How a life lived (well) on Muni evolved into a life of civic duty

Muni is San Francisco’s deep end: immediate and immersive exposure to strangers, testing our tolerance for other people’s music, aromas, food, volume, attitude, or public habits. Sometimes all of them at the same time.

This concept is what brought Muni Diaries to life. It’s also what makes Muni interesting and representative of the city it cuts through. We can still celebrate and rally around that idea thanks to folks like Meymey Lee.

Meymey is an organizer, artist, and outdoor educator, who joined us on stage at Muni Diaries Live. They touched on one of my favorite things about Muni: it can not only highlight our shared humanity, but inspire civic duty and a sense of community. We first connected with Meymey through their multimedia exhibit, Muni Raised Me, a showcase of San Francisco born-and-raised artists exploring what Muni means to the folks who grew up on it.

Say hi to your neighbors, San Francisco! It might just be Meymey. Listen to the podcast on all your favorite platforms:

We are proud to have had not just one, but two of the talented artists from Muni Raised Me at our spring show. Stay tuned for the lyrical stylings of Tanea Lunsford Lynx, an artist and educator, in an upcoming podcast episode. In the meantime, prepare to be impressed—Tanea brought their students to the exhibit to perform original poetry about life on the school bus (Muni, obvs), and we captured some of the audio in an earlier podcast ep.

Photo: Emily Huston

ISO: One special Muni driver for Kurt Schwartzmann

Profile of a man with an eyepatch and colorful jacket telling a story into a microphone on a stage

In 2019, storyteller Kurt Schwartzmann told what is still one of my favorite Muni Diaries Live stories about being unhoused and reliant on the kindness of strangers, namely Muni drivers, for temporary warm shelter. In the thick of the pandemic, when we needed it most, he repaid the city with love. That is, he collaborated with artist Deirdre Weinberg on one of the famed Hearts of San Francisco. We had him back at Muni Diaries Live in April, as he is still looking for one Muni operator in particular. Maybe you can help him?

Here’s Kurt:

Check out his work at www.YellowLineArt.com and follow him on Instagram @yellow_line_art.

Photo: Emily Huston

When small talk pays off on Muni

What would make you take off your headphones on the bus to talk to a stranger? In this episode, storyteller Alex Randall shares how he started talking to his fellow riders, and how these “Muni chats” changed the way he looks at our city. This episode was recorded at Muni Diaries Live at Rickshaw Stop in November, 2022.

Listen to his story:

By day, Alex manages a support team at Atlassian, and by evening and weekend, he serves on the board at Z Space, leads walking tours of his favorite San Francisco neighborhoods. He says he takes the 38 Geary often and likes all things San Francisco: history, sports, art, politics, and of course, public transit. You can find him at @ArtrepreneurSF on both Instagram and Twitter.

And don’t forget to subscribe to the Muni Diaries podcast so you don’t miss a minute of these great stories! You can find us on any of your podcast-listening apps.

Photo: Emily Huston

Searching for one long lost Muni shelter

We don’t often talk about the behind-the-scenes stuff at Muni Diaries because we are really about your stories. But occasionally something happens at Muni Diaries headquarters that just makes us go, “I can’t believe that happened.” 

One of the great things about running Muni Diaries is that we get to try any and all ideas, and along the way we met really great people who also have fun and wacky ideas. Sometimes those fun and wacky ideas turn into a whole another thing altogether. And in this case, one idea to incorporate a Muni shelter into our art show with photographer Julie Michelle turned into a battle for the heart and soul of San Francisco.

In today’s podcast, Tara and I dive into our archives to share the backstory of how we came to briefly own a Muni shelter, and why we are still searching for it today.

Listen to our story:

Speaking of fun, we’re super excited to bring you the fall Muni Diaries Live show to the stage at Rickshaw Stop this Thursday, Nov. 3! You have tickets, right?

Get to know new additions to the Muni Diaries crew

You might have seen these two awesome people who joined the Muni Diaries crew earlier this year, and in today’s episode, you’ll get to know more about our new editors, Kat Siegal and Sarah Katz-Hyman.  If you are a part of the local Transit Twitter community, you are probably already familiar with their names (and witty tweets), and today they’ll share what makes them so passionate about San Francisco.

We’ve always admired Kat and Sarah’s deep knowledge of public transit, their local activism, and their love for this city. You’ll meet Kat and Sarah live at our next Muni Diaries Live show on Nov. 3, 2022! Use the code PODCAST to get a listeners-only discount. See you there!

Listen to their story:

The count down begins! Muni Diaries Live returns on Nov. 3

Just one more week until we bring you the fall Muni Diaries Live show to the stage at Rickshaw Stop! You have tickets, right?

Every show we marvel at how everyday bus riders, comedians, and bus drivers come together to celebrate that Bay Area transit life. We can’t wait to bring you all the funny, weird, poignant, and always true stories about every San Franciscan’s favorite love-hate relationship: Muni! And we’ll be bringing back the Muni Haiku Battle, where reigning champion Wonder Dave faces challenger Kristee Ono. You don’t want to miss this! 

Get your tickets and invite your friends. See you at the show!

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