devils?

carefully transcribed from a bantering madman on the way to Beaverton:
"Dear John muther****er, not yer uncle, the one from the bible, book of revalashins sir...Dear John
the apocalypse didn't happen in 95 like you said, time to wrap it up buddy, bible over!"

Guy on the Max going into pioneer square

Guy on the Max from the Rose Quarter, about to hit Pioneer square, it's about 7:pm.
He spots a brilliantly colored punker boy with a mohawk charged up like an exotic bird.
The man looks at the kid long enough for the kid to get creeped out and says
"So is there a scene in Portland nowadays?"
I remembered myself being that punk type kid, many years ago, getting questioned
and being equally at a loss for words.
"What?"
"The scene man, the punk scene, I used to be a punk here back in the day, I was wondering if there was still a scene."
"Um... I don't know."
"Oh yeah (the guy looks the kid up and down until I'm actually creeped out) I been in the joint for 15 years, is the xray still around?"
The kid gets big eyed and said 
"The punks like to hang out at the waterfront at thebattleship."
Then the punk got off right away.
So did I.

I saw three dogs on the bus in a month, YAY DOG!

I also saw a guy with at least a 8.5 inch neck from one side to the other, he felt me watching him and covered up before I could actually whip out a ruler.
This one lady near the bus stop had no problem with me gawking and pointing, she let me put a camera in her chest.

On the #15 bus

(A 30 year old man in a suit talking to a teen girl about the marker writing on her jeans)
"Excuse me miss, what does the "F.O.A.D. on you pants mean?"
"Fuck Off And Die."
They both sat in silence the rest of the trip.
This is why I started this blog,
 I hate wasting this kind of stuff.

just the sound of the trains electricity and the rumble bumple

crazy, iv'e been on at least seven transit trips around town and no good ones yet, I'm still searching...TRY HARDER PORTLAND!

This lady didn't say anything...

At the Max train near the bus mall headed to the Rose Quarter, a very heavyset woman stepped onto the train.
She labored up the steep steps, she was dressed in midnight blue garb from head to toe.
As she got to the top of the steps a stiff, arctic, breeze blew up from behind her and filled the whole car with the sickest sweet smell ever.
She filled the bus with the smell of sweat and perfume,
 I saw the invisible wave of unpleasantness pour across the car, she seemed to notice too, clearly embarrassed, she retreated back out of the car and onto another.
I felt bad for her.

Hindi woman on the phone

"What happened? I'm freezing, thats what happened, I didn't want to get off the bus wearing just this little sweater and I went too far, I'm at the Hollywood stop, come get me!"

I was standing right next to a crazy lady at the Hollywood Transit Center,

She would have been so pleased if she knew I was writing her every word.
"I don't need no new medical expenses,
no bad jokes, just bad government."
As the bus was coming she broke crazy lady character,
"S'cuse me, anyone know what time it is?"

from Carl...

Carl said...
Yes yes YES!

I've been reading overheardnyc for years:
http://syndicated.livejournal.com/overheardnyc/3210078.html

...but that's New York. Screw New York. I want eavesdroppings from where I live, from the people who surround me! I have no doubt that you'll treat us to some true gems. You already have.

Mind if readers submit contributions now and then?

C.L.

Heck yeah, I think everyone should do it, if folks know just how "On the record" they are, maybe they wouldn't be so stupid in public.
At first I was annoyed, people don't realize they are broadcasting to the whole bus,too self obsessed or maybe just spoiled, it used to make me ill and angry.
It's also a state of affairs going down on one of the best public transit systems in the country, the things that we talk about with friends and strangers while on the bus are also wonderful, who hasn't gone passed thier stop because of a conversation?
The people of Portland are fun and whimsical ours is a great city (Don't come here!).
Now my ride is so much more fun, I can't find a trip on Trimet thats too long, it used to be the worst part of my day.
Nothing is created in a vacume, I know someone must have been doing this already, hope I can advance the state of the art, I'll look at that web site from N.Y.C.
send that stuff in!

Red line train leaving downtown

"There was this access road between New york and Boston that was sooo dark, we would roll joints, drive with the lights off and be so scared."

send email

dawgsnax@fastmail.fm

the other email is messed up until next month, sorry.

guy on the Phone on the Max train

"Did ya get my Email yet? How bout my voice mail?
I'm so sorry I blew my top and sent a horrible email to ya,
I'm real sorry I got nasty with ya but I had some guys out there, it wasn't too bad
but it was a nasty Email.
I've been calling and calling, I know your buzy.
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, WHAT!!!
I don't understand...what?!
I'm s'posed to mail a product.."
I had to get off the train.

Foreiner family

A big family of foreigners came on the max at Pioneers square, it felt like the first day of school all of a sudden, see those folks were dressed right out of a catalog.
It was impressive to see so much clothing that to the eye seemed empty of any wear or tear all, I don't know why anyone would want to look like that, then again, I am a fan of decay.
They began chattering in a language I just couldn't place where the hell are they from?
Sure couldn't write what they were sayin'
One of them, a 45 pound fella stooped over and said something cheeky to a small woman who looked a lot like him and she hauled off and punched him in the spleen knocking him down on the bus bench, some things are in all languages

The family laughed a lot together and the parents tipped a home bum who was busking (well) in front of Petersons.
If we were in a place to know eachother I'm sure we would be fast friends in any language.

From the back of the bus...

"Is your twelfth year your Senior year?"
*
"I'm following this guy, he has the flu."
*
And across from me...
"Aw man I missed my stop because I was looking at her."
(Points at a woman like she was property, his parents must have sucked.)

On the phone in the max train:

"Yeah he charges too much, like $200 and the kids still never get any homework done...
What?, oh no.
*
He knows what time it is, he lost it when I was pregnant and in the joint, went on a shoplifting spree and everything.
*
OK Honey it's the last Max stop we all have to get out...K Bye!
{as the door opens her phone rings as she exits the train}
"HI!"

Near the bus stop, noticed between fits of hyiena laughter and in puffs of thick smoke:

"OH MY GOD! it was such a bitch at your house this morning early."
"You came to my house?"
"Yeah at shit fuck O Clock in the morning."
"I wasn't there."
"I know bitch, I needed a light and thought I might find a lighter on your freezing ass porch."
"There was no lighter there."
"I knowwwww bitch!"
"What did you do?"
"I found a book of matches-"
"Did you get a light?"
"NOOOO the tips of the matches were wet."
"What?"
"The tips ...the very tops of all the matches were wet so each step I took down your freezin ass steps a match would go out... and I just kept saying "What the fuck is up with these fuckin' matches?"

Waiting for the #17 bus at the Safeway stop in South East.

{Two women are dressed in party clothes, they look like they were out all night.
The makeup is long smeared off and one is missing a wig.}
"He was so tight, and he was with a band for years".
"Cover band?"
"No original stuff, thing was, they had another band that was soooo funny."
"Did you two hook up?"
"No I wanted to, he was fine, he dressed up kind of like Kieth Richards or Ron Wood, you could tell he wanted to be seem."

Couple with three little kids on the Max train 9:45 AM

The woman is fighting with a baby who has just thrown a toy and another who is trying to escape.
"Let me fix it honey"!
The man just looks at her struggling and seems to feel sorry for her, as a kid gets loose he didn't help.
"C'mon" (she grabs the boy and he starts a crying chain reaction)
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
"Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Under the Burnside bridge, waiting for the Max train, 9:25

I'm standing near some recently stepped in, Dog mess and everything smells of pee, there is someone hidden in a sleeping bag nearby and above me a junkie is screaming at the top of her lungs:
(Heavy Echo)
"Bwaaaaaaaha, I'm fuckin beutiful baby, I didn't enquire shit man, fuck, I didn't know shit!"(Coughing fithe was lauing but you could tell she has more pain in her little finger than most folks have in thier whole lives.

NW 18th and Everet, # 17 bus 9 am:

A very old lady gets on with a walker, she has so much makeup on she looks like a puppet..
If she had a laptop it would have been made of wood and incorporate her actual lap.
Bless her heart she takes her time getting on the bus and has a smile on her face.
"Hi" (unintelligible noises, some gas escapage)..."mornin."
She spends the rest of her trip staring into space with her bottom lip sticking way out.

Someones baby

TWO OLDER WOMAN ON THE MAX Train HEADED TO GRESHAM:
"She is having her baby tonight, he is out doing crack till all hours of the night"
"I bet the baby will be on crack too"
Both look sad.