Happy 4th of July!
The Haight Street Underworld
Giants Clobber The Astros, 13-0
SFist Tonight
Mystery solved! Probably! Thanks our perceptive readers, we have learned what was maybe on the mind of the lady we posted about yesterday, the one who was gently blocking access to an empty seat. Also, we've learned that SFist readers are violent, flatulent racists.
Here's what she was probably thinking: "In my country of origin, I learned that public transit is lousy and over-crowded. So if I want to get off of this rumbling deathtrap someday, I must be forever perched, cat-like, by the exit." Or something to that effect.
Thanks to tomate4369 for pointing out a cultural aspect to this seat-saving strategy that simply hadn't occurred to us; and thanks to our other commenters who pointed out that special accommodations may be required by the very tall, those with leg injuries, and the very demure ladies who wish to avoid a potential groping.
Also, to the bilious individuals who gleefully report banging seat-savers in the head with purses and subjecting them to digestive winds: consider practicing some anger-management, and consulting a gastroenterologist.
add to digg
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
email this
add to facebook
add to del.icio.us
I don't ride public transportation for obvious reasons (mainly because they let you people on, and I saw that bloke with the hole in his forehead twice in one week), but can't you just sit anywhere? Can't you use the bus to move apartments at 8:30 in the morning? Aren't you allowed to play with your lighter inches from another passenger's hair? Isn't it the place where asian teenagers are completely free to shout racist abuse at old whitey, safe in the knowledge that they won't have someone stuff their geography homework up their ass? I just thought the bus was supposed to be a stage for the cities finest assholes. You people are trying to ruin it.
Public transportation is also lousy and over-crowded in this country. Why, exactly, does that excuse selfish behavior? You can come up with any cultural excuse you like, but rude is rude.
"In my country of origin, I learned that public transit is lousy and over-crowded."
Me too
I had no idea that Hole in Forehead Guy was still around. I used to see him around Folsom and Third all the time. I used to force myself to smile at him because I figured he probably had a lot of people look at him and scream in horror, so I was trying to be nice. He never once smiled back and I don't think I've seen him in five years or so.
Here's a thought people: Did anyone actually think to politely ask her to move over or let you through? Seems to me folks are way more interested in broadcasting hater waves and bitching about it in blogs than taking the most obvious path - verbal communication. Oh wait, someone *did* suggest this int he original post, and it was overlooked because it actually made sense. Way to go, social retards!
I ride Muni daily and I have a stupid question, based on a similar cultural explanation of why I see the exact same group of people at the exact same time get on the bus and clump up around the front entrance even though it is a double-long bus and there is plenty of room to move back:
"Have you noticed that you are no longer in your country of origin? Have you noticed that as bad as Muni is, generally it's really not that hard to get on or off of Muni? Sure there are times during rush hour that are miserable, but c'mon, it's ok to unlearn things, isn't it?"
PS
@avantard:
I was not on this particular bus, but, I can assure you that the phrase "excuse me" is one that is selectively understood in the front of the bus clumping exercise I mentioned.
So while in this instance perhaps people didn't ask, my experience is that asking gets you the blank stare of incomprehension.
In vaguely related news: Estelle Getty died.
*sigh*
one could explain how one doesn't actually walk up to strange asian women and fart on them.
and that it was an attempt at humor in an otherwise humorous website.
but that would amount to explaining how humor works. yes?
If you are shorter then nearly the only places with comfortable (or sometimes even reachable) handholds are at the front or near the doors. Some people have to either stand there or else become part of the Bowling For Passengers game.
I still can't believe that people move to big cities, and then refuse to use public transit.
This isn't the midwest or LA..give up the car, and start taking public transit.. or get a bike.
@avantard:
here is a thought: you completely misunderstood?? of course this lady would move if someone asked. if she didn't understand or didn't move, of course someone could force their way past her to the empty seat. the point is that she could have just as easily taken the inside seat as opposed to sitting her grumpy ass in the outside seat.
if anyone gives me proof she has a knee problem requiring her to take the outside seat, i will gladly apologize for my comment.
in the mean-time. i hate her.
Are we absolutely sure it's not Monistat?
I still can't believe people move to the city and don't wake up to the fact that they will die some day, and on their death bed will bitterly regret the hour and a half per day they gave up to MUNI because for some utterly bizarre reason they thought they were doing the right thing.
This isn't Amsterdam or Gottenberg..give up the bus and get a car, or better still, two cars and an RV.
I have to agree with fizzandpop. Public transit is a nice idea, but the limited implementation that we have in San Francisco just isn't feasible for many people.
It takes me 10 minutes to get to work by car, comfortably. By bus, it's 40, and miserable.
@mattymatt: plus they're going to make the main lines faster by cutting service out of the outer neighborhoods, ENSURING you need a car.
And it's so hard to go north south. To go from the Inner Sunset to Russian Hill takes LONGER than going from the Inner Sunset to Millbrae on Muni/Bart.
Bring back the rickshaw!
Unfortunately, those two things are not really in opposition. Take PT if you want, drive if you want. however, PT won't necessarily improve if more people take it, it hopefully would but who knows. If more people drive it will probably slow down your commute and make driving miserable (plus having to hear people bitch about parking, scratching, bicyclist, break-ins, gas prices, is no fun for the rest but whatever, I'll deal), but that too won't make PT faster.
They aren't really translatable. It would be nice if they were ying and yang, but alas...
fizz's comment makes no sense.
there are very very very few people who use public transportation because they want to "do the right thing."
the vast majority of people who use Muni use it because a) they can't afford a car, or b) buying and maintaining car would make them compromise more of their lifestyle than they're willing to.
Thank you, Generic... Sometimes the only humor that can be found on this site are some creative "tags" and that's all.
I think the all "ists" need to have a best of competition for any transportation related posts. It's clearly an issue/source of entertainment in most cities. My vote is for our pasta strainer hat lady.
"Public transit is a nice idea, but the limited implementation that we have in San Francisco..."
o.O Have you lived anywhere else? Or have I been trolled?
Bollocks, it makes perfect sense. Who in god's name can't afford a car? They're cheaper than cigarettes, and if you choose not to tax and maintain them, pennies to run. That "me so po 'cos I opted out of the corporate world to be teenage acne councillor" crap doesn't cut it. Especially when the lifestyle compromises you speak of usually refer to comic books and meals at Herbivor five nights a week. And stop ending your sentences in prepositions.
withak: in my experience most of the city is pretty accessible to public transit, but there are certainly parts of town that aren't too Muni-friendly, perhaps mm lives in one of those areas.
Between driving, public transportation, and riding my bike to work, it is the latter that is the quickest.
Driving to work is actually not quicker at all, given traffic and having to park (at $25/day) in a lot several blocks from my office.
fizzandpoop: your arrogance is noteworthy, but your ideas are not.
fizzandpop, you got some 'splainin' to do.
Assuming you choose not to tax or maintain them? Oh damn, that was my mistake. I chose to get an oil change when my car was dying, got my car registered, and worse of all, taxed my car. Whoops!
Cheaper than cigarettes, too. So, let's say I smoke a pack a day - that's 5 bucks a day. In order to pay the average price of a new car ($20,000), that means 11 years of smoking.
Oh buy a used car you shout, but then you don't want to pay for maintenance? No gas, no parking?
And that's cheaper than 30 bucks a month for muni?
Man, fizz, tell me what I missing here, 'cause you're usually right or at least entertaining, and so far you've got nothing.
fizz: clearly you lead a very sheltered live. owning a car is extremely impractical for a huge amount of people out here. first of all, lots of people live in apartments or houses that don't offer parking. my building requires an additional $300/mo if I were to request a parking space. $300/mo may not sound like a lot of money to some people, but that sure as hell sounds like a ton of money to me!
Also, cars are expensive to maintain with rising gas prices and insurance, etc.
Luckily, people who live in less parking-friendly parts of town have easy access to Muni. For example, I live in the TL and there are Muni lines galore. For me it simply wouldn't make sense to have a car. If i lived in the Outer Sunset or some place like that I'd definitely consider buying a car if I had that kind of money.
Perhaps there's something nasty on that inside seat.
oskarv: I know that some areas are served better than others, but even the worst-served part of SF is miles ahead of most other cities. SF's public transit is definitely not limited compared to other cities. Often unreliable and uncomfortable: yes, limited: no.
Cars are pretty expensive. But I can sometimes save so much time and effort when I drive. Being a prisoner of Muni is awful, because you simply can't trust them to come, to be fast, or to be tolerable.
Sometimes it's better to take the bus -- trying to find a parking spot in the Castro sucks, and I wouldn't leave an unattended car in most of Chris Daly's district. But if Muni is your only option for transit, you're bound for unhappiness.
For what it's worth, I've lived in a number of large cities, and I've never seen public transit that really worked well. I guess NYC comes closest.
"For what it's worth, I've lived in a number of large cities, and I've never seen public transit that really worked well. I guess NYC comes closest."
There are only a handful of cities with good PT. But PT transportation has to be compared to NO PT. Not compared to driving.
If the comparison is between PT and a car then you're comparing apples to oranges.
After all, one could use both cars and PT. One could use neither. PT is never going to do away with cars and vice versa. Someone could post how great motorcycles are getting around the city.
Ok.
Then what?
Everyone on bikes?
I completely support this woman's right to sit in the outside seat. She was there first, why should she be forced to sit in the crappy, cramped quarters of the window seat? You want that seat? Climb over her for chrissake! She would probably even swing her legs out for you if you told her you were coming in. Don't hate on the lady. If you're the first on the bus, you get the first selection of seats.
All u haters jumping to conclusions, come on!!!
mattymatt: i think it depends on where you live. where i live i have very little problems with muni. in fact, sometimes you'll hear me say, "i love muni!."
i've also lived in a lot of cities in the US (but mainly 2nd tier ones), and from what I've come across Muni is fantastic. when i lived in Miami there was only one bus line 4 blocks away from my apartment. to make matters worse, the line only runs like once an hour, so if you miss the bus you're screwed. i find that a lot of the time if i miss my intended bus here, I can simply check www.nextmuni.com on my phone to see if the next bus is coming soon, and if it isn't there's usually some other line 2 blocks up that's going in the same direction.
i'm 100% reliant on Muni, and as a result i'm very muni-savvy. i find that people who have tons of problems with muni just don't know how to use it effectively..
here are some simple guidelines:
-NEVER rely on printed schedules
-Use services like 511.org and googletransit with caution. they rely on printed schedules, and aren't usually accurate because of that. it's usually better to use those services to see which route makes the most sense (it's generally good at figuring that out, though not always) and then to go on www.nextmuni.com to see when the next bus is coming
-Use nextmuni/311 when you can! this will save you lots of time. even if you're on the go, nextmuni has a WAP website that cellphones with internet can access. there are also instructions for how to text for nextmuni times on their website, www.nextmuni.com. if you can't text, call 311 and speak to a representative to find out when the next bus is coming.
- Get to know your routes! know muni routes. sometimes you're waiting around like an idiot for a bus when you can walk one block north and catch a bus that runs more frequently that's going in the same direction!
I'm hardly a "teenage acne counselor" and there is no way I'd own a car in this city. Too inconvenient and too expensive.
On the rare occasions I need a car, I use zipcar, and as I'm returning it, I always heave a huge sigh of relief that I don't actually own it, because a.) traffic here is a goddamn nightmare, b.) parking here is a goddamn nightmare, and c.) I can certainly find better uses for my money than the $300-$400 a month a car would cost me, as opposed to the free for my feet or bike, or $45 for a muni pass.
And I'm no smoker (as many people on here know!), but I'm pretty sure owning a car is a lot more expensive than a cigarette habit (unfortunately).
First up, what's a sheltered "live"?
Second. A new Toyota Crapolla can be leased for less than the price of the data plan you dorks have all got for your iPhone.
Third, you proved my wild assumption about the smokes. A brand new car should last 11 years, so there's your math.
Fourth. Park on the street, it's free. Or park in bus stops (you can use the handy Nextbus display to work out how long you can stay).
Fifth. You don't need to maintain, register, or insure your car. Take a lesson from the hippies and drive your crap bucket until it leaks oil all over GG park, then leave it there. The cops will do NOTHING to you.
Sixth. Never pay your tickets, just ask for a court date then turn up at 850 Bryant for your guaranteed dismissal.
Do I need to write a book on this?
fizz:
it's called a typo.
No, it's call poor grammar.
That sir, was a typo.
Fizzandpop is right. You typed the wrong word. AND ON THE INTERNET OF ALL PLACES
@bluecanary, I'm right there with ya on the ZipCar thing. It's far more economical and less stressful than the merry-go-round of stress and expense that is owning and maintaining a car in this town. Registration, neighborhood parking tag, insurance, gas, tickets, repair of busted windows or stolen items, accidents, maintenance, parking, etc. The expense is utterly ridiculous.
I gave up my last car in 1995 and have no desire to get another. Zipcar works great. Within a few blocks, I have nearly 10 cars I can use 24/7 and pick up anytime. I think my fave is using the account in all the other cities that have zipcar, including london. It just makes more economic and environmental sense. Well, as much environmental sense can be had from rationalizing driver a gas vehicle, but whatever.
I've been riding public transport in the bay area my entire life and it's just no big deal. Like any other experience in your life, it's only miserable if you are.
While we're at wild assumptions, you're the driver of the Cosco Busan, aren't you?
Second, you're crazy, immune to rhetoric, logic or restraint. Please, for the love of teh interwubs, write that book.
if you look down at your keyboard you'll find that the "v" key and the "f" key are very close to each other.
sometimes in life, people accidentally press a key [insert preposition here] the key they intend to press, and the wrong letter is displayed on the screen. in western english-speaking societies, we call these "typos."
typos may also involve the inadvertent omission or addition of letters.
i'd be happy to give "what is a typo?" seminars at my 100/hr rate.
@fizzandpop and LisaLives:
I am intrigued by this "hole in the forehead guy". Was it like an open wound sort of situation? Reminds me of that ol' SNL skit, Massive Headwound Harry.
He was way more messed up than that. He had a softball-sized hole right in the middle of his forehead. You could peep right in. I heard he was a process server.
And oskarv, sloppy, piss-poor writers bandy the typo around like it's a completely acceptable part of the process, rather than the shit stain on their work that it is. Add the 100/hr (you didn't specify a unit of currency, I'm thinking Jolly Ranchers), and your game's rather up. I don't give a fuck really, because, as someone else pointed out, this is the internets, but you put that one on the tee.
Now I'm off to defy logic and reason by making my way home in a vehicle of my own choosing that doesn't have piss on the seat.
"internets" is so 2007.
I was quoting, but coudn't be arsed with the marks because, y'know, all your punctuation is belong to us.
What if this lady likes the outside seat? Doesn't like the window? How is she hogging anything? She isn't putting her bags down on the seat. Open your damn mouth and say excuse me, or gently squeeze in! Sheesh. You people who'd rather passively-aggressively complain about stuff on blogs make no sense. It is YOU who are making it insufferable to be in a city. Also, whoever posted this: great way to invite both racism and sexism. Get a life!
Finally, an INTELLIGENT comment.
RUDE [rood]
–adjective, rud·er, rud·est.
1. socially incorrect in behavior
2. discourteous or impolite, esp. in a deliberate way: a rude reply.
3. lacking civility, learning, or refinement
4. unmannerly, uncouth.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin rudis.]
The (apparent) disrespect and failure to behave within the context of a society or a group of people's social laws or etiquette. These laws have already unspokenly been established as the essential boundaries of normally accepted behavior.
What's regrettable is not the woman's disposition on the bus, but her failure to notice the photographer, snatch the camera and throw it out the window, and then allege assault and harassment.
Those commenting above and in the previous related blog entry demonstrate a puzzling attitude that many have, despite a self label of "progressivism" as they have adopted by residing in a town like San Francisco. Attempts to provide cynical commentary of a woman who simply decides to sit where she wants reveals such a negative side of those so fallibly opinionated. Indeed, someone termed it up nicely by characterizing those complaints as "passive-aggressive." There are many well-reasoned, logical explanations as to why someone would choose the outside seat. I tend to prefer this seat myself. Yet, telling others to "unlearn" one's foreign tendencies and customs, and immediately adapt to their surroundings lacks thought and reason. This is a true context in which ignorance shows through. Sad.
And also, "rude" is a term that Caucasians use to describe "uncultured" yellow, brown, black, and red skinned peoples, characterizing all of these ethnic minority's opinions and actions.
Whenever an ethnic minority would deviate from that equation of "rudeness," a little old white lady always tends to pop up nearby and say, "You speak English so well..." Go Kancho yourself America.
@ Urmoreracisthanuthink:
Just so we're clear, you arguing with the dictionary.
Good luck with that.
Thank you for presenting a fallacious argument, i.e., trivial objection.
And just so you're clear, Generic, the word in question used to describe people or objects is subjective, like "stupid" or "idiotic" or "great." Different people assign different meanings to it. It's not something concrete such as, "wallet," or "teeth." Thus the dictionary is not the ultimate authority on the meaning of the word. The context in which the word is used changes, which in turn causes the meaning of the word to change.
Wow. Still arguing. With the dictionary. Not with how we assign the quality of rudeness, but with our ability to define rudeness itself.
Sad.
Stlll. She: In context: rude.