Your place to share stories on and off the bus.
Rider Joey sent in this warm and fuzzy picture:
I really think PDA should be banned at bus stops. It’s not like I can wait somewhere else.
Ah, young love. I mean, I’m all for happiness and everything.
Actually, bus stop PDA is not on my list of PDA Don’ts: babytalking is at the top. You know what I mean, Schmoopykissypoo?
Photo by prawnpie
Ed. Note: This is the 1,000th post on Muni Diaries! Hooray! We’re working on a brand-new look for the site in the coming weeks, so stay tuned! And keep sending us your stories, photos, videos, and comments, because your life on Muni makes the site what it is. Now, without further interruption, here’s Rachel’s story.
I was on an early morning 22-Fillmore, the same bus and same driver I have most days. This driver is usually quiet and serious, barely acknowledging passengers (regulars and otherwise). This guy is infamous for not stopping at the Fillmore and Geary stop to take on passengers, and all the regulars would tell you the same thing, as we’ve all been passed by at least once or twice.
Our bus stopped at O’Farrell and a woman got on. She had several bags with her, and she handed them one by one to the driver. Then she leaned over the plexiglass partition and gave him a hug and a kiss.
“You have a good day now,” she told him.
“All right, you too, see you later,” he replied.
She got off the bus and stood on the sidewalk, waved to him, then crossed the street.
I don’t know what was in the bags but I like to think they were full of snacks for him to enjoy throughout the day, and some bottles of water or juice, and a thermos of coffee, maybe some magazines or the newspaper for him to read on his break. I hope the visit by his wife (or girlfriend) made his day.
Photo by Julie Michelle of i live here: SF
Ed. note: Silvi Alcivar of The Poetry Store told this story on stage at Muni Diaries Live! last Friday. If you missed her and her beautiful typewriter at the show, here is her story. She was also featured on SFGate this week. Oh, and yes, we take Caltrain and BART stories, too! You can find the rest of Caltrain stories on this page and on our @caltraindiaries Twitter feed.
I was having a terrible morning. Not only did I have to get up at 6:30am after about a week of way too little sleep, I had to get up and get on my bike, to get to Caltrain, to go to Menlo Park to get my boobs squished in a machine. Why did I have to go all the way to Menlo Park for my annual mammogram? Because I’m a poet, and poet’s don’t have health insurance, at least I don’t, and the free breast screening program I’m enrolled in meant I had to venture out of the city if I wanted to make sure my boobs were cancer free.
Not only did this feel like a hassle, I was also so broke that I almost couldn’t justify paying $12 for a day pass. I thought maybe I could get by without one, but I didn’t want to chance it, so I dished out $12 I felt like I didn’t have.
Thanks to the timeliness of Caltrain, I arrived at my appointment proud of myself for being half an hour early. I’m never early. Ever. When I went to lock up my bike, crap! I didn’t have my lock. I walked in, bike in tow, and a man appeared out of nowhere and started ushering me and my bike out. “No, no bikes in here, just leave it out there.” He pointed to a far away space not within easy eyeshot of anyone, let alone me, who was going to be in another room, getting her boobs squished in a machine. “Look,” I told him, “this bike is worth more money than I have right now. I can’t risk anything happening to it.” He gave me a look that told me he obviously was not a bike commuter, or even a bike commute appreciator. I begged the receptionist and finally she let me leave my bike right outside the door.
When I went to check in, sure enough, they had no record of my appointment. In fact, the receptionist informed me, “But we don’t do mammograms here.” A phone call or two later it turned out I was sent the wrong paper work and sent to the wrong place. A woman on the phone told me, “Your appointment is actually in San Mateo in 10 minutes.” “I’m on my bike,” I told her, “and on Caltrain, there’s no way I can’t make it.” She offered to pay for a cab. I was so frustrated and disappointed I couldn’t even talk because if I talked I was going to cry. She asked if I wanted to reschedule and I choked out, “Not. Right. Now.” Then I retrieved my bike from the place it remained perfectly safe and I headed back to Caltrain.
Of course, when I got there, I had just missed the SF train and had to wait. When finally I got on, all I wanted to do was close my eyes and disappear. Lucky for me, no such thing happened. It was about 10 a.m. or so and the bike car was virtually empty, but of course, some guy decided to sit right in front of me. Read more
Update (7:31 a.m., Thursday): The Examiner has more — a driver was already fleeing a hit-and-run with another vehicle. The woman at the shelter sustained broken bones, but her injuries aren’t life-threatening. From The Examiner:
The suspect, a 35-year-old man, rear-ended a vehicle while headed westbound on Hayes Street near Baker Street at 6:40 p.m., Lt. Liam Frost said.
Fleeing the collision, the driver threw his Ford truck into reverse, but ended up jumping the curb going backward, striking a woman and taking out the bus stop, Frost said.
The woman, said to be in her late 30s, sustained broken bones, but her injuries were not life-threatening, he said
Original post: This report comes via @theSusyness:
I saw the photo on facebook. The bus stop was plowed into by a car, a woman was sitting in the bus shelter waiting for the 21 bus. I’m hearing that the driver has fled, believed hit & run. Originally I was told the pedestrian was killed, but now I am hearing the woman is alive. It happened today, just an hour or two ago.
We’ll update this post when/if we learn more. We really hope the victim is okay.
Commenter Mr.EricSir sent us this video of the “SupaSiCwiT it!” crew dancing on Muni to Vans by The Pack. YouTube commenters say that this is actually jerking but I’m not sure if I have enough street cred to confirm that. The video was made in 2006 but it’s new at least to me. The fun starts 22 seconds in.
From Muni rider @ericaashleyyy
this guy doin pushups on muni… sit down! lmao
We’ve seen plenty of pull-ups in our day, but never someone down on the floor rockin’ the push-ups. Bravo!