[quote user="Overmod"
54light15 The Garden State. Driving down the NJ Turnpike between Newark and Elizabeth, Isaac Asimov called it "Mordor."
Saruman's Isengard would have been more apt as a Tolkien reference.
Much of what I remember from my childhood was gone before I could really remark on it -- the long "tunnel" on the north Garden State Parkway under the Koppers Koke plant being particularly memorable. Now all that is open land...
The standing joke for years was that we kept the Turnpike corridor isolated as a means of ensuring all the transients kept going between borders without messing up things like the Skylands, the horse country around Morristown, the areas that produce the best sweet corn and tomatoes in the world ... etc.
It is not true, a base canard, that the "garden" in Garden State refers to tank farms.
[/quote]Yes, Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay!, which somewhat tells of farming in New Jersey, is far removed from the tank farms.
Johnny
54light15The Garden State. Driving down the NJ Turnpike between Newark and Elizabeth, Isaac Asimov called it "Mordor."
Speaking of "The Sopranos," and to get a little "railroading" back into this, ever wonder what happened to Bobby Baccala's O gauge layouts?
They found a home with these folks, and they're there to be seen during their open houses.
www.njhirailers.com
Quite a place, jaw-dropping actually.
Welll...it is where "The Sopranos" muffler man is located amongst other spots from the show's intro. Not to change the subject.
The Garden State. Driving down the NJ Turnpike between Newark and Elizabeth, Isaac Asimov called it "Mordor."
Obviously NOT a New Jersey native! For those of us from that part of the state it just "smells like home!"
Also a source of pride for some of us, looking at all that industrial power. Beauty's in the eye of the beholder, after all.
It was only when I read the comments (often a mistake!) following the article that I learned that the dog in question, rescued by a NJ Transit conductor, is very old and deaf. How long would she have lasted on the NEC tracks without the compassion and help of a number of kind hearted people?
It's the same with the duck story: the world is full of good people who are glad to help once they see a way they can.
Speaking of New Jersey, anyone ever hear of NJ's unofficial motto?
Here it is, courtesy of "Weird New Jersey" magazine...
"New Jersey, where there's a rainbow in every puddle!"
Think about it.
The duck story reminded me of that!
I have to tell this. It has nothing to do with trains. I was westbound on the highway in Oakville, Ontario. Traffic is not moving at all. People were angrily getting out of thier cars. Many walked to where the traffic was stopped, as if at a barrier. What was causing the jam? A mother duck and about 8 ducklings were walking on the road. Happiness ensued amongst all concerned. The duck family got off the road safely into a nearby pond. People walked back to thier cars smiling. A nice moment.
It's a great news article Firelock. Thankfully we have people like Conductor Howard Kempton. What makes it doubly fabulous is that the dogs owner was frantically out looking for her dog for 2 hours beforehand. Been in that situation a couple of times over a lifetime of dogs.
Her comment " you are hero's and I'm forever grateful" says it all. All in New Jersey to boot!
Thanks Firelock-- it's a lot better than all the ridiculous bait trolling and back and forth high school stuff that goes on these days in the Forums.
Annnnd...It's a great railroad story!
Jeez! Here I was posting what I thought everyone would enjoy, a real heart-warming human interest story, and YOU guys are turning it into a gross-out contest!
Oh well, that's OK, al long as you're all having fun! That's what this Forum's all about, ain't it?
Yes, back to railroads and dead animals. I grew up in Amityville, New York and at County Line road was a freight spur track. There looked to be a gen-you-wine hobo jungle near it with old campfires, empty beer bottles and plenty of dead dogs. One looked just like the beagle we had.
My model train pal, George once spotted a man and a woman having sex on top of a box car on that spur track, in plain view of people walking or driving by. Must have been fascinating to a 12 year old! There were several spur tracks back then, one served the coal dealer, another that served a small dairy. They were removed when the tracks were elevated.
54light15When I lived in New York I never saw a vulture anywhere. Here in Canada? None.
We do in fact get Turkey Vultures in Canada, even if you haven't recognised them up in the air. I used to see them soaring, usually high up, when I lived in Ontario, and see them occasionally here in Alberta.
After this brief diversion in ornithology, now return to railroads ...
When I lived in New York I never saw a vulture anywhere. Here in Canada? None. I was in Georgia on Jekyll Island and saw vultures eating road kill. First time I ever saw them and they looked just like they do in cartoons. Hunched shoulders, naked necks, ugly damned things. Like congressmen, or in our case, provincial premiers.
BaltACDA shortage of Vultures and other carrion feeders?
Do you mean Congressmen? Probably because it's too far north.
54light15South of Beacon, New York on the Hudson river the road, route 9G comes close to the tracks on one side, the hills on the other. Deer come out of the hills to drink out of the river. A deer hit by a train at over 100 mph is not a pretty sight. The grassy area between the road and tracks where you cross to fish in the river is full of 'em. Lots of flies, too. Nasty!
A shortage of Vultures and other carrion feeders?
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
South of Beacon, New York on the Hudson river the road, route 9G comes close to the tracks on one side, the hills on the other. Deer come out of the hills to drink out of the river. A deer hit by a train at over 100 mph is not a pretty sight. The grassy area between the road and tracks where you cross to fish in the river is full of 'em. Lots of flies, too. Nasty!
Having walked more than enough track over the years - there are always a number of dead animals that didn't make it out of the way of the train.
There has never been a farm animal killed by the railroad that wasn't some kind of 'Grand Champion'.
Unlike the LIRR...
When I commuted there you could count about 30 dead dogs between Rockville Centre and Jamaica in varrious stages of decay.
I was riding the rail-fan window when we hit a seagull, shook up the engineer, when he got to Jamaica he got out to inspect the bonnet of the train.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
...is an old rule used by film makers to avoid upsetting the audience, unless of course they're making a canine tear-jerker like "Old Yeller."
Here's a story from todays NJ.com about a New Jersey Transit conductor who lives by that rule as well.
https://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2018/10/fast_thinking_conductor_uses_his_pet_smarts_to_sav.html
Nice work Cap'n, you da man!
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