Running Bear's Coffee Shop LX

[new guy]

Good Morning All. It's 16° and mostly cloudy here this morning. At least that's twice as warm as yesterday! Forecast is still for a few days in the 70's beginning Tuesday. All of the snow did disappear yesterday. Interesting thing now that I have hearing aids, I heard the crunch of snow under my feet for the first time in over twenty five years! Forgot all about that sound!!! No snow at all last winter to experience it. Finished taking down the Christmas stuff yesterday and put it in a spare (?) closet instead of climbing into the attic.
Still a bit too chilly in the train shed yesterday, so I brought my portable figure painting kit into the house and painted some Preiser people for a while. Then the sun came out and it was really pleasant outside, even though still in the mid-30's; so I did some prep work in the garden. Planting season for me starts in about three weeks.

Ken (D&J) - At least they had their priorities right in the grocery store. Be safe out there.
Chet - The new vehicles look good. Must be nice to live in your prosperous towns where everyone has a bright shiny new car.
Bob - Nice to see you back in the Coffee Shop, even if just briefly.
Bruce - I wouldn't worry too much about the minor kinks in the track. If everything runs past it with no problem than let it be. I recall that you say that everything is still temporary. If anyone asks, just blame it on inebriated track layers!

Too many days without hearing from Eric. I hope that everything is going OK. Same thing regarding Louis.

Everyone have a fantastic Sunday.

Willie

Oh heck no! I don't care as long as they stay on the tracks, it can go as wavy gravy as it wants. Actually looks pretty cool hauling a string through there, it's a series of mini "S" curves!

I am more concerned with E's well being that I am about kinky track right now though!

Give us a lil sumpin, sumpin there E! You still kickin???

 

[bnsf971]

Good morning. It's clear and 11. Supposed to get all the way up to 20 today. Tuesday and Wednesday we are forecast for almost an inch of rain.
I'm going to send Eric a text, and see if he's doing okay. If he doesn't respond, I'll follow up with a phone call. I am avoiding the voice thing because I know it grates on his throat.

 

[2869ral]

I agree, getting concerned about Eric! Hope everything is ok.

 

[sauced07]

Mornin...17 degrees here in SC. Only supposed to get to 34 today. Got a challenge ahead of me as our house is lower than our street and I don't have a snow shovel (being SC). Hopefully I can get our vehicles up to the street today. My shortbed GMC doesn't like snow all that well. Or rain for that matter. I have plenty of vacation time for days off but there's things to at work that I don't want to leave hanging.

 

[kbkchooch]

I agree, getting concerned about Eric! Hope everything is ok.

Ditto here, the silence from him is worrysome.

 

[kbkchooch]

Good morning gang,
17 degrees out there, going for a high of 34. Brrr. I'm staying in!

 

[Burlington Bob]

Good morning America, how are you? I got a new Kindle for my birthday and a whopping two days off this weekend! The wife and I went to Springfield yesterday and ate at Texas Roadhouse, then did some shopping at the mall. Visited a couple more stores, then I got to go to a great little hobby shop before going home. Made for a nice day!

My old Kindle was getting slow and having trouble visiting some sites, this being one of the worst. I don't know why but it would lockup at some point; sometimes quickly, sometimes after reading a few threads. Between that and lousy WiFi at the motel made it problematic to get on here. Hopefully, my new Kindle will help change that. We'll see during this coming week.

I got seven DPM building kits and sixteen freight cars for Christmas, so I have plenty to do model railroad wise, if I can find the time! Still working at the power plant that we finished building a couple of years ago. This was supposed to be a two to three week job at forty hours a week for two of us. It went to six tens right away and that was three months ago! They keep giving us more work! I'm not complaining, though at times I do gripe about the cold. Almost all of the work is outside and much of it has been at or near the top of the unit. Add to that the fact that the wind seems to blow almost nonstop and, well you get the picture.

Hopefully, I will be able to keep up with the group here! I think this is the best model railroad site on the web, especially in the friendly department! Even if I don't post often, I do try to keep up, with varying degrees of success. Hope everyone has a great week!

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Morning! 47 degrees headed to 73 they say with clear sky. Was supposed to be another "river" of rain, but seems that it has moved to the North and I hear that Northern CA is getting hammered. That's good - need to fill up all those drying up lakes up there.

TERRY - I sent Louis a txt asking about ERIC. Have not heard back from him at this time. I wish that ERIC had shared his contact info with us a little better, or maybe he just don't like me = lol.

RON and KEN in VA - You guys are making great progress on your bridge building, and it's all looking good!

Sauced07 - Hope you get your vehicles up to the roadway. I remember renting a house in NJ like that. Sometimes I would have to wait a couple days before I could get them out unless I had someone come along with 4WD and a tow chain.

 

[new guy]

Mornin...17 degrees here in SC. Only supposed to get to 34 today. Got a challenge ahead of me as our house is lower than our street and I don't have a snow shovel (being SC). Hopefully I can get our vehicles up to the street today. My shortbed GMC doesn't like snow all that well. Or rain for that matter. I have plenty of vacation time for days off but there's things to at work that I don't want to leave hanging.

No dedicated equipment, no problem. Good old #2 spade does well in snow, a garden rake will move more than you think and a piece of cardboard will provide traction on ice for a limited time before it disintegrates. Sand does not always freeze as fast as dirt and gives good service if there is some nearby. Only one or two feet of clearing in front of all four tires can give you enough to get some momentum up and get going out of where you are stuck. LESS is more on the throttle, FLOORING it only makes ice and then you are screwed. Above all DON'T PANIC, you are usually going or should be going slower than you are ordinarily going so RELAX! The tendency to "white knuckle it" is strong but is something you want to avoid!

 

[new guy]

Good morning America, how are you? I got a new Kindle for my birthday and a whopping two days off this weekend! The wife and I went to Springfield yesterday and ate at Texas Roadhouse, then did some shopping at the mall. Visited a couple more stores, then I got to go to a great little hobby shop before going home. Made for a nice day!

My old Kindle was getting slow and having trouble visiting some sites, this being one of the worst. I don't know why but it would lockup at some point; sometimes quickly, sometimes after reading a few threads. Between that and lousy WiFi at the motel made it problematic to get on here. Hopefully, my new Kindle will help change that. We'll see during this coming week.

I got seven DPM building kits and sixteen freight cars for Christmas, so I have plenty to do model railroad wise, if I can find the time! Still working at the power plant that we finished building a couple of years ago. This was supposed to be a two to three week job at forty hours a week for two of us. It went to six tens right away and that was three months ago! They keep giving us more work! I'm not complaining, though at times I do gripe about the cold. Almost all of the work is outside and much of it has been at or near the top of the unit. Add to that the fact that the wind seems to blow almost nonstop and, well you get the picture.

Hopefully, I will be able to keep up with the group here! I think this is the best model railroad site on the web, especially in the friendly department! Even if I don't post often, I do try to keep up, with varying degrees of success. Hope everyone has a great week!

OUTSTANDING! I yousta LOVE doing difficult jobs in a matter of fact manner that other people would not ever consider doing at all, just for the "cool" of it! That IS way cool in my book, being "that guy"! "Regular" people would never understand.

 

[GarryCBQ]

Good morning ...

Where is Eric ? ... !

Q Bob .... Great to see you.... I hope you can stop in more often.

Still cold here, but weather guessers expect an improvement in the days ahead. Rain is expected later in the week.

 

[bnsf971]

Mornin...17 degrees here in SC. Only supposed to get to 34 today. Got a challenge ahead of me as our house is lower than our street and I don't have a snow shovel (being SC). Hopefully I can get our vehicles up to the street today. My shortbed GMC doesn't like snow all that well. Or rain for that matter. I have plenty of vacation time for days off but there's things to at work that I don't want to leave hanging.

I got a couple of bags of oil dri (kitty litter), and keep one in each vehicle. Spread some in the wheel track area on the ground, or snow, then try moving. The clay will help give you some traction. I've also thrown some concrete blocks and metal junk into the bed of my 2WD pickups, and gotten better traction in snow. with ice, all bets are off, and I do my level best to stay home and off the roads if there is ice on the ground.

 

[Burlington Bob]

y

OUTSTANDING! I yousta LOVE doing difficult jobs in a matter of fact manner that other people would not ever consider doing at all, just for the "cool" of it! That IS way cool in my book, being "that guy"! "Regular" people would never understand.

You're making me blush! I have been lucky enough to be involved in some pretty fantastic jobs over my career. I consider myself VERY fortunate! And thanks for the welcome guys!

I've read about Eric's misfortune........and hope things start to go well for him.

 

[new guy]

I got a couple of bags of oil dri (kitty litter), and keep one in each vehicle. Spread some in the wheel track area on the ground, or snow, then try moving. The clay will help give you some traction. I've also thrown some concrete blocks and metal junk into the bed of my 2WD pickups, and gotten better traction in snow. with ice, all bets are off, and I do my level best to stay home and off the roads if there is ice on the ground.

Oh yes, weight plays a yooge role! My Delta 88 plowed through a foot and a half like it was nothing, I used it like a plow, bust right through those annoying piles at the intersections. I felt like the city should have been paying me, it cleared a path as good or better than the orange trucks! Ice changes everything, slid that 113 down a "yamma" in Korea in two inches of mud over FROZEN ground! Nothing like it in the world when you start sliding sideways and have to lock the "downhill" track and GIVE IT GAS to bring the "uphill" side of the track to the side so you don't ROLL!!! SLOWLY (at first) leaning SIDE to SIDE! Slightly faster EACH time as momentum builds! ALL the while the Sgt in the "T.C." hatch was SCREAMING in my headset providing absolutely NO help! I could NOT take my hands off the brake levers long enough to hit the switch on my helmet to shut him up! We had a (ahem!) "conversation" at the bottom of the hill involving the merits of communication and how in certain times it is NOT NEEDED! LOL! WOO! Gave me the shakes just thinking about it!

 

[bnsf971]

Oh yes, weight plays a yooge role! My Delta 88 plowed through a foot and a half like it was nothing, I used it like a plow, bust right through those annoying piles at the intersections. I felt like the city should have been paying me, it cleared a path as good or better than the orange trucks! Ice changes everything, slid that 113 down a "yamma" in Korea in two inches of mud over FROZEN ground! Nothing like it in the world when you start sliding sideways and have to lock the "downhill" track and GIVE IT GAS to bring the "uphill" side of the track to the side so you don't ROLL!!! SLOWLY (at first) leaning SIDE to SIDE! Slightly faster EACH time as momentum builds! ALL the while the Sgt in the "T.C." hatch was SCREAMING in my headset providing absolutely NO help! I could NOT take my hands off the brake levers long enough to hit the switch on my helmet to shut him up! We had a (ahem!) "conversation" at the bottom of the hill involving the merits of communication and how in certain times it is NOT NEEDED! LOL! WOO! Gave me the shakes just thinking about it!

That's one of the few times you can get away with making crap roll back uphill.
There have been a few times when somebody in a more powerful position than I has started offering unsolicited (and less than useless) advice. In those times, I will generally stop what I'm doing, turn to the advice giver, and say "Do you wanna do this?" Usually that stops them.

 

[D&J RailRoad]

That's one of the few times you can get away with making crap roll back uphill.
There have been a few times when somebody in a more powerful position than I has started offering unsolicited (and less than useless) advice. In those times, I will generally stop what I'm doing, turn to the advice giver, and say "Do you wanna do this?" Usually that stops them.

Once in a while you'll get someone who says, "yes" and bumps you aside.

 

[bnsf971]

Okay, I just heard back from Eric. He's still alive, though pretty worried about his upcoming treatments.

 

[bnsf971]

Once in a while you'll get someone who says, "yes" and bumps you aside.

That's happened, too. Usually, they'll make a complete hash of the situation, then hand me my tools back, and leave me to not only fix the original problem, but their input as well. I call that "seagull management", where the boss flies in, craps all over everything, and leaves.

 

[bnsf971]

From Eric: (there's more, but over several text messages)
Pretty much as usual. I'm finally eased up with that severe pain I got after surgery on the 3rd. I ended up right back inthe ER that afternoon. I was released Fri evening. I'm quite nervous about starting radiation tomorrow morning. It's also the 1st of only 3 treatments of the 4th (and last) chemo drug they will need to use on me. It is called cisplatin. They will only give it every 3 weeks because it's so rough they tell me.
Between that and starting radiation I am quite nervous and scared.
Call me a baby! I will openly admit my fear.
I'm about to fall asleep again so pass on all I had to share. The box from Ron and another from someone in Roachdale, IN came while I was still recovering showed up. Pass on muchos thank yous for me please. It's still very painful to get up at all.

 

[kbkchooch]

Thanks so much for the update terry, keeping Eric in our prayers!!