“So, what have you done since you retired?” I asked my customer, Margaret McVie, a short and slim elderly woman with gray hair and blue, intelligent eyes.

Margaret scoffed at my premise. “What makes you think I’m retired? I still do some work! Have you heard of Beau Ties of Vermont?”

“I believe I have,” I replied. “I’ve seen their ads in the New Yorker magazine.”

“Yes, that would be the company. Well, I write the copy for their catalogs.”... Read more

“Hey, this is no problem, dude,” said the guy standing in the street at my taxi window, his friend by his side. “Take these girls, too.”

The bars had just let out on an unseasonably warm Saturday night — Sunday morning, technically. Lower Church Street was abuzz with humanity and lined with police officers keeping things more or less under control. The females in question had signaled me from the curb after I was already engaged with the men, so, by rights, the boys had dibs on the cab.... Read more

As we stood silently, side by side at the baggage carousel, I stole a glance at the customer I would be driving to Montréal. Chantelle was as beautiful as her name, a slim brunette with dark, sad eyes. If she were a little taller, I thought, she could be a model. Looking past her beauty for a moment, I noticed the woman appeared exhausted, as if she hadn’t slept much for days.

As if on cue, she let out a deep sigh. I said, “You look tired,” and that’s what broke the ice.... Read more

“Hey, this is Stu. I’m over at Franny O’s. Jack and Lorna here gave me your number. Are you working tonight, brother?”... Read more

“Oh, my God,” said Brittney, the young woman texting in the backseat of my taxi. “I think this is, like, a booty call! Well, he is my boyfriend, so I don’t think that counts.”

We were on the causeway, slicing through the cold November air en route to North Hero. On a busy weekend night, an out-of-town run like this is generally a net revenue loser — I can make more money flitting around Burlington — but I accepted this fare precisely to escape the hubbub for an hour or two.... Read more

“Boy, oh, boy.” Francis grabbed my attention with his surprisingly vigorous voice. “I am glad to get out of there. The doctors were all set to release me early this morning, but it took ’til three o’clock to get all this gosh-dern paperwork squared away. I just hate bein’ cooped up, is all.”... Read more

“Hey, Jernigan — could you pick me up in about 10 at my office?”

Pete, along with his wife, Robin, is a regular weekend customer, so the call was no surprise. What was odd was the very late hour; with two preteen girls and the babysitter back at home in the New North End, this couple usually packs it in much earlier. When you’ve reached your forties, you may on occasion burn the midnight oil, but the 2 a.m. oil? That’s pushing it.

“You said the office?” I asked. “Where is that again — on South Willard?”... Read more

Among other elements of the state’s infrastructure, the railroad lines felt the impact of Tropical Storm Irene. So Amtrak pickups have been a challenge of late.... Read more

“Are you sure?” the man called to the woman standing on the sidewalk in front of Junior’s Pizzera.

He was in the street, holding open the rear door of my taxi with one hand, while signaling her to get in with the other. In both his tone and his waving motion, he was the picture of an exasperated farmer attempting to cajole a recalcitrant Holstein into the barn. If I’m that woman, I thought, this is not an appealing courtship technique.... Read more

I don’t know how to describe the feeling that’s recently come over the Burlington taxi community, but “pall” comes close. Actually, it’s the perfect word, because it was a “Paul” whose sudden departure engendered this doleful atmosphere.... Read more