Amtrak is a box of chocolates..
and you never know what you're going to get (or meet)! A new job in bay area, required me to commute and take Amtrak both ways. After two years of pandemic, that was a rare chance to see and meet diverse people from all walks of life. One such interaction stayed in my mind . Here is what happened.. I was trying to get work done on laptop at a lower level in the train, when in rolled a burly man, in his seventies, with a mask on, on a wheelchair. His cap said he was a vietnam war veteran. He parked the wheelchair next to a wide table and started talking on phone. From the sound of it, it was clear that he really enjoyed talking. It exuded eloquence, warmth, good humor and positive vibes in general. After the call, he looked at us fellow passengers and from the corner of my eyes, it was clear he was looking for some kind of connection as a pretext to talk. After some time, he broke the ice and started talking with me and another fellow passenger. It was mostly one-way as he could