Bought a ticket for a runaway train

Like a mad man laughing at the rain
A little out of touch, a little insane
Its just easier than dealing with the pain
-Soul Assylum-

Trains by nature create an aura of attraction. We are drawn to trains. We are fascinated by trains. If you are not awed by these huge mechanical monsters you must not have looked at them closely enough.

Tonight, I am giving you the chance to look a little closer. If you are one that has lost your awe of trains, these pictures are for you. I hope these can re-awaken a childlike fascination with these lumbering giants.

Wikipedia on the history of trains:

The first trains were rope-hauled, gravity powered or pulled by horses, but from the early 19th century almost all were powered by steam locomotives. From the 1920s onwards they began to be replaced by less labour intensive and cleaner (but more complex and expensive) diesel locomotives and electric locomotives, while at about the same time self-propelled multiple unit vehicles of either power system became much more common in passenger service. Most countries had replaced steam locomotives for day-to-day use by the 1970s, usually with diesel locomotives. A few countries, most notably the People's Republic of China, where coal and labour are cheap, still use steam locomotives, but this is being gradually phased out. Historic steam trains still run in many other countries, for the leisure and enthusiast market.
Electric traction offers a lower cost per mile of train operation but at a very high initial cost, which can only be justified on high traffic lines. Since the cost per mile of construction is much higher, electric traction is less favored on long-distance lines with the exception of long-distance high speed lines. Electric trains receive their current via overhead lines or through a third rail electric system.

So, here for your enjoiment, the Top Ten Pictures of trains:

(Shameless self promotion)... i.e. this is my picture.

red flash

by Toni_V

Mount Rainier Train

by moliere1331

Mystery Train
by Rod Monkey

Guilford 343
by Lawrence Whittemore walk a timeless warning""
by PrASanGaM i haven't seen the advertisement
by ph0t0 Milan Train Station at Midnight
by Stuck in Customs The Train Enthusiast
by MarkyBon This is becoming a habit
by stevacek Snow Train
by norjam8

Call you up in the middle of the night

Like a firefly without a light

You were there like a blowtorch burning

I was a key that could use a little turning

So tired that I couldnt even sleep

So many secrets I couldnt keep

I promised myself I wouldnt weep

One more promise I couldnt keep

It seems no one can help me now,

Im in too deep; theres no way out

This time I have really led myself astray

Runaway train, never going back

Wrong way on a one-way track

Seems like I should be getting somewhere

Somehow Im neither here nor there

Can you help me remember how to smile?

Make it somehow all seem worthwhile

How on earth did I get so jaded?

Lifes mystery seems so faded

I can go where no one else can go

I know what no one else knows

Here I am just a-drownin in the rain

With a ticket for a runaway train

And everything seems cut and dried,

Day and night, earth and sky,

Somehow I just dont believe it

Runaway train, never going back

Wrong way on a one-way track

Seems like I should be getting somewhere

Somehow Im neither here nor there

Bought a ticket for a runaway train

Like a madman laughing at the rain

A little out of touch, a little insane

Its just easier than dealing with the pain

Runaway train, never going back

Wrong way on a one-way track

Seems like I should be getting somewhere

Somehow Im neither here nor there

Runaway train, never coming back

Runaway train, tearing up the track

Runaway train, burning in my veins

I run away but it always seems the same

Thanks everyone for sharing

Goodnight and Enjoi.