Your place to share stories on and off the bus.
Instagram photographer karolinecollins saw this serious man on the bus the other day and found something really unexpected.
Yup, we can attest to the “never a dull moment” aspect of public transit.
Who else did you spy on your bus today? We wanna know.
Photo by julesreyes
“I was sitting on the single seats on the 8X and a man got on the bus and held the pole next to my seat…the bus makes a small turn and the man leans toward me and brushes my arm with his hand. I mean this might be understandable if it was a wide turn and if we were going pretty fast, but the bus was not. The 8X is typically a crowded bus and as a non-confrontational person, I didn’t accuse him of anything just yet. So after that I turned my head in his direction and he was staring down at me.
He was a middle age bald man with a big gut wearing a blue polo shirt. He didn’t touch me again till the next small turn. He was clearly exaggerating the impact of the turn. I was fed up with this pervert. You may think I am over-reacting to this someone touching my arm on the bus, well this is not the worst I’ve experience or seen.
I’ve talked to people about this happening and they tell me not to start anything with the guy for my own safety in case he has a weapon or might follow me home. This infuriates me that I can’t do anything about it.”
Personal spaces might be tighter on the bus but that’s no excuse if this man is brushing against Stella on purpose.
Over the weekend I was on a fairly empty 49-Van Ness and a guy decided to sit next to me and promptly “fall asleep,” resting his arm on my hips several times. At first I wasn’t completely sure that he was doing this on purpose, but after the fourth time I had enough and got up to get to the next seat. Like Stella, I found it infuriating and frustrating.
I’ve read that in other countries there are women-only passenger cars just to prevent groping. Not that groping is limited to female victims alone.
Ladies (and gents), weigh in: Has this happened to you? If so, how do you deal with it?
Photo by skew-t
Last week, we posted about a circa-1960s Muni bus up for auction, yours for the bargain-basement price of $12,000. You have a little less than a day to bid on that one. But, you ask, what will I do with my vintage Muni bus, other than have fabulous parties in it?
Tofu St. John on our Facebook Page had a popular suggestion:
I think a few should be restored and put into regular service for the retro appeal. Bring back the 7-Haight and only use old, restored buses.
Now there’s an idea.
We had some sad-face after our favorite elusive (read: not ridden that often, but nice when we did) lines got the axe in 2009. After soliciting Muni obituaries for them, we found a number of you felt the same way. A historic version of the 26-Valencia or the 4-Sutter at least makes for some fun afternoon daydreaming, however unlikely it seems in real life.
Fun with the do-it-yourself HTC display at the Muni stop last night.
I really want to know what the “surprised” guy saw.
What else did you see on and around Muni? Keep up with the fun stuff on the Muni Diaries Facebook page or Twitter.
Well, happy freakin’ birthday to me. Over the weekend, a friend gave me this early bday gift: a Muni token wine stopper. Some guy in Sacramento makes wine stoppers with various items like this at the top, and my friend happened to notice this gem. Oddly, she thought I might like it.
It reminds me how some people think I’m a little more into Muni than I actually am. Don’t get me wrong — editing Muni Diaries is a total joy. And ephemera like Muni tokens make me happy. But, it’s not like I’m obsessed or anything …
Thank you, Jill!
In other news this morning: girl on Muni with fuzzy disco ball headphones. Scattered light and everything!
That is exactly how I want to start my Mondays. I’m not sure what she’s listening to, but I am hoping it involves “Night Fever,” at least. Take a listen.
Makes you miss the days of the first Muni party in this 1980s flashback, doesn’t it?