ajmatt blog

Amtrak’s Acela Express is a nice train that provides business class service and rapid speeds between DC and Philadelphia, perfect for my travel needs. In fact, I traveled so much last year I made “select” status, which I took advantage of this afternoon on my way home by using a free upgrade voucher to first class.

Why should you care? Well, I arrived to the Philadelphia train station at 1pm, fortuitously switching tickets to the earlier 1:09pm train, and jumped on, happy that I would get home a little bit early on a Friday. As I searched for and found a seat for myself, I noticed that the woman, by herself, directly in the row in front of me, looked like Cynthia Nixon, famed Sex and the City celeb.

After IM’ing with Allegra, who sent a recent picture, I was sure. Now, I’m not a paparazzi, stalker, or celeb watcher, so I’m not going to tell everyone in the world what she did during the hour forty minute trip. I did some work. At one point, she asked a question, I helped out by answering it. I waited for as polite a time as possible, leaned between the seats when she could see me coming, handed her a pen and a cocktail napkin, and said quietly, “Ms. Nixon, my wife’s birthday is on the 15th, would you mind?” She smiled, asked Allegra’s name, handed them back, and here’s the result.



She asked another question, I answered. She was very nice, and I greatly appreciate her help. Happy (early) Birthday Allegra!