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Chatterbox Summer 2017

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Posted by mudchicken on Friday, June 23, 2017 9:29 AM

Light rain overnight just quit. 25 degree drop in the high temperature here today. Dancing in the streets in Denver.

Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west
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Posted by switch7frg on Friday, June 23, 2017 10:11 AM

Big SmileIs that the same kind of wobble the train cars make rolling down the track or the oval shaped wheels??

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Posted by tree68 on Friday, June 23, 2017 9:49 PM

mudchicken

Light rain overnight just quit. 25 degree drop in the high temperature here today. Dancing in the streets in Denver.

Still hotter than the hubs of, well, you know, here in Phoenix.  But we got over 2" of rain at home...  

Paid a visit to the Hall of Flame today.  If I moved out here, I'd be there most of the time, probably as a docent...  (did I say that already?).

Tomorrow  morning, it's the Railroad Park in Scottsdale.  And, of course, another visit to Mom.  Unfortunately, although the stroke wasn't as bad as it could have been, it definitely affected her memory.  It's a bit of a battle sometimes - she was so independent even a week or so ago, and she's not taking it well.

LarryWhistling
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Posted by samfp1943 on Saturday, June 24, 2017 8:05 AM

Two words, Larry;   SWIMING POOL!  Bow  Bow

Weather Guessers, around here,

said the temp out there are still gonna be scortching...Devil

Enjoy!  Mischief   Just remember, that New York weather will seem pretty good on your return. 

 

 


 

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Posted by tree68 on Saturday, June 24, 2017 10:54 PM

samfp1943
Two words, Larry;   SWIMMING POOL!    

The room isn't bad right now, and the pool (along with the rest of the hotel) is packed.  Doesn't close until midnight, though, so I might wander down later...

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 JoeKoh on Sunday, June 25, 2017 5:25 AM

morning

cool here in Nw Ohio.Going to go see what csx wants to run.Have supper tonight with in-laws now that everyone is back home.Tomorrow it's back to work.Keep cool Larry.

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 Sunday, June 25, 2017 9:42 PM

Took a ride this morning on the 15" gauge railroad at the McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park in Scottsdale.  Next weekend is the last weekend for steam for the summer, if you're so inclined.  I think the engineer took on as much water as the tender... 

LarryWhistling
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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 JoeKoh on Monday, June 26, 2017 3:56 PM

Went back to work today.Boss said I can't go any more vactions.Ns local was uptown.Came home and got a couple sprinkles as I mowed the yard.Farmers could use some more here in Nw Ohio.

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 Mookie on Monday, June 26, 2017 7:03 PM

Going to be a short summer here.  Our humidity stays pretty low; we get smatters of rain; lots of cool temps - in the 50's at nite & while it can be 95, it isn't as hot as it has felt in the past.  When I was young and always too warm, we had blistering summers.  Now that I am old and cold - I can't even tolerate the air conditioning -  and need to keep running outside to warm up.

But don't want to move to AZ, either.  I am afraid they will start finding humidity somewhere and they will be Nebraska west.... 

She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw

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Posted by tree68 on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 12:37 AM

The problem here in AZ is that you get out of the bath-water-warm pool and step into the +100F night air, and you're COLD.  Of course, it's due to the evaporation...

One more day and I'm out of the oven.  Mom's improving slowly, but she'll never be back to 100%.   Then, again, it looks like she'll survive at least until her 91st birthday at the end of July.  And even the rehab folks are impressed with her progress.

Going back to spring-like temperatures, which would be OK if it was spring.

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 JoeKoh on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 2:54 PM

afternoon

Local was running around again today after work.Matt has an appointment to ride with the drivers exam officer on Thursday.Have 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 Norm48327 on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 4:18 PM

Bob,

Being a Waterford native I try to avoid downtown Flint.

 

Norm


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Posted by switch7frg on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 4:37 PM

SmileLarry, glad to hear your mom is getting better, and there will be prayers for her and  you at the prayer  meeting wed. afternoon.  Hope you had a good time in spite of things.                                                                                                                 Respectfully, Cannonball

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Posted by switch7frg on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 5:16 PM

WhistlingMs. Mookie, a wise choice to stay there. Here in northern AZ. it is fire season.Right now we have a 4400acre fire going on. The wind is nasty and is helping the fire spread and the ash is falling down. We are 25 mi. from the fire which is near the ridge line  west of Mayer Az. If the wind changes  from the sw. and swings around from the north(uh oh). The smoke has blotted the sun somewhat , and very thick. There are several fire crews  from N.M. here and fire bombers from Montana.  The airport for the aircraft is 10 mi.north from the fire  for the slurry bombers. So now we sit and and watch.                                                                                                             Respectfully, Cannonball

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Posted by Mookie on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 5:46 PM

Cannonball:  Went and found all the google maps I could.  We have some relatives that just moved to Payson.  Mayer to Payson isn't very far!  Not when we are talking fire.  

I wish you well and them, too.  Likin' this little burg, with no weather and flat, more all the time.  

She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw

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Posted by tree68 on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 9:30 PM

The fire is all over the Phoenix news.  4400 acres is on the order of 7 square miles (640 acres per square mile) - pretty significant.

This fire is also not far from where the Prescott Hotshots lost their lives.

Phoenix is a little cooler today - I think it topped out at +109F or so.  Tomorrow I jump on the plane home, and into cooler temps.  Good thing I left a sweatshirt in my truck.  They did get a number of thunderstorms today - my phone kept lighting up with warnings...

LarryWhistling
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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 9:58 PM

tree68
The fire is all over the Phoenix news.  4400 acres is on the order of 7 square miles (640 acres per square mile) - pretty significant.

This fire is also not far from where the Prescott Hotshots lost their lives.

Phoenix is a little cooler today - I think it topped out at +109F or so.  Tomorrow I jump on the plane home, and into cooler temps.  Good thing I left a sweatshirt in my truck.  They did get a number of thunderstorms today - my phone kept lighting up with warnings...

Dumb phone - doesn't know where you are

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 10:11 PM

BaltACD

 

 
tree68
The fire is all over the Phoenix news.  4400 acres is on the order of 7 square miles (640 acres per square mile) - pretty significant.

This fire is also not far from where the Prescott Hotshots lost their lives.

Phoenix is a little cooler today - I think it topped out at +109F or so.  Tomorrow I jump on the plane home, and into cooler temps.  Good thing I left a sweatshirt in my truck.  They did get a number of thunderstorms today - my phone kept lighting up with warnings...

 

 

Dumb phone - doesn't know where you are

 

And yet, it changes its clock time to match whatever timezone you are in.

Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.

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Posted by tree68 on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 12:04 AM

BaltACD
Dumb phone - doesn't know where you are

I get all of the fire and EMS calls, too.  At least I know what I'm missing.  Besides, I'll have to make out the reports when I get back...

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 BOB WITHORN on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 8:20 AM

[quote user="Norm48327"]

Bob,

Being a Waterford native I try to avoid downtown Flint.

 

 

Norm, It's mostly U of M  Flint now. The only operation of any size other then them is the Mott Foundation. Citizens Bank is long gone. Saginaw St., the Brick Road, might as well be a 2 track dirt path as bad as the condition is.  It's a shame, Once the proud home of 4 GM divisions and the place that started GM. The original Buick plants, the original Chevrolet plants, the original Fischer Body plants, the original AC Spark Plug plants, the original GM Parts Div. plants. All had rail yards to support them with HUGE rail volumn. GONE, except the complex on southeast corner of I75 and I69 near the airport, (the one in the news because of the knife attack). 

 

Spent a lot of time in those GM plants. We sold them a lot of supplies. At one time I had a pass to walk in to Buick and inspect our equipment along the Buick assembly lines. It was different. Now I DON'T GO DOWNTOWN!! and I grew up there. Retiring soon and headed to SW Michigan/N. Indiana instead.

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Posted by mudchicken on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 11:43 AM
Watching the news regarding the two CSX fatalities outside Washington Union Station. As usual the newsworkers can't get the facts straight. Assuming the hour, was this a pair of signal maintainers or operating crew?
Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west
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Posted by switch7frg on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 12:17 PM

Well the wind did swing around and now the fire has grown to 21.000 acres. More fire fighters  are on the way. The 2 heavy fire bombers are on the go from sun up to sun down. The air boss circles in his little plane and sees where to drop next load. The 2 planes don't get in the way of each other which makes air boss happy. So far, here in Malfunction  Junction (Cordes) we are ok and now there is ash falling from 25mi. away. The firemen have medics there to care for them if needed. The talking "newsheads" can't get it straight when they never  leave the station. One of my friends is a fire fighter  and he don't say much.                                                                         Cannonball

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Posted by BaltACD on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 1:10 PM

mudchicken
Watching the news regarding the two CSX fatalities outside Washington Union Station. As usual the newsworkers can't get the facts straight. Assuming the hour, was this a pair of signal maintainers or operating crew?

My understanding is that it was Train Crew returning to the head end of their train after being stopped by a Hot Box Detector.  No real facts yet.  At the site of the incident all four main tracks (2 CSX & 2 Amtrak) are parallel.  Before I retired, it was customary for crews on the ground to request from the Dispatcher 'blocking protection' on an adjacent track so they could safely walk the track in the inspection of their train.  Note-CSX Dispatchers cannot protect Amtrak tracks and vice versa.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 3:42 PM

The mention in the Trains Newswire said that investigators are looking into any communication between the two dispatchers concerning the situation.  It sounds like a defect detector inspection, all right...

Here's the quote (I hope I'm not in trouble for this!):
National Transportation Safety Board investigators are looking specifically into what a CSX Transportation dispatcher may have told an Amtrak dispatcher in the minutes leading up to a fatal accident late Tuesday.

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 JoeKoh on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 5:15 PM

evening

Ns had the local uptown and a big frieght in the siding when I left work.Getting muggy out.Looked at the weather.Iowa friends might need to duck and cover.Matt took care of the yardwork uptown.Getting stuff around for the weekend.

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 mudchicken on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 5:25 PM

BaltACD
 
mudchicken
Watching the news regarding the two CSX fatalities outside Washington Union Station. As usual the newsworkers can't get the facts straight. Assuming the hour, was this a pair of signal maintainers or operating crew?

 

My understanding is that it was Train Crew returning to the head end of their train after being stopped by a Hot Box Detector.  No real facts yet.  At the site of the incident all four main tracks (2 CSX & 2 Amtrak) are parallel.  Before I retired, it was customary for crews on the ground to request from the Dispatcher 'blocking protection' on an adjacent track so they could safely walk the track in the inspection of their train.  Note-CSX Dispatchers cannot protect Amtrak tracks and vice versa.

 

Here in Denver we have an ongoing pissing match between RTD and BNSF/UP in the jointline corridor. RTD is howling from the rooftops that freight crews and signalmen are constantly roaming where they shouldn't be and that a difference in rulebooks approach to fouling should not be an excuse with any kind of moving vehicles.

Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west
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Posted by blhanel on Wednesday, June 28, 2017 9:12 PM

JoeKoh

Iowa friends might need to duck and cover.

Dodged a bullet here- tornado touched down just 13 miles north of us, nailed the little town of Prairieburg.

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Posted by mudchicken on Thursday, June 29, 2017 1:16 PM

Good to hear you folks ducked just in time. Now if Johnny would just quit blowing smoke over this way! (so thick the mountains vanished...hopefully rain late tonight to wash it out.)

Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west
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Posted by Deggesty on Thursday, June 29, 2017 1:35 PM

I'm sorry. It seems that a man down at Brian Head (way south of here) was burning shrubs aroud his cabin with a torch, and it got away from him. A man passing by called 911 and said, "...the fire is massive. I think a Brian Head officer needs to go to the cabin immediately and talk to this landowner immediatley before he burns down Brian Head." A second 911 call was from someone at the scene, asking for help since the fire was out of control.

The fire started twelve days ago.

Johnny

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Posted by JoeKoh on Thursday, June 29, 2017 3:42 PM

afternoon

Ns was clear when i left work.

Mother nature is trying to blow something in.Matt is now able to drive by himself.If he plans a trip to Deshler he best take me along.More gray hair to come.

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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