Latest Reno Gig Economy Earnings Report — Yep, I Bailed on the Delivery Warehouse

So, that last post managed to attract a bunch of Chinese workers to our line, the old boss got squeezed out again, and the new boss came in saying $1.70 per package, take it or leave it — if you don't do it, there's plenty of people who will. Figured out real quick this guy was a total scam, so I bounced.

After that I did Meituan for a while, but the density was low and the mileage was too high, plus the delivery gig had already wrung me dry (lost 100 jin), so I decided to switch to a mix of gig economy work. Been at it almost a month now, so here's my report:

First, my daily schedule:

The night before, I refresh orders, trying to snag a good Amazon block for the next morning (the 4 or 5 AM one).

Next morning at 4 or 5 AM, I do one Amazon delivery, $70-90, definitely done before 7.

Then seamless transition to Uber/Lyft, do a morning shift until around 10, $60-100. Since my Hyundai Santa Fe can only do Lyft XL, not Uber XL, I mainly stick with Lyft.

At 10, go home, eat, rest, and start refreshing Amazon Whole Foods orders, planning for midday and afternoon, trying to grab at least two.

At noon, head out for food delivery plus the first Whole Foods order I grabbed, $50-80, until 3 PM.

At 3 PM, check again — if there's more Whole Foods, keep grabbing, or if I already grabbed one for this slot, deliver it. If not, go online with Uber/Lyft until 6, can make $70-100.

After 6, it's Whole Foods + food delivery, home by 9 to wrap up and sleep, $50-70.

So all in all, about 12 hours of work a day, income between $300-440. Honestly about the same as Chinese delivery, but I'm way more free, don't have to deal with Mexican coworkers dragging me down, and I can rest whenever I want.

Current goal is $2,000 a week minimum. Once I hit that, I rest whenever I feel like it. If I don't rest, I push for $2,500, and once I hit $2,500 I definitely rest.

With gas at $5.50 in Reno right now, and the mileage Chinese delivery requires, it's getting hard to keep up. Plus getting up early to do free labor at the warehouse, and the new boss cutting pay to squeeze us — I'd rather just coast like this for a while and recover.