posted
I usually plan my travel about a year in advance. I booked my upcoming trip long ago and as I do not live near a station I decided to pick up my tickets last April while I was in Minneapolis. Seemed like a good idea. When I returned to the west coast I placed them in a lock box I have in the apartment where I keep some mad money from time to time. Last night I wanted some Mad Money and noticed the Amtrack tickets were not there. Panic set in and I search all my usual hiding places over and over and after 6 hours decided to call Amtrak and see how big a problem lost tickets are. They might have just hit me in the face with a baseball bat when she told me the procedures. Basically you would have to purchase a new ticket, get a bill passed through both houses and signed by the President and then wait 5 months. That is not true, but you get the drift. There are also fees and penalties and maybe you will get a partial refund after 5 months if no one used them. Wow....I was a basket case, slept little last night waking up only to search someplace else. I even asked my 14 year old Tom Cat if he had any suggestions. Woke at 5am and started in again, basically going over the same places, then I got angry and pulled the cushions off the sofa and there it was wedged between a cushion and the sofa arm. I do not remember taking them out of the lock box. Has any UFO's been reported in this area lately. Could it have been the cat or am I just careless and irresponsible. I will rest very good tonight.
Bottom line is did I really need to get the tickets that early when I could have not worried about them and picked them up upon departure. I learned you must treat them like cash and not like an airline ticket where you can just print them out when u need them.
I am sure u old timers knew this already, but us inexperienced ones had to learn the hard way.
smitty195 Member # 5102
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Sounds like a case for Mulder and Scully!
Or.......it makes you wonder what our pets do when we leave the house....
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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Although Lucky (Newfoundland: 1992-2003) knew how to open back yard gates and front porch screen doors lest I "forgot about" him or he decided he had been outside long enough, I doubt if he could figure out how to get a strong box I have open.
I think one will find your last admission to be the case, but I respect you for being "man enough' to recognize this as the likely outcome. I've known too many people in this life (had to work for a few of 'em lest I add) who would be looking for someone else to blame - founded or otherwise.
While I'm a Type B surrounded by Type A's (neighbors in this reasonably affluent Chicago suburb; family in New York), the latter could never think of planning anything (oh maybe save a wedding) a year in advance; two or three weeks seems to be par for the course for a vacation. This is no doubt account the busy lives they feel compelled to live (even if retired) and they "have to look for the opening when we can somehow work it in'.
TwinStarRocket Member # 2142
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Maybe the cat has been secretly yearning for a train trip.
train lady Member # 3920
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being a non expert it seems to me that the answer is when you opened the box to get out some mad money either the tickets fell out ,unnoticed, or came out with the money and again went unnoticed by you. Our grand *** is a very smart border collie. She got all the kitchen cabinets opened so my son put child proof locks on them. MY d-i-l came home to discover that said *** had figured out how to open the drawers and had done so scattering everything all over the floor. But I don't think she could have opened a strongbox. Nor could have our grand cat. So I think my solution is the only one that makes sense.(at least to me)
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