Dear Muni,
When I got onto the M train at around 3:45, I was hoping for a normal ride, but things immediately took a turn for the...awkward. As the doors were closing, one of the doors was noticeably resistant and failed to shut properly. In response, the driver, a small, elderly woman with frizzy orange hair yelled at the nearby teenagers for, "leaning on the doors and breaking them, you rotten kids!" The teenagers were not leaning on the doors.
After two failed attempts at opening and closing the doors, the driver put her key into a lock that seemed to stop the doors from operating altogether. Afterward, she again tried to close the doors, only this time one of them remained completely open, and we began to move. In an already overcrowded and therefore unsafe situation, the fact that the door was wide open as the train moved was cause for alarm. We rallied one of the "rotten teenagers" to push the big red button and alarm the driver that she was moving the train with an open door. As the "rotten teen" was notifying the driver, the train came to a sudden halt, slamming the door and sending a few passengers on a trip they didn't pay $2 for.
As a result of this door-closing attempt, the power (both lights and ventilation) were immediately turned off and the crowded train that was just put in harms way with an open door in a moving vehicle was now stuck underground in the dark...and it was getting sweaty. We were stuck there for however long it took, (roughly 4.5 'toro y moi' songs) until another MUNI operator came and did 10 seconds worth of maintenance on the door. The minimal maintenance, on top of her door-closing method and tolerance for the youth of America, made me question how qualified this conductor was.
The lights and air came back on and we slowly made our way to the next stop, where the operator claimed, "They are too many of you on this train, we need one person to get off." I was half an hour late to a very important meeting...and balmy from the time spent in the underground sauna.
I'm not one to complain very often, in fact I apologize for whomever has to read this, but I have to get this stuff off my chest. If I'm paying $15 more a month in comparison to what I was paying only a year ago - I would appreciate an improvement on the conditions of the trains as well as the people that operate them.
In the past few months, I have had to get off the M train on my way to a meeting or class and walk or wait for another train almost half of the time.... and I have said nothing.
Yesterday was the straw that broke the camel's back... also I lost my bookmark in the dark..so....
Thank you for your time.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
a love for synergy
In my early adulthood, I have come to discover that things move rather rapidly. There always seems to be something that needs to be done - bills, papers, projects, events, etc.
Time seems to move faster. I'm probably late for something as you read this.
I have also discovered that I have a particular likeness for blending responsibilities, passions and causes. Two birds with one stone, eggs in one basket, call it whatever you want, I love it. Multitasking just seems to work really well for me.
Some less relevant examples include:
-discovering my love for jazz while trolling through the produce section
-catching up with political chat while practicing yoga in my bedroom via youtube
-and learning traditional Catalan while running.
Productive, yes. Embarrassing, slightly.
No other combination has been most rewarding than my work with the Neighborhood Empowerment Network and my graduate thesis project. My passion for citizen civic engagement has been able to work concurrently with the pursuit of a Master's Degree at San Francisco State while also helping an actual organization centered around community involvement.
In the fall of 2009, I was able to work with Daniel Homsey and a think tank of Communication Studies professors and fellow students. Our focus revolved around the ways to instruct leadership to neighborhood representatives. We also brought our own personal interests into the mix, like language barriers, organizational lecturing and incorporating media and activism (me, of course).
Over the winter break, Daniel approached me with a new idea in mind. In order to spread the Neighborhood Empowerment Network's message, Daniel suggested that I front the initiative to build a program that was centered around the historic GLBT community of San Francisco. I immediately said yes, but with a catch. I wanted to have the opportunity to promote my thesis and tap into NEN for survey participants.
SYNERGY AT ITS FINEST!!!
The survey is a perfect addition to the NEN program as it aims to find the relationships between media consumption patterns, interpersonal communication and civic engagement in an effort to promote more diverse activism of people that normally weren't particularly interested/ fearful to engage in politics. The end result will be a guide for marginalized communities to give them the power and tools to become more active for their rights and needs for community improvement and empowerment in case of any natural disasters (THE BIG EARTHQUAKE, DROUGHT, FAMINE, etc.). Studying something of this nature while developing a program for civic engagement and community organizing makes for a perfect combination.
Please feel free to take part in the survey. The larger the survey sample, the better.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/mediatalkandaction
As far as the resiliency project has gone, we have already met with representatives from the Red Cross to get them on board and help identity the marginalized members within the GLBT community to find out who would be more at risk in case of a major earthquake. The main members of the community at risk would most likely be elderly LGBT seniors with little family ties as well as the HIV/AIDS patients that would also need access to care.
It has also been brought up that the community itself is rather split between age groups and subcultures, so an elaborate scheme is in the works to put together a campaign that encourages community involvement that doesn't revolve around nightlife and separation.
We're on the move and I'm incredibly happy with the progression of both my thesis and my work with the LGBT resiliency coalition.
I'll be sure to keep you updated on both matters.
Love and loyalty... and synergy.
Time seems to move faster. I'm probably late for something as you read this.
I have also discovered that I have a particular likeness for blending responsibilities, passions and causes. Two birds with one stone, eggs in one basket, call it whatever you want, I love it. Multitasking just seems to work really well for me.
Some less relevant examples include:
-discovering my love for jazz while trolling through the produce section
-catching up with political chat while practicing yoga in my bedroom via youtube
-and learning traditional Catalan while running.
Productive, yes. Embarrassing, slightly.
No other combination has been most rewarding than my work with the Neighborhood Empowerment Network and my graduate thesis project. My passion for citizen civic engagement has been able to work concurrently with the pursuit of a Master's Degree at San Francisco State while also helping an actual organization centered around community involvement.
In the fall of 2009, I was able to work with Daniel Homsey and a think tank of Communication Studies professors and fellow students. Our focus revolved around the ways to instruct leadership to neighborhood representatives. We also brought our own personal interests into the mix, like language barriers, organizational lecturing and incorporating media and activism (me, of course).
Over the winter break, Daniel approached me with a new idea in mind. In order to spread the Neighborhood Empowerment Network's message, Daniel suggested that I front the initiative to build a program that was centered around the historic GLBT community of San Francisco. I immediately said yes, but with a catch. I wanted to have the opportunity to promote my thesis and tap into NEN for survey participants.
SYNERGY AT ITS FINEST!!!
The survey is a perfect addition to the NEN program as it aims to find the relationships between media consumption patterns, interpersonal communication and civic engagement in an effort to promote more diverse activism of people that normally weren't particularly interested/ fearful to engage in politics. The end result will be a guide for marginalized communities to give them the power and tools to become more active for their rights and needs for community improvement and empowerment in case of any natural disasters (THE BIG EARTHQUAKE, DROUGHT, FAMINE, etc.). Studying something of this nature while developing a program for civic engagement and community organizing makes for a perfect combination.
Please feel free to take part in the survey. The larger the survey sample, the better.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/mediatalkandaction
As far as the resiliency project has gone, we have already met with representatives from the Red Cross to get them on board and help identity the marginalized members within the GLBT community to find out who would be more at risk in case of a major earthquake. The main members of the community at risk would most likely be elderly LGBT seniors with little family ties as well as the HIV/AIDS patients that would also need access to care.
It has also been brought up that the community itself is rather split between age groups and subcultures, so an elaborate scheme is in the works to put together a campaign that encourages community involvement that doesn't revolve around nightlife and separation.
We're on the move and I'm incredibly happy with the progression of both my thesis and my work with the LGBT resiliency coalition.
I'll be sure to keep you updated on both matters.
Love and loyalty... and synergy.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
a combination
pharyngitis and tonsillitis is not the best combination.
i've been pretty roughed up this past week and thankfully the antibiotics are kicking in.
it has now been my third illness since 2010 has started. this does not make for a healthy new year.
i'm ready to get off of humira and try something else to help with my crohn's disease.
i'm going to go take out some frustration on a canvas.
i've been pretty roughed up this past week and thankfully the antibiotics are kicking in.
it has now been my third illness since 2010 has started. this does not make for a healthy new year.
i'm ready to get off of humira and try something else to help with my crohn's disease.
i'm going to go take out some frustration on a canvas.
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