#bloomington-normal

Amtrak’s Inter-American

Not great photographs here, but the content makes it worthwhile to inspect and interpret what was versus what remains.

This is a southbound number 21, the Inter-American, crossing College Avenue in Normal, Illinois. This is the former Chicago & Alton, later Gulf, Mobile & Ohio. One may note the distinctive B&O signals here—a result of the C&A being controlled by that major railroad. It was Illinois Central Gulf at the time of these pictures, and is now of the Union Pacific (with another group owning the line in between these last two).

The train is approaching a spot in Normal that will host a passenger station (MP 124), but at this time trains stopped a bit further down the line in Bloomington itself. One will also note the the train will meet a northbound freight with an ICG unit on point. Illinois Central’s charter line cuts across the Alton near where that train can be seen. Looking at Google Maps today, it’s clear that this historical line of the IC no longer exists here (though it does in bits and pieces in other parts of the state). And looking at Google Street View, it’s difficult to recognize anything from these vintage views—other than the high-rise buildings, which I assume are connected to Illinois State University.

The train is being powered by three E-units—two are former Union Pacific E9s (built in 1955) while the middle unit is an E8 (built in 1953) of the RF&P. Two are in Phase II paint (so-called cigar-band), while one is in the original Phase I (bloody-nose) scheme. I didn’t realize this train, the Inter-American, went all the way to Laredo, Texas, and had connecting service with National Railways of Mexico. I’ll add a timetable page above (copyright Amtrak, by way of timetables.org).

Central Illinois Art Exposition in Bloomington

To all the friends I saw at the Wonder Years show yesterday (and of course the ones didn't see as well), thank you for making it one of the most fun nights of my life. Thank you for caring and buying a ticket and stage diving and singing along.

Last night felt like a triumph. The Wonder Years have been my favorite band for at least three years, and they've been an inspiration and a force in my life for even longer. I've laughed and cried to them, and their records have been the perfect soundtrack to my highest and lowest points. They are the band I want to share with every single person I meet because I realize that some people might not have ever felt like I have while listening to "New Years With Carl Weathers" in a freezing cold Toyota Camry or yelling the words to "Woke Up Older" when it mirrors your life all to closely or being moved to tears by the emotion in a live performance of "The Devil In My Bloodstream." Everyone deserves to feel that deep, visceral connection with an album. It's what music is all about. To see so many of my friends, some of whom I introduced to The Wonder Years and many more of whom I met through their shows or because we were both fans, experiencing that connection in the moment last night was truly incredible.

But that isn't the only reason last night felt like a victory. It wasn't just who was there, it was where we were. Since attending my first local shows during my freshman year of high school, I've worked as hard as I could at building the music community in Bloomington-Normal. At first, that meant inviting all of my friends to every show I went to, but then I started a band (and then another and another and...), and then I started putting on my own shows. With every step of that journey I wanted to grow the scene meant so much to me, and the fact that a few pop punk bands can sell over eight hundred tickets in the middle of Illinois is vindicating in some small way and proof that our scene can still be the powerful, important place of community and self-discovery that it was for me.