Well, when I was under 16 (also in MA), I used my bike a lot. Later on, a motorcycle. In good weather I still use (another) motorcycle quite a bit, except when I get sick of not being able to hear the scanner in between spots. It gets about 50 MPG.
zardoz wrote: Mookie wrote: I still don't understand a city the size of ours - 200+K and the people that need Hummers....I am still scratching my head over that one!Mostly driven by insecure, wimpy dweebs with a low self-image, as a way of compensating for their small "boy parts", as well as lack of driving skills.
Mookie wrote: I still don't understand a city the size of ours - 200+K and the people that need Hummers....I am still scratching my head over that one!
I still don't understand a city the size of ours - 200+K and the people that need Hummers....I am still scratching my head over that one!
Mostly driven by insecure, wimpy dweebs with a low self-image, as a way of compensating for their small "boy parts", as well as lack of driving skills.
blhanel wrote: zardoz wrote: Mookie wrote: I still don't understand a city the size of ours - 200+K and the people that need Hummers....I am still scratching my head over that one!Mostly driven by insecure, wimpy dweebs with a low self-image, as a way of compensating for their small "boy parts", as well as lack of driving skills.I dunno, seems like the majority of "aircraft carriers" (large SUVs and such) running around here are piloted by petite females.
I dunno, seems like the majority of "aircraft carriers" (large SUVs and such) running around here are piloted by petite females.
I saw one of the most petite, very attractive females I've ever seen driving a Ford F-350 Powerstroke Dually Crew Cab. For the life of me I can't figure out what that capability is needed for. Yes it's her truck not a BF or husbands-I asked!
Dan
Brian (IA) http://blhanel.rrpicturearchives.net.
Zardoz! You are going to get me in trouble with the office again!
Mook....
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
Ok...bad mental picture! YECH!
Railfanning sure will change to a degree as transportation is affected by many influences, price of fuel being one of them. I'm sure everyone on this forum has had 'one of those days' either getting to or coming from railfanning. I know I've had a couple. Still, I like my bike plan for railfanning. It seems to work pretty nicely.
CNW 6000 wrote: //insert smiley of falling over dead!How can something be 'funny' and 'bad' at the same time?
//insert smiley of falling over dead!
How can something be 'funny' and 'bad' at the same time?
Um... cottage cheese a week past its expiration date is 'funny' and 'bad" at the same time.
(groan twice....)
Protection in a collision is one good attribute of a Hummer... but the best reason to own one...
The ABSOLUTE best reason to own one...
Is what I would do if "I" owned one...
I'd attach a very large brass bell to the top of the thing!!!!
Then I'd own a REAL...
HUMMER DINGER!
(Sorry, I couldn't help myself.)
Semper Vaporo
Pkgs.
P42 and Willy - I personally know Willy, so I can speak with some authority. I don't know P42, so I may get skunked on a troll again, but taking him at face value - I like what he is posting about school. I agree, there are some not so good places to watch trains. I am one of the fortunate ones that lives close to a main yard and can watch 6 tracks of trains anytime day or nite. They are all always busy.
P42 - Go for the education, go for a job you love and then take the time to go find a good train watching spot for your vacations, commute to or from work or whatever is going on where you are. If you grow to be a very old person, you still have many years to indulge your "hobby".
Willy - SUV's are gas guzzlers, but if you can afford to purchase one, pay the insurance on them, pay the taxes, pay for the repairs - then a little expensive gas shouldn't be a problem. I still don't understand a city the size of ours - 200+K and the people that need Hummers....I am still scratching my head over that one!
P42 - if you are truly a teenager, then welcome to the forum. There is a lot of valuable information here and we really do embrace our teen fans. But if you turn out to be something other - then shame.
Mook
P42 108 wrote:Midnight Railroader, please learn to read. I never said I could'nt afford to fill it up. I said it was not easy...and that I always find a way to fill it by saving money. And besides...I don't owe you or anyone else for that matter an answer as to what I drive, which seems to be the only issue on your mind, as opposed to the real topic of this particular forum.
Don't whine if you don't want to hear the responses.
When you complain that it's too expensive to fill up your SUV, the response is either (a) "Yeah, those oil companies shouldn't charge so much," which won't fix the problem, or (b) "Drive something more economical," which will fix the problem.
P42 108 wrote:And by the way, I happen to love my gas guzzling monster (a.k.a. SUV).
Okay. Kind of a big paperweight, though.
Just so that everyone knows: I wasn't trying to stir up trouble in here. Evidently, calling SUVs "gas guzzling monsters" is against the rules in the forums. I'll take note of that so that I don't make the mistake again.
As for despair and complaining: I never said specifically that you were, P42: That was just directed at anyone who might be doing so over their current railfan opportunities.
Hopefully this clears some things up before anything gets too heated.
Willy
P42 108 wrote:And by the way, I happen to love my gas guzzling monster (a.k.a. SUV). The purpose of my original posting was not to "dispair and complain" Willie, but to highlight some of the problems I face in my neck of the woods and give other railfans the opportunity to share some of their concerns. Some got the message, including those who shared their stories and offered their advice...advice which I appreciate.
Well handled P42. Well done.
Don't worry. I graduate this week. I am the Valedictorian of my senior class! I was accepted at a state university, so I will be heading right to college this fall. Thanks for the advice however.
METRO wrote: My advice is simple, do what I did:Step one: find a good college to go to, all teenagers should do that.Step two: when you go to said good college, find an appartment within walking (or bike or public transport) distance of a great train line. Step three: relax and enjoy the trains. Growing up I wasn't fortuate enough to have a car of my own when I was a teenager, now that I'm actually buying my first car at a fairly un-teenage age of twentysomething, I'm sure I'm going to feel the fuel pinch too but I'm going out of my way to buy a car with good milage. as opposed to an SUV. As for the issues with teenage railfans and the athourities, well I remember that too, just be pleasant, don't to anything remotely illegal and they can't touch you legally. Nowadays I've actually got a lot of friends who are cops (including my future father-in-law) and the majority of them really don't have anything against teenagers.Above all stay safe, that's something that I don't believe most teenage railfans are told enough. More of us who've been watching trains for years should step up on that. Things that seem common sense to us may not occur to younger people, like the fact that puting a quarter on the tracks can result in a broken window on your grandma's house ;)Actually you know here's an idea for a clinic: How to railfan safely for teenagers. Any ideas on that? Cheers!~METRO
My advice is simple, do what I did:
Step one: find a good college to go to, all teenagers should do that.
Step two: when you go to said good college, find an appartment within walking (or bike or public transport) distance of a great train line.
Step three: relax and enjoy the trains.
Growing up I wasn't fortuate enough to have a car of my own when I was a teenager, now that I'm actually buying my first car at a fairly un-teenage age of twentysomething, I'm sure I'm going to feel the fuel pinch too but I'm going out of my way to buy a car with good milage. as opposed to an SUV.
As for the issues with teenage railfans and the athourities, well I remember that too, just be pleasant, don't to anything remotely illegal and they can't touch you legally. Nowadays I've actually got a lot of friends who are cops (including my future father-in-law) and the majority of them really don't have anything against teenagers.
Above all stay safe, that's something that I don't believe most teenage railfans are told enough. More of us who've been watching trains for years should step up on that. Things that seem common sense to us may not occur to younger people, like the fact that puting a quarter on the tracks can result in a broken window on your grandma's house ;)
Actually you know here's an idea for a clinic: How to railfan safely for teenagers. Any ideas on that?
Cheers!
~METRO
I think that point about college is especially important. You don't want to be the burger flipper at McDonald's for the rest of your life. A person should strive to achieve something a bit better than that. Of course, the cash from that better job can go to paying for the gasoline that a person's gas guzzling monster (aka: SUV) needs. See, it all works out in the end, so there's no need to despair and complain.
CShaveRR wrote: Most of us were teenagers ourselves at one time,
Most of us were teenagers ourselves at one time,
"Most of us"?
Mookie wrote: Green Bay Paddlers wrote: Mookie wrote:Anyone else notice that the "teenaged railfan" has had no comment on his own posting? Maybe he isn't as passionate about his thoughts as some of the rest of us. Or maybe it is time to set new troll traps..... Can you blame him? He posted a few innocent questions and a bunch of grumpy old men jumped all over his case. Excuse me? I will have you know I am a grumpy old woman! I still think he came at this the wrong way. Our own Willy2 is a young man and he finds ways to train watch and also plan for his future so that he may someday just own a railroad. He doesn't complain about his SUV needing gas and all the hassle. He is a gentlman at all times and doubt he has ever been chased away from a track site. To me - the attitude has a whole lot to do with it. Mook
Green Bay Paddlers wrote: Mookie wrote:Anyone else notice that the "teenaged railfan" has had no comment on his own posting? Maybe he isn't as passionate about his thoughts as some of the rest of us. Or maybe it is time to set new troll traps..... Can you blame him? He posted a few innocent questions and a bunch of grumpy old men jumped all over his case.
Mookie wrote:Anyone else notice that the "teenaged railfan" has had no comment on his own posting? Maybe he isn't as passionate about his thoughts as some of the rest of us. Or maybe it is time to set new troll traps.....
Can you blame him? He posted a few innocent questions and a bunch of grumpy old men jumped all over his case.
To me - the attitude has a whole lot to do with it.
Thank you for the kind words, Mookie.
Just a few weeks ago my grandma gave me her old Toyota Camry. That car certainly doesn't guzzle gas. It's 15 years old, but that's fine with me. It's a good car that can get me where I need to go and that's what counts. I honestly don't know what I'd even do with an SUV. One thing I know for sure is that I don't need one. There are more economical ways to get around than in an SUV.
And as Carl said before, my mom doesn't really like trains all that much, but she is still more than happy to take me to the tracks once or twice every two weeks. She knows that I'm interested in trains and doesn't want to discourage that interest.
So, I really would have to place at least part of the blame on the parents of this fellow that has caused such an uproar here. I don't think they need to be their kids' own personal chauffeur, but they should at least support their kid in what he enjoys - as long as it's not something bad, of course. On the other hand, part of the blame goes on the kid too. If the kid drives an SUV, then he should also get a job which will supply him with money to pay for the gas that the SUV needs.
My hometown was not far from where our young railfan lives, and after the demise of the New Haven railroad I didn't have anyplace to hang out and watch trains. The local NH employees all disappeared. So did the sidings and the interlocking tower....
But what I did do was become a member of a museum. (I was an Associate Member of the Branford Electric Railway Association at age 13.) There were a lot of railroad employees that hung around there (and appreciated the fact that a 13 year old could hit places with a handful of grease they couldn't hit.) I'm 51 now, and the gas prices are pretty rough on me, too. But I do still belong to a few museums, and the railroad employees are still there. The people are what make the railroad run- and I have made a few connections with folks through museums that enable me to make productive railfan trips with camera in hand.
When they are on the job, the guys I know are very concerned about safety issues, and they should be. Once they believe that I understand about things like trespassing, job rules, and things like that, they have been pretty good about letting me nose around. I'm never going to do anything to endanger their jobs, or my sorry hide. But I got my start on railfanning by becoming a museum member.
My folks were not real railfans, either, but they were a lot more amenable to my spending a Saturday at the trolley museum than hanging around the Shoreline division of the NHRR. (Actually, my mother was less enthused about my new hobby after a day of greasing trolley trucks... she had to wash the clothes!).
That's just a suggestion for you. A museum might not be cutting edge technology, but you at least get a chance for hands on working with 1:1 scale stuff.
Erik
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