Just. Me, A Mask, And Empty Train Car...And An Unseen Enemy

I anticipated a lonely ride.

Even though things in my state have somewhat opened up in some areas, many people don't like the thought of traveling in a closed train car (I guess the open-air train cars are not really around anymore...) with covid seemingly around every corner.

So, when I boarded the southbound Frontrunner train Tuesday morning to attending a meeting with my supervisor, I didn't expect there to be too many others on the train.

I was right.

In fact, in my particular section of the train, I was all alone.

It wasn't until I was more than halfway into my trip that I realized I had my mask on. Now, I'm not going to debate the effectiveness of masks--there's pros and cons for each side and everyone seems to have an opinion, but I knew if I wanted to take the train, I'd have to wear a mask. Sure, I could have drove, but I didn't, which means = masking up.

I looked around and all the other people not on the train with me and I wondered if I really even needed to have the mask on. I'm sure someone with knowledge of the ventilation systems of the modern Frontrunner train and first-hand knowledge of the transmission methods and effectiveness of said transmission methods of the covid virus would be more qualified than me to definitively determine if I even needed to have that thing on.

Personally, I think there are very few people--if any--who have both those qualifications.

I wondered if I ought to de-mask. I thought about it. Every ten minutes or so a UTA employee would walk past. They did this before masks were required. I'd imagine, that if I had dropped the mask/bandana, he would have asked me to put it back on. And, as I explained earlier, I would have because I already accepted the agreement...must wear a mask to ride.

Since none of us know what's ahead for commuters, UTA employees, basically everyone, there are a lot of questions for us to think about. How long will this go on...another month, a year, forever? I'd like to think we'd be long past this by now, but I keep getting surprised...

Like the time I looked up in an empty train car and remembered I had a mask over my face.

Riding The Train...From Provo

Earlier this week, I took the train to Provo. After our team Christmas party, I took the train home. It was the ride home where things got interesting.

I love taking trains. It reminds me of when I lived in Europe decades ago. I know trains are not the answer to our transportation needs--in fact, trains were that answer two-hundred years ago. Still, there's something about riding in trains that I love. Our Christmas party was in Provo--I could have driven, but I took the train.

Like anywhere, there's decorum and rules when you're on a train. Usually, you don't talk to one another. When I rode the train into Salt Lake on the way to Provo, no one spoke to each other. We all had our headphones in, listening and watching whatever it took to make the trip more interesting. When I climbed aboard the northbound train after the party, the "usually don't talk to each other" rule sort of went away.

Not that I talked to anyone, mind you. No, I kept to myself and just listened.

It seems people leaving Provo on the train at this time of year are from all over the planet. Two people behind me were a good example. One lived in California, the other from Washington State. Both were on their way home for Christmas. A few seats down, another couple struck up a conversation. One was from the east coast, another from the midwest. They chatted, swapped "what it's like to be a BYU student" stories, how they felt going home, how Utah is too cold for the warmer-climate people. You know, basic stuff.

I heard nothing like that on the way down.

Maybe people are just friendlier who ride the train leaving Provo.

From Ogden To Roy...On The Train...Time-Lapsed

I took the train home from a conference this afternoon. As we departed the station I set my phone on the table, activated the time-lapse video option and began filming.

I don't know what it is about time-lapse video, but I enjoy it a lot. Maybe it's because I'm the one who watched the scene play out before my eyes  and so watching it played back in super-fast motion is cool.

I thought it might be interesting (again, perhaps more for me than others...) to capture some screen shots of what I saw that are taken from the video. I challenge you to see if you can spot these shots in the video. It's probably not a fair challenge due to the poor video quality allowed on these blogs.

Traveling by train you see life from a different angle. One thing that always stands out to me is being able to see the backyards of people's property. We put in so much time and effort (well, when I say "we" I'm not specifically saying "we" as in "I"--I mean it more as "we" as in society...) to making sure the front of our homes look so good because that's what most people see. The train allows us to see a different side.

And at the Roy Station, they have giant shovels. I've not seen a lot of giant shovels in my life, but they have several. And I got a picture of my hand steadying the camera as we went under a bridge. So, for today's blog post, I give you my trip from Ogden to Roy as seen through the time-lapse video player. Enjoy!

A Decade Earlier...We Rode The Rails

I noticed the sign as I got on the bus this morning. Ten years. It's been ten years since the Frontrunner train began operation. It links the three largest metropolitan areas in Utah. Ten years of transporting commuters, shoppers, students, families to where they needed to go.

I take a bus to work and the train home. I could take the train to work and the bus home (or train/train or bus/bus...), but with my schedule, bus to work and train from work is the best combination for me. 

Ten years.

When I saw the sign this morning I remembered a trip our family took back when the train was new and the UTA (our public transportation system...) offered everyone free rides. We parked the van, crossed the bridge and sat on the benches while waiting for the next train. We asked a stranger to snap a picture of the whole family.

Looking through digital photo albums, I found the picture.

Ten years.

It was the year after my mom passed away and the kids looked so little. They looked that way because they were that little. Today we have three legal adult children and one new teenager. Back then the oldest child was the same age as our youngest is now.

I know many hate the idea of spending millions of taxpayer dollars on public transportation. Personally, I love riding the train. It reminds me of when I lived in Denmark and, a few years later, traveled around Europe. Even though the train came before the automobile, for me there's something more sophisticated about traveling by train. 

I'm glad we have the picture of the family. We don't have a lot of pictures with all of us together. And just think, we have a train to thank for it.

I Could Have Flown To L.A. For The Time I Spent Today On The Train...

I got on a train this morning at 7:39am. I got off another train at 5:22pm. In between I spent three and a half hours on a train.

That's a bit much, and I like taking trains.

Today we had a meeting in Provo. It was an all day affair and the train goes from my hometown all the way to Provo. Another plus to train riding, the train has Wi-Fi. That means, I can spend that time working on an assignment. That's a win-win-win. Of course, trying to type on a train that occasionally bobbles along the tracks can produce more than an one mistake. Still, until self-driving cars, or chauffeured trips become reliable AND affordable, taking a train or bus is the only way I can make the twenty or so miles to work a working commute.

This afternoon, when the train pulled up to my stop, I pried my legs from the chair where I hadn't moved in two hours and made my way off the train. I thought about the day's trips. I could have flown to another state for the same time I spent on the bus. Maybe that's not entirely correct, but since I've only been on one flight since 1999, my mind believes it's right.

Watching the world go by from a train window is great. And I know many people have two to four hour commutes. I think I could do that, too, as long as someone else is doing the driving.

Riding The Rails On A Foul-Weathered Day...

When the biggest snowstorm in two years hits, you adjust your schedule. Today I took the train.

I'm lucky enough to have options when it comes to my daily commute. I can drive or I can take public transportation. And my public transportation options are two fold--I can take any number of buses or the ultramodern Frontrunner train. On bad weather days--like today--I take the train.

It took about an hour to get to work today. When the weather's not bad, I take an express bus and the commute's usually thirty-five minutes each way. If I take the train when the weather's good, it takes about about forty-five minutes for me to get to work. Today my commute took an hour, which is pretty good considering the conditions.

There was one funny experience I had this morning. At the station before we reached downtown, the train stopped and several people climbed aboard. This is not unusual because people using public transportation on bad weather days increases. Several people sat down near to where I was. They began relating to us how their morning commute was going. The had just stepped off a train that was parked at the other platform. It was the train headed to Salt Lake City that left an hour before our train. They had waited for 30 minutes the first time, then 45 minutes at the station where we had just stopped. The weather was causing havoc on the train systems, too.

As they were telling us this, a few younger riders on our train announced they were taking the train parked at the other platform because it was leaving first. A few moments later, the other train left the station bound for Salt Lake. If I was one of those passengers who got up early and caught the early train only to sit and wait over an hour for it to move and then saw that same train leave without me, I would have been a little mad. Fortunately, our train left a few minutes after so it wasn't a big deal.

It's supposed to show all night an much of the day tomorrow. I think I'll be riding the rails once again.