Old fashion ride on the Santa Cruz Local gets me going again
In “The Circus Animals’ Desertion,” Yeats wrote about the loss of youthful elan: “Now that my ladder’s gone, I must
Read more
Serial Novels
‘Small victories and large defeats’ from San Luis Obispo to Oilfield
Most of us fail most of the time. This year has provided ample personal evidence – besides falling on my
Read moreHoboes, haunted men and rail riding from Truckee to Davis
If Truckee didn’t have a corrupt Greyhound agent, I would have missed the next day’s ride over the Sierras. I
Read moreHiding from the bull’s eye and catching a little freight train ride
Every time I flexed my right arm, the triceps ached. Yep, the train I had just jumped had probably been
Read moreNine Innings in Baltimore: The Bottom of the Second
(This is the continuation of the serial novel Nine Innings in Baltimore. Read the previous chapter here.) “In the small
Read more‘There’s a coal train comin’ through tonight’
Since coming to California, I have gloried in escaping the puny scale of the East, where diminished people live in
Read moreAvoiding the bulls from Sacramento to Oakland in October 1997
Sacramento can be a challenging place to catch out. It has bulls and plenty of passersby, as well as a
Read moreFreight riding with Generation X from Roseville to Eugene
As I tried to sleep in the bushes adjoining the yard, a city cop shone his flashlight in our faces,
Read more41 miles through Maryland
On Saturday I finally jumped a train of opportunity rather than leaving town to find one. I nearly ended up
Read moreCrossing Stampede in my secret life
We all need secret lives. I had to flee again, back into the wilderness aboard a freight. They say the
Read more