It’s no secret that Friday nights are one of the best nights for rideshare driving. Regardless of whether the
passengers are locals out for a night on the town or tourists wishing to partake in the local city’s
nightlife. Friday nights provide great opportunities for picking up passengers and getting them to their
destination safely and soundly. However, there are times when that can be a real challenge.
One Friday night, I got a call to pick up a woman from the Fountainbleau Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida. I
arrived at the hotel at 7 pm. Three women named Rachel, Hannah, and Kelly got in the backseat and
asked if I could drive them to Hollywood, Florida, in 15 minutes.
Being a resident of South Florida for over twenty years, I knew that was impossible. First, Hollywood was
about twenty miles from where the Fontainebleau was. And second, trying to navigate Miami Beach
traffic on a Friday night dictates that such a task would realistically take at least 45 minutes to
accomplish. I calmly explained this fact to the ladies, who had no other alternative but to accept the fact
that this ride was going to take a while.
After driving and chatting with the ladies for a few minutes, I found out that they were on their way to a
wedding. I asked one of the ladies, Rachel, what time the wedding was scheduled. She said 7 pm. I said, “I
picked you up at 7 pm. It’s 7:45 right now. The ceremony is over.” One of the other ladies,
Hannah said, “Don’t worry. We’re fine. The ceremony hasn’t started yet”. I was shocked to hear this latest news.
I asked Hannah, “How can you be so sure that the wedding hasn’t started yet?” Hannah then said in a deadpan manner: “I’m the bride!”
That was a revelation I wasn’t ready for. Hannah had on a black dress, wore very little makeup, and had
her hair in a ponytail. Hannah’s attire wasn’t the most interesting part of this tale. Kelly was the woman
who ordered the ride. She’s been married for two years. I congratulated her and her husband on
2 years of marriage. There was nothing that could have prepared me for Kelly’s response.
Kelly told me that after two years of marriage, she found it to be boring. She then announced that when
she gets back home to Chicago, she would serve her husband with divorce papers. This is the type of
news Hannah needed to hear right before getting married. After I caught my breath, I pulled into the
temple parking lot at 8:15 pm to see ten men and women dressed for a wedding angrily waiting.
Considering it was 90 degrees outside, I can see why they were angry.
Nevertheless, I drove to the front of the temple, dropped the ladies off, and wished them all good luck.
Because they were going to need it.
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