Coffee Pot #2 Februry 2012 5+ years and going strong and its for all to chat. Plenty of coffee and sweet ice tea for all. Come and join us and chat. GRITS for the Yankees.

[KRM]

 

Turned into some day….I no sooner got off the post this morning and called the foot Dr. But wait, they don’t open till 9:00 so at 9:15 I called and asked about what the next step would be for the stupid foot. She had to talk to him and call me back.. So 10 min later the phone rings. And I figure it is the foot Dr, right?  Wrong it is my daughter wondering what I was doing today…..never a good question from one of you kids it always leads into something they want.  So I told her I was waiting for the foot Dr to call me back and a long silence followed by OH.     Knowing better than that I ask why?? 

Well Lexi has been kicked out of daycare because she got into a biting contest with another teething baby.    Okay fine what do you want? Well dad can you pick her up……….?????

    Well I need to see what the Dr wants to do.. silence…Ok dad I will see what else I can do. 

Doctor calls and wants me to try a different med so they will call it in. Good, good. I wait 30 min call WallyWorld to see when the new meds will be ready, they say no one has called them . 

I call the daughter back and ask if she has found anyone to get the kid out of daycare jail and she said NO. 

Alright I will meet you in P-Ville in 45 min to bail her out. Daughter said good.

Off I go 41 miles to P-ville pay the bail and I pick up the little munchkin. I decide to just use the daughters car and leave her my truck. Well the kid plays she is having a fit to make her mom feel better about herself as I am leaving but two sec after I shut the door she is laughing and having a good time.   By the time I get 4 miles away she is sound asleep in the car and all is well. 

We get back to the house and she is chasing the cat around the house laughing and having a good time   but I don’t think the cat feels the same way.  I make grilled ham and cheese and we have a late lunch. She eats good,   I check the diaper all is well.    I decide to go to WaldoWorld to get the meds because there is a message on the answering machine that they are ready. Pack the kido up and off we go 9 miles to Ottawa. Get lucky and get a close spot so the walk with the 15 month old is not too long on the stinking pain filled foot.   In and out of the store in a flash and heading back home. Humm smell something kind of rank..

 I get back and change the diaper. Not too bad very wet and deer droppings in it.     Finally after two episodes of Sponge Bob Square Pants and one of Tuff Puppy    I lay her down and she is sleeping with the cat. 

I am beat.

It is great to be grandpa.

Kev.

[rtraincollector]

RockIsland52

rtraincollector:

Buckeye Riveter:

WAIT A MINUTE!!!! 

TODAY ISN'T MY BIRTHDAY!!!

WHO THOUGHT TODAY WAS MY BIRTHDAY????  It is not until the 19th.

 

Today is your normal birthday you get each month the 19th is your actual birthday

 

Yes, but how old is Buckeye now?  He looks and acts a lot younger than the Chief, don't you think?

Jack

Thats because of all the grits the chief keeps eating its been aging him about 1.23 years to each of ours as the north actually slows down our aging

[jonadel]

Finally, a free day and night for me so here I sit doing some catching up on the Pot.  It is a busy time of year for me so I relish these days.  I was supposed to be in Des Moines this morning at 7:30 but I simply said no thanks as I wanted some home time and let a very sore foot rest.  Not sure what I did (other than remove it from my mouth, again) but trying to walk on only one foot isn't so much fun.

Super Bowl.  I'm not sure the best team won but what I do know is that the Giants were ahead when time ran out and that's what matters, what a finish -- wow!  A win is a win, fun game to watch.

It appears that winter has finally shown up, we had our first significant snow on Saturday -- about 7.8" of very heavy, wet snow.  We desperately need the moisture as it's been dusty dry here since July, we couldn't shut the rain spigots off all spring and June but since then there's been nothing that counts.  Kinda fun to see the grand kids enjoying their new sleds they received at Christmas.

I've been trying to plan a mini trip for the boss and I as she has 5 PTO days to use before March or she loses them, those days are from 2011.  I looked at maps this morning and I'm thinking about us heading towards Oklahoma City to see the National Memorial and then over to Branson, MO for a couple of nights of entertainment.  That would be a new direction for us and just a days drive from here.

Soon spring will be here and then June, we have been planning a Family & Friends trip to Alaska for two years and we are READY!  At this point there are about 30 of us making the trip and everyone is really fired up, should be fantastic PLUS we will ride the Alaskan railroad from Denali to Anchorage!!!!  Hurry up June

 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

RockIsland52

 

Yes, but how old is Buckeye now?  He looks and acts a lot younger than the Chief, don't you think?

Nah! Chief came over with the Vikings way ahead of the Mayflower. Buckeye was helmsman on Noah's ark!

[dwiemer]

What a day it has been!  Finally home.  Had several cases.  They are working with a new schedule that really seems to slow things up.  Makes the bean counters happy, but that is all.  This is following the European model that limits a given schedule and if a big case lasts longer than it's slated time, the following cases either have to wait till all other scheduled cases are done, or they will cancel and reschedule.  I can see how patients are going to love this!  It is a backward way of rationing care.  Oh well, I will try to hold further judgement and see how it all works out.

Not much to report train wise.  Just opening a Korber model that I had purchased at York a couple of years ago.  It is a nice looking kit, but will have to see how things work after I start building it.

Have not had time to check on other posts, will have to look later.

May each of you be blessed this week,

Dennis

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Good evening. It's been a long day. I woke up with a blood sugar level of 45 at 6:15 am and took steps to get it up to where it belonged. Chili with beans works wonders! Lots of protein. 13g protein, 2g sugars, 7g dietary fiber and 250 calories. That got it up to 115 as a later check showed. I got very little done this morning. My father wanted my help on something that he could have handled himself. I helped him with it then let him know my displeasure about it. At 2:30 I left for my foot doc appointment. I told him he wouldn't like what he saw and sure enough he didn't. The new boot they got me last week is tight. On the very first day it destroyed all the tissue that had built up and a few days later a Proteus infection moved in and set up housekeeping. I trimmed away what I could then cleaned it up with a couple of alcohol pads. Doc said I did a first class job. He did a little more then put a bactrim cream on it and wrapped it up. The problem then was to make the boot a little wider if possible. He got it so so I could get my foot in it comfortably yet have it be secure. I have to have the toes as even as possible with the front and that puts the ankle (yeah, right!) just ahead of the vertical bars that go up eather side of the leg. It just aches now. It was outright bones on fire pain before no matter how I had it on and walking without is impossible. I can get a VERY short distance and that's all. I'm wiped. I have very severe nerve damage due to diabetic neuropathy and a near fatal case of spinal meningitis when I was a kid. The source of most of my childhood disabilities. The diabetes later didn't help at all! from the elbows down and the knees down I can feel bone pain acutely. Other sensation, well I feel a little pressure and enough heat to let me know I'm about to get burned but that generally isn't until I grab the object. Now this last weekend and this week I have been feeling searing bone pain because the bones of my foot (mostly fused together) Have had a LOT of pressure on them and it was enough to make me moan and hiss. A person with normal nerve response likely wouldn't have been able to even put a little on it. It's a real train wreck in there! The Sunset Limited crash has nothing on it!

Well, finally got the boot comfortable enough I can tolerate it. The doc wanted to try a larger boot but that didn't fly. It was longer and higher but it was actually narrower! I could ebven get the dang thing to start going on my foot! It was like Cinderella's stepsisters trying on the glass slipper! It just wasn't going to happen. Well, he gave me a prescription for Cipro to handle the infection. Once I got out of there I had to do some work on my van. I noticed on the way in that I had no turn signals. The flashers still worked but wouldn't lock when the brake pedal was pressed. That meant no brake lights. So I went in on flashers. One cop stopped me to see what was wrong. I told him and where I was going and that I'd be going to an auto parts store afterward. He said that was fine. Drive careful and keep the flashers on but get it fixed today. Nicket ticket, no bad attitude. I got away from as quickly as i could before he changed has mind. I already knew what the problem was but I had no time to fix it right then. I had done some work on the engine the previous day and when I put the doghouse back on I pinched a wire and the fuse for turn signal signals blew the first time I indicated a turn. It turned out the brake lights worked fine. The fuse was for the turn signal and backup lights. Well, that wire just hangs down above to doghouse and when I locked it in the wires insulation was cut and it grounded out on the metal cowl rim. That means the fuse popped the first time I backed up, which I have to do to get out my driveway. I located the shorted wire, wrapped it up well with electrical then taped it to a bundle of wires under the dash and well away from the doghouse.I put a small wire jumper in the fuse box for the short trip to the auto parts store. Bought a box of the required glass tube fuses (the van probably came over on the Mayflower), pulled the jumper and put in the fuse. All is well again with the fuses. I went the pharmacy to get my antibiotics and had my other meds refilled at the same time. I finally got home a bit after 6. Now I'm tired.
 
That's funny, I was tired this morning and now I'm tired again. I guess that makes me retired.

In case I don't post again tonight here's a photo. David will check on me later.

[sir james I]

28 degrees now

I ran 2 trains today on separate loops so no pileups. Stayed in today. TV and PS2...S.J.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

If you guys go over to Elliot's Diner don't forget your fire-proof undees. Somebody (not naming names) said that David and I are one and the same. I told politely that we're not and a check of the IP's would prove it. While he was posting from my place his and my IP's are the same. After he went home they were distinctly different. David came in later and lost it and ripped the guy a new one! What can I say say? He's young and hot tempered. I won't cuss the guy. David will.  If he was joking he better be forthcoming with an apology soon. As far as responding to that flame post I'm not touching it with a ten foot pole.

[Brutus]

Howdy guys - weird weather here again and maybe snow for tomorrow?  Lots of weirdness and changes at work, but we'll see what happens.  After about 22 years there, it seems like we see things come and go in cycles.  A lot of "old ideas" are being run out as "new ideas", but this time with computers   Maybe it will work! 

Just deleted a bunch of griping about pay freezes and geometric loss of income etc.  Oh well, God has blessed us.

TARDIS is ready and we'll got get some banilla - I know it's over at Jim's house!

[8ntruck]

Been busy lately.  One of my projects at work is going into time crunch mode, the re-organization resulting from the company's aquisition is progressing - seems like there are several new announcements every day pertaining to procedures, documents, org. charts, etc., etc.  It is going to be months before it all gets sorted out.

While I've been with the company, it has gone through a leveraged buy out, several re-financings with different investment groups, two trips through chapter 11, and two aquisitions similar to the one in process now.  So, here we go again.

To Brutus' point - what goes around in business, usually comes around again.  Just hang on, and enjoy the thrill ride!

My Postwar Celibration Series N&W Space Freight set arrived today.  Just had time to open it up and drool on it.  Looks like I won't get a chance to run it until Sunday.  My only complaint so far is the ding in the box placed there by the boys in brown.  No internal damage, but, of course, the ding is on the top of the box in the picture, not the bottom of the box without the picture.

All for now.

 

[dwiemer]

Morning all.  Getting ready to head in.  Have some work this morning, my semi-annual MD's visit at 1, and then I have to go do a site visit to a hospital.  Should prove to be a busy few days ahead.

Jeff, Diabetic Neuropathy is no joking matter, take good care of yourself sir!  We see a lot of that in our vascular clinic. 

Have to get going.  Hope that everyone has a blessed day.
Dennis

[laz 57]

Hi GUYZ,

  apose to get some SNO HI O this afternoon?  Maybe this is our winter?

Stay tuned,

laz57

[cheapclassics]

Good morning all,

It is Snohioing in SE Indiana (nice of it to hold off until after the third largest sporting event in Indiana left town).  Wow, the events surrounding Jeff and Dave are fascinating.  Jeff, you dodged a major bullet there and Dave was a lifesaver.   Brutus, good news about Char.  Buckeye, a continuous Happy Birthday wish to cover all the possibilities.   RI52, I hear you on the email situation.  What a waste of electrons!  Dennis W., concerning your adoption situation, you are a better person than I could ever be.  My hat is off to you.  I think it was KRM who wrote about adventures in grandparenting, and all I can say is... True.   Watched Glee last night and Ringer as well.  Both were interesting.  I had the regular fare on the dining car this morning for breakfast before sending it to "Points East".  TBIL and I can drive.  I hope everyone has a good day. 

Keep on training,

Mike C. from Indiana

[RockIsland52]

Buckeye Riveter

rtraincollector:

Buckeye Riveter:

WAIT A MINUTE!!!! 

TODAY ISN'T MY BIRTHDAY!!!

WHO THOUGHT TODAY WAS MY BIRTHDAY???? not until the 19th.

Today is your normal birthday you get each month the 19th is your actual birthday

 

RT.....Because you and Banks seem to be the only sane ones on this forum today, why don't you stop in for some ice cream and cake later on.  We can also run some trains.

Buckeye.....even that modest assessment is highly questionable. 

Jack

[Blueberryhill RR]

Good Morning from Blueberryhill RR....

It is 30 degrees and lightly snowing. Going up to 40 today, with a little more snow.

Today is a busy day. I have an errand to run and the usual chores. And, of course, the afternoon  nap to take.

Buckeye is mad at me. He says that he is only allowed 14 birthdays a year. Not 15. I humbly apologize for saying yesterday was his birthday.

Dining car is here with an omlet for breakfast.

Y'all have a great Wednesday.

Chuck

[Demay]

Konbanwa,

I had a nice four-mile run this morning.  It was a little warmer today as well.  I had an okay day at work and a nice dinner out with coworkers.  It snowed for a few minutes this evening but it quickly dissipated.  I'm hoping for more snow soon.  I'm home now and ready for bed. 

I'll make sure to get some prayers in for all of us tonight. 

Sayonara,

Joe

[sir james I]

25 and clear this morning.

The sno- is suppose to stay south of us. We had a good size group of guys on chat last night..S.J.

[cnw1995]

Aloha.  Took the bride out for dinner last night. Or rather she met me at the door saying 'we're going out.'   Cold and grey today. No snow though. It's dry here too, Jon, though I'll take it over the white stuff.  That big Alaska trip sounds great!  Brutus and 8n, I agree with you. Lots of 'new' ideas resurfacing here too - I refrain from mentioning I can just take this and that out of the archives to show you why it didn't work in 1986    Wow, Amtrak can now run 110 mph through parts of IN and MI. Though without the upgraded grade crossings, that should be interesting.    Did someone mention cake?

[Stourbridge Lion]

Good Morning CTTFans!

It's 13F with the sun getting ready to shine; time to start melting all this snow off the side streets!

[cnw1995]

Look what i found today. Hope you can see it - the exhibitor guide to the Festival of British Railway Modeling.  Nice photos:  

[sir james I]

York badge just arrived, let's get packed.

[RockIsland52]

Good Mornin' Y'all From Seasonal Taxachussetts,

I can't wait until the son comes home tonight with the tale of this AM's protracted commute woes.  A car spun out on the highway that he must take to work (no alternative routes), moments after he left for work.  I am sure he encountered the zillion mile backup that was on the news.  It takes a lot of skill to spin out a car on bone drive pavement on a straight road without a cloud in the sky.   Chalk another one up to tailgating, distracted driving, 10 lane changes per mile, and general stupidity.

Jon........I envy your upcoming trip to Alaska.  My folks' said that in all of their travels, that trip was one of the most awe-inspiring and memorable.  On the back end, Dad threw a curve ball at Mom, Empire Builder back to Chicago from Seattle when she was expecting the return flight.    On another note, we are spoiled rotten here in NE.  Ffans expect nothing short of a world championship every season, act like spoiled rotten kids when they don't get it.  DougM and I are true Chicagoans and know differently.

KEV........your grandparenting post is a must read for all parents and grandparents out in our audience.  Your "I lucked out" diaper duties were an event not oft repeated in the grandparenting world.   And re that phone call from your daughter "What are you doing today?"  My daughter or SIL's exact words, every time.   Then they sound shocked and dismayed that we actually have a life and things to do!!!! 

Jeff........I hope you take Dennis' recent medical observations to heart.  I did, and I am following up with the SIL so he can make some well-advised adjustments with his parents if he has not already done so..  Re the ED poster?  A throwaway, not worthy of a response from either you or David.........unless the two of you want to have some fun and amusement with  it.

Brutus and Dennis.......corporate/business survival.  Good stuff.  I am a packrat when it comes to someone newer left fielder resurrecting a long-resting item I/we/others previously considered/analyzed and put to bed as impractical or less practical than an alternative. 

The best approach is to provide the left fielder-types (and their bosses) trying to make a name for themselves, while knowing very little of how things work or don't work, with the previous assessment and conclusions.  Make that left fielder person explain WITH ANALYSIS what exactly has changed to make it feasible for current reconsideration.  These types don't like to actually work themselves, but are very adept at creating unnecessary work and headache for others. 

Every person who walks in from left field needs to learn to first ask the resident experts whether a concept or a process or a structure has ever considered before.....before they grab the attention of the other left fielders, create an unnecessary boondoggle project revisiting the same ground, create more wasted effort tying up resources that you don't have, and foregoing truly valid improvement opportunities that are germain to the current state of affairs. 

0ver 90% of the time the ideas for process and cost improvement reside in the experienced, rubber-hits-the-road people actually doing the work, not in the management, the consultants, or the pencil heads.  Change for the sake of change is counterproductive, with either qualitative outcomes or quantitative results.

LAZ and all.........snow is forecast for tonight here too, so my money is on bone dry conditions as usual.   How many minutes are now left until your retirement?  

Chuck......Buckeye had a hard drive issue with his PC and lost all of the spreadsheets tracking his birthdays.  He doesn't know if he is approaching #59 or #159.

DougM........I think we have 7 above-grade train crossings here in my home town.  Changing that will not happen in my lifetime due to the direct expense and total traffic disruption.  And the knuckleheads that drive around the RR gates, ignoring the bells and lights?  They are always available to reconfirm the irrefutable laws of physics and stupidity while keeping the public safety personnel, doctors, lawyers, morticians, news reporters, and automotive graveyard personnel gainfully employed.

Later, gang.

Jack  

[rtraincollector]

sir james I

York badge just arrived, let's get packed.

Hmmm lets see if its working now.

 I'm with you SJ

been having the dangest time posting I down loaded firefox it didn't like my putor and I didn't like what it did so removed it it made my  Font small like this and that was with my settings at the larges I could do.

Who knows lol. well just relaxing today not much happening.

[KRM]

 

 

Bright sun and the dusting of snow we got last night is already gone.

Much slower day today. Took a trip to Farm & Fleet picked up cat food, softener salt and a new fire extinguisher for the basement. UPS just showed up with a order from Mouser’s with some alternative smoke resistors so it is off to the basement for some experimenting. Hope I won’t need to use that new new fire extinguisher.

Later have a great day ALL.

Kev.

 

 

 

 

[laz 57]

RockIsland52

LAZ and all.........snow is forecast for tonight here too, so my money is on bone dry conditions as usual.   How many minutes are now left until your retirement?  

Jack  

Since you asked 35550 minutes after today.  With remainder of today its 35597 minutes and counting......

laz57

[dougdagrump]

Mornin' All.

Bad day in S.D. for Amtrak. A pedestrian was hit & killed in Little Italy downtown, and at another crossing in the wee hrs of the morning some people driving a probable stolen vehicle drove down the tracks and abandoned it.

What little rain we got is gone but still pretty chilly. Hope it warms up more want to do a little yard work, I know I'll be to pooped for it on saturday.

Haven't heard anything from Atlas yet on the two loco's sent in for repair. Still have two more to go in for repair, one Lionel & one MTH.

Jon, That Alaska trip sounds great, I've always wanted to drive the Alkan Hiway but I guess that is as far as it will ever go.

Gotta get busy, later all. 

[SPMan]

Good morning, our so called rain was so little that you could almost count the drops.  So much for that.

Jeffrey, I do hope you can get your physical problems managed.  It seems like you have an awful lot on your plate. Prayers for you.  Listen to your docs.

Went to Dr. office yesterday with my wife for her 6 month check up and happily she got a good report.

My heart patient friend should be home from the hospital by today.  I spoke with him yesterday and he said they were just waiting for him to be able have a BM before letting him go.

Wife is having trouble with vericose veins and swelling in ankles so I will be walking alone until she gets better.

Saw where Randy Travis made the news by getting busted for public intoxication.  Made me think of that duet he did with Roy Rogers called "Here's hopin" which I wish I could find on you tube.  I think I heard it once on a Roy Rogers special on TV.   Anyway, good song!

later,

Ray

 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

SPMan

Jeffrey, I do hope you can get your physical problems managed.  It seems like you have an awful lot on your plate. Prayers for you.  Listen to your docs.

I'm trying the best I can. Diabetes isn't my only problem. I also have diverticulitis in both the ascending and descending colon, prostate trouble, some kidney damage, some stomach and intestinal ulcers, high blood pressure and that's just the big issues and the meds for them don't always get along.

 

Good afternoon. It's 58° heading to a high of 61° and it's mostly cloudy.

Decided I desperately needed the rest so I slept in until noon. That's a long time for me since I usually get up around 5 am. Well, if the weather stays fair I'll soon have my first mowing job of the season. It only pays $20 per job but when the customer (my father) supplies the equipment, gas and parts and helps with the maintenance who am I to complain. The extra money helps out a bit and I like doing it. I don't think I'll be doing anything today other than relaxing and watching some movies and calling the bad guys dirty names.

Look at the price for gas. Don't we all wish!

[fifedog]

Shush. Listen. SNOHIZO is here...

[rtraincollector]

fifedog

Shush. Listen. SNOHIZO is here...

Good you can keep it