Author: Tara

Tara Ramroop has laughed, cried, and commiserated with this amazing community from the start. She's been writing for as long as she can remember and riding Muni for more than a decade.

Heater on Muni: Hell Yes or Hell No

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Photo: CarbonNYC

Q. Who loves talking about (complaining about) the weather?

A. San Franciscans (myself included).

Remember when it started to get cold before it got warm again? In that not-so-distant past, I put up an important poll on our Muni Diaries Facebook Page:

Heater blasting on Muni is:

a) Like winning the transit lottery on these chilly days. I love it.
b) Like stewing in armpit stench. Hate hate hate.
c) Indifferent.

There were a couple votes for A. As rider Elizabeth said, “Heat is always a win as far as I’m concerned. Would rather smell some body odors than be cold.” A couple others, including rider Faern, said it depends on the type of bus. Faern cited the 22, which…OK, we can stop right there.

Still, B won by a pretty wide margin amid concerns over the B.O. hot-box. Oh, and the fact that it’s allegedly not that cold (what about the wind?! THE WIND!?) in San Francisco. I’ll be out completing my Christmas Story look, then.

Wouldn’t you know it, some recent tweets to @munidiaries side with our B voters. @missmarymary says, “Sweatiest commute ever. Dear muni, rain =/= cold,” while @janepfrank reports it reaching a million degrees on her 38-Geary.

So, which is it, A, B, or C? This is very important, you guys.

Category: diaries, reflection, WTF: Weirdness on Muni Tags: ,

Commuter Reflections

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A peaceful, solitary ride is like winning the lottery, especially on those cloggy Muni Metro trains. Unless there is untold ruckus on either side of him, this rider seemingly lucked out. Still, call me crazy: I prefer when my public-transit chariot is full and quiet. I like leprechauns and white whales, too.

Nice pic from @jsoncorwin. Join the cool kids and tweet your travels with Muni to @munidiaries.

Category: diaries, Photos

Conversation Bubble Over Bubble Shoes on Muni

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Outta-town friend Jeanette snapped this pic while we were on the 22 last weekend. Perfect timing: as Jeff and I foisted her and her husband into the bus, I swore that cool stuff happens on Muni all the time. Lo and behold, yelling guy took the afternoon off and a bunch of nice people, one of whom was sporting these bubble shoes, showed up as if on cue.

Between one guy asking if they were comfortable (A: yes) and my friend wondering about the traction (A: surprisingly traction-y), the 22 shined as a mix of kind, curious, and fashion-forward. Shoe Gal was also a great sport, entertaining questions from four strangers and granting this photo op.

The deets on the footwear: plastic shoes from Brazilian company Melissa. Its proper name is the Melissa + Gaetano Pesce II Shoe, named for the Italian architect and designer.

Bold statement for sure; hot or not? They didn’t float my boat, personally, but these copper versions are growing on me.

Category: diaries, Photos Tags:

John Waters Rides the 47, Wants to Be Muni Spokesman

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Image: No Bunny Luvs You

100 Muni StoriesFrom No Bunny Luvs You’s Tumblr, via Uptown Almanac, here’s John Waters on Muni. Because he is John Waters, he’s being cool as a cucumber, badass, and probably very polite. Why isn’t he ever on my 47? I bet he always pays his fare share.

The Baltimore-based filmmaker has a well-documented love of Muni. In fact, he made our day recently when he wandered into our inbox:

Tell them thanks…I am waiting for Muni to hire me as their spokesperson!!

What say, SFMTA? I think you should take him up on it.

This post and other have been selected to be part of our 100 Days, 100 Muni Stories feature that celebrates Muni’s centennial this year. The best four of these 100 posts will end up on ads on all Muni buses later this year, so send us your story today!

Category: 100 Muni Stories, diaries, Photos Tags:

The Accordion Files — Cool Things in Muni’s Squishy Part

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MUNI 7012
Photo by Frank Deanrdo

Yesterday, I posted about this guy’s Christmas Chuck Taylors. I said that some of the most interesting stuff happens in the accordion: those four seats in the squishy middle of articulated buses. Then, @SF_CableCar offered this suggestion:

Fun! Maybe you should start a section dedicated to unusual happenings in the accordion part of the bus & call it ‘The Accordion Files.’

Cable cars have the best ideas. Ask and ye shall receive.

Forget the back of the bus; sit in the gooey center and tell us what’s happening in it. You, too, might find great shoes or, as Jeff did a few years ago, a guy who rubs his snot on the handrail. Ew!

This idea couldn’t have come at a better time. On the 38 recently, I sat in the accordion and wondered what would happen if I and the three others had to make like Sandra Bullock and save the bus or even the world. Indeed, what if I, the lady praying her rosary, the girl with 80 shopping bags in the aisle, and the impeccably dressed older gentleman were humanity’s only hope? The accordion does wacky things to a lone rider with a dead phone.

Though we may never see that level of excitement, we still want to hear about it. Email us, tweet us @munidiaries, or chat us up on the Muni Diaries Facebook Page.

Category: diaries, News Tags: ,
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