Mooreover / Blog

Kami, Selah and I are headed east by rail – though at this time of night and with the Montana terrain, our motion isn’t unlike that of a ship at sea. Kami has to sit in a stern-facing seat, lest she become sick. The same motion that makes her mother ill lulls our daughter to sleep.

Amtrak was four hours late rolling into Everett last night, mostly due to a series of circumstances related to the storm that struck the Puget Sound not 48 hours before. Since our chances of picking up a favorable jet-stream are greatly reduced in a train, I imagine that we’ll be rolling into Williston, ND four hours late as well. In all, we will have spent the better part of 24 hours in our car – which isn’t nearly as bad as it sounds. We relegated ourselves to a lower-level unit, which either seems off-limits or IS off-limits, as we practically have the entire car to ourselves while passengers teem like ants above us.

There is something romantic about taking the train. I think it’s a perfect segue away from the bustle of Seattle and into the long sigh of Montana. I’ve been without cell service practically the entire way, and even when I have cell service my Sprint Broadband Card fails to recognize it. So instead of talking on the phone and writing emails (like I do everyday), I’m left to play with my daughter, talk to my wife, and read my book, leaving me thankful for a lack of outside interruption.

I’m fairly certain that the radio industry is suffering, only because every Amtrak employee that grabs the PA system on this train has a wonderful voice for making announcements. They need to work on their material a little – maybe a little less use of the phrase “Ladies and Gentlemen” and perhaps a Post-it note reminding them of the announcement they are supposed to be making. For example, the last announcement went a lot like this:

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is Matt in the Café service. Just a reminder to let you know that by my watch we have moved into the Central Time zone – which makes it 9:55pm now. This tells me that Rachel in our upstairs café will be shutting things down in the next five minutes, so hurry over. I, on the other hand, will be here until 11:00pm – that’s right, Ladies and Gentlemen – another hour! So feel free to come by and buy yourself a soda, a beer, or some snacks. Williston appears to be our next stop, so if you’re leaving us in Williston, have a Happy Holiday! And if you’re not…(long pause),…have a happy holiday as well.”

That last part seemed to phase poor Matt, whose radio-friendly voice hinted at dejection as he signed off. They like to make announcements like these fairly often too – seemingly every time the railroad has lulled Selah to sleep. The tone and frequency of the messages play like the teasers at a movie theatre, with a dramatic flair that makes arriving in Shelby, MT sound like a blockbuster event.

Almost time to get off. I do hope that my Broadband cards works while I’m in Miles City, if for no other reason than making my dad mildly jealous and to keep up with the posts. God bless.