train strain
It might be said that I talk a lot about trains. Some might even say that I talk too much about trains, though it can't really be helped. Besides, if one reads closely, it can be seen that I rarely talk about the train itself. More often than not the train is my preferred way of getting from A to B, and seldom do I ever find a better combination of something to say and time in which to say it than when I am sat back and watching the world go by.
Of course, I have been known to have a few train-related rants, and usually, as in this post, the incompetent Department for Transport (DfT) is the deserving focus of my anger. I've never really subjected you to my rants when the train is late and overcrowded, or when I am squashed in a seat not designed for human beings, but this is probably because I vent my anger at the Train Company concerned. If my complaint is justified they might furnish me with free travel vouchers, which is much more satisfying (if not so good for my ego) than knowing that a few people have read my ramblings and possibly felt a bit of sympathy.
Nonetheless, it was reassuring recently to stumble upon I Hate First Great Western and First Late Western. Reassuring because there are obviously people who commute in the same area as me who would certainly empathise and offer sympathy if I shared my rants, and reassuring because here is proof that there are people out there who talk about trains more than I do. Being the sort of person that I am, it's also nice to have a bit of an insight in to the lives of fellow commuters.
As a result I have also started reading In Defence of First Great Western, which gives some interesting perspectives from 'the inside', and some more reassuring evidence that there are others who sometimes feel the need to rant like I do. I quite like this blog because it opens up a world behind the excuses so often used to fob people off, and provides an interesting view on the complicated workings of the railway industry.
Of course, I have been known to have a few train-related rants, and usually, as in this post, the incompetent Department for Transport (DfT) is the deserving focus of my anger. I've never really subjected you to my rants when the train is late and overcrowded, or when I am squashed in a seat not designed for human beings, but this is probably because I vent my anger at the Train Company concerned. If my complaint is justified they might furnish me with free travel vouchers, which is much more satisfying (if not so good for my ego) than knowing that a few people have read my ramblings and possibly felt a bit of sympathy.
Nonetheless, it was reassuring recently to stumble upon I Hate First Great Western and First Late Western. Reassuring because there are obviously people who commute in the same area as me who would certainly empathise and offer sympathy if I shared my rants, and reassuring because here is proof that there are people out there who talk about trains more than I do. Being the sort of person that I am, it's also nice to have a bit of an insight in to the lives of fellow commuters.
As a result I have also started reading In Defence of First Great Western, which gives some interesting perspectives from 'the inside', and some more reassuring evidence that there are others who sometimes feel the need to rant like I do. I quite like this blog because it opens up a world behind the excuses so often used to fob people off, and provides an interesting view on the complicated workings of the railway industry.
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