Randy Vos
"Ever have one of those days where you couldn't hit the ground with your hat??" - Waylon Jennings
"May the Lord take a liking to you and blow you up, real good" - SCTV
Randy, do let us know, if you can, how conditions are around Battle Creek and Kalamazoo when you're out in it tomorrow. We are planning a quick round-trip to Battle Creek for Friday (Shhh! it's a surprise for someone!). If we're lucky we'll be able to see some railroad action in blizzard country (northwestern Indiana--they're actually under blizzard warnings in Lake and Porter Counties) on our way up. Snow has been falling here for at least two hours, but so far the streets are just wet and the lawns are only beginning to look a little paler.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
afternoon
just plain yucky here in Nw Ohio.We are between the snow and rain bands.Getting a mixed bag of stuff.Haven't heard if our church service is cancelled for tonight or not.Gas prices have jumped 30 cents in the event of an apocolypse of a storm.Ns had a n eastbound waiting and a westbound coal train go by when I left work.The local has empties to pick up uptown.Time for chores.
stay safe
Joe
Deshler Ohio-crossroads of the B&O Matt eats your fries.YUM! Clinton st viaduct undefeated against too tall trucks!!!(voted to be called the "Clinton St. can opener").
Rain all day (with freezing rain this morning). Home weather station reporting 1.2" so far. FD weather station must be plugged with ice - only showing .03"...
Some hands-on training tonight (bailing out of windows). It's a skill we don't want to use, but need to know.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Tree - bailing of water or fire personnel - or both? Probably not much bailing of water, but you know you sometimes get a lot of precipitation....
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
tree68Some hands-on training tonight (bailing out of windows). It's a skill we don't want to use, but need to know.
I have been getting "Windows has stopped working" several times today, so my first thought was that you were talking about MS Windows.
_____________
"A stranger's just a friend you ain't met yet." --- Dave Gardner
About 6 inches [eyeball measurement] on the ground today with 4 more predicted overnight. Heavy wet stuff. Slow going on the road out front.
Norm
Mookie...bailing of water or fire personnel...
Learning how to get out a second floor window under duress (fire is licking your derriere) when there's no other way out. That might include going headfirst down a ladder or using a rope and descender we all carry.
We all hope we won't be faced with that situation, but stuff happens.
And on the weather front, we're up to an inch and three quarters of rain - and some of it is freezing onto trees and wires. Winds are running 7-10 MPH at the house, with gusts to 15 MPH Flood watch until 10AM tomorrow.
If you'd like a definition of "miserable weather," this is pretty much it.
Larry, you must be in for a good old-fashioned ice storm--this is what we knew far more often than snow in Upcountry South Carolina when I was growing up. We would bring wood in from the woodpile and stack it on the back porch--and have kerosene lamps handy in case the power went out.
Johnny
We were fortunate in my neck of the woods (near Midway and Clearing). We got about 1-2 inches of a rain-snow mix that is now frozen into solid ice. The coverage was uneven so we have some bare sidewalks in places and my footprints from last night allow for some tolerable footing. It will probably melt over the weekend.
DeggestyLarry, you must be in for a good old-fashioned ice storm...
The ice stayed along the river and points north. Several hams on a morning net reported ice covered antennas - mine is clear.
I did get 2.17" of rain in the past 24 hours, and it's not done yet.
Gotta get those errands done today.
BOB WITHORN ...Fento, Mi.
Would that be Fenton? Not too far from my old stomping grounds.... I've got some friends who live there.
Yup, I had OLD, COLD fingers from shoveling I guess. I spend a couple nights at my mothers place each week instead of renting a motel. Gives her someone to talk to besides her cats. She's actually in Linden, on the west side of Silver Lake.
well this mornings mess has melted away.Matt was cancelled today.Needs to work on a confirmation verse.Ns had a westbound stack train when I left work.Chores to do.
joe
Paul's report from Hegewisch...oops, Midway/Clearing...shows how much difference a small distance can make. We really aren't that far from there, but between us is a county line, and all severe storms are required to respect the distinction between a Winter Storm Warning (which Paul had) and a Winter Weather Advisory (which we had). We got the same inch or two of snow, but didn't have the icy conditions. Our streets and sidewalks were wet the entire time that stuff was falling, and good to go this morning. We were able to take a nice walk out for lunch today.On the other hand, east of Paul it appears to have gotten interesting, with blizzard warnings in northwestern Indiana, and it appears that the snow was piling up there. I'm hoping the major roads are cleared tomorrow, so we can make the trip we'd been looking forward to.We were out for a little over an hour running errands and having lunch. In that time, we caught two scoots, an auto train, a manifest, an empty hopper train, and one or two stack trains. Both of the scoots nearly snuck in under the radar, because a freight was meeting or passing them when they came into the station._____________________________I saw an article in my Railway Age news feed ths morning, saying that "Coast-to-coast" passenger service was feasible. Of course, the coasts they were talking about are in Michigan...trains running from Detroit to Holland, via Lansing and Grand Rapids. The most likely scenarios would route them via Ann Arbor, which seems out of the way, but probably worth it for passengers. I don't recall that Lansing to Ann Arbor was a viable city pair as long as I've been alive (NYC could have done it, via Jackson). Options include anything from a pair of round trips operating at 79 mph to up to eight daily round trips at 110 mph. I can't see CSX complaining too loudly about how it will interfere with their operations, as their line between Grand Rapids and Howell is not used nearly as much as it was (in fact, they had been talking about getting permission to deactivate the CTC), and I think the current Pere Marquette service is already the saving grace for the line between GR and Holland.It all sounds positively yummy...but the next step is environmental studies. I don't think I'll live to see these trains, much less ride them.
CShaveRROn the other hand, east of Paul it appears to have gotten interesting, with blizzard warnings in northwestern Indiana, and it appears that the snow was piling up there. I'm hoping the major roads are cleared tomorrow, so we can make the trip we'd been looking forward to.
Carl south shore had to cancel this morning due to power company wire threating SS CAT. Don't know about that area but here the power companys now have to guy wire any crossings of Roads, interstates, RRs etc so poles cannot lean. That way a pole cannot lean toward road and RR ROWs dropping wire(s) to a fouling clearance point.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/weather/ct-south-shore-line-rail-service-suspended-after-blizzard-20160225-story.html
We had a EF2 Tornado in the county last night. Having a tornado here is rare. An EF2 is even more so. In February? Unheard of (news says it's only the second time in recorded history we’ve had a tornado in February in PA).
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
zugmann We had a EF2 Tornado in the county last night. Having a tornado here is rare. An EF2 is even more so. In February? Unheard of (news says it's only the second time in recorded history we’ve had a tornado in February in PA).
Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.
Murphy SidingIs that a Roadrunner crossing sign in your avatar?
Close enough.
zugmann Murphy Siding Is that a Roadrunner crossing sign in your avatar? Close enough.
Murphy Siding Is that a Roadrunner crossing sign in your avatar?
Murphy SidingIn a way, it sort of looks like an outline of Foghorn Leghorn, but the desert background seemed more Roadrunner-ish.
Yeah, it ws done in the style of roadrunner.
zugmann Murphy Siding In a way, it sort of looks like an outline of Foghorn Leghorn, but the desert background seemed more Roadrunner-ish. Yeah, it ws done in the style of roadrunner.
Murphy Siding In a way, it sort of looks like an outline of Foghorn Leghorn, but the desert background seemed more Roadrunner-ish.
My Little Pony?
Cold this morning, but the barometer is on a steady climb, and the sun is out.
Lots to do today - 104 folders to stuff and tables to set up at the banquet hall for our safety class on Sunday. Plus a batch of chili and maybe some baked beans.
Time to get to work!
Today we gave a longtime friend of mine (I've known him for over 50 years) a surprise visit at a lecture he was giving. He's an art professor at Kendall School of Design in Grand Rapids, but was giving a talk/demonstration at Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek. Being able to do a portrait from a photograph is amazing. I consider myself a color person, and to me the colors going on seemed all wrong. Then, all of a sudden, the face just seems to explode from the board (he was working in oils).We found an amazing restaurant not too far from the CN yard office in Battle Creek: McGonigle's Pub and Grill. Good prices, great food! On nicer days with extra time, it would be ablut a two-block walk from where there be trains to where there be lunch or dinner.Since it was still light out when we were heading home, I decided to take the "scenic route" from Chesterton as far as the eastern edge of Gary, in case some trains happened by.
We got to Ogden Dunes, and two headlights showed up in the distance. One was a NICTD commuter train. The other was a slow-moving Norfolk Southern steel train, with many open gondolas of coil steel. I was a little disappointed, because the Gary Railway's brand-new coil cars (which I was hoping to see myself for the first time) had covers on them. Well, wouldn't you know...three covered coil cars showed up in the train, toward the end! And then, wouldn't you know...another eastbound freight blew past on the near track, blocking my view! I could see enough, between the cars of the interloper, to know that these were the cars I wanted. So when the other train had passed, I went back east and caught up to the steel train. I couldn't stop, because this part of northern Indiana still had unplowed shoulders along its highways. But I confirmed numbers and builder, and that's good enough. Going back to check it also meant that we got on the Interstate a couple of exits sooner than we would have, and it was smooth sailing most of the way home from there.
morning
weather is going back to spring mode.Going to go visit brother.Have been busy past couple weeks.Will see what rolls by on CSX/NS.Tomorrow after church it's birthday time for an Aunt.Going to get stuff around.
CShaveRR And then, wouldn't you know...another eastbound freight blew past on the near track, blocking my view! I could see enough, between the cars of the interloper, to know that these were the cars I wanted. So when the other train had passed, I went back east and caught up to the steel train. I couldn't stop, because this part of northern Indiana still had unplowed shoulders along its highways.
And then, wouldn't you know...another eastbound freight blew past on the near track, blocking my view! I could see enough, between the cars of the interloper, to know that these were the cars I wanted. So when the other train had passed, I went back east and caught up to the steel train. I couldn't stop, because this part of northern Indiana still had unplowed shoulders along its highways.
CARL What were you up to? Trying to duplicate what happened in the UK for that photographer that could not get the rebuilt steamer ? Now in 30 - 40 years maybe some HSR train will block your views of freight cars ?
Apropos of nothing recent here, but I finally found something that's too good not to share.
The background is medical practice in the US, as controlled by the insurance companies: In recent years I, my wife, and members of our extended families have had various medical procedures, fortunately mostly outpatient. However, leaving the hospital isn't the end of it - they expect you or spouse/ significant other to perform some nursing-care level functions for yourself back at home. For me, most recently this involves my wife having to remove and then replace 'packing'* in a fairly good size incision in my right side (which I can barely see, which is why she has to do it), and then everything for applying the large dressing/ covering. (*If you don't know, you don't want to - it's not for the squeamish, trust me.) Other procedures have been similar.
All of this reminds us of the following commercial from about 10 years ago. Those of you who have been in similar situations willl recognize the satire. I've provided 3 different links to the same ad, in case one of them is removed:
http://www.tvspots.tv/video/36234/edward-jones--operation
http://www.adforum.com/creative-work/ad/player/6702404/surgery/edward-jones
https://adland.tv/commercials/edward-jones-doctor-2005-030-usa
We've come to think the same about various other specialized needs of the modern day person, which have been involuntarily 'outsourced'/ down-shifted to us with nowhere near the necessary qualifications - managing our investments for a retirement fund (the subject of the ad, coincidentally) is of like kind, we think. (Disclaimer: we have no relationship with the company for which the ad was created and broadcast.)
- Paul North.
Paul_D_North_JrFor me, most recently this involves my wife having to remove and then replace 'packing'* in a fairly good size incision in my right side (which I can barely see, which is why she has to do it), and then everything for applying the large dressing/ covering. (*If you don't know, you don't want to - it's not for the squeamish, trust me.) Other procedures have been similar.
Finally giving up that pesky humanity and becoming a cyborg? Awesome.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bender_(Futurama) ?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminator_(character) ?
Nahh, I'm more prone to disconnect the HAL 9000:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgkyrW2NiwM
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