By Train

I am going to make this a three-parter. Originally, I waxed poetic about trains. Now I have two other points to make before I get there.

1. I love JP's in Austin. In a town made of solid coffee shops, it is my favorite. Location, quality, service - the place is legit. That said, I lived here for 3 years and frequented this place often. I've also visited many times and always stop in here when I need to get work done. And it's a fact: the internet here is some of the worst coffee shop internet I've ever used in my life. It disconnects all the time, kicks you off, goes in and out. It's terrible. And it caused me to lose a whole post a minute (or five) ago.

2. Isn't it funny how we get so angry about internet connectivity these days? Every time I get frustrated with it I have to have a good laugh, honestly. I'M SO ANGRY THAT SOMETHING THAT DIDN'T EXIST 15 YEARS AGO ISN'T WORKING!! WAH WAH WAH.

3. Okay, real point here: trains. As follows is my recollection of this entry before its untimely deletion.

There is a train that runs between DFW and Austin. I have traveled between these two cities upwards of thirty times in the past 4 years, while living in one or the other or even while living elsewhere. I've mostly driven, but I've actually flown a couple times too. But I've never taken the train, until today.

Trains in America are largely discarded - too old, too dodgy, too slow, too expensive for what you're getting. Outmoded, outdated, outpaced.

Though my experience was a mixed bag (which I'll write about on my blog later today - I can link it here once that actually happens), I still can't help asking that fundamental question:

Why is a form of transportation that is so common in the rest of the world so very looked down upon here? I can't believe it would be a quotient of the distance between places in this country...I am rather inclined, unfortunately, to believe that it is a function of culture. A sad fact, if you ask me.

One of the best days of my life I spent on a train (actually, two of the best) going to Denali from Anchorage and back a few days later on the Alaska Railroad.

So yeah, trains. Why do people here hate them?

P.S. The internet has gone out here again since I wrote this. I guess I'll be saving a Word doc and restarting the old laptop...