Kommute Archives for January, 2001
Archival Kwality Kommute Entries. Read through these to catch up, or waste time, or whatever!
It's a whole new century thing. Hypermegaultramodern. Proto-Pomo. Millennial Wonders!

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Wednesday, 01-31-01
<morning> I'm pretty peppy today. I ate *breakfast*. It's this new thing I've been hearing about, so I thought i'd give it a try. It's astonishing! You eat a meal in the morning, and somehow that translates in to energy! Wow! Pff. I'm a sarcastic fuckwit sometimes. It's all crisp and sunny out, again. I still wish it was foggy. I got out the door before 8:30, which isn't too bad... Went in to the cafe, and acted goofy about asking for the exact same thing I get Every Damned Day, because I like sharing a laugh with the people who work there. I like to see people smile. My camera batteries crapped out on me in my moment of need, at HAMSTOP, surrounded by all kinds of fascinating creatures. It happens to me all the time, and sometimes, if I turn the camera off for a while, the juice comes back. It did, but I didn't wind up taking any photos at HAMSTOP, I wound up talking for about 15 minutes with this weird woman I encounter a lot on my commute. We talked about Garlic, Bus Drivers, Earthquakes, Tornados, Slacking and Work, and then the bus came. I very nearly almost wound up talking to the Autodesk guy, he left his helmet on the overhead rack and I was just about to say "Hey chucklehead, you forgot your helmet" when he turned around and grabbed it and dashed off the bus. He sat across from me, and I caught him looking at me a couple of times, I wonder if we'll ever say hello? Some creepy toothless woman with her creepy ne'er-do-well daughter got on the bus carrying a duffel bag with a fuzzy little poodle dog in it. They were kind of suburban hillbilly types, and I was fascinated, listening in on their conversation which, predictably, centered around relationships, jailtime and shopping. Not that there's anything wrong with that!

Tuesday, 01-30-01
<morning> So like, I woke up a full hour after I was supposed to, having foolishly set my alarm not for 6:30 a.m., but for 6:30 p.m. - What a brilliant move! Lucky for me my spidey-senses were working, and I had the energy to lift my head up to look at the clock, and then sort of gracelessly stumble around the room, knocking things over hither and thither. I got ready pretty quickly, but not quickly enough to get out the door at the appointed hour so I had to call my boss, let her know i'm coming in a little bit late... I do this with my clock radio way too often. It usually happens when I'm trying to be an early bird, setting my alarm back. Ironic! Ha- Ha! I sort of wish it was grey and rainy today, but instead it's oppressively springlike and gorgeous. I sped out the door at 9:02, in to the cafe and out again in roughly 5 minutes. I watched a bus pass by while I was creaming my coffee, but as I headed out to MEATSTOP, another bus was on its way. Super-Karma! I enjoyed feeling the sun hit my face while I rode Muni, and when I got to HAMSTOP, I had another lucky break. Tracy, the girl I've talked a bit with over the past months, was there, and near her foot was a discount ticket for $2.35. I asked if she'd dropped it, and she said "Oh, no! nono! I've never used one of those. Hey, cool! You saw it first, you should take it!" and I said "Nono, I have to pay $2.95 to go to San Rafael, you take it!" and then she told me to just take it, pay the difference in change, since she figured she owed me one from when I loaned her some dosh. So my trip to San Rafael only cost me sixty cents! Word! And, and, when I came in to work, I got free donuts. Everything is kind of busy and crazy for me today, so I guess i'd better quit lollygagging around. Fotokamera!

Monday, 01-29-01
<morning> It's totally crystal clear out and the air is kind of nipply and crisp. I was slow going at first this morning, but I managed to get out the door before 8:30, and i dropped off my kozmo videos in the box at the cafe. The woman who took my order and the owner both hassled me for paying with a $20 bill, but I made a sweet little pouty face and sniffled and begged forgiveness and they both laughed at me, and I got change for the bus. I got another quasi-confrontational thrill this morning at MEATSTOP, when the Chandler-reading girl noticed me changing the batteries in my camera. She caught my eye, and smiled. I smiled back, and she asked "Hey, are you a photographer?" I said "Yeah, heh. Yeah, I am." and she said "Well, I just notice you with your camera every morning..." and I stammered something about "keeping my hand in, being prepared" or something. And then I went and took a photo of her. Ha-HA! There were lots of happy people on Muni. I was feeling pretty smily myself, as well. I was getting up in to everyone's face with my camera. I'm a nuisance, a pest. I think I might need to start varying my routine somewhat before people catch on and start hitting me with newspapers or something. HAMSTOP was great for people watching. All in all, I would rate today's kommute an 8.

Friday, 01-26-01
<morning> I fully woke up late today. My haus-mates were having a hoe-down of noisy proportions lasternight, and as much as I wanted to stay up, I had to cram some earplugs in and call it a night around 1:30. Sigh. I miss those far-off halcyon days when I would keep whatever hours I felt like keeping, staying up well in to the wee hours of the morn. Now I have to get up in the wee hours just to make it in at a quasi-reasonable time. It feels so, I don't know, kind of wrong. Anyway, I was wearing earplugs when my alarm went off, so I didn't hear it. I also didn't try real hard to hear it, if you catch my meaning. I called in, though, and got in by 11. Lame, but not obscenely lame. I had a big cuppa Yerba Mate as I was waking up, but I still went in to the cafe, mostly because I needed the change for the bus. The HyperHappy guy took my order, and I was mumbly and slow, and he asked "What?! Did you just ask how I am?" and I thought he was being facetious, so I asked, really emphatically, "How ARRRE you?" and he laughed. I am such the funny freak! It was kind of exciting taking a later commute, because the people are different, and it sort of provides the much-needed variety I seek. It's stimulating, but not in the biblical sense, dig? MEATSTOP was pretty dull, no scenesters' souls to steal (tongue-twisty!) but there was an interesting near-confrontational photo op on muni - This guy was staring directly at the camera as I snapped his photo, but I kind of looked away and acted all disinterested so he didn't like, punch me or hassle me or anything. I had a nice little adrenaline rush from it though. The sun was shining insistently on HAMSTOP but nothing very picturesque took place. The driver of the San Rafael bus praised my bus-waving technique and was having in-depth conversations with all the passengers. He's a really nice guy, but he's going to retire soon. He's 66 and he's been a bus driver for eleven years. Wow!

Thursday, 01-25-01
<morning> I started out this morning on a high note, I woke up about 10 minutes before my alarm was set to go off. That always gives me this odd, self-satisfied ego boost, like the alarm is not my master and not the boss of me! I know i'm delusional, I am chained hand and foot to the damned thing. I am a weak little sheep. Baaa-aaa. So, anyway, I felt like a real go-getter, and I was humming to myself as I made my Yerba Mate. Just the same, I still got out the door about a half hour later than I would like. It's technically alright for me to come in at 10, but I prefer to get in here by 9:30 or so and spend some quality time slacking before I dive in to work. I'm still slacking if I come in at 10, but I feel really really guilty about it. I guess that's really the extent of my impending work ethic, it doesn't make me work much harder, or anything. I am not a very good cog. So I went to the cafe and made some kind of joke with Christian about him wanting my money, which seems pretty inane now that I think back on it, but it made us both laugh at the time... Nobody has really noticed my new t-shirts, which makes me think that I should seek more interesting shirts. I spent a couple of minutes at MEATSTOP, being really obnoxious about my photography. Last night I found myself considering starting up a conversation with someone, asking the time or something, just to get them to turn towards me for a shot. I have a problem! At HAMSTOP this morning, Tourette's guy and I actually nodded and mumbled at each other. Whoa. Actual conversation did not take place, but contact was made. Freaky. He made some little comments when we were on the bus, too. It's supposed to rain like gangbusters today, or something. It didn't start up until we pulled in to San Rafael, but it certainly is nipply out. My teeth were actually chattering!

Wednesday, 01-24-01       Gong Hay Fat Choy!
<morning> Though I do love the rain, it's really difficult to wake up on dark mornings. I spent an extra 7 minutes in bed, trying to convince myself that I enjoyed the loud, annoying songs on KUSF, or that I didn't hear them. Something like that. I had dreams about pollution. Kind of nightmarish. I made myself some Yerba Mate, and I think I must be developing a resistance to the stuff, because I don't feel like i'm hepped up on Stimu-Crank™ anymore. Sigh... So I headed to the cafe, and hyperhappyfriendly guy complimented my hair, and the german girl was all cheerful and friendly, and also mentioned my haircolor. You'd think I was some kind of peculiar freak, the way people have been carrying on! I chatted for a bit with the owner about being tired and quasi-lucid, and like a bartender to a lush, he said "You just need your caffeine! That'll fix you right up!" I hold no illusions. I know caffeine is a drug and I know I am its bitch. While I was chilling at MEATSTOP, I think I saw one of my cow orkers, but I can't be sure. I know a bunch of them live in and around my neighborhood, but we have kind of a "don't ask, don't tell" policy going on, or something. I spent most of the commute reading the SF weekly and half-asleeping. Some kids got on in Marin City, and they were rough-housing and flirting and laughing until the bus driver made them stop. My manager isn't in the office today, so I can slack off and be naughty. I worry that I might develop some kind of work ethic if i'm not careful.

Tuesday, 01-23-01
<morning> a slow, late start to today's kommute. Like anyone notices anyhow. Heh. I desperately needed the extra hour of sleep I got. I didn't make myself any Yerba Mate in the interest of getting out the door quickly, so I wound up heading in to the cafe. Christian was busy telling a very animated story about someone falling on their butt ice skating, or something, so the short-haired hipster girl took my order. She complimented my hair and then Christian popped in and said "Hey! Good morning! So how was your movie? Which movie didja go see anyway?" because I ran in to him at the Metreon on Saturday while I was wasting some time before the film started. It took me a moment to work up the motor skills to be able to splutter "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" and he said "Oh i need to see that! I heard it's great!" Yeah, I agreed. It Rules. I went to start pouring out my coffee (a lovely Sumatra/Hazelnut mixture) and the owner asked whether or not it had started to rain and I was actually truly surprised and dismayed, I said "Aw, man, you're kidding! First the rolling blackouts and now it's spozed to RAIN, too!? Oh, man!" and he laughed and said "Yeah, it's supposed to rain, I guess you'd better go back to get your umbrella!" and I laughed. We talked about how idiotic the energy crisis is. I'm all about discussing how lame this power situation is. He said "I can't believe it, in the most technologically advanced state in the world, we have this!" and I said something about how electricity was so basic, and relatively easy to produce (I know because I've played Sim City - i am wicked smart) and then I ducked out real quick and ran back to my flat to frantically scrounge for my umbrella. I found it within a minute, and in my room, that's a miracle. Long story short, I caught a cab to Geary, felt stupid for doing so. I was kind of worried that I would miss the 50. I got there just in time, but a 24 got there just a minute later. I was pleasantly surprised to see my friend Archie lugging his laundry along at the corner of Geary and Divis, so I laughed and took his photo. It started to rain at about 12th Ave. I have to go to a meeting now, so pictures pictures pictures!

Monday, 01-22-01
<morning> I am lacking motivation. I woke up on time today, but I got really slow and poky after my shower. I boiled water to make a huge cup of Yerba Mate (Yesterday pippilina and I purchased several large packages, one regular and two 'flavored' types down in the Mission before she went and got pierced man, we are so urban!) and then I just started to feel really lazy. I even played a little Diablo II (nerd! big nerd!) rather than hustling my butt out the door at 8, so I left at 8:30. Big deal, I know. Big freakin' deal. So, it's a pretty sunshiney day, but it's winter, so I was still freezing my butt a little. I hesitated at the corner by the cafe, wondering whether I should go get coffee, go to the Creepy Swipe for some dosh, or head across to MEATSTOP. I opted for Creepy Swipe but was totally denied. It's out of order! No Creepy Swipe for me. It occurs to me that I need to define some of the terms and phrases sprinkled throughout my kommute entries. Creepy Swipe ('krE-pE 'swIp) n. An unwholesome Swipe ATM machine which appears to be the sort one finds in convenience stores, yet this one is located outside, and they "swipe" a big ol' $1.95 fee off of you for every creepy transaction, but laziness and convenience rule, so they winwinwin. Capitalism is a beautiful thing. I only took a few photos of this morning's kommute, but I took many fine photos over the weekend, and these I give to you. Proof of my urban nature! Oh yeah, uh, I am officially pissed off now. Very glad I marched a bit in the Anti-Bush protest on Saturday.

Friday, 01-19-01
<morning> I've had a worky busy morning since I got in this morning. What is up with them expecting me to work, anyway? It's insane, i'm telling you! It's kind of a grouchy grumpy day. At least it's Friday, right? ( Naked Blackouts) So I went in to the cafe today for the first time in the past week or so, and the joint was jumping! It was completely busy and packed. Weird. Nobody smiled at me, either. Too busy, I guess. I'll have to go in on Monday. I feel strangely unfaithful for having had Yerba Mate instead of my morning coffee lately. Maybe they sense my straying tastebuds? I got to spend a little time hanging out at MEATSTOP, trying to look at things from different angles, looking for details I'd missed during previous kommutes, but alas, there were but few. I think I might actually be getting a little jaded. The trouble with taking the bus is there's very little room for spontaneous trailblazing. It does tend to get a little bit repetitive. It was oddly cloudy and overcast today as I stalked around impatiently at HAMSTOP, and the sun was trying to burn a little hole through the clouds like a smothered lightbulb. The light was strange and wintry. Tourette's guy showed up after a little while, and I got some decent photos of him for Traci, because she is so smitten by him. I started to feel really stressed out and a little nauseous about halfway through the trip, which sucked, but I'm mostly okay now.

Thursday, 01-18-01
<morning> Well, first of all, I didn't go in to work today. I'm working from home. I guess technically, I didn't commute, so I shouldn't be updating the kommute journal. Oh well, convention be damned. I'm making my own coffee and I'm wearing (my own) pajamas. Aside from that, it's a normal day! There's some crazy nonsense going on in California these days with the energy crisis and everything - threats of rolling blackouts (I am really fond of that phrase) have become the gripe du jour. Frankly, I love it when the power's out. It makes you stop and think and entertain yourself. I mean sure, I go spare if I can't check online every 5 minutes and sure, my livelihood kind of depends on the steady, uninterrupted flow of juice to all the happy webonauts out there - But just the same, it's peaceful. Some links on the subject, catch some related news before there's another Stage-3 Alert: A Fetish For Lightbulbs, (A Big Dumb) Disaster!, Sunrise, blackout, Yet Even Still More Blackouts - and take a peek at the Cal-ISO System Status. By the way, take a look at this. Wow! Ultramodern! High Technology! Blinky Lights!

Wednesday, 01-17-01
<evening> I'm just full of surprises! An evening kommute! I got a ride part of the way, so I kind of feel almost like i'm cheating, but I did my time, I paid my dues. I got a ride with my cow orker part of the way, and that always makes my life significantly easier. I had an appointment at 7, and we left work at 6:30 - If I were to do that on the bus, I'd have to leave by about 5:15. Fuhfuhfuhfuh fuh. It always blows my mind. Getting there in the morning is really simple by comparison. 3 hours of my life, every day, that I'll never get back. It definitely makes me stop and think. I can think of many things I would rather spend 3 hours doing. But I do have some fun, taking photos and playing the observer. And writing the kommute for alla you out there in TV land. And now it's almost time for bed!

Wednesday, 01-17-01
<morning> Bagel day! I got up at the exact same time as Danny, my housemate. Like, as I was getting up to shut off my alarm, his light went on. I headed straight for the shower, which made his life difficult, because when I came out of the shower, he was brushing his teeth in the kitchen. I gave him a hard time about the hardship he was enduring, and he made a joke about "some people have to work, you know!" - We are funny! I got my daily Yerba Mate brewing, made some toast and got my shit together by about a quarter to 8. I spent a little time playing DiabloII because I am ultra-geeky. I even considered staying in for an extra 30 minutes just to make a couple of levels (geeky!) but I figure I should get to work on time every so often, just for appearances. Nothing all that interesting happened to me on the commute - damnit! No Tourette's Guy, nobody was hanging around at HAMSTOP. It's kind of weird. All my buses were on time, Everything went as it should. I listened in on a conversation about surround sound systems and high-end subwoofers between the bus driver and another driver who was riding along. When I came in to work, I headed in to the kitchen to enjoy a fine, free Bagel, and everyone else was in there, and they were grumbling about the low-powered toasters. I made a terribly witty joke about "Stage 3 Toaster Energy Alert Rolling Blackout Crisis" or something. Wow! Wow! I just found a beautiful new site about San Francisco!! Go, and participate. The beautiful thing is that I saw the URL for that site on a sticker stuck to the 24 last night. Fotokamera!

Tuesday, 01-16-01
<morning> Listening to Serge Gainsbourg again. Three day weekends are a harsh mistress, arrrr. I slept until about 3pm yesterday, so waking up at 6:30 today was kind of out of the question... I wound up waking up just a smidge past 7am, and I would have happily slept through the alarm but lucky for me, KUSF was playing some appalling modern jazz crap so I jumped up to make it stop as quickly as possible. I'm having trouble getting motivated to actually do anything, including the pleasurable task of updating the kommute. I got to spend a little quality time at MEATSTOP, since I seem to have given up going to the cafe altogether, but I am suffering the consequences of undercaffeination now. Woe is me. Muni showed up after a short wait, and it was one of those situations where a really really crowded bus was followed by a nice empty one, so I got the satisfaction of watching people cram like sardines on to a bus that only saved them about 2 minutes. Fools! Fools! Uh. It's really clear and windy out, and a little bit cold, but I can handle it. The wacky Tourette's Guy was at HAMSTOP but we didn't acknowledge each other in any way. No dancing! I learned some more stuff about him last Friday on my commute home from work, which turned in to a hellish journey full of missed buses and steep hills. He works at a music store, and knows a lot about banjos. I sat behind him on the 50, and he didn't make any weird noises until we were past Lucky Drive, when he started to chant "Traaaaffic, traffic traaaaffic" a lot. A weird old chinese man sat next to me, and he was prodding his head with stuff on his keychain and breathing in this really weird way. I thought he was itching his head, which concerned me a little, but then he started poking his head with the end of one of his keys, rhythmically tapping "tok-tok-tiktiktik-tok-tok" and he kept looking over at me while he did this. Creepy? Yes! I tried not to stare, but I mean, come on! Weird! A guy got on in Marin City and sat between us, and after a while he asked the old guy if he had a headache, and the old guy smiled and said "Yes, yes, headache, yes." It seems like thunking yourself on the head would not be a great headache remedy, but then, Whada I know?

Friday, 01-12-01
<morning> Crunky Kids! The sun is shining again. It's kind of blustery and dramatic and cold and windy still, but I like it. I've been moving pretty slowly all morning, and i've had a huge Yerba Mate and a cup of coffee already! I must be paying for sleeping just 5 hours every night this week. I've been preparing and eating breakfast at home every morning, which is kind of novel. I don't feel much more energetic or healthy than when I skip breakfast though, just less hungry. I got out the door before 8:30 and muni came along fairly quickly. It was one of those "wrapped" buses, which make me feel oddly duped. I mean, I pay to ride the bus, and yet I have to sit inside of a huge mobile ad? And what if I don't support the product and/or service being advertised? Do I just sit back and wait for a more appropriate advert to come rolling along? Pff. The Industry Standard calls this crap " Extreme Advertising" - Like it's something to be admired. Bah humbug. I was really aggressive with my camera this morning. In several instances, I was pretty up front about just blithely snapping photos of people. Maybe some part of me yearns for some kind of confrontation - I must admit, I am curious. People get so threatened and touchy about photographs. Luckily, I don't care how they feel, I just want to exploit them. Just kidding. Jeez, louise. The Mascara Girl sat next to me again, and once again we didn't talk to each other. It's just as well, I spent most of the journey reading through work documentation. I think that this is the funniest thing ever. Turn your sound on and go check it out. Oh yeah. No work on Monday means no Kommute on Monday. So don't go freaking out if you come looking for an entry and don't find one.

William Hewlett died today at age 87. aw.

Thursday, 01-11-01 <---another cool binary date!
<late morning> Listening to the Clash. Reminds me of being 12. papa papa papa papa-san, take me home. I'm freezing, it's really cold out! I don't mind the rain so much but this bitter cold thing is kind of lame. That and sideways rain. And this morning, I had both. I did all my laundry late last night, and I had one big huge load in the dryer, and it was still damp when I got up this morning, so I had to wait til everything was dry. I came in about an hour late. It's weird commuting at a different time. It's more like the time I used to head out, when I was still working in Sausalito. Totally different crowd. I got in to a really great mood last night on my kommute home, and I don't know why! Creeps me out. I didn't go to the cafe this morning, I trudged directly over to MEATSTOP in the ick and the rain. I left a little too late to catch the 9:30 bus, and way too early for the 10:00 bus, so I had a nice long freezing wait at HAMSTOP. When the 50 did finally come along, I recognized the driver from another bus route I took last night, and I said "Hey, didn't I just see you last night?" and he looked at me a while and said "Oh, yes! I remember. Which route was that? the 23? I do this in the morning, and later I do that one." - He seemed to want to chat, he's really amusing and very friendly, but I wanted to sit in the back. I felt kind of bad for dissing him. The bus was freezing and I huddled with my camera and wrote in my little book. There's a lot more flot/jetsam washing up in Sausalito today. Storms are brilliant! There was a little lightning, thunder and a torrential downpour last night on my way in to SF. ooh, rolling blackouts, nasty candy and a new design for squidfactory<.

Wednesday, 01-10-01 <---cool binary date!      download january 2001 calendar
<morning> I had a hard time getting up this morning, but I worked through it. I got started a little bit late, nearly a full half hour late, so I wound up taking the 9:00 bus. I couldn't stop listening to " Bonnie & Clyde" by Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot. I am surprised to be liking Serge Gainsbourg. I fixed myself a nice big steaming glass of Yerba Mate again, because I'm still not getting enough sleep. It's really dark and stormy out, which pleases me. I skipped the cafe and headed straight to MEATSTOP. It was cold and damp and everyone was huddled under the meat market's awning. My glasses and my camera lens got all fogged up when I got on the bus. It was crowded and slippery, I nearly lost my footing a couple of times. Peril! At HAMSTOP, I whipped out my umbrella and mostly concentrated on staying dry while it poured. The weird Tourette's syndrome guy showed up all dressed up like a cowboy or something, and he smiled at me and did a little dance and sang "It's a lovely kind of day to do whatever you want to do!" and I cracked up. What a Freak! The bus came and it was crowded but not terrible. I sat in the very back. I thought about striking up a conversation with this guy I see all the time who works for Autodesk, but he had headphones and I couldn't think of a good ice breaker. Oh well! The sea is really stormy, and there was all manner of flotsam and jetsam washed up on the esplanade in Sausalito, and these two city works guys in yellow slickers were wading around in the breaking waves, grabbing the debris and hurling it up on to the sidewalk. What a crappy job that must be! When I got in to work, I headed in to fix myself up a bagel, because it's bagel day dag nabbit. I wound up having a strange conversation with one of my cow orkers about the lower Haight, and somehow it ended with him saying "Man, what's wrong with Americans? Why don't they blow it up? Why aren't they blowing shit up anymore?!" Another cow orker just came by and quoted from yesterday's kommute: "Basically, I'm a very lazy person." - I work with freaks!

Tuesday, 01-09-01
<morning> I woke up 17 minutes later than usual because I am basically a very lazy person. Actually, i've been having a lot of trouble getting to sleep. My back is tweaked and I've been drinking too much coffee/tea/yerba mate, or maybe i'm just hyper because i'm feeling healthy. Or maybe it's the Full Moon. I'm in a pretty good mood, too, ever since I managed to get my machine working. Praise the macaroni art. I got dressed in a flash and dashed in to the cafe. The super friendly happy cafe guy said "Wow, your hair looks fabulous today!" and I ordered a small coffee. It costs almost as much as a large, go figure! I got to MEATSTOP just as the bus pulled up, which has been happening a lot lately. At HAMSTOP, I saw a really intimidating, pierced biker tattooed leather daddy type guy lumber past with a cool screenprinted patch pinned to the back of his jacket which said VIVA LA CAFFEINE. I will join that revolution! Yes sir! I nearly missed the bus when it pulled up, which is weird. I usually see it coming long before it pulls up, but I was busy being a dork, taking pictures of some batteries. The driver honked at me and I ignored the honking for a second, and turned around all annoyed and got all startled and comical, scrambling to get on the bus. A bunch of passengers were laughing and smirking at me, because i am full of hilarity. The driver asked me if the batteries were mine, and I lied and said no, of course not, and asked for a transfer. I had to sit on the left-hand side of the bus, which is the less picturesque photogenic side of the bus, because it was pretty crowded again. The mascara girl sat next to me, and once again, we didn't say a word to each other. We did both look out at the fishing boats in Sausalito, and I counted 6 big fat seals. I also saw a bunch of pelicans, a really intense looking hawk and a heron or egret or something. I *heart* nature!

Monday, 01-08-01
<morning> I am operating on roughly 3 and a half hours' sleep, which kind of sucks, let me tell you. I was up late in to the night, fussing and fretting over my dead computer. It's not entirely dead, I can get it up in safe mode, but I can't fix the big dumb issue, which stems from me foolishly trying to cram a new video card in there when the case isn't really set up to handle one. Stupid, very stupid. And this after I finally got DSL set up and working. Poo. I drank a heaping helping of pippilina's Yerba Mate this morning, to try to combat last night's intense insomnia, but all it's done is make me feel slightly dehydrated, a little edgy... I managed to get ready in record time, and out the door just in time to chase down a bus. I missed out on the cafe thing. I'm still feeling a little congested, and I still have a little cough, but I'm not feeling terribly sick anymore. It was raining a little bit when I got to HAMSTOP, so I had an opportunity to utilize my high tech new aluminum-and-steel 31337 umbrella. Doi! The 50 came along, and it was fairly packed. I sat in a seat that has a wheel well nub thing under it, and couldn't find a good place to put my feet during the entire journey. The tide was very high this morning, and there was this huge cluster of identical fishing boats off of Sausalito, and this guy said "Wow, look at all those boats! They're fishing for Herring, you know? There are probably tons of seals out there!" and then he proceeded to point out all the seals he saw. I listened in to his conversation with another technerd, they were talking about web design stuff. I was getting kind of exhausted listening to them. The bus was really crowded, but fully ¾ of the passengers got off before we left Sausalito. In Corte Madera, there is an RV parked near the highway that says "SWIFT LESLIE - Motor Homes for the Film Industry" - Weird!

Wednesday, 01-03-00
<morning> Wow, the year 2001. How ultramodern. How supersonic. How atomic-hyper-global-mega-ultra-space-age. I remain unimpressed. I've been slacking on the whole kommute thing even to the point of not kommuting at all! I started feeling kind of woozy last Thursday afternoon and got all feverish and weird and by that same evening I was thoroughly off-balance, my head was all stuffy and I had the worst cough. Have the worst cough. I stayed home yesterday, and half considered doing so today, but I came in. I don't think I can really justify any more time off. It's not like I feel a lot better for having stayed home for 5 days straight anyway. Once I began my trek to San Rafael, I started to regret my decision. I'm still kind of feverish. I went in to the cafe, and the nice euro girl who I suspect this missed connection posting is about took my order, saying "Good morning, Sweetie! Large Coffee?" and I have to admit, I was charmed. She's the one who got all bent out of shape when I paid for my coffee with a $20 and I tipped her $2 ever so long ago. So, I caught the 24 pretty much right away, and I missed my chance to take photos of the pimpiest looking guy i've ever seen. Bummer. I got to spend a fairly long time at my beloved HAMSTOP, though. Once I got on my bus, I was feeling kind of unstable, so I didn't take as many photos as I generally would. I overheard a conversation about the housing situation in SF, and this guy said that SF's housing crisis is "within striking distance of Tokyo". That gave me pause.

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