Riding the rails.
When I travel, I have a hard and fast rule about making sure that I’ve got a digital device to work on, i.e., computer, PDA, phone, &c. and that I’ve got some good reading material. Books, magazines, something.
I was dropped off at the San Antonio’s [go spurs!> Sunset station. There was a moment of confusion about the ticket, “I bought mine online,” and the busy stationmaster, without missing a beat, “oh, high tech. This is a train, we don’t do that here.”
He did hand me a ticket and the train departed on time. With me on board. We backed out of the station, and for shimmering moment, I was hoping we’d back all the way down to where the ghostly bend in the track was, but no such luck.
I pulled out the book I was reading, saved for a travel situation, clicked the phone on, and retrieved some voice mail, and settled back. I couldn’t concentrate on the text, though, because I kept looking out the window. Day dreaming? Not really. Watching the world, from twelve feet in the air, roll on by. There was the military base, or one of them. There was the new concert/sports venue. Then through New Braunfels. A couple of rivers. San Marcos. The hills of S. Austin.
Whiled away my time on the train, just looking out the window. I’d pick up the book, open it to an entry, and then gaze outside again. Watching a particularly green Texas slide by.
Got in, stuffed my shirt in the pack, clipped my cell phone to strap, and I set off over the pedestrian bridge, then on down the trail towards home. Phone rang. Capricorn friend wanted to ask a tech question, buy my lunch. So I changed my route and wondered how odd I looked on the Hike and Bike trail with a big pack, actually walking home from business trip.