patrick.net

I am sad to see BART on strike here in San Francisco. My mind goes back to the BART strike of 1997-almost 16 years ago. I was so poor back then that I could not afford a car. A bicycle was my means of transport. Before the BART strike started, I had to start at 5:00 A.M. each weekday morning. I would ride my bike from Danville to Walnut Creek. I would ride the BART to downtown San Francisco. Then I had to ride my bike over to the Caltain station and take the train all the way to San Jose. I had to do the return trip when I got off around four. It was grueling but I stayed in good physical condition. When the BART strike happened, I found a lady over in San Ramon willing to give me a ride down to San Jose and pick me up each evening. I would ride my bike to her town house and get in the car. Her name was Karen and she was a character. She would drive down the freeway at 100 miles per hour plus. She was an expert at evading police speed traps. I told her that if she ever got tired of being a manager at a high-technology company, she consider a career as a get away car driver for bank robbers.
Yes those were hard times. Now I am retired and I do not have to ride BART. I have not been on a bike in a long time. The George S. May Company in San Jose where I used to work is now bankrupt. I wonder what happened to Karen?