Come Ride with Me

A few weeks ago, DH applied to be a Door Dash Driver. Door Dash is a food delivery service. You sign up for scheduled periods of time (typically lunch or dinner hours) and then stand by for pings to various restaurants. Once pinged, you drive to the specified eatery, pick up the customer's order... check to be sure it is all accounted for... and proceed to the point of delivery (usually their home or workplace). After a couple successful weeks, DH signed me up to "Door Dash" also. 😮 So now I not only relocate human beings from one point to another - I make sure they do not go hungry. Door Dash is yet another smartphone app that makes life easier for Millennials, Gen-X'es, and even a few Baby Boomers. Think of it as Amazon.com for dinner - and why not? Food delivery has been in existence as long as there have been pizza parlors. People order for pick-up all the time. But Door Dash allows people to order full dinners with sides and even beverages delivered (from any

For many years, I have used the month of November to acknowledge my gratitude of things for which I am thankful. This past year has been 'one like no other', so my list of Gratitudes will be also. I am asked (daily) how I like RideShare driving, I have some pat answers I respond with - but since today is Thanksgiving, I'm going to post a  month's worth of positive things I count as blessings associated with "my job." (In alphabetical order) Adventure: I'm a fairly content person. I don't 'need' adventure in my life. I don't 'look' for adventure ... I'm pretty much a fan of 'ordinary'. RSD is an Adventure I would have never dreamed of doing.  Audiobooks: This has been on my regular November gratitudes because I'm a serial listener. Love love love listening to books and with all the hours I spend (alone) in my car, I get to hear lots of them! Back to backs: This is when before one ride is completed, the RS company

One Saturday this past summer, DH and I decided to spend the afternoon RideSharing. We set off in our respective vehicles ... seeking to make a few bucks, give a few rides, and do it all in the spirit of spending "quality time together." We had been texting between rides, sharing our locations and ride highlights. The plan was to end the afternoon by meeting up at our church for the 6:00 service. About 4:00, I got pinged to a thrift store on First Avenue. As I pulled up to the address, the business appeared to be closed. Occasionally, an entered address will come up as that of a neighboring one. I eyed each corner of the intersection. There was no sign of a would be passenger watching for a ride. After several minutes, I was about to give up the search when I saw three Asian women come out of the business next door to the address to which I'd been pinged. One of the women was rolling a suitcase. "There you are!" I exclaim, as I pull up to where they were sta

Until nine months ago, I had never held a job where I received tips. I take that back. Twenty plus years ago, for fourteen months, my family had three paper routes. Every other week, we would get our earnings statement showing the payments by our more than 100 customers. Occasionally, there would be a 'tip to the carrier' included on the report. Woo Hoo!  A $5 gratuity could seriously change your outlook on the day.... (because everyone knows "money talks" and a tip literally shouts appreciation).  I'm not sure I had ever tipped my paper carrier (prior to being one) other than at Christmas, but I assure you, I certainly did so thereafter. Most of us would associate tipping with restaurants, salons, spas, valets, and food delivery. Oh yes... and cab drivers. People would never get out of a taxi without adding a monetary 'thank you' to their fare. If they did, they had better hope their luggage wasn't in the trunk. Yet most passengers who partake of

If you recall the Eisenhower years, you probably also recall the advertising jingle:  "See the USA in your Chevrolet!"   If you have the song stuck in your head now, you are no doubt hearing the voice of the late  Dinah Shore . I could sing a rendition of this song about ride sharing, but I don't exactly "see" much of the country in my travels. What I hear though, are stories of passengers from all around the USA and World. You could say I 'travel vicariously' through my riders. I especially enjoy trips of long enough duration, to allow me to ask questions about their various states and homelands. There are several businesses in our Metro area that employ a great number of people from India. One of my early passengers was a young man who had only been in the United States for two months. I picked him up one winter morning to take him to work. Although I'm not a great judge of age, I would guess he was in his late 30's. We were having a nice v

I will admit to being 'directionally-challenged'. So much so, I used to 'get lost' the first time I was bound for pretty much anywhere. It has been a lifelong battle. I have gone from spoken directions... "Go five miles and turn left the first road after the bridge" ... to reading road maps, to printing pages off Mapquest, to the miracle of GPS. The road maps and Mapquest worked best with a co-pilot - but the wonderful GPS verbally directs me to my destination without any other human intervention. As I said... a miracle. Ride Sharing simplifies navigation, in that both graphic and verbal directions are provided for picking up a passenger and delivering them to their destination. Sometimes, however... things can go wrong. Those blasted satellites screw up and the 'destination' is not where the passenger is waiting. The "Call Rider" feature on the driver's app not only allows me to connect with my passenger but also allows them to redirec