Good morning -- Donut Day! We out the door right now, I'll check in later.
We've had the cold, but not the snow.
Hope everyone has a good Sunday.
York1 John
No Snow down here!
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
Okay, more snow flying!
At about 34 seconds into this video you will get a very brief idea of what the view from inside a Russell plough looked like when it was in action. The rest is a bit mundane so you might want to skip through it:
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Hello, folks —
For the past week I've been on a sleeping schedule that I don't care for. I need to "reset" and move up my pattern about six or eight hours or so. Usually I hit the rack about 5-6 am and I'm up by noon. These days I can't fall asleep until after 2 pm and sleep until 9 or 10 pm.
York1I watched an ad on TV that really confused me. I rewound and watched it again.
I've seen lots of these, too. Years ago I remember the really wierd ones were for perfume, now it seems like all the products they're pushing have some kind of "way out there" theme attached to them.
One thing I've always griped about are the car ads promoting aggressive driving. IF you don't have a 400 HP engine, well, you're just left in the dust.
Don't forget, those old ads were the cutting-edge technology back then. The best artists and illustrators were hired, four-color print process etc.
One thing I notice is that so many old ads had several paragraphs of text. People took the time to READ back then. Things seemed to change around the late '50s early '60s when the bigger push was to sell the SIZZLE not the STEAK.
Remember those eye-catching VW ads?
VW_1963 by Edmund, on Flickr
It is still bitter cold here and the snow we've had lately is the light, fluffy stuff. Supposed to be in the 50s this week
PRR_Just-folks by Edmund, on Flickr
I hope everyone is doing well these days.
Cheers, Ed
Here is a BNSF rotary plough hard at work. If I counted correctly, there are five locomotives pushing the plough. Note the snow and ice buildup on the plough and the first engine. Click on the 'Watch on YouTube' box for a full view:
Seeing all this snow flying has started to give me the chills. We'll have to go somewhere warm and cozy for the March Diner.
CNCharlieDave, only 18" of snow. We are are at about 40" now and the next blizzard is about to start. It is expected to last until noon tomorrow and we will have another 6" of snow. The banks at the end of my driveway are about 6' so I have to be very careful backing out in the car.
I guess all things are relative. 18" of snow isn't extreme for us, but it is more than usual. We don't have full snow cover through the winter most years as well. This year we have only seen the grass once since mid December. Our temperatures are also going nuts. Normally we would have a few days in January and February where the temp drops to below -20C. This year it has been that cold for weeks on end.
I am so happy to be retired and not having to go outside very often!
Cheers!!
TF
Kick the tires and light the fires!
https://youtu.be/FS1vHfhZNJs
Good Afternoon,
John, sorry to hear you aren't feeling up to par.
Dave, only 18" of snow. We are are at about 40" now and the next blizzard is about to start. It is expected to last until noon tomorrow and we will have another 6" of snow. The banks at the end of my driveway are about 6' so I have to be very careful backing out in the car.
Soon time to check the feeders again.
CN Charlie
York1 Good morning. I'm headed out for a walk, although I'm not really feeling up to it. Have not felt real well for quite a while. I keep hoping. Bear, I love those old style posters, along with the old train ads that Ed posts every so often. I often think our modern ad designers have gotten too 'tech' or too 'sophisticated'. Those simple old ads appealed to everyone. I watched an ad on TV that really confused me. I rewound and watched it again. There was no product name mentioned -- I guess people smarter than me would know the product. I thought about watching it a third time, but then decided that, even if I found the product, I wouldn't consider it anyway. I wonder if age has anything to do with this? I hope everyone has a good Saturday.
Good morning. I'm headed out for a walk, although I'm not really feeling up to it. Have not felt real well for quite a while. I keep hoping.
Bear, I love those old style posters, along with the old train ads that Ed posts every so often. I often think our modern ad designers have gotten too 'tech' or too 'sophisticated'. Those simple old ads appealed to everyone.
I watched an ad on TV that really confused me. I rewound and watched it again. There was no product name mentioned -- I guess people smarter than me would know the product. I thought about watching it a third time, but then decided that, even if I found the product, I wouldn't consider it anyway. I wonder if age has anything to do with this?
I hope everyone has a good Saturday.
Bridges
It may be cold comfort, Dave, but our days are noticeably drawing in!! Cheers, the Bear.
I take that to mean that you are experiencing the first of your Fall weather. Right now I would gladly take a bit of Fall weather!
Actually, I find it very interesting to see how most of us adapt to the seasons. In just a few weeks we will be sitting on our deck commenting on how warm the weather is! When we experienced the same temperatures last Fall we would have been complaining about how cold the weather was!
Unfortunately for us, warm Spring weather remains in our future. We had another significant snowfall yesterday so the grass is still buried under about 18" of snow. Patience. patience, patience! The warm weather will come, and then we will be complaining about the darned bugs!!
hon30critterI think I'm starting to get a bit tired of seeing all this snow! Please, let's have an early spring!
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Here is more snow flying! The banter between the crew and the dispatcher is interesting:
Here is something a bit different from the usual ploughs bashing through the heavy snow at speed. In some ways I think that this is a better illustration of how powerful the ploughs actually are. You are probably getting tired of hearing me say this, but click on the 'Watch on YouTube icon for the full view:
I think I'm starting to get a bit tired of seeing all this snow! Please, let's have an early spring!
Here is a compilation video showing the Ontario Southern Railway in action getting some snow out of the way. The first few minutes are interesting but the rest is a bit lame, although there is an interesting following view towards the end. As always, click on the 'Watch on YouTube' icon.
In addition to the snow action, what I found very interesting were the variety of locomotives that the OSR had in service. Obviously they were running second hand stuff and in most cases apparently they didn't go to a lot of effort to hide the original livery. They were also quite willing to use whatever locomotives were available. The mix in some of the consists is actually very entertaining.
John: I "retired" in Texas after 20 years in higher ed for a promotion in Kansas; I am working for a President that I had worked for in Texas. I have been here for a year; absolutely love the job, the town, and our house (what's not to love with a basement)? My wife was able to retire completely, and she is renovating our home and training a Weimaraneur puppy. She has her hands full! Adjusting to the cold and the snow has been a challenge, but that's ok. We have had 5 significant snows since January 1st. We don't see the kids as often as we like as they are in Texas, but American flies to Garden City, and both of them have utilized that service.
I should add that I worked in banking for 17 years and owned a hobby shop for 3 years before embarking on my higher ed career. I did work for 40 years in Texas before moving to Kansas.
We have a blizzard warning here. The snow we got last night is really blowing around. It is powder snow so it does blow around easily. Expecting more snow tomorrow. I did a grocery run yesterday so we can just stay home for a few days.
My grandparents all lived in Winnipeg. My paternal grandfather died 6 months before I was born. My maternal grandfather passed when I was 5. I do remember him well though. He was with CN police and I remember him taking me to the Transcona roundhouse and seeing him in uniform. He was a big man for the age he was born at 6'2" and 210 lbs. Tied my shoes too tight. He drove a grey '47 Ford.
Last night I pre-ordered a Bowser CNR boxcar. It is the version that was painted silver. Felt I should have one on the roster as it is very different from the usual red version.
We need some new major appliances. The fridge is 40 years old, dishwasher 32, washer and dryer 11. All are working but for how much longer? Complicating replacement is my wife's refusal to let delivery people into the house due to her covid fear.
Hi Everyone,
Lion: The taxes you refer to are the ones we render unto Caesar, or whoever is in control this week. You have a nice situation in that you can just eat the tax collector and not have to listen to their excuses as to why they are entitled to it.
Just joking in general terms Vinnie.
we got dumped on with snow yesterday. Wasn't as much as predicted, and the temperature didn't drop below zero. I'm thankful for that.
When I was a kid, we would go out to my grandparents farm for visits. My cousins and I would explore and play on the old implements there. They had an old horse drawn combine that became our pirate ship, tank, bomber, and probably a host of other objects. Great fun. Great memories.
Jim (with a nod to Mies Van Der Rohe)
York1I have my income tax return almost finished. I'm always glad to have that finished. Last year I loaned the government some interest-free money (they actually took it), and I expect to get some of that back.
Watt are these taxes ewe speak of?
In ancient of days, the government did not collect taxes directly. A district was put up for bid, and the highest bidder would pay the 'tax' then and there and in full, and then had the right to collect the taxes from the people, keeping what ever they collected.
LIONS do not pay taxes!
We EAT tax kolecktors.
ROAR
Ifs ewe want more pancakes, just click on them!
Good Friday morning, everyone. Bacon, eggs, and black coffee, again. Will I ever get tired of that?
Not much planned today, so that means more time to work on the layout.
I have my income tax return almost finished. I'm always glad to have that finished. Last year I loaned the government some interest-free money (they actually took it), and I expect to get some of that back.
I hope everyone has a good day today.
Post Hog!!
Further to our pantry replacement project, things are finally moving along. For those who may have missed previous posts on this, we are replacing our old, dingy, awkward pantry (former broom closet) with a new pantry with roll out shelves.
I managed to get some of the old pantry removed down to the wall studs. I found the construction to be very interesting. It was built like a bomb shelter. There were 5 2x4s in the front wall alone. The wall is 29" wide. The walls were not supporting anything except the narrow pantry door.
In fact, it was exactly the way a door would be framed, but what was interesting was that they had used really solid, good quality 2x4s. That contrasted greatly with what we found a couple of years ago when we exposed a support wall between the living room and the dining room. The 2x4s in the support wall were absolute crap! Some of them were cracked almost top to bottom, and they had so much bark that they hardly qualified as 2x3s. Did I say that they supported half the roof?!? We built a double wall to give the roof proper support.
The next step will be to darken one side of the new pantry cabinet where it will be seen above the fridge. We could not get an exact match for the other relatively new kitchen cabinets, and the cabinet that we chose is quite a bit lighter in colour. The doors are okay but the side walls are way too light. I purchased some polyurethane spray stain to darken the wood slightly. I did a test on the back of the cabinet and it turns out that it will take multiple coats to get the desired effect. Neither of us are too happy about that because the stuff stinks! Oh well, we will have to open the front and back doors and allow the winter breeze through while we get the spraying done. I'm quite disappointed with the spray because of the lack of pigment in it.
It will all be over by March 2nd. We can hardly wait to fill the new pantry.
York1 Dave, that sounds a lot like my situation. My grandparents' farm was an amazing place to explore. Their old farmhouse had a propane furnace but they never turned it on. Grandma cooked on a wood stove in the kitchen that heated the house. During the winter, I slept upstairs. There was no heat, but my grandmother had about a foot thick set of quilts on the bed. In the morning, when you stuck your head out from beneath the covers, you could see your breath. You finally worked up enough courage and ran full speed downstairs to the kitchen to sit by the stove. Of course, the worst was heading to the outhouse. You did not want to drink anything after supper, or you would have to go out in the middle of the freezing night to the outhouse. No bedpans at grandpa's house!
Hi John,
Yup, been there, done that! I remember the weight of all the quilts, and having 'bed warmers' which were nothing more than bricks (I think they were bricks) that had been heated on the stove and placed into quilted bags and stuck under the quilts at the foot of the bed. They kept you cozy warm until you were asleep and then it didn't matter anymore. I recall sleeping very soundly!
We did have bed pans! Yuck!! Most nights I would go to the outhouse which actually wasn't outdoors at all. It was built onto the back of the enormous attached garage so all you suffered were cold feet and a cold toilet seat.
So many memories!!
SeeYou190In fact, it is in my head right now!
I remember in classic FM radio days the crazy song played over-and-over... no use changing the station, same bat song, same bat channel!
Well, at least it's not "Be Happy" or "Tie A Yellow Ribbon"
Ear worms!
Have fun— Ed
gmpullmanKevin, every time I see that Dazor I get the Debby Boone "You Light Up My Life" song in my head!
Great... now that you suggested it... I will too.
In fact, it is in my head right now!
-Kevin
Living the dream.
My dad was from Barre Plains, Massachusetts. I remember family trips back to his boyhood home with great fondness.
Barre_0001 by Edmund, on Flickr
Barre_Plains by Edmund, on Flickr
That's me in the back yard walking by the clothes line. This would have been 1971 or so. My mom's mother died in '63 and I only remember a few visits with her. She lived in a city apartment in Lakewood, Ohio.
My dad's father was the B&A agent at Barre Plains and four of his brothers worked for the railroad so there was plenty of "train talk" around the dinner table. Here's grandpa walking with my sister at the Barre Plains depot:
Barre_Plains-1955 by Edmund, on Flickr
No idea what the excitement was all about. Maybe a retirement? There were a few passenger extras on the Ware River Branch back then.
Thanks for all the happy comments about the caboose. We're sure fortunate to be able to have it. Some of my friends owned real cabooses but to me that seemed like too much bother. I like my "reproduction" which has all the pluses but none of the negatives.
Kevin, every time I see that Dazor I get the Debby Boone "You Light Up My Life" song in my head!
Matching fireplug:
CVSR 6771 by Todd Dillon, on Flickr
Remember when you were young and you shone like the sun, sliding down the slide at the park.
Here's an old guy making boatloads of money doing what he does best, sliding down the Hawaiian.
https://youtu.be/z-11zoVnHSQ
Of course you have to hold your mouth a certain way and stick your tongue in the side of your cheek to play it just right
Just another old guy having fun
POST HOG!
My floor experiment got complete the day after my day off. I'm not under any kind of a schedule in my life anymore
Finished up with dependable skim coat today.
The squeaks are gone and I'm glad I'm not the floor guy crawling around on his hands and knees applying the different floor coverings now.
Prep guy may be a bit smarter than the average Bear after he takes most of the cookies out of the cookie jar
More locomotive money?