The N-Judah Chronicles

That's because despite Muni being the new "hot issue" that everyone seems to suddenly care about (as if Muni didn't need an assist some time ago), the level of lies and disinformation being pumped out from a variety of sources make sorting through it all about as pleasant (and as time consuming) as cleaning up the Gulf Coast, and frankly, it gets to be a bit much.

Plus, this latest technical annoyance is the last straw, and I'm finally migrating to WordPress, if for not other reason than I can at least get help faster if I need it instead of just using an orphan product with no support.

So for now I'm going to maintain a lighter posting schedule, but as always, I invite those who'd like to contribute a Guest Blog Post to email me and contribute something while I work out the plan for a revamped site with some new features. I'm also working on some other, non-Muni related projects too, but those will be revealed when they're ready to go.

I'm also soliciting advice on a Muni candidate questionnaire which I've mentioned previously. The questionnaire will go to all candidates for Supervisor, and have results posted on line. I've got a pretty good idea of where I want to go with this, but if anyone has any suggestions, I'm listening.

The goal is not to stump candidate with arcane questions about Rule #24521.a.1 about some thing at Muni, but instead get them to go past "oh yes me support Muni" glittering generalities and instead show that either they a) actually use Muni or b) at least give a damn about it. If nothing else, it could be fun to see the responses from the more "unusual" candidates, right?

Posted by Greg Dewar at 8:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Just so we're all clear - I am well aware of how the search result for "N Judah Chronicles" has been hacked by hacker bastards on Google.

However, I do not have the technical know-how to fix it. So while I appreciate the (many) emails and IMs and whatnots about this, unless someone out there is willing to show me how to fix a MovableType 4.01 installation that's been hacked like this, I honestly don't know what to do.

Trying to move the site to Wordpress has been difficult enough - I'm not a PHP/internet/webserver/software engineer - and this annoying hack on top is really frustrating. And, being an orphan customer of Movable Type software, it's not like I can go find help easily the way I could if I'd been smart and used Wordpress all along instead.

Speaking of Wordpress, I'm trying to make the move without killing 5 years worth of links in Google, although at this point I'm so frustrated with the whole thing, I'm ready to just move, and say "f**k the linkage" because using MovableType is a) difficut and b) impossible to find any reliable help to get this done fast.

Thanks again for your concern - and if anyone out there can actually do this, I'm afraid I don't know what to do since programming computers and the like has never ever been my area of expertise.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 2:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

While it was nice to take time away from all the usual routine for vacation, it's kind of nice to be back into a routine, especially when 2010 promises some significant changes, not all of them good, but changes nonetheless.

I took some time to sit down and learn more about the technical details of running this site's CMS so that I can make some needed changes. Chief among them will be more ways to read the site (via mobile phone, etc.) and to make some features stand out more (i.e. if there's a major fail, better ways to alert people and alert them to alternate routes), and for more fun (i.e. more bar & business reviews.). There are also some pretty big changes coming at that other blog I sometimes write at, but that's not important right now.

Meanwhile, here's a few links that seem rather important. One is a rather well written story by Will Reisman of the Examiner, which sums up the many structural problems that are causing Muni's budget pain. Word is that the Governor is going to try and permanently destroy gas tax funding (80% which goes to roads, the other 20% to transit statewide) to ensure we pay for his cigars.

And of course, the Mayor is out and about saying the N Judah runs perfectly (!) but has also been a big fan of defunding Muni to pay for his campaign staff.

Also worth reading, is Matt Baume's analysis of Muni given the cuts that will come unless something is done, and it's it's worth your time to read and debate. The SF Appeal has this wonderful idea called "actual reporting of news that affects you," and it's something really great to have as a resource. Maybe the million dollar a week losing print folks might take a look at that idea.

Finally, there's a post over at CaliberSF, one of SF's great photography blogs, about Muni's new, written on paper for real photography policy. Troy Holden deserves a lot of credit for pushing this issue, which will hopefully eliminate misunderstandings that often result in hostile confrontations from wannabe Jack Bauers on Muni. Or, at the very least, make it easier to sue if someone breaks your camera for no good reason.

But, on a positive note, there are several new businesses opening here in the Inner Sunset, and some more on the way. That's always a good sign, right?

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Then by all means, go now, to the N Judah Chronicles store on Zazzle and choose from a wide variety of apparel, mousepads, mugs and more, and get a discount on Black Friday (only) using this code: ZAZZLEFRIDAY .

Use this code to get 30% off mousepads, $4 off all of our many t-shirts, and $3 off of mugs. And a a bonus, buy $35 or more, and you get free shipping!

All of these products are produced on demand right here in the Bay Area, and shipping doesn't take too long to anywhere around here. Besides, if you're doing Secret Santa, picking any of these items allows you to stand out without spending a lot of money using the code.

Enjoy!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 8:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm guessing it's a safe bet that the evening commute is going to be pretty bad, and combined with the impending closure of the N at Duboce and Church for track repairs, well, let's just say I'm glad I took today off. Frankly, they shoulda given EVERYONE a paid day off today...

And, speaking of closures, if you live on Judah Street between 19th and Sunset, and haven't already familiarized yourself with this weekend's schedule and re-routes, you really want to do that now. These track repairs are like getting one's wisdom teeth pulled - painful but necessary. The bus service shouldn't be too bad, but seeing a bus on the N-Judah line is like seeing a bus on a cable car line - sure it does the job, but it's just a little too "alternate universe/FRINGE" for me.

Finally, some site news. I am trying to go on a vacation sometime in the next 6 weeks, and since the Guest Blogger test seemed to work out pretty good, I'm soliciting Guest Bloggers once again. Please email me if you're interested in writing a short post, or want to share some photos, via the blog. If you look at past entries, they can be about pretty much anything Muni or San Francisco related, but nothing too crazy or psycho.

Finally (part II, Electric Boogaloo), I'm still looking for someone who knows how to upgrade MovableType to its latest version, and help me develop a new set of templates compatible with version 4.3. I want to change the layout to something a bit more contemporary, and add several new features, but I'm at the limits of my technical capabilities at this point. There is money involved as well as referrals from the endless stream of people who keep asking me if I know anyone who wants a lot of money to do work. No, really. Plus we may be getting another advertiser, which again, allows me to spend some money to make the site more fun.

(Side note: Yes, Wordpress, blah blah blah. I'm well aware of the fact that I should switch but doing so now, after 4+ years here, would mean losing every single link in Google to the ages, and well, I don't have time to learn an entirely new system. Unless someone can show me a way to avoid this....)

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

You may have noticed an ad appearing to the right on the blog recently for Avalon Communities as well as on many other awesome local sites. Today I wanted to give them a special thanks for advertising with the blog. I've taken ads on an informal basis via Blogads.com or if someone (like Avalon) came along and offered to buy an ad, but I never really solicited them very much. (Google ads provide enough to cover hosting, which is to say, nada mucho).

However, Avalon is getting a special shout out, because thanks to them, and the monthly revenue I'm getting, I'm finally going to have the money to pay someone to help me really re-do this site properly, fixing various problems I have with the software that runs the site, as well as create a whole new layout, one that's more reader friendly and doesn't look like a crappy stock template from MovableType circa 2006 (which it is now).

None of this would have been possible had Avalon not offered to purchase an ad, so they deserve some thanks.

In the coming months, especially after November 3rd, I plan on making several changes here to make the site more fun and to make it easier for readers to contribute their ideas as well, besides "commenting."

PS: If you're a MovableType expert who can help upgrade my software and help me create new, 4.0+ friendly templates for the site, please email me. I can't pay you a million dollars, but I can provide you with some promotion on the site. I also am always asked for referrals for people who do blog and web development, and am happy to pass along referrals to anyone who helps with the site.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 2:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Anyway, there's quite a lot going on because of Fleet Week. Before all the whining starts about "the noise" and whatnot, bear in mind that the F-Market line and the 47 will be running free all day Saturday and Sunday to accommodate the crowds wishing to view the event. So everyone wins!

But wait, there's more. The SF Appeal is now compiling all the SFMTA Muni Alerts into one page, so you can find out just what's up with Muni and various events, including the Italian Heritage Parade on Sunday, Oracle World next week, and some Burning Man thing.

And now some more fun: Way back when I got two tickets to the Nightlife at the Academy thing on Thursday nights. Now, this should have been a cool thing since I live so close to the Academy, and so on, but every time I've tried to use them, something terrible happens.

Either something keeps me working late, or in at least two verified cases, the person I was going to attend with was either rushed to the ER with an injury (they were hit by a car!) and another was taken ill with the flu (ironically after getting a flu shot). I'm convinced that these tickets are cursed (for me) so I'm going to give them away since they expire soon. I figure someone else might as well enjoy them.

So, since trivia contests don't work online thanks to Google, I'm instead going to do an essay contest, 21st Century style. Instead of an essay, I'm asking for short blog posts of no more than 150 words, describing why you should win the passes, and who you would take if you won them. The person you can take can be someone you know, someone from history, a celebrity, etc. Do not submit them to the comments below - instead email me your submission.

Points are awarded for originality, good writing, a sense of humor that's cool or witty, and points are taken off for bullsh!t. Keep it somewhat clean and friendly, folks, and have fun with it!

Later today I'll be posting some news recently announced about some attempts to make boarding the Muni trains a bit safer. We've had discussions on this in the past, so it'll be interesting to see what exactly they're announcing today. If it means you can de-board the N without nearly getting killed all the time, well that would be awesome.

Photo courtesy of the Blue Angels/US Navy

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We took some inspiration from the real Fail Whale, as well as a parody found on Flickr with DC Metro.

Lauren is a great person to hire if you're in need of mad designing skillz, check out her extensive portfolio here.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I was out of town yesterday and didn't return on Amtrak until this morning, so it seems I missed some rather interesting pieces at both SF Streetsblog and the SF Appeal, among many others, opening up a dialogue on the storied pronouncements of Those Professionals over at the Chronicle.

I think it's great that nowadays, we no longer have just one point of view available for the public to consider, and instead have many points of view free to engage the public, and challenge the conventional wisdom (which often has neither) in a thoughtful manner. At a time when newspapers here have cut way back on local news coverage and wiped out investigative reporting, it may be up to others to pick up the slack and encourage multi-faceted discussions on things that affect daily life.

Now for some changes: I'm finally getting some technical help to make some much needed upgrades to the software that runs this site, and that will mean I'll be able to update the layout and add some new features to make the site more fun. One will be to make a better display of images in a Flickr pool people can add to, among other things, and it'll be easier to read the Twitter feed, etc. I'm also going to revive reporting on local businesses (esp. since I'm alarmed at the number of local businesses that have disappeared lately) and some more feature type posts.

I'm also making some changes in my schedule to better reflect what I like to do (i.e. writing and meeting fun people around town) and as I'm finally getting some decent ads here, I can do so, which is kinda nice.

Don't forget we always like Guest Bloggers for Wednesday - email me if you're interested in signing up.

I think we all know now that MUNI's budget was completely frakked, that MUNI's fails are going to be more commonplace as a result, and that the MTA and the Mayor don't care, so I don't know that point needs to be belabored unless something really bad happens (and God I hope not).

Now for some fun: Lisa Katayama over at TokyoMango has pics of this funny Japanese juice bottles, shaped like trains. And, for iPhone folks, there's a new wave of augmented reality apps on the way, with this one, which helps you find bus stops in San Francisco, being one of the first. Android users have had some augmented reality apps out too, so I imagine it's a matter of time before one comes out for those phones too.

This weekend features many fun activities, all accessible by transit (we hope), and the weather looks like it'll be nice too. If you see something particularly fun or interesting, post it online and put a link in the comments below!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

While there have been all sorts of things I'd like to have blogged about this week, I've been busy with work, and that has to come first until this site pays the bills. However, I did want to announce a new women's "N is Near" t-shirt that I posted this morning, and thanks to Zazzle.com, you can get 15% off if you use the code FRIFAMZAZZLE this week.

As always, you get a 30 day money back guarantee with Zazzle, and the quality of their products is really good - no decals or iron ons here. I'll post more this weekend,, but I'm taking the opportunity to get out of the office and get outdoors while it's still sunny!

Also, this weekend offers a lot of outdoor activities, including one sponsored by StreetsblogSF, so be aware of delays and have fun!

Women's N is Near T Shirt by gdewar
Shop for tshirts online at zazzle

Posted by Greg Dewar at 1:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

First off, this weekend marks the 4th anniversary of this site. We had a small event last night at the Blackthorn, which went well. However, I only found out at the last minute that a good portion of my E-vites were marked as spam, and many people never saw the invite, which was infinitely frustrating. I couldn't afford to open it up as a big wide event for tons of people as I don't make a fortune off of the site's T shirt and ad revenues just yet.

So if you missed this event, trust me when I say a) we weren't trying to be lame, and b) we'll be doing more events this summer and fall, formal and informal, that will be wide open to the public so you can hang out and meet your fellow MUNI riders and so on.

This weekend we have a lot going on. Today, of course is Critical Mass Day, which will have added fun as the preparations for the SF Pride Parade are already up around Civic Center. Obviously, this weekend will see a large influx of folks from around the world and on Parade Day itself, you can expect delays getting around town. So, plan accordingly for or around both.

Next up, a shout out to the SF Appeal, for their actual reporting of news regarding the bizarro case of Routesy, caught in a bureaucratic snare. SF Weekly also did some digging and deserve a shout out as well. This is the kind of thing I wanted to research myself, but didn't have the time to do, so I handed it off to the Appeal to do it right. It's nice to see more than one journalistic entity take on a difficult issue with larger concerns for the public and print up something worth reading, esp. since there was no way I could take a few days off work to do it myself!

Continue reading "Friday, Friday, Friday Roundup - Pride Week Detours, Critical Mass, Videos, iPhone App News, a 4th Anniversary, and More!" »

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Light posting this Thursday with news that the "Nowhere in Particular" shirt has made a comeback! You might have seen a random MUNI bus or Metro with this on the front window display...now you can let your fellow MUNI riders know that you're having a carefree day around town!

"Nowhere In Particular" T Shirt by gdewar
Make Custom T-Shirts at www.zazzle.com

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

SO.....if someone out there has the MovableType knowhow to help me redo the templates for this site to be 4.0 compliant, please email me and let's see if we can work something out. I can't pay a fortune, but from what I can tell, this shouldn't be more than a day or two's work, since I already found a few other MT sites that are similar to what I want to do. I don't need any artwork either, since I have that covered elsewhere.

Anyway, I figured posting here would have as much reach as a Craigslist job ad, but be "free" since I own the site...look forward to hearing from you. It'd be nice to get this done pretty quickly since we're coming up on the 4th anniversary of the site!

PS: YES, I KNOW, Wordpress, etc. etc etc. but frankly, the trauma of switching to a whole new system, plus losing all the links on the site , is worse than sticking with MT's pain-in-the-backside quirks. Overall it works fine, but...anyway. You get the idea.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This may not be the most important crusade in the world, what with global warming, the economy, and assorted crises to keep our attention, but someone's gotta say it so it might as well be me - we need a few more late night dining options out here in the Inner Sunset!

More and more often, as I travel and come home late, often to an empty fridge because I forget to go grocery shopping, I find my dining options are limited to whatever one of the cheap corner stores is selling at 10pm. And let's just say that while the novelty of Spam or overpriced frozen burritos sounds good, one's digestive system has a way of issuing payback fairly quickly.

There are a few pizza places open, like Milano's, which will serve up a decent slice, but most places shut down around 9pm. However, that said, I think there's a market for late night tacos, Korean tacos, or what have you served from one of the many wheel based culinary concerns out there, particularly on weekends. The Inner Sunset has quite a few bars out here and if someone were to pull up and offer hot, decent food, I can almost guarantee a legion of well-soaked patrons for said food trucks.

Now, none of this is meant to slight the many awesome locally owned restaurants in the area, but most close early anyway so I don't see this as harming their business. Alternately if just one place was open past 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays and did a good job getting the word out, I see riches in their future.

Heck if no one else does it maybe I'll go rent a truck and do it myself. I can make some pretty awesome food when I bother to go shopping, and not all of it is crap. Anyone who's had my barbecue knows that!

So what do you think? Should we encourage one of our mobile kitchens to the neighborhood? Make your thoughts known in the comments section!

UPDATE: The Chronicle did a story on food carts just a few days later and big suprise, SF's myriad of regulations conflict with the state, and seem to exist primarily to extort money without much public good. They also had a list of food truck options, but most of these seem to exist in the Mission.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (14)

Tonight ABC7's roving reporter Dan Noyes will be taking a look at crime on MUNI. For this story, one of the producers at ABC7 stopped by the neighborhood and asked me some questions, so I may or may not be on the news tonight. If you see some dude in a suit talking about MUNI crime it may or may not be me.

However, before the segment airs, I wanted to make a few things clear that you, the home viewer may not be aware of. In this story, they will be referring to a series of MUNI tapes from last fall (no doubt at the same time this article appeared in the Examiner,) with some specific incidents.

I was asked to comment on these incidents without the benefit of actually seeing them, but instead hearing a quick summary of "what happened."

As you can imagine, it's a bit hard to comment on a specific video without seeing it, so I was actually being asked to comment on a summary of what sounded like a "generic" what if scenario. As such it made it difficult for me to make comments that would be of direct relevance to said clips. Essentially, I was being asked questions as a hypothetical, when in fact they were about a specific incident. I don't think this was some sort of intentional thing on KGO's part - more like trying to produce a major segment in a short amount of time - so I don't want people to think that. But I do think it's important viewers know I couldn't see what was being discussed.

Moreover, even if I'd seen them, it is still difficult to armchair quarterback what a driver should or should not do during an incident, since a driver is in charge of moving vehicle, etc. and isn't armed to protect themselves from violent offenders.

So I tried my best to carefully parse my words so that I could communicate a) crime sucks b)crime sucks when it happens on MUNI c) the drivers have to do what they can to ensure passenger safety d) police officers should be available to bust bad guys and e) the bad people should be prosecuted because they're breaking the law. Whether that comes out after editing is unclear.

On a related note, if you read the latest issue of the Sunset Beacon, you can read a first hand report of a woman whose iPhone was stolen by violent thugs, and how she felt about it. This crime was first reported by the Taraval Station's daily report a while back.

All I want you, the reader/viewer to know is that I tried my best to comment on the general situation in an even-handed manner (i.e. crime is bad, boo crime on MUNI, hey some drivers have it tough, hey cops we like you please throw bad guys in jail) but had to do so without the benefit of seeing the video you the home viewer will see tonight.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Next week I'm taking off for a business trip, first to Washington DC, and then to points out and about around the East Coast. Unlike other times when I've been out of town, this time around I won't be able to blog much from afar - heck I won't even be able to blog about DC's Metro system since the convention I'm going to is in some weird suburb of DC I've never heard of (they might as well have had it on the Moon, it's that remote).

Anyway, although I may be able to post a twitter here or there, I'd rather the site not go dark for a week and a half. While I'm sure I can get Mason Powell to post something here and there, he's a busy guy too. So, after consulting The Internet, I decided to open up a couple of "guest blogger" positions here to help keep an eye on all things N-Judah and MUNI related while I'm out of town.

The requirements are simple - post an observation made whilst on your daily commute, or a short commentary on the latest in MUNI related news, or pictures you might want to share with the Loyal Readers. I can't pay you millions of dollars in salary, but I can offer a free beer/coffee/whatever when I get back.

To inquire, simply send an email to me with the subject line "guest blogger." Briefly explain what you like about the site, what you might write about (or take pics of) and I'll get back to you (it helps a little if you're familiar with MovableType 4.01 but not required). I'm looking for a few folks who can take turns posting once a day (more if there's a MUNI FailWhale). The house rules here are simple: be nice, don't make up stuff, be funny in the "funny ha ha" not "funny omigod" way), and have fun!

I'll be able to approve posts and make edits from afar, and may even chime in via The Twitter depending on whether I get a break from the day job's duties.

I'll pick 2 or 3 folks - and not to worry, if you don't get picked this time, it doesn't mean I hate you or anything - it looks like I'll be taking a few more business trips this year, so there will be plenty of opportunities to guest blog.

Thanks for your support, and thanks for reading the N Judah Chronicles!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Quick post on a busy, rainy Monday: you can save $4 off our N Judah apparel today and tomorrow just by using this promotional code provided by Zazzle ( PATTYSHIRT09 ) . If you're thinking about buying one, now is a good time to get one before something happens that might keep these away in the future.

Also, I mildly critiqued a certain Supervisor known for spending taxpayer time yelling at blog commenters and such. I realize now I shouldn't have as I fully expect to get screamed at for my mild critique, but I've dodged this particular politician's tirades before. It's just unfortunate that mild suggestions for finding common ground get ripped on. Ah well.

In the meantime, be extra careful as rainy weather and wet streets mean extra caution needs to be taken boarding on or off MUNI, and when crossing the street. Cars don't always realize that stop times change when the roads are slick. Be safe and have a groovy Monday.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ah, Friday the 13th. I'm never sure whether to give in to triskadecaphobia and hide indoors all day until midnight, or say "frak it" and live life as normal, and hope I don't get killed by MUNI. Ah, superstition.

Todays MUNI TroubleAlert told us not of trouble, per se but instead about a bike race Saturday morning that makes its way through the Outer Sunset and Outer Richmond until about 10:30 am. If any of you are in the area, take some pictures and post 'em to Flickr this weekend.

As for me, I'm having a nerd-fest tonight, what with Dollhouse premiering, Terminator returning, and Battlestar Galactica rocking.

And now, a Grindhouse-style promo for Fox Fridays. Because I can:

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The good folks at Zazzle.com have just announced a new discount code in honor of Inauguration Day - $4.40 off any shirt in the Zazzle store! All you need to do is go to our Zazzle store, pick out any shirt for sale (you'll find both N Judah and Adama for President items there), and enter the code 440SHIRTSALE for your discount. (FYI, Zazzle.com is located right here in the Bay Area, so if you're a local, you're ordering from a local business!)

And, while you're buying your shirt, why not send President Elect Obama a note the next time you get hit up for a donation asking him to give transit infrastructure help with that bazillion dollar "stimulus" package, instead of letting his transit secretary shovel it all to his campaign contributors?

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

80th Anniversary of the N Judah Shirts Now Available!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Some random news from the N Judah inbox worth a mention....first, we have news that the Obama/Biden campaign will be holding a campaign volunteer event at one of the coolest (and smartest) bars in the Inner Sunset, the Blackthorn Tavern!

The event will run from 6 to 8pm and if you sign up as a volunteer, the campaign will give you a button or bumper sticker (while supplies last). This isn't the first time the Obama campaign has held events here, and it's great to see a national campaign support a local business. You can rsvp for the event on Facebook or contact Pat Wong for more information.

Also, one of my pub trivia teammates has two tickets to the "So You Think You Can Dance" show on September 30th at 7:30pm at the Oakland Arena. You can see the seating location here and they're a bargain at just $100. Contact Jennifer at jen_ni_fer_01@yahoo.com" today!

More entries soon as work permits...we've got a hell of a crisis on the cable car system that's in dire need of a serious blog posting....

Posted by Greg Dewar at 5:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I didn't quite anticipate just how much attention that winning the Guardian Best of the Bay poll would bring to this blog (seeing as how I had no idea the BOTB even had such a category!) and first I'd like to say "Welcome" to all the new readers!

This has also resulted in significantly more "Reader Mail", so much so that I think I'm going to designate one day to publish all emails submitted, rather than print them as they come in. That way you can read what your fellow Loyal Readers are thinking, and join in the discussion.

On a side note, we may be changing how we allow comments on the site. One thing no one sees here is the immense amount of "comment spam" the site receives. As a result, I have to approve every single comment so that the 10 spam comments don't get published and the 3 "real" ones do. I think that forcing people to regsiter for every single site is a hassle, but I hate spammers too. And for some reason the option to allow people to use their OpenID (aka your yahoo login) isn't working here either. So for now we're investigating some no-hassle ways to change over to something a bit more manageable so you can participate easily on the site. Suggestions are welcome!

Also, to new readers: I would direct you to the Subject Archives section, where you can read past entries on specific subjects going back to 2005. If you're wondering if we've talked about something, you can look there, or type in a search term in the Search box in the upper right hand corner too.

Finally, I'm going to try and get some professional assistance to make a long-delayed upgrade to the site's layout and interface. I've been working on this for some time now, but as my MovableType and assorted HTML skills are limited (and I have a day job!), what takes an expert a day takes me much longer.

However, the site's basic layout hasn't really changed, aside from colors, since 2006, and is lacking in some features many of you have inquired about that I would like to add. If anyone out there wants to pitch in, I can't offer much in the way of millions of dollars, but you could get a free shirt or two out of the deal, and credit on the site as well.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So there I was, making coffee this morning when my friend Paul of Beyond Chron calls me up to tell me that his site's won the Bay Guardian's "Best Local Website" award in their annual "Best of the Bay" reader's poll/issue. Hooray!

Then he tells me that the frakkin N-Judah Chronicles has also won the best local blogger award. Needless to say, I was a bit shocked. I mean, not only did I not beg all you Loyal Readers, my friends, relatives, et al to stuff the ballot boxes, I honestly didn't know they even had a category like this. So needless to say, this is a tremendous surprise.

I kinda feel bad for capping on them a while back on that political blog I write that no one reads...all I can say to y'all is thanks! I never thought a joke email sent 3 years ago would lead to anything, much less this!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

By now, most people have picked up on the fact that the Blackthorn Tavern is not only the Official Headqarters of the N Judah Chronicles, and the Adama for President Committee, but also one of the best places to hang out in the Inner Sunset.

Tonight, I learned another factoid though - the Blackthorn is home to the TWO teams that kicked major backside in Brainstormer's Bay Area Trivia Championship! Even better, they had to decide the winners with a tie breaker!

And, to cement the Blackthorn, the Inner Sunset, and our Trivia Heroes as mega-doses of awesome, the winning team offered to buy every team tonight a pitcher as a gesture of goodwill.

This was just so much awesome, I had to blog it! Next time some arrogant hipster doofus tells YOU the Inner Sunset ain't cool, you just remind him the smartest folks in the Yay Area are HERE. In the Inner Sunset.

AT THE BLACKTHORN!

:-)

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

More Kearny Clouds

Posted by Greg Dewar at 6:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

While doing my morning work routine, I realized upon looking at the date that in fact today marks the 3rd Anniversary of the blog. I suppose I should have marked it with a big party or something, but that'll have to wait because the day job calls.

Still, I am often asked how it was that I got the idea to do this site, much less keep going, so it's time for the Origin story of the N Judah Chronicles. If I was more talented, I'd do it in the appropriate comic book form, but instead I'll just do a short recap.

In 2005 I returned to SF after a brief detour in Venice Beach, CA (the less said about that, the better), and for the first time, did not have a car with me. My car had met an unfortunate end in Los Angeles, and I was ready to get another one, but then wondered "can someone really live in SF without a car?" and after looking at how much I was paying for gas, insurance, car payments and taxes, I decided to give it a try.

It was a bit annoying at first, but gradually I got used to it. It seemed like every time I was on the N or whatever, there'd be Some Drama playing out. One day I had a particularly annoying experience taking the N to Safeway and wrote an email and sent it off as a joke to about 20 friends, and figured that was that.

I had no idea this thing was being passed around, and people (including folks I didn't know) started asking for another one. So I started up a blog at the free Journalspace.com service (they suck, don't use 'em) and figured I'd do a summer "anony-blog" on reactions to SF urban life, and end it in September. I had no idea why anyone would read it, but once "Mason Powell" and I took some photos of the faux BART station in Duboce Park, the site started to get hits as people searched for info on the fake station on The Google.

And the rest is history. I eventually moved all my blogs off of Journalspace and onto a real server, bought domain names on the cheap, and decided to turn all my MUNI-related angst into a side hobby, and it's been fun. I've met a lot of interesting people, which I never would have done had I not been doing the blog. There are many people who were kind enough to give this blog a little free linkage, especially back in the early days, including the various editors of SFist (past and present), Craig Newmark, and many many more who were nice enough to tell others about the NJC over the years.

Anyway, thanks for reading the site, buying the shirts, and so on. So long as this remains a fun sideline to my "real" job and is not a chore, I'll keep doing it, and on the day it becomes a Big Hassle, I'll move on to something else. For now, though, let's continue to have a little fun with Our Fair City and its MUNI follies!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Thanks to the magic that is Google News Alerts, I find all sorts of interesting things online that I might have missed during my daily work/internet/work/work routine.

Today's fun find was a music blog caleld The Sound of Young America, which had this post about rapper Richie Cunning's new song, "The City," which I quite enjoyed. It even has a nice shout out to Our Mighty N.

Richie is opening for People Under the Stairs (another group I like) at the Independent on June 26th. Check 'em out!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

For those of you who aren't at church or the park, or any one of a number of things one can be doing on a Sunday, you can tune into KGO 7 this Sunday at 10am, and see me interviewed by news anchor Cheryl Jennings on the topic of blogs and civic involvement.

I traded my trademark black shirts and skull attire for something a bit more businesslike, and did OK (although I couldn't see the timer countdown so I didn't know how long to phrase my answers). But it was fun, and Cheryl and the KGO staffers involved wit the program were all really cool to work with. A special thanks goes to Melissa for connecting me with KGO. Thanks!

Most of what I was trying to talk about in the segment was how anyone can start up a blog, and when people network with others, they can have an impact on local affairs. One thing I don't know got communicated enough was how those living in smaller towns or suburbs can have a proportionally larger impact than those who live in big cities like NYC or LA sometimes.

Plus, I also tried to make the point that while I have an interest in these issues, by no means have I ever claimed to be the One True Expert, and part of what makes civic blogs great is that everyone can have a say and make a contribution however they like, either as a commenter, or a blogger, or both, or something else.

Frankly, to me it's kinda funny I was interviewed at all, if only because I started the blog 3 years ago as a sort of summer anony-blog that I'd do for a few months, then quit. But as side interests go, at least it doesn't cost me anything the way other interests might, and it's been fun getting to know people in the neighborhood and learn more about local history. And as I've said before, I'll only keep doing this as long as it's fun. The minute it's a chore, I'm moving on to something else.

I am sure the segment will end up on the Series of Tubes, so if you miss it, why you and your office mates can have a snicker on Monday morning also.

PS: On an unrelated side note, I happened to notice this report that PJ's Oysterbed is closed for some reason. Anyone know what's going on? To be honest, I hadn't noticed as I end up walking on the other side of Irving to go to the taco place or the hardware store, so I'm a bit late to the party on this news, so to speak.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 1:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

By now if you've been to the 9th/Irving and 9th/Judah intersections, you've probably noticed the famous "countdown" signals and special signals for the trains are up and running, more or less. The signals seemed to start up over the weekend, and with a little fine tuning, do seem to be trying to do what they're intended to do.

That said, I think that someone is going to have to do some sort of education campaign to explain to people, who seem to walk around in a haze these days, that running in front of a train, especially when the Big Red Hand says "Don't Walk" is a really stupid idea. Plus, many people still seem to automatically cross on a green light, despite said Red Hand, not realizing that in fact, the big train that weighs tons is coming around the corner. So perhaps some flyers or a big "Walk only with Walk" sign is in order.

Overall, though, it's at least a bit of improvement, and I'm hoping that during the summer months we'll reduce accidents and near-misses to a more manageable level...now if someone could just edumacate bicyclists on the stupidity of running red lights in front of trains and buses (as well as how illegal and rude it is to ride your stupid bike on the sidewalk), we might get somewhere. That and teaching people how to make a left turn in traffic. But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

In other news...I've been looking for a new place lately and haven't really been able to find a studio or 1br within striking distance of the N (it seems like lately all I can find are 2 bedrooms or 3 bedroom flats). More than one landlord has told me, however, that soon more units will be up since school is letting out at UCSF, etc.

Since this worked out well last time when I put the question to the Loyal Readers (wherein I got a wonderful place with a 6 month lease that sadly has to expire next month), I'll toss it out again - if you know of a decent, non-crackhouse 1br or studio within spitting distance of the N or the like and can put me in touch with the landlord or whoever's responsible and I score said place, you get a prize. (It's a "real" prize too, not a case of Turtle Wax).

I've found that in this rental environment the best deals never make it to Craigslist or the classifieds, and that word of mouth (or email) works best. So drop me a line and let me know what you're seeing out there!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Earlier today I was waiting in the lobby of our ABC affiliate to do a short little interview with Cheryl Jennings on her public affairs show which appears on Sunday morning. (The actual broadcast with myself and other esteemed guests won't be on until June 8th). While waiting, I got to sit down and watch the mid-day newscast, and noticed a couple of ads.

First was an ad for Dan Noyes' I-Team who is apparently doing another investigative piece on the documented complaints against the worst-of-the-worst MUNI drivers. The report is scheduled to be on Wednesday's newscasts at 6 and 11.

The other ad was on the ABC weather channel (the one you get if you have digital TV) for MUNI itself, but I only caught pieces of it while talking to some of the other guests before the show....it was kinda cool but also kinda open to spoofing via YouTube....

And to continue our love-fest with ABC today (hey, we love KPIX too, ya know) here's a link to some pics from the Eli Stone pilot shoot last year. I only included this because I was thinking of it as I took a walk sort-of-in-the area/sort-of-not before going home today.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 4:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've been making some changes to the site that some of you have already noticed (Thanks for reading!)...I've updated the "Categories" on the right side of the page so that you can find older content on related subjects much easier. The old categories were an anachronism from when the site was still on Journalspace under the old name, and didn't really make much sense. I've also tagged every single (!) article with tags, which you can't see now, but probably will in the future.

Thanks to a helpful Loyal Reader, who fixed the problem in like record time (because I missed a setting or 2) the archives are now fully functional! Click away for archivey goodness!

Oddly enough, if you type in a word in the "Search" box in the upper right hand corner you can find any article from 2005 to today. And if you click on the temporary "archives" link way at the bottom of the page, you'll see everything. But the category links right now are only showing articles from 2007, which is weird. So if you click on "Nightlife on the N" you'll see recent articles ,but you won't see the first one, from 2006, reviewing John Colins downtown. Weird.

Anyway, these are the first of what are going to be some more changes to make the site more useful. Also, since the blogroll plugin for MT is not likely to EVER be updated for MT 4, I'm creating at new category for links that will take you to fun sites around town, but also tell you a bit more about said sites so it's not just a big long boring list (and those that we link to will hopefully get some more traffic).

Posted by Greg Dewar at 4:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

You really have to hand it to the geniuses that run AT&T and Comcast...they keep coming up with new ways to screw up. I moved to a new place and Comcast wouldn't let me order new Cable service because the old service was still "active." So I gave up and cast my lot with AT&T and they said it'd be activated today, the 13th.

Ha! Instead after going through all the hassles to re do the wiring in this place and whatnot, they tell me now that starting on the 13th doesn't really mean starting on the 13th (although the BILLING starts today!) and that it might work out later on tonight...or not at all.

They must be taking screw up classes over at City Hall to come up with something like that. I wonder if I can not pay my bill on time and tell them that paying on the due date doesn't necessarily mean paying on the due date?

So for the moment I found a wifi signal in the neighborhood, but I don't like stealing Internet from strangers, so it's off to an Undisclosed Location for some wifi...hopefully we'll be back online soon enough...

Posted by Greg Dewar at 2:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

If you were considering a purchase of one of our many witty MUNI-related T Shirts, now is the time to buy. I've just received word that GoodStorm has been acquired by Zazzle.com, and will close down all GoodStorm stores to get everyone onto Zazzle by February 15th.

Our famous "The N Is Near" shirt and others are on sale in our store until then. Buy one today!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I would love to have posted all sorts of links to all sorts of as-it-happens mayhem, but I had no power until a few hours ago, so instead I'd be interested in hearing tales of woe and more from the Loyal Readers!

Adding to my fun today was having BART stalled this afternoon due to a felled tree, and other assorted hassles. I think I'm going to buy a generator so that during the next storm/disaster I can just stay at home and watch DVDs.....

Posted by Greg Dewar at 7:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I swore I wouldn't do this, but the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results. So, despite my better judgment, I've decided to make an appeal in my housing search to the Loyal Readers and others who find this site on Google Alerts. Let the snark begin.

Seriously, though, if you haven't heard, the rental market in San Francisco has tightened up considerably, for a number of reasons we don't need to go into here. Now, normally when I go looking for a place, it takes me no more than a week or so, maybe 2, and I find something that isn't akin to a Third World prison cell, or something out of a Dickens novel (and you'd be surprised how many of those there are in Supposedly Liberal and Wealthy San Francisco).

This time, however, despite consulting the many listings of Craigslist, MetroRent, et al, I haven't been able to secure a new place and time is running out. Despite giving notice on my current place, my current landlord hasn't found a new tenant so I scored a month-to-month in the interim, but it's time to move on as I really need to get settled. (Blah blah blah shouldn't have given notice in a tight market blah blah blah. Yeah, I know. No restating the obvious, please.)

Here's where the Loyal Reader or even the Casual Reader can help, and in the process score a little surprise of their own. If you email me a tipoff to a vacancy that leads to a signed lease, you win a cash prize. Really. And it's not $5 either. The amount, however, will only be disclosed to serious folks, to keep out the riff raff of annoying snotty bloggers and anonymous haters who populate Blogland sometimes.

A few qualifications: sending in a list of links you find on Craiglist or MetroRent does not count - I can read those myself. The exception is if you actually know the person putting up the listing, and you make an effort to connect myself with said landlord or agent, then you qualify.

As for location, obviously I would like to say within walking distance of our Mighty N, but at this point, I'm willing to settle for a decent place that's in the $1000-$1500 range that's in a safe area (i.e. not in Crackland or some other hellhole neighborhood), and has decent access to some sort of MUNI so I can continue to regale San Franciscans with the joy and whatnot of Our Wonderful Transit System.

The winner not only gets a chance to spread some Christmas Spirit, but also win a little bonus as well, and will get untold Christmas cards in years to come for helping out in this time of need. Thanks, and keep the snark to a minimum, gang. Merry Christmas!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 1:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Normally I'd have all sorts of things to post, but I've been felled by that nasty cold/flu thing that's been going around...it probably didn't help that I was already feeling some symptoms over the weekend but a) pressed on with the Housing Hunt from Hell and b) stayed out in the cold longer than I should have. Oh well.

In the meantime, why not share with us some MUNI Holiday Good Will and Cheer? Or MUNI Holiday Ill Will and Jeers?

UPDATE: Since so many people are asking, here's a schedule of when and where the Double Decker MUNI Bus will be test driving the streets of San Francisco....if and when I stop dying of this stupid flu, I'll check it out!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Holy Crap!

Whilst writing a snarky post about the MUNI's massive frakups for Halloween-That-Is-Not-Is, I just got whacked by a really serious earthquake!

Wow!

Here's the latest from the MTA/MUNI. I am going to find out more about the quake....talk about live blogging....

Posted by Greg Dewar at 8:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

So far so good on the upgrade...but again you may find a situation where you submit a comment and it gets lost in the system while I knock out some bugs here....so far so good though...thanks for your patience, Loyal Readers....

Posted by Greg Dewar at 1:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Over the next few days you may notice some odd changes here and there on the site. That is because I am upgrading the site to the latest version of Movable Type, as well as some other needed improvements. The first casualty, at least for now, is the link list - the plugin that ran that part of the site is not compatible with MT 4, and I'm changing the way I link to other sites anyway so that you, the reader, can find more relevant info faster than now, where there's just some big long list.

The improvements will result in a better site, however, and it will be easier to run this and all my other sites from one installation! Woo hoO!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

The lovely and talented Beth Spotswood was kind enough to link to us today in her entry celebrating the Mayor's birthday today. Thanks, Beth!

Thanks for the link, Beth, although I doubt we'll see the Mayor on the N line anytime soon, especially in light of yesterdays hijinx. But Happy Birthday anyway, Mr. Mayor!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 5:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Den N Judah Kronisk är Stor i Sverige

Posted by Greg Dewar at 4:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Being the first decade of the 21st Century and all, one cannot have enough blogs, social networking profiles, and the like. I've been experimenting with a few, with mixed results. I am working on some short videos for You Tube but am learning as I go, so for now I'm mostly linking to others' videos there. Likewise, on Flickr, you'll find photos featured here previously, as well as other finds that I didn't write full-blown posts for.

So, if you're trying to look busy at work and the groovy 70s graphics of the blog are a tipoff to the boss you're not working on your TPS reports, check out our virtual land grabs at YouTube, Facebook, Vox, and Flickr.

Bonus points if somehow the magical algorithms of LinkedIn discover we're connected somehow. I have no idea what they did to it lately, but suddenly it seems like everyone I know is finding me there after years of dormant activity....go figure.

Anyway, enjoy your weekend, and enjoy whatever it is you like to do in your spare time! Have fun!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 2:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

stop global warming ban burning man

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

This week I've found myself trapped in the labrintyh known as the Hall of Justice for voir dire jury duty. And unlike the one in SuperFriends, there's no TroublAlert computer (but there is the ongoing nuttiness involving Sup. Ed Jew).

As such, I can't attend the Board of Supervisors meeting where they'll be voting on the now-infamous MUNI Reform Charter Amendment. There's some things to like about this, and some that are kind of lame (why, oh why, is it an article of faith amongst SPUR and Rescue MUNI that public input on who runs MUNI is a Satanic Verse?), but at this point, I like it if only because it's putting the Mayor and the Board on the spot as to whether all their "greenie feel good talk" is for real or not.

If you've been a reader or a commenter here, I urge you to take a look at the measure yourself, and if you feel so inclined, tell the Board and the Mayor what you think. It's part and parcel of the San Francisco lifestyle to bitch about MUNI - now we have a chance to vote up or down at least one attempt to try and move things along. Either way, check it out and enjoy the mayhem at tomorrow's meeting!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 7:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

stop global warming ban burning man

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The N Judah Chronicles, "Streets of San Francisco" style!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 1:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Since our first T-shirt design, The N Is Near, was such a success, we've come up with a few new designs to round out our first wave of mass transit fashion.

First, we've immortalized the infamous "Nowhere in Particular" sign often seen on a bus or train as it's making its way back to the barn, or, well nowhere in particular. Our other design is a twist on the light-up sign on the N Judah with the blog's name! Click on the image to purchase one now!

All of the shirts offered are produced and shipped by GoodStorm and now offer a variety of styles and colors. All proceeds go to paying for our web hosting service and plans for an N Judah Pub Crawl to celebrate our 2nd anniversary later this year.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Loyal Readers: The N-Judah Chronicles headquarters is on the move, and since I had so much luck selling off some items last year on this site, I thought I'd put out the word I'm looking for a new place.

I've had to move earlier than I thought due to the fact a water leak in the building has created some odd situations (including the collapse of a ceiling in a hallway it's an old building and no one knew about the leak for years!), so I need to move, like, fast.

Although I peruse Craigslist regularly, my experience with places in the Inner/Outer Sunset, or anywhere near UCSF, is that many units never make it into an ad. This is especially true for studios and 1 bedroom places, since there aren't as many around as there are houses and flats. (and while I love Duboce Park and Cole Valley, I think they tend to be a bit pricier than elsewhere on the line).

Although I plan on doing a long walk through the neighborhood scouting for "For Rent" signs this weekend, if you know of a place that's coming on the market (esp. now that school will be letting out soon for most colleges), feel free to email me and let me know what you see out there!

Also, in unrelated news, the San Francisco Chronicle quoted me in the paper regarding recent additions to the NextMuni (aka NextBus). I had the chance to speak with Rachel Gordon while attending a meeting about the Transit Effectiveness Project yesterday that was quite interesting, and I'll post more on it later this week!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Loyal Readers: I've been making some changes to the site lately to hopefully make it easier for you, the reader to find the information you're looking for, as well as add some new features.

First off, you've no doubt noticed the Flickr badge in the right-hand column, showcasing a photoset of mine focused on San Francisco. In addition to the Flickr Badge, I am now posting more pictures, more often at my Flickr site, adding notes and commentary when appropriate.

Some end up as full-fledged entries of their own, using the Flickr API, but many others do not, due to time and space restrictions, yet are still worth checking out. Eventually, when I get a better camera, I plan on doing some rides from end-to-end of the more colorful MUNI routes, once the weather gets better.

I've also made it easier to search past entries by making it clearer that the former "Categories" section in the right hand column is actually an archive of all past entries, seperated by topic. Thus, if you want to read every posting on the subject of MUNI Follies, you can click on the subject name and find 'em all.

Year-based archives are coming later, as I need a third-party solution to create them. Why the folks who make Movable Type don't make this standard is beyond me.

Finally, if you're just aching to find some specific comment, entry, or whatever, there's a new "Search Past Entries" box toward the bottom of the right-hand column where you can type in any search term and find what you're looking for.

Thanks for reading, and be sure to email your tales of MUNI woe, City life, and more to share with your fellow citizens! 700,000 people ride MUNI every day - there's always a story of note going on somewhere!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 6:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you read today's Examiner, you may have seen this story about the impending changes to our Mighty N and for once, they quoted me, instead of some insider. Woo hoo!

As for the subject - the impending change to the N's route to stop at Embarcadero and no longer go to Caltrain - I'm taking a wait and see approach. If, as it is claimed, it really does make the N run faster overall, well then I'm willing to put up with the hassle. When I commute I'm already making a switch to BART at Embarcadero, which is even more of a hassle sometimes than switching MUNI lines.

But I can imagine what a pain it would be for a daily commuter from SF to the Peninsula on Caltrain, and if the J's performance continues to suck like it has in the past, I'd be very nervous about that N-J-Caltrain switch.

If you're a daily commuter from SF to the Peninsula, and you see shenanigans once the switch is made, email us with your tales of woe, and we'll get the word out!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

First off, I want to say Happy 2007 to the loyal readers which have made running this site so much fun. I am happy to report that the technical problems that were causing some serious problems at this site have been taken care of (spammers must die) , and I can safely resume a normal schedule this weekend. Hooray!

This year is going to be an interesting one for riders of the N-Judah, and for MUNI riders in general. Starting next week, the T-Third line starts free weekend service, which means eventually some big changes to the N-Judah line as well.

It will be interesting to see how these changes, and more, affect the daily commute. Plus, we have other changes, planned and unplanned, coming to MUNI, which promise to make things fun, both in the 'good' way and the 'grist for the mill' way.

I am also making some changes to the site as well. In particular, I want to increase participation by readers, first via sharing photos of your experiences on MUNI via Flickr, and having people email me their experiences to broaden the reach of the site. I am also going to be rolling out some new features over the next few weeks as well - keep reading and look for them!

Also, thanks to loyal reader Jamison, I have successfully conquered a good portion of the spam that was killing my servers here.

Finally, in the spirit of fun and support for local businesses, I have begun plans to organize a pub crawl on the N-Judah line, time and date TBA. I would very much like your suggestions or ideas to make this event fun for all.

Thanks for your patience and keep reading the blog!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've been having some technical problems with both my sites, which has prevented me from posting as often as I'd like. I mean, when you have the Great Cookie Smell Debate going on, you wanna post something funny. Or, when the Transit Effectiveness Project announces important meetings today and tomorrow, you wanna tell folks a bit further ahead of time.

However, both my email and the comment/trackback functions on this site are getting spammed at a higher rate than my spam filters can handle. It is getting to the point where I may have to institute some sort of dreaded registration process for people to leave comments (most likely with TypeKey, but frankly that ticks me off because the last thing I want to do is force people to "register" a "password" to post a comment on the site. Not only is it annoying, but it's just a blog, not the secure server for Washington Mutual or something.

I'm also in the process of tinkering with the site a little and changing the layout, but after almost completely shutting down the site, I'm taking things slowly so I don't wipe out a year's worth of work. I find it amazing that Movable Type does NOT have yearly archives built into the system....which means I have to cobble together some 3rd party solution!

In the meantime, the much talked about N-Judah Pub Crawl is starting to be planned, and I'd be interested in your suggestions. Thanks for your patience and look for an upgrade to the site soon!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

While attending the MUNI Town Hall hosted by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi (which I'll write about in more detail later this week) one of the handouts given was this really neat little postcard, which had a die-cut "model" of a MUNI train, along with safety tips for kids in and around the T-Third line which will be up and running in a few months.

I'd always wanted a model MUNI for my desk, but no one makes one for model train sets, so I was resigned to perhaps building one out of Legos, but now I have one thanks to MUNI!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

So this is why the N was running so strangely today. I knew something was up when I saw packed cars full of folks going outbound in the middle of the day, and other strange behavior. Makes me glad I'm not in a rush to get anywhere today. Unfortunately, the folks trying to get home on a Friday probably aren't too happy.

MUNI? Nate Ford? You're still "On Notice..."

UPDATE 9/12/06:Wow! Put the SF weather "on notice' and suddenly it's nice and hot again! If you're not outside already, do so at once! We're getting one of our promised "warm" fall days, so enjoy it!

More thorough blog fun up and coming once the Internet is restored at the N-Judah Chronicles' headquarters in the scenic Inner Sunset!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The Following is a Public Service Announcement from The N-Judah Chronicles

Now that the 40 days of rain is behind us and we all welcome the warm weather of summer, it's time for some advice for those of you choosing to enjoy the hot weather (such as we had last weekend) and the many activities around our city.

If you choose to go outside and enjoy a day at the park, an afternoon cocktail, a run or bike ride, or just a plain old fashioned walk, please remember that when it gets hot outside, people get hot too. And when they do, they can smell bad.

This is not aimed solely at our vagrant population! Many people are unaware that when it's 90 degrees outside, or even 70 or 80, without proper antiperspirant or deodorant, they can smell worse than a hippie deadbeat looking for "buds."

Worse, many of these people have no idea of their offensive condition, but their fellow MUNI passengers do!

Thus, we at the N-Judah Chronicles ask you to please remember to use your favorite personal hygiene products before you go out. If you’re unsure which to use, please consult your neighborhood store, and choose one of the many products sold by America’s biggest corporations.

Save the environment and do a favor for your fellow MUNI riders! The N-Judah Chronicles and the people of the City of San Francisco thank you for your cooperation!

I'm getting a brand new Comcast cable modem any day now! Then I can post on a regular basis! Earthlink Sucks!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 8:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Someone, please get Nate Ford on the phone (or email, or whatever). We have a some SF Muni Follies that need to be fixed, stat.

One of the things that makes certain lines, like our beloved N-Judah, easier and more convenient to use is of course the digital NextBus readouts, installed at key bus shelters up and down the line that tell you exactly when the next train or bus is scheduled to arrive.

It's great in general, but when it is pouring rain it's critical in helping you decide whether to ride out the storm a few minutes or go elsewhere and come back. Everyone likes it. So why the hell isn't it working anymore?

Continue reading "When's the NextBus? Ask Your Web Browser. Don't Ask Muni." »

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)