SATURDAY, 23 October 2010 – I just finished reading Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro the night before. It was a very melancholic read. Everytime I get the chance to spend my time catching up on some chapters, I get very lost in deep thoughts.
Later that day, I followed my Google Maps tool that told me to go by this direction:
Step #1. Take RICHMOND BART on Powell. Stop at Berkeley station.
Step #2. Take 51B bus as soon as I get off at Shattuck and Center.
I didn’t exactly follow the second step. I took the long road, because I figured I’ll save some money by not taking the bus. Plus, the road is very easy to follow, because Addison St. was just a long, straight line.
The fact that I didn’t reply to the classified I found for a volunteer need in a Reach Out and Read program, and then decided to come by to the location instead, is merely just my yearning for human connection.
As I go venture on the adult world on my own, Google Maps told me to go this exact way, but I don’t want to be exact. I don’t fear the unknown. I’m just curious.
Then, as I got into the building, the lady at the counter told me that registration’s only open on weekdays, and I can go on-site to the other branch, the main office on 2344. I am on 2031.
I took a deep sigh, remained calm, and smiled as I receive the address on paper.
It takes a lot to skip all the formalities and just go with the flow. It is, indeed, a long road, as that of Addison St.
MONDAY, 1 NOVEMBER 2010 – Yet, I’m here again, ready to reach out and read for those who want to be part of the many stories we constantly create, and share, to live. (See Reach Out and Read)
My mother always tells me to plan, plan, plan - organize everything beforehand. I felt so much better losing my BlackBerry, which I left for 2 days, now (and thankfully someone kept it safely. I just need to make some arrangements to pick it up). These 48 hours of precious time getting away from it feels as if I am free from a cage where I’m dying to fly out and about.
So, I had my wireless iPad with me. I looked carefully. However, I still suck at reading maps, follow directions, and it took me a great deal of time to see the big picture – the timely manners that I am supposed to follow on Google Maps.
I took the wrong direction of the 49 Transbay bus in Berkeley. When I landed out of the BART station, I couldn’t decide where to go out. There are gates from every corner to get out from.
Then I just follow my instincts. It’s a long, Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, according to Google Maps. I found a bus stop nearby that has only the number 49 on it – so I thought that this was the stop.
But it wasn’t. As a result, I have to pay an extra $2 to buy another ticket.
But I didn’t.
Here’s how it went. According to the sign at the bus stop, I need an additional quarter ($0.25) if I were to purchase an exchange ticket if I’m travelling back and forth in less than 2 hours. So I in-put $2 and a quarter to purchase a Transbay exchange.
I was supposed to go by Dwight Way and stop on 7th. But the bus was going on the opposite direction. It went past College Avenue, and the driver takes a break at the last stop.
Driver: “Last stop. Where are you going?”
Me: “Do you go by Dwight and 7th?”
Driver: “Honey you’re taking the opposite direction. Let me check here.”
She took a letter-sized pad that says all the information about Transbay’s 49 bus and wherever it is supposed to go. So she said: “Wait. You can remain on this bus. We’re heading that way, but you’ve got to pay another $2 for a new ticket, because it’s another direction.”
I remained calm, maintaining emotionless, and said, “Okay.”
So I sat down and write.
I know God is testing my patience.
I got off the bus to wait for her 10-minute break, and when I get on again, I tried to clarify:
Me: “So it’s supposed to be another $2, right?”
Driver: “Yes honey but you can use your transfer that you purchased earlier.”
Me: “Huh?” (As I inserted another $1 note into the machine)
Driver: “The transfer. Oh- Nah-. That’s okay honey just sit down. Just go sit down.”
I was still in a “Huh?” mode, but I sat down anyway.
After I got to the West Berkeley Family Practice at Lifelong Medical Center, it turns out that the person in charge of volunteers wasn’t there at the moment.
I remained calm. “Do you have his e-mail address?”
So, I accepted the memo that has his address on it, and his phone number. I don’t have a BlackBerry. It doesn’t matter.

I waited for the 49 bus at the right bus station to go back to the BART station.
What happened here was that, the moment I saw the bus, I picked up my heavy slingbag that carried excess weights from my water bottle, my dense agenda, and my copy of Memoirs of a Geisha that I spent digesting whenever I have to wait for these transportations.
After I picked it up in a ready stance, the bus driver didn’t see my small figure in that shady bus stop, and my signals weren’t active enough for him to notice me. He just kept on going forward and didn’t stop the bus, because he didn’t see anything.
I am nothing. Still is, and will always be transparent.
Oh, crap. I really wanted to pee. I couldn’t sit still any longer.
I decided to walk all the way to the BART station. On the way, I just kept asking for directions. But yeah, it was a long walk from Dwight and 7th to the Ashby BART station. Check out the distance in Google Maps.
Later, I got off to the wrong BART station. I stopped at Fruitvale and realized I took the orange line from Ashby instead of the red.
As soon as I understand the map, I learned that at that moment, I should be stopping at 19th and Oakland to change into the red line that’s heading for Millbrae. Then stop at Powell station, take a breath of fresh air, and go pee.
I have been holding my bladder for hours, and it was about to burst any second.
I faced the reflection on the window’s glass, and the reflection was staring back at me this way:
But remember, I was carrying excess water in my bladder. As my toes are fidgeting faster and faster, I’m ready to release it anytime.
As soon as I did in the mall, I sat down, got into the wireless Westfield WiFi, and e-mailed the person for a chance to reach out and read. In their language – it is to volunteer. I, on the other hand, just wanted go out, and read.
Early that day at 11:00 A.M. I inserted a $5 bill into the BART ticket machine. Then I went back and forth to spend $3.40, not wasting time, because I’m learning.
I create another $6 input to get to the right direction.
Now, my BART card holds a value of $7.50. I can go twice back and forth to Berkeley, and still have some leftovers.
Time. Well. Invested.
That equals to:
Time: Well-invested.
In total, I only spent $3.25 for Transbay transportation that day. I could’ve gone up to $4.25 to $6, depending on time I may waste.