ELLIOT's Trackside Diner VI: The Full Meal Deal!

[SilverSpike]

Happy Birthday Jerry!

Here's wishing you a very wonderful day on your special day!

Now let's see if I can finish this post without blowing it away again like I did earlier this morning! and twice....... OUCH!!!!

Okay...here is some Black Bean Soup I tried to get up before lunch today.....

I ran across some really neat vids taken from the old Tomorrow show that Tom Snyder did, these YouTube URL links are to some episodes from around 1978 and is an interview with Ward Kimball, a Disney cartoonist who created Jiminy Cricket and who had 40 acres of land and a railroad in his back yard calle Grizzly Flats.  Fun stuff!

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfAA7UT7oC0 

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UA7tEsi6FB8

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVMk18e1vWI 

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD1qBA9fKFc

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYLHH4YY5lg

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9AeOWEezpg

Ward Kimball Tomorrow at Grizzly Flats - Part 7: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ4dYhSk1qg

In total its about an hour of video, really neat to watch and listen to if you have the time. My appologies if you have seen it already.

Keep your belly full and your plate clean!

Ryan    =:~)

Heh!  Looks like I got TOPS Honors today!  So here is another diner special for all you afternoon and evening folks!

Beef Wellington

 

[blownout cylinder]

Good afternoon everyone. HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you, Jerry. I've just got in from doing some work north of here and currently we are sitting comfortably at home after fighting slip and slush etc. We have a snowsquall warning in effect with some areas expecting up to 25" just to the west of us If both switchers were on the same address then the address did go south. The next question is the famous WHY??? Think 5 yr old ;"but...Why???".

[Packers#1]

Happy birthday Jerry!!!

Man, this school week has dragged on and on and on. Thank the lord tommorow is Friday!!!

[blownout cylinder]

And this would be the time of year for things to ..ggoooo...rrreeaaly...sloooooowwwwwly. It can get really picky.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

 That's a good video series Ryan, thanks for posting it.

[Robby P.]

Happy b-day Jerry.  My own birthday is coming up fast.  Man how time flys.

Packers#1, you said how your school week has dragged, wait till you start working.

As for me, one more day of work.  Watching alittle Thursday night football (Steelers vs. Bengals).

Calling for some snow.  2-8 inchs.  We are currently under a winter storm warning.  Good thing is, I only work about 3 miles away.

I guess I will watch alittle bit more, and hit the sack.

Everybody have a good night!!

[galaxy]

Hi guys

A cup of warm tea please. and I'll have mac and cheese....soft comfort food.

The tooth I had extracted ended up with a dry socket, so the pain never went away and only got worse. The dentisit re-packed it today with a derivitive of clove oil. I've had clove oil for toothaches before but this time is overwhelming and nausiating.

Being out of the hospital has been rougher than I thought it would be but I guess I am glad to suffer at home. My  other half is beginning to worry about me though.....I tend to play some of my favorite songs over and over and over and over (with the headphones on so I don't disturb others), and I have been doing that with my Celtic Thunder CD on the computer. I do this when depressed, so that is the worry. The medication has really only had about 10 days to work, and usually psychotropics take a month to show improvement. So I must bide the time.

Since I got out of the hospital almost a week ago I haven't been interested in the trains at all, but today I did look at a kit I bought some time ago. I bought an old Model Power (I know) lumber storage shed kit. It's a well worn wood shed I thought would look good next my small wooden waterwheel mill kit (unknown but I think european) I built last year. The idea is the mill is for sawing the lumber which is stored in the shed until required. I don't have room for full scale lumber yard, but thought the mill cute when I bought it, and nice once I got it together. They have somewhat of a similar style, so should look good together as an old lumber mill in the hill/mountain somewhere in the back corner.

Still not ready for TG, but the mother in law requested a good spit roasted CHICKEN  instead so I am out of turkey duty, F-I-L doesn't care for turkey really so he is in agreement with her.

It is also gettting time to put up the tree with the trains running around it. We put it up Dec. 1st so we can enjoy it longer. Artificials are like that. When Jan comes we hate to take it down. I must be beginning to feel better as I think about putting up the tree!  But then again a nice sparkly twinkly blinky tree always warms the cockles for me and makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

Maybe there's hope for me yet 

have a good night

 

[twhite]

Evening all.  Cloudy day out here in SunnyCal, temperature got up to 65.  Nice and crisp.  Pray for us, we may have a Winter, yet, LOL!

Jeff:  That derailment looked like a real WHACKER!  I hope nothing was damaged too badly.  You say your switcher just took off on its own?  Whoah!  Perhaps those little people in the switcher cab were watching THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH and decided to duplicate the train-wreck. 

CN:  Remington hasn't gotten the case open yet, but he sure is eyeing my locos in there.  I think I've got one DANGEROUS Maine Coon.  Haven't introduced him to Spooky yet, but I think when the Great Introduction takes place this Sunday, they may decide to build their own train.

Paul:  Great idea on getting Remington his own tender--just happen to have a spare from an old Walthers snow-blower kit that worked for about five minutes after I got it before the drive belt went Blooey.  Might as well put it to SOME kind of use!

Sue:  Don't worry, I'm STILL getting that Z-6 come January (assuming that Sunset doesn't back up the release for some reason).  That's why I work weekends, LOL!

Jerry: and a lot more.  Hm, 'Winter' baby also, huh?  That means that "Spring" hit your parents like it did mine! 

Well, found the problem on my #5 block out on the MR.  Seems one of my solder joints went 'cold', or was that way to begin with and just decided to let me know about it five years later.  But I decided to combine #4 and #5 anyway.  Now my Yellowstones just CHARGE up that little stretch of 2.4% that used to kinda/sorta make them pause and reflect. 

And for everyone--and I promise that this is the LAST Proud Papa portrait:

Well, at least for a while, anyway--

Best to all, prayers for those in need. 

Tom

[CNCharlie]

Good Evening Diners!

Thanks for the great meal Ryan, it's good to have you back.

Happy Birthday Jerry!! I hope you have a great time with your family on Saturday. Sounds like they have a wonderful day planned for you. It seems that I'm on 21/2 weeks older than you so I can tell you from a short experience that 61 isn't any different than 60. 

Jim, you asked if Pippa likes the cold and the answer is a definite yes. I just had to go outside to get her to come in as she likes to sniff around the yard and it seems the colder the better. Right now it's about -20C so it is a little brisk. She doesn't seem to like summer and prefers to stay inside in the air conditioning.

My wife is doing her restaurant duty tonight so it's quiet in the house. Last week she was really late coming home as a bunch of politicians were in town for a convention and they came late to the restaurant. Cabinet ministers and senators but still they were rowdy and rude. Chef just smiled as they did spend a lot.

Think I'll get a hot drink and just sit in a booth for a while. Join me if you like.

CN Charlie

[howmus]

Evenin' everyone!

Been cleaning house for the group coming over to see the Seneca Lake, Ontario, & Western on Saturday... not to mention getting a start on getting the dump shoveled out for the family that is coming for TG.  I'm down right tired.

Ryan great bunch of videos.  I looked at about half of them when I took a break and will get to the rest tomorrow.  I sure would have loved to grow up there!

Tom, what a beautiful cat!  Main Coons are very handsome fellows.  Manet my little black and white 20 pounder is laying right here by the computer waiting for some attention from me. 

Galaxy I had a dry socket when I had a my wisdom teeth out about 30 years ago.  Your post made me wince even after all these years.  Those are PAINFUL (as of course you know........)!  Hope you get feeling better soon.

[Paul W. Beverung]

Evening Gang: I didn’t get the field finished today. I’ll be back at it tomorrow. I have been having trouble with the root plow. It will not penetrate the ground so I put three pieces of 136 lb rail on it. The pieces are about two feet long and that did the trick. Since I have to cut the mesquite down so I don’t drive over the thorns it takes some time to get things done. If you have never seen a mesquite thorn think very sharp needle two to three inches long and up to 1/8 inch diameter at the base. Actually they are sharper then anything man made. They can go through a tractor tire in no time. Very nasty thngs.

 

Jerry a very Happy Birthday to you. Enjoy all the attention and don’t over do it.

O K go ahead and over do it. You earned it.

Galaxy it sounds like you have a handle on the situation. I hope that the tooth, or place it was gets to feeling better soon.

 

Lee I have heard that CN is looking at new cars. I know that the DM&IR did some tests of cars with air operated hopper doors. I like to see what they are going to get. They will have to be bottom dump and 24 feet long or they won’t be able to dump on the docks. Maybe they will come up with a new unloading system.

 

Well Mary Ann is in bed so I’ll head that way too.

 

Good Night All

 

I just went back to page 67 and it has gone over the right edge. Page 66 was that way when I checked on. Hey Bergie what’s up?

 

[der5997]

Good evening folks. A black tea, and a Wasa crisp-bread with butter and Marmite™ (Hello Gav!) and a sprinkle of Summer Savoury please. Then I must be off as it’s past bedtime. For those of you, and I think it’s quite a few, in the South and South East States, you may want to take a peek at this.http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/reuters/081120/us/usreport_us_earthquake_study No mrr today as we’ve been to town for dental check ups.  Hope that tooth gets sorted for you soon Galaxy, too much cloves could be most unpleasant. Thanks for the email, BTW, that’s been looked after. Joke for tonight: ( hope this posts smaller than it pasted in Word. It refuses to change on the page) Johnny attended a horse auction with his father. He watched as his father moved from horse to horse, running his hands up and down the horse's legs and rump, and chest. After a few minutes, Johnny asked, 'Dad, why are you doing that?' His father replied, 'Because when I'm buying horses, I have to make Little sure that they are healthy and in good shape before I buy. Johnny, looking worried, said, 'Dad, I think the UPS guy wants to buy Mom .'  Goodnight all, and God Bless. Prayers for all in need of healing, comfort and peace.

 

[JimRCGMO]

 Evening, Chloe - I'll have a cup of cocoa please. Thank you!

Tom, at first I thought that photo of Remington was of him staring into the case where the locos are.  Then I spotted that there's an outdoor thermometer outside of the window. Better watch that M-C cat, all right!

So CN Charlie,  is Pippa liking the temps better now? Does she like to live in your fridge during the summertime? And how thick is her coat of fur?

Robby, just think - if you have to walk to work tomorrow, later you can tell your kids and grandkids "Why, when I was (an adult), I walked to work through 3 miles of snow!" Hopefully, you won't have to walk it, though, unless you like the cold as much as Pippa does.

Gee, it must be train tour time lately - Terry's just finished his open house, and Ray'll be having his tour this weekend. Ray, do you have any tips on how to de-clutter, for the rest of us? I could use several, I know.

Galaxy, that dry socket doesn't sound at all good. Hope your dentist not only re-packed the area, but also has you on something to lessen the pain. Not fun, not fun at all! Your mini-sawmill sounds like a neat idea - it's amazing how a person can weather and modify some of those Model Power kits to where you don't even recognize that they ever were one. Plus, it sounds like it'll fit your space better than a bigger sawmill would.

Paul, I'm not sure what's going on with the pages as you described. For me (tonight and also earlier today) page 66 wrapped fine, and page 67 is okay tonight (well, a slight widening where DerJohn put in a long URL, but not superwide). Might want to check what settings you have for your browser, maybe, or email Bergie and maybe he can help you narrow down the problem.

Got my auction purchases in today, and I am pleased with them. Turned out that what I thought was a build date for the Katos (that would've been too late for my RR), wasn't a build date, but car type designation. The build dates for all three Kato covered hopper kits is 1949, so they'll work fine. The bank kit (the Thomas Yorke one that Sue liked) is a cute little jewel of a kit, not too big, so I'm sure I'll find a place to fit it in on the layout. Now I find myself wondering what other kits of Yorke's I can find a place to squeeze in. Added the WP gon kit (P2K) to my stack of P2K kits. Maybe I can get started on some of those this weekend (the kits, not just the P2K ones)...

Time to finish up my cocoa and head for home. Prayers for healing for those in need or pain, and a warm place for you and your furry family members (the four-legged ones) tonight.

 

Blessings,

Jim in Cape Girardeau 

 

[wetidlerjr]

Good Morning from Tipton IN !

[GMTRacing]

Good Morning All,

     17F here this am with flurries predicted and a high predicted around 32F. I'll have a regular and since Bill has dropped off the menu already, how about some of that Texas stuffed toast? No grits please.

     The house is startng to look like a house again with windows, doors (our solid wood front door was ruined in the deluge) and the siding started. We'll spend the weekend there again stripping out the remainder of the plaster and lath and finishing up emptying out the basement. Should be able to meet with the HVAC contractor this morning to go over heating options. I'm leaning towards yanking the whole steam heat system in favor of ducted hot air which would allow us to filter the air and help when we get the insulation in and tighten up the envelope.

   No train stuff the last couple of days except the dreaming bit. I'm negotiating with the CFO as to the feasibility of moving the layout further into the basement or taking over the 12 x 20 shed we built out back. The shed is ideal in a way as it has no windows and only the one double door on one end plus the basement is already wired for her wood shop from when we had the machine shop down there. Besides insulation and heat, I'd only need a couple of 15 amp circuits to run all the lights and track. Made the suggestion and we'll let it steep for a while in the noggin before bringing it up again.

    Time to get on with w..k. Todays list includes Lotus 18 trailing arms, a steering rack for same, and a rotisserie (sp) for the Indy Lights cars. See y'all later,  J.R.

[LSWrr]

Good morning, LAKE EFFECT SNOW WARNING IN EFFECT

Small Craft Advisory in Effect. Today: Snow showers. High near 30. Blustery, with a northwest wind between 16 and 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Tonight: Snow showers. Low around 23. West wind around 16 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Computer models are predicting 18” of new snow by Wednesday
morning.

Paul, I’ve seen the new cars, all aluminum bottom dump or rotary dump.  They are in service down here moving taconite and titanium slag.  

GO Buckeyes!!!!!!!! 
Lee

 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

 Good morning.

It's a little on the cool side here. 38° and clear. The high is expected to be around 50° and it will be partly cloudy.

Yesterday I finally got the spark plugs and wires on my car changed. It runs a bit better now and I'm pretty sure the remainder of the problem lies with the fuel pump. I'm not looking forward to doing that job as it requires the removal of the gas tank. That's easy enough in itself but the rear end has to be raised three feet before it can be done. Not an easy job. On the mrr front I finished rebuilding my nephew's old Athearn caboose and now have it bringing up the rear on my general freight.

Today's Weather for:
Sundown, LA  71446-6114      11/21/2008

Wind Chill:  27°F
Humidity:  60%
Dew Point:  23°F

So Far Today
High:  49°F
Low:  36°F
Rain:  0.00"
Rain Rate:  0.00"/h
Gust:  29mph NE

Important Message
    
Freeze watch in effect from late tonight through Saturday morning.

Today  High: 52    Mostly sunny. Much cooler. Highs in the lower 50s. Northeast winds 10 to 20 mph.

Tonight  Low: 28    Clear. Lows in the upper 20s. East winds 5 to 10 mph.

[pcarrell]

If Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were alive today, their infamous

"Who's on First?" sketch might have turned out something like this:

 

*COSTELLO CALLS TO BUY A COMPUTER FROM ABBOTT*

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store.  Can I help you?

COSTELLO: Thanks. I'm setting up an office in my den and I'm thinking
about buying a computer.

ABBOTT:  Mac?

COSTELLO:  No, the name's Lou.

ABBOTT:    Your computer?

COSTELLO:    I don't own a computer.  I want to buy one.

ABBOTT:  Mac?

COSTELLO:    I told you, my name's Lou.

ABBOTT:    What about Windows?

COSTELLO:  Why? Will it get stuffy in here?

ABBOTT:    Do you want a computer with Windows?

COSTELLO:    I don't know. What will I see when I look at the windows?

ABBOTT:  Wallpaper.

COSTELLO:  Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software.

ABBOTT:  Software for Windows?

COSTELLO:  No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write proposals track expenses and run my business.
What do you have?
 
ABBOTT:  Office.

COSTELLO:  Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything?

ABBOTT:    I just did.

COSTELLO:    You just did what?

ABBOTT:    Recommend something.

COSTELLO:  You recommended something?

ABBOTT:    Yes.

COSTELLO:    For my office?

ABBOTT:    Yes.

COSTELLO:    OK, what did you recommend for my office?

ABBOTT:    Office.

COSTELLO:    Yes, for my office!

ABBOTT:    I recommend Office with Windows.
 
COSTELLO:    I already have an office with windows! OK, let's just say
I'm sitting at my computer and I want to type a proposal.  What do I
need?

ABBOTT:      Word.

COSTELLO:    What word?

ABBOTT:    Word in Office.

COSTELLO:    The only word in office is office.

ABBOTT:    The Word in Office for Windows.

COSTELLO:      Which word in office for windows?

ABBOTT:    The Word you get when you click the blue "W".

COSTELLO:    I'm going to click your blue "w" if you don't start with
some straight answers. What about financial bookkeeping?  You have anything I can track my
money with?

ABBOTT:      Money.

COSTELLO:    That's right.  What do you have?

ABBOTT:    Money.

COSTELLO:    I need money to track my money?

ABBOTT:    It comes bundled with your computer.

COSTELLO:    What's bundled with my computer?

ABBOTT:      Money.

COSTELLO:    Money comes with my computer?

ABBOTT:    Yes.    No extra charge.

COSTELLO:    I get a bundle of money with my computer?    How much?

ABBOTT:    One copy.

COSTELLO:    Isn't it illegal to copy money?

ABBOTT:    Microsoft gave us a license to copy Money.

COSTELLO:    They can give you a license to copy money?

ABBOTT:    Why not?  THEY OWN IT!

(A few days later)

ABBOTT:      Super Duper computer store.  Can I help you?

COSTELLO:      How do I turn my computer off?

ABBOTT:        Click  on "START".......

[jeffrey-wimberly]

 Now that's funny!! I was having a lot of trouble with the glass of water I was drinking while reading that.

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

Good Morming......

JR .. I am glad to hear about the progress rebuilding.  It will be better than before with the expanded layout area.  That's a "done deal", right?

Galaxie .... Sorry to hear abot the tooth problem. Enjoy building the lumber shed.

JimCG ... Glad your stuff arrived.

CN Charlie ... What? Politicians were rude and stayed up late! Horrors!...

Paul.... I suspect you are waiting for results of tests yesterday, and I hope they have good news for you.

Tom ... that's some cat..... I guess you are keeping that name for the cat, but we could call it a Tom Cat, right?

I'm running trains on my newly completed lower loop. So far so good ........other than I srewed up wiring a toggle switch.

[Cox 47]

Good Morning All .....Its sunny and a cold 21 here....I'll have coffee and a couple of biscuits with apple butter please...Thank You...Thanks for all the birthday wishes yesterday...I had a great day and am looking forward to party saturday...I am still waiting for the two trailers to come in from Ebay they have already given me feedback so maybe today..

PC...Your take off on"who's on first" made Sallie and I laugh..I have heard the Abbott and Costello one a bunch of times but still laugh every time I hear it..

I was mewssing around with camera yesterday...

You all have a good one....Jerry

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

PPC ..... Funny one.... I just copied and emailed to my son, the computer guy of our family.

[howmus]

 Mornin' everyone!

Lee, we're getting some lake effect here in the Finger Lakes (may get 4 or 5 inches by Saturday) but nothing like what you folks over near Lake Erie are going to get.  My sister from South Bend is planning on driving in for Thanksgiving on Wednesday.  Hope you folks keep the plows running......... 

Philip, that is funny! One of my favorites.  As a Mac user, I have been graced with it several times.  Still funny and good to read again. 

Jeffrey, what is that taped to the "water tower"?  Camera attached to your computer?  Inquisitive minds want to know.

Zoe, just a big mug of dark roast in a FGLK mug and some old people cereal this morning.  Gotta save up for the Turkey next week. 

(edit)  Man you gotta type fast over here.  Mornin" Garry!  Mornin' Jerry! 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

howmus

Jeffrey, what is that taped to the "water tower"?  Camera attached to your computer?  Inquisitive minds want to know.

That's an old AIPTEK pinhole camera that I use to monitor the long side of the layout. It gives me this kind of view:

[howmus]

jeffrey-wimberly

That's an old AIPTEK pinhole camera that I use to monitor the long side of the layout. It gives me this kind of view:

 

Ah, yes.  I have heard you speak about that, but had never seen it before.  I am going to have to get something like that for some hidden areas on the SLOW where it would be good to be able to follow the consist through. 

[SilverSpike]

Glad you all liked those videos I found, really neat huh!

Good one PC!   I am sure that is exactly what Abbot and Costello would have come up with!  

Took Monique in today for a CT scan this morning, I guess we will get the results next week. Her pain is manageable now but still has to watch what she eats.

Hope all is well with everyone, thoughts and prayers for all!

I found this image on Flicker by Joe Canarecci who says he stopped by the side of the road for this shot, the clouds, tracks, flowers were all too good to pass up. Ther are lots of big sky and long horizon opportunities in the UP. Love this place! I thought it would make a great weekend photo fun entry even though it is not my own. 

It uses a technique called HDRI or High Dynamic Range Image where the resulting photo is actually 3 or more bracketed exposures and then merged into one file. Then using another imaging tool the high definition colors are extracted so to speak to take advantage of the dynamic color spectrum.

 

[JimRCGMO]

Hi Zoe, Diners! Zoe, I'll have a ham 'n' cheese sandwich

     

and a root beer float for now (to tide me over until Ryan posts the lunch menu).

   

Thanks!

JR, if it were me deciding, I'd go for part of the basement (wiring available, always at a tolerable temp for your layout, etc.) rather than the shed. But that's just my .

Lee, you sure are in the snow belt today, judging from that forecast. Hope you have good traction in your vehicle.

Jeff, do you have someone to help you with the fuel pump part of things? No taking wild chances, okay? I like that photo of the backside of the layout, by the way.

PPC, thanks for posting the Abbott and Costello (updated) computer story. What're you up to today, by the way?

Jerry, nice photo of the layout - looks like that one industry (gravel distributor?) is keeping busy. Keep those RR revenues up!

Ray, keep your snow shovel handy. And another Mac user!

Ryan nice photo there that you found (I can see 'desktop pic' written all over that one!). Hope Monique's  scan and results come back well.

Oh, and where's the lunch menu?

Sunny outside but cold here in Cape G. today. 32 F with a wind chill of 26 F(-3 C) and 6 mph (9km/h) winds out of the NNW. Wind has a bit of bite to it today. Good day for being inside and (tonight) doing MRR stuff.

I'll be at the window booth, watching the mixed freight switching its cars. Prayers for a warm place to be (or at minimum, a warm coat and hat), and for healing for those with ailments (like dry socket).

 

Blessings,

Jim in Cape Girardeau 

[pcarrell]

JimRCGMO

PPC, ....What're you up to today, by the way?

Just trying to keep my sanity in an insane office!

[jeffrey-wimberly]

JimRCGMO

Jeff, do you have someone to help you with the fuel pump part of things? No taking wild chances, okay? I like that photo of the backside of the layout, by the way.

 

Here's a somewhat better shot from the same location:

[JimRCGMO]

Hi again, Zoe. How about another RBF, please?

Jeff, that looks good, too, but I like that there was more action in the first photo you'd posted. Looks like your track repair crew got things cleared out pretty quickly.

 

Jim in Cape Girardeau