Flaring tempers
"You owe me a hundred sixty five dollars!"
"No! It's one fourty five! The extra twenty bucks were a tip for your 'pleasant behavior'!"
A cab driver and a female customer were pulling at a suitcase and yelling at each other when I ran by this morning. The power was out in many places after last night's storm, and it was a hot and busy morning. The cab had stopped on Wilson Boulevard near the Ballston Mall, just when I ran by.
I asked what was going on, and together with another passer-by we managed to calm them down. They had clearly been angry with each other for a while.
The passenger, very upset, had arrived at BWI airport and her credit card was declined in the cab. They had pulled over at several ATMs in the area but since the phone lines are dead she couldn't get any cash. The cab driver wasn't happy either and said that the passenger had tried running away -- which is why he grabbed her luggage.
We tried calling 911 but there was no connection. I ran around the block, looking for a working ATM but there was nothing. When I came back I waved down a passing ambulance who called the police. The officer who arrived thanked us and sent us on our way, so I could continue my run.
