March Coffee Pot. 10 years old. For those to visit and chat. Open to all. Besides coffee; soft drinks, water, oatmeal and GRITS.

[lion88roar]

Evening Fellas

Fife - sorry for your and Kelly's loss. Prayers for you guys during this trying time.

Garage doors have been ordered, install date 3/10 or 3/14. We went with the dealer from Friday getting Clopay doors. Spoke with him about Wayne Dalton and he confirmed what the other dealers are saying, and they no longer install or service Wayne Dalton residential doors. Seems WD was the first to manufacture an insulated door with polyeurethane, seems the doors had issues with the foam separating from the steel, this caused issues ranging from rattling to mold. I asked him what the difference was between their Clopay doors and the ones sold at Home Despot. He said "Nothing. Other than we are offering a free upgrade to their commercial grade hardware, and we will remount your garage door openers because they aren't mounted with strong enough material. And we service what we install, you don't know who will install your doors if you get them from Home Depot." Very honest guy.

I'm staying out of the Amish stuff. My ancestry is PA Dutch (similiar to Amish & Mennonite, I actually have family that are practicing Mennonites). All I will say is every community is different, while they follow 'common' beliefs they are 'implemented' differently between communities. Amish will work for The English (as we are referred to by them), but they keep their distance. As for that TV show... if it were real The Lancaster County Police Department wouldn't have much trouble prosecuting them since they have all the video evidence they need.

[submmbob]

Hello all

Well we got at least 2 ft of snow on site last night. The road is plowed out to at least one lane. They will prob do some more cleanup tomorrow, which means I try to fall asleep to diesels and backup alarms.

Troubleshooting a new receiver this weekend. It has been entertaining to say the least. 

Joe - glad to hear you are coming back to the states. Would like to see the AF museum someday.

Chuck - I think the snow cannon got bent into a horseshoe yesterday:)

Will try and finish up the director's American Flyer and then maybe try out the Lionel coupler conversion on the Marx 666.

[8ntruck]

Cold. About 0 with double digit negative wind chill. The low temps are supposed to last the rest of the week. Just trying to stay warm and checking some items off of the honey do list. I'll vote that March is entering like a lion. All for now.

[ChiefEagles]

Home again.  Didn't take time to sign on at hotel and read. 

Some icy stuff [mainly sleet] due tomorrow PM.

Thanks Don for getting this month's Pot started.

[cheapclassics]

Good evening all,

Sleet, freezing rain, snow, we are getting it all.  Stayed home today.  Ordered license plate tags today online and federal forms to do taxes.  I know most people do taxes online or thru preparers, but I am old fashioned and stubborn enough to do my own on paper.   IRS sends forms and instructions for free so no big deal  Wife is knee deep in Oscar watching tonight so I can work on other stuff.  I see where Princess Sparkle Pony had another "great" day.   I hope everyone has a good day.

Keep on training,

Mike C. from Indiana

[Banks]

Hello there

So far only flurries here

It just occurred to me,......is March the anniversary of Navyjack's passing?

Prayers for those in need.

[Hudson#685]

Good Afternoon!

Getting ready for the Big Storm. 6-8" was the latest prediction. Went to a small local train show with my son this morning. It was empty and the prices were down. Some of the regular vendors were not there. I did pick up some parts.

Joe D: Glad you are coming back to the States. Maybe see you in York in October.

Fife: Prayers for Kelly's Aunt.

Everyone be Careful with this weather.

John

[Blueberryhill RR]

Buckeye Riveter

Demay....In fact I am in Dayton just about every month and most of the time on or near the base.  SW Ohio has several good train shows, too.  My favorite is Springfield Fair Grounds. 

Chuck.....How did you bend the barrel this year? 

We had about 3 inches this am.  Most of the snow went south towards Charleston, WV and on to D.C. 

Buckeye..... I left it out in the rain and I think it caught warp-itis.

[phillyreading]

Looking forward to setting up a new layout sometime next summer or fall(2015) if things go right with my job and all. Have been trying to buy K-Line's Reading Crusader passenger cars in 15 inch aluminum, I have one so far and the Reading Crusader steam engine cab # 117. Currently have the Reading Lines T-1 by MTH with PS-2, and a couple of MTH quad hoppers for Reading & Northern, and a Philadelphia & Reading woodside caboose. Even bought a couple of Old Reading Beer cars by Weaver, and a couple of Reading & Northern two bay hoppers by RMT.

[phillyreading]

Hey Fifedog, come on down the weather is just fine! We may have a cool spell, going down to 62 overnight and near 78 during the day for a few days. But seriously I have shoveled my share of snow when I lived in Stratford CT and also in Reading PA before going in the US Army. I have tried to drive a 6 X 6 on icey roads in Fulda Germany, it don't work that good even with all six axles getting power in low transfer gearing. Was not able to mount snow chains as the truck would only spin even in 5th gear. Now I just need to dodge hurricanes or an occasional heavy downpour. Maybe in another year FEC will complete their rail line between Orlando FL and Cocoa Beach FL and tie in to their mainline that runs to Miami FL and have high speed passenger service between Orlando and Miami on FEC tracks. Currently Amtrak stops in West Palm Beach FL on CSX tracks and then goes to Miami.

[cnw1995]

Aloha. Sunny and bitter cold. We had another 4-5 inches overnight - sending it off to SJ and Charlie. Just got in from clearing it away. I am trying to flatten some more cardboard to expand the layout farms.  MikeC, belated birthday greetings. JoeD, looking forward to your adventures in moving to Wright-Pat.

[Buckeye Riveter]

Demay....In fact I am in Dayton just about every month and most of the time on or near the base.  SW Ohio has several good train shows, too.  My favorite is Springfield Fair Grounds. 

Chuck.....How did you bend the barrel this year? 

We had about 3 inches this am.  Most of the snow went south towards Charleston, WV and on to D.C. 

[Blueberryhill RR]

sir james I

Joe you will love Ohio in the Winter.

Those guys manning the snow cannon get more snow on themselves than what gets shot away.

S.J.

S.J........That is very true. I think the cannon has a bent barrel. LOL

[sir james I]

Joe you will love Ohio in the Winter.

Those guys manning the snow cannon get more snow on themselves than what gets shot away.

S.J.

[Blueberryhill RR]

Good Morning from Blueberryhill........

Good Morning,  Joe....... I am glad to hear that you will moving to Ohio in August.  Beautiful State.

It is a nasty 26 degrees. Snow is falling now and more to come. Going up to 30 today.

Today is an easy day. We are making a big pot of chicken soup with homemade noodles for supper. That is good. 

Cheerios for breakfast on the dining car.

Y'all have a great and warm Sunday.

Chuck

[submmbob]

Hello all

Well it looks like we got over 2 ft. of new snow last night. The boys from basecamp are out plowing already. They will have plenty to push around. 

And the guys from the big telescope just radioed that they got one of their trucks stuck trying to drive in it last night, w/o chains....Looks like the plow guys will also be pulling out a pickup this morning.

Well time to find a pillow.

[fifedog]

Mornin' boys.  Mornin' English.  Expecting another foot of Snohizo, like Banks said.  Will really make burying wifey's aunt difficult tomorrow.  Thus continues our winter of discontent.

Demay - We will be expecting to see you at Fall YORK then.

AF53 - Keep running those trains for that boy, Grandpa.  They are easy to hook at that tender age.  My sister says I've turned her baby boy into a trainiac.  Cool term. I like it.

[Demay]

Konbanwa and Ohayo Chuck,

 

I know I briefly mentioned it yesterday, but today I received the official assignment notification and we will move to Ohio this August.   We had Sunday school and church this morning but only the older two kids and I went as the wife and youngest were not 100% well yet.  This afternoon the wife and I researched houses and schools in the Dayton area.  For dinner I’m making barbecue ribs and roasted vegetables.  I hope everyone has a great Sunday.

 

SJ – I know you and Charlie cannot wait for summer to arrive.  I’ll have a winter similar to yours next winter.

 

Jon – We have had a great time in Japan and had some amazing memories.  I wish I would have wrote more about and shared more photos of some of our experiences but I always seemed to get sidetracked.  We are blessed to be able to move around so often and see so much of the world. 

 

RT – I’m sorry I will no longer be able to tell you and the others what the future holds for you.   The Air Force has given my family and me the opportunity to experience many cultures and our kids have experienced things I couldn’t have dreamed of at their ages.

 

Mike C. – I will take you up on the offer.  I’m hoping to meet many of the folks from the forum after I get back to the US; it should be easy enough to figure out ways to meet up with you, Buckeye, and Chuck since you all are the closest.

 

Lee – It’s good to see you posting.  I hope all the tough times are behind you.  I’m looking forward to those Reading passenger cars.

 

AF Ray – One major perk of being back in the US: traveling to the Bronx to see Yankees games.  I’m sure I’ll take advantage to my proximity to Cincinnati as well.  That’s a great photo of Patrick.  Please get him in pinstripes soon.

 

traindood – That sounds like a complete success to me. 

 

Sayonara,

Joe

[Banks]

Hello there,

Haven’t posted much lately.  Been kinda hectic here……..and cold. I put in another ton of coal last weekend and I’ll bet better than 25% of it is gone.  I feel for those paying $3.85 for heating oil. I saw on the TV news tonight now there is a shortage of wood pellets.

Son and I emptied the barn last evening. Trying to get ahead of the 8-12” predicted for Sunday night & Monday. It was a balmy 10 when I got in the house around 9 PM. Now it looks like the storm is taking a more southern route and they’ve reduced our total to 2-4”(bad news for Fife & 88. They're gonna get the big hit)

Mrs & I had a lazy day. We went to the RV show at the Blair County Convention Center. We are shopping for a new(to us) travel trailer. Slightly larger than our 19 foot one and with a bed you can get in to with out crawling on hands & knees. It’s hard on Mrs’ arthritis.

Think I’ll head to bed

Prayers for those in need

[MichRR714]

Happy March!  Yes it's snowing again...

[cheapclassics]

Good evening all,

Good day weather wise, bad day basketball wise.  Grandson's team got pounded 37 to 5.  Good news is that grandson got 4of the 5 points.  Not much else going on.

I hope everyone has a good day,

Keep on training,

Mike C. from Indiana

[AF53]

Dont think you failed at all. This spring I'll have to post a picture with his pinstripes on.

[traindood]

Afternoon fellas and gals;       Gettin' ready for the big blow tomorrow.     Hey Ray ;  That's a swell lookin' grandson.  Glad he didn't have pinstripes on!      My youngest grandson is 12 and he loves the pinstripes.  Where have i failed?              later.

[AF53]

Good Saturday afternoon all!

Took off from work today to catch up doing things around the house since it warmed up to the mid 30's. Haven't cleaned the garage since December. Also getting the snowblower ready for tomorrow night's snow as we expect to get around 10".

Caught up reading the pot from the last week. Good to see most are doing well.

V8 & RaySP - You guys in the left coast, good luck and be careful with the rain and mud. 

JoeD - Your moving around so much has many upsides for your family, probably some down as well. There's always time to set your anchor down later so enjoy the ride and good luck.

HudsonJohn - I'll see you later to pick up my box!

MikeC - Hope you had a nice birthday yesterday.

Traindood - ARoid was never one of my favorites ever since we learned what he did in Texas. I just hope our pitching staff holds up. Tanaka seems like he has a lot of pitches and has a cool temperament.

Fife - More royalty joining your kingdom? Nice!

Here's an updated pic of my grandson Patrick who's now 7 months.

Later................

[SPMan]

D. Baker, you're right!  The media does hype these weather events.  I think we have received between 3 and 4 inches up here near the foothills according to my poor man's rain gauge. (empty vase on the patio). No mud or even muddy water down where I live.  We had a real hard shower about 12:30PM. but it didn't last long.  All my drains seem to be working well outside.

Taking a crack at making a small pot roast today in a crock pot.  Smells good so far.  Should be ready for dinner tonight.

Haven't heard anything about Nor Cal this week end.  I only went there once.  To far to drive for a train meet. 400 plus miles.  Don't need anything anyway.

later,

Ray

 

[rtraincollector]

You know I would someday like to goto Ohio to compare the difference between the Amish in PA and Ohio I wonder if there is any. It would be interesting.

My parents were god friends with one Amish family even went to a farm auction with them as they wanted to buy the farm for there use which in the Amish community the church gives them the money and in return they give there present farm to the church for a new family. This was back in the mid 80's it shocked my father when he pulled out a wad of cash ( from the church) and paid for it in cash and I believe it was over $200,000 but that's how they work they pool there money for the better of the community.

Not much going on here today. Went to the store to buy some eggs got out of there after spending $50 but the had some good sales so in all it was worth it.

Now to relax for a while lol

[Buckeye Riveter]

rtraincollector

I go by the experience I have learned about Amish I grew up by in Lancaster, PA there real funny who they will or will not work for and I was not really trying to imply it didn't have Amish workers just I doubt it was owned by Amish. Not sure in Ohio or PA anymore as have been away from them in PA but from what I remember they put up with the Mennonite but didn't like them as a whole because of them driving cars and all. They of coarse like them as a whole better than most of the other people but wouldn't say that right out as there to polite when your polite with them. I also know they can ride in a vehicle but can't drive or own one ( Amish) But even back then I saw where it was changing so as I said now not sure of how things are up there in Lancaster but do believe basically PA or OH Amish is basically the same.

but while were talking about this what your take on Amish mafia ( me I think its all bologna its made up for TV) As you said the Bishop decides on all things for the community 

Didn't mean to come across trying to correct you just I doubt that it was owned by Amish I know there out of this world craftsmen I have seen them at work and the stuff they make. Also I see a lot of stuff down here claiming its Amish built that I doubt ( at flea markets)

 

RT....

If you had read my post it said, "Wayne Dalton is made in Ohio by the Amish in Holmes County."  I don't see the word "owned" in my statement.   

I have been around the Indiana, Ohio and NY Amish, they are all different.  In NY, the Amish on the east side of the county were different than the west side. 

In Ohio, the Mennonite and Amish seem to get along.  The problem we had in Ohio was with a splinter Amish group that fled Holmes County, then returned, invaded an Amish home and proceeded to assault the men to cut off their beards.  That group is now in the Federal Pen on civil rights violations after a trial in Cleveland. 

I have not seen evidence of any type of Amish Mafia and I think it is a fabrication. Some of the families don't get along, and if it gets bad they have some type of church council that works to straighten out the problem.  The Amish wanted to do that in the case of the home invasions and beard cuttings, but the federal prosecutors would not allow it.

There is a generous amount of items that are implied to being made by the Amish. Of course there is an equally abundant amount of goods that are supposed to be made by Native Americans.  Obviously MTH and Lionel products are not Amish made because we have too many problems. For those of us that have had the experience of taking a buggy ride in Central Park, New York, many of those carriages are made in Mt. Hope and I believe that establishment is owned and operated by an Amish family.  We occasional see a white carriage with gold trim being loaded on a truck for shipment.

Of course my favorite establishment in Amish Country is the Charm Saddle and Boot Shop.  They make custom belts to your size.  They can even make a belt big enough for the Chief by using the Percheron draft horse as a model.   Do you see the resemblance?

 

[fifedog]

Phillyreading - back.  Could use some West Palm Beach right about now...

[phillyreading]

Good day from sunny south Florida! We expect to see 78 to 82 for a high today with an overnight low of 72. Have been away from the Coffee Pot for a little and need some. Anyway I have been trying to get by, lost my house last June to foreclosure, had a bankruptcy about two years before that, so now I am renting in West Palm Beach FL area. My layout has been down for a while and am planning to start another one in a year or so. I have bought a few things for the layout since I took it down, like some new engines and some new freight cars, and a new passenger car. Also sold a couple of things, a Williams Pennsy S-2 steam engine and a couple of Lionel passenger cars. Went to Pennsy over the summer and was at Strasburg PA in early August, and Roadside America a couple days later, even went to Hershey PA.

[cheapclassics]

Good morning all,

I was waiting up for the new thread to start, but decided to go to bed instead.  Northwood Flyer, good to see you posting here.  Joe, you will not be far from us either, and we are in the Dayton area from time to time.  Perhaps we could meet when wife and I go to Mid-Ohio.  Off to see grandson play.   I hope everyone has a good day.

Keep on training,

Mike C. from Indiana