The Best Job in the World

photo by Ballard Avenue

We've seen this bridge before, but it's enough of a Ballard landmark it deserves another post. It seems to me that the bridgetender's job would be the best job in the world. You report to work, inspect your bridge, then settle down with a good book. When a train comes along, you lower the bridge. Wave to the engineer. Watch the train go by to make sure there's nothing wrong with it. Raise the bridge. Watch the boats go by underneath. Repeat as necessary. What's not to like?

I'm sure that the bridgetenders would have all sorts of stories about perfidious railroad management and obnoxious engineers who blow their horns as they pass by your bridgetender's shack and boaters who forget to wait until the bridge is up. Whatever. Every job has its drawbacks. But this one still looks pretty good.