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Chatterbox Spring 2020

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  • Member since
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Posted by Deggesty on Sunday, April 12, 2020 2:31 PM

Quoting MC "All kinds of railroad research projects all over the midwest on hold because the archives, railroad engineering, state and county offices are all closed. Abandoned railroad R/W info kinda hard to access in these times, which will cause some projects to grind to a halt. (Millenial buttonpushers are incredulous that this stuff isn't findable on the webCrying)"

Well, invite the "millenial buttonpushers" to make use of their time by finding this stuff and posting it after the archives are available.Smile

Johnny

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Posted by CShaveRR on Sunday, April 12, 2020 4:24 PM

Pat has been admitted to the hospital for her COVID-19, is on oxygen (not a respirator), and in isolation.  They're taking better care of her than I could here, so I'll just get done what I can and stay in touch with her.  She says it'll be "a few days".  She was admitted because her oxygen levels were so low.  Cetrainly a far cry from the "sounding better" report we heard yesterday...

I will talk with my own doctors tomorrow to see if they want to take any precautions with me.  I don't feel too bad now...headache earlier today was due to the lack of caffeine.  My temperature, slightly elevated, has been going down again.

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 Sunday, April 12, 2020 5:15 PM

Carl, thank you for the update on Pat; may she be getting the care she needs.

As for you, make a BIG pot of coffee and drink it.

Johnny

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Posted by CShaveRR on Sunday, April 12, 2020 7:53 PM

Johnny, I don't drink coffee at all.  My poison of choice is Diet Mountain Dew, and I've taken care of the headache with that.

Pat's being cared for--she mentioned a shot she's gotten, and that she ate a bit, and drank some milk.  I don't envy her sleeping with that tube under her nose, but she's pretty happy, if not comfortable, with the treatment she's getting.

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 Ajsik on Sunday, April 12, 2020 9:23 PM

CShaveRR

I don't drink coffee at all.  My poison of choice is Diet Mountain Dew. 

I always thought it was too harsh...until I started adding a splash of Code Red at the convenience store fountain.

Thanks for sharing your updates. I hope your wife has a speedy recovery.

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Posted by miniwyo on Monday, April 13, 2020 12:22 AM

Hey everyone! 

I was over at the MR forums to ask a question that is stumping me and thought I'd stop and say hello to you all. My, it's been a while. There's so many new "faces", but I'm delighted to see some of the old family. 

Carl, Hang in there! I know you and Pat will weather this and be stronger on the other side. 

I may begin to lurk a bit more. I have missed you all.

RJ

"Something hidden, Go and find it. Go and look behind the ranges, Something lost behind the ranges. Lost and waiting for you. Go." The Explorers - Rudyard Kipling

http://sweetwater-photography.com/

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Posted by rvos1979 on Monday, April 13, 2020 6:56 AM

Another week, another Muskogee turn, this time hauling out the paper that's used to make the roll the toilet paper is wound onto. 42,000 lbs makes a lot of rolls..........

Had to make a Sam's Club run this past Friday, wasn't too bad inside, although supplies of food were low, couldn't get a few things we needed. Cleaning supplies were still gone. Grocery store was better, although we can't use our own bags anymore. More paper to the recycling bin, I guess. Sister has to order a week ahead if she wants to pickup groceries, hopefully they add more people to this service...........

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

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Posted by tree68 on Monday, April 13, 2020 1:23 PM

rvos1979
Grocery store was better, although we can't use our own bags anymore.

Our grocery stores had just changed over to re-usable bags (or you could pay for paper) due to a state law.  Now they're using plastic again.  

My last trip to the grocery store showed a fair sized crowd.  Lowes was busy, too.  Some wore masks, most didn't.

I see where a liquor store posted a sign on the door banning gloves.  That's actually a good thing, as people are really misusing them, forgetting that they are intended to stop cross contamination...

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 NorthWest on Monday, April 13, 2020 2:34 PM

Carl, good to hear that you and Pat are in good spirits during this difficult time. I wish you two the best for quick recoveries.

That goes towards other forum members as well. I hope everyone is doing well.

I'm currently finding out that right now is a particularly ugly time to be graduating from college and looking for jobs. I'd rather not be the unemployed millenial in the basement...

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Posted by JoeKoh on Monday, April 13, 2020 3:14 PM

afternoon

Ns had an eastbound coal train in the siding after work.Mother nature is providing wind power.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 tree68 on Monday, April 13, 2020 3:26 PM

NorthWest
I'm currently finding out that right now is a particularly ugly time to be graduating from college and looking for jobs. I'd rather not be the unemployed millenial in the basement...

It's going to take a while to sort a lot of things out.  Scholarships (sports and academics) are going to be tough, since the end of the school year has been pretty much cancelled (including some testing), and along with it sports.

Much has been made of the fact that the class of 2020 is, well, up a creek.

There had been rumors of making all students repeat the year.  This would raise Cain with the colleges, as their entire freshman class would be basically non-existent.

The ripple effects will last for several years.

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 BaltACD on Monday, April 13, 2020 3:37 PM

Interesting day between alternating Severe T'storm Warnings, Tornado Warning, Florida Frog Drowner bands of rain all punctuated with random period of sunshine followed winds gusting into the 40's.  If you don't like the situation this instant, it will change in 10 minutes.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by tree68 on Monday, April 13, 2020 6:44 PM

BaltACD
Interesting day between alternating Severe T'storm Warnings, Tornado Warning,...

A fellow ham in NC posted a TVS image from the area of the USMC base there.  We're just getting wind.  Gale warnings on Lake Ontario...

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 mudchicken on Monday, April 13, 2020 7:35 PM

Deggesty

Quoting MC "All kinds of railroad research projects all over the midwest on hold because the archives, railroad engineering, state and county offices are all closed. Abandoned railroad R/W info kinda hard to access in these times, which will cause some projects to grind to a halt. (Millenial buttonpushers are incredulous that this stuff isn't findable on the webCrying)"

Well, invite the "millenial buttonpushers" to make use of their time by finding this stuff and posting it after the archives are available.Smile

 

Largely beneath them, especially the government ones.

(1) At BLM, they are way behind and are digitizing like crazy. Unfortunately so much of the public room stuff here in Denver is on aperture cards (film); there is no budget to digitize. Master Title Plats (MTP) and Historical Indexes (OG) are all just now showing up online along with the Oil & Gas (OG) maps and only the images of two states GLO Tract Books are online. (The mormons are well ahead of the feds with data that applies to everybody from Ohio/Florida to the west. (and Tennessee is just so-screwed because it refused to change, even after the government broke down large parts of the states)... Everybody east of Ohio ( The Metes and Bounds States, is stuck with the clumsy Colonial/British system and large parts of Texas (Spanish Registry) and Louisiana (Napoleonic Code) registry are stuck with a harder system fraught with error and abuse. 

-At the Colorado BLM HQ, they have film readers and a KROY-3M film printer that they can't find anybody to come fix/maintain the machines. It's a struggle if you are a miner, oil and gas, timber or grassland leaseholder. (technology gone backwards, debilatating!) 

(2) At National Archives, the brain trust there would NOT allow scanning until the early 2010's. The microfilm imaging people (Captain Blur and CO. - A Division of Wie, Cheatem and Howe really had people buffaloed.)

(3) and then there are the local courthouses, especially the rural ones (disasters)

The new snake-oil hucksters, with GIS, hardly cre about integrity.

All it takes is $$$$ and there isn't any.SoapBoxSoapBoxSoapBox

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 MikeF90 on Monday, April 13, 2020 8:05 PM

Carl, good to hear that you and Pat apparently are holding your own against the virus, hopefully that trend will continue.

tree68
Our grocery stores had just changed over to re-usable bags (or you could pay for paper) due to a state law. Now they're using plastic again.

We've had the reusable bag mandate here (and IMO stupid pay-for-paper) for a few years; ironically T.J.s has prohibited reusable temporarily and is providing their paper ones for free.

Went to the opthamologist for a few baseline tests and a doctor consult; he proclaimed my eyes 'good enough' and wants to see me back in 6 mo for a recheck. Since I'm in the 1% percentile with 11+ diopter correction, perhaps I should send my old glasses to NASA for the next HST repair.

Being a shelter-at-home veteran I've tried many things to keep my spirits up, just rediscovered barbershop 'a capella' singing. Hundreds of YT videos are available for the Barbershop Harmony Society, hope that you like some. 

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Posted by Paul_D_North_Jr on Monday, April 13, 2020 8:43 PM

Carl, best wishes to you and Pat for her quick recovery, and for you not to have anything worse or longer than you've just experienced. 

Pennsylvania Governor Wolf concluded his speech tonight with this line: "By doing nothin' [sic], we are doing something truly extraordinary, and for that I thank you."  A tip of the hat to anyone who can recognize the origins of that line. 

My daughter says an internet meme a few weeks ago was like "For the first time in history, you can save lives by sitting around watching TV." (or something similar). 

For those of us at home, it's either "Every day is Saturday" (credit to J. Gray Chandler of AREMA Committee 24), or "Groundhog Day".

Everyone, take care.  As the Dos Equis beer "Most Interesting Man in the World" used to say, "Stay healthy, my friends."

- PDN. 

"This Fascinating Railroad Business" (title of 1943 book by Robert Selph Henry of the AAR)
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Posted by JoeKoh on Tuesday, April 14, 2020 4:01 PM

afternoon

Ns still had the coal train in the siding after work.Came home and mowed the swamp.Matt's principal emailed and said Matt could still take his Ap course tests.He is taking his classes online now.Still not sure about graduation ceremony or party yet.I am leaning twoards a no.Going to get cleaned up.

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 Wednesday, April 15, 2020 11:14 AM

The earth around here is still a bit unsettled--just before  nine last night, there was a magnitude 4.17 tremor out in the valley, lasting a few seconds. I have not yet seen any report on damage. This was #629 with a magnitude great than 1.0, and the fifth one with a magnitude greater than 4.0, since the recent big one.

Our Easter cold snap is still holding on; it's 44 outside now.

 

Johnny

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Posted by tree68 on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 12:29 PM

I was sitting at the table eating lunch when I looked out the window and saw snowflakes in the air...

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 CSSHEGEWISCH on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 1:52 PM

We got snow this morning, too.  However, almost all of it has melted by now.

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 JoeKoh on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 2:36 PM

afternoon

Ns sent a stack train eastbound between a stopped westbound and the coal train today after work.The westbound got rolling after the eastbound past.Mother nature sent us some snow.Guessers say more to come on Friday.Park came and mowed the playgorund area today too.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 NorthWest on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 2:42 PM

Carl, a few brand new large-capacity rock hoppers came through today.

LFPX 873, 874 and 881 were the one numbers I could catch. No build dates but still quite clean, so no more than a couple months old.

Some of the newest cars don't have the black stencil with the build date, or at least not on both sides. I'm not sure why that is but I miss it.

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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 10:32 PM

Thanks for that, Colin!

There are 25 of these cars, built by the Greenbrier Companies in March, numbers LFPX 861-885.  LFPX is Lane Forest Products, Inc.  (The only "Lane" I'm familiar with is the county in Oregon...my pen-pal in Eugene lives there.)

Some of the lower-numbered LFPX cars are former UP woodchip cars.

Probably not for rocks, given their size...more like woodchips.

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 Thursday, April 16, 2020 11:06 AM

Well, that fault action just west of here seems to not be satisfied yet--there was another burp a little before seven this morning. My daughter, who lives five miles south and about a half mile east of me, sent me a note telling me she felt it (she did not feel the one a few nights ago).

The Easter cold snap is still gripping us; it is predicted to leave in another day or two. MC may still feel it. There was a time when I was working that I had business with a company in Colorado Springs; when I called the company, one man there would ask me abut our weather so he would know what to expect the next day.

Johnny

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Posted by NorthWest on Thursday, April 16, 2020 11:57 AM

Carl, thanks. I should've recognized that.

I've seen a lot fewer new Greenbrier reefers lately.

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Posted by mudchicken on Thursday, April 16, 2020 12:00 PM

Johnny: Most of the white stuff went north of Denver. 1' of snow here and 7" up in Fort Collins...We might get another 2-3 inches by the end of the day for the scottie to go romp in. Started last night as snizzle.

Seems ma nature is using the shakers as a pseudo- alarm clock?

Track & Signal guys keep hoping for 4.9 or below.

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, April 16, 2020 2:12 PM

mudchicken

Johnny: Most of the white stuff went north of Denver. 1' of snow here and 7" up in Fort Collins...We might get another 2-3 inches by the end of the day for the scottie to go romp in. Started last night as snizzle.

Seems ma nature is using the shakers as a pseudo- alarm clock?

Track & Signal guys keep hoping for 4.9 or below.

 

I'm not sure how many people were waked just before seven this morning; it lasted about ten seconds. 

Unlike Balt, I try to follow Ben Franklin's advice, but I am not sure that it makes me healthy, wealthy, or wise.

Johnny

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Posted by JoeKoh on Thursday, April 16, 2020 3:16 PM

afternoon

Ns still has the coal train in the siding at work.A westbound passed it after work,plenty of power,not many cars.Went to get som essential pants for work.The store was crowded like it was"Black Friday."So much for social distancing.Was checked out by an employess with a portable scan gun.Stacey had cookies ready for when I got home.Guessers are still predicting a white Friday tomorrow.Got the shovels back out just in case.

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 Thursday, April 16, 2020 3:36 PM

Road trip today today to deliver some "ear savers" to a small local hospital.  A number of folks with 3D printers have been turning them, as well as visor holders, out on home 3D printers for the medical community.  With the governor's order that everyone not able to maintain 6 feet of separation must wear a mask, I'm sure I could make a killing selling the things...

Quite a few folks out and about.  the grocery store was busy, but not packed.  Lots of "one way" signs in the aisles.

Got a book today about one of Henry Ford's "village industries," in this case the carburetor plant located in Milford, MI.  Ironically, although it was built right next to the PM mainline between Plymouth and Saginaw, it was not rail served.  So far that has not been mentioned in the book, although it was noted that everything moved in, and out, by truck.  One might think that the casting sand and the metal that was cast could have come in by rail, anyhow, even if the finished carburetors did not leave by the same route.

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...

  • Member since
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Posted by mudchicken on Thursday, April 16, 2020 5:10 PM

a person standing in front of a buildingDenver Post and KCBS-4 photo

UP near Brighton, CO Siding/ Greeley Sub had a front row seat for this today....Imagine the trucker had to have the seat cover surgically extracted and find a change of clothes....Be careful out there Randy!

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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