By eight yesterday morning I was on a train for a quick day trip to New York. By evening I was back...and though I talked to several people, made appointments, did some negotiating, and read and sent emails, most people never knew I'd left.
Dawn was just breaking when we got to Penn Station in Baltimore, and I couldn't resist snapping some photos of the classic façade. Later I did some research and learned the building is Beaux Arts style and dates from 1911. Though almost a century old, it had a face-lift in the 1990's when the interior was brightened considerably. Isn't that skylight magnificent? It reminds me of a grand hotel from the turn of the 20th century.
Out front of the station is a massive sculpture that has caused loads of controversy. People seem to love it or hate it, and every so often there's a letter to the editor calling for it to be removed as an eyesore. Called Male/Female, it was created in 2004 by artist Jonathan Borofsky. His website describes it as a "...somewhat Jungian archetype of a male/female figure commissioned by th
e Municipal Art Society and placed in front of Pennsylvania Station. The brushed aluminum sculpture stands 51 feet tall. A pulsating LED sits where the two figures intersect; the light emitted over a 60-second cycle ranges from cobalt blue to fuchsia, denoting spiritual energy.(note:I captured both color
s) 'The whole idea of this piece is two energies becoming one,' Borofsky says, 'two energies coming together to create a greater force.' "Whatever else it is, the sculpture makes for interesting photos!
With camera stowed we boarded the train and I settled in. My tablet PC plugged into the seat outlet, and with my cell phone handy, I made all my appointments and then scheduled one settlement for Thursday and another one for Friday afternoon. After that, it was negotiation for a home inspection, and then I downloaded the photos I took of the station and sculpture.
When we rolled into New York's Penn Station we found a charming porter to help us. This helpful man is named Saint, and he absolutely lived up to his name. They really do make it easy to get to and from the Big Apple by train. 
Our day's errands done, we came back home with the same ease. All the way I was keeping up with phone calls and emails. With the right technology it didn't matter where I was - it was business as usual.
Sing it with me...I've been workin' on the railroad!
Baltimore,Md
Hi Margaret - what a great up-beat post, and I love your pictures. True testament to the impact of technology in our day-to-day lives, and how portable we really can be.
Ann
My comments were deleted.???
"I've been working on the..." I haven't been on a train in a long time. :) Great post Margaret, thanks for showing us Penn Station Baltimore, I loved the sculpture too.
Thank you!
Randy, Pay phones, yeah I sort of remember them.
Maggie, Caught the light just right early in the morning. And Saint was so helpful and nice at the same time.
Ann, Portability and technology are a wonderful combination.
Aziz, Being from Baltimore, I thought you would enjoy this.
Jim and Maria, Good point; we choose the times, we control the business.
Caleb, The train is really a nice way to travel. Glad you liked Penn Station and the controversial sculpture.
BB, You might like to take TLW and or a grandchild along for the ride. As a lister, we have this advantage.
Colleen, Glad you enjoyed the stroll.
I think you could spend a day in Penn station just for fun. You certainly would not go hungry. We are usually in such a hurry to get where we are going and don't take time to really appreciate the surroundings. I think I need to do a post about the DC train station. I have gone over for the day JUST for the station.
www.homerome.com
Baltimore,Md.
Tonia, Thanks for stopping by. It is fun to have my camera with me most of the time.
Maggie, WOW and thanks for returning my call. You are amazing! Thank you for those kind words. So much information, so much effort, so much of your time. It is greatly appreciated! Here is a gold star for all of your beautiul writing and giving so much of your time and talent!! Hope everyone gets to read week in review.
Joan, Glad you enjoyed the ride and thanks for stopping by. The train is a really good place to get work done.
Margaret - This one's for you - all the live long day! "I've been workin' on the railroad"
Good night, Tony.
Here in our home in Fredericksburg Virginia we are two blocks from the railroad station. An easy walk to the platform, get on the train, ride north to DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston if you care to. Have made the trip up to New York several times and it is even better now than it was when I was a child riding from home in New York State north to my mother's home in New Brunswick, Canada.
Nostalgic moments!
Gloria, It is great when you pull it off. Getting away and still getting everything done.
Hope your week in Key West was a blast! Did you take some photos and write a post?
Margaret, I am 65 years old now, but I can remember the old Penn Station I worked for Eddies Sandwich Shop on Charles Street, delivereing coffee to the old building.
Things do change. Great pictures. I can see why you are a top producer in this area.
I would like to invite you to our real estate auction sales meeting next Wednesday (and every Wednesday) at 4pm, 6721 Harford Road, Baltimore at Northern Parkway. www.auctionbrokers.net
Charles Parrish
Hi Charles, Thanks for the invitation. I will have to check this out one Wednesday!
Great photos and post, Margaret. Why don't you do a series of train station/depot shots - it would be an interesting chronicle of our country.
Have you been to Nashville? Their old railroad station has been turned into a hotel, and has a fabulous restaurant on the main floor, Arthur's. Arthur's alone is worth the trip.
Thanks Sharon,
That's a great idea for an Active Rain group and then everyone would have a place to post any RR station in the country.
I know DC has a cool station. It is a wonderful place to go over just for the day.
I have been to Nashville but not to the Arthur's
Thanks for posting it to the group, Margaret. There have been some exciting responses to the group.
A few years ago we went back to Arthur's - not having been to the restaurant in over 15 years, when it was not downtown in the renovated train station. Would you believe the owner recognized us? He talked us into staying until the restaurant closed and then shared their famous cigars and Cafe Diablo with us as we chatted in front of the cozy fireplace. Even more memories from Arthur's!
Now you have me wishing I'd taken photos of some of the interesting train stations in Europe!
Sharon, I am trying to picture you with a cigar! Some impression you made on the owner after 15 years!
Were these people with you? Sorry I could not resist!
I hadn't thought of Baltimore's Penn Station in years. I used to frequent there quite often. Thanks for the memory.
Out here in the Heartland Kansas City has a pretty nice train station though St. Louis' is even better. KC's still functions with trains and is always struggling to hold on even though you can STILL see the bullet holes in the marble from the 20's that occurred because of the Kansas City Massacre. St. Louis' train station now has a hotel attached (if I remember correctly) and has plenty of shopping. Really a vibrant place.
Chris, Let me know if you have plans to come back to the Baltimore area. You can go flying with my husband, Lee. He and the guys usually fly every Saturday morning.
Your train station would be nice to see here on the Rain. Sounds like a good post with photos of the bullet holes..
www.HomeRome.com
Baltimore,Md.
Margaret - Thanks for the invite! I learned to fly because of that area. I was still a professional photographer at the time and I had to get some aerial shots of the Germantown SoccerPlex. So anyway I talked this guy into flying me around to get the shots. After I got the shots he says to me "Do you want to run over to Annapolis and see the bay?" I said "Heck Yes!"
From there I was hooked! But that's a whole other story. And I'll photo the bullet holes. By themselves they are boring. But with the story... Hmm....could be localism blog.
The heck with the home inspection threads, the railroad threads rock! I'm a former brakeman for the Chicago Northwestern in Chicago.
Margaret...
This is a great post that I missed somehow! Love the pics and the journal of your trip! Excellent!
Erol, I am glad I wrote about the railroad for you!
Richard, Thanks for stopping by. Gosh...hard to believe this was written March of 2007.