Your place to share stories on and off the bus.
Photo by heather
Here’s to say: Thank you all for either cheering the team on, or for putting up with/incessantly bitching about the delays and crowded N-Judah and T-Third trains around AT&T Park all season. The Giants advanced to the next round of playoffs by beating the Atlanta Braves last night 3-2.
Delays and bitching will resume next Tuesday (most likely in the evening at the perfectly jack-ass time of 1:19 p.m., according the Giants Twitter feed).
9:09 p.m.: commotion in the N outbound.Door is stuck and power is out. Greaaaat!
9:16 p.m.: after rolling backwards for a sec the door has finally opened.
I’ve been on an M-Ocean View whose steps got stuck as they were being lowered (coming out of SF State and into Ingleside). We sat there, and sat there, and sat there, steps mid-retracted, doors flinging open and closed. Half of me wanted that Muni Metro car to go all Transformers, with me in it.
It’s never fun when Muni breaks. But sometimes we just have to make the most of our half-functional transit system.
Let us hear some of your more unusual breakdown stories in the comments.
Saw these two photos by tofuart on our Muni Photos Flickr pool the other day, and just had to post them. Cute. That’s right, cute. What? (See the other photo by clicking “read more” —->)
Caption: “I tell you, the N-Judah is that way.”
Photo by Brian Brooks
Photographer Brian Brooks has been a regular contributor to Muni Diaries almost since the beginning. We love his black and white photos like this glimmering F car we featured in a weekend photo post. We caught up with him to talk about what inspires him to photograph public transit.
How did you get into photography?
I’m a transplant(circa 1994) from New Jersey and loved photography from an early age. My first job was at a 1-hour lab. A great way to learn about photography is through trial and error, working a lab where resources are unlimited is very helpful. I’m mostly self-taught with a few college classes here and there. I shoot about 40 percent analog and 60 percent digital.
What is it about Muni that inspires you to take photos there?
It’s where most San Franciscans can be seen. It’s also great because people are standing still, which gives you more time to focus on them. One of the most memorable moments was when a fare inspector ripped a transfer from my wife’s hand and I shot a photo of the interaction. It had expired while waiting on the platform for a late train.
How do you get a good picture on the bus?
I almost never ask people if I can take their photograph.) The few times I’ve asked while riding Muni they’ve always said, “No.” I can still see those photographs in my head. If you’re in the public space, you’re fair game.
What’s your line?
I’m more of a train person so the N-Judah is my line. Every time I ride Muni I can tell a story about it.
Check out more of Brian’s Muni photos on Flickr. Got Muni photos yourself? Join our Muni Photos Flickr pool.
Photo by Chipmonkey (^o^)
Stories are stories, and the internet is nice enough to let us listen to them as well as read them. For those of us in too much of a hurry, or simply too lazy to let your eyeballs scan and decipher the words here, that’s a bonus.
Stephanie from NPR’s Snap Judgment captured some of the stories told on-stage at our last Muni Diaries Live event. This one, by Mel, concerns a vivid memory of a cloudy ride on the N-Judah.
Have a listen, and let us know whether you like the audio diary format:
Mel’s party bus
Riders James, Katie, and friends have been stalking your books on Muni on their site, Between the Lines. On their quest to document who’s reading what on public transit in our literary city, they’ve reported the sighting of a rare and obscure novel and the continued epidemic of Eat, Pray, Love. This week, Between the Lines caught rider Sierra reading a fascinating hardcover despite the onslaught of commuters. Here’s a peek at what she’s reading. Maybe you’ll see James and Katie soon on your line so you can share your discerning book choices.
So what are you reading there?
Open, by Andre Agassi. It’s really good actually. I was originally interested because a friend recommended it and I play tennis. But there’s a lot of stuff in here you wouldn’t expect. It’s not just about tennis. It’s also about how much he hated tennis. And meth and how much balding sucks.
Would you recommend it?
Absolutely! It’s a little unwieldy because it’s a hard cover. I usually ride my bike to work, but I look forward to rainy days, because then I get to ride Muni and actually read on my commute. I try to read before bed, but don’t usually make it too far before falling asleep. I got this from my friend at the Sonoma State library. It’s actually impossible to get at the SF library right now. All the copies are out.
Thanks Sierra (cute scarf, by the way). It’s been a while since I heard someone looking forward to riding Muni. I’ve been wondering lately if there was such a thing as good readable sports nonfiction. If there is one, Agassi would probably provide one of the most engaging real-life characters. At first I wasn’t sure what you meant about the book being impossible to get at the library, given my naivete on the subject, but a trip to the SF Public Library site proved that Sierra was right: 131 copies are out and the first one returned already has two people waiting for it!
(You can also find a copy of Open by Andre Agassi at Books Inc.)