It was a good thing I scheduled my arrival two days in advance of my scheduled start date because the timing of everything ran by Amtrak was buggered from the start. The first bump in the road was an itinerary change made to my schedule two weeks in advance of my departure which created a clustercuss of train and bus transfers that now currently has my head spinning in circles.
The next misfortune was my first departure from Sacramento, California. Already emotional from having to say goodbye to my uncle whom I had been staying with for two months in Reno but then to add salt in the wound my train was also delayed. It was set to leave at 11:59pm and arrive in Klamath Falls, Oregon at 8:05am, but alas we were held back because of an unfortunate accident on one of the tracks. Allegedly a car hit a train, or a train hit a car...
... in any case, a train and a car collided which was causing a three and a half hour delay in our schedules. Rumor has it everyone was okay because there was in fact no car accident, it was actually a freight train derailment. I found this out after having searched all the cars of the train looking for answers from staff. There was no staff to be found anywhere. I ended up in the dining car and noticed the register was out and unattended with some cookies next to it. They appeared to be White Chocolate Macadamia Nut. My weakness.
Temptation overtook me in my anxious state of mind and I loss ability over my rationale. I quickly turned around and swiped a cup then proceeded to fill it with coffee from the opposite side of the counter holding the register. After I filled my cup to the brim I swiftly walked back to the observation car and went downstairs to the cafe and grabbed some cream and sugar. If you knew the injustice in price for some drip coffee on a train, you wouldn't judge me.
It was then that I noticed a man outside smoking a cigarette. So of course I went out there and asked him for one. I have a vape pen but my agitation level at not knowing what was going on required a heavier fix.
I walked up to the guy outside smoking and offered some change for a cigarette and he obliged but turned down the money. We got to talking and he was the one who claimed that the freight train derailed and that there was no train collision. His credibility did take a nose dive though when we eventually got on the subject of him being followed by the FBI. I can't explain how funny that is or why, at least not yet, but it should suffice to say that the next couple of hours were much easier to endure as I listened to his deductions and their "logical" explanations.
I would love to say that's where this all ends as I safely approach my final destination but that is not the case. I'm sitting here now, on another train heading to Portland, Oregon only now, we are being told, as I am writing this, that we will have to stay the night in Portland and hop on a train tomorrow.
Tomorrow...
I think that's a good place to pick this back up. A to be continued until tomorrow then. My head hurts from this long 24 hour day & I could use some staring blankly out the window of the train.
And now, I bid you adieu...
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