a ride on the rails :: midwest photography

a couple weeks ago, i rode the train down to st. louis for a stay. it had been a long time since i have rode on the rails. and although, as i sit in my shop each day, the loud train rolls by and i curse it, when actually on the train, it's quite tolerable. in fact, as i sat in my snugglie little world of a seat, i hardly heard the horn. and the view from my window was comforting. there were scenes i would have otherwise missed in a car on the highway. i love that about a train ride... they move swiftly through the middle of cornfields, wooded lands and the back areas of a city. and don't even get me started on how much i adore the historical train stations... because, to my delight, most have been kept up well and done so in era-specific ways.

plus, i find the whole idea of it romantic. because the shop is right by the station, i get a lot of travelers stopping in. some are headed out west across the country in a sleeping car and others are just down from chicago for work. either way, i love hearing their stories of travel and of family... because, it seems, you can't talk about one without bringing up the other.