A New York Story (And yes, already sent to Taxi & Limousine Commission and the company he drives for) Wed been planning our trip to NYC for half a year, setting aside money for shows, finding an affordable hotel, getting restaurant recs. Finally, the day came! We checked in, got a good nights rest, and set off on Sept. 7th for a matinee of Jersey Boys. Splurged on a cab. Got off at 52nd and 8th. I paid, got a receipt, stepped out - and 30 seconds later, realized my wallet was still in the cab. Complete panic. The tickets were still in my purse, I had my phone, my wife had cash and credit cards - but my wallet! Here I was in New York for two weeks with no ID, no credit cards or health insurance proof - and how could I get on the flight home without ID? I called the Taxi & Limousine Commission. Fortunately, I had the cab drivers medallion number on the receipt... but it wasnt a city-commissioned cab, it was a private cab company. And it was Sunday. The best the TLC could do was give me the number of the company garage. Which, of course, was closed until Monday morning. My wife asked if I wanted to go back to the hotel, but I said Theres nothing to do about it now. Ill cancel the cards when we get back - lets go to the show. And for two hours, the show let me stop beating myself up for being so careless. We took another cab back to the hotel, and I asked the driver if he knew anyone at the other taxi company. No, he said, why? I left my wallet in the cab. Oh, he said. Look, the garages are all closed today, but they open around 6 am tomorrow. You can call, and I bet the driver will have turned in the wallet, so theyll arrange to get it back to you. Really? You think so? Yes, absolutely. I bet thats what happens. Got to the hotel. Cancelled my cards. Arranged for new ones. Thought about the money - enough for two weeks of theater going, restaurants, transportation. Id left half in the room safe, but the rest.... My wife could Fedex my passport, I had copies of my insurance in my computer. But the hassle of replacing my license - and little things, like a note saying I love you that Ive carried for over a decade. I really did try to stop calling myself an idiot, but it was hard, let me tell you. Then, about 8 pm, the room phone rang. A strange voice on the other end said Is this room XXX? His accent was a little difficult to understand. Not a familiar voice. I think you have the wrong room, I said. But I think you left your wallet in my cab? Unbelievable. It was the taxi driver! Hed found the wallet at the end of his shift. Seen the key card, looked up the hotel, called and explained, and they’d put him through. He asked if tomorrow morning would be convenient; hed meet me at the hotel whenever I liked. No no, whenever its convenient for YOU, I said! The next morning, he handed me the wallet and asked me to check it to make sure everything was there. I had no problem leaving it closed, and I tried to hand him a small token of gratitude, which he refused three times, until I said I was going to drop it on the seat otherwise. He drove off, and I looked in my wallet to pull the cancelled cards out. Every single dollar was still there. Im not going to print his name here, though Ive written to the TLC & his parent company and included all his information. I just wanted to say that Mr. EH, regardless of where you came from, you are a true New Yorker now. And this former New Yorker thanks you. Sincerely, Janis Ian
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 17:04:10 +0000
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