This graphic sits before me at my writing and home office desk:
Artist: Mary V. Marsh (mvmarsh.com)
I have become a fan of this artist since my friend and colleague gave me this hand drawn card last year. It comes from Mary V. Marsh’s the Commuter Diary
I think about the vibe in this drawing and the feeling I have as I ride public transportation on occasion. I like to observe others and think up stories about their lives, so I usually don’t distract myself with headphones/earbuds and music from my handheld spaceship, but rather soak in the sound and visuals of my surroundings. What I particularly like about this visual on the card is the diminutive female with her symbolic pussy hat and the overbearing size of her neighbor on the seat. Then there is the large amount of white space to her left. Perhaps that is where other commuters stood, but Mary wanted to leave them out to focus our attention on the two. My Silent War: The Autobiography of a Spy, written by Kim Philby, was published in 1968. The large man reading it juxtaposed with the small, young female is an amazing double entendre. She’s in a silent war too, unrelated to the book.
The 5 Fulton provides a transverse line across San Francisco from Beale Street and Howard near the Bay to Cabrillo Street at La Playa (a block from the Pacific Ocean). Riders on the 5 Fulton see a lot of San Francisco from our graces to disgraces as it flows along Fulton St on the northern edge of Golden Gate Park, by St. Ignatius Church, through North of the PanHandle (the local eateries call NoPa), through Alamo Square, City Hall, Civic Center, when it turns down Market for its final run through downtown. Several silent wars exist en route depending on the passengers who board the bus. There’s the errant, angry homeless person who uses found or requested coin to make way to the park from downtown where most of our homeless population lives. You have the humans working their way up the corporate ladder who work downtown and live out near the park for which driving is not an option. Students, Teachers, Police, Nurses, Firefighters, Hustlers, Shop workers, Restaurant staff, Coffee stand beanies and Caterers all ride the 5 Fulton. It’s a smorgasbord of San Franciscans on their way to somewhere.
To help squelch my inner secret war, I try a daily walk among trees, birds 
park benches, flowers, and courts.