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Train #14 due to arrive in Seattle on Dec 20 at around 8:45pm has just arrived in Seattle at 1:47 pm today (the 21st). It is 17 hrs. late. Amtrak claims #11 will depart SEA at 4:30 pm 6 hr 45 min late. I can't believe Amtrak can turn the train around in under three hours. It is interesting to note that on my many calls to "Julie" and then transferred to an agent I was told that "Amtrak does not turn the train in Seattle. These are two separate trains and it will leave at 2:45 pm." Eventually an agent with an IQ higher than 50 did confirm that 14 turns into 11 after it is serviced. I am now in the Mariott Springhill Suites just on the edge of downtown, and I don't want to leave to spend who knows how many hours at King St. Station. So now I am paying extra for a day rate until 6pm, so I do hope eventually I will depart. I wonder what will happen as the train proceeds south, will I ever see Los Angeles?
Posts: 524 | From: Toronto Ont. Canada | Registered: Mar 2001
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Mr. Royal, not sure what your Mother, whom you have reported in the past resides in The Meadows and have never suggested is any kind of a railfan, is going to think about whenever you show up.
This reminds me of a case during 1961 when I had intended to ride Chi to Hoboken on NKP-DL&W #8. However I had been in Cedar Rapids (girlfriend went to college, Coe, there), MILW #20 was late, and I misconnected. I ended up riding ERIE #2 home, but when I was late after traveling from Hoboken to Upper East Side Manhattan for an Xmas party at which I was "expected" (for a scene kind of like Ben's graduation party in "The Graduate"), the nicest thing I had to listen to from my Father was "why can't you just fly like everyone else does?"
Posts: 9976 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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This sounds like a bad situation. At least you are lucky to have been able to talk with agents who had IQs near 50. Most of the agents I get have single-digit IQs.
Posts: 446 | From: Phoenix, Arizona | Registered: Jul 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Gilbert B Norman: to Upper East Side Manhattan for an Xmas party at which I was "expected" (for a scene kind of like Ben's graduation party in "The Graduate")
Completely off topic, but this statement served to pique my interest as to whether there might have been a "Mrs. Robinson" involved in any of these misconnections? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you, Mr. GBN! I'll just use my imagination here, and get back to worrying about late trains stuck in inclement weather...
Posts: 588 | From: East San Diego County, CA | Registered: Oct 2004
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No; lest we forget it was not until after the party that "Mrs. Robinson" began her......This was more a case of 'show Gil and Barbie off; they're both home from college".
You know in all honesty, my Father DID have a point; he was paying for transportation, as distinct from a railfan joyride, and I guess it could be said that he could expect results - namely for me to be transported to the New York area with reasonable dispatch (there were no weather "issues" that year) in order to be present for the requisite "appearances" endemic to the Holiday period.
Now where I could be faulted is that I was not willing to get a taxicab at Hoboken. Had I done that I would have been there maybe 7PM with the party starting at 8PM. But back then I "didn't know what a taxicab was (and still really don't today)" so I was taking first the DL&W Ferry then the Subway to Lex and 77th. I made the scene at 830P (for some reason it didn't seem like the "fashionably late' I've noted when socializing in the Northeast was operative that evening).
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It is New Year's Day and I have (at last) made it back to Toronto. I will try to post a more detailed report of my adventure at a later time for those who are interested. My train that was supposed to leave at various times on the 21st of Dec. finally departed Seattle at around 3:30 am on the 22nd. I spent around ten hours in the cold and miserable King St. Station, so you can imagine the great joy and relief it was to finally enter my beautiful deluxe bedroom.
There were several "incidents" on board #11 as we very slowly made our way south, finally arriving in Los Angeles some 25 hours late.
I had to change hotel and car rental reservations in order to make it time to have Christmas with my elderly and frail mother. So everything did eventually work out, and I should consider myself lucky that I made it out of Seatle at all, given that the Airports were closed and all other Amtrak services were cancelled in Seattle.
Posts: 524 | From: Toronto Ont. Canada | Registered: Mar 2001
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