One, Two, and Three

Remember these guys? They were behind me again on BART today. (An aside: I'm realizing the Fremont-bound train is where all the stories are). These guys talk non-stop. They talk over each other, the interrupt one another, and they bicker. Today, I learned that they're still in high school, which makes the content of their conversation more sad than funny. Some highlights:

One is fiercely protective of his "mama.". Two and Three were ragging him on how tacky it was that his mom only gave him $15 for his birthday. He got very defensive (rightfully so, she doesn't work!). They were also ragging on One for getting in trouble when his mama found out he has a tattoo.

Two had calamari for the first time (he had never heard of it before). His impression? Not a fan: "You can taste the soil, Bitch!"

Two suggests To Three that he get a tutor. He had a Spanish tutor and for a year he got to "look at that and Mmmm!"

Three: "you do your homework, it doesn't matter how much you smoke [weed]"

One usually smokes weed at his dad's house (which, ironically, he later states that he needs to dress nicely when he goes to his dad's).

High school is definitely full of young adults trying to act like full-grown adults. Most of us are lucky enough to get to "practice" being adults (driving a car, working a little bit) while still reaping the benefits of our parent's security. When you're 16, all you want to be is an adult. I look back on that now, and the situation One, Two, and Three sound like they're in, and wish I could have appreciated it more - because I was fortunate enough to be in a secure situation.

Big Red

On my way to the BART station this afternoon, I saw someone I haven't seen in 11 years waiting at a Muni stop. I am positive this was the same Nick I knew in the dorms (plus I heard his voice and instantly recognized it). You don't misplace a 6'2" 250 lb redhead who looks exactly the same. "Big Red" lived on the third floor of the dorms (the party floor) and was widely known as the dorm drug dealer. I distinctly remember sitting in the Common Room debating him on the merits of GHB (he was a big fan of taking it himself; I found just the thought of it awful, especially after I watched my roommate take 48 hrs to recover after it was slipped in her drink at a frat party (turn down Jungle Juice)!

Fast forward 11 years: he's wearing a suit and working in San Francisco. Despite his inability to "just say no," he was really good at math. I hope he's successful now and has outgrown his drug phase.

Wise guy

On my way home, there was a homeless man and his dog (a super cute boxer) standing outside the Embarcadero BART station. Something caught the dog by surprise and it yipped. Right then, another homeless man turned to me and said, "was that his dog or his ex wife?"

Jeez, after rereading this post, it sounds like a really corny Reader's Digest joke.

A Beginner's Guide to BART: Parking edition

I find that people who've never or rarely use BART are often a little nervous when about to embark on a BART voyage. Here are some tips.

Before you go:
1. Visit www.bart.gov
Use the trip finder application to figure out which stations are closest to your departure and destination. You can look up directions to the station and then from your station to your destination. You also can input the desired departure or arrival time and it will tell you which line to take and at what time it departs.

2. If you can help it, try to avoid line transfers your first time. I still check out and miss my transfers (it happened last week). It's a lot less stressful if you know how long your trip will take and use that to guage when you are getting close.

3. Give yourself a good buffer every time. Your first time, if you plan on driving there and parking, I recommend you plan on arriving at least 20-30 minutes ahead of time. During commute hours, parking can take forever (I one time spent 25 minutes looking for parking at the North Berkeley station only to end up parking half a mile away). Once you get comfortable with the trip, you can lessen it to ten minutes prior. Take it from me, there's really nothing quite like sprinting across the parking lot to watch your train pull away.

4. The parking lot or structure....watch yourself and your car!! People either drive like bats out of Hell or clueless 15 year olds during driver's training. People who are late will scream down the aisles and will only hesitate when they see the fear in your eyes as they're running you over. They will tailgate you as you search for a spot. On the flipside, if you're late, you will inevitably be stuck behind the person who stops in the middle of the aisle to drop someone off or has stopped, gripping the steering wheel in fear, because they just realized they're headed the wrong direction down the lane.

5. If you are physically able, I strongly recommend taking the stairs in the parking structures. Anyone can access elevators in the parking structures, which sometimes results in homeless people spending the night in there. You risk encountering anything from a bad smell to urine. Admittedly, the El Cerrito del Norte BART station's elevator isn't usually that bad (or so I hear, I usually opt for the stairs). Plus it's good for you to take the stairs. Little bit of exercise plus no urine = win-win.

Claustophobia

I'm claustrophobic. Usually this becomes aparent in caves, on narrow winding staircases (a climb to the top of the Duomo in Florence immediately comes to mind), in attics, on bunk beds (yeah, bunk beds!). It is one reason I really dislike crowds. At 5'3", most people are taller than me, so in a crowd I feel compressed in all directions.

I've actually been really proud of myself in regards to BART (half the stations are underground!). A few years ago, I would sit in silence in the transbay tunnel quitely hoping the tunnel would not collapse (nobody said phobias were logical). Now, I'm on it five days a week!

Today, I was not so good. I don't know if the picture does it justice, but the train was PACKED.

Inhale...2..3..4...Exhale...2...3...4

Fashion Find

I soooo wish I had a chance to snap a picture of this guy wearing his red camo poncho (yep, that's a poncho and not a jacket) before he took it off. Use your imagination and imagine it paired with the matching red camo backpack, hot pink beanie, and oversized headphones - quite the outfit!

P.S. That little girl in the white hoodie and red jacket was SO cute.  She had these awesome little barrettes at the end of her braids that swooshed every time she turned her head.

Latest BPP

My vent: I have a new BART pet peeve: You're on a packed-to-the-brim 5 pm train. You're standing in the center aisle, stacked like sardines with 30 strangers. The new flood of people from the Embarcadero station start loading onto the train and one of them (or two or three) decides he or she wants to stand in the center of the center aisle, so (s)he starts shimmying through the sardines. We all end up smashed against each other, all cheeks touching, or almost sitting on some stranger's lap - all because some A-hole decided they didn't like to stand by the door.

Unless, of course, you plan on jumping on the ceiling handrails and using them as monkey bars. Then I'd welcome the entertainment.

A Look into the Life on the Other Side

Every day I'm learning new things about BART by standing instead of sitting. For example, last week, I learned that I have to pay better attention while standing, because I can no longer see the station signs and  then I miss my transfer!

Today, I learned all about the life of a man in a completely different life situation than me. To set the scene: he was 70 years old and had a lollipop in his mouth.  He wore a black baseball cap from a fishing store, a Comcast Cable jacket, pink Batik button-up shirt, light khaki camo cargo pants, black leather dress shoes, a very large crucifix on a chain, and a medical bracelet (the type they scan when you're in the hospital). We walked onto the BART train at the same time and he offered me a seat. I told him I preferred to stand, so he took the seat. His worn and red over sized suitcase sat between us. Since we had exchanged words, he took it as a sign that we were buddies. So, what the hey! - we started a conversation. Here is what I learned from the El Cerrito del Norte station to MacArthur station (my transfer):

• He had a 70 year old radio in his suitcase. He found it at a shop for $5 ("what a steal!") and bought it right up. He plans on selling it for a profit.  In fact, he has high aspirations with this entrepreneurial endeavor and has a garage full of "gems" to sell.  Unfortunately, he still hasn't sold anything yet. 
• He liked the radio so much because it reminded him of a radio he used to have. He lived in a nice  neighborhood with a big house that overlooked the City.  They had a kerosene radio and a kerosene refrigerator (is it just me or does the concept of kerosene appliances not really jive with the concept of "nice" neighborhood?).  Both appliances plugged into a huge kerosene tank in the middle of the living room (again, where's the "nice"?). One day, he was barbequing in the backyard when the house went up in flames (the kerosene refrigerator caught on fire). And that's how he lost his house.
• From there, he went in to talk about how now he lives in a new neighborhood. He described the neighborhood in many words - suffice to say it is poor. But he wanted to make clear the fact that he doesn't drink or smoke dope....anymore. He used to [gives me a meaningful look and rubs his nose] which gave him five holes in his stomach and one in his hip (Okay, now I'm confused.  I can understand coke giving you stomach problems, but your hip?  I asked him if that meant he was shot and he looked at me like I was crazy.  Ha!).  Which is why he's now on disability.  Also, did he mention that he gets Social Security because he's 70?  Back to the holes in his body... he states that he almost died twice (once during the surgery for his hip, once during the surgery for the stomach).  The worst part was waking up in the hospital at 6 am so they could put gauze in the holes.  They'd explain the whole procedure to him, as if he didn't have a clue, even though he went to med school (Ha!).  Then, once he was home, he had a woman (nurse) come over three times a day to change the gauze.  At first, she was just coming once a day, but she was a nice lady - a hard worker with two kids - so he paid her to come over three times a day.  All his neighbors would look at him and say "now, what exactly is she being paid to do [second meaningful look]?" but he would assure them that she was only there to shove cotton in his holes and not "to do that" because he's a good, religious man. 
• Which segwayed to his the topic he was most passionate about - church.  When he was a young man, he was in a lot of trouble, did drugs and even was "in the pen."  In jail, he began reading the bible and realized he was on the road to [points to ground].    He found out that God is forgiving and decided to set his life straight (at which point I got a total of three words into the conversation, which was "good for you!").   His new church sounds HUGE and has seven buses to bring people to seven different simultaneous services on the weekends.  This past weekend, they even put on a free carnival for kids.  The man who leads the church used to be "in the pen" but set his life straight and now travels around the world giving out bibles and other gifts.  But never begging for money.  He loves his church and you can tell it's his family. 

At the MacArthur station, we parted ways - me on the train to San Francisco and him on the train to Lafayette (which he likes because it's so rich - he gets to see Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Mercedes, Cadillacs.... every day).  To be honest, I don't know what in his story was true and what was fiction (med school?).  But
I do know that he was a very nice man and super friendly (he knew quite a few of the BART passengers) and he seemed pretty happy.  I think he viewed me as nice, yet a little naive (he asked me if I knew what "disabled" and a certain racial slur meant,. ha!).  I definitely got a kick out of talk to him. 

Doink Doink!

This morning, there was an arrest outside my work.  I was sitting at my desk when just after 8 am I heard a big thud then a short police siren.  I bolted to the window to see a man face up on the ground and three cops leaning over him.  One of the cops was in plain clothes.  The guy on the ground was completely still and there was a minute where I was trying to process whether or not I was looking at a dead body or an unconscious man.  Then, another car pulled over for a total of four cop cars!  The cops were pointing towards a building down the street and the undercover cop was doing a lot of talking.  They cuffed the suspect, put on the blue gloves and searched him, and put him in the back of one of the police cars.  Then they all drove off, and just like that, it was quiet again.  My bet's on drug bust.

Very Law & Order!

YEAH BOOYIEE!

Dear Commuter,
I wanted to thank you for adding enterainment to my morning commute. Thank you for playing your rap music out loud on your phone's speaker and still wearing your headphones, even though they weren't plugged in. Thank you for sticking your tongue out and fiddling with your tongue ring. Thank you for the Cal spirit (Go Bears!). Thank you for the pom pom on top of your beanie. And lastly, thank you for the oversized gold watch, which reminded me of Flavor Flav. You made my morning!

Love,
Life on BART

Back to Nature

This picture has two purposes:

1) to showcase the latest trend on BART, which is people wearing their barefoot running shoes for everyday life. I've heard good things about these shoes, so I'm not making fun of them, but they're still new and funny-looking enough to grab my attention when someone in business attire is walking around in them.

2) to showcase that it's just not the seats on BART that are gross and germy. Look at that carpet, blech!

Slanguage

There were three guys sitting behind me on BART this morning talking about their weekend.  I could only understand about 15% of what they were saying, so I got on Urban Dictionary (which can be a very risky measure) to translate.  Here were some of their pearls of wisdom:

• "Hella" (used in almost every sentence)*

Hella
(adj):
Originated from the streets of San Francisco in the Hunters Point neighborhood. It is commonly used in place of "really" or "very" when describing something

* I didn't really have to look this one up, as I used this term throughout middle and high schools. 

• "That chick's a chesire"

chesire

(n):
1. One who mimics others for social attention or personal benfit
2. One who is deceitful in their use of style theft from another individual for sake of social attention or benefit
3. One who robs ideas from another to further themself in social ranking and/or status
4. a social parasite

• "I'm gonna be his hype man next weekend"

hype man

(n):

1. The person who helps gets the crowd hyped/amped/pumped before/durin a show*

2. That guy at a rap concert standing next to the rapper you came to see who yells every other word loudly when you just want to hear the damn rapper. He usually does it so the rapper doesn't run out of breath, but it really just pisses you off.

 

*I love the use of "durin"

• "Sometimes you gotta fly in the rain"

This statement came after talking about taking some pill (Ecstacy?) on Saturday. 

• "Is that shit for real? That shit smells like sage.  I think I f---in' discovered some shit."

I figured this one out on my own.

• (sung) "I stay fresh [derogatory word], I stay dope"

Not only do I now have to stand, but it can't be near the door....

From:

http://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2011/news20110310.aspx

 

03.10.2011

 

How riders can help prevent electronic device thefts - which are relatively rare but rising

BART riders can help prevent crime by taking to heart some simple advice from BART Police: Avoid being an easy target of criminals on the hunt for electronic devices such as mobile phones, portable music players, laptop computers or e-readers. BART Police are urging greater rider awareness with thefts of electronic devices on the rise, often in the "grab-and-dash" pattern and especially for high-value devices.

 

 The Top 4 most frequently stolen electronic devices on BART are:

• No. 1: Mobile phones (by far the most frequently stolen is iPhone, followed by BlackBerry)
• No. 2: Portable music players (iPod Touch in particular)
• No. 3: Laptop computers
• No. 4: E-readers (such as Kindle)

In 2009, there were 88 device thefts reported. That number spiked to 166 in 2010, and the increase appears to be continuing, BART Police Lt. Andy Alkire said.  “We want riders to be aware,” Alkire said. Device thefts – in fact, crimes against persons in general – are rare on BART, relative to the number of riders. (There were fewer than 2 crimes against persons per million trips in the most recent quarter for which statistics (.pdf) have been reported.)  "While overall these crimes are still relatively rare, that doesn’t matter if you’re the one whose iPad is ripped off," Alkire said. "We don’t want any of our customers to be victims, which is why we want to remind everyone to take simple precautions."

In the typical pattern, users sit or stand right by a door on the train, engrossed in their devices, playing Angry Birds, watching videos or answering emails.  At a stop, just a split second before the door closes, the thief grabs the device and dashes out the door.

What can you do to minimize being a victim, or to help others?
The first and most important thing is not to use a device sitting or standing right by the door. As much as you may think you are paying attention, it’s easy to become distracted and give a thief a chance to snatch a device right out of your hands.

And – even if you are inclined to be a good Samaritan – it’s best not to hand over your phone to a stranger, even if that nice-looking person says they “just need to make a quick call to get a ride.”  (It’s a common ruse to grab your phone and run.)

While it might seem like a good idea to chase after a suspect, BART Police instead recommend that victims and witnesses instead report the crime immediately, either by notifying the first BART employee they see (train operator via intercom, station agent in station), or by calling BART Police. (It’s recommended that you program the BART Police number into your mobile phone. That number is 1-877-679-7000. For emergencies, call 911.)

If you observe a theft, please consider taking the time to stay behind and help with the investigation as the victim files a report. BART Police can use your help in providing a description of the circumstances and the suspect. Try to recall in as much detail as possible what the person was wearing, their appearance or any distinguishing characteristics.

If you have the serial number of a stolen device, that information can be entered into a statewide Automated Property System to help with the investigation. In addition, some makers of electronic devices, including Apple, provide services that assist in making stolen devices unusable or less usable and thus less valuable on the underground market. Contact your device maker to find out more.

TIPS TO AVOID BECOMING A VICTIM
Here are more tips on how to avoid becoming a victim. These are included on a bookmark-type handout that BART Police are giving out to riders on trains, in an effort to increase awareness.

• Register your device if possible
• Keep a detailed description of your phone that includes serial number, color and make
• Password-protect your phone
• Don’t lend your phone to strangers
• Don’t play devices too loudly
• Don’t use your phone near train doors when boarding trains
• Don’t use the phone while leaving the station
• Warn your travel companions to protect their phones, too
• Make phones calls discreetly to avoid the attention of would-be thieves
• If your device is stolen, please report it by calling BART Police toll-free at 1-877-679-7000. For emergencies, call 911.

For more information, visit the BART Police section of this website.

Two Terrifying BART articles

Something I've always suspected:
http://www.baycitizen.org/transportation/story/bart-seats-bacteria-blossom/2/

May I never experience this one:
http://www.baycitizen.org/columns/scott-james/last-seats-another-bart-gross-out-1/

How is this okay?

Here is my attempt to capture video of one of my biggest Bart Pet Peeves (BPP): people who play their music on the speaker of their iPhone instead of through headphones (like the majority of us considerate folks). I've heard everything from rap/hip hop to mariachi to heavy metal (come on, couldn't they at least play me some Jack Johnson?). This guy was sitting there with his hood and a pair of sunglasses on. The loud heavy metal did not jive with his hungover look.

Life on Muni

Some background: this afternoon I had physical therapy.  I usually leave the PT's office somewhere between 5:10-5:25 pm, so I never quite know if I missed the bus (Muni), which takes me to the BART station.  If I miss it, I usually just walk to BART, since it's all downhill (though you won't catch me walking TO PT).

Anyway... I got out of PT at 5:05 pm, walked to the bus stop shelter, and peered around the side to look at the ticker and see how long it was until the next bus.  As I peered around the corner, I was met with a large amount of marijuana smoke and a big smiling face.

If you've spent much time in San Francisco lately (or even watched coverage of the World Series), you will have undoubtedly smelled the distinct aroma of marijuana while walking around (and it's not just restricted to The Haight - we smell it all the time coming in the window at work from the street below - in the Financial District!)  An (obviously) homeless guy was sitting on the bus stop smoking marijuana.

Okay, back to the homeless man!  He looks up at me and asks me, in the kindest way, "Hey!  Would you like a hit."  I politely smiled at him and tell him "oh, no thanks."  He then looks at me and says, "whatcha looking for? the time?"  I then explained to him that I was just checking to see how long until the bus came and that if it was a while I'd just walk.  He looked at me with a big smile and said "Are you SURE you don't want some of this?"  Again, I said "no thanks" and told him to have a nice evening.

Without condoning the smoking of marijuana, I would like to say I was touched by his generosity (cue the eye rolling :)  It could easily have been very creepy or annoying to me.  But he was SO friendly and happy (and yes, mellow...).  There's no doubt in my mind he was homeless.  Here's a guy, who likely doesn't have much in his life, much less a roof over his head, and he was so excited to share something he very obviously enjoyed with a complete stranger.  

It's kinda like me sharing chocolate with the person sitting next to me on BART.