A quiet meet cute, the indignities of driving, and a giant vulture puts the kibosh on my Lyft driving days

This week’s road observations: I spy a man washing his car on a dark cold night. Which wasn’t as weird as seeing another man do yoga poses in the middle of the sidewalk later that (still dark, now rainy) night. ~~~~~~~~ #Lyft Line: The Quiet Meet Cute A girl with long black hair gets into

Carnal Questing: Passengers Talk Joys and Difficulties of Modern Dating

Perhaps more straightforward in our parents’ generation, dating takes so many different forms today. For some it’s exhaustingly uncertain and painful, for others it’s a dopamine rush and world-expanding. Some daters are out there looking for The One, others are experimenting with ethical non-monogamy, and still others are searching for (or open to) something in

A Lyft Line sickly symphony, the chinchilla at TJ’s, and my friend joins me for an Uber Eats run

#Lyft Line I kept yawning. Another passenger kept sneezing. A second passenger hiccuped, filling the air with the smell of beer. The guy next to me coughed continually. We were an unwell Lyft bunch if there ever was one. I briefly felt pride at our joint contributions to the Symphony of Sickliness. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lyft Thought:

Pancake dates, fruity conversations, and fireworks galore: Lyft passengers on 4th of July

“Make sure you secure your pets tonight Folks, because some of them might get scared!” the woman on the radio encourages in a sweetly concerned tone of voice, as I drive the crowded July 4th streets of San Francisco. It’s cold out. One guy has his arms folded up inside his short-sleeved American flag shirt when

To Hug a Porcupine: A Marin County Passenger Talks Bojack Horseman and Intergenerational Trauma

*Names changed to protect confidentiality For many years, Marin County was home to Robin Williams. Its natural beauty and proximity to San Francisco have made it a popular dwelling for affluent retirees in search of sanctuary without having to forgo easy access to the culture and bustle of a city. When I look up from

Rural passengers, 1950s vibes, and Walter the failed botanist in Ukiah, CA

Nice things people on Yelp had to say about Ukiah, a rustic town in Mendocino County with a population of 16,000: “The air is always sparkling clear (unless there are forest fires). Every night we can go outside and look up and feel as though we are camping in the Sierras—billions of stars! There are

Therapists, Policemen, and Zebra Fish Researchers: Passengers Talk Interesting Careers

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” —Confucius Passengers here either currently worked in engaging careers, were in the process of pursuing one, or added a fresh perspective to one that most people probably already know about. One worked as a traveling psychologist and conducted appointments

Angsty, Insightful, Disobedient and Forlorn: When Teenagers Take Lyft

“The area of teenage life is not necessarily rarefied; we’ve all gone through that period. It’s not as rarefied as a western or a space adventure or a gangster film, but it has its own dynamic.” —Director and musician Gus Van Sant Swinging open the front door, an ebullient adolescent female plops herself without hesitation onto

Heater versus AC: Balancing the Two Polarities on the Road and in Life

I’m driving home to Oakland one night, up the 5 on my way back from LA. Earlier that evening I stopped at a Denny’s for tea, which was comforting– to encounter a safe, reliable little cube of sameness out there on the otherwise dark unfamiliar stretch of road. Anyways, as I drive I find myself

Valentine’s Day Special: Passengers Talk Love and Relationships

“Intimacy comes when two people, both standing clearly in their own lives—with their faults and their truths, their needs and their gifts—say to each other, ‘ This is me. I see you. I am willing to say the whole truth, make mistakes, forgive, trust, receive, give, allow our differences, argue, laugh, and stand together with