it was time to check on the real world especially since it was
a beautiful sunny day in the high 60's F and "history is so passe".
Sorry, that came to me while I was riding around. I swore
to remember it so I had to write it down quickly. I'm still
giggling. Yogi Berra is my hero.
So, here we go.
I had heard this Tuesday morning that the Limited would be late.
The norm is 10:15 in Lafayette.
Late would be fine for me.
At 10:15 I'm just kicking down my last cup of coffee looking at a
cold Dr. Pepper to whack me back from java dream land.
The disk jockey, I mean, dispatcher, said she was west of
Crowley (Estherwood mp 172). I'd run for Cade and be early
to meet her. After all it was Valentine's Day.
I got to Cade, no train, went to Camp Pratt, no train.
I wasn't going to New Iberia. I'm taking a NI sabbatical
as I've gained notoriety there and that has required changing
the color of my bike to one I cannot disclose.
That party may be over.
I'd go against the grain and meet her going back north as she was
coming south. Her horns and light cannot be missed. If you
get run over by a damned ol' Amtrak, it was probably time
for your exit anyhow cuz you are brain dead and stupid anyhow.
I pulled over right before the Evangeline T'way (aka "Future I-49" LOL).
You know the fed/state spent a load of money putting those "Future I-49" signs up for
nothing besides political posturing. All it is going to result in is people crossing the
neutral zone (for New Orleanians) / median (for others). You can dig a ditch and
they will still cross it. The road will look like one mud race circuit after another.
Heck, I get off when I want. Exits? You exit when you feel like it. It's in the
Constitution BO.
You are in southwest Louisiana. You can take our Dr.Pepper cans off our dashboards but
that only made things better because Detroit answered the call and put in
can holders. My wife has a built in cooler. Open container laws, are you kidding me. Get out
of here.
Oh yea, here came the train.
We exchanged horn blasts and away I went to the yard
to see if there was anything worth chasing since you don't
chase the Amtrak. No, you don't unless you are prepared
to be chased by a string of sheriff, state and local bubble
gum cars filled with recently trained tazer experts . You
know in S. W. La. we soup up everything. You don't want
to be tazered in SWLA.
At the crossing south of Broussard, here came the L&D.
This shot is plucked from a film I produced of the crossing.
It is uploaded to Utubs or whatever. This one is titled,
"Sitting Next to a Dirt Bag Trying to Film the Train Crossing
Old US 90". I have 9000 other crossing movies there with
different titles.
Here is another frame of it. That worm in the white truck,
well knowing that a classic production was in progress, pulled
in front of the camera. Why are people such ..... I know,
but that's for another day. I guess, you can start with "childish".
Arriving at the Lafayette Yard:
The only thing shaking was a work truck. Man, I've been
hard up before, but this was the pits, never the less, I couldn't
wait for them to report in that they were being stalked by
that motorcycle guy on the ?.......? colored bike.
Junius didn't even care about what they were doing.
Then, what they were going to do got kinda out of focus
as they descended back into the yard.
More switches were switched.
I did get a closeup of the back of that truck. Were those
sandbags on top? I wouldn't mind riding around in it, but
working would be a drag. Time for a nap. I may try truck
chasing again one day? I could be writing history.
