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Jeffrey's Track Side Diner - October, 2019 - This Month Visiting New Zealand Locked

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Posted by gmpullman on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 5:08 PM

Thank You, everyone, for your support and condolences. Linda was about five years my senior. We have not heard from the coroner so have no cause so far. My wife is an RN and has experience in dealing with these situations and she said Linda's death looked like it was quite sudden and that there were no signs of distress or suffering.

We spent much of the day sorting through papers and belongings with my other sister. Linda's cat, Bijou, came around and became familiar with us — from a distance. We will definitely adopt Bijou but there may be a period of adjustment. She will feel welcomed. When we bring Bijou here we will also bring her favorite toys and bed so she will have some familiarity.

Linda enjoyed her life of solitude and was a very warm and friendly person to be with.

Thanks again and I'm grateful for your concern.

Regards, Ed

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Posted by RideOnRoad on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 4:09 PM

Ken: Are you looking at laptop or desktop? What besides hanging out in the Diner, what do you use the computer for? (I know; I just left my participle dangling.)

Richard

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Posted by Steven Otte on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 3:31 PM

Ed, I'm so sorry for the loss of your sister. You have my sympathies.

If you don't take her cat, what will become of him/her? The stress of adapting to a new household with 5 other cats is nothing in comparison to turning him/her in to a shelter he/she may never make it out of.

--
Steven Otte, Model Railroader senior associate editor
sotte@kalmbach.com

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Posted by herrinchoker on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 10:44 AM

Ed,

Sorry to hear of your sister's passing, prayers for your family

Jan

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Posted by York1 on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 10:42 AM

Good morning!  It was a nice walk on the trail this morning.  Cold, but no wind.

Ed, sorry to hear about your sister.  It sounds like she had not been sick, so it is such a shock to your family.

Ken, good luck with buying a new computer.  I can help you with what I know ... there's a button that you push to turn it on, and there's a thing I use that's called a "mouse" that moves a little thing around the screen.  There.  I've now told you everything I know about computers.

This is the time of year that we have lots of birds around our house.  The woodpeckers seem to be stocking up for winter.  Yesterday there were no birds around except for one - a large hawk.  Every so often, he visits our feeders and takes off a small bird that wasn't quick enough.

The vacant lot next to the UP train station is finally getting a new tenant -- Starbucks is putting in a building.  Today I'm putting in some lights and then adding the roof.  The roof is easy on this build -- it's flat.  No angles for me to cut 22 times to get them right.  As frustrating as things get sometimes, scratch-building these N Scale buildings has become my favorite part of railroading.

Have a good day today!

York1 John       

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Posted by SeeYou190 on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 9:43 AM

Beautiful sunrise over the Peace River ths morning. My wife shot this terrible picture from the car window, but I still want to share it.

.

.

-Kevin

.

Living the dream.

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Posted by cudaken on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 9:28 AM

  Ed Sorry to hear about your sister. Angel

                         Ken

I hate Rust

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Posted by Tinplate Toddler on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 9:17 AM

Good Afternoon!

Ed - I am sorry to hear about your sister passing. Petra and I extend our sincere condolences to all of your family!

The dentist appointment didn´t go to well. The check-up is OK, but the cleaning bit didn´t go to well. The lady must have had her thoughts not on the job. My mouth and gums hurt a lot! The first time in years. However, I did not complain about it. It will take a few days until the irritation wears off.

 

 

Happy times!

Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)

"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"

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Posted by moelarrycurly4 on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 8:45 AM

Ed, sorry to hear of your sister's passing. 

 

Not much to report here, it sure is less bs this week at w*rk than last week. Last week someone at corp decided that it was a good idea to push out an update that no one tested, on top of another software update While upgrading hardware on a system that passes pateint vital signs to the system.  Hmmm I see nooo problems  there......

well someone's head rolled and they rolled back the one update that no one tested. 

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Posted by hon30critter on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 6:09 AM

How about Steamed Golden Syrup Pudding with whipped cream as “afters”!!

Looks yummy!! I do have to admit that we Canadians are rather partial to our butter tarts. They come in several varieties including plain or with raisins or pecans. The ideal tart is runny inside so you have to be careful how you eat it or you will have the very sticky filling all down your chin. We even have butter tart festivals where you can sample dozens of different styles, that is if your stomach can handle all the sugar. I hate to admit it but some of the best butter tarts come from Costco! They make them right in the store and they are to die for. How's that for a commercial plug?!?Laugh

Dave

I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!

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Posted by Water Level Route on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 6:00 AM

My condolences Ed.

Just peeking out from my corner of the diner.  Trying to keep my head above water at w*rk right now.  Just finished up with a government audit last week, which I'm happy to say we passed with flying colors.  Thank goodness, it's part of my job to keep us in good graces there.  Trying to catch back up with everything else that had to take a back seat for the audit.

Cheers everyone.

Mike

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  • From: A Comfy Cave, New Zealand
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Posted by "JaBear" on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 3:36 AM
Gidday Chloe, a plateful of Dave’s offerings, please. Beef, Yorkshire pudding, spuds and gravy, I’m already drooling! How about Steamed Golden Syrup Pudding with whipped cream as “afters”!! Dinner
 
Pud by Bear, on Flickr
 
In my first post this month I mentioned that I went to primary school which was 500 yards away from the South Island Main Trunk. Ka locomotives never ran in service in the South Island, Kb’s hauled coal and freight on the Midland Line, so the South Island Main Trunk was the preserve of the Ja’s.
  
Now while I find the workings of a steam locomotive fascinating, this a video is a bit long. But for the last 2 minutes, it shows farms at which I picked up hay as a teenager, and the crossing at the last is where I watched as a boy on most Friday nights, the Ja hauled South Island Limited express, while Mum and Dad were at the local general store across the road, a place for provisions and an opportunity to catch up with other folks from the District.  
The school was just down the road. Back then, the village was known as Morton Mains Siding, complete with a small station, stock yards, fertiliser bins, and goods shed, and what would be called in American terms, a team track. Sadly, that is long gone.
 

 

“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.”-Marcus Garvey

Thoughts and Best Wishes to All that need then.
Cheers, the Bear.Smile

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

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Posted by Tinplate Toddler on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 1:32 AM

Actually, we are really enjoying the experience. If it gets too much, I just use ear plugs.

Happy times!

Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)

"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"

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Posted by hon30critter on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 1:29 AM

Tinplate Toddler
Dave - when up to 100 of these rather "voicy" birds settle within 30 yards of your home, you can stop any kind of conversation. I don´t mind hearing them when they fly over our house, but listening to that "music" for over an hour gets a bit unnerving.

Okay, I guess I have to concede that all good things can be overdone. That doesn't change the fact that Dianne and I would love to have the opportunity to get tired of hearing them!Smile, Wink & GrinLaugh

Dave

I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!

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Posted by Tinplate Toddler on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 1:24 AM

hon30critter
That would be music to our ears!

Dave - when up to 100 of these rather "voicy" birds settle within 30 yards of your home, you can stop any kind of conversation. I don´t mind hearing them when they fly over our house, but listening to that "music" for over an hour gets a bit unnerving.

Happy times!

Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)

"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"

  • Member since
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  • From: Bradford, Ontario
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Posted by hon30critter on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 12:59 AM

Tinplate Toddler
Lots of traffic up in the sky - flocks of geese, herons and cranes heading south. Sometimes they take a stopover in the meadow behind our house. While a nice sight, the noise these little birds emit is deafening!

Ulrich,

That would be music to our ears! Others complain about the noise that the usual birds make in the morning. Dianne and I take pleasure in trying to identify each individual song (not that we are any good at it). To have such a view right from our house would be too much to hope for.

We have lots of geese and quite a few herons locally, but seeing cranes is a rare sight. If we see even a single sandhill crane on one of our birding trips we consider our mission to be accomplished! Fortunately we are told that their numbers are increasing despite the odds.

Dave

Edit: Top of the page again!

This time the diner is serving supper! I have described this meal before but it was so good that it bears repeating.

You will be treated to a beef tenderloin roast, wrapped in bacon and then lightly smoked. It will be cooked low and slow on the BBQ in a foil pan (so the bacon drippings don't flare up). The BBQ seems to do a much better job of cooking the bacon to perfection.

The meal will be accompanied by Yorkshire puddings (which are basically just an excuse to have gravy), mashed potatoes with enough aged cheddar and parmesan to make them sinful but not too sticky, roasted seasonal veggies drizzled with maple syrup and balsamic vinegar, and gravy that has been weeks in the making. The diner has saved every smidgeon of beef drippings from the past couple of months, and some steak bones (all frozen to preserve them, to heck with the food regulations!!) and we have added a decent amount of 2012 vintage Port wine and just a bit of garlic. A dollup of butter will finish the gravy off.

For dessert, we have home made butter tarts with vanilla ice cream, and/or apple pie with a slice of cheddar.

I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!

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Posted by Tinplate Toddler on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 12:57 AM

Good Morning!

Just coffee for me this morning, please! I have to get ready for my dentist´s appointment. Nothing serious or painful, just a regular check-up and professional cleaning, which helps me to keep the remaining chinaware in my mouth.

Thanks, Bear, for the clarification. I agree, tinkering with those small mechanisms is hopeless, once the eyes start to go bad and the hands began to tremble. N scale (or any derivative from that) is fine, as long as you don´t want to open those critters up, scratchbuild or kitbash stuff.

 

Happy times!

Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)

"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"

  • Member since
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  • From: A Comfy Cave, New Zealand
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Posted by "JaBear" on Wednesday, October 23, 2019 12:34 AM
Ed, sorry to read about your sister.
 
“Have not heard of that! Is that 3´6" gauge 1/120 scale on 9mm tracks?
 
Gidday Ulrich, as I don’t wish to hijack that thread, I thought I would tell you here, that you are correct. As I said, using Larry’s premise, I would probably have given it a go, but, as my eye sight is no longer 20/20, I may have regretted dealing with N gauge mechanisms, especially as I would have wanted to model NZR steam.
 
Here’s a link…
 
 
Cheers, the Bear.Smile

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

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Posted by cudaken on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 10:39 PM

 Eveing Diners

 Flo, give the gang and I a Beer please and Dirk a Buffalo.

 Shopping for a driffrent computer is hard. 15 years ago I knew what was good and what was bad. Now? Whistling I think I know the max DDR3 can support is 16 of ram gigs. So DDR4 would be better I think with up too 32 gigs of ram. The there is the CPU, boy that is way over my head. Inter I-3, I-4 or what ever.

 Just want to stop by to say I am a live.

 Got to go kill the wife.

 Later Ken

 PS, I am not really going to kill her as far as you know.

I hate Rust

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Posted by gmpullman on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 10:36 PM

One day at Akron Junction:

 4070_Akron-Jct_8-17-75 by Edmund, on Flickr

The B&O Pittsburgh - Chichago main line is passing above just over the GP-30 there. The 4070 has just arrived from Cleveland, while wying the engine we stop in at the little, three-stall roundhouse for some water, then run-around the train for the return trip.

These were some really fun times Yes

I hope everyone is doing well. We just discovered my sister has died of unknown causes. My wife went to check on her after getting no answer on the phone. Coroner may determine cause. We will try to bring her cat here but that may be a bit too much stress for the cat, trying to adjust to a new home, owner and five other cats...

We shall see.

Regards, Ed

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Posted by Track fiddler on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 7:37 PM

Evening Friends

Kind of slow around here across the board on a Tuesday night. 

My bags are packed and I'm jumping states to North Dakota tomorrow morning.

Lion I pm'ed you,  at least I think I did.  I will be in Mandan North Dakota this weekend and would like to treat you to that Rare Prime Rib dinner at the Roadhouse. 

I don't get there that often and would consider it a privilege to cross pathes.

Give me a shout if you wish..... or a Roar.

 

TF

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Posted by Jimmy_Braum on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 3:58 PM

I think I need a golden horseshoe or 4 leaf clover at this point.  That one who was interested in model railroading and possibly dating me, ended up falling for someone between when we talked.  Ugh. 

(My Model Railroad, My Rules) 

These are the opinions of an under 35 , from the east end of, and modeling, the same section of the Wheeling and Lake Erie railway.  As well as a freelanced road (Austinville and Dynamite City railroad).  

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Posted by RideOnRoad on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 12:38 PM

I was able to make a quick trip to Flagstaff to see my new grandson. It is nice to have a grandchild close enough that the drive up doesn't include a stay in a hotel or getting on an airplane. This little guy is a sweet kid. Nothing quite like the feeling of having a one-week-old baby fall asleep on your chest. I don't think I mentioned that his mother delivered him without and drugs for the pain. She didn't want any drugs delivered to the baby before he was born.

I decided to ride the motorcycle on this trip. I learned a few things on the ride up and back (165 miles each way). First, a lighter bike with a lighter rider gets knocked around pretty good in gusting winds. Second, my bike had an appetite for premium gas. I ran mid-grade on the way up and it was sluggish on the steeper hills. Premium on the way home and it was noticeably more responsive. Third, chaps are amazing when the temperature starts to drop.

Richard

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Posted by BroadwayLion on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 9:37 AM

Yeah...  Well swing by Richardton on your way home. Just ask for Br. Elias.

(Free Lunch comes with that offer!)

 

ROARING

The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.

Here there be cats.                                LIONS with CAMERAS

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Posted by BRAKIE on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 8:49 AM

A kind of update on the layout development..Last night over supper we decided to drop the second main until a better idea comes along..The double track down the straight sections of the dog bone made it look like a 4 track main line.Sigh

As far as turkeys...It's the wrong time of the year to be a turkey.Dinner

Larry

Conductor.

Summerset Ry.


"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt  Safety First!"

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Posted by York1 on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 8:48 AM

Good morning.  Lots of black coffee this morning, please.

Too cold to walk outside this morning, so it was the college field house again.  One good thing -- the college softball team was practicing batting this morning.  The track is elevated, so I could look down at the practice while I walked.  Not as boring.

The cold weather reminds me that I have a lot of projects outdoors that I won't get to, again.  I'm sure that will continue over the next years, and when I am underground at the cemetery, there will still be unfinished projects I "just didn't get around to".  

Tinplate Toddler
I don't feel inclined to visit the places I used to work. The moment you leave, the moment you are forgotten, not even a past memory in most instances.

I kind of feel the same way.  It must be a personal thing, because I have no wish to go to class reunions or alumni gatherings, either.

Have fun with the new grandchild, TF!

Hope everyone has a good day today, whatever you are doing.  

York1 John       

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Posted by Track fiddler on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 8:03 AM

Good morning.  I'll have a black coffee please. 

Well one more day of work and it's off to Mandan North Dakota tomarro to see our new Grandson Xavier.  He was 2 months old yesterday.  We're looking forward to our visit.

Have a good day all.

 

TF

  • Member since
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  • From: A Comfy Cave, New Zealand
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Posted by "JaBear" on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 3:26 AM

Not as old as Ulrichs 1916 Colorado video , here's a collection from the late 40s, early 50's, and yes, it has JA footage! Big Smile

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zYbjID-7Lg

Smile

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

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  • From: 53° 33′ N, 10° 0′ E
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Posted by Tinplate Toddler on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 2:57 AM

Good Morning!

Lots of traffic up in the sky - flocks of geese, herons and cranes heading south. Sometimes they take a stopover in the meadow behind our house. While a nice sight, the noise these little birds emit is deafening!

I don´t feel inclined to visit the places I used to work. The moment you leave, the moment you are forgotten, not even a past memory in most instances. The only place people will remember me (just as a name and not a person) is a factory near Madrid that I had built. There is plaque inserted in the floor of the lobby with my name on it. The people that work there these days are stomping over me every day - not a nice thought.

Petra and I have dentist´s appointments ahead of us. Petra needs a repair job on a tooth which had been recently done, and I am in just for my routine professional cleaning job. Nothing to worry about!

I leave it to the Bear to provide more videos and info on New Zealand now. Howver, I found a quite interesting video on railroading in Colorado, filmed in 1916 by Henry Ford´s cameramen.

Enjoy!

Happy times!

Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)

"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"

  • Member since
    July 2006
  • From: Bradford, Ontario
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Posted by hon30critter on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 1:31 AM

York1
Very interesting, but the lawsuits are already being filed.

I wonder if this was a case of bad engineering or bad construction? It will be interesting to follow the fallout.

Dave

I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!

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