A jogger recently posted a missed connection worthy of the Craigslist golden age, recounting a chance encounter with someone named Sincere (yes, really) who was wandering the East Bay shoreline looking for their party at the wrong park. The jogger helped redirect them — not once, but twice — earning the title of "angel" in the process. The post closes with what might be the most relatable line ever written: begging for some of the party's food because it "smelled insane."
No government program facilitated this interaction. No taxpayer-funded app connected these two. Just a human being going for a run, helping a lost stranger, and experiencing what we used to call "community" before we needed a six-figure nonprofit grant to manufacture it.
As one local put it, "This is the most Bay Area missed connection ever. Wrong shoreline, gun club landmark, and obscure East Bay pizza all in one post." Another commenter compared it to a time machine back to 2005 Craigslist missed connections — and honestly, the nostalgia hit hard.
Here's the thing: we spend billions on technology designed to connect people, and yet some of the best moments still come from getting lost in the right place at the right time. Point Pinole doesn't need a visitor experience consultant or a community engagement coordinator. It just needs people showing up, getting confused by nearly identical park names, and being decent to each other.
Sincere, if you're out there — the jogger wants to find you. And frankly, we all want an invite to whatever cookout had food that good.
Sometimes the free market of human kindness just works.



