Running Bear's September 2026 Coffee Shop

[Kusojiji]

Looks like the worst of the storm has passed and all is well at home. I guess we’ll find out tomorrow if anything happened. From the hospital, which is in Yokohama, I didn’t see much going on when I looked out the window.

 

[santafewillie]

Good Morning All. Clear and 70°, another day at 95° for a high. Cooler temperatures starting tomorrow, with highs in the lower-90's. Still don't see 60's overnight yet in the forecast, but close. Rain??? That's for you folks in the Midwest apparently.

Short and sweet this morning, as I head out for the biannual dermatologist visit this morning. He'll look me over, give a few freezing nitrogen blasts and send me off. Tomorrow is the PCP day. Both in the morning, so not much in the way of outdoor tasks. Although I really have no issues with 90° heat when working.

As usual on Sunday, I spent very little time out in the train shed yesterday. So I only ran a few trains. No issues there. Always makes me glad that I took so much time carefully laying the trackwork years ago.

Troy - Always great to read about your success with the litter boxes!
Terry - Good luck with all of the loco issues, and the rotten roof.

Late singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen was born on this day in 1934. Still rocking at 94, keyboardist Don Preston of the Mothers of Invention was born on this day in 1932. Don Felder, guitarist/vocalist for the Eagles was born on this day in 1947.

Everyone have a great Monday.

 

[Bruette]

Had a friend on Fecesbook wish me well in the MRI tomorrow, said he had one a few year ago, and couldn't walk after it. Took a couple of hours to get his nerves reset and the effects of the kryptonite to wear off.

I suspect there is a joke in there somewhere.

Like Terry I tend to fall asleep during an MRI. But if you have back problems laying still, flat on your back can be a real problem.

Evidently the closers at the store weren't too concerned about the jumbo-hauler scooters. All were unplugged except two when I arrived an hour after store opening. All showed yellow status on battery, or worse. Except for one.

I plugged them all in, made may way to the far entrance (that wasn't open for another hour) found one that had been plugged in. After plugging that end's carts in, I grabbed the one that was green and hauled my arse around the store watching for good deals.

Well done plugging them all in, the next person who needs one will have one.

 

[Espeefan]

Morning All! 59 in the Brew City today, going to a mild 62. Cloudy. I could use a little sunshine! Off to the dentist again in a short. After that I have to mow. Several days of rain and waiting for things to dry enough has resulted in a thick lawn. First time in a while I'll be cutting in long pants! Haircut later. Maybe. Enjoy your day!

 

[troyphoto]

Well done plugging them all in, the next person who needs one will have one.

I didn't make it to Tenderfoot in the BSA without learning some politeness.

 

[Marlin39]

Boy, my life seems boring compared to all of everyone's medical visits, vehicle issues, homestead, etc.

I'm just sitting in my office while I have some foundation cracks fixed. We're on a steep hillside, so water flows down hill, soil can shift when it gets saturated then dries out. We have 2 cracks over 1/4" wide that developed over the last 20 years that I am having stabilized today. They first clean out the loose debris, inject some type of epoxy stuff, then secure with a couple big carbon fiber staples. They'll come into the crawl space (actually a stand up space) and fill them from the opposite side with the epoxy stuff. They said they would also inject the epoxy stuff into the minor cracks while they were here.

Next week I'm getting our 32 mixture of wood & concrete block, unstable, bubba built, not-to-code steps replaced with a professionally done, to code, stable steps. I don't need Nicki falling face first into a rose bush or cracking her head on a rock because a step gave way.

Tom - I contemplated a green house also when we first moved here, but we really do have a fairly long growing season so I couldn't justify it. I can usually get stuff into the soil around the end of March and can be harvesting fall crops until about Thanksgiving.

 

[shortwrench]

I've been working on a couple of back burner roundtuit projects.

1.)
I have 2 locations where I have crossing signals. IR avoidance sensors trigger the signals when a train crosses the road.

The sensors operate on a reflected signal. They don't have a lot of range, are affected by ambient light, and don't work well with black objects (locomotive frames). Have been marginally successful in implementation.

Decided to experiment by remounting the emitter (not sure if it is the emitter or receiver) to the far side of the second track. Now the sensor operates when the beam is broken rather than detecting a reflected beam. Range is about 6" which suits my application since the crossing is for 2 tracks. New configuration is more reliable and not affected by changes in ambient lighting.

2.)
Next is upgrades to the control panel.

Three wall wart supplies provide power to the NCE power cab, 12vdc buss, and 5vdc buss. A bulk supply behind the panel supplies power
to a homemade dc throttle. The white supply is a cell phone charger and is marginal in supplying the 5 volt needs of the layout. The 12volt
wall wart is operating close to capacity. Been a kludge for way too long.

A dual 12 volt-6 amp and 5 volt-3 amp supply is mounted under the distribution terminal blocks. An upcycled 18 volt laptop power supply replaces the bulk dc throttle power supply.

Since my layout is only 5 ft x 10 ft, I decided against running 12 volt and 5 volt busses under the layout. All 12 volt and 5 volt loads have
individual runs back to the terminal blocks, eliminating the need to make connection from drops to busses.

 

[troyphoto]

This one is test for Willie:

As I've been researching my Canadian roots, I kept coming across a band. Listened to a few songs on the Tubez of You and decided to get the "Yer Favourites" CD

What does Willie know about the band without looking them up?
What about the rest of you?

 

[shortwrench]

This one is test for Willie:

As I've been researching my Canadian roots, I kept coming across a band. Listened to a few songs on the Tubez of You and decided to get the "Yer Favourites" CD

View attachment 274132

What does Willie know about the band without looking them up?
What about the rest of you?

As Sargent Shultz of Hogan's Heroes would say "I know notsing".

 

[Espeefan]

Whew! two hours in the chair for a temporary crown. I feel like I could get a baseball in there they had me stretched open so wide. Still numb. Got the banking done, and the grass mowed. I'd guess an average of 3" of new growth in less than a week what with all the rain. No lunch today. They gave me a list of stuff to avoid and it's everything i like! Lots of soup in my near future! Mashed taters anyone?

 

[TLOC]

The greenhouse in stock and on sale at Amazon is no longer available. Terry is not thrilled and there is no refund yet! The contractor will be here to check the site and give us a quote tomorrow morning. He won’t dig he said until the greenhouse is delivered so he can see the actual dimensions within the instructions. Said he has done these before! He will also dig the plumbing and sewer trenches and install and cap the pipes for whenever we are ready.

Our growing season; has extended the last 10 years from planting after 5/15 to 4/21 or so. She still was pulling everything in October but because of the extended high heat the last 3 years nothing has made it past Labor Day. The greenhouse will give her more control. The tomatoes this year were few and relatively small compared to past years.

We are heading out in a few minutes to double check the greenhouse site.

 

[santafewillie]

This one is test for Willie:

As I've been researching my Canadian roots, I kept coming across a band. Listened to a few songs on the Tubez of You and decided to get the "Yer Favourites" CD

View attachment 274132

What does Willie know about the band without looking them up?
What about the rest of you?

I don't know a whole lot about them, other than they were quite popular in their native Canada. I have heard a few things over the years, but they didn't particularly hit my personal tastes. Other than one song about New Orleans, they weren't really too popular in this part of the US. In my 80,000+ collection of mp3's, I have nothing from them, but they were around for over 30 years with only original members if I recall correctly. I also remember that they played in Dallas a few times during the mid to late 90's into the new century. Small venues at best. By then I had quit going to live music events due to my deteriorating hearing.

 

[troyphoto]

I don't know a whole lot about them, other than they were quite popular in their native Canada. I have heard a few things over the years, but they didn't particularly hit my personal tastes. Other than one song about New Orleans, they weren't really too popular in this part of the US. In my 80,000+ collection of mp3's, I have nothing from them, but they were around for over 30 years with only original members if I recall correctly. I also remember that they played in Dallas a few times during the mid to late 90's into the new century. Small venues at best. By then I had quit going to live music events due to my deteriorating hearing.

The Tragically Hip. They're often called "Canada's band," and Gord Downie's farewell tour in 2016 turned into a national event, with the final show broadcast live across the country.

Here's a couple that transplanted from the US to Toronto, and started a youtube channel about what American's get wrong about Canada.

 

[RhB Michael]

I just got labs back from this morning's visit.

They ran a creatinine level test of the peritoneal fluid being accumulated in my drain to see if the bladder injury is healing and not leaking urine into my abdominal cavity. The level was .5 mg/dl which is a good result. My blood level creatinine level is .86 mg/dl. This should mean that the fluid being siphoned out of me is normal peritoneal fluid with a normal amount of creatinine.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My nurse's CNA called back and told me my nurse said that my bladder is not leaking any urine anymore. Seems the damage is healed or has healed enough to seal itself. I still have to wear the Foley for another eight days, but better safe than sorry.

I was certain because of the amount of peritoneal fluid accumulating in the drain, that it wasn't coming out today. I just as soon keep that in too though until the amount lessens.

So I go back and see her again tomorrow, but not really sure what for. Today was supposed to only be an introduction to my new GP provider, but we went over pretty much everything about the surgery I had and post-op prognosis. Maybe we'll just have coffee tomorrow.

 

[Kusojiji]

I've been working on a couple of back burner roundtuit projects.

1.)
I have 2 locations where I have crossing signals. IR avoidance sensors trigger the signals when a train crosses the road.
View attachment 274121
The sensors operate on a reflected signal. They don't have a lot of range, are affected by ambient light, and don't work well with black objects (locomotive frames). Have been marginally successful in implementation.

View attachment 274122
Decided to experiment by remounting the emitter (not sure if it is the emitter or receiver) to the far side of the second track. Now the sensor operates when the beam is broken rather than detecting a reflected beam. Range is about 6" which suits my application since the crossing is for 2 tracks. New configuration is more reliable and not affected by changes in ambient lighting.
K
2.)
Next is upgrades to the control panel.

View attachment 274124

Three wall wart supplies provide power to the NCE power cab, 12vdc buss, and 5vdc buss. A bulk supply behind the panel supplies power
to a homemade dc throttle. The white supply is a cell phone charger and is marginal in supplying the 5 volt needs of the layout. The 12volt
wall wart is operating close to capacity. Been a kludge for way too long.

View attachment 274125
A dual 12 volt-6 amp and 5 volt-3 amp supply is mounted under the distribution terminal blocks. An upcycled 18 volt laptop power supply replaces the bulk dc throttle power supply.

Since my layout is only 5 ft x 10 ft, I decided against running 12 volt and 5 volt busses under the layout. All 12 volt and 5 volt loads have
individual runs back to the terminal blocks, eliminating the need to make connection from drops to busses.

Very cool. My speed detector works on the same principle and does not work with black locomotive.

 

[Kusojiji]

I just got labs back from this morning's visit.

They ran a creatinine level test of the peritoneal fluid being accumulated in my drain to see if the bladder injury is healing and not leaking urine into my abdominal cavity. The level was .5 mg/dl which is a good result. My blood level creatinine level is .86 mg/dl. This should mean that the fluid being siphoned out of me is normal peritoneal fluid with a normal amount of creatinine.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My nurse's CNA called back and told me my nurse said that my bladder is not leaking any urine anymore. Seems the damage is healed or has healed enough to seal itself. I still have to wear the Foley for another eight days, but better safe than sorry.

I was certain because of the amount of peritoneal fluid accumulating in the drain, that it wasn't coming out today. I just as soon keep that in too though until the amount lessens.

So I go back and see her again tomorrow, but not really sure what for. Today was supposed to only be an introduction to my new GP provider, but we went over pretty much everything about the surgery I had and post-op prognosis. Maybe we'll just have coffee tomorrow.

That’s a long time for a cat. Make sure they moisten the connection point before ripping it out.. ask me how I know.

Glad everything is healing up nicely.

 

[DeaconKC]

Good afternoon folks, 71 here and sunny. We drove out to Treasure Falls today and it was awfully pretty. Had Lunch at a local Mexican Place that turned out to be a very good meal. Gonna hit some local shops tomorrow, if it's not raining too hard. Best of luck on the MRIs, my Dad was very claustrophobic so I had to go in with him, keeping my hand on his ankle, so he knew I could pull him out if needed.
You guys have a good one.

 

[RhB Michael]

That’s a long time for a cat. Make sure they moisten the connection point before ripping it out.. ask me how I know.

Glad everything is healing up nicely.

I thought so too until I looked up why.

The bladder is so flexible, and is exposed inside to very acetic urine which greatly slows the healing process, unlike a cut on your finger. Keeping the bladder decompressed and empty with the cat allows for minimal movement to help the healing, and keeps urine below the level of the perforation.

The Dr. estimated that this was less than a 1mm nick and was not noticed during surgery because I already had a cat inserted after anesthesia put me to sleep so the bladder was already empty.

After surgery, the cat was removed, the bladder filled up from the IV solution and leaked into the abdominal cavity, and after a day of this caused so much pain it was incredible. My drain was accumulating 600 cc of liquid a day until they catted me again two days after surgery.

Very glad that this is about over and I can get back to normal.

 

[Kusojiji]

Good morning all. There’s something bright shining in the sky today. Glad that the storm is over.

The little air pocket in my eyes slowly getting smaller and I can see a little bit out of it. I have a patch on that eye, but when they put the eye drops in, that’s when I can see.

1st cup of vending machine, coffee in and now waiting for breakfast to arrive. Can’t wait to get out of here so I can take a shower and wash my head. They provide heated moist towels that I can grab so I do my towel shower every night just to feel human. I must go through the most towels of anybody here.

 

[Kusojiji]

I thought so too until I looked up why.

The bladder is so flexible, and is exposed inside to very acetic urine which greatly slows the healing process, unlike a cut on your finger. Keeping the bladder decompressed and empty with the cat allows for minimal movement to help the healing, and keeps urine below the level of the perforation.

The Dr. estimated that this was less than a 1mm nick and was not noticed during surgery because I already had a cat inserted after anesthesia put me to sleep so the bladder was already empty.

After surgery, the cat was removed, the bladder filled up from the IV solution and leaked into the abdominal cavity, and after a day of this caused so much pain it was incredible. My drain was accumulating 600 cc of liquid a day until they catted me again two days after surgery.

Very glad that this is about over and I can get back to normal.

I think I peed out that much at 4 o’clock this morning. I was standing there for a while.