I'm not an obsessed railway enthusiast, a trainspotter, but the associated sights and sounds always command my attention. Serpentine tracks help shape our piano footprint and from my new, blessedly quiet (thank you Chris and Robin) second floor Ashland Avenue carriage house digs (an accessory to the now-attached Victorian jewel box built as a police station), I've got a front row seat to trains snaking by four blocks up, past rows in repose and large lots bordered with bunting staking our claim. How I wish they could already stop in EBDI-land, and were maglevs, whizzing by at warp speeds so common in Japan, capable of rocketing us to daily jobs in D.C. and Phillie and even NYC, but no matter - they still confirm the sloganed scrim stating "My New East Side is Innovative" or "Vital" or "Exciting" and so on.
But my favorite is "My New East Side is The Future" and even without bullet trains, we are still boldly bound in the right direction. So was the police officer on his horse this morning, trotting beneath my perch as Amtrak ambled by. Other than his uniform and the street furniture and cars, etc., it could have been 1890 and he and his mount could have just emerged from this carriage house. It reminded me that as a preservationist, I am particularly proud to be part of the driving force committed to carrying this neighborhood's rich and proud past into the future.
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