Muni Monsters! 08.16.11
We got in touch with Aaron Hartline, the Pixar animator who draws, places, and photographs the monsters around town. Here’s what Aaron said:
Muni monsters was inspired by taking a Muni ride across town after the Outside Lands concert this past weekend. I like posting strange lil’ characters looking at people stuck in everyday day life. The idea of these Muni monsters trying to understand these weird humans and their everyday rituals makes me smile.
One more …
More monsters can be found at The Daily Postit and @TheDailyPostit.
Update: Photo Gallery of Anonymous #OpBART Protest 08.15.11
Photo by lmc_sf
BART’s disruption of cell phone service last Thursday led to the hacking of myBART.org by the group Anonymous, who also promised a live protest today at BART stations. We followed the coverage from our best sources as it happened.
Missed the madness? A photo gallery of the #opBART protest via Instagram:
Photo by tigerbeat
Photo by tigerbeat
Photo by miscellania
Fast Best Friends on Muni 08.15.11
Photo by Jessie Johnson
Mike’s story was originally published on his website, MikeLee.org. Here’s an excerpt:
Girl #1 looked at Girl #2. She smiled. The other girl looked away. Then back. Then away. Then back.
Girl #1 said, “Hi.”
Girl #2 looked at her for a moment. Then, “Hi.”
Girl #1 said a few more things. I didn’t catch them, but it looked like quite an animated message. Her little hands flailed about excitedly.
Girl #2 smiled. Her arms stayed at her sides while she answered. She gripped her mother as the bus rocked and lurched.
…
Then came Girl #2′s stop. Her mother got up and took her arm. The little girl frowned. “I don’t want to go,” she told her mother.
“But this is our stop.”
“I don’t want to go,” Girl #2 repeated as she dutifully stood up.
The two girls exchanged sad glances. The mothers smiled. “How cute,” said Mother #1. “In just thirty minutes, they’ve become the best of friends.”
Read the whole story on Mike’s website.
Video Diary: Cool Kids on BART 08.15.11
I looked away for a little while, then I noticed that everyone was looking over in my direction. I turned around and saw that three young teenagers had got on the train, and they were playing with yoyo-like toys that I hadn’t seen before. It was a ball on a string with a handle, and they were balancing the ball on the handle to showing off their skills on the moving train. The two guys who were eating their lunch were amused and asked the kids to show them how to play with it. And everyone in that corner of the train was smiling.
As the guys left, they gave the kids a fist pump and said good bye. I asked Willem, one of the kids, what the toy was. He told me that it’s a Japanese toy called kendama. You can see Willem showing off his best move on BART in the video I took above.
Thanks, Willem and friends, who brought a smile to our BART ride on Saturday.
Anonymous Hacks myBART.org 08.14.11
The online hacker group Anonymous has hacked into myBART.org and released thousands of names, email and home addresses, and phone numbers, reports TheNextWeb. They’ve also defaced myBART.org, an independent website, with the hacker group’s logo, reports CNET.
The hacker group had threatened to take BART.gov off line today and also proposed a protest on Monday at 5 p.m. As of 3:15 p.m., the BART.gov website is still live.
All of this came from BART’s decision to cut cell service last Thursday in anticipation of a protest about the July 3 shooting.
Read more about it at the SFAppeal and the Bay Citizen.
What do you think: is this an effective way to protest BART’s cell disruption?
Photo Diary: Dude, Open a Window 08.14.11
What can you possibly smell on Muni? Hot dog juice or fresh strawberries? You decide.
And if you have photos on and around public transit in San Francisco, our Muni Flickr pool is wide open!
Your Two Cents: BART Defends Decision to Cut Cell Service 08.13.11
Photo by Black Hour
By now you know that BART temporarily shut down cell service on Thursday to interfere with a proposed protest over the shooting of Charles Hill. And now the agency is under a lot of heat.
According to CNET:
Hackers were calling for action against BART in retaliation for the cell service disruption. The Anonymous group of online activists started promoting Operation BART on Twitter, with one profile saying: “We are going to show BART (@SFBART) how to prevent a riot #OpBART.” … Meanwhile, they also released a digital flyer with the headline “muBARTek,” a reference to former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who was ousted after demonstrations earlier this year. “
The SFAppeal reports that BART didn’t violate specific FCC rules. And once you’re on the BART platform, “free speech isn’t so free,” says the SF Appeal report (read the Appeal’s excellent coverage of the cell jam).
What do you think of BART’s decision to cut cell service Thursday?
Weekend Photos: Passing the Time 08.12.11
Photo by sarahwulfeck
Eugenia will be around, though, spending a lot of time at WordPress’s WordCamp 2011. See how devoted we all are to bringing you the best internet experience possible?
Here’s a few suggested things to do around town over the weekend:
- Tonight, Fabric8 is hosting an art show called, “Back Door!” You guessed it: It’s Muni-themed. Artist Andy Stattmiller will be showing off his latest works. Fabric8 is at 3318 22nd Street in the Mission. Take the 14-Mission, 49-Van Ness, J-Church, 24-Divisadero, 48-Quintara, or 67-Bernal Heights.
- Outside Lands is going on all weekend in Golden Gate Park, if that’s your thing. Take the N-Judah, 71-Haight/Noriega, 33-Stanyan, 5-Fulton, or 21-Hayes.
- Yeah, it’s in Oakland, but we couldn’t not promote the three-day (starting tonight) Bay Area Derby Girls Roller Derby. Our area girls will do battle with Chicago, Austin, and Detroit to determine who takes home the Golden Bowl trophy. Take whatever Muni route gets you to a BART station.
Feel free to share other rad things going down this weekend with your fellow Muni riders.
If you haven’t already, take a moment to let SF Weekly editors know which website you think deserves to win Best Transit Blog and maybe Best Twitter account (write-in). We wouldn’t try to influence your vote or anything.
And don’t forget to follow Muni Diaries on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Whew! Enjoy these Muni photos and your weekend …
Photo by sirgious
Photo by grace1171
Photo by Brian_Brooks
Photo by dirty black chucks
SFMTA’s Broken Clipper Machine Policy Unchanged 08.12.11
But, lately, there were mumblings that the policy wasn’t being enforced systemwide. So, we got in touch with SFMTA, who verified that the policy hasn’t changed:
The policy has not changed.
Any customer who receives a citation that they feel is unwarranted may certainly protest the citation. Here is a link from our website to the page about paying or protesting a transit fare citation: http://www.sfmta.com/cms/mfares/AdultMunitransitviolationonorafterFebruary42008.htm. We appreciate customers alerting us to malfunctioning Clipper readers via 311.
So, when you encounter a broken Clipper reader, insist on boarding the vehicle. Protest a citation if you receive one, using the guidelines in the link above. It’s probably a good idea to note the coach number, the driver number, and the date and time for reference.
The more you know, and all that.
Muni News: BART failures, BART non-protests, Muni station doors 08.12.11
Photo by YUNCHUNG LEE
- BART data-device failure shows deep system flaws (SFGate)
- SF Mayoral Candidates Need to Tackle Transportation Funding (Streetsblog SF)
- One Year In, Officials Say Transbay Terminal Construction On Schedule (SF Appeal)
- SFMTA Advises Muni Customers about Metro Station Door Replacement (SFMTA)
- Rumored protests at BART, Muni in SF on Thursday stall out (SF Examiner)
- Transit ridership surges throughout Bay Area (SJ Mercury News)
- BART Officer Contradicts Spokesperson, Says Transit Agency Did Block Cell Phone Service Thursday Night (SF Appeal)
- Weekend traffic and transit advisories (SF Appeal)
Ride Muni like a boss. Our Fast Pass Clipper card holders and Muni Diaries T-shirts are all on sale 
