I once drove a guy to Fuquay to give his baby mama some money to buy medication for his sick son. After it was all over and I was able to assess the situation I'm about 99% sure I drove that fucker to buy some crack. I could have very easily been sucked into his problems by getting robbed by any of the neighborhood thugs who were very interested in me or arrested by an overzealous cop.

I once told a very sincere sounding guy that I did not have any cash, but I was about to buy a sub from Subway (using my debit card) and I would make it a 12" and give him half. Surely a 6" sub, half a bag of chips, and a drink would help cure his hunger. That's when he told me that what he really "needed" was for me to go into the convenience store right next door and get him a bottle of Night Train and a pack of cigarettes.

Lessons learned...Don't let people drag you into their world or their problems. It's one thing to buy someone a gallon of distilled water for $.69. It's one thing to give someone some actual food. But more than likely if you give them cash you're just funding something you don't want to fund.

Skepticism is healthy. Naivety is not.

I'm not saying I'll never help someone who approaches me at random, but a decade in Raleigh has certainly opened my eyes to just how many scammers there are around here. I put most of these people a notch below the fucking Nigerians who try to scam you when you post a Craigslist ad because at least these people live in America where they have the opportunity to make something of themselves. I'm not going to be their trust fund.

12/23/2009 1:36:54 AM

too bad she didnt think fast enough to slam his arm in the door a couple of times and then back the over him



[Edited on December 23, 2009 at 1:38 AM. Reason : in reference to the purse snatcher]

12/23/2009 1:38:09 AM

Quote :

"Maybe he poured out the antifreeze right near his car to make you feel guilty"

first thing that came to my head after reading that. you did enough, he probably was trying to get some liquor money

12/23/2009 2:45:56 AM

look

there is a "blog"

and there is a "story"

there is no "blog story"

that would be writing a story about your blog

which would be some
shit right there

12/23/2009 2:51:48 AM

Quote :

"most of my internal injurys were caused from the air bags coming out at warp speed."

I wonder if they could make a steering column that rapidly retracts out of your way instead of an air cushion that gets in front of you.

[Edited on December 23, 2009 at 3:32 PM. Reason : -]

12/23/2009 3:32:12 PM

Quote :

"It has to be a fucking ego blow to go up to strangers and just ask for money. "

I know a guy who makes more than I do in a year just by asking for money. Doesn't bother him a bit.

12/23/2009 3:38:14 PM

^ its probably no worse than when its the end of the night and your still alone and horny so you have to just start straight up asking women for sex.

12/23/2009 3:40:44 PM

The job took me to a state once and I left the hotel without my wallet. When going back to the hotel I ended up turning the wrong way (going away from it) and when I realized it I didnt have much fuel remaining. I stopped at a grocery store and explained my situation to a person leaving and they gave me $10. I was really embarassed!

I had changed clothes before leaving and left my in the work pants.

[Edited on December 23, 2009 at 4:39 PM. Reason : w]

12/23/2009 4:33:44 PM

I'm wondering if the dude didn't just say fuck it, pour out the coolant, and jet when he found out no one would give him some cash.

I also used to use the "Sorry I only got a debit card on me" until some hyper motherfucker trying to catch the bus was like "Ah shit, there's an ATM up this convenience store; I only need 15 bucks to get me downtown."

When I used to have a truck and someone begged for money to get somewhere still in the city near where I was heading I told them where I dropping them off and to hop in the back. Only one of the 4 guys took me up on the offer and he didn't look too happy.

12/23/2009 5:34:01 PM

^^reminds me of a story

warning: words

i was in new orleans with 2 coworkers. we went to port of call and got completely hammered on their drinks there (tsunamis? i can never remember haha) so we decided to walk back to bourbon st and its like a 20min walk. one of the guys has all the plastic cups from port of call, we're talking like 12 cups. the other guy darts into a bar so me and the guy with the cups keep walking. i look away for a second and when i turn back to him all the cups are gone and in a few seconds he's gone too. i say fuck it and walk the 3 blocks back to the hotel and go to bed.

the next morning we meet downstairs at 6am to leave. the dude with the cups that disappeared is not looking too good. turns out he wandered all over new orleans, lost (left? stolen?) his wallet and in his drunken state, deleted our numbers. he ended up at some random gas station and got a cab to take him back to the hotel, telling the guy up front that he lost his wallet and he'd get some cash when they got to the hotel. he begged the girl at the front desk to pay for his cab and swore he'd pay her back. she gave him the $10. she believed him because his wife couldn't get in touch with him and had called the hotel front desk trying to get in touch with him.

he found a small brown paper bag in his pocket with an address on it, we gps'd it over there and it was so ghetto. it was easily 4 miles from bourbon st and that was by highway. and on top of it all, it was valentines day & his wifes birthday that week and he had no wallet. the other guy we were with gave him a credit card and told him he'd let him know when the bill came. he also gave him $20 to leave for the girl at the hotel desk who gave him money for the cab

his wife is cool as hell though. we're friends and i assured her that when we go to new orleans for work things never get that crazy, it was definitely a one time thing. he didn't seem to be "in trouble" but who knows what happened when he got home

[Edited on December 23, 2009 at 10:15 PM. Reason : skdjf]

12/23/2009 10:13:56 PM

Quote :

"There's a big puddle of antifreeze near where the front of the car was parked. Well, I'll be damned, the guy really did need some help."

he poured out your antifreeze on the ground, and you got scammed by an asshole. why would he be at a strip mall with no wallet, and why would he have asked for money to fix a car problem after you gave him what he needed to limp it back home?

you have to learn to tell these people to fuck off the minute you see the sales pitch coming.

12/23/2009 10:31:26 PM

^^that was a pretty lame pay off,

I expected a way better ending than that.

[Edited on December 23, 2009 at 10:36 PM. Reason : ]

12/23/2009 10:36:25 PM

^^i live in atlanta and have a pretty healthy bullshit meter. i've turned away people in wheel chairs, on cruches, veterans, veterinarians (ha ha, i gave the guy shit for that one), cancer patients, aids patients, moms trying to see theirs kids, kids trying to see their moms, kids trying to buy football uniforms, the list goes on and on.

12/23/2009 11:37:24 PM

i guess karma is a bitch. my fucking engine blew between saluda and hendersonville on I-26 on CHRISTMAS EVE. i ended up selling the vehicle to the tow truck driver for salvage. merry christmas to me.

12/29/2009 10:49:04 PM

is your name Earl?

12/29/2009 10:49:46 PM

holy fuck some of you people are dumb as shit

12/29/2009 11:03:17 PM