SJ = slow journeys?

(Joding's waiting for the train in the cold Alvesta spring)

There is a company in Sweden called SJ. They own all the bits of railway laid down in this long country. And they charge you plenty to travel with them. And then, it seems, they are only very rarely on time. Does the acronym perhaps stand for "slow journeying"? Stuck in Jello? Seldom Justified (delays)? I wonder.

Apparently they ran out of electricity once arriving in Emmaboda. That was the information given. Is that really information? When it arises more questions than actually are being answered. How do you "run out of" electricity? Do they mean a power loss? Is it just SJ that has run out of electricity, or is it the entire Sweden that suddenly ran out of it? So will we ever get home riding an electrified train? Will the doors open when there's no electricity (the answer is a clear NO).

Well this is what we heard. Thankfully we were not on that low-power train, that apparently had to be diverted to buses in Emmaboda, only to have the passengers be returned to the trains half an hour later or so (still stuck in Emmaboda), when they thought the trains would start running again soon. Our next seat passenger told us this. A very nice young woman, with a difficulty to walk, relying mainly on her wheelchair to take her places. Sounds like an adventure to anyone, especially to her.

Our train was "only" cancelled, replaced by buses (obvioulsy full considering the holidays about to cease), 1.5 bus to stupid Alvesta (where one always seem to end up on these obscure days). When arriving in Alvesta, the bus driver informed we had to go into the SJ-office and rebook the tickets, in order for us to get home. This is when a woman uttered the lovely sentence "detta är barockt!". It made me laugh, at least quietly to myself, fearing to wake the anger of the primitive people around me, all full with hatered, stress and annoyance. The train came, finally. The train that had left Kalmar 2 hours before us, had finally arrived! It was jam packed, obviously. We got some seats, talked to the nice girl (with the wheelchair), did some crossword-puzzling, and arrived only 35 minutes after orignial schedule. But man, it was an annoying trip. And an annoying evening, especially since I had to work 1.5 hours upon returning to Lund. I ought to sleep now, but my days and nights have gotten confused during the lovely break. I guess they'll have to set themselves straight tomorrow, when the alarm goes of 6.45, all in time for us to do some laundry. I can't explain how much I look forward to that. Or how much I enjoy the use of irony.

All that annoying travel, and we won't even be able to get our money back now, since the train probably broke some kind of speed record travelling from Alvesta to Lund. One needs to be at least an hour delayed in order to get the money back. Or you don't get the money, of course. You get SJ-vouchers. So you can ride with them again. Because you enjoyed the last trip so dearly. I'm not bitter.

Actually, I am happy. Tired, but happy. I really need to sleep more, but I have just not been able to the last few nights. I have done some napping during the afternoons instead, but it's so not the same thing. Tomorrow will be great I'm sure, I get to look at some absolutely marvellous cells I have stained. They are too pretty to grasp, can't wait to have the pictures published in some cool scientific journal. It will probably be another year or so, but still!