Elliot´s Trackside Diner May 2011 - Welcome Aboard, Everybody!

[LSWrr]

Good Morning,

Ray, I painted the bottom of a boat and in return I got the guys 6.75 hp Troy Built self propelled mower.  It mulches, side discharges, or rear bags.  The guy had a hip replacement and bought a riding mower and was going to sell his boat.

Ulrich prayers for a speedy recovery!!!

Chuck, I was stationed in Corpus Christi from 1997-2000 and learned if you place your ear near those cracks you can hear people speaking Chinese they run so deep!

UPS is better than a surge protector since brownouts seem to happen more often than lightning strikes.  Brownouts really mess things up.

We have had rain every day except 4 in the last 31.  Cutting the lawn is more like mowing hay.  It really needs cut every 3 days to keep up with it.

[howmus]

Mornin' everyone!

Zoe, a bowl of oatmeal w/ brown sugar sounds good along with the dark roast coffee.  Please and thanks!

Barry and Galaxy, nothing more than rain with probably some thunder here last night.  We had a severe weather watch last night, but no tornado watch.  THAT was posted 5 miles to the East of where I live.....  Seven counties in NYS were under a Severe storm watch and 23 (IIRC) were under a tornado watch.  Ontario county was right on the edge.  Don't see any big news headlines anywhere this morning so I guess all is well.  Unless the cats jump up and off the bed suddenly, I don't wake up during thunderstorms anymore unless they are hitting very close by.  We are at 64°F with 100% humidity right now.  i think it is going to rain inside the house!

Curt, Lee, and Jeff, I have a whole house surge protector and then all my computer equipment is connected to either a UPS or a power conditioner.  I have a bunch of them from back in my recording and live sound days.  They are either Furman or Goose Juice ones.  People used to shake their heads when I would say I spend $100 on a unit.  At least until I mentioned THAT after spending $10,000 on the equipment in the rack, $100 was not very much to keep it from getting fried!

Ulrich figured he would not be in for a couple days after the procedure, so I figure we should be hearing from him tonight o tomorrow morning.  Still praying for his safe recovery!

I am waiting for a new "Key" for the Black and Decker mower...  Probably should be in early next week (Tuesday?).  I think the stalling every few feet is due to the contact being burned in the key.  When I pull it out and bend what is left of the bad contact up, then it runs well for a while.....  May have to borrow my son's little "Chug and Puff"  (an old Horse Baron term for the gas engine) once to keep it under control if the key doesn't get here on Tuesday....  Now, if the City Fathers would let me, I'd just buy a couple goats and let them keep everything short on the lawn.....   

I actually w*rked for a bit on the Engine House (you remember THAT I bet) last night.  Cut a bunch of 2" x 10" to use for roof rafters on the side workshop and stained them to look like old wood.  Hope to get them glued to the roof today. 

Hope you all have a great day!

73

[simon1966]

I feel rather blue today.  A 16 year old girl, strongly suspected of texting and driving, crossed the median and had a head on collision yesterday afternoon on I55 right by my boys school.  Two others are in critical condition as a result of the wreck.   The girls car was cut in two by the impact.  I can't imagine she suffered any?  Will people ever learn that texting is more dangerous than driving drunk?

[galaxy]

howmus

Barry and Galaxy, nothing more than rain with probably some thunder here last night.  We had a severe weather watch last night, but no tornado watch.  THAT was posted 5 miles to the East of where I live.....  Seven counties in NYS were under a Severe storm watch and 23 (IIRC) were under a tornado watch.  Ontario county was right on the edge.  Don't see any big news headlines anywhere this morning so I guess all is well.  Unless the cats jump up and off the bed suddenly, I don't wake up during thunderstorms anymore unless they are hitting very close by.  We are at 64°F with 100% humidity right now.  i think it is going to rain inside the house!

Well, La Ti Da for you! Tioga county was hit hard, downed trees and lines and flooded underpasses and Local TV stations knocked out, oh my!. People {14,000 of them} still without power in Tioga County as of this time {1:30pm} and my father was out. A neighbor went up back hill roads to get gas for his and my fathers generators form somewhere. I was going to do my Medicaid spendown and visit my Father in Owego but roads closed just off the hiway, so couldn't even get into Owego. SO it was a no-go on that, I tell ya. We had 4 blinks, but no outage. We always light a candle in weather like that, but we rarely loose power, if the candle not lit, we may loose..it appeases Murphy by lit one. ANd if'n the power does go out, at least teh candle is lit so we not plundged into darkness suddenly.

WEll, got some errands done, as you see above didn't get all done!

T-storms possible this afternoon and evening too.

WEll, I take a nap then get on dishwasher and laundry.

have a great afternoon everybody!

 

 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

simon1966

Will people ever learn that texting is more dangerous than driving drunk?

Probably not. My niece didn't quit doing it until she learned that she could and likely would be fired from her job if she was caught doing it, so she doesn't take the chance of getting canned. She's a radiologist so she makes good money.

 

howmus

I have a whole house surge protector and then all my computer equipment is connected to either a UPS or a power conditioner.  I have a bunch of them from back in my recording and live sound days.  They are either Furman or Goose Juice ones.  People used to shake their heads when I would say I spend $100 on a unit.  At least until I mentioned THAT after spending $10,000 on the equipment in the rack, $100 was not very much to keep it from getting fried!

That's a good argument. My TV alone cost over $700 and the two DVD players together were over $150. The VCR is just the opposite. I picked it up for $17 at a flea market AFTER testing it and opening it up to examine it to make sure it worked to my satisfaction. My computer system is the big cash pill. Everything in it was top of the line when I bought it and I didn't buy it all at one time to be sure. It's more than 30 portraits of Ben Franklin. I have more money tied up in it than I do in my layout. So with all that do I mind paying $100-$150 for a surge protector? Not at all.

[howmus]

Afternoon folks!

Flo just an ice cold Dr. Pepper for me right now.

galaxy

 

 

 

Well, La Ti Da for you!

LOL!  Yes, I saw that Tioga County was in the line of fire last night as was Yates County just to the South of where I live and Seneca to the East....  Glad you are all safe!  Sounds like there will be some extra fire wood for next winter down your way.  Good you are prepared for the power being out.  I have a few kerosene lanterns, a couple of propane camping lanterns, and lots of candles and flashlights.... 

Humid and rainy still here in the Finger Lakes so I have been tackling some indoor to do's today.

Have a good one and stay safe!

73

 

 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Good afternoon. It's 85° and sunny. The high will be 89° and sunny.

Today started off OK. Yesterdays weather report had said today was going to be cloudy and rainy. It couldn't be farther off the mark. Sunny and not a cloud in the sky. Guess the rain was needed elsewhere. Very nearly had a disaster this morning. Blood sugar tested out at 108 - before morning meds. Took my meds but didn't have time to get something to eat as my father called needing me to go with him to pick his car up at the shop. We started off in his pickup but didn't even get halfway to town before it started cutting out, so he limped it back to the house and we took my mother's Marquis. It's not like she's going to need it. Her doctor has absolutely forbidden her to drive until further notice. Anyway we got into town. Went by a small engine repair shop and picked up his weed-eater. We stopped at a convenience store where I got a Dr Pepper and a small bag of chips, thinking that should tide me over until I could get something more substantial. We then proceeded on to the auto shop. We picked up his car which he then drove off to Wal-Mart to do the shopping. I drove the Marquis back to my parents place and put the keys back in their place. My mother and her housekeeper were in the kitchen so I went in to talk with my mother. It was then that the effect of the meds caught up with me and I very nearly passed out. Well, the housekeeper is a diabetic so she knew exactly what to do. After two slices of bread with some butter I felt better then she fixed me a proper breakfast. I feel great now. The next time my father needs me to help him with something fast he'll just have to wait until I'm ready.

[Cox 47]

Afternoon All...Its cloudy and cool here temps in upper 50's...I'll have a double RBF please,,,Thank You..Been working on a rehab of a M//T flat..step are broke and located another set but now have to wait till they come in the mail..

Ulrich..You are in my prayers..

Jeff...Gotta watch the sugar..When Sallie goes low like that it can take some time to get her back to normal..

Sallie's sister and husband just got back from trip out west..knowing how much I like trains the took this photo..

Would make a neet model using B-Mans 44 tonner...

You all have a good one...Jerry

[galaxy]

howmus

Afternoon folks!

galaxy:

 

 

 

Well, La Ti Da for you!

 

LOL!  Yes, I saw that Tioga County was in the line of fire last night as was Yates County just to the South of where I live and Seneca to the East....  Glad you are all safe!  Sounds like there will be some extra fire wood for next winter down your way.  Good you are prepared for the power being out.  I have a few kerosene lanterns, a couple of propane camping lanterns, and lots of candles and flashlights.... 

WEll, Elmira had over 200 trees downed and 3 houses hit by them. Bingo had quite a few trees downed too.

Yep we always have "tea lights" on hand and have several hurricane lamps as well. We have one of those "portable stove tops" for the tops of the small Coleman propane cylinders, so we can cook. I always worry about food loss in the fridge and freezer tho. Had a fridge in a rental go kaplooey on me RIGHT AFTER I had just filled the fridge and freezer with about $200 of food.

We are fortunate that where we are on the S side of the Susquehanna that they can usually shift our power to come up from PA if we go out. Owego and my father on N side.

But dabnadscad it! we've HAD our share of rain and flooding and storms...not as bad as the midwest getting ripped apart, but we could use some Sunny DRY days.Can't keep up wiht the lawn for the dadnabblastitall rain. ANd of course it grows like weeds!

May go down to Scranton and visit Steamtown just to "go away" for a bit. See how MOH feeling after a 10 hr day at work today and looking forward to a 8 hr day on Sun and of course has to work on Mon. as well.

Have a great evening

TTYALLL8R

 

[Curt Webb]

Afternoon All,

It is in the low 90's here. I did my errands today and constructed my power buss board. I also put together a Alpine Wood and Mattboard barn. I got it mainly because of the chewing tobacco sign on the roof. I figured for $12 if I did not like it it would not kill me, but I like it better than what I had.

I have been wanting to get a couple of PRR Merchandise Service Box Cars. While at the LHS I saw the new release from Athearn. The red car color looks off and the banner does not look silver enough. The picture I saw on line looked better than in person. Needless to say I did not get it.

Simeon- I really like your Weekend Photo Fun posting.

Lee- I sent you another question. Yes I know you are shocked by that.

I had really hoped that we would of heard something from Ulrich by now. I am continuing to send prayers his way. 

Here is a picture of my Tortoise/Accessory Power Buss

Everybody have a good evening.

 

[Packer]

Evening guys

Been working on the beat-up DRGW autorack I have. I've been trying to pop the panels off, but they are glued tight. I got 1 off, but cut up one of my fingers in the process. I noticed they are CA'd on, so I stuck the car in the freezer to bust them loose.

Simon, Nope. Texting while driving is the "cool" (and I mean dumb) thing to do. I've not tried it since I have difficulty trying to even eat or drink (out of bottles anyways) while driving. Manuals kind of need both hands in the city.

Barry, What is that thing on the window/roof of that car you posted? I saw a car with one on TV, but it never explained what it was.

Ulrich, hope everything went okay.

Gonna go try to wire up my not dcc-ready P2K GP9. (older run with the weird short circuit board.

[Cederstrand]

Coffee in a SUNNY SOUTHERN mug, please.

Last nights storms left us without phone or internet. All is back up as of minutes ago. Tis nice to rejoin the connected world and drop by the Diner.

Have a great day y'all.

Rob

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Packer

Gonna go try to wire up my not dcc-ready P2K GP9. (older run with the weird short circuit board.

Those are such loads of fun aren't they? The board works fine by itself but combine it with a decoder and it's fry time. Been there and done that.

[AmanaMedic]

Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood Afternoon everybody,

JEFF: Two slices of bread and butter...brings back memories of my earliest days as a fully certified Iowa Paramedic Specialist. We were toned-out around 0330 for a diabetic. Being as how the ink wasn't even dry on my certification card yet, I had big plans for this run. Yessiree Bob! I was gonna get an IV in, slam in a load of 50% dextrose...you know, work a little Para-Magic. Turns out, the guy was a "frequent flyer" my partner knew well. So. I'm getting the IV fixin's all ready to go. Partner turns to me and asks what I'm doing. So I tell him my grand scheme to perk the old boy back up again. He says "go to the kitchen."

Huh?

"Go to the kitchen. Find the bread and peanut butter and start making sandwiches."

No Para-Magic THAT morning...nosiree Bob! Just some good old-fashioned common sense medicine. Yes, school was very much in session THAT day...and it was a well-learned lesson THAT paid dividends many times over in the years since.

VINCENT: I think THAT thing sticking off the side of the car is an early form of air conditioner. I recall seeing a few on some vintage VWs.

 

I might, just maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaybeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee might be able to swing some bucks to the future layout this weekend, uh, in-between assignments for THAT Editor, of course. Yup, might finally see about getting some plywood to put on the wall brackets. I finger half-inch oughta do just fine, and once the big-box store rips it down to my needed 30" width, it'll fit just peachy in the back of Tori (pickup) AND be fairly easy to maneuver into the house and up to the RR room (2nd floor, naturally...). I also finger, I'd best grab the plywood sooner than later, I figure the price will skyrocket for THAT product (if it hasn't already) as a whole lot of people will be needing a whole lot of it as they try to rebuild from the Spring of Twisters.

A question for anybody who might care to toss-in their two cent's worth of opinionated opinion. Originally, the design called for 2" of foam (pink stuff or blue stuff, doesn't matter) on top of the 1/2" plywood. But, lacking any practical way/place to rip the 4x8 sheets down to 30", and since the big-box store can't... I'm tempted to just go with the plywood. I don't think I'll be using enough to make it worth delivery...and I'm not too keen on trying to haul foam sheets in the back of a Ranger, especially not one or two at a time. Now, keep in mind, the area I'm hoping to represent is relatively flat. Alongside the CCP yard, there is a small creek...but, I "could" get happy with the jig saw and do some "cookie cutter" action there for THAT landscape feature. So, the question: Am I just asking for trouble?

ULRICH: Here's hoping you're making yourself an absolute pest (in a good way!) at the repair shop, and THAT they'll be tossing you out sooner than later!

Time for Rerun's late afternoon patrol/pee/poop duties...

Chris

[yougottawanta]

Good Afternoon all and happy memorial day to all and a special thanks to all of the Vet out there.Hot here, supposed to be in the 90s this week end. Lot to do. Lot has happened. Today was my last day at my w**k place. Start a new Job Tuesday with about 30% more income 70% less in out of pocket health care cost....Good Doc report on MOH. The brain Tumor has not grown in two months. !!!Hurray. Getting ready to celebrate the gift God has given us this year. In June we are having a party to thank all of the many people who have stepped up and helped, gave of their resources,time, made food, gave rides sent money...and to thank God for the miracle he has given us. We now have hope and not despair.

Uhlrich- I am so sorry to hear you are not well. My prayers are with you.

Cuda- Are you doing something for Uhlrich ? Can I help ?

Gotta go finish mowing. Talk to you all

[last mountain & eastern hogger]

Hi Chris,

Any big box store I've been at has been able to rip plywood for me.  But anyway,  here is a suggestion for you in regard to the foam if you want it.   Just take a hand saw with you and cut the 8 foot piece in half before you load it in the Ranger.

If you don't like that then I would suggest using ceiling tiles and then painting them, you can also carve them for streams etc. and actually they are not too bad for sound deadening. I have actually used them under my yards.  They must be painted and then landscaped or ballasted as otherwise they are quite dusty.

Just a couple of ideas for you and my    worth.

Hope you have a great week-end.

Johnboy out......................................

[blownout cylinder]

Ray. Galaxy:  All that we got up here were some strong winds last night and a couple of those loudenboomers...and a whole pile of rain again..my raingauge out back was sitting at about 4.5" over the last couple of days...it would be nice if we could get some drying conditions here...we are seeing a fair bit of this going on...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDY6bWT5oTM

YGW: I put you OH on our church's prayer list as well....

Vincent: It seems to have been a somewhat early version of AC...although I've seen a siren that looked somewhat similar to that as well...

We had another wet yucky day here..not much is going to change until Monday..when it gets all the way up 85F and sticky..with the ever popular chance of those ol' loudenboomers showing up...

Chloe, I'll have a super deluxe burger platter with a tub of RBF please and thankye...I'll be over at the RC for a bit...

[AmanaMedic]

Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood evening, I'll have what BARRY is having

JOHNBOY: Yup...no problems with having big-box slice the plywood...Lowe's policy is/was, I think, first cut free, and .25 after THAT.  It's slicing then hauling the foam THAT had me scratching my head.

Actually, for kicks and grins, I wandered over to the layout design/construction discussions...and lo and behold! Some other lost soul had asked my same question.

Imagine THAT.

Yes, I know I could've done a search, and THAT the notion has come up before...gettin' lazy I 'spose. Anyhow, current plan is to nix the foam. The "mainline" will be on HO cork roadbed with sidings on N-sane scale roadbed. Some "yard" tracks will go direct on the plywood. Same system would've been done on the 2" foam. I like, no...I REALLY like JOHNBOY's idea of using ceiling tile if'n I feel the need for a little elevational variety. THAT could really come in handy in the vicinity of the Cargill plant, where the CNW main was a bit higher than the plant (which sits along the Cedar River and floods nearly annually while the CNW main stays dry. Hmmmmmm.)

Now...to do a little financial fingering and perhaps a little book cooking...

Chris

[CNCharlie]

Good Evening,

A cool wet day here but it is supposed to clear up by Sunday. We won't see much more than 60F though.

Just been running trains for a  bit. Had the Mountain pulling a short train of express reefers, baggage and RPO.  One thing about running a train like that you can really let the engine loose as a scale 80 mph. certainly would be 'prototypical'. I like seeing those high drivers whirl around at high speed, chuff basically just a constant roar, whistle wailing at the crossings.

Hope Ulrich is making a speedy recovery.

Chris,  for your yards you could just get some thin sheet cork at an office supply store. It is certainly cost effective.  That is what I did and I just glued it to the plywood. If you don't need to dig out creeks, etc. I don't see anything wrong with putting the roadbed right on the plywood. I just carved up some chunks of foam for hills and glued them on. I don't think it turned out too bad.

Well, time for a little TV I think.

CN Charlie

[AmanaMedic]

Thanks CN CHARLIE! Yup, forgot all about the sheet cork trick. We used it on the long-gone Cedar Rapids Model Railroad Society layout. The Wife tacked up squares of it on the wall of her soon-to-be former studio, and will use thicker (and more expensive...) cork in the "new studio." Think I might do a little re-purposing!

The "creek" along the CCP yard is (normally) only a few feet deep...sooooooooooooooooooo a little bit of cork just might give me the necessary depth. In the pic I posted earlier, it looks like a more substantial body of water, but just a few car lengths to the left, it narrows considerably.

With renewed "hope" THAT the layout construction will make some progress soon, I went back to the drawing table. No dents in the wall this time, no concussions either. So far, I'm 99.9% sure I can do a shorter version of the CCP yard while keeping the correct number of tracks. THAT's where I'll start with plywood, etc. Now, making the connection to the rest of my miniature world...well (overflowing), THAT hasn't quite been resolved yet...but we're (me, myself, I and Murphy) are a-gainin' on it!

In the meantime, I've managed to get a little more w**k done on the CNW 5511 (GP-40), the PC boxcar is in line for a shot of Dullcote, and another Athearn foobie is in the soup on it's way to becoming an ex-IC CCP grain hopper. I even got the back yard mowed earlier today...it is amazing what-all can be accomplished when w**k doesn't interfere!!!

Chris

[Curt Webb]

Evening All,

I keep popping in to see if there is anything about Ulrich. We finally got about 20 minutes of heavy rain tonight so I am happy about that.

YGW- I am glad to hear about your wife and Congrats on the new job.

Lee- Thanks for the info. I thought it would make a difference.

Simon- We have only had the occasional significant (deadly) accident that I know of here from texting, what we seem to get a lot of is kids not wearing seatbelts. We just had a SUV roll over on a major toll road where 4 people were ejected from the vehicle-3 of them young kids. One of the kids have already died, of course the driver is fine

Chris- I totally understand about the non-medicine pt fixes. We learn it with experience.

Everyone take care

[cudaken]

 Evening Fellow Dinners!

 Flo, whats good tonight? OK, I will take that and a

 Work Front Had a decent day today with $1955.00 paid and picked up. (I only make commission on what the customer has received). I have right at $31,000.00 this month and I start making extra at $28,571.14 and I still have 4 days to go!

 Bounces I will make $500.00 if we hit $45,000.00 delivered and $1000.00 if we hit $50,000.00. If I did the math right, and everything that is all ready written is delivered before the end of the month we are at $45,538.00!

 On the foam Two things

 1 Most foam will have the begin of a break point built in. I take a sharp knife and run it down the seam and then snap it in half. Makes a heck of a popping sound, and it has scared a few people when I have done it.

 2 Have you read my Cuda Ken foam buying tip before? Find a section that has some damage, find the department head and ask for a discount! Last 2 inch thick 4 X 8 section I bought list was $28.00, I got it for 70% off. My cost was $8.40.

 Simon Sorry to hear about the girl. But, when you are young you never think it could happen to you. 

Missing Ulrich here at the dinner. Hope we hear from him Saturday.

  Well wish me luck this weekend, I am going to need it. Extra $50 too $200.00 off if they take it with them, that's the ticket.

      Ken 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Well I was out with my mother and sister this evening for dinner at Los Maya's, one of the local Mexican places. My sister had a chicken casadia while my mother and I split an order of fajita nachos. I don't see how one person could have finished it. That was a BIG meal! Sure took care of my hungry spot. Nothing done on the layout today. I was too busy going here to do this and going there to do that.

[howmus]

Evenin' folks!

Janie, I'll take a slice of the Strawberry Rhubarb Pie and a cup of decaf please!

Nice rainy, dull, chilly, day here in the Finger Lakes......  Other than putting a new burner in the old gas grill on the deck, not much done outside...  The new burner is a cast iron one.  Guaranteed for 5 years (unless you don't take it apart and clean out the burner holes every time you use it), at least THAT is what it says on the box.  Sure is a lot heavier than the cheapo galvanized tin they send as original equipment.  Of course this one would'nt fit the grill without a bit of redesigning the grill.  I got out the Dremel, put a large cuting wheel in it and cut my way through the bottom until the burner fit.....  (someone should start a thread on other uses for stuff bought to help us model railroad....)

Actually spent some time w*rking on the layout today.  THAT and playing phone tag with my son...  He invited me over for dinner tonight.  Hot dogs, Hamburgers, Sweet Corn (imported from some foreign place I guess),  Asparagus (done on the grill), pasta salad, and S'mores for dessert.  I won't tell you what my "after the meal blood sugar was.....  I now know a couple more things to avoid.  Got the roof about half done tonight for the workshop on the Engine House.  Should be able to complete it tomorrow.

I am also getting a bit anxious to hear from Ulrich.  I do hope he came through the procedure OK!

Ken, what are Bounces???

Chris, a lot of the plywood on the old section of the SLOW was put in place over 25 years ago.  When i got back into the hobby I decided I need to put in a stream going under the yard lead at Hopewell Junction Yard.  Since the track bed was right on the cork roadbed right on top of the plywood, I scratched my head for a long time thinking about how to accomplish what I wanted to do.  I finally just cut out some of the plywood and then glued foam under plywood...  Worked pretty well I think.  Here is the result:

Oh, the waterfall behind it was made from ceiling tile.  I painted it with Kilz and then painted over that and added Envirotex, some WS Water Effects and various scenic material.

Simon, that is terrible about the young girl texting.....  We had 4 or 5 teenagers die in a car crash a couple of years ago here.  The driver just passed a friends house and just had to send her a text saying she just passed the house.....  Very, very important you know.  I did a whole lot of very stupid things growing up too.  As my Dad once said to me (when I was chewing him out for doing something stupid that resulted to a trip to surgery...), "Bud (my nickname), we all do stupid things.  Usually we don't get caught!"  I shut up right after that.   Texting and driving is now a primary driving offense here in NY.  It can cost you big $$$  One ticket for it plus a speeding charge and you will lose your license.

Hope all of you have a great evening!

73

[AmanaMedic]

Flo? I'll take a too.

CUDAKEN: Thanks for the insight Pally! I've been cogitating on this up one side and down the other, inside and out, up down and all around ever since I first thought about even thinking about building a railroad (six years ago).

CURT: You are so right my friend. THAT was a lesson learned almost 11 years ago. After I left Creston and returned to Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids as the first EMS Education Assistant, I made sure to pass THAT (and a few hundred other little lessons learned) on to my students, particularly the PS  and Iowa-Paramedic classes. I started as a First Responder in '93 and worked my way up through the various levels: FR, FR-D, EMT-A/D, EMT-B, EMT-I, EMT-P, PS. Sometimes its a little hard to believe I was in paramedic school 12 years ago (first paramedic class ever for Kirkwood, we were "the little white (lab) mice." I was certified in May 2000 and hired-on in Creston a month later. On nights it was me and my partner in the ER (and the bambolance) and the sleeping Doc of the Day (rotating trauma doc wannabees). The charge nurse was upstairs on "the floor" with the rest of the hens...I mean, nurses. We had a wonderful cluster of a code one night: the doc, the charge and the most senior medic all trying to run it; all three contradicting each other. Yippee.

I don't miss it at all.

YOU GOTTA WANTA: Hey, belated congrats on the good news!

 

Hopefully, the weather has finally settled down for ALL of our Diner Crew... Here's hoping everybody has a good and SAFE weekend. While enjoying the "unofficial start to the summer," please try to at least pause for a moment to remember the true meaning behind the "holiday." The substitute host on my favorite radio talk show had an awesome closing monolog about Memorial Day this evening. Hopefully it's somewhere on the website, or else I'll listen to the pod cast and see if I can't transcribe it to tack up in here. Don't worry folks...it's not political...it's just a reminder of what Memorial Day is all about.

G'nite,

Chris

***EDIT***

RAY: Awesome scene! THAT's what I figure to do if'n I do end up putting in the creek alongside the CCP yard. I'm gonna have to add THAT pic to my files for future reference! Thanks for tacking THAT up!

 

 

 

[last mountain & eastern hogger]

Well Fellas and Gals we are looking at your Memorial Day Week-end.  Not that we need this week-end to say a special thank you to you as that seems to be readily on my tongue all year.  But it IS your special day for all those VETS and SERVICE MEN & WOMEN and I want to extend my sincere Gratitude to you ALL for the wonderful opportunities that have been given us by those who serve, both Americans and Canadians.

Even though we have all had lots of natural disasters to cope with this year, this continent is still the best place on earth to live and I believe that we all feel that same way.

SO I WSH YOU ALL A VERY WONDERFUL MEMORIAL DAY,   may you be with Family and Friends and share lots of love.  May your memories be fond ones of fallen comrades who we all wish were still with us.

GOD BLESS AMERICA and GOD BLESS CANADA.     

Johnboy out.......................................for now.....    and to ZZZzzzland.

[cudaken]

 Ray Thank You for catching my spelling error, I meant Bonus.  We all know I can't spell worth a darn. At leases you got me from saying Mourning Folks.  

 By the way Ray that is a great looking picture you posted 

 Chris Hope my tip helps with later purchases, it has saved myself around $80.00.

 Seat Belt and Helmet Law's, I am against them! I do not believe the government should be able to forces anyone over the age of 16 to uses them. If they are dumb enough not to uses them, it is God's way of weeding out the herd! For the life of me, I don't understand why people refuses to use them of there own free will? I wear my Bell Star Full Faces Helmet ever time I ride (Between Bikes right now) and buckle up every time I drive.

 Long time ago when i was around 14 I realized one of the common denomatiors (OK Ray I need your help here) every Race car has is seat belts!

 On Bikes, there are only 3 kinds of Riders!

 1 Those that have been down.

 2 Those that are going to go down.

 3 Those that are going to go down again!

 I have been down one time, 18 year old girl pulled out in front of me and I was doing 55 MPH. Laid the bike down and slide into the side of her Mon's Buick. Head bounced off the pavement a dozen times. But, I had my leathers on with pads and my Bell Star Helmet. Only thing I hurt was my big toe when I kicked the Buick's door! Bike lived as well, had crash bars.

 Bell Star Had a policy at the time if your helmet was damaged from a wreck they would replaces or repair for free. I sent it in and it was OK structurally and they offer to repaint it. Told them "No Thanks, I want to keep the scares on it to remind me why I should wear it".

    Ken     

[Cederstrand]

Chamomile tea please.

Enjoying all the cool pics of both the models and the real things. Keep 'em coming.

***Ken, from by cycling days (bicycle training) I had a number of fun crashes, One time I lost control of the handlebars angling down a steep hill (hit a ridge at high speed) and wrestled with them all the way to the road. By the time I had slid all the way down that hill, both my gloves had burned through as did my shorts, leaving deeply impregnated tar which even today (30 years later) you can still see some traces of it in my hip. I was a bloody mess. So much for wearing all the right gear.

Another time I had a helmet on when a car hit me, sending me flying out into an intersection. Not a scratch on the helmet, but my chin slid on the pavement and was quiet pretty when I tood up. (got a new bike out of that one and my bikes were not of the cheap variety) Anyway, so much for helmets!

Most of my endurance rides between 90-150 miles I only wore a bike cap and comfortable cycling gloves. Those were great times. 

My brain is shutting down now, so Good Night Y'all. Rob

 

[wetidlerjr]

Good Morning ! from Tipton IN.

[teen steam fan]

Morning. Coffee please

helmets- they are a good thing and they aren't. I always wear one while riding my quad. Mainly because the trails I ride on aren't the best maintained. But my helmet has saved my rear twice already. 

 

seatbelts- In Illinois, a biker doesn't have to wear a helmet while riding a bike but I have to use a seatbelt in my Jeep where I'm surrounded by STEEL. Still can'f figure that out. 

I want to say thanks to all of those veterans.