Amtrip [1986]

[A passage from my journal, 5 February 1986]

8:24 am MST on board Amtrak between Salt Lake and Provo—I got up early (about seven?) and did some last-minute packing and straightening up. I still managed to forget my flashlight and to put stuff away. I had salad and chips. My father came about ten; I caught the train, sat by the exit in car 2615 (I’m still there), and like that.

Episode of the loony

Some character came through, addressing me about something or other that made no sense. As near as I can make out, he was accusing me of having “crowded” in front of him in line somewhere. But the only line I was in all day was for the boarding pass, and I was last in it for some time. Weird. There was some guy that kept trying to sort of elbow me out of my space when we were waiting at the gate (you could hardly call it a line, though), whom I ignored—but anyway I was there first and I don’t think he was the same loony as this one.

Food

There were only ham and cheese sandwiches, so for food I had (1) salad and chips at home, (2) a ham and cheese sandwich, potato chips, and coke, (3) a ham and cheese sandwich and coke.

I sacked out early, about seven.

Episode of the portable TV

The guy that sat behind me had a portable TV which he insisted on playing loudly when I was sleeping. He had atrocious taste too—he listened to the fluff in the news (like Reagan’s address replays and the Life / Sports Illustrated covergirl controversy) while turning away or off any time anything of substance came on.  He left near Salt Lake City, but I don’t know if he’s gone.

Episode of the luggage

Some jerk moved my suitcase which I had carefully stashed downstairs; he moved it so that it was in imminent danger of falling, so I lugged it upstairs and stashed it above my seat. Fucking asshole.

9:13 am MST—There’s lots of snow this trip, especially in the Blue Mountains last night.

Episode of the power-outage

We lost power around five this morning, I guess. It woke me up, anyway. Somewhere in there the ass with the TV started in again, so I got up. The power didn’t come back up until they hooked our train (26, the Pioneer) and 36 (Desert Wind—the same train I used to take from LA to Pomona) up to the California Zephyr (6).

I woke up around five. I ate breakfast—a cheeseburger—around nine; I sat in the lounge for that but came back to my seat afterwards. That’s all so far.