Amtrak and Astronauts

I see an Amtrak bus headed south and board it. I hand the driver my ticket which I already have but still need to pay for and ask how much it would be. Could I pay her and if not where was the ticket window? The driver speaks to me Spanish I can’t understand. “¿Qué?” I ask. And she motions me on without paying. The bus is crowded with people and the aisle is narrow. Only one person can get through at a time and that is walking sideways. The chairs are wide and roomy though, so I decide that must be the reason. A little boy pushes my belly in and squeezes by. At first I sit next to an academic with a stack of old hardcover books next to him. I have to move the books over a bit. Then I get up and go to the very back of the bus to a history exhibit of two seats from a space capsule. They have the names of the astronauts John and Adam in uppercase block letters on them. I try to take some pictures with my phone, but I’m checking now and they’re not there.