"Southwest Research." The elderly man said in a gravelly voice as he stepped into my 2005 Crown Vic at the San Antonio Airport cab stand. It was two AM and this would make a nice last fare for the night. As luck would have it the 410 loop was shut down from a rolled over Hazmat truck.

"Just take me to any hotel." The old man said.

"You're out of luck." I replied. "We have a Jehova Witness convention going on and everything is filled from here to Austin."

"Crap, I think I need a drink."

"Out of luck again. The bars close at two."

At this he leaned forward from the back seat and hissed, "You're a cab driver. You know how to solve this problem; do it and you won't have to work the rest of the week."

I was starting to like this guy. "I tell you what, ain't no law against me serving good Kentucky bourbon to a guest in my home, and I just happen to have a guest room with no hotel tax." I turned the old bucket north for a nice 35 mile trip to my palacial mobile home in Spring Branch.

The old man shook his head as we made our way down a dark gravel road to a single-wide that would be just right on the set of the Dukes of Hazard.