First Uberized Day

3:51pm, Sunday, June 28^th. 

I’ve just rushed from Gay Pride in San Francisco to Maxwell Park in Oakland so that I can see a property before the open house ends at 4:00. The house is cute. “Cute” here means it is less than 1,000 square feet, is quirky (artificial turf in the yard and laundry in the kitchen) and will sell for more than $100k over the asking price. If I want this house I’m going to need more money, which is why I’ve been dying to drive for Uber. Tonight is my first chance.

A few days ago when first signing up to drive my friends were incredulous. “You’re driving for Uber!!” they cackled with delight. They, like me, are professionals who are used to riding in Uber, not driving one. However, my friends are unlike me in that their professional salaries make it possible to buy a house in the Bay Area. I, on the other hand, am a teacher, which means I’m excited about the chance to earn extra money on my own time, without a boss and with very little investment. So, bring it on, Uber!

Sitting by the side of a road in Maxwell Park I am ready for my first Uber customer. I turn on my cell phone's Uber app and a small map appears with a little graphic of a car showing my location. Then, nothing happens. I wait for what seems like 10 minutes. Still, nothing. When the app finally notifies me that someone wants a ride I'm startled and drop the phone. I have 30 seconds to accept the customer’s request and madly begin tapping the screen to notify the app I want the job. The rider turns out to be a 20 something hipster on his way to BART. No problem! My blood is pumping and the excitement is raising my adrenaline levels. This is fun.

I'm off and running with one customer after another until 10:30 that night when I finally force myself to turn off the app indicating that I'm no longer taking customers. I had driven to SFO twice, throughout Frisco and covered a considerable section of Oakland ending in Piedmont. I have collected about $200 in fares. $25 in gas. $6 for McDonalds (the drive-through let me keep driving). Income taxes will be about $34. If I ignore the wear and tear on my car, cell data plan and an increase in insurance premiums then my net for night #1 is $135. Conservative estimate of my earnings: $20 per hour.

Will $20 per hour keep me driving? I don’t know about that but I do know that if I continue driving, it is going to take a lot of Uber hours before I can afford a house.