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I hit rock bottom in 2002. My first wife, who I very stupidly married when I was 21, was committed to a psych ward. My landlord terminated my lease because of d

I hit rock bottom in 2002. My first wife, who I very stupidly married when I was 21, was committed to a psych ward. My landlord terminated my lease because of damage she did to the property that I had no means of paying for. I was an entertainer at Disneyland, of all things, and cuts to the entertainment budget meant layoffs in my department. Perfect confluence of shitty events, and I was living in my car for a few weeks. So I definitely did have a reason to cross the US by train. Several reason. At least then, it was cheaper than by plane if you didn't get a sleeper car, and you could bring more cargo, so it made for a decent relocate across the country method. I had a friend willing to let me live with her in New Jersey, so Los Angeles to Newark in roughly three days. As others have said, there isn't much you can see from 35,000 ft, but you can see quite a bit from a train, including places that are nowhere near roads and otherwise not very easy to see. Weirdest part of the trip for me was getting caught up in one of those post-9/11 dragnets and getting questioned by the FBI in Albuquerque. I guess they found someone buying a one-way cross-country ticket suspicious.

daniel-cussen 4y ago
That's cool. Good you didn't end up that low again. Yeah the dragnet...well note beyond questioning you they didn't do you any harm. They are allowed false alarms too, mass transit attracts terrorism, because of the number of people and the speed at which they travel, together with collateral damage to the traintrack and congestion, everything. With high-speed rail it would be even worse. Trains are very sensitive to trainwrecks, always have been. On a mountain pass? It's no joke.
Broken_Hippo 4y ago
I hit rock bottom in 2002. My first wife, who I very stupidly married when I was 21, was committed to a psych ward. My landlord terminated my lease because of damage she did to the property that I had no means of paying for. Sorry you had to go through this: My story had a similar path, though I didn't find my way out for some years later. Ex wound up in a psych ward numerous times, the first through a suicide attempt. It was out and in, and I sometimes wish I hadn't stayed so long. Then again, my life is pretty wonderful now and who knows if it would have turned out like this if I had left earlier.

daniel-cussen 4y ago

That's cool. Good you didn't end up that low again. Yeah the dragnet...well note beyond questioning you they didn't do you any harm. They are allowed false alarms too, mass transit attracts terrorism, because of the number of people and the speed at which they travel, together with collateral damage to the traintrack and congestion, everything. With high-speed rail it would be even worse. Trains are very sensitive to trainwrecks, always have been. On a mountain pass? It's no joke.

Broken_Hippo 4y ago

I hit rock bottom in 2002. My first wife, who I very stupidly married when I was 21, was committed to a psych ward. My landlord terminated my lease because of damage she did to the property that I had no means of paying for. Sorry you had to go through this: My story had a similar path, though I didn't find my way out for some years later. Ex wound up in a psych ward numerous times, the first through a suicide attempt. It was out and in, and I sometimes wish I hadn't stayed so long. Then again, my life is pretty wonderful now and who knows if it would have turned out like this if I had left earlier.