Rain suddenly started pouring down amid stormy winds as I
got up early for my flight. It was Chinese New Year and I
looked forward to seeing dad. My wife's BMW was in the
repair shop and she loathed my little beaten Honda but
kindly called Uber for the family dinosaur who had been
resisting technology. 5 am, I set out.
The driver looked my age, Mexican, with a big belly, and enjoyed
chatting. He had been driving for four years to subsidize his
regular job, picking up passengers on his commute. His dad
was quixotic as me, boycotting smart phones. He took on
another passenger at a gas station, dropped him off after
about five miles, and told me he made $1.50 for that ride.
It was hell of a way to make money, I thought, mentally
tallying his cost. He asked about my schedule, blocked
possible future orders, and made straight for SJC. I love
Mexicans and tipped him in cash as I got out of the car.
What!? The plane was canceled! This kind of thing hit the
news all the time, but only happen to other people! Anyway,
I hadn't received notice from either Air Canada or the
online travel agency. For a moment, I was at a loss.
Desperate, I turned to the neighbor United counter and was
pointed matter-of-factly to the courtesy phone. I alerted
the wife, took a couple of deep breath, and went for the
phone. About half an hour later, I was set up for the same
flight on Monday. Two days off my reunion with dad were not
ideal but, it could be worse.
Now I had to get back home. I thought for a moment about the
options and through the SJC Wifi and the app (which I had
installed on my iPod some time ago and 10 years after the
company started), placed my first Uber order.
It worked and I panic'ed! After five minutes looking in the
rain for the landmark baggage-claim, I got directions from a
kinder staff, crossed the street, arrived at the app-based
rideshare pickup area, and wondered what was going to happen
next. I couldn't call the driver as the app didn't show his phone#
and couldn't text him because the iPod would launch iMessage
and ask me to verify with Apple. Well, I was lucky. The Toyota
came in two minutes and we were off. The trip was silent and
smooth, and for $24.27, I was back.
It was good to see Tim and I got to uber him and mom around
for two more days.
