A late Good Morning Everyone. Mostly cloudy and 68° here in North Central Texas. The norther hit around 0400 this morning but hasn't had much effect yet, other than to drop the temperature from 80° at midnight. Yesterday was quite warm at 95°, today will be only 78° later. Still no rain in sight. Our winter this year should be warmer and drier than average as the La Niña system over the Pacific Ocean comes into play.
Extra chore yesterday, when wife opened the front door, which we don't often use, and the deadbolt and latch would not line up after closing. Ground is so dry that some piers underneath the house have shifted. So out comes the 20 ton bottle jack and under the house Willie goes. Entryway is recessed a bit, thus the need to go underneath. Up it eventually went and an additional 3/16" steel shim later, all is good. Lower back is talking to me this morning as it is a little awkward operating that jack while laying down and twisted into position. It's not the first time and it won't be the last time that I do this, but the most recent adjustment lasted over three years.
How about a couple of breakfast tacos this morning Francine. Sausage, egg, potato and cheese will do. Salsa and OJ to go with them
Thanks everyone for the reactions and comments regarding my next build;
Joe, Sherrel, Tom O, Garry, Chad, Karl, Jerome, Guy, Curt, Tom, Ken, Patrick.
Out in the train shed, I installed most of the Insta-Fence around D's Diner.
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I still have a small gap in the corner that I need to measure and fill in. The base of the diner is still slightly bowed and I will glue it down after I thread the wires from the interior light through the base and the plywood deck. I have held off in order to remove it while I work on the surrounding scenery.
Over on the workbench, I assembled the four walls on Shultz's Garage. It is a simple kit to assemble as most DPM kits are. I am currently looking through my selection of paints to see which one will work best and differentiate it from the other two.
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Meanwhile I also did a small bit of painting on two of the four bicycles that go with the diner.
Then it was time to run trains before taking my wife out to Red Lobster in celebration of ten days without the cane!
If you get a chance, check out
Jim 68cuda's thread on the
Walther's Motor Hotel. In post #12, he uses some vinyl decals for RR crossing signs painted on the streets. I have been looking for something like that for years, just never googled the right word combination. Turns out that the maker of them is sort of in my own backyard, in a suburb of Houston. I ordered some from them yesterday and in less than 90 minutes I had a USPS tracking number, yes on Sunday. I'll report back after I get them and try them out.
Dave - I thought that you had retired? Sorry that I couldn't make it out for the ribs this weekend, they did look appetizing.
I have built one of the two Middlesex Mfg. kits that I have so far. I intend to kitbash the second and enlarge the original one, but that project is still on the horizon. As far as making the structure itself, it was time consuming but not too complicated. The large walls needed some patience to properly glue together, and I glued two and waited overnight before adding the third to it. Then waited another day for the fourth and fifth small walls on one end. There's also a lot of windows although they are on separate sprues and easier to paint. Cutting and gluing the separate pieces of acetate took some time. I'll either locate or take another picture later today.
Tom O - It sure is a drag that you cannot go on your annual vacation this year. It does sound like a whirlwind event. You most likely made the right decision though.
Guy - Why did you decide to go with the Just Plug lighting system? I know that
Greg and
Chet like theirs, but they haven't convinced me yet, except maybe the streetlamps.
My wife tells me that her Dallas Cowboys won a game yesterday. They now lead their division.
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I don't follow sports any more, but it looks like a pretty pathetic division if you ask me! Wonder how they get .300 for the Eagles?
Everybody have a great Columbus Day. Stay safe and keep your distance.