Thursday, September 09, 2010

Bus Report #542

This morning I waited for the 22 with the woman who always has to stand right next to me.
It felt like fall today. The sky was dark, there were leaves on the ground and the air felt deliciously crisp.
There was a man wandering around in the intersection of Fillmore and Geary: he looked like he could be any guy late for work trying to hail a cab.
He caught a yellow cab and I thought that was the end of it, but it wasn't.
He was back a few minutes later, trying to hail cabs, cars, anything with four wheels.
It was so strange. I assume he didn't have any money with him, or any credit cards, so the cabbie had put him out.
He managed to stop a few cars, but no one would give him a ride.
He flagged down a half-dozen more cabs, but after they heard he didn't have money, the cabbies shook their heads and took off.
I looked at the woman who always has to stand right next to me and I rolled my eyes, and she smiled back.
The last cab that turned the man away eventually swung back around and honked a few times to get his attention. The man didn't notice. I said, "Hey," to him, and pointed at the cab. He climbed in the cab and they were on their way.

Our bus came and pulled up right in front of me. We have a new driver, new to the route, at least. The driver is someone I know from the 38. He's very friendly and polite, and it is always a pleasure to see him. He always wears dark tinted sunglasses and a smile on his face.
When he picked us up on Tuesday he said, "Hello there! Looks like I got you again!" when he saw me.
"It's great to see you," I told him, and I meant it.

All the regulars were on the bus today. The big guy, Michele, Shirley and her friends, and all the day laborers and construction workers.

At Mission Street, people started climbing in through the back door. Our driver stood up and waved them all back out the door to the front.

I got out at my usual stop with Michele. Today is her last day at her current job, so she won't be on our bus any more. I wished her luck with whatever comes next.

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