Snow Tracks
Here's one of my old haunts in a little new snow: the Corner. These tracks run along the back of Bell Street. I had two different paper routes in this area. One was an afternoon route delivering the now defunct Portland Evening Express. I had it for about 5 years. I had about 75 stops and was constantly trying to set my 'personal best' for speed. With my bike, I was pretty good. I can't remember the exact time, but I do remember one afternoon, the planets were aligned, and I finished somewhere around 50 minutes. I could be speed crazy. When I started high school, I picked up another small route for about a year and a half. I delivered the Portland Press Herald in the morning to about 60 customers in the same general area around Morrill's Corner. The N.T. Fox Company used to have quite an expansive set of buildings in a large mill in the area of that chimney, now the site of the Portland Boxing Club. These tracks used to be for high speed freights heading back and forth to Canada, probably about 10 a day. Now, all you might see on them is a work engine and a couple of cars 'playing around'.
Papers and choo choo trains: sights and sounds of days gone.
All Aboard.
In the snow, your city looks just like ours. Greensboro is nick named "Gate City" because our city connected the railroad lines to so many places. Lovely photo there!
ReplyDeleteJanis
Greensboro, NC USA
I love the picture - it's nicely composed and full of interest. I'd say more but I don't want to get you off track with too many compliments! :) The other thing is that photos like this make me think (wrongly) that snow might not be such a bad thing! Yikes!
ReplyDeleteSuper perspective Birdman.. Would love to look out my window right now and see snow!
ReplyDeletemy husband had a paper route too, although his was much easier, no snow...he does like to tell the kids how he had to get up at 4 am when he was their age to get out and deliver papers...we might be getting some snow friday/saturday!
ReplyDeleteHope the guy who delivers my paper in his car isn't pushing for a personal best. :-)
ReplyDeleteyou got me with the title - not what i expected. :)
ReplyDeleteA beautiful and well composed picture!
ReplyDeleteYou made me think that I don't hear the train whistles anymore. Where I used to live, I was about 3 miles from a big freight rail line and at night when everything was quiet, I could hear the whistles as they crossed some busy intersections. I'm way too far away from the tracks now. No more train whistles.
ReplyDeleteAt least you have documented them fine - loved those tracks
ReplyDeleteThere is a very busy rail line across from me but I rarely even notice the sound except every once in a while there might be a noisier train. We have no snow here!
ReplyDeleteYou have such charming youth memories ! Snow+ blue sky = beauty !
ReplyDeleteNice composition! There are train tracks running behind the woods in the back of my neighborhood that are used several times a day. I used to think it was loud, but now I don't even notice it much except at night.
ReplyDeleteThe fresh snow really makes it look lovely. My aunt and uncle lived with their kids for some years with a railroad over the fence of their backyard. It took a bit of getting used to, and they wouldn't really hear it anymore.
ReplyDeleteBoth your photo, and your memory, and chock full of Americana.
ReplyDeleteVery cool shot!
ReplyDeleteMakes me long for a train trip.
ReplyDeleteA paper route of 60 or 75 on a bike sounds ambitious to me.
ReplyDeleteI cannot look at these tracks without thinking of the Holocaust.
ReplyDeleteI had to cross tracks just like these on my way to school in the first through sixth grades.
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