Are you the kind of person who talks with your Uber/Lyft driver? When I’m riding alone, I usually stay quiet and hope that the driver doesn’t want to strike up a conversation with me. It’s the introvert in me that avoids talking to strangers, for the most part—the adult version of stranger danger. With my husband, on the other hand, it’s almost a guarantee that he’ll ask the driver how they like their car. Sometimes that’s the end of it and sometimes it leads to more conversation.
Over the weekend, we spent a considerable amount of time in the back of a Lyft. And of course, the inevitable query about the vehicles came up and in two instances more conversation followed.
In the first car, our driver was an immigrant from Iran, who came to the U.S. over 20 years ago. He had no shortage of information and opinions about Las Vegas life. As we passed the Trump hotel, he had some strong words about what he’d like to do with that building—something involving the shape of a toilet. He then went on to tell us that having witnessed the revolution in Iran, he recognized the same things happening here. His prediction for what was coming, based on his experience, was chilling.
Our second driver was a woman who shared that her adult daughter still lived at home because it was impossible to afford housing. “That’s capitalism,” she sighed. A bold statement to make in front of strangers, but we both said, “Yup.” She then went on to ask, “So, what do you think of Trump?” My husband didn’t hold back and gave his honest opinion. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t a positive review. Again, I thought it was a bold question, considering she didn’t know our politics. Or perhaps, it wasn’t bold at all, since we clearly had similar feelings about capitalism.
While I’ll probably still sit in silence in the backseat of a Lyft, I’m glad we had the opportunity to hear the stories and thoughts of these two strangers.
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