Coffee Pot #3 March 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]

Hudson#685

Kevin,

Good luck with the job. Drive safe.

John

Thanks, John,

 Just checking in while on lunch break, 1 and 45 min drive to get here. I am already wondering what I have done.   Will be fighting with IT most of the day. Looking at the trip to Fargo next week, I think I am going to drive the first one just to see the countryside.

Boss is on vacation and not much direction here.  Glad you guys drove those beer cars past my spend button last night.

Mike, blownout and Banks prayers for you guys.

Have a good day guys.

I will check in later,

Kev.

 

 

[Anonymous]

RockIsland52

Brent......re your target for current layout work, is that Easter 2012 or 2013?  Better check the Q's "honey do" list, the one she keeps, not the one she gave you. 

Jack - I have it cleared... "Honey - do WE have any plans for this coming weekend?" TheQ - "No. Would you please stop asking? There is NOTHING scheduled for the weekend of 3/31"

So there you have it folks... Keep nagging her and she'll capitulate!

I do know that we have house cleaning that needs to take place, but I'll cover that during the week so the weekend cleaning is quick.

[SPMan]

RockIsland52

Good Afternoon Y'all From Crystal Clear Taxachusetts,

Rain moved off the coast this AM and we are left with seasonal temps in the mid 40s moving forward.  Just the little nitrogen-enriched rain we did get over the weekend makes it look like someone flipped a switch, turning the lawn from Winter brown to half green!  Daffodils all in full bloom and the tulips are not far behind.

It sounds from this morning's postings that those in need of prayers are making headway.  Prayers continue.   

SJ........just continue to do the opposite of what the Chief does and you will be back at 100% in virtually no time. 

SP Ray.......I am afraid to ask what you did to your neck yesterday at church.

Bob........sorry to hear that the car was a total loss.  Better than YOU being at a total loss.

Jeffrey........you have our permission to take a week off from your treadmill and recover.  

Brent......re your target for current layout work, is that Easter 2012 or 2013?  Better check the Q's "honey do" list, the one she keeps, not the one she gave you. 

Fife.....re "splash down Wednesday," is that "launch for the 2012 yatchet season?  Brrrrrrrrr!!!!

Chief.....re the poundage you can't seem to lose, don't they have salads South of the MD line? 

Mitch/Charlie.......re mowing during a March for the first time of your Michigan history, does this one count as the last one for last year or really the first one for 2012? 

Later, gang.  I have to go get some new pants tailored for length.  I finally have given up my several years' fantasy of fitting back into so much old clothing.  It's those six barrel lower abs that keep getting in the way.

Jack 

 

 

Jack, you're not going to believe this, but the service at church was billed as a "healing service".  Maybe someone up there doesn't like me.  I know that's wrong but it is ironic.  I'm still taking Tylenol every six hours but sleeping a little better.  I need to get this ailment evaluated if it doesn't clear up soon.  Probably try to schedule a visit to the local M.D. this week and maybe he will send me to someone else for an evaluation.  I have seen an orthopaedic doctor with knee problems in the past so it would probably be him.

We had a good rain yesterday.  Wind blew hard and rain was coming down sideways for a while.

I'm behind on reading the coffee pot so I will offer prayers for those with needs.  I did go back far enough to see that Mike posted that Lucas had taken a turn for the worse.  Prayers sent for them.

Ray

[ChiefEagles]

Afternoon with stuffed tummy. Off to the lake house for a night.  Neighbor says lake in parking lot and grass just as high in yard.  Will service lawnmower and then mow and mow.  No fertilizer there this year and see what a mess,

Kev, safe trip.  Sometimes the long drives are worth it if great and different scenery.

Bob, thanks for the French lesson.  Went with the French restaurant I had breakfast this AM.

Fife, last transit meeting, DOT was pushing 1/2 cent sales tax for transit and raising gas taxes in NC.  Think we are second highest in nation. Got to stop.  Saudi's have guaranteed oil if there is a shortage due to Middle East problems.  Surplus in US and gas still going high.  Government is worthless.

Jack, yes on salads.  Fried chicken salads in super large bowls.  Plenty of sweet ice tea [with lemon].  [Mom said, "Eat all on your plate as children in China are starving."  Remember]

Later

[SPMan]

ChiefEagles

Afternoon with stuffed tummy. Off to the lake house for a night.  Neighbor says lake in parking lot and grass just as high in yard.  Will service lawnmower and then mow and mow.  No fertilizer there this year and see what a mess,

Kev, safe trip.  Sometimes the long drives are worth it if great and different scenery.

Bob, thanks for the French lesson.  Went with the French restaurant I had breakfast this AM.

Fife, last transit meeting, DOT was pushing 1/2 cent sales tax for transit and raising gas taxes in NC.  Think we are second highest in nation. Got to stop.  Saudi's have guaranteed oil if there is a shortage due to Middle East problems.  Surplus in US and gas still going high.  Government is worthless.

Jack, yes on salads.  Fried chicken salads in super large bowls.  Plenty of sweet ice tea [with lemon].  [Mom said, "Eat all on your plate as children in China are starving."  Remember]

Later

Chief, would that French restaurant be Jock in the Box?

Ray

[rtraincollector]

Well after going back and forth took a real good look at what was at hand in swapping the GP's around so I could make the GP-7 TMCC and the GP-20 conventional see they are the opposite at the moment and after playing with the GP-20 and seeing how easy it was to disassemble it came evident it was easier just disassemble them one at a time and reassemble after repainting the frames and just swapping the shells. so now next trip to the store will be looking for some spray paint the tones I need/want.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

SPMan

 

Chief, would that French restaurant be Jock in the Box?

Jack dans la boîte? Inquiring minds want to know!.

[Stourbridge Lion]

Sadly my concern this morning has already become true, Fires! have broken out...

Several fires break out near Aspen Park, Keystone and in Morgan County

http://www.9news.com/news/article/259012/339/Residents-evacuated-due-to-fire-in-JeffCo

 

[AF53]

Brent -

"Jack - I have it cleared... "Honey - do WE have any plans for this coming weekend?" TheQ - "No. Would you please stop asking? There is NOTHING scheduled for the weekend of 3/31""

You've got to be kidding! Nag nag nag all you want but we all know that women are like the wind!! Need I say anything more??

 

Ray

[jeffrey-wimberly]

OK, I'm calling it a night early. Ran trains about half the day. See y'all tomorrow.

Tonight's photo taken with the train on the move.

[8ntruck]

Sunny and about 80 today.

Jeffery - that Alaska locomotive has apparrently not been near your paint shop yes - it has not acquired any L&A markings!

Applied fertlizer with pre-emergence crabgrass control to the lawn tonight.  With the weather lately, I probably should have put it down about 2 weeks ago.  Used a small hand cranked broadcast spreader.  Sure is quicker than my drop spreader, though not as precise.

About all for now.

[sir james I]

36 now with a freeze overnight.

I didn't do much today, watched a couple movies on cable and had my nap. No train news from anyone today. Waiting for the thingy guys..S.J.

[wrmcclellan]

Evening all!

Checking in but been too busy to keep up with the Pot.

Got enough rain here last week to refill the lakes.

Hope all are well and for those in need.

Have a great day tomorrow all!

[blownout cylinder]

Good Evening/Morning

Had some sleep and managed to get into the trainroom to run some trains tonight, as well as getting to clean out some old cupboards we have in our garage..good that the weather as as cool as it was..otherwise it would have been a real sweatbuster of a job!!

Well, we got a phonecall from our friend's wife tonight ...he is resting comfortably tonight...he was up and about earlier this evening so that is a good sign...I did manage to talk to him and he said that everything is looking like he may be out come next weekend now....

Gotta go do a few things before sleep ...have a good evening/overnight/morning..or what have you!!

[submmbob]

Evening all

After I got off shift, I sanded and primered the baseplate for the ZW. Seemed a shame to put a new cord on it w/o at least painting the plate. Got the airbrush ready to spray the hull of a small model of the Iowa I have (Note to self: do not, repeat, do not keep mixed paint and thinner for over a year in the spare airbrush jars). Well anyway, I now have a dark red hull.

Jack - I'm just glad everyone, including me, was ok.

Ray - how 'bout Chez Wendy's?

Time to find dinner and a pillow. For the Chief's benefit I'll make a salad.

Bob

 

[Demay]

Konnichiwa,

 

The past few days have been pretty busy leaving me no time to post.  This past Saturday I took the two older kids on a snowboarding trip.  The bus ride took about 3 ½ hours but was pleasant.  It’s amazing how much different this part of Honshu is compared to where we live near Tokyo.  As we ascended in altitude it became clear this part of the island received much more snow.  The homes and businesses were pretty much encapsulated with snow with the exception of their front doors and driveways.  This is an awesome area to ski and snowboard and we were not too far from Nagano which hosted the winter Olympics a few years ago.  The snowboarding outing was great and even though I had never snowboarded before I did quite well.  The kids had fun but the Princess struggled with it.  She is very cautious and afraid to get hurt which does not go well when trying a new sport.  The boy had no problems getting the hang of it.  The fact that he has no fear helped him in this regard.  At times he believed he was better than he actually is and would end up doing some nice face plants after trying some tricks.  I had some nice falls too, but mine were not due to me trying anything fancy.  We may try to go again before this winter season ends.  It was snowing quite a bit when we were leaving the ski/snowboard resort so I think we should be able to. 

 

On Sunday we had some friends over for dinner.  I smoked a brisket which came out great and I made some tasty barbecue sauce to go with it.  I spent the rest of Sunday and Monday catching up on schoolwork.  I just finished reading all the posts for the past few days.  I hope everyone is now feeling better.  I will continue to pray for all of us need. 

 

As for gas prices: the US is now just experiencing what other parts of the world have known for many years.  Chief makes a good point about the government’s inability to affect gas prices; however, the one place they could start is by removing or reducing the taxes they impose on gas.  Fife is correct about some places using less but across the world demand is up.  The US companies do export oil even though most people don’t know that.  China and India are consuming great quantities of oil nowadays and we now live in a very global world/economy.  I would like to believe if enough of us in the US stopped buying as much gas that the prices would go down, but with demand increasing from other places it is likely that will not happen.  The Middle East produces will have to pay for the increased demand as well so we don’t have much relief on that front.  Obviously we need to produce more on our own and the government needs to loosen the difficulties the oil companies face in producing more oil.  It’s easy for us to complain about the prices but contrary to what some in the media report, the oil companies are not in a conspiracy to gouge us.  It would be too large of a gouging effort to keep covered up this long.  The simple laws of economics apply in regard to offering a product at a price people are willing to pay for it.  As much as we complain we still buy the gas.  If I ran a business and my job was to increase my stockholders’ wealth I would do the same thing.  Truth be told: very few people in the world need to buy gas.  It is a luxury we have become accustomed to.  If it affected our budgets that badly we would once again turn to laws of economics and change our spending patterns to make sure we had enough money for gas.  We don’t do that anymore as a society and we expect the government to give us free stuff and fix our problems.  If the price of gas affected my quality of life that drastically I would have to stop spending money on my other luxuries (hobbies, eating out, vacations, etc.) and also consider other modes of travel: mass transit, carpooling, biking, etc.  I think it is absurd when folks complain about gas prices while they are spending $4 on a cup of coffee they could make themselves or when they are waiting in line for the latest iPad.  It comes down to making fiscally wise choices.  I’m sorry for the rant but too many people in our society forgot what personal responsibility means. 

 

Welcome to NCT.

 

Sayonara,

 

Joe

[Hudson#685]

Good Morning,

Winter is back!!! 31 this morning. Guess who turned on the outside water and sprinkler system Saturday? Whoops.

Darren: Fires, this is the time of the year with low humidity, dry brush and high winds. NJ has a Red Flag warning today. We have been fortunate so far this year in the Pine Barrens, so far.

AF53, Ray, Your package is in the rec room by the turtle tank.

Blownout, good news about your friend. Continued Prayers.

Joe, sounds like you and the family are enjoying Japan.

Continued Thoughts and Prayers for all in need.

Have a Great Day,

John

[laz 57]

Hi GUYZ,

  30 her etis morn going to 51?  Cold morning here farmers are worried of nipping the buds.

BLOWNOUT, great news continued prayers.

SOURBRIDGE, PUT OUT THOSE FIRES!  You need rain like we do.

DOUG M, CRYSTAL LAKE makes the news again.  Saw it on Sunday nite on NBC, about hiring of a Vet, big CONGAs.

Stay frosty,

laz57

[blownout cylinder]

Good Morning

We are now sitting at 18F right now. Just lovely..have not gone out yet to see how our apple trees have done..seems that they survived last night though...so far...

Going to have a somewhat quiet day today..need to fix a few things around the house then get some painting done for a new backdrop as well..that is...if I am permitted to do such....

Got our early morning phonecall from our friend this morning..he is doing fine..or so he says..nurse confirmed that he was..have to check on this you know...we are bringing him his acoustic guitar so he can work some riffs out for a new song he is working on...or get into trouble with..one of the two..

Darren, and any others looking at wildfires:  We have not seen anything like that up here yet but we have had several dry weeks here as well...take care around those things!!

Have a great day!!

[cheapclassics]

Good morning all,

IIABSDISEI with temps hitting the 60s today after a cool start.  Long night last night.  Lucas was released yesterday.  That is the good news and the bad news.  Lots of miscommunication and non communication between him and his sister.  Not sure what is going on exactly.   I hope everyone has a good day.

Keep on training,

Mike C. from Indiana

[Blueberryhill RR]

Good Morning from Blueberryhill RR....

It is a cold and frosty 28 degrees. Going up to 60 today with sunshine.

Today is a busy day. I have an errand to run and then a haircut. Be back in time for lunch and a nap. Baseball season starts next week. Thank goodness.

Dining car is here with Cheerios for breakfast.

Y'all have a great Tuesday.

Chuck

[ChiefEagles]

Morning from lake house. Turned cold. 41 with high of 60. Back to 41 tonight. Big jump to mid 70's tomorrow. Grass mowed. Lake level in ramp parking lot. Came up 3' since I was here the other week. LateqrS

[Anonymous]

Mornin' Fellas

Demay - Partially correct on government affecting the price of gas. The oil companies can only export oil they pump on PRIVATE land. They can NOT export oil pumped on PUBLIC or FEDERAL land... so that begs the question - why won't our government open our VAST tracts of FEDERAL land to oil drilling? In Saudi Arabia EVERYTHING is owned by the government and therefore they dictate how much can be exported. This is why gas is somewhere around $.60 per gallon. IF our government would open ANWAR, allow for drilling in North Dakota, open the shallow waters off the East and West coasts, and reopen the deep waters, we would control some 80% of the Worlds oil reserves... yes folks there is THAT MUCH OIL under America. Also, Mexico is only tapping some 10% of their reserves. So 5 years ago when our Democrat controlled Congress banned drilling in ANWAR, and 2 years ago when our President banned drilling in deep water, and prevented drilling off the coasts, and banned any exploratory drilling they in effect KEPT US DEPENDANT ON FOREIGN OIL. The additional regulations on coal power generation plants that are causing them to close and no new ones built to replace them, no construction permits for new nuclear facilities, and the additional regulations on oil refineries causing many to close and no new ones to replace them are all contributing to the rising cost of electricity AND gas prices... it is just too bad so few in America are willing to do the research to find this out... and our media refuses to report on this. 

[Stourbridge Lion]

Good Morning CTTFans...

Here is the latest news; the largest of the fires which broke out around 5:30PM grew from 15 acres to 3,000+ acres in a matter of hours do to strong winds.  They evacuated 900+ homes already and were fighting the fire from the ground only yesterday do to the winds but I believe I heard an air assault started this morning now that the winds have slowed down.  There are several other fires that have broken out all across the front range as yesterday our humidity dropped to 5% and with no snow/rain now for nearly a month it didn't take much to start them.  Smoke in the city is not as bad this morning.

My thought go out to those impacted and still in harms way this morning...

One fatality, homes lost in Lower North Fork Fire in Jefferson County

http://www.9news.com/news/article/259104/339/Large-fire-scorches-Jefferson-County

[sir james I]

33 w/bright sun now, 30 overnight going to 50s. It doesn't look like the predicted frost affected us,  right here anyway. I have no plans but granny will be busy this afternoon. I'm reading CTT a little each day will get-er done soon. The price of gas effects everything we buy in that it has to be transported to us so everything goes up. How many of you guys do the grocery shopping? the prices would scare all of you. And most cities in this country do not have the transit systems many overseas cities have. We need our cars and gas...S.J.

[Anonymous]

Brent,

                 Dictate is the right word to describe it.  Ever notice how they are pushing the volt's supposed MPG as well with the TV commercials?  Ford doesn't advertise their Focus as much which easily gets better than 45MPG, yet the Focus has obviously outsold the volt.  I wonder why chevy is advertising so much right now?  Me thinks the gas mileage claims have nothing to do with it... 

Mike,

            Continued   I've gone through the same thoughts, especially after what happened. 

Banks,

               

I've been very busy between work and wrenching on the GL.  It is torn down to have the timing belt and waterpump, cam and crank seals, and raditor with both hoses and thermostat to be replaced.  Looked underneath better, and found more rot.  It reminds me of the Socialistfire because of that.  I will keep going though since first gen Probes will be modern classics in a few years, while the Socialistfire's will continue to be worthless throwaways.

 

[RockIsland52]

These were exceptional posts, JoeyD and Brent, ones that took you some time to put together.  Re the crude/gasoline demand, I think you both have made a number of valid points. 

On the supply side, it is in the short and long term interests of the OPEC countries to keep supplies at a level closer to the demand and not go to the next level and overproduce.  Brent is right.  We are sitting right on top of one significant solution to our energy problem with supply, and Brent named not one but several examples.  

The U.S. Department of Energy whose sole initial mantra nearly 4 decades ago was to reduce our dependency on foreign oil has done what Government does......spend a ton of taxpayer dollars year in and year out without the substantive results to show for it.  Whether that be exploration, drilling,  transport technologies (i.e., pipelines), or recovery technologies (shale).  Whatever is on the solutions list has its vociferous detractors.  Viable solutions remain on the table, now as then. 

Oil companies are not stupid and won’t spend money on something that has a good chance of a lower return or no return due to the usual government stalemate.  Regardless of the party in power, neither party has and has had the political stomach to break the energy stalemates when votes or political contributions (and their careers) are on the line.

On the demand side (bottom up pressure), it might be safe to say that Americans, more than anyone else in the world, choose to buy more vehicle than they need 50% of the time.  

 “Just in case” (size, weight, luggage, seating, hauling), and we have a penchant for performance (horsepower, engine displacement).  We know full well that these vehicles burn more gas, but we are willing to pay for it.  For the younger guys on the forum, we have been wrangling over energy independence and fuel mileage since the Arab oil embargo in the early to mid 1970s.  Not much has changed since we were sitting in gas lines waiting for our 8 gallons limit of rationed gas.  We have learned nothing.  

On a micro view of things......my family is guilty of this conspicuous consumption.  Amongst us we have two vehicles that will seat 7-8.  But combined, these two vehicles may use the 3^rd row seat less than a dozen times a year out of 730 vehicle days (365 x 2), or 1.6% of the time.  The same is true of all of that cargo capacity. The other 98.4% of the time we are collectively driving two vehicles that get arguably 20% poorer fuel mileage than a smaller, more fuel efficient counterpart, for no apparent benefit, 98.4% of the time, in days and/or in mileage driven.     

Even when we CAN use the additional seating capacity in the third row I hear.......”It’s easier to just take two cars today than moving child seats around, easier than drooping by and picking up so-and-so, or taking the dog crates out of the back.”  Buy/rent roof carriers for additional luggage capacity when required once in a while?  “I don’t like the way they look.”  Consolidate vehicles for a vacation or long road trip, rent a trailer and use the tow hitch?  “Heaven forbid, what if the girls want to go hither and the boys may want to go yon?”  Always an excuse.  Or "I need to pack for 10 days even though we are going for 5, just in case."  The overage arrives home just as unused and clean as when we left, albeit a tad more wrinkled. 

Or the easy stuff.......consolidating trips to the store.  "Nope, gotta have it right now."  Carpooling.  "I have to get up 10 minutes earlier, and/or depend on someone else, and/or stick to a schedule."  Renting (trailer, larger vehicle) what you need and don’t have situationally.  Checking tire pressure.  Driving more conservatively.  The list goes on endlessly.  Conspicuous consumption that adds nothing to the daily quality of life while piling up needless expense. 

One of our relatives from the UK came to visit and had many interesting observations about our choice of vehicles here.  They pay over double what we pay for gas (due to taxes).   One was, “I am amazed how many pickup trucks and mid/large SUVs and cars there are on the roads in the U.S., all riding with one to two occupants and nothing stowed in the back." 

On a relative basis, the citizens of the U.K. maximize the utility of their vehicles, and hence their fuel usage.  Their exhorbitant fuel taxes pay for roads and bridges that are better maintained.  And their mass transit, local and long distance, makes us look like we are living in a third world country.  We need a car to do the simplest of things while our infrastructure is in the veritable tank and is declining.

Our energy problems and those of infrastructure are solvable....when the will, the resolve, and the common good supercede political and special interests.  The core solution to resolving the political stalemate resides in TERM LIMITS, pure and simple, taking a "career" out of politics. 

Jack

[fifedog]

Mornin' boys.  A brisk 34 here in the Mid-Atlantic region.  Gonna be after today though.

Stourbridge - Amazing pics.  Hope you will be out of harms way.

88 - You, sir, are a beacon of light to the rest of us.  Good to know you solidly where the pants in Brentdom...

......

Demay/RockIsland - Great points on public transit, but Japan and the England are islands, with only a finite amount of roads and land.

I think that to truly understand the intertwinings of fuel prices, one must know how much campaign $$$ are given to each candidate by each oil company.  I mean, if we truly want transparency in our government... Agree....?  That's why I decry, WHO is on my side?

[Stourbridge Lion]

As a moderator, I would like to ask we ease back on the political posts before it starts something we have to deal with..

Thank you in advance...

[Demay]

Konbanwa,

I have time for a quick post before going to bed.  The weather was very nice today and we had the windows and doors open most of the day.  The wife used some left over brisket in a stew tonight which was extremely delicious.  I am only working a half-day tomorrow as the older son and I will travel to Tokyo to watch the Athletics and Mariners play.

I don’t want to drag the gas conversation on any longer than necessary.  Brent is very correct, as is Jack and SJ.  Yes, we could produce much more oil and other energy ourselves if the government would stop trying to tell us what is best for us.  This is a no brainer to me.  We are allowing other countries to explore oil reserves near our shores which will only perpetuate our dependency on others.  Yes, people could make better decisions about their mode of travel but our sense of entitlement will probably prevent that from happening.  I am all for people having the freedom to buy any car they want, but they have to be willing and able to pay for it and its associated costs – this goes along the same lines as buying a $500K home when you make $40K a year.  Oh, I am totally for term limits as well.  Yes, the cost of oil does affect other items as shipping costs are built into the final prices.  So are the costs of labor but no one is demanding the unions have their employees take smaller paychecks.  I do the grocery shopping and our budget so I know how expensive groceries are right now.  However, when I was a kid (which was only in the 80s) my parents only had one car.  We lived in a small town with no mass transit and we didn’t even need that car.  We could and did walk to the grocery store; we walked to school, we walked to church, etc.  My parents even walked to work when they worked in town.  When my father worked in a different town for some time he carpooled.  I truly believe the average American family is resourceful enough to figure out how to live without a car. 

Fife – I definitely want transparency, but I suspect until we have term limits we won’t fully have it.  I know many special interest groups, unions, big oil, etc. contribute heavily to all types of campaigns.  That doesn’t really bother me since it’s legal and it’s their money.  As Brent pointed out, not many Americans do their homework so they make unwise decisions based upon emotion and the media.  If people had more facts they might vote differently and the politicians who make all the backdoor deals would probably be gone.  Yes, Japan and the UK are islands, but mainland Europe is quite large and has very effective mass transit throughout.  As I said before, Europe has had high gas prices for decades and has adapted to them. 

Mike C. – I’m still praying for you and your family.  Your situation makes our gas price debate seem pretty petty. 

Chuck – Baseball starts tomorrow.  The two games the Athletics and the Mariners are playing in Tokyo tomorrow and Thursday are regular season games.  Make sure you look for me on television tomorrow.

Sayonara,

Joe