Photo Diary: Young Muni Rider 06.17.10
Photo by Flickr user davitydave
How can someone so young look so wistful? I hope he’s just lamenting the dearth of chocolate chip cookies at snack time today in kindergarten.
‘Poker Face’ Sing-Along on F-Market 06.17.10
Photo by Flickr user The Holy Hand Granade
This funny experience happened to me and a group of friends on the eve of Valentine’s Day. We were on the F Market streetcar at Fisherman’s Wharf and the streetcar was very crowded. My friends were from the East Bay and have never experienced Muni life, but this streetcar ride made it very interesting.
A man in the back of the train was very loud and kept saying random things, like “KEEP YOUR BAGS AND WALLETS CLOSE TO YOU.” I thought, “Oh God, not one of these rides again.” But my friends were actually having a good time, enjoying his loudness.
The train was moving slowly out of the Wharf area and the man in the back of the streetcar started singing parts of a song. Well, he was combining two of Lady Gaga’s songs, “Bad Romance” and “Poker Face,” and it was only a small section of the songs. My friends and I couldn’t stop laughing, nor could the other passengers.
Suddenly, my friends started singing “Poker Face” from the beginning. I joined in and then more passengers joined our choir group. The song ended when the man in the back totally killed the song by singing that small section out loud and off-key. Things were going pretty okay until the man walked over to the front of the streetcar. By now he was being really loud, announcing that “I believe in Satan” and started to get closer to me.
My friends seemed a little freaked out, but soon it was our stop, and we got out of that streetcar quick. This was an experience that we would never forget.
P-p-p-poker face p-p-poker face…Got another Muni story to share? Do it here.
Photo Diary: Layers of People on the Bus 06.16.10
Photo by Flickr user davitydave
I’ve been staring at this picture for the last 20 minutes now and can’t make out how the young woman ended up in such an odd and surreal way in this photograph. I need more coffee, maybe?
TransLink Becomes Clipper Today 06.16.10
Photo by Agent Akit
Heads up: Translink is changing its name to Clipper today. SF Appeal and Akit have more deets. If you don’t have the card yet, check out these times and locations to get a free card. If you already have a TransLink card, you’re all set — your card should still work, says SFMTA. You can still add value to your TransLink card all the same. More questions? Here’s the Clipper FAQ page.
Have you had any trouble using your TransLink card since the transition? Comment away, please.
What Happens When a Chicagoan Gets on Muni 06.16.10
So how does a little culture clash between tough-as-nails Chicago and nice-as-pie San Francisco go down on Muni? Zore told us all about it at the the Muni Diaries Story Tent at Secession Art and Design last Friday. Check out another story we got that night and the wacky Muni Mad-Libs from the Outbound show.
Muni Shell Game in the News, Again 06.15.10
A gang of thieves has been running a three-cup shuffle game to strong-arm Muni passengers of their money. Sound familiar? The reports just keep coming in. Back in March, rider Adam sent us an account of the shell game con he saw the 24. A few weeks later we got a video of the con. Last night, ABC7 aired another video of the shell game in action.
The scam itself isn’t new, but the intimidation factor and targeting non-touristy bus lines make this seem more menacing than before.
A rider wrote us after seeing the segment and told us she’s seen this game before. You won’t believe when she first witnessed this, though.
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Can I Ruffle the Feathers on Your Sweater? 06.15.10
Photo by Flickr user sheepguardingllama
Last Friday, I was riding the 12 home after work from SOMA to the Mission. I was staring off into space when the man sitting next to me said, “Excuse me?” I looked up, thinking he might be looking for directions or have some sort of question.
“I don’t know if you know this, but you have feathers or fuzz all over your dress — on the back, and sleeve…”
I looked at my sleeve. It was true. The combination of black dress and fuzzy sweater meant that there was weird linty fuzz all over me.
“Oh yeah, there is. Thanks for letting me know,” I replied.
“Do you want me to wipe it off of you?” He asked me.
The thought of this mild-mannered but still very creepy man touching me in any way was not appealing, so I told him it was fine and that I was heading home soon anyway.
“Well,” he said. “So what’s your sweater made out of?”
Really not wanting to engage any further, I looked at the tag of my cardigan.
“Uh… looks like viscose, cotton and angora,” I read off.
He smiled at me, and I went back to staring out the window. About four stops later, he got off.
I don’t mind making conversation on the bus, but here’s a pro tip: asking other riders if you can touch them — probably not a good idea.
Muni skin art: ‘The city is my sweetheart’ 06.14.10
@TheCara sends us this photo of a tattoo purportedly belonging to @farmtable. I don’t know about you, but … next-level teh awesome.
Boom Box vs The New Yorker, From Our Story Tent 06.14.10
Ahem, is this thing on?
“A brown liquid was found on Muni line 46 today. Passengers were throwing up when the discovery was made, making this the most amazing bus line in the city today.”
Don’t worry, it’s not true. This is just one of the Muni Mab Libs submitted at the Muni Diaries Story Tent at Outbound, hosted by us and Secession Art and Design on Friday night. Secession Art and Design curated an amazing show, featuring the work of Nate1, Eddie, Duerone, and a collection of wearable art. At our Muni Diaries Story Tent just outside of Secession, we heard some hilarious Muni stories like the one that Mary told in the video above, about a war between a boom box and The New Yorker.
We also collected your brilliant Muni Mad-Libs:
“Riding Muni is better than a night on the cornfields with numerous lucky ladies.” – David.
“Riding Muni is like dating a dude who is clueless about your needs and full of surprises, except it’s never the pleasant kind.” – Fabulous R.
“Riding Muni is better than taking a hot jello bath with Jesse Helms on a summer day in North Carolina on mescaline.” – Felix.
Yow!
If you haven’t made it to Secession yet, be sure to check out Nate1′s paintings featuring BART and Muni, Eddie’s large-scale work that you probably recognize from the streets, and Duerone’s handpainted boxcars. Secession also hosts designers of wearable art, including work from Colleen Mauer, Heather Robinson, and Rachel Znerold.
We’ll be airing more of the stories we collected Friday night this week, and watch our Twitter feed for more Muni Mad Libs submissions from the evening.
Weekend Photos: Stand behind the yellow line 06.11.10
Photo by rkallerud
Are the rains finally over? This weekend sure is shaping up to be a wildly un-S.F. one, weather-wise. Enjoy, and don’t bake yourselves too much (take that to mean what you will). Also don’t forget to come see and/or buy Muni and BART art tonight at Secession. Come prepared to share Muni stories in our storytelling tent, too. Next stop, fun town.
Here’s the week’s Muni news to tickle your brain:
- Fire truck, Muni bus clip each other’s mirrors (SF Examiner)
- Parking Tax Revenue Measure for Muni Makes Its Way to Supervisors (Streetsblog SF)
- October 2010 to see the last paper Fast Pass (Muni Diaries)
- Muni operators set to vote on concessions deal (City Insider/SFGate)
- Treasure Island may get new Muni line (SF Examiner)
- Alledged Bus Tagger Busted at 24th Street BART Station (Mission Local)
- List of artists for Central Subway project whittled down (SF Examiner, via SF Appeal)
Enjoy, and we’ll see you Monday. xoxo
Photo by Brandon Doran
Photo by prayitno
Photo by Troy Holden
Photo by mr.skeleton
Ride Muni like a boss. Our Fast Pass Clipper card holders and Muni Diaries T-shirts are all on sale 
