I used to drive a taxi/cab. Why? I often ask myself that, it was a shitty job, but it got me through 2 years of university, so it served a purpose. I was telling a few stories from those days to a friend recently and it got me thinking that I should write these stories down before I forget them.Blood of an ANZAC
It's the night of April 25th, ANZAC day, I get a call out to the RSL in the Perth CBD. This'll be a nice fare I figured, an old digger who's had a few beers and played two-up all day. He'll be full of cheer and maybe want to share a story or two or he'll just go to sleep and snore the whole way home, either way I'm cool.
I pull up outside the building and an old guy shuffles through the rain to the passenger door. WW2 I thought to myself (based on his age) as he slipped into the front seat.
"Where we headed mate?"
"Carlisle thank you young fella"
I turned the cab away from the curb and into the now pouring rain, not a great night to be driving. I asked how he was going, he was pretty chirpy. He'd been catching up with his old service buddies or what was left of them. "We're startin to thin out a bit" he said. We chatted for a little bit and it soon became apparent that he didn't get out for a drink all that often these days, he saved it for these special occasions and even though it had been a good day he just wanted to get back home to his wife and a "warm cuppa".
Soon enough we were in his driveway, it was still bucketing down as he paid his fare. I offered to walk him to the door with my umbrella but he wasn't keen on it (I should have insisted) and he thanked me for the ride as he got out of the car.
I put away the money and started to prepare to reverse out of his driveway when I realised that I couldn't remember seeing him go past the front of the cab to the front door of his house. In fact he wasn't even on the verandah and I really didn't think he could have gotten inside that fast, not based on the speed of his shuffle into the cab back in the city.
It was at this point I did something I'm still very thankful of today, I took the car out of reverse and put it into park, then I got out of the cab and into the rain and called out for him. No answer, so I walked to the back of the car and that's when I saw his legs. He was lying flat on his back right behind the car, soaked in rain and a river of red pouring from his head the length of his body. I don't think I've ever felt so shocked or stunned since.
Based on all of the blood I immediately figured him for dead, he certainly wasn't moving and the rain hitting his face wasn't causing him to flinch at all. It was like a scene from a movie, christ what to do? I checked for a pulse, all the time speaking to him, telling him to wake up. I tried yelling into the house hoping his wife would hear but the rain was simply too deafening, it was useless. He had a pulse, thank god. But do I move him, I mean he's got a head injury. I jumped up and grabbed the cabs radio...
"I need an ambulance right now this is an emergency blah blah blah...."
They assured me one was on the way. I dropped the radio and ran to the front door, I needed some help here. His wife called out in response to my knocking and I tried to explain what had happened yelling through the door but I'm not sure if it made any sense, I turned to go back to the old guy as the front door opened and I noticed he was sitting up.
"Stay there mate" I yelled
I raced over but he was having none of it and was soon up on his feet, tough customer this one. I checked his head and saw that the cut was small, I guess the rain made the blood look a whole lot worse than it was. So I helped him into his house, his wife and he were much calmer than I was. I think I'd had two sets of kittens by this time.
His wife sat him down and put a tea towel on his cut, I explained that the ambulance was on its way and she offered me a cuppa....what? huh? no I don't want a, um oh god I gotta sit down. Moments later the ambulance arrived and I explained what had happened, then I said my goodbyes and left them with the medics. I don't remember when it was that I realised just how soaked to the bone I was after all of that.
Just another night huh?
I pull up outside the building and an old guy shuffles through the rain to the passenger door. WW2 I thought to myself (based on his age) as he slipped into the front seat.
"Where we headed mate?"
"Carlisle thank you young fella"
I turned the cab away from the curb and into the now pouring rain, not a great night to be driving. I asked how he was going, he was pretty chirpy. He'd been catching up with his old service buddies or what was left of them. "We're startin to thin out a bit" he said. We chatted for a little bit and it soon became apparent that he didn't get out for a drink all that often these days, he saved it for these special occasions and even though it had been a good day he just wanted to get back home to his wife and a "warm cuppa".
Soon enough we were in his driveway, it was still bucketing down as he paid his fare. I offered to walk him to the door with my umbrella but he wasn't keen on it (I should have insisted) and he thanked me for the ride as he got out of the car.
I put away the money and started to prepare to reverse out of his driveway when I realised that I couldn't remember seeing him go past the front of the cab to the front door of his house. In fact he wasn't even on the verandah and I really didn't think he could have gotten inside that fast, not based on the speed of his shuffle into the cab back in the city.
It was at this point I did something I'm still very thankful of today, I took the car out of reverse and put it into park, then I got out of the cab and into the rain and called out for him. No answer, so I walked to the back of the car and that's when I saw his legs. He was lying flat on his back right behind the car, soaked in rain and a river of red pouring from his head the length of his body. I don't think I've ever felt so shocked or stunned since.
Based on all of the blood I immediately figured him for dead, he certainly wasn't moving and the rain hitting his face wasn't causing him to flinch at all. It was like a scene from a movie, christ what to do? I checked for a pulse, all the time speaking to him, telling him to wake up. I tried yelling into the house hoping his wife would hear but the rain was simply too deafening, it was useless. He had a pulse, thank god. But do I move him, I mean he's got a head injury. I jumped up and grabbed the cabs radio...
"I need an ambulance right now this is an emergency blah blah blah...."
They assured me one was on the way. I dropped the radio and ran to the front door, I needed some help here. His wife called out in response to my knocking and I tried to explain what had happened yelling through the door but I'm not sure if it made any sense, I turned to go back to the old guy as the front door opened and I noticed he was sitting up.
"Stay there mate" I yelled
I raced over but he was having none of it and was soon up on his feet, tough customer this one. I checked his head and saw that the cut was small, I guess the rain made the blood look a whole lot worse than it was. So I helped him into his house, his wife and he were much calmer than I was. I think I'd had two sets of kittens by this time.
His wife sat him down and put a tea towel on his cut, I explained that the ambulance was on its way and she offered me a cuppa....what? huh? no I don't want a, um oh god I gotta sit down. Moments later the ambulance arrived and I explained what had happened, then I said my goodbyes and left them with the medics. I don't remember when it was that I realised just how soaked to the bone I was after all of that.
Just another night huh?
You can read the other stories in the series so far by clicking the taxi cab confessions link under 'my essays' in the sidebar
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