Lyft Update

My experience with Lyft in Washington DC was less than spectacular.  Read in today’s paper that the company, headquartered in California, has the drivers up in arms as the rates they are to receive have been cut by at least 10%

Taken from The Daily Mail:

What appealed to many riders was the culture at Lyft, which used the slogan ‘your friend with a car’ and encouraged to socialize with passengers.
‘Lyft is a real community — with both the drivers and riders being inherently social — making real friendships and saving money,’ Scott Weiss, a partner at venture capital investors Andreessen Horowitz, once wrote.
Driver frustration with the company blew up late last month when another fare cut was announced via email.
‘To keep phones buzzing with requests, we’re testing 10% lower prices in Los Angeles starting today,’ the message read.
Many drivers had started on a guaranteed rate of $18 an hour, which converted over to a commission split with Lyft after a few months. Drivers have lately seen their fares cut to levels that made it difficult to earn minimum wage.
So the drivers toted their shaggy, pink mustaches to the beach, set a fire pit ablaze with lighter fluid and torched a few symbolic ‘staches.
The protest comes at a time of a backlash against ride-sharing companies.
The Chronicle reported that Lyft Plus drivers were lured by the promise of high returns to buy $34,000 luxury SUVs before the company scaled back the program, angering operators.
The last year has also seen drivers protest against Uber in New York, San Francisco and Santa Monica.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2780121/Drivers-burning-Lyft-mustaches-hopes-company-smoke.html#ixzz3F86JFmiS

Best Food Trucks in the City

Perhaps the only reason to paste and look at this link, is if you are coming to the City and want to have a food truck experience. [If you live in Portland, OR it’s a moot point.] The list includes: ice cream, donuts, steak pies, tacos, middle eastern, pupusas, to name but a few.  And the list does not include those in Brooklyn.  I would not be surprised but that the city Portland has more and greater diversity.

http://www.timeout.com/newyork/food-drink/the-best-food-trucks-in-nyc?cid=TOL%7CDD%7CEM%7C%7C%7C2014-09-17T19:55:37

Was One of Those

Caught the A-train last evening after tech with a group of actors from the show.  We were chatting about the film Disruption.  Got to my stop – I thought.  Jumped out in a hurry, as I was a bit late getting to the open door,  right in my face saw the signage 23rd – [not 14th] turned around and jumped back in.  Have seen others do that and always wondered what happened.  Now I know.  One gets to chatting and doesn’t pay attention to the details.

The Race of Gentlemen

Why the ’32 hot rods were on my street.  In anticipation of the Race of Gentlemen.   It is I believe a[n]  eu·phe·mism.     http://www.theraceofgentlemen.com

In the years I lived in “buttscratch” Virginia, these were known as “Tractor Pulls”.  The folk there didn’t know to fancy up the name.  They weren’t tractors either.  It was a fun event to watch young guys burn out the engines of their hot pick up trucks.

We Won

Did I report that the competition in which the new play “Call Raul” was presented, we won our round.  We were up against four other plays.  Now we compete with 5 other plays in a final round  October 2nd.   I attended two sessions of 10 plays, two of which will win and be part of the five.  That added to the afternoon of sitting through six new plays for one of the theatre companies of which I am a member.  Only in the City.

ps   After sitting through 10 plays, 5 each session, the two I voted for as best, indeed won.  The audience does vote with integrity.  Not always the play with the most laughs.

Make On-the-Cusp Wine Better

Opened a bottle of Cabernet that should have been better.  Had on hand fresh raspberries that were juicy.  Added 6 of the to the wine in the bottle, making certain the juice was released and voila, a whole new experience.  And it didn’t taste like berries, it just tasted like I  expected the wine to taste originally.

 

Outside My Window -part 3

These I recognize, and they are the most disconcerting.  There were three of them, and the fire appeared to be in the 4th building unit of my building.  Most of our units have fireplaces, but if the owner hasn’t remodeled the fireplace in your unit, then it is beyond unsafe.  Every year a new tenant has to find that out by trial and error.  Scares the rest of the street silly.  But I asked around and found that the reason for this show of NYFD was some tenant had left the gas stove on, and the smell of gas was noted by a neighbor.