It was the best job I ever had, but one has to be careful what craft you wind up in. I never worked in the track department, having to replace welded rail or ties in the Mojave desert or clean out frozen switches on Donner Pass. Instead, for about a decade I worked as a conductor on a commuter train operation. I saw the same people day in and day out, and after a while you're kinda like a bartender in how he interacts with his steady customers. The jobs we had worked more than 12 hours per day as we protected the morning and evening commuter rush hours. We were taken off the hours-of-service clock for 4.5 hours and given a hotel room -- but we were still being paid. Half rate but that was certainly better than nothing. Sometimes some of the female commuters who had flexible hours with their employers would swing by the hotel so we could investigate the softness of the beds. Yep. Best job I ever had.