2 days back in the world

Add caThis is what happens when you dont pay attention and a tree jumps on to the road

Where do monkeys play billiards?

A work of art in the clouds

As you might know I changed my car to a 3rd generation Prius.
I had not intended to change over but as I couldn't sell the cars I imported from Japan so I took them in and I changed cars.
Timing is everything and I made a mess in my planning. I was going to have the new car wrapped in the "Mytaxi" logo and then I was flying off to Holland, things did not work out and I found myself out of work for about a month.
Driving a taxi is mostly cash, buy petrol..Cash..Buy groceries..cash and so on.
No work, no money, no fun....
But I am back and I am not a whinger for sure.

I came out of the starting blocks like a winner.

I never complain to my passengers. If i knew their troubles I would have a breakdown for sure.
A lady told me that she was going to Tallagh, on the way she told me that she had been reared by the nuns until she was 14,Christ, my life was blessed when compared to hers.
Her husband of 36 years had died from cancer and now she was returning from a retreat with the nuns down the country.

I can tell you if I wrote about 10% of my passengers my blog would run to volumes.

A girl told me about someone in her club who had cancer and it was not good. He had a 2 year old child and they decided to do some fund raising for him and his dependents, so they opened a crowd funding website and raised a few thousand euro.
Then someone from America pointed that the organisers take 8% of the money collected, since then they have held auctions and quizzes and ALL the money went to him.
I am glad that I didn't have to give up my life at 30.

A Google girl got in going to a funeral home in Raheny.
Her grandfather had died.
A lot of religions stress that death is the start of a happy journey.
It is sad that they passed over, but what a legacy they left behind.
The life they had hoped for was full of adventure,and we all have to die.
Do not fear death, rather celebrate a great life.
She was happy getting out.

One of the last jobs of the day was to the airport and we got on together like a symphony.
His favorate movie and mine are the same Cinema Paradeso.
He even used the music in his wedding ! Wow

If you know nothing of this movie,?
Find time to discover it.



While you are at it don't laugh at the fat guy

Law and order.

The natural history Meuseium or the dead zoo.

A huge mural down at Smithfield look at the cars

 Over the last few days the law once more proved itself that it is a complete ass.
A girl from Brazil arrived to visit her host family in Galway, she had stayed them a few years previously as an au pair and was looking forward to seeing the kids again.
The immigration questioned her up closely and they rang her host family in Galway who told them that she was expected.
Then she was arrested, brought to the womans prison, strip searched and held overnight.
Her cellmate was a drug addict and alcoholic and was getting sick into the sink in the cell which they shared.
She asked for a drink of water and was told to take her drink from the vomit covered sink and tap.

Now people from Brazil can come to visit for 90 days without a visa anyhow.
She was so traumatized by her treatment that she got on a plane and went away.

A Spanish girl met a homeless guy and it is alleged that he took her for a walk around the city
He was out on parole for another crime at the time.
It is said that he raped her and held her captive over a 24 hour period.
Only when he fell asleep did she manage to make her escape.
He was arrested and then he was let out on bail !!!!!!!!!
Even though he had broken the terms of his parole.

But today he is back in court and we can all sleep safely in our beds.


Well my old taxi is off the road while I jump through hoops to have the new car passed out as a taxi.
So I am resting until tomorrow until I apply to have the new car passed out.
After you have your car NCT'd you have to wait 48 hours so that a record appears on the "System"
Now the building where they do the testing is the exact same building as the one where all the other paperwork is done.
Its a bit maddening to say the least.

The airwaves were full of the exploits of Rosemary Smith the 79 year old rally driver.
You see she got the chance to drive a formula 1 racing car and she jumped at it.
I must say that my Ferrari drive was great 180 mph!, but the car hugs the road so well that you feel like you are doing only 80.
The sad part of the day came when they told me that I couldn't take it home.

 Here is the clip of her drive

Technology me arse

Vintage taxi meter

Never a truer word spoken

Big brother is still watching us. Google camera.

Every now and then you come on something new..Good? Bad?
Well everything has both.
Mobile phones Great. But people have forgotten the real world and text and spend time on facebook while all the time little Sarah or Johnny are trying to tell them something really important.
Like "Mum your going to crash"

So it is with "Proximity key."
You walk up to the car and put your hand on the handle and it unlocks, then you press the power button and away you go.
The first time I heard of it was from a guy who lived in California, "Over there all cars are all high end cars.So I bought a second hand Ferrari. Wow Look at me"
So I was driving around like a big shot.
I got a phone call as I was walking up to my car and I put the keys and my coffee on the roof of the car. It was very a important call. I had to zoom off and lifting the coffee from the roof I just zoomed off.. Not for long though before my car told me to pull over as it was shutting down.
The bloody keys were on the roof...... Towing charges $500, New key $3000
This is the price you pay for being a dunce.
A Concierge at a swanky hotel delivered the car to its owner.
5 miles down the road he pulls in to get a drink.
The car won't start the asshole at the hotel has the key in his pocket.
A taxi is called (Which is on the hotel tab) to deliver the key to him.

I now have a new car with one proximity key....The second key will cost me €480
This is the price of progress.
Plenty of scope for error, still its a great car.
We worry about how progress will catch us out, people with fancy gizmos copying our key signals in multi story car parks.
God be with the days when the key had a number and it could be cut in a few minutes..
The past is great its 20 20 vision

So for myself I have to redo my NCT its not out of date for 18 months  but for a taxi its a week out of date.
Then they have to check the meter, then my first aid kit and fire extinguishers etc,,
As sure asTechnology as God made little apples I will check my taxi app in a few weeks to find that 2 of the cars in front of me in the queue will be illegal when I check them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Folks against the bank

There is some good news in the housing sector.
Visit the HUB and ask for advice with your property loans.
Banks have been treating the ordinary people very badly,
banks on the other side deserve a good kick in the backside.
They gave 110% loans to buy houses then they gave them loans to buy new cars as well.
Nothing was ever stress tested...How could anyone on an income ever pay back the money?
My dad threw a fit when I borrowed £600 to buy a car once.
How much did you borrow?
What was the interest rate 6% ?
So you are paying back X per month over 3 years...That works out at 40%
Go back down to the bank and tell them that they are wrong.

So that kind bank manager explained that £600 +£228 interest divided by 36 gives you X per month for 36 months.
No I said. From day one I don't owe you three years interest, then when I make a payment I don't owe the balance of £600. The interest should be on the balance and calculated monthly.

What will you do about it?
I'll phone Gay Byrne and write into the Anglo Celt.

Bingo! He said I'll give you a term loan.... A big difference.

Another big thing which is coming home to roost is the "Seniors Money" They gave granny a loan on the equity on her house, off she went on a cruise, she lived well and then the banks finished up owning the house...Compound interest is a tough one. Someone should have given her money on a written agreement that the family inherit the home on her death.



So if you can live within your means.

Click on this

Then the Garda will deny your basic rights



But visit the Hub and they will explain your rights to you.
The freedom of information means that the bank must produce their figures on your loan.
One business man in Kerry was facing repossesion for a €30,000 outstanding on his loan
He got the banks figures under the freedom of information act and in court he pointed out to the judge how the banks had massaged his interest up and down through the term of the loan.
Fair play to the judge he calculated that the bank had swindled the man out of at least €30,000
So he awarded the man €90,000 in compensation

You and I have paid off the debts of the banks to the tune of billions.
No one went to jail for 40 years.
I leave you with this Limerick man in Canada from long ago.

A downhill slope

Lucy driving her first taxi

Did you say you wanted a TAP?

Tractor driving school? Why not

Well I am really on holiday now, getting my meter taken out. Then getting it put into the new car.
The car has to be wrapped in the new mytaxi company logo.
Then the guys from legal meteorology will inspect the work and pass me out with their blessing for work.
Its just a big paper chase, but it has to be done.
So I went into town to have my hair cut. 5 guys waiting there and only one mans barber working, so I decamped to Clearys bar on Aimiens St.
At the door of the pub I spotted a woman who had frozen in time!!!!!!!!!
Just standing there her two bags of shopping on the ground. One bag had spilled a bit,it was like in a movie frozen. Nothing was happening the video had stopped.
People passed by.
Then a woman came over and woke her up and helped her with her bags.
I said to a man in the door of the pub.
"If my dog was as disturbed as that woman is I would have it put down to ease its pain"

So folks its time for a little bit of education.

You think you have drugs? Wait until Crystal Meth comes.



A story of an addict..

To tip or say thank you

The new car park in Eindhoven which collapsed

The tractor driving school and why not

Prakis DIY store Taps ans more Taps

There is never a best time to do something  that you have not planned for.
So we visited our brother in law in Einddhoven Holland.
I had not planned to change my car when the flights were booked a month ago.
Were you ever there?
Things work well.
Things work very well.
Much of the country is under sea level, they have dams and canals to hold the water.
The last time I was there Paris was flooded and everywhere in Holland showed no panic.

Go to Dublin port on Friday morning to see truck after truck come off the ferry's bringing flowers to Ireland.
Can't we even grow a few flowers?
The people in Holland are slimmer than the Irish and the youth are nearly all over 6ft.tall.

In Eindhoven airport they built a new multi story car car park and it collapsed.

Just as well it wasn't a dam.

In the scale of things things you never can tell.
You pick the quickest route by 20 mins and the customer says.
"That way was longer"
Though it was 20 minutes shorter.

If we could rewind the clock and have her sitting in static traffic how would she be then?.

When push comes to shove.
 "Just put the €100 into my hand now and I will do my best"

I am just pissed off driving for losers.

That sounds hard.
But none of those punters would pay your speeding ticket,
They often get out at T2 and wait for 20c change.

Not all though, which is the catch.