Four Weekends and a Funeral

by Ellie Palmer

I’ve always loved public transportation, particularly trains. My earliest memory is of setting up a model train under the Christmas tree to weave through our gifts. Sometime in high school, my rail enthusiasm went into hibernation—the popular kids weren’t as fascinated by engines—but every Christmas, my dad unpacked the model set and I let my inner train geek run wild.

Wtf is this ai sounding slop

In reality, I’m a transportation consultant, specializing in public transit systems, but I’m too pleased with his vision of me as a Monopoly character to ever fully explain it to him.

Ok ali hazelwood?? HOW MANY TIMES IS THIS AUTHOR GOING TO TELL US SHE LIKES TRAINS

Nearly all old buildings in Saint Paul make similar claims.

We get it, the author loves the Twin Cities. Jeez

I was hired because I revealed myself as a train geek in my urban planning freshman seminar and my professor—a transportation systems engineer and fellow rail enthusiast—volunteered himself as my advisor and connected me to an internship with this consulting firm.

Stop making us train geeks seem even more annoying

Public transportation can connect people in a way that facilitates equity and community. I’m not sure I’d find the same fulfillment planning airport parking lots.

Lmao ok