MY VIEW FROM THE DRIVER SEAT RIDESHARE ADVENTURES WITH MIKE I never thought in my life that I would be a taxi or rideshare driver, let alone a writer ... but here I am. Ever since I was a child I dreamed of being a firefighter. I was one of those kids who was able to live his dream, by becoming a firefighter and earning my way all the way up to Battalion Chief, Assistant Chief and Chief of Department. The book you are about to read basically was born from a way to cope, and a way to survive. It became my life raft to stay afloat between working shifts at the firehouse, going through a bitter divorce and truly staying alive. This book is just part of my journey, nothing more and nothing less. I believe we are all here for a purpose, a higher calling. We are all here on a journey and when I started journalling my rides, I never thought I would have the amount of impact on people that I have, both in posting my stories (your stories) and in talking with my customers. I truly believe that by being able to talk and more importantly to listen to others, it has helped me in the healing process of being cheated on, manipulated and taken advantage of for years. It has helped me cope with the struggles of PTSD from the fire service. One of the things I have learned being a rideshare driver is that everyone has "stuff" going on in their lives and for the few minutes with me in my vehicle, I have become an avenue for people to vent, seek advice and counsel, and yes even cry. While this is my journey, it's not unlike so many others I have come across. By no means am I a professional (counselor, psychologist, therapist, whatever), and I have told people that time and time again, but ... I am a professional listener. I have spent over thirty years as a first responder. I am a Catholic and I try to be a good Christian. My number one purpose is to be a good father to my son and I think I have been doing a good job of that as a single dad. He is my World and to be an active part of his life, to have extra funds to do things with him ... I began to drive.