London Bus Diary: On the Lam 10.11.11
Photo by Curtis Cronn
This is cool. Eliane says she went to the Muni Diaries Live Reunion/Open Mic last week and had a blast. She had such a good time, in fact, that she was inspired to pen her very own diary from public transit in her hometown — London, England. Take it away, Eliane:
Anyway, there we were. A full top deck of commuters ignoring each other, when someone jumped on the bus while it drove along and ran straight upstairs. He was young and looking very nervous, running up and down the aisle, ducking low, looking out of both sides, watching to see if he was being followed. Which he was. By a big security guard who also jumped on the bus and started to climb the stairs. Where could he go? He was trapped. Also turns out he was nuts or on something. He ran for the back of the bus (where the stairs came up) and instead of running down, opened the emergency exit window and climbed out of the bus onto the roof.
Read the rest of Eliane’s London bus diary “And if a double-decker bus …”
Muni idea of the week: seat savers 10.10.11
Muni News: Caltrain budget, costly cameras on Muni drivers, free Muni for kids 10.10.11
Photo by Brian Brooks
- Caltrain officials adopt tentative 2013 budget (Silicon Valley Business Journal)
- Free Muni for youths a step closer (SFGate)
- CPUC Requires BART, Muni To Install Cameras To Catch Drivers Using Cell Phones (BCN via SF Appeal)
- Operator surveillance ordered by state will cost BART, Muni big (SF Examiner)
- Mayoral candidate Bevan Dufty wants life coaches for Muni drivers (City Insider)
- Muni and poor streets among complaints in new San Francisco survey (SF Examiner)
Beat Us at Muni Trivia and Win Stuff 10.10.11
Yeah yeah yeah, you’re a San Francisco native who knows better than to leave your house without a scarf or say silly stuff like “the Muni.” But how’s your Muni knowledge?
We’re having a Muni trivia contest on the Muni Diaries Facebook page today — first person to answer all three questions correctly wins a Fast Pass Clipper Card Holder and two tickets to our next live show in November!
So keep your eyes peeled for the trivia questions on our Facebook page. We’ll announce the winner by tomorrow morning.
We’d also like to announce the winner of our “Drive for 1K” contest on Facebook last week. All new likes until 5 p.m. were eligible to win. Today, we’re happy to announce that our randomly generated winner is Jen Beeghly-Hills. Jen will receive her choice of a Fast Pass holder or tickets to our next live show. Contact us at muni.diaries.sf@gmail.com to claim your prize!
Oh, the places you’ll go on the 22-Fillmore 10.10.11
Photo by Ian Fuller
Sadly, we just didn’t have enough time at our Muni Diaries Live reunion/open-mic show to have everyone who signed up to share their slice of Muni life onstage. So, we reached out to those individuals to tell their stories here on the website. Enjoy Ellie’s roller coaster chariot of a 22-Fillmore story.
I had just moved to the city and a friend told me that if the opportunity arouse, I needed to go see a movie at the Kabuki. When she told me this, I had a sudden feeling of nostalgia. So that night, I stuffed a king-sized Kit-Kat in my bag and headed for the corner of Mission and 16th.
After seeing a slew of 14, 49, and 33′s slither by, I decided that it must have been during a stay in San Francisco that the band Whitesnake coined its name. My thought was stopped short by a woman with red-stained jeans, hunched over, and mumbling, “I got my period…I got my period…,” while walking back and forth in front of me.
“Umm…I — I — I’m sorry,” I muttered.
An Imagined Route for the ‘G-Geary’ Metro Line 10.08.11
Weekend Photos: Let the Sun Shine In 10.07.11
Photo by Bhautik Joshi
Well, how about three fun things to do this weekend, instead of complaining?
- Johnnie Walker Whisky Tasting Party. My friend once took me to one of Johnnie Walker’s fine tastings for my birthday: we cleansed our palates with strawberries dipped in black pepper and drank whisky served by Johnnie Walker girls. Let’s hope this year the organizers heard my somewhat loud complaint and hired some Johnnie Walker dudes. The whiskies, especially Johnnie Walker Blue, are mighty fine. Oct. 5-8. Dogpatch Studios, 991 Tennessee St. Take Muni there: T, 22, 48.
- Writers with Drinks. The always-inspiring reading series led by Charlie Anders returns with five of your favorite authors, this time including Rebecca Solnit (Infinite City: A San Francisco Atlas). Saturday, Oct. 8., from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., doors at 6:30 p.m. Make-Out Room. 3225 22nd St. between Mission and Valencia. Take Muni there: 12, 14, 22, 33, 48, 49, 67
- Oh, and we’re not getting bombed. It’s just Fleet Week.
Enjoy these photos and your weekend!
Photo by Automatt
Photo by Jayson Lorenzen
Photo by Brandon Doran
Photo by Allan Chen
Photo by Thomas Hawk
Muni Tattoos Revisited 10.07.11
Photo by SFLocal.net
Some people literally wear love for San Francisco on their sleeves with Muni-related tattoos. There’s everything from an F-Market/Wharves PCC streetcar to a Fast Pass to the Muni worm. The owner of that Muni-worm tattoo, Muni Tattoo Girl, contacted us after that first post and sent us some more pics of her iconic neck piece.
Tattoos being permanent and all (for better or worse), not everyone is willing to make the commitment. Enter temporary Muni tattoos, courtesy of SFLocal.net. The artist celebrated 10 years in our fair city this year.
Fast Pass tattoos above go for $2.25 a pop. Get them — and other SF-related ones — at SFLocal or in the artist’s Etsy store.
New month, Fast Pass, dead Clipper card 10.07.11
Photo by Sam Churchill
Help! I’m having a hellvua time with my clipper card. I bought the October fast pass over the weekend, online, and the next time I tried to tag my card I discovered it was dead. De-magged, probably even though that’s not supposed to happen. Yeah right. Anyway, since I couldn’t tag it, the Oct fast pass never showed up on my clipper card. I went to clipper service in the Embarcadero station (pain in the ass), and the very nice man gave me a new card, but couldn’t transfer the pass since it hadn’t yet showed up on my original card.
You see where this is going. Is the pass ever going to show up on my card, or am I screwed? I’ve been carrying around the receipt, but it’s such a hassle to convince the operators to let me board…even though at the same time ten people are getting in the back door without paying.
What to do? Have you ever encountered this problem?
Well? Bueller? Bueller?
Video: Grand Slam Champion Joyce Lee at Muni Diaries Live 10.06.11
Later that evening, Joyce picked up the crowd by a story about riding the bus with her mom, who told the kids on the bus how it’s done.
Joyce is a frequent performer at Tourettes Without Regrets, the amazing monthly show at the Oakland Metro that is part spoken word slam, part variety show, and the rest — you just have to see for yourself. The next show is tonight, so don’t miss it!
We hate to lose such a local talent, but Joyce has big ambitions — she is going to Kenya later this month to hold free creative writing and poetry workshops for Kenyan women. If you are interested in her project, check out Joyce’s blog.
Ride Muni like a boss. Our Fast Pass Clipper card holders and Muni Diaries T-shirts are all on sale 
