Tonka

It must be fun to drive a tractor. At least, that's what I'd be thinking if it were me on the corner of 186th and Bennett, sitting at the helm of a great iron behemoth. But it's not me.  It's a chubby, middle aged man with a severely receded hairline who has probably been working construction scenes for the past decade or two - and guys like that probably don't think about trucks they way I do.

Walking to the station, the scene reminds me about this one time, about 12 years ago, that I rented a moving van from U-Haul (or was it Ryder?).  Upon arriving at the rental agency I was told they were fresh out of vans but would happily rent me a 15' mammoth truck, at the same price, in its stead.  The State of New Jersey does not require a special license to drive anything less than 18' long so I drove it into Manhattan  for a bit of cruising.  Once you get the hang of driving blindly behind you and on both sides, and once you become confident in the knowledge that you are likely to survive unscathed should you collide with anything, it can be quite fun.

I reach the subway station and as I file down the stairs to the platform it occurs to me.  You know what's bigger than a 15' truck and even bigger than a tractor trailer?  The A train.  And I want to drive it.