Elliot´s Trackside Diner - January 2012 Edition

[jeffrey-wimberly]

teen steam fan

Jeff- That B unit looks pretty nice, What do you have to do besides weather it? Or is the L&A getting freshly shopped motive power?

A light weathering is all that's left. Like I said, cosmetic work.

[teen steam fan]

Hey guys. Mind if I park my sled outside? 

Got my Dad's 1980 Arctic Cat Pantera running and rode it. Man that sled rides and runs out nice. Floats over the ground it seems. The Pantera isn't the only sled that we own, there is also a 1978 Lynx that I got running too, just need to figure out the idle speed adjustment. Soon they are going to be registered to me. 

Does it need to be said that I'm hoping for another blizzard? 

Jeff- That B unit looks pretty nice, What do you have to do besides weather it? Or is the L&A getting freshly shopped motive power?

[jeffrey-wimberly]

I worked on the metal Varney F3B body this morning. It's flat black with silver-gray trim and the L&A decals have been applied.

Athearn blue box powered F7 chassis awaiting a body.


Varney metal body, painted and trimmed. Waiting for decals to dry.


Chassis and body have been united. Still have some work to do on it, purely cosmetic.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Weather guesser said nothing about rain this morning. I was just outside and felt rain on my skin. Now while I may have been feeling something that wasn't there I also saw rain drops on the windshield of my van.

Aha! Just looked at the weather report again. It's been revised to show a 10% chance of rain. Weather guesser's covering his @$$.

[der5997]

Jerrold: I tried to answer you question about photos with a PM, but whenever I posted it, it wiped out your name, and asked me to put it in, which it wouldn't accept. So, I'll pop my reply in here.

Hi Jerrold: If no-one else repiiles, here's what i found works.

First you need a web service to host your photos. I use www.photobucket.com

Then, once you've got that set up, upload your photos there.

To post to the Diner, (or pretty much any forum ) go to the photo in your photobucket account. If you move your mouse over it, you'll see a drop down menu. I use the second choice, Direct Link. Clicking that automatically copies the photo's url.

Now, in the "Reply" field in the Diner, click where you want the photo to appear. Now go up to the tool bar, and select that film icon (3rd in from the left, bottom row) Click it and an Insert Media field will pop up. Paste the url of the photobucket image in there, and click Insert. I just did that to refresh my memory, and here's what happened!

If you want to show an article, or something else reachable by a url, and don't want it to be on your Diner reply, but just a hot link there, the procedure is similar.

Copy the url in question. Paste it into your reply. (remember it's still on the clip board as well, and that's a good thing. Select the url you just pasted, and the chain link icon becomes live in the tool bar. http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y51/der5997/happy149.gif Click the chain link icon.

An Insert Media field pops up Paste the url in the top field. go tot he next down and select Open in New Window. (This takes viewers to a new window to see what you want to show them without closing their Diner page). Click Insert, and your url is now live.

I've done the photobucket url that way, it should work when you read this.

Cheers, and looking forward to your photos! John.

 

[Cederstrand]

Coffee in a UNION PACIFIC mug, please.

No flu shots for me, ever. Battling stage 3 sarcoidosis, it would be a real bad idea, IMO.

Been "thinking" of MRR'ing a lot lately. Need to get down to the train room again soon.

Have a good day all.

 Rob

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Good morning. It's 62° and cloudy. The high will be 73° and mostly cloudy.

No particular plans for today. Seems like every time I plan to do something something else crops up. So maybe I'll be able to do some work on the layout today.

[TMarsh]

Good Morning!! Coffee and a sweet roll please. Thanks

A 30 percent chance of rain after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 49.

Rob- Yes I have a tile cutter. It’s one of those cheap scratch and snap jobs. It works for most things, but not so well on porcelin I found out though it said so. I think.  A friend of mine also has one of those small table saw looking wet saws I borrow if things get a bit…..loud around here if the tiles don’t break right enough times.

Aussie Jim- That’s what I figured. I’m not too fond of Foster’s and figured that folks here look at it as a Crocodile Dundee thing. My brew of Choice is Lone Star or Pearl when I can get them, and good ole PBR when I can’t. Nothin fancy, nothing cool. Just a taste that’s good and the common sense to say enough before I start feeling as good as they taste .

Ooo! Garry- Nice freight house.

What Lion said about the flu is almost exactly what the Doc’s have told me. You can’t “get the flu from the vaccine” but you can still get the flu. Like the common cold, there are various strains and the vaccine does not cover them all. I’ve also had the flu. Once. about oh 20+ years ago. Like Jeff said, man I thought I was gonna die and it lasted what seemed like forever. It was like no other time I had had the flu before. This time I did end up going to the doctor. He said it was the flu I said I’ve had the flu before, and this was much worse. He told me likely what I really have had in the past was just a bad cold. What most people think is the flu is really just a bad cold. The flu will knock your socks off and make you feel like someone has beat you with a baseball bat at every joint on your body. He also said some doctors will tell their patients they have the flu when they don’t. They just have a bad cold. But to some people a “cold” bad or not, just can’t be. Oh no. Tell them they have the flu, then to hit the OC cough medicine, a couple cold an flu tabs, some soup and a blanket and they are happy. Tell them it’s a cold and the same prescription and you don’t know what you’re talking about. Which is probably a good reason why they only take lab resulted diagnosis-s-s-s-ee. I. -ed cases as counts for the flu I recon. Also I’ve been told that once you get any illness your body builds a natural immunity to it and you never get the same thing again. Just like Chicken pox or the Measles. Including the flu and the common cold. Problem is, there are so many varieties of the two out there, though you’ll never get the variety you got last time again, you have about a bazillion more to go before you’ve had them all.

Welp, running late, got some bookw**k at the Church to do even though the banks are closed for MLK, the computer isn’t. Then who knows, might buy some tile…and a refridge-a-deezer.

 Ya’ll have a Great Day!!!

[BroadwayLion]

You don't load graphics to this site. You load them to a server somewhere else, there are several free ones out there, but the LION does not know which is best. Once you have them on the internet, you click on that green film thing above and paste the url to that photographs.

LION host his photos on his own servers, but then the LION has lots of servers in his office.

Here I am with one of my friends.

ROAR

[Southern Traction & Power]

Haven't checked in for a while. Coffee and bagel please. My grand son ,age eleven, spent a couple hours last night "cleaning up my my RR work station". Wonder how long it will take to find things again. He is pretty familiar with where things go because when he spends the weekend I let him do projects and just watch   to improve his skills some.

Need to learn how to down load graphics on this site, want some suggestions on planing some of my layout. Watch for me on  here.

jerrold

[galaxy]

jeffrey-wimberly

howmus:

yep not being able to breath will result in some major PANIC!!!

 

Sure convinced me to quit smoking seventeen years ago.

I quit 6-7 years ago. I don't miss it at all. I just want to know what happened to all the money I 'saved" by quitting!!!! WHERE is it???

At $10.50 a pack nowadays here , I can't afford it!

[Stourbridge Lion]

Good Morning Modellers!

Well W**K I think has finally stopped trying to kill me so maybe I can get in some RR fun for a bit...

It's 26F and sunny right now with a chance of a few inches of the White Stuff tonight.  Hope everyone had a great weekend and for those of you lucky enough to have today off as a holiday hope today

Now to get the old paper opened up and see what I have missed over the past several days here...

[jeffrey-wimberly]

howmus

yep not being able to breath will result in some major PANIC!!!

Sure convinced me to quit smoking seventeen years ago.

[gear-jammer]

Good morning, Chloe.  The snow didn't leave.  It started to melt, sun came out, sun went away, and more snow came out of the north.  Looks like the serious stuff will come in Tuesday evening.

Garry,  Nice background building.  What did you use for the dock?

Curt,  Glad you are feeling a little better.   Can't wait to see the new locos.  Are they sound equipped? 

Later,  Sue

[Curt Webb]

Morning All,

Feeling much better today, not great, but good enough to go to w**k. It's supposed to get up to 72 F today and a little warmer tomorrow. MOH goes to the surgeon today to have her staples removed and hopefully to be cleared to return to work tomorrow. She looks like she is back to normal to me and she has had no complaints.

Everyone take care.

[howmus]

Mornin'!

What am I doing up at this time of morning?

Zoe, coffee!  Real strong coffee.  Real strong coffee in any mug ya got handy!

Have to be leaving soon to get to the Methodist Church here to help with whatever needs to be done for the MLK Service today.  I will mostly be taking photos of anything THAT loos photogenic. I also get to count and protect the offering $$$ as we have bills to pay for this.  We start with a Memorial March (complete with police escort) from the Public Safety Building (police dept.) to City Hall, and then up the hill to the Methodist Church.  Usually have a hundred people or so for just the march.  Then coffee and doughnuts at the church whike those in the MLK Choir go to get the voices w*rking and lined up for the service.  Service goes for about 3 hours (Yep true old fashioned Black Baptist Gospel), followed by a dinner that is just awesome prepared by some of the finest Southern Style cooks you can imagine!  Today the crew from the Community Lunch Program (Sponsored by Catholic Charities) will be helping out.

During the service we will be announcing the winners of the MLK Art and Poetry Contest and awarding the prizes.  Award $ comes from the Presbyterian Church Mission Committee each year.  This is a huge community celebration here in Geneva and has been going on every year for 40 years or so.  I will be a bit tired when I get back for evening decaf.....

Galaxy, yep not being able to breath will result in some major PANIC!!!

Later!

73

[galaxy]

JeremyB

What I am always worried about this time of year is pneumonia. I have had it three times since 2003. The first time was the worst though...

I am susceptable to colds and chronic Bronchitis. If I get a cold, it WILL settle into my lungs.

About 3 years ago I got  pneumonia and spent 2 1/2 weeks in the hospital being pumped with 4 different IV Antibiotics that one nurse reffered to as "caustic" {?} to them if the came into contact with it!!! And I said "And you are pumping THAT into MY veins????"  She said, "yes, but it is to make YOU better". I actually would have been in the hospital longer, but I begged my Dr. to let me go home, if the antibiotics had run their course and i was on the mend. My Dr. later described me as "VERY VERY VERY sick". I like to say I got 3 "very's" on the "very scale" of being sick. In the ER they described my lungs as "junky". That apparently is a real medical term for heavily congested lungs!

I was so bad that every time I coughed I would go unconscious from lack of O2 to the brain. My blood O2 struratrion was down in the  70s.I need O2 constantly. ANd the "reptilian breathing panic response" set in. Now anytioe I get a silight breathing problem, that response sets in. ..its a panic mode automatic to the body and I can't get away from it. MAkes Me want to panic.

So far this season with the warmer weather we have been having, I haven't had a cold. {Knock wood, plastic or brass}. I don't look forward to it now that it is colder.

TAKE CARE EVERYBODY. If you get a cold, TAKE CARE of IT!!! Especially those of you who are "comprimised health".

 

[LSWrr]

Good Morning,

Garry nice building.

[blownout cylinder]

Morning...

megh...it is still wit' me..

But, as well, we had a night of hoohaws and stupid things going on in the neighbourhood. Two houses right at the corner of the crescent closest to our side had finally erupted into a pitched battle with each other. And, of course, some of this mayhem backed up onto our property and our next door neighbours. He phones up the police and they come arunning and get there just in time to see someone start to do something nasty with someone else...thankfully it did not happen because they got there in time. it were a messy night here.......so, needless to say there was not a lot of sleep to be had here...

Flo, I'll just have a coffee for now please...and I will be in the corner booth by Duke here..hopefully I can catch a bit of

[wetidlerjr]

 

Good Morning ! from Tipton IN.

 

 

 

 

[galaxy]

GOOD MORNING!!!

Today is Monday, January 16th, 2012!!!

MAke it A GREAT day!!!

[cudaken]

 Evening Fellow Dinners!

 Flo, beer please

 Long day today. Was in at work at 9:00 AM and did not get out till 8:45 PM. Only time I got to sit down was during my 1/2 lunch. For a Sunday it was pretty darn busy, I lost track of what dollar amount we did, but we made budget. Today was my best day in sales with $4400.00. Eked out $120.00 in commission so I am sort of happy.

 Crew is starting to warm up to me quite a bit now. Even the 2 that gave me problems last mouth.

 Well, time to go. I have to be at work Monday at 9:00 AM and I need some sleep.

              Ken

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Time for me to call it a night. The work I did on the Varney F3B shell wasn't hard, just time consuming. The hardest thing I did on it was to drill out the portholes. Varney had left them filled in and I just didn't like the look of them. I had a sharp drill bit when I started but I think I need a new one now. That metal is thick! If I was to throw it at someone I'd probably be charged with assault with a deadly weapon. The metal frame from the shell didn't go to waste. I used it under a Varney plastic F3B shell. And I did get the metal shell painted today. It's now flat black and is awaiting the trim color. I think I'll use silver on this one.

See y'all tomorrow.

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

Curt ... Sounds like you bit the bullet buying sharks. Hope you feel okay after the health problem at work.

Rob ... Nice of your neighbors to ride in to visit.

Jeff ... Fast work on the F3B!

Here is what I made in the last couple of days. It is a background building / freight house. I used mostly DPM parts to make  a building to fit available space. Next, I will work on the background space to the left of the building.

 We head back to Nashville TN tomorrow. Laste Monday it was Shelley's turn at teh Vanderbilt Clinic. Tomorrow is my turn. For me it's with the heart doctor.

 

 

[james saunders]

Todd - 

Aussie Jim- Do you Australians really drink Fosters or is that just what you save for the tourists to drink and then laugh about it?

 

Oh man no! Fosters is terrible in Australia, no one drinks it, its even very rare to find for sale here, apart from say a back packers bar where they think their drinking what the locals drink! I've heard though from a friend who was just in the USA rail fanning that the Fosters he had in California was 10 times better.

My everyday is XXXX Bitter which is a lager, but I also enjoy a few imported beers such as Corona, SOL, Heineken, Becks etc.

 

Cheers!

[Curt Webb]

Evening All,

I left work early today because I was dizzy and extremely nauseous. My partner said I was as white as a sheet.  I got home took some Meclizine and laid down. After sleeping for 3 hours the dizziness was gone but I have a sour stomach, a bit of a headache and heartburn. Before I left the guys checked me out pretty thoroughly from temp to 12L EKG and everything was normal. I guess that is a advantage to being at work when you get sick.

I bit the bullet last night and bought 2 Bachmann RF-16 A units. They were $113 for both and free shipping so I got a pretty good deal. I will need to put on train phones and put sound in one of them at least initially.

I think Wednesday I am going to go to the LHS and see what I can find for ground cover. I would really like to put grass or maybe brick on the ramp to the coal trestle instead of just painting it.

Jeff- You continue to amaze me with what you can do with so little.

Rob- Be careful and don't hurt yourself on the farm 

Everyone take care.

[Cederstrand]

Coffee refill, please.

***Jeffrey, that will be a good looking MU when the B unit is painted to match. As fast as you work, it may already be done.

Puchased 10 sets of Intermountain trucks w/ couplers. Hopefully they will fit some of my vintage cars. If they do, I'll pick up some more. Sure would beat selling them off to buy new (expensive) models, even if the newer ones probably look better. My eyes aren't that great anyway.

Had a nice chat with some neighbors who dropped by on horseback. Only in the country! Then finished up farm chores for now. Thought I'd use the old tracktor for taking a bale out to the mini pasture, only to lose it off the back and have a real fight trying to pick it back up. Oops!

 Rob 

 

[howmus]

Afternoon folks!

Chloe, I'll have the fish sandwich, fries, and a Cherrypharm for lunch.

Lots of little white thingies falling from the sky at the moment.  Not supposed to amount to anything, and looks nice.  I can say THAT now being home from church and not having to go out in it at the moment.

I was one of the Ushers this morning and got to give the moment for mission this morning about The Martin Luther King Committee and the work we do in the community.  Part of THAT (M4M) is usually done by me being in the "role" and lettin' loose, so to speak.  I was called up from the congregation, quietly steped up to the podium, and roared, GOOD MORNING!! at the top of lungs!  Then gave my Moment for mission which included the words of Dr. King "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."  Then went on to say what the committee is trying to accomplish with that in mind.  I did not see untill later that a guest this morning in church was one of the local Black Pastors (he was there leading adult education I believe).  After church he was standing by the door of the sanctuary shaking hands with people, I cam along , he grabbed my hand in a vise grip, jumped up and down and proclaimed, "THAT my friend was awesome!"   My minister was next.  He too gave my a huge hand shake and just grinned!  Guess I did good....  I have been on the committee for 22 years now.  I blame my minister for getting me involved....  Seeing the end result of the positive things happening over those 22 years in our community and in the lives of the kids who have received scholarships from us, I am happy to be part of it.

Flu....  Yep, hard for the scientists and medical people to always predict what mutations will come along at any time with the flu.  And yep, a lot of people who say they had the flu, may not have.  I get my flu shot every year.  Have been lucky as anything resembling the flu I have had in the lasy many years has been mild...  Hope my luck holds out on THAT!

Have a bit of stuff to get done this afternoon, so I best get at it.

Later!

73

[jeffrey-wimberly]

It took a little doing but I got the Varney die-cast metal F3B body to fit on an Athearn F7 frame in my F3A-F3B-F7B consist. Now I just need to find some black paint. The antique metal shell takes the place of a Proto 2000 F3B shell which quite honestly was making the F3A and F7B look bad as they're lower quality shells. The consist reads as a real laundry list.

F3A. Athearn frame, Blomberg trucks and shafts. Proto 2000 motor, DZ125 decoder, Stewart F3A shell.

F3B. Athearn frame, Blomberg trucks, shafts, motor. DZ125 decoder, Varney die-cast metal F3B shell.

F7B. Proto 2000 frame, Proto 2000 AAR trucks, Athearn worms/shafts, Power Points West motor, DZ125 decoder, Athearn Hi-F F7B shell.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

V8Vega

did you have a flu shot? I am curious as I had a flu shot and just got over the flu. My sister says you may get the flu even though you have had a flu shot. Mine started Sunday night till next Sat morning yesterday. I was still weak but realized I was over the flu. I wish you well.

You can still get the flu even after getting a flu shot. The vaccine takes two weeks to build up antibodies in your system. Even though you got the shot you can still be infected but it will be a much milder case than if you didn't get the shot. In many cases you won't get the flu at all or the case could be so mild you'd pass it off as a cold. I had times in the past when I didn't get the shot that I'd have the flu for nearly a month and could hardly get out of bed. Which would you rather have? Flu for a month or for a week?