I messed up. That wasn’t clear to me at first, but I eventually figured it out. I was waiting for a train in a deserted station. It seemed strange that with a half hour until departure, nobody was filtering into the waiting area. Finally, a female attendant appeared in the ticketing window so I went over to have a word. I was quite surprised to learn there was no train to Chicago that night. 

The news was so shocking to me that I unconsciously put my wallet in a different pannier while packing up to leave. Then, a short distance down the road, panic set in because my wallet was not where I normally put it. 

Upon returning to the station, it was not where I had been sitting. A sick feeling took hold of my stomach. Not only had my train been canceled but I had now lost my wallet. Could things get any worse?

A deep breath was taken and a decision made to do a thorough search of my bags, even if it meant laying everything out all over the train station. Fortunately, The wallet was quickly discovered in another bag and one crisis was averted. Whew! I could deal with the train issue but a lost wallet would have been devastating.

I got back home pretty late. Everyone was asleep so I didn’t wake them up. However, my sleep was light because I didn’t want to surprise anyone. There were a few double takes in the morning but nobody reacted as if a ghost had appeared.

After reviewing my train ticket, there was a realization that I had made a scheduling error. I called Amtrak, admitted my mistake and they took care of me. Honesty is often the best policy.

But, I still had to get to Chicago because a couple of friends would be expecting me. So, I drove out in the morning. It was an all day drive that didn’t leave time for a bike ride on this day.

I did meet up with Stan after his train got in around 6:00pm, Central Time. We had dinner and a beer at the Granite City Brew Pub, in Naperville. We caught up on each other’s lives, retired to our hotel rooms, and I had a very restful night. 

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We have plans to meet another friend, George, tomorrow. Riding on an area trail will be therapeutic.