MisterBeasleyThis is depressing. I don't know where I'll be going yet or whether there will be room for a layout, so I may be packing them up for good.
ROAR.
LION will come and hold your paw.
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
Good morning ... Coffee and pancakes, please.
Mr. B ... Sad to read your post. There are many who have been through what you are going through, and to say the least, it is no fun. Regarding your model trains, I would suggest you considering joining a model railroad club to run trains and make friends. There was a forum member who often posted photos of a beautiful club layout in the Boston area, and he was a member of the club. You may wish to check it out. Meanwhile your friends here in the Diner definately care about you. Prayers for you.
GARRY
HEARTLAND DIVISION, CB&Q RR
EVERYWHERE LOST; WE HUSTLE OUR CABOOSE FOR YOU
Mornin'! Coffee, eggs, grits, sausage and toast for me, thanks!
Off to Boston tomorrow. So if you're riding and you spot a guy in an Amtrak shirt, jeans, and boots who looks slightly crazy and out of touch come say hello! I might have my headphones in jamming out, and will probably have a laptop out, and I might be talking to myself, but feel free to butt in so to speak! Then headed west. Chicago then Seattle, gotta go be a facilitator for a culture/leadership/team building conference. Wow I make it sound like a chore but really it's not. I'm actually pretty excited for that part. My better half has never been to Seattle, never been on the Empire Builder, either, so it should be quite the experience for him. He's a photographer by trade, he asked "Well how many pictures do you think I'll take?" I said "Bring your extra memory cards, you'll need them."
An artist sees the world in colors and patterns. An engineer sees the world in mathematical equations. Both help shape the World and are just as important as the other.
Morning all
Weekend, looks like it is gonna be wet...I had hoped to get two days of work on the ole hobby barn looks like zero now...
Steve - OKAY ! Yummy Alfredo !!! : ) THANK YOU! Love that stuff.
Brassbootleg - LOL Your description of your trip sound like you are gonna have a good time !
Henry - That is why I do not do facebook...
Batman - Really ! Hmmm I wonder if there are any movie being shot in my area maybe I could get them to come by my house ......? I could use a bit of paint and fresh carpet !
Angel - LOL Coaster ? Unles it is Z scale I dont think that will get you far. Stores like Home depot always have damaged material ( especially ceiling tile ) that they will let go cheap. Just have to keep checking...
Dave - Both Garry and Ulrich are correct ! I have been there and in my job I am teh equivelant in the construction industry a 4 star general. No matter how well or how hard you try their will always be folks who think they can do it better...The biggest thing I have learned is to ask and include teh thoughts of all the members and take their ideas and incorporate as much as possible their ideas into the end product...That way they feel like they have a stake in teh work at hand, are important, they are listened to and thus they "buy into" the club. This is VERY IMPORTANT concept. Oh and you have to have an even temper ( that will given you instant credibility ) and have a Very thick skin, Do not takle criticism personally. Look at it as an oppurtunity to grow.
Jabear - Doughters are special arent they. I have three and they make me smile all the time and when I am not smiling they are breaking my heart ! Love tehm very much. Glad you had a relaxing weekend ! Any modeling getting done ?
Yannis - Glad to see you back in here ? Whats on your agenda for today !
Mr. B - Good morning I hope your day gets better !
Lion - ROAR to you also ! Is that good morning in Lion lingo ?
Ulrich - How are you feeling today ? I will try to watch your videos tonight.
TTYL
YGW
YGW, please check your PMs.
--Steven Otte, Model Railroader senior associate editorsotte@kalmbach.com
YGW-
I definitely will! Of all of the lines we run, the Empire Builder is my absolute favorite. I love it. In the almost 4 years I've been with Amtrak, I've taken it 216 times. And the thing is, I usually see something I've never seen before.
And I'm a really upbeat person in general to start with. Slightly insane (probably), but that's territory of working with Navy logistics to get things done and being an engineer. It comes with the job description, really.
Top of the morning from the sunny West Coast.
Ulrich, I always get a kick out of the fact that I am going to bed just as you are getting up. Over the years I remember times when you and I were the only ones on the forum. There was that kid from Hawaii, but we haven't heard from him in a long time. I think it is a nine hour difference between us. Does Germany just have one time zone?
I have brought in some Kilbeggan Irish whiskey for later. I'll just put it under the counter for safe keeping until happy hour and then pour everyone that wants a snort, a double. Ken is always so generous and has a glass of Crown Royal in my hand before I can even sit down, I thought I would share this. This Kilbeggan is so smooth, you'll have to have two just so you can make sure you actually had one in the first place. My sister travels to various places around the world a couple of times a month as a dog show judge. I usually drive her to the airport and she always brings me home some high end booze from the best producers in foreign lands. I have the best sister, she not only keeps the bar well stocked, she buys me large gift certificates for PWRS for my Birthday and Christmas. I can't remember the last time I spent my own money on trains. I think it helps her remember dear old Dad seeing me working on my own layout.
Dave I think you should go for being top dog at the club. I have been involved in community work often in my life and think everyone should take turns at the top as well as other jobs. It can be frustrating dealing with the whiners, however just tell them that they can take over from you anytime they like. That usually shuts them up fast.
As far as buying the car, go for it. You can always sell the thing. My son is going to Ottawa in the fall. He is however going to need a car to get to his movie sets as they are often out in the boonies. Public transit just doesn't work for us as we are still too rural. Even getting to the major studio's is a problem. So he will probably just sell it after three or four months.
I have a P/U truck to haul our 8000lb. trailer. You become everyones best friend when you have a P/U. My neighbour wanted me to haul his 30' boat and put it in the salt chuck. I told him, my truck is not going anywhere near the ocean. It only takes one dip in the briny ocean toss to turn it into a rust bucket, so it ain't going to happen. The back half of his broken down truck is missing from the rust and he had the nerve to ask me to do the same with mine!
YGW, The people that we know that leased their houses to the film industry, picked their new flooring, paint colours and brands and even some new lights and it was all written in to the contract. Our house could use a make over, however it can be very disruptive to the lives of the occupants as you need to move out for a few weeks.
Here is an IMDB list of 7400 Vancouver projects. Extras are currently earning $80,000.00 to $100,000.00 a year. The kid has met lots of students and retired people from countries all over the world that just come to be extras to help pay for travel, university or see them through till ski season. With the filming season being May through October, it can be a good way to earn some spare change.
http://www.imdb.com/search/title?locations=Vancouver,%20British%20Columbia,%20Canada&ref_=ttloc_loc_2
All the best to all.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
BATMANDoes Germany just have one time zone?
Brent - Germany is a rather small nation, less in size than Montana and basically with a north to south orientation, which puts us all into the same time zone. Germany has about one fourth of the US population, which equates into 11 times the population density. Makes it difficult to find a remote location. Places to find peace and quiet are either up in the high country of southern Bavaria or way up north on one of the minute islands off the coast in the Norh Sea. Something like this:
At hide tide or during a storm, that´s not the place you would want to be:
Some of the little islands have their own rail link to the mainland:
The lines are owned and operated by the Coastal Protection Authority, but islanders are allowed to use the tracks with their home-built contraptions. You need to know your tidal calendar by heart before setting of for the mainland, though!
Thank you all for your support. Even without the divorce, this house is getting too big for just two people now that our daughter has moved out. If the wife and I were close, which of course we're not, we could live in a smaller and cheaper place. But, a train room like I have now would be unlikely, although I've seen some fine basements.
And, such activities as skiing and hockey are best left to younger men, I'm afraid. I feel lucky that I've been able to do them this long.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Mr.B. - I know how hard it is having to think about getting out of a hobby which has been accompanying one for almost the entire life. I have been at that point not so long ago, but with the help of the friends in this place I was able to get back into it. I don´t think the picture is as bleak as you may see it at the moment. There are many different ways of enjoying model railroading and the fun you can get out of it is not at all related to the size of your layout.
I am sure you will be back to happy model railroading once you are through with all the awkward procedures ahead of you!
I am keeping my fingers crossed!
After Noon Diners
Flo, Ed, Jan, Brent, Mr B and Iwill have a Crown Royal with a Chaser.
Brent OK, I am not into the hard stuff far as drinks. It is more for my freinds here at the dinner. By the way, why is your site name Batman?
Mr B I kind of know the way you feel. Main reason I have stopped trying to make a better layout. Way things have been going the last 7 years I don't think I will be able to keep the crunnet home.
If I was single, I could easyily see me living in a 1 room studio around 600 SQ feet. Current garage is right around that sizes. Just need a bathroom, small kitchen, closet, desk and chair and a pop up trundel that would roll under the layout. I am a simple person and while I sort of like fancy things, I don't need them.
Later, Ken
I hate Rust
Just got done giving a tour of the Model Railroader offices to a charming gent who came to see us all the way from the Netherlands. He told me that while he used to model European railroads, MR contributing editor Pelle Søeborg's articles inspired him to model the American West in HO scale.
So here's a discussion question for the long holiday weekend. What article, author, or layout most inspired your modeling?
For me it was Allen McClelland and his Virginian & Ohio. I was particularly awed by the way his layout interacted with Tony Koester's Allegheny Midland and Steve King's Virginia Midland in the fictitious Appalachian Lines. Those three modelers opened my eyes to the importance of operations in making a layout seem real.
And you?
Evening all
Steve I replied to the PM.
Brassboot;eg - Why "slightly insane" what does that look like ?
Batman - geez what a sweet deal ! How does one find out about these deals ? LOL I have a friend who has a 'Bumpa sticka" on his truck that states " yes this is my truck and no I am not moving you.."
Ulrich - I could not live on one of those islands !!!
To answer Steve's question: David Barrow. I got to see the second version of his CM&SF railroad in person at an Austion MR Jamboree. It was the first walk around layout I had ever seen in person, and he modeled the West Texas area where I was from, and it was Santa Fe to boot! The 1st and 2nd versions of his Cat Mountain were awesome! His current dominos may be easy to build and quick to operate, but they are not the same as the previous versions of the Cat Mountain.
I enjoy reading and seeing Tony Koester's work. I always hoped I would run into him at a Purdue football game (not that he went to those); just to meet him. I think he models a convincing version of history.
Mr. B.: Hang in there. You will find a way to keep your hand in the layout construction & operation business. It could be worse, you could move to Texas, where there are no basements.
Ken: I need to try your ATF as a track cleaner on the small layout I am building. As it is currently stored in the garage, the rails get dirty in a hurry.
Got news last night that my son passed his FE exam; apparently, that is something you have to do in order to work as an engineer not of the railroad type. Now he just needs to find a job, in or near Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Daughter has started her summer internship with a national homebuilder in Savannah, GA. So far, she likes it. As the summer progresses, she should get more responsibility in the management of several phases of construction on a few home projects. Hopefully, I'll get the chance to drop in for a quick visit.
YGW- Well, I'm not fully insane...at least, I don't consider myself to be. At least, not yet anyways. I tend to talk to myself a lot, bounce off walls, and go off on random topics when the mood strikes.
Tin Can - tell your son congrats! The FE is a royal pain in the butt, but it's done now!
Good Morning, Everybody!
It´s ra*ning for a change. With the exception of the few recent nice days, the month of May has shown to be one of the usual wet ones in our neck of the woods.
Steven - I think the most influential model railroader for me was John Allen. When I received my first copy of MR back in the late 1960´s, I thought I could not believe my eyes when I saw pictures of his Gore & Daphetid RR layout, which started rather unspectacular in size but grew to an empire of magnificence. Mind you, layouts in my country usually were those table top plywood centrals, covered with a grass mat, a double track oval of tin-plate Marklin HO track with a few passing sidings and spurs, underscale Faller buildings and dreadful Faller plastic fir trees. John Allen´s layout was magic to me and seeing what a layout could look like marked the beginning of me turning into a "real" model railroader.
Ulrich´s Train Movie Theatre is living the Asian continent and moves to Australia for today´s feature of
Camels and Cangurus - Riding The Ghan
The Ghan is an Australian passenger train service between Adelaide, Alice Springs, and Darwin on the Adelaide–Darwin railway. Operated by Great Southern Rail, it takes 54 hours to travel the 2,979 kilometres (1,851 mi) with a four-hour stopover in Alice Springs.
The service's name is an abbreviated version of its previous nickname The Afghan Express. This nickname is reputed to have been bestowed in 1923 by one of its crews. The train's name honours Afghan camel drivers who arrived in Australia in the late 19th century to help find a way to reach the country's unexplored interior.
Starting in August 1929, The Ghan first ran on the Central Australian Railway originally built as a 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow-gauge railway that ran as far north as Alice Springs. In 1957, the 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge Stirling North to Marree line opened between and the Ghan was curtailed to operate only north of Marree. In October 1980 the remainder of the line was replaced by a new standard gauge line, built to the west of the original line. This was extended northwards from Alice Springs to Darwin, opening in January 2004.
Enjoy!
it depends on how or if the Club is incorporated and if it has a non-for profit status as to the legal responsibilities of the President
Hey Bear!
The club is incorporated as a 'not for profit' organization so that part is pretty clear.
As far as setting the tone for the club, I think I can steer the club in the right direction but I'm worried about becoming a bit of a dictator when it comes to controlling the meetings. Unfortunately our meetings have occasionally deteriorated into yelling matches as the evening wears on, and it seems to get worse when we are making crucial decisions. There's the rub. We need to make a number of crucial decisions in the immediate future, most of which are related to the move to a new clubhouse and the designing and building of a new layout. There is an obvious need to establish some rules of conduct for the meetings, and to make people observe them. The bottom line is that we are not moving forward as effectively as we should be IMHO, and that needs to be addressed. I have some serious thinking to do!
Thanks Bear!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Mornin' folks! Strong cup a black and some fruit, please! Light breakfast before traveling, I think. I should find it odd that I'm willingly awake this early, but I do not. Instead, I find it odd that I was dreaming I stepped in dog turd.
Oh and by the by, I don't recommend traveling with a photographer. Well, at least mine. Why? Well let's see. I have barely one suitcase plus my carry on. The other one? Two suitcases, plus TWO carry ons. And it's not all clothing, either. The extra suitcase and carry on are camera equipment.
cudaken Brent OK, I am not into the hard stuff far as drinks. It is more for my friends here at the dinner. By the way, why is your site name Batman?
Ken, My surname is very close to the word Batman, so from my earliest days of going out to play as a kid, as soon as anyone heard my last name they just started calling me Batman. It followed me all the way through school and into my 36 years working for the Federal Government. There was no use fighting it and it didn't bother me anyway.
At work, I would be out on the ramp at Vancouver airport and I would have two radios in the pockets of my coveralls with mic's clipped to each side of my collar, one for communications around the airport and the other for communications around the greater Vancouver area. I also had a third com device that let me talk to Ottawa and my counterparts in other cities across the country and around the world directly. It would not be uncommon for me to be out next to noisy aircraft and hear "BATMAN ARE YOU THERE?" It would be someone in Ottawa or elsewhere trying to get a hold of me when it was really hard to hear. Of course, I would always answer "go ahead commissioner".
Well we just had climbed into bed and got a call that the FIL had to get to the hospital PDQ. Turns out he went to the doctor for a sore leg and his blood test showed a possible clot. So the wife is off to deal with that. The FIL has been having chemo and radiation for bone cancer and clots can be a side effect. The Doctor told him to call an Ambulance and even though it is free he still wouldn't do it. OLD PEOPLE! Sheesh.
Steven, as far as who inspired me in journey we call model railroading, I can't think of anyone really. That being said I had no exposure to publications as a kid, so was somewhat sheltered from the accomplishments of the greats.
As a kid, the railroad was always played a roll in our families lives as someone was always going somewhere and a few family members worked for the railroads. The CPR is part of the fabric of the country and Canada would not be what it turned out to be, without it.
I think every railroad has a different feel to it, much like each of our homes have something that makes them different from each other. While working it would not be uncommon for me to go to the yards of the CPR, CNR, BCR and BNSF in the Vancouver area. Each company had a look and a feel different from the other. So I try to make my CPR layout feel CPR by using RR specific infrastructure. I think it works. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
A good night to all, except Ulrich. Ulrich, whats for breakfast.
Brent - I just had my usual fare - a typical German breakfast, which looks like this:
Rolls, butter, jams, honey, a glass of OJ, a soft-boiled egg, a bowl of muesli, slices of ham and cheese and lots of coffee!
OK, leave out everything except the coffee and the muesli.
Is the egg considered pretty standard/typical ?
Good morning everyone! Rainy week here (odd...) so the atmosphere is too "heavy" for headaches etc. A strong cup of coffee for everyone please.
YGW thanks for asking! Lots of work and modeling on the benchwork. Weathering a hotel structure at the moment and doing some designing at the same time. Friday today, and unfortunately i ll have to wait for the weekend to make some more progress. How is the barn progressing?
Mister B., i hope for all the best about the situation and how it evolves.
BrassBootleg Is the egg considered pretty standard/typical
Is the egg considered pretty standard/typical
Indeed it is!
Actually, boiled eggs appear to be the only way eggs are consumed for breakfast. Unless you stay at an international hotel, you´ll have a hard time to find scrambled or fried eggs on the breakfast menu. In a typical German "Gasthaus", you will be served the boiled egg without being asked - it´s just standard!
Yannis - ra*n in Greece at this time of the year? Sounds very unusual!
The grey sky above us now has some blue patches, giving reason to believe it´ll still turn into a nice day!
Sir Madog BrassBootleg Is the egg considered pretty standard/typical Indeed it is! Actually, boiled eggs appear to be the only way eggs are consumed for breakfast. Unless you stay at an international hotel, you´ll have a hard time to find scrambled or fried eggs on the breakfast menu. In a typical German "Gasthaus", you will be served the boiled egg without being asked - it´s just standard! Yannis - ra*n in Greece at this time of the year? Sounds very unusual! The grey sky above us now has some blue patches, giving reason to believe it´ll still turn into a nice day!
Well then! I've only been to Germany once, and that doesn't even really count. It was a layover in Berlin, and I wasn't allowed to leave the airport.
Germany could be a beautiful country, if it weren´t for all those Germans living there
I don't mind Germans. It's the Brits I can't stand.
I can trace my German origin all the way into the 13th century, but I can´t say I favor the company of the majority of the people living in this place. Maybe I have spent too much time in other countries!
I like the British sense of humor and their bility to take "the mickey" out of themselves - something Germans lack at all!
Is it that worse than some Americans ?
Edit: I was going somewhere else with that train of thought but I think the train hit the rails and left me at the station... aha well amended to fix my poor grammar.
Steven Otte Just got done giving a tour of the Model Railroader offices to a charming gent who came to see us all the way from the Netherlands. He told me that while he used to model European railroads, MR contributing editor Pelle Søeborg's articles inspired him to model the American West in HO scale. So here's a discussion question for the long holiday weekend. What article, author, or layout most inspired your modeling? For me it was Allen McClelland and his Virginian & Ohio. I was particularly awed by the way his layout interacted with Tony Koester's Allegheny Midland and Steve King's Virginia Midland in the fictitious Appalachian Lines. Those three modelers opened my eyes to the importance of operations in making a layout seem real. And you?
Steven ... When modeling in the 1970's and 1980's, I was influenced by John Allen. I was trying to make a Midwest version of the G&D in my 1900 era railroad.
My current railroad was influenced by David Barrow mostly because his domino construction techniques which I modfied so I could have a sectional layout. I wanted to build a layout that could be moved if necessary, but it is not intended to be portable. I was also influenced my Allen McClelland's V&O.
Good morning everyone. First off- the presentation went well last night. 30 or 40 people, including the director of the Pennsylvania trolley museum, a representative of PA representive Bud Cook's office, and a couple other notables. Normally, people who come to these meetings, if they don't like the presenter, they will show it. But, I had just about every single person who came stay and were intrigued by it for the whole slideshow.
Thankfully this sore throat I am presently battling didn't affect my voice that night, but I'm starting to feel it now.
The move is going okay, now comes the hard part of moving all the heavy stuff, like dressers, a freezer and so on.
To the question: I guess my modeling inspiration has been all over the place. I started with the Pennsy, just because I liked their steam locomotive designs and all the photos in Model railroader. Then after seeing how much they cost...I switched to a different road-Norfolk Southern. After seeing how many people actually model it, I wanted to grab a railroad that stood out from the crowd. So then after seeing the Utah belt articles, I decided to freelance. I kept this going until I found my new road-the Wheeling and Lake Erie railway.
I chose the Wheeling and Lake Erie, just because of their locomotives, and the fact the east end is in my neck of the woods. I will eventually model Greentree to Connelsville PA (50 miles, with some selective compression), and protolance it to add more industry to the line. This line is something else to watch trains use. I think over a dozen bridges, tons of arches, three or four truly amazing viaducts at least 150 feet off the ground-BUILT IN 1929!- and the grade in some spots. I also like the varity of EMD equipment they run.
(My Model Railroad, My Rules)
These are the opinions of an under 35 , from the east end of, and modeling, the same section of the Wheeling and Lake Erie railway. As well as a freelanced road (Austinville and Dynamite City railroad).