the CEO of Google, but its still good.
A lesson about compassion from Google.

Shakespeare

In Shakespeare's Globe theater a real live Cree Injun reads from the bard in his native tongue.
They had a whole day celebrating his birthday that they read all his sonnets in all the languages of the world, Cree, Welsh,Irish,Norwegian etc, etc.



"We bury all faiths"
Sign in a London undertakers. How many do you know?




So I managed to download photos on to a different computer, it will be off to see my Chinese friend to get him give the old computer a big kick.

The other day the gas heater regulator broke, the poor old dog was shivering with the cold so I made my way to a hardware store for a new regulator.
I brought it home and when I went to fit it I noticed that one of the little ball bearings was missing. So I went back and returned the regulator and then decided to buy a brand new heater. €180 +
So on the way home i decided it was time to replace the broken radio as well.
So I went into Power City and there was the same gas heater for €120 now €60 is too much of a difference, so I bought an even cheaper heater for €99.
Then I went back and brought the first heater back for a refund.
It just goes to show how much you have to fight for value.


If you can cast your mind back to the day of the Grand National.
A man called William Parsisson went into the bookies to place a bet on the big race.
He had his baby daughter with him who was not well at the time, she had been to the hospital twice but the doctors had failed to diagnose her illness correctly.
Vickie the bookies clerk diagnosed the condition as as pyloric stenosis a rare condition which her own daughter had once suffered from.
The father brought the infant to a different hospital where Vickies diagnosis was confirmed.
A 40 minute operation corrected the condition and the father is now preparing to sue the first hospital.

You see the problem of going to court is that an incorrect diagnosis is not proof for incompetence.

And the horse? His £5 bet on Sunnyhillboy who came in second won £25

Wrong way / right way twice

While I am on the subject of honesty with regard to taxis.
Have you ever been to Athens in Greece?
When you arrive at the airport you are directed to a taxi office.
You tell them where you are going and pay them. The office give you a voucher and this is handed to the driver only when you arrive at your destination.
You owe nothing else.
Now the public might be more willing to take taxis if they knew that they were not going to be robbed by the driver.

Last week I saw 2 boy racers zooming around Donnybrook.
Now these were no ordinary boy racers, one was driving a Maserati the other a Ferrari, both cars were dark color. I heard that they "Creamed" 6 cars when they came to a piece of road which narrowed. From what I saw they were just rich kids who had borrowed daddy's car! Looks like no pocket money for you guys for a long while.

I had a strange one the other day 2 Australians going to Avis car hire, but he didn't know where it was. I think it was around Donnybrook I picked them up. Now I had picked up a van from Avis a few years ago, so I was sure I knew where it was,but he assured me I was going the wrong way and that he was now bringing me the right way, we arrived in Lombard st. Thrifty car hire.

Now since when did they become Avis?


Strange to say that I think I had a celeb in the taxi a few weeks ago, same thing she kept telling me I was going the wrong way.
We were stopped outside the actual hairdressers she wanted to go to and she insisted that I go right down Baggott st and over the bridge again, you are at the wrong end.
Then I stopped and rang the number of the salon and drove the distance back to the door.
If she was indeed Maureen O'Hara she was looking well enough. Any time you see her on TV she has a mask of makeup. She has a very strange Irish American accent which I couldn't fathom.
I suppose if you are someone like that you don't go around blowing you own trumpet. You just want to lead a normal life.



Very different were the "Paper dolls", an aerial performance company based in Dublin. Currently training in the Belfast Circus School.
I was bringing them back from the Spectacle of Defiance and Hope as their characters "the Eccentric Ladies" !

They have a really nice website

The son of ambassador in the car he spoke about how the police speak to people.
He was young and he felt like saying to them."How dare you speak to me like that. Have you any idea who I am?"
This would be a big mistake.
Now it is not the fault of the police if they stop him committing a minor traffic offence in a car with no CD plates and then they fail to respect him as the person he is.
Still he had the get out of Jail card in his back pocket.

I am sure you know the one about the American embassy had a battered old car which they all used as a runaround. The ambassador and his wife took it out and were stopped for speeding. The car had no tax and the driver told the Garda he was the American Ambassador to Ireland. The Garda took one look at the old beat up car and said. "If you're the American Ambassador then I'm John Wane"
He checked the papers and came back. "I do apolagise Mr Ambassador, go on your way" To which the driver replied. "Thank you very much Mr John Wane"

Taxi drivers get hassle all the time.
But we say things like
"I am very sorry sir, the sun may have blinded the traffic lights, Indeed I am a very stupid person, I am very very sorry and I assure I will be more careful in future"

Far better than getting a fine

Heading back out to see Tango master Pablo Veron (See earlier posting)


Now this is what I call a magic interlude.
Its a pity he didn't give his assistant (Miss Direction) a chance to get dressed

Honest as the day is long

I got my old layout back at last, you see, I write a bit, then I go back and correct it followed by another piece, then adding the pictures then when it is published I often find errors again which I go back on and correct it all over again.

But I have a problems with the photos for one more day.


Honesty is the best policy

Just in case you think it is only in Ireland that taxi drivers overcharge.
Here is one from Asia.

$400 fine for $190 taxi fare

By Hidir Reduan
New Straits Times
Friday, Apr 27, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR - Two taxi drivers paid a heavy price for overcharging their passengers when they were slapped with hefty fines in two separate cases at the magistrate's court yesterday.

First in the dock was J. Elanggo, who pleaded guilty to over-charging a British couple of nearly RM460 (S$188) in taxi fare for a trip from the KLCC in Jalan Ampang to the Dorsett Regency Hotel, Jalan Imbi, about 2pm on Feb 8.

The couple, Evelyn Irene and Rex Alan Frank, were shocked when they were asked to pay RM459.20 when the meter only showed RM8.

The couple paid the fare but lodged a report with the Complaints and Investigation Unit of the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) later that day.

Counsel N. Satgurunathan, who appeared for Elanggo, pleaded for a lenient penalty in light of the high cost of living his client shouldered.

"He only earns on average RM3,500 a month, RM2,250 of which are already spent on monthly taxi rental. He has a wife and two young children to support."

Prosecuting officer Chief Inspector Nom Phot Prackdit urged the court to impose a heavy sentence to deter other taxi drivers from committing the same offence.

Magistrate Nurdiana Mohd Nazari fined the accused RM1,000 and ordered him to serve a month in jail if he did not pay the fine.

Elanggo paid the fine.

In the same court later, another taxi driver was fined RM400 in default four days' jail after he pleaded guilty to over-charging four passengers RM8 in taxi fare.

Ahmad Osman, 53, demanded the victims pay the RM8 instead of RM4.80 which was shown in the taxi meter.

He committed the offence at the LRT Sentul Timur in Taman Dato Senu, here, around 6.37pm on Nov 30, last year. He paid the fine.

Speaking to reporters outside court, SPAD legal and secretarial executive Nor Shahkierra Abd Manan said the convictions of the two taxi drivers were the first for the offence of over-charging passengers.

The taxi drivers could have been fined a maximum RM50,000, jailed not more than three years or both.

At least over there the public seems to be protected, not like over here where such things are just ignored.

An Australian man and his wife approached me and asked me to take them to Suffolk St., he wanted to take the Aircoach to the airport.
I told him that the taxi fare to town and the bus fare would be roughly the same cost as going there directly by taxi and the taxi would be much faster.
He told me that another guy who worked in their London office had told them that they had been charged €50 to get into town the last time he had used a taxi in Dublin, so he advised them to use the Aircoach.
So all taxi drivers finish up getting a bad name.

There was a poor taxi driver a few years ago in Saudi Arabia I think who found a briefcase full of money and diamonds.
He retraced his steps and found the owner, who was very happy to get his goods back.
Word got out about his honesty and how the owner never gave the driver any reward.
The King himself sent for him and presented him with a large reward.
Right from the hand of the King.
The driver thanked him and told the King that it was in his very nature to be honest, if the owner did not reward him this was of no consequence. It would be between him and his God.

Still it can be hard to be reasonable at times.

An American threesome got into the taxi to go to Glasneven graveyard, then to the Gravediggers pub. So I showed them the sights en route. The father wanted to go to the toilet. So we went to Kavanaghs pub (the grave diggers)first.
I said I would pause the meter while they had a cigarette.
On arrival at the grave yard I got a phone call from home so I had to excuse myself.
They were going to walk down to the family plot and would get another taxi when they walked back out on the road again.
There was €17.50 on the meter.
I waited with €2.50 in my hand. He paused and fumbled through his wad of money. Then I told him I had the change of €20 in my hand and the blue note was the €20.
So he took the change and gave me the €20.
I said thanks and turned to go, but he insisted that he wanted to look after me as I had "looked after them real well"
So by how much did he value my service?
€20 no €10 no €5 No €1 no, but you are getting warmer.
.70 cent was to be my reward! I don't know if you behave badly in such situations.
Do you give it back and say you are sorry if you offended them so badly?
I didn't know you were so hard up, you had better keep it yourself.
I will buy a box of matches on the way home. Or throw it away in disgust.

Just take it on the chin and behave yourself, which I did.
But it is hard when a poor person would give you €2 or €3.
Now I will forget all about them.


Talking about honesty I had an accountant in the taxi who does the books for different businesses.
He started doing the books for a Doctors practice, things were not right. He went back through the records for 15 years.
The Doctors secretary had been skimming money off the patients accounts for herself.
There was more than €150,000 missing. She had put 4 kids through college, she had property in France New York and Florida.
She got 5 years jail. But our journey came to an end before he could say how much money they had got back.I didn't get a chance to ask him how much money the doctor had put in his back pocket without declaring it.

The Edge of U2 fame had problems a while back when it was alleged one of his staff was taking money out of his bank account around €3 million was the figure for that one. She also had an international property portfolio.

"John she said Forgivness and reconcillation are not words you use when you refer to Muslims"
A realy funny lady

Belated May day

Yes indeed Paddy I forgot
May day




I hope we all have a great Summer