biminiblue

I didn't know that about problem passengers being put off the train. That was me on a few bus journeys to Lake Tahoe from the train station in Sacramento. Well, I suppose drinking on the bus to Lake Tahoe may not have been an original idea and we were happy drunks.

The sign is a great idea. I was thinking maybe you could buy a tee shirt and have the triangle thing put on it? Maybe too late to be getting that fancy.

I just looked, there are a lot of AA tee shirts online, you could order a couple. Cafe Press has a bunch - they may be able to get them to you in time.

Coldfusion

My Aunt emailed me that there is a rocket launch scheduled while I am in Florida, so I bought a ticket to visit Kennedy Space Center that day. The Visitor Complex person I spoke with was completely non-committal about launch viewing opportunities at this time, but I am on en email list to get more information as it becomes available.

Coldfusion

I bought a ticket to the rocket launch a few hours after they became available, and a few hours later they were sold out.

Today I am watching Amtrak's "Track-a-Train" page to see how my train is doing. The Empire Builder train that left Chicago yesterday will tomorrow turn around in Seattle and become my train. But if the train from Chicago is severely late, it will turn around in Spokane instead of Seattle and all the passengers get to ride buses between Seattle and Spokane. At last report, with 1,000 miles down and 1,200 to go, the train was about two hours late--I think about six hours late is the cut-off for turning in Spokane.

least

My daughter and her bf took a train from Cleveland to Seattle when they moved out there because they both hate flying. She really loved the trip.

Coldfusion

I am now in Willow River, Minnesota, with my brother. The train from Seattle ran about two hours late from the time we left Seattle all the way to St. Paul. Here's a picture of my train in Havre, Montana:

Dee74

enjoy, coldfusion

biminiblue

Cool! Travel story!

I'm excited for you.

Coldfusion

I'm waiting in Chicago for the train to New York City. It was very, very cold in St. Paul this morning: -5°F (-20°C).

I had a little more exposure to booze today. One of the people at my lunch table seemed a little tipsy--she said she had smuggled some booze into her coach. And there was quite a bit of conversation about wine. I was able to join in the conversation, and not feel tempted to imbibe.

Then I went to the lounge / observation car to enjoy the floor-to-ceiling windows. There were a couple guys there drinking beer. "Man, that went down real good--think I'll have another!" All I could think about was how miserable I would feel if I drank!

Coldfusion

I spent a night in New York, and this morning went up the Empire State Building. It was a beautiful, clear day and I had a new lens for my camera to try. Here's a view looking towards the Statue of Liberty:

biminiblue

Nice! I'm glad all is going well, look how far you've come in six days!

The bar car. I have memories.

I didn't know you had to "smuggle" alcohol on board. Is this like bringing in your own M&Ms at the movies? You don't get searched to board, do you? No TSA?

Have fun, thanks for taking us along.

Coldfusion

I'm really excited about this picture. This is my first view of an Amtrak ACS-64 electric locomotive. These are just a few years old. Amtrak is so cash-starved that anything new is exciting. Here is a view of the one on my train to Florida, the Silver Meteor:

biminiblue

That's cool!!

Notimetoloose

Hands up here as well, love to travel by trains, time allowing.
When I really needed to study and couldn't, I would catch the train, something about it would help me get into the study mindset. When I needed to clear my head, I would take a couple of hour train trip.
Also, I sleep like a baby, wake up and it is 9 hours later...that rarely happens even in my own bed.
It has been a few years since I did a few day trip in a train but I loved it.
Have a wonderful trip CF.

Coldfusion

No TSA. I guess Amtrak has the right to search passengers, but I've never heard of it. Coach passengers aren't allowed to consume their own alcohol--I guess that's not smuggling, but you do need to be sneaky to drink it. Sleeper passengers may consume their own, as long as they consume it in their room.

Coldfusion

The dining car steward tried to talk me into having a double whiskey with lunch today. I am going to be sure to hit up an AA meeting soon.

Tomorrow, we visit a cousin I have never met. His dad (ex-husband of aunt I am visiting) is dying from addiction. He was just removed from a ventilator yesterday, but is hanging on.

Here's a really lousy picture, but I can see that I am going to have fun with my new lens. It has an image stabilization system that seems to work great--I know the camera was moving when I took this:

heartcore

I am so proud of you for taking this vast journey.

Sobriety is about gaining the freedom to do our dreams.

I'm really appreciating the way you are sharing this story with us!

heartcore

Ps. Your "sobriety is traditional" tag line on your page has helped me. I have spoken it to myself. It is my favorite & very powerful.

Thank you.

bandicoot2

Thanks for sharing your sober travels Coldfusion. Love the train & scenery pics!
Take care & enjoy -

I'd love to hear more about the different AA meetings you've experienced as I have a upcoming flight & vacation (my first sober vacation as an adult) and attending meetings in different towns is part of my plan.

Coldfusion

I only managed to get to two meetings while I was in Florida. One of them was so-so: it was mostly reading from the 12 & 12. The other one was really good: I learned some important solutions. But at both meetings, it was great to be in a room with other alcoholics. In a world surrounded by alcohol, it is good to know that I am not alone.

Well, the rocket launch I paid $100 to view from two miles away was a bust on the first try. The countdown progressed to less than a minute before launch, when a private plane flew into the range and caused the
launch to be scrubbed. The next evening, my aunt and I sat on the deck of my hotel and saw the launch from 20 miles away.

While I have not drank any alcohol, I am having a bit of trouble with coffee addiction. I have not been sleeping well due to too much caffeine. Oh well, I'm on vacation, and kind of enjoy that wake-dream state in the daytime while riding on a train. As long as I don't have to work or drive, it's okay I guess.

I'm waiting in the first-class lounge at Chicago Union Station right now, and there is a wine tasting in an hour. But they have seltzer on tap, and if that doesn't satisfy me there is a self-serve espresso machine.

Coldfusion

Here's a rocket on display at Kennedy Space Center: