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What: #72 Hail a taxi cab

When: November 15th
Where: Uptown Chicago

SJP doing it right!

Why: Most of the occasions that I find myself in a big city, I'm visiting friends who take charge of our transportation needs, or I have my own car, or I utilize public transit options. Somehow, getting a cab always seemed like a luxury. Also, and quite possibly the bigger reason I avoided it, hailing a cab always seemed like a skill that was finely cultivated by years of city living, and as a suburban girl, I was untrained in the art. The whole process involves a series of gestures and keywords that the cab driver requires of his (or her) savvy passenger, and frankly, I just don't have enough street smarts to crack that code. Still, it seemed that hailing a cab is always portrayed as a cool worldly activity, so I wanted to give it a try.

During a weekend getaway to Chicago, we misjudged Friday evening's rush hour and ended up many blocks away from our restaurant with about seven minutes before our reservation. My footwear was decidedly more fashionable than functional, so a cab was really our only option. After getting up my courage and one failed feeble attempt, I was able to confidently flag down a cab that was going in the other direction and, through a series of aforementioned gestures, communicated that I needed to be going the other way and success, we were swiftly swept away in our taxi to our destination!