requesting traveling mercies

1. Nice. Yet another outrage against civilians. (I have a colleague right now who is visiting new in-laws in Strasbourg. I know Strasbourg =/= Nice but I am hoping they did not decide to hop a TGV and do some touring).

And I admit, in my own utterly self-centered way, every time something like this happens, part of my psyche goes, "See? Crowds bad. Crowds dangerous. Don't leave your house unless you have to." So again I'm a bit uncomfortable about being in large groups of people this trip.

2. Woke to an Amtrak e-mail: your train is seriously delayed, call this number for details. My first dialing of it, either I misdialed or the system derped because it tried to connect me with an online, for-profit university. Then when I called what I "know" to be the "true" Amtrak number (different from the one in the e-mail), I kept having to yell at their automated voice I wanted an AGENT, which is the only way to talk to someone really real.

Finally got through to one. Was told, "Oh, there was a bridge fire ahead of them* and they are being bused. Everything is about five hours late."

(*That may be old news; I think the Amtrak Unlimited board has been talking about that detour for a while)

I hung on and kept asking questions until I got verification that no, I will NOT be on a bus, they will "turn" last night's "down" train at San Antonio when the bused passengers get there and it will become an "up" train (Do Americans use the "down train" and "up train" designations for southbound and northbound? I know I've seen it somewhere but it may have been in a British book**). Still, it will be at least four hours late....meaning no dinner on the train for me and I will be getting on perilously close to what is normally my bedtime.

(**Looking it up online, i see I had it slightly wrong: "Up" trains are going to a major location, "down" trains are going away from it. Well, in this case it still works, as Chicago - what I think of as "up" - is a major rail hub, and San Antonio is not.)

I guess I keep monitoring the online updates and just leave out of here once it's left Cleburne, because that leaves me about a four-hour cushion in case they are able to "highball" it and make up some time. (unlikely in that corridor, however).

It's a minor thing but it is an irritant.

I did finish the Party Cannon socks and once I've gotten things a bit more ready for the day I will photograph them and put them up here.