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Chatterbox Summer 2016

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Wednesday, September 14, 2016 7:42 AM

Without trying to sound too cold, a room at MacNeal in Berwyn might have worked out better, some rooms overlook the BNSF main.  In the movie "Light of Day", which was shot in the Chicago area, one hospital scene was shot at MacNeal, and you can see a BN freight slowing down for Clyde through the window.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, September 14, 2016 6:27 AM

Once it was discovered that the shortness of breath was caused by pneumonia, I was given a different antibiotic that has knocked it down dramatically.  I was feeling almost normal yesterday evening.

However, my blood saturation level wasn't quite high enough, so I had to go back on oxygen (I was having productivity without it for about five good hours, with improved breathing, endurance, and appetite).  They moved me to the new room, where the old setting was used for the oxygen--dry and forceful.  So that's why I'm up so early--probably the most severe nosebleed I've ever had.  We'll get through all of this, though, and maybe soon.

Today they're offering pet therapy in the hospital.  I think I need some serious train therapy--I'm sequestered less than two miles from the BNSF "Racetrack", and can't do anything about it.

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)

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Posted by samfp1943 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 10:32 PM

Deggesty

Carl, I am sorry to hear that some bug has found you out when you have already had so much medical  care. I hope that someone has found the bug and stomped on it so hard that it will wish it had never bothered you.

 

Sorry to hear that Carl is in hospital...Sounds like there is some improvement !  Improvement is always good... Get Well, Soon, Carl.. Fingers are crossed, and prayers for your rapid recovery.Bow

 

 

 

 


 

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Posted by Electroliner 1935 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 9:38 PM

tree68

 

 
Norm48327

 

 
Electroliner 1935

Came across these in Tucson AZ. Took me awhile to comprehend what do. Didn't like them.

 

 

 

 

                                                 ?

 

 

 

I think he's talking about Michigan Lefts...

 

Precisely. Sorry, Norm, I didn't mean to confuse anyone.

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Posted by Deggesty on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 7:23 PM

Whether they are Michigan lefts or turn right to go left, I am glad that I will not have to negotiate either kind again, but let someone else worry with them.

Johnny

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Posted by tree68 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 7:07 PM

Norm48327

 

 
Electroliner 1935

Came across these in Tucson AZ. Took me awhile to comprehend what do. Didn't like them.

 

 

 

 

                                                 ?

 

I think he's talking about Michigan Lefts...

LarryWhistling
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Posted by Norm48327 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 6:28 PM

Electroliner 1935

Came across these in Tucson AZ. Took me awhile to comprehend what do. Didn't like them.

 

 

                                                 ?

Norm


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Posted by Electroliner 1935 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 5:19 PM

Came across these in Tucson AZ. Took me awhile to comprehend what do. Didn't like them.

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Posted by JoeKoh on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 3:27 PM

work not as busy.Matt got tickets for Friday's football game.Mother nature sending rain tomorrow? Ns was clear when I left work.Chores to do.

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").

 

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Posted by Deggesty on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 3:07 PM

Carl, I am sorry to hear that some bug has found you out when you have already had so much medical  care. I hope that someone has found the bug and stomped on it so hard that it will wish it had never bothered you.

Johnny

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Posted by tree68 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 2:56 PM

CShaveRR
I'm hoping I'll be stronger tomorrow.

Better, Carl.  You're supposed to get better.  And we hope (and trust) that you will.

LarryWhistling
Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) 
Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you
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Come ride the rails with me!
There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...

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Posted by CShaveRR on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 2:25 PM

Yes, those are Michigan lefts.  I once thought I saw an advantage to them while thinking about it, but that has since been lost to me.  And in my old neck of the woods, there are some streets where you have no choice--They've eliminated the cross street completely between lanes!  To go straight across, you turn right, make the left U, then turn right again.

Rotaries used to frustrate me, too, but I've seen the [lack of] light on a few of those (the few that have a single-lane circle, or at most two):  once you're in a circle, you own the entire block to the point where you wish to get off it.  Everyone yields to you as long as you're in the circle.


I haven't been onfor long because I'm back in the hospital since last Friday, with a post-surgical infection.  That infection has apparently been successfully taken care of, but I was left far weaker than I had been with the original surgery.  The worst thing now is no respiratory endurance--I can't even go to the bathroom here without oygen.  I'm hoping I'll be stronger tomorrow.

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)

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Posted by Deggesty on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 10:45 AM

BOB WITHORN

A Michigan Left gets to be a lot of fun when you're trying to go left but have to go thru, make a 180 then cross 4 + lanes of stop and go traffic in a hundered yards or so and then turn right to go left.

 

when I was driving ( I do not do that anymore), I would avoid such intersections if I could. There are some here which have you turn right and then make a U-turn to complete your left turn. Either way, it takes longer to make a left turn than before--though traffic that does not turn left moves faster.

There  are some intersections that have a looong left turn lane which does make it easier to turn left--once the left turn light is on. I also tried to avoid such as those. Such can be confusing to someone who is not familiar with them and wants to turn right directly into the cross traffic's left turn lane. Please do not ask me to diagram such an intersection--to get into the left turn lane, you cross the ongoing traffic lane (there is traffic light protection for those who want to turn left there)--some such do not permit a right turn on red (in general, unless there is a sign prohibting it, a right turn on red is allowed).

Johnny

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Posted by BOB WITHORN on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 7:50 AM

A Michigan Left gets to be a lot of fun when you're trying to go left but have to go thru, make a 180 then cross 4 + lanes of stop and go traffic in a hundered yards or so and then turn right to go left.

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Posted by tree68 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 7:32 AM

samfp1943
"Michigan Left turn" (?)  Is that anything like the New Jersey 'Turn Right to go Left'....THAT took some getting used to ! 

Sounds similar:Michigan Left

There isn't always a stoplight at the U-turn, though - most I've seen/used just have a stop sign.

LarryWhistling
Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) 
Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you
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Posted by samfp1943 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 7:28 AM

tree68

While I was in MI this summer I took a back way to get from point A to point B and found a traffic circle rather in the middle of nowhere...

Of course, there is always the "Michigan left turn..."

 

  tree68;

                   "Michigan Left turn" (?)  Is that anything like the New Jersey 'Turn Right to go Left'....THAT took some getting used to ! Sigh

Or the 'Massachuttes Stop'- essentially, 'No Stop' . it amounts to a game of 'Intersection Chicken'...   The folks in St. Louis are also practitioners of a similar move, but they seem to operate wilth a higher level of testosterone, in its' application. Whistling  SHEEEESH! Mischief

                       

 

 


 

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Posted by tree68 on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 6:46 AM

While I was in MI this summer I took a back way to get from point A to point B and found a traffic circle rather in the middle of nowhere...

Of course, there is always the "Michigan left turn..."

LarryWhistling
Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) 
Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you
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There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...

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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 6:30 AM

BOB WITHORN
So, who decided that replacing traffic lights with those round traffic circles things was such a wonderful idea? They work great until rush hour. Try VanDyke and 18 mile in Sterling Hts, (north side of Detroit), between 5 and 6 pm. When the busy side get there you can't get through until they are gone.  You are forced to go look for trains until it clears.

Sheboygan, WI - 3 traffic circles with 1/2 mile

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by BOB WITHORN on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 5:41 AM

So, who decided that replacing traffic lights with those round traffic circles things was such a wonderful idea? They work great until rush hour. Try VanDyke and 18 mile in Sterling Hts, (north side of Detroit), between 5 and 6 pm. When the busy side get there you can't get through until they are gone.  You are forced to go look for trains until it clears.

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Posted by BaltACD on Monday, September 12, 2016 11:14 PM

tree68

Phone company finished moving their cables off a pole across the street.  Power did so last week.  Now a local authority has to move their fiber line, and the cable people have to move their stuff, and the pole can come out.

And that will mean the highway people can finish rebuilding the intersection.  Yay! 

And people wonder why it costs so much to make highway (railroad to) changes - and we are only talking about a pole line.  When changes are needed underground, the costs rise exponentially.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by tree68 on Monday, September 12, 2016 6:55 PM

Phone company finished moving their cables off a pole across the street.  Power did so last week.  Now a local authority has to move their fiber line, and the cable people have to move their stuff, and the pole can come out.

And that will mean the highway people can finish rebuilding the intersection.  Yay!

LarryWhistling
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...

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Posted by JoeKoh on Monday, September 12, 2016 3:12 PM

afternoon

Ns local was busy uptown when I left work.Work not so busy today.Chores to do.

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").

 

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Posted by JoeKoh on Saturday, September 10, 2016 12:36 PM

afternoon

work done.Dodged some raindrops.Was able to see 3 NS trains in Archbold. One used a crossover then the other 2 went on their way.Going to work on things here at home.

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").

 

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Saturday, September 10, 2016 6:54 AM

tree68
 
blue streak 1

Tree:  Those microbursts can be airplane killers.  The very nature of them being so small make detection from air difficult.  Reaction time to save the day must be less than a second if airplane close to ground. 

 

For sure.  I was amazed at how tiny it was, width-wise.  Usually one might expect a broader front. It would be a "slam-dunk" for a small plane.

 
I remember a similar situation which showed how incredibly localized a microburst can be.  Several years ago, a microburst struck an apartment building in Bridgeview (near 79th & Harlem) and basically removed the roof.  Other buildings in the complex were not seriously damaged except for that caused by flying debris.
The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by tree68 on Friday, September 9, 2016 8:54 PM

Booth for local train show all set up.  Hopefully they get some good crowds.  And my voice lasts...

Sunday I'll have to speak at the 9/11 memorial ceremony.

LarryWhistling
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...

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Posted by JoeKoh on Friday, September 9, 2016 4:33 PM

evening

work still busy.Matt was closed due to fog this morning.Going to work tomorrow morning.Mother nature is sending rain our way.We'll see how much we get.

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").

 

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Posted by tree68 on Friday, September 9, 2016 6:35 AM

blue streak 1

Tree:  Those microbursts can be airplane killers.  The very nature of them being so small make detection from air difficult.  Reaction time to save the day must be less than a second if airplane close to ground. 

For sure.  I was amazed at how tiny it was, width-wise.  Usually one might expect a broader front. It would be a "slam-dunk" for a small plane.

LarryWhistling
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...

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Posted by blue streak 1 on Friday, September 9, 2016 4:41 AM

Tree:  Those microbursts can be airplane killers.  The very nature of them being so small make detection from air difficult.  Reaction time to save the day must be less than a second if airplane close to ground. 

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Posted by tree68 on Thursday, September 8, 2016 7:59 PM

Headed home from RR HQ and picking up the materials for a train show this weekend when I spotted leaves in the road.  This usually means that wind (or something) blew them there.  Moments later, the local FD was toned out for trees and wires down, so I went back and checked out that site.

The two were definitely related - looked like it was a tiny microburst - the wind path couldn't have been 20 yards wide, but it took down a number of trees and a garage over a quarter mile or so.  Took some pictures and sent them to NWS.  Got mentioned ("trained observer...") in their tweets about the incident.

Power was out in the area, too...

LarryWhistling
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...

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Posted by JoeKoh on Thursday, September 8, 2016 7:22 PM

evening

work still busy.got the part for a machine.Computers were slow today.Took care of yardwork in town and at home.Csx sent a westbound frieght and an empty salad shooter.(up powered train and reefer cars q 91).Also was meet the new neighbors.Lady and 4 little ones.They are moving in this weekend.Tomorrow is Friday.

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").

 

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