Parker was given permission from his doctors to visit Conductor Brian at the rail yard!
Brian then backed us up out of the rail yard while Parker stood patiently behind him, looking out the window and over Brian’s shoulder. Once we got out of the rail yard, Brian explained to Parker each of the controls and exactly what he was doing when operating the train. Parker’s favorite part was the horn. He loved blowing that horn: “It’s just such a great sound.” Once we got to the South Side, we brought the train to a full stop and we turned around, going forwards all the way back to the rail yard.
Brian was awesome with Parker, and taught him everything. At one point they argued about whether the train across the river was NS or CSX, but Parker wasn’t going to let Brian convince him. He said, “Hey, you’re distracting me!” Brian introduced Parker to all the different guys at the rail yard and even gave him an old train number sign (the sign at the top of the train). Parker had all sorts of questions, and spoke with Brian and the crew like they were peers — he really knew his stuff! Brian said if ever they need to test the horn, they know who to call.
