Good Morning! Coffee and biscuits and gravy please. Thanks
Ulrich- Your Mother is in my prayers.
Today: Increasing clouds, with a high near 12. Wind chill values between -9 and 1. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm. Tonight: Snow likely. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 11. Wind chill values between 2 and 7. Calm wind becoming southeast around 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.
Currently it is -6 with a wind chill of -19. People, this is silly. There is no sense in weather this cold.
Robby- I’m sorry to hear about the issues Jessica is dealing with. I will add her to my list.
Jeff- Sorry about you foot. I was hoping…..well, anyway, it is a good deal on the phones and like Lee said I’m impressed they give more than the basic phone. Though I must admit I do feel a bit of underhandedness going on. Give someone a fancy phone like that and hopefully they will explore it’s possibilities and BAM! Got ’em. Still though, there will be plenty like you who only use it very little if at all other than emergencies and it is nice of them.
So, what happened yesterday? Pull up a chair and sit a spell. Flo, refill on the coffee please. Best leave the pot. OK, I needed a new snow blower. Been puttin it off for a couple years now. I have a little 2 cycle MTD that takes the better part of a day to go through and get started at the beginning of the season and then when the snow flies it takes sometimes an hour and 4 million pulls to get the dad blamed thing started and by that time, who knows. The snow could be melted. (removed long explanation why needed NOW) Well the money in the snowblower fund had grown sufficiently to allow this purchase. And I go to get one. Lowe’s, and a JD 1028e. Standing trying to determine what is worth $200 more than the one sitting next to it that matters to me other than red or green. (removed long explaining why picked green one. It involved a passing customers ravings about it though.) Ready to go, assembled oil added, just add gas and go. Guy asks if I needed help loading I say sure and off we go, he pushes to checkout then truck. we pick up to set in truck and ……UGH!!! “Yeah,” he says after the struggle for us to get it in the back was over, “that’s another thing about John Deere, the others have a lot of plastic and thin metal in them and one guy can just about load one themselves. A John Deere is all steel and it takes all two peole can do to load it.” Thanked him got in the cab and thought. “D(ang), how in the h(eck) am I gonna get this thing out? The one thing I didn‘t count on was it being heavier than ANY other snowblower I‘ve dealt with.” (Well other than the one my buddy uses on the farm.) Off on a quest for ramps that the wheels would w**k with. (removed long explanation why wood planks or the inexpensive ramps for ATV’s and such wouldn’t work) That took me right up to the time I had to go to w**k and needless to say, the snowblower is still in the back of the truck along with a set of ramps. The snow may be melted before I get it out.
Just another day in the life of Todd.
Welp best get crackin’ I’ve gotta type up a receipt. I did sell Mom’s car yesterday. $1500 for a car that Kelly Blue Books for $3500. But we all know what that means. Nothing really. Someone made an offer and, IMO was acceptable under the circumstances and I said sold. It’s in excellent shape and mechanically great, but it does need a battery and hasn’t been run in at least 3 months. BUT! Most important, it’s gone. As is of course. No warrantees expressed or implied and the owner understands the car has sat and I have no idea what may or may not have gone wrong with the car since except I was the last person to drive it and AT THAT TIME there appeared to me nothing wrong with the car other than the fuel gage is inop and had been for years. The receipt will say the same.
Y’all have a Great Day now ya hear?!!!
Todd
Central Illinoyz
In order to keep my position as Master and Supreme Ruler of the House, I don't argue with my wife.
I'm a small town boy. A product of two people from even smaller towns. I don’t talk on topic….. I just talk.
Good Afternoon,
Winter has come back. St. Peter is currently dumping a ton of snow on us. I do hope and pray that it won´t be as bad as last month.
Flo, a mug of coffee, please.
Jeff - I am very sad to hear about the development of your foot. Petra and I keep you in our !
Robby - maybe it´s just age, but I think that life was a little less complicated and stressful way back when I was your age. OK, we also had to work hard to make a living, but there was more respect and a lot more common sense in dealing with other people.
Sam - good to see you again!
Received some bad news about my mom. One of her cardiac valves refuses to work properly, putting her out now and then. She is right now at the hospital and gets a check-up, so they can schedule the upcoming surgery. It is a routine job for a younger person, but at the age of 82, the risk is much higher. Once I know when the surgery will be performed, Petra and I will stay with my dad for a few days, so we can take him to the hospital to see my mother.
Have a good day!
Good Morning everyone! Looks like I have a few States to travel through to catch up with the Diner! I'll get started while I'm on layover today. Been busy with life stuff, but will hopefully have time to get here more often.
Have a great day,
Sam
May He bless you, guide you, and keep you safe on your journey through life!
I Model the New Hope & Ivyland RR (Bucks County, PA)
Morning from the Frozen Midwest! It is zero this morning, not a temperature we get here very often. Hope the car starts.
I am beginning to wish I worked yesterday and not today. While I like snow, I hate it when the temp is in the teens. Plus the store does not have great heat either.
See you later
Ken
I hate Rust
Good snowy morning. We got about 5-6 inches, and maybe another inch today. The bad thing is, now we are getting the "Canada" cold air.
That's for the prayers . Its a thing with life.......stress!!!
Not much planned today. Keep shoveling the driveway, and get the house cleaned up a bit.
"Rust, whats not to love?"
Ray: Hope things go well for the families there...that is a rough situation for sure..
Welp, I'm on to another medical checkup of my ICD...this will see if it actually took an I'll be able to do more things with my left arm....
Have a good one people!!
Any argument carried far enough will end up in Semantics--Hartz's law of rhetoric Emerald. Leemer and Southern The route of the Sceptre Express Barry
I just started my blog site...more stuff to come...
http://modeltrainswithmusic.blogspot.ca/
Good Morning,
We have about 4” on the ground this morning, last night I had to repair a toilet and a storm door at my friend’s rental property and the roads were a sheet of ice with an inch of snow on top. My F-250 Diesel ABS didn’t care for that one bit. 1-3” today with a high of 17 degrees F wind 25 mph.
Rob, I own two centerline track cleaning cars and I highly recommend them! Best thing to come to the hobby since nickel plated track. You can use Whal clipper oil or Goo Gone. I tried the gel goo gone and that worked very well too. The cleaner surface is disposable dish cloths you can buy at any dollar store and they need replaced about every 4 months. They might be $60 - $75 for the track cleaning car but you get what you pay for and IMHO they are the best.
Jeff sorry to hear your foot condition is going downhill. Sounds like a good deal on the phone, I’m impressed they have a decent phone to go with the program.
BM1 Lee Soule USCG (ret) L.S.&W Railroad Serving the Lower Great Lakes
Chamomile tea, please.
***Ray, that sure sounds like a bad accident. Anytime life-flight is involved, it's not good.
***Jeffrey, I did the gleam method on the wife's tracks, but perhaps didn't do it right or long enough. It did work for a while. Now it seems to require cleaning every time we try running the train. Very sorry to hear about your foot condition, however inevitable. That's a tough one.
Thanks for all the suggestions on track cleaning cars. Ordered one tonight and with any luck, it will arrive in time for the wife's birthday next week.
Never made it into the train room this evening. Determined to make it down there tomorrow evening and get that "asphalt" poured. Good night y'all. Rob
Good Morning ! from Tipton IN.
Bill Tidler Jr.
Near a cornfield in Indiana...
Good evening
Rob.... Regarding track cleaning cars, I use the inexpensive Walthers box car with an abrassive pad attached beneath the car. Works OK. I also use bright boys. A friend of mine uses one of those expensive CMX (or whatever they are called) cars which have cleaning fluid, and he likes it.
Jeff ... I'm sorry to hear about your situation with your foot. Prayers for you.
Galaxy ... I hope you keep recovering. Prayers for you.
Ray ... Sounds like a bad wreck.
I completed my derilict old 1920's Kleiber truck. It's heavily weathered with rust, and it is in the weeds in the corner of the scrap yard I am making. Also, I just included the junk yard dog with a fenced area for it.
GARRY
HEARTLAND DIVISION, CB&Q RR
EVERYWHERE LOST; WE HUSTLE OUR CABOOSE FOR YOU
Evenin' folks!
Flo, just a cup of decaf for me. I'll be in the back by the stove keeping warm.
There was a terrible accident involving a snowplow and a School Bus in a neighboring School District this morning. Bright sunshine creating glare off the snow appears to be a factor in the accident. The bus drove into the back of the snowplow which had slowed to make a right hand turn. The bus driver and 2 other people (one student) were trapped in the wreckage for over an hour before they were able to cut them out of it. Two people are in critical condition i believe, and 2 are listed in Guarded Condition, but miraculously so far no deaths. Those were air lifted out to hospitals in Syracuse and in Rochester. Most of the kids (37 of them on the bus at the time) were taken by another bus to school and checked out there by medical personel for injuries. Over 20 of the them were later taken to an area hospital for a range of injuries. The investigation continues.
I got all the first place art and poetry over to the newspaper early this afternoon. also sent over a list of all the winners. One of the editors says they are planning a full page in the Sunday Paper for it. One of the Art teachers at the Public High School was very happy with the winners.... emailed me a big thank you! All but one of the high school Art Awards went to her students....
I managed to assemble a couple more belt drive tools tonight while waiting for the wash to get done. getting close to gluing the equipment in place and adding all the belt drives. THAT should be fun.
Do any of you out there have any experience with TurboCad?
Welp, I think it is time I turned in for the night....
Later!
73
Ray Seneca Lake, Ontario, and Western R.R. (S.L.O.&W.) in HO
We'll get there sooner or later!
Cederstrand Been revisiting the idea of a cleaning car for the wife's train. They are soooo expensive. Been thinking of a Centerline car with the rolling drum in the middle. (Jeffrey, isn't that what you use?) Recommendations??? If I order one tonight, perhaps it could arrive by her birthday.
Been revisiting the idea of a cleaning car for the wife's train. They are soooo expensive. Been thinking of a Centerline car with the rolling drum in the middle. (Jeffrey, isn't that what you use?) Recommendations??? If I order one tonight, perhaps it could arrive by her birthday.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
Cederstrand Been revisiting the idea of a cleaning car for the wife's train. They are soooo expensive. Been thinking of a Centerline car with the rolling drum in the middle. Recommendations??? If I order one tonight, perhaps it could arrive by her birthday. Rob, please check your personal E-mail... Johnboy out.
Been revisiting the idea of a cleaning car for the wife's train. They are soooo expensive. Been thinking of a Centerline car with the rolling drum in the middle. Recommendations??? If I order one tonight, perhaps it could arrive by her birthday.
Rob, please check your personal E-mail...
Johnboy out.
from Saskatchewan, in the Great White North..
We have met the enemy, and he is us............ (Pogo)
Oh man! We've got a cold 20 mph north wind coming off the lake. The temp is 43° but the wind chill takes it down to close to freezing. I just went out there to put the cell phone in the van and I wasn't out there but maybe five minutes and I'm still cold even though I'm sitting only 15 inches from the heater. Tomorrow night will be even colder. And this is only January?
Jeffery First thanks for the answer on the F 3 motor. I need to PM Darth Santa Fe and see if he thinks it will work. I all so think I finally have a box for the stuff I am hoping to send.
Good luck on the ankle. Scares me some and I have seen the black boots. My left ankle wants to shift inward with certain shoes and the heel wears quickly in that direction. I all so have bone spurs in the same ankle and it hurts and swells if I am on it for 1/2 hour or more. Guess it was 10 years ago the Doctor told me the only way to get rid of the problem was to have my ankle fused solid. I was riding motorcycles at the time and was afraid I would not be able to shift, so I passed on the surgery.
Snow Front I got out around 1:30 and did some running. They did a great job getting the roads cleared off!
Few more pictures, this is one of my house.
They seemed to dump extra salt in front of my house, works for me!
Work Front My store is 16.9 miles from my house in Belleville IL. Just called and Chad said the store only got 3 inches? Funny how it goes when it comes to weather.
Hope you all have a great train night.
Robby and Jessica: Our thoughts and prayers are heading your way
Jeff: Good thing programs like that exist...hopefully things will work out footwise..
Right now I have a little Spring sitting in a vase position and looking like he is getting ready to fall asleep...
howmus Jeffrey, hope your Doctor's appt. goes well. I've been trying to get the vision of an ankle THAT looks like an Amtrack wreck out of my head........
Jeffrey, hope your Doctor's appt. goes well. I've been trying to get the vision of an ankle THAT looks like an Amtrack wreck out of my head........
Well the X-rays showed just what I figured they would show. The entire foot is twisted over on it's side and it's there to stay. We discussed taking it off but that's being reserved as a last resort. What's causing all this trouble is a condition called Charcot Foot. Look it up if you don't know what it is. A more common name is 'Diabetic Osteo Rheumatoid Arthritis'. There's very little that can be done to stop it and it takes no prisoners. The doc is going to see what can be done about having a brace made to help take the weight off it. That would also make it a bit easier for me to get around. Right now I have to wear a a rather bulky orthopedic boot that makes me feel like I have a boat anchor on the end of my leg. But it's either that or I don't walk as I can't put much weight on the foot without breaking the joint loose completely. When I was ready to leave the docs office the van wouldn't start. Turn the key and all it would do was click. I had a pretty good idea what the problem was. My father's pickup does the same thing now and then. I got down on my back and crawled underneath and pulled on the cables right where they connect to the starter then tried the key again. It fired right up. From there I went out to Ft. Polk Entrance Rd to a furniture store my nephew told me about yesterday. Believe me, furniture was the farthest thing from my mind. What I was interested in was the free cell phones that are being given away to those who qualify. Those on Medicaid, food stamps, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Federal Public Housing Assistance (section 8), Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) or The National School Lunch Program Free Lunch Program all qualify. I qualify under the first three. It's a free Blackberry with 68 free anytime minutes a month. Additional minutes can be added for a fee of course. All I got it for is to put it in the van with the insurance and registration paperwork so it will be handy if I have a breakdown or other roadside emergency, so the 68 free minutes are all I'll need. The phone costs me nothing, the minutes cost me nothing, the service costs me nothing. No contract, no credit check. This is just what I've been waiting for. At the moment I have it charging. Once it's charged I'll password lock it and lock it in the overhead compartment (insulated from the heat) with the vans legal paperwork.
Extra strong coffee in a Southern mug, please.
I received new instructions from the Railroad Boss: Wife wants me to pave over all the parking area around the Diner, Train Station, etc... with the black stuff. She would rather have it look more like the road. Can't say I blame her, as so much light colored concrete is almost a distraction from the rest of the town.
Looks like snow returns tonight. Wish we could have some of that global warming. Then we wouldn't be having such a record winter. Betcha if we took a poll of all the Flora, it would be virtually a unanimous vote to increase CO2.
Healing thoughts to those in need!
Cheers! Rob
Robby... If there's anything we can do to cheer up Jessica, let us know. Meanwhile, we care.
George ... New layout looks good so far.
Lee ... I hope weather allows you to travel as planned.
Ken .. Keep the white stuff. I do not want it.
I completed my Keiber truck and weathered it. It is now in teh weeds and tall grass in the scrap yard I am amking.
Happy Model Railroading.
LSWrr Good Morning, Larry; according to the weather guessers you will be knee deep in snow by morning where I’ll only get 1-6”. I can transfer a proper modern rotary plow and 2-8-4 to your layout if you need help digging out. Fergi: I’m working on scenery and in the middle of back drop work so I have everything everywhere on the layout, LOL. I’ll try to do some new pictures next week. Utica - Macomb TWP, Michigan trip is this Saturday… Ken, that storm is heading up into Ohio from the south, but I hear it will stall out at Larry’s house and I won’t get much at all. I loved the Zombie term. Jeff, I love the bus! Open house Last night: Wow, talk about a mini disaster! The BLI 4-4-4-4 is unresponsive. The two Berkshires lost their programming, the new switch machine on Main #1 wasn’t operating properly (needs a minor adjustment), I never finished the repairs to Main #3, and the driveway became a solid sheet of ice by the time everyone was ready to go home. The big attraction that saved the night was the upgraded wiring under the layout and the discovery that I used mostly working brass turnouts on the layout to save money.
I believe the snow has stalled because its peppering down outside as we speak..
Just finish touching up some handrail on my HO C&HV units..
Sounds like the gremlins came calling during your open house.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
Robby - my for Jessica and you! Brighter days will come!
Lunch yet?
Well I got a phone call this morning and Jessica was about to quit her job (pre-school teacher). Its been going on for a few months now. They company is using/dragging her in the mud. Its got her to the point of quitting, and VERY depressed (plus other problems). She made a appointment with the family doctor tomorrow, and maybe they can figure something out. I turned in my papers at school to drop everything, and focus on her. I can always go back to school. Maybe in the fall I can try again. Hopefully the doctor can give her a few days off, and she can clear her mind.
No snow yet, but its coming. I just heard on the weather channel that a LOW (future cast) for next Thursday is VERY bad!!!! Blizzards and major snow for the north-east. Right now the number was 978, and the weather guy said that's pretty bad. So I guess we wait and see.
I will pop back in later.
Ken,
About the same - I looked one up in my Northern catalog and the cheap one was $60. Harbor Freight might be cheaper but you get what you pay for most of the time. J.R.
JR Sounds like a new battery would be cheaper.
The desulfator is a battery charger with said device added into the circus board. They supposedly w..k by adding/subtracting pulses to knock the built up sulfer deposits (a product of electrolisis) off the lead battery plates making it all better and happy. Have a few friends in the bizz who say they are for real but as I said haven't used one yet and don't know for sure.
Nice light dusting you've gotten there. Had the same three times now this season. J.R.
GMTRacing Ken, The 10 for an hour should be ok. Longer use the 2 amp as you've been doing. Sounds like the battery in the Daytona is on borrowed time anyway. I've never tried on of those desulfator dealies but one might help there. Any other opinions? J.R.
The 10 for an hour should be ok. Longer use the 2 amp as you've been doing. Sounds like the battery in the Daytona is on borrowed time anyway. I've never tried on of those desulfator dealies but one might help there. Any other opinions? J.R.
JR, what is a Desulfator? Far as the Battery being on borrow time, gee it is only 8 or 9 years old! Whole car is on barrow time with 350,000 plus miles. Reason besides being cheap I hope not to buy a battery is it will double what the car is worth!
Yep Ulrich Sure is pretty, now if I can find someway to keep it from snowing in the driveway I be a happy man!
Moring all!
Ken - that is a LOT of snow, and I live in Utah so I know snow!
All - Anyhow, when I announced my new layout out a couple of days ago, ya'll asked for some pictures. I was somewhat lax in posting pictures of my old layout, so I want to get started on the right foot with the new layout!
Here you go!
Nothing says "Pennsy" (or in my case, former Pennsy) quite like a flying junction! This is where the trains enter my Trenton Cutoff from staging. I wanted to get this part of the layout pieced together first because this had to look right, or (as far as I'm concerned) the layout just wouldn't work.
The upper tracks are the Penn Central's Trenton Cutfoff and the lower tracks belong to the NEC. The NEC tracks are just dummies, but I plan to wire one to serve as a programing track for my Digitrax DCC system.
And no, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you - the lower two tracks are superelevated!
--George
"And the sons of Pullman porters and the sons of engineers ride their father's magic carpet made of steel..."
Hard to believe, but I miss work! No activity scheduled for this week, so I feel like being in the doldrums I am progressing on my plans for the modular layout, and I am trying to win a few pals in Germany to join in with me. There are quite a few modelers following Japanese prototype, but ,unfortunately, no one near my place.
Ken- those snow pictures look nice!
Jeff - I hope everything will go well at your doc´s!
CUL