Good afternoon folks

It is a chilly and windy 44. They say the high will be 51, not sure it will make it.

Things are starting to tighten up regarding the COVID spikes. The state is now requiring a test within 72 hours of arriving in the state or a 14-day quarantine. They are also requiring mask wearing indoors and outdoors if you are around anyone other than your family you live with. Philadelphia is limited group sizes and ordered all schools closed and school and youth sports canceled. Another adjoining county, Montgomery, is closing schools starting Monday. Across the river, New Jersey is very close to a full shutdown. Delaware will be tightening their restrictions. Both New Jersey and Delaware both now forbid youth sports from hosting out of state teams or traveling out of state. One very disturbing trend in Pennsylvania is only 16% of people are cooperating with contact tracers. The trend started in youth sports where there were several outbreaks and people refused to answer questions to prevent their sport from being shut down. Good job, now everything is going to get shut down. Sorry to rant but I am weary of this especially when some common sense and curiosity could have lessened the impact.

I went grocery store shopping yesterday. The toilet paper and paper towel aisle had been ransacked. There were a few rolls of tp but no paper towels. Things for Thanksgiving dinner were also in short supply. I was texting my daughter the list of things I could not find so she could try on her way home from work. Between the two of us we got almost everything. I do have to venture out in a bit and try to get a few things I forgot to look for yesterday.

I thought I would get to weathering the hoppers and sealing the boxcars but every time I tried something else came up, May be today will be better.

I hope everybody has a good day.

Good morning everyone, NO, I am not going to turn on the A/C, it's getting ridiculous, 92 yesterday, maybe 90 today, new record highs, plus a record for the latest 90 degree day of the year. AccuWeather shows a 1% chance of rain tomorrow. Yeah, sure....

Still a few oopsies here, they issued Sharpies at local balloting places to prevent tampering afterwards. Now they're saying that ballots that used Sharpies will be rejected. I used a Sharpie at home to fill out my ballot. They're calling it, "Sharpiegate", not sure if it's gotten through the courts yet, I don't watch the news much anymore. At least we're back to lawyer, prescription drugs, cars and house-listing ads on TV.

Renewed my subscription to Model Railroader yesterday. If you wait a bit to renew, they drop the price from $43, to $29, plus they included nine different how-to's booklet. What they don't tell you until the end, that the booklets are really downloads. Fortunately, the magazines are real. Got an email from them about two minutes later, asking me to take a survey on how they did. I put them in the queue behind all the other requests from doctors, medical facilities, Home Depot, and anyone else I either bought something from or visited. Seems to be a very annoying trend, not only does everyone want to know how they did or how you like the product, but they keep after you until you finally give in and take their stupid survey. Some, like Harbor Freight, even wants pictures of how you're using the item you bought., "Rate how you like the item from 1 to 10". Hey, it's still in the box out in the garage, good looking box though.....

Y'all have a great day.

Greetings, gang.

Warm and windy today. The high is supposed to be near 60 and the wind is supposed to be near 40 so probably no bike ride today. I will go out for a nice long walk rather than be cooped up in the gym today.

Decent day yesterday. Had a good workout at the gym. Then after lunch I finished all the sanding on the toyboxes. This morning I need to go to Menards for small paint brushes and some varnish. Depending on the grocery ads I may stop and pick up a small ham and a few other things.

All stay safe.

Tom

Good morning folks

It is a cold 33 right now. Our high is supposed to be 39.

I spent a good part of the day cleaning the throw rugs on the second floor yesterday. We no longer have carpeting except for my son’s bedroom in the house. The results of my wife being asthmatic and highly sensitive to dust and other things in carpet. We have waterproof vinyl wood planking on the first floor and hardwood on the second floor. The second-floor floors are not in great shape, so the plan is to cover them with vinyl wood planking. I then spent some time chasing trash around the backyard. The tree rats, aka squirrels got in one of the boxes the new kitchen chairs came in and the wind scattered the packing materials everywhere.

I finally sealed the two boxcars. I ran trains for a time but a turnout was driving me crazy. For some reason it likes to derail diesel locomotives and only diesels. It does it do it every time either. I keep checking it for any obstructions and looseness, but I can’t find anything. The front trucks basically split the switch for some reason. I may have to pull it out and replace it.

I have to run out to the pharmacy to pick up one of my wife’s rescue inhalers. I need to go to the meat market and grab some supplies.

I would like to start on weathering the hoppers and perhaps run some more trains.

I hope everybody has a good day.

Home nurse from Ins. Co. came by. A1C is gone way down, BP great, blood sugar great and circulation to feet great. Well???? Was 34 this AM. No its 46. About time. Freeze tonight for first time this fall.

Stay safe and well.

I often put a comment in surveys "I cannot reccomend any company that asks me to fill in a survey."

I don't know if good evening or good morning is in order . It was a cold day here but I finally got all of the limbs off the neighbors willows raked up. I hauled one load around to burn but the other 2 loads I was neighborly and returned them back over the fence. 

We have been trying to find another furkid to keep company with our girl. She needs another dog to keep her active and has been moping since we lost Beck almost 2 months ago.  I have been involved with rescue for almost 20 years now and sorry to say I am very disappointed. 
We have only found one dog that we thought would work but we have waited a week and haven't even got an acknowledgement of the application or the followup email I sent direct to the shelter in case the form didn't get to them. 

      I got some work done on the layout today, electrical stuff so nothing much to show for it but I hope tomorrow I will have the boosters installed and more power districts. 

      Have a good night all
Charlie

Well, it's good morning over this way Charlie, and probably another hot one. Maybe, just maybe we've seen the last 90 for the year. Yesterday it only got up to 89, wow, a sign of a cooling trend. Now if we can get a bit of moisture to go with that, it might be ideal.

Quote:I often put a comment in surveys "I cannot reccomend any company that asks me to fill in a survey."

Got a CAT scan a few weeks ago followed by a survey. I got a call asking me if there was a problem since I put that I couldn't recommend them. I told her that there wasn't a problem, just that it wasn't my job to recommend where someone got a CAT scan, that's between the doctor and the insurance company. Really stupid question in the first place....

Greetings, gang.

Cloudy and anywhere between 46 and 51 depending on where you look. The high for today is supposed to be in the mid to upper 60s and not as windy as yesterday's 35 mph "breezes."

Got the toyboxes stained yesterday and even managed to sneak in a short bike ride late yesterday afternoon when the wind died down. I forgot to open the window in the (attached) garage last night so this morning the house has a rather unpleasant odor of Minwax. Today I'll be putting a first coat of varnish on them so that should help reduce the odor. Also on tap is a longer bike ride and maybe even a walk. If all goes well I'll get a train out this afternoon and also start a fire in the fire pit.

All stay safe.

Tom

It is a cold 32 right now with a high of 48 expected. The overnight low was 24 so maybe the weather has returned to normal.

We finished putting up the last of the Thanksgiving decorations. Now all that is left is putting the bins back down in the basement.

The school district my daughter works for announced they will be going all virtual starting Monday. She was saying everyone teachers, staff, and students were hoping they would do so. She says everyone is stressed out and the in reality the students are not learning much since they are more worried about getting COVID. Since the schedule and rules are very rigid and strict there is almost no socializing. She said the cafeteria during lunch is quiet like a church during a funeral. Many of the kids want to go back to virtual instead of being in this very stressful environment. They may try to go back to hybrid a couple of weeks into December, but few believe they will.

My wife’s district on the other hand is doing nothing. They continue to operate as if nothing is wrong even though they have more cases every day in the schools. The kids are scheduled to be off all next week but the teachers and paraprofessionals have training on Monday and Tuesday which is all virtual.

I ran some trains last night. That bothersome turnout is still driving me crazy. At the end after making sure there was no debris around it and a few other things I finally got the locomotive to pass through the turnout without derailing. I still don’t trust it.

I finished taking photos of my boxcars for inventory. I forgot how many cars I custom painted and decaled or used dry transfers. There was at least a dozen.

Tonight, I will try to weather some hoppers.

I hope everybody has a good day.

Low was 33 here in yard.  No frost in yard probably due to pecan trees still having lots of leaves.  Wifey said frost in field behind the house.  Had early Human Services Board meeting.  Now a Regional Networks meeting in a few.  All on computer.  County recommending no or small immediate family gatherings.  My Dr's I visited this week say need to back down and more restrictions.  Tom, sounds like Iowa is getting in bad shape.  

All stay safe and well. 

Good morning all, less than a week until Thanksgiving. Confused as usual about the weather, MS shows a 30% chance of rain for next Thursday and Friday, AccuWeather says 2% and the Weather Channel says 0%. Me, I say, let's just wait and see, I'm thinking, they must be politicians turned weather forecasters....

Moving a light fixture closer to my layout, not too easy with 9' ceilings, a 7' ladder and legs that can't climb steps never mind a ladder .... too late to change my mind, it came crashing down when the main link broke. No real damage, I had already taken out the glass and the bulbs to make it lighter. Good thinking or dumb luck, either way, I'll take it.

Greetings, gang.

It's a partly cloudy 38 in the remote reaches of northern Iowa. The high for today is supposed to be a sunny 52 with only very light winds.

I had a really good day yesterday. Grocery store early (including a donut). Then went for a two mile walk. By the time I was back from there it was warm enough to varnish. Got the first coat on everything except the bottoms. Then went for a 15 mile bike ride. Got back and varnished the bottoms. Tried to get the train out but managed to break a wire going to the track so that ended that project. Had a nice steak on the grill. Then my wife's sister called. Ostensibly to see how I was doing as it would have been our 53rd wedding anniversary. Within about 3 minutes the conversation was all about her. Very typical of her. Beautiful day here yesterday. Got to 69 and partly cloudy. The wind died down in the afternoon which allowed me to go for my bike ride.

Not sure what I'll be up to today. If it does clear off and get warm enough I'll go for another bike ride. Also need to repair the wiring for the outdoor train. Hoping to run it late this afternoon. I'll also try for a fire in the firepit.

All stay safe.

Tom

Good morning folks

Warmer today with the current temperature at 44. High is supposed to be 58.

Yesterday began moving the outdoor furniture inside. I brought the two glass top tables in and put them into the attic. I then brought in all the potted plants we save each year and put them on the tables near an attic window. Have to put the plants in the attic which is not heated but insulated to keep them away from the cats who are not allowed in the attic.

I have to start buying the loaves of bread for the turkey stuffing. My wife uses about 8 loaves for a 20-pound bird. Our Thanksgiving dinners have been always small as there is no family close by. In the past it has been my son, daughter, wife, myself, and my father-in-law. This year will be the first truly without my father-in-law. Last year he was in the nursing home and visited him after dinner. I suspect there will be a few rough spots. On the brighter side, my daughter’s boyfriend will be attending.

If the weather holds tomorrow it will be rearranging the garage and putting the rest of the outdoor furniture into it for winter storage. I need to take the canopy cover off the gazebo and remove the center light fixture. Sunday will probably be recovery day.

Last night I decided to test the new Proto 1000 PRR Erie-Built A and B unit I acquired. At first the A unit ran fine but the moment I added the B unit the derailing at the one turnout began. Again, I tweaked the turnout and things would go well for a few laps then the derailing would start again. I removed and replaced the turnout. The A unit made it through the turnout okay, but the B unit continued to derail. I pulled the second turnout and replaced it with a curve section. Everything was fine until the B unit started derailing at the next turnout which I have never had a problem. After a few choice words I traced the derailing to a piece of curve track before the original problem some turnout. I discovered that as the loco passed over the track the track sank and bounced knocking the front wheel of the first truck off the track. The track in this area is not permanently attached as this area is a work in progress. I made some adjustments and made sure the track was more secure. Thus far problem is solved and the train ran smoothly. I will put back the turnout at a later date.

I still have not weathered any of the hoppers. I hope to do them this weekend.

I hope everybody has a good day.

Morning.  54 and sunny.  Warmed up fast.  Goofing off as still on lifting restrictions.  Get off tomorrow afternoon.  Boring.  Stuffed sausage biscuits from the frig beeped.  Plenty of coffee.

Ran my newly setup double stack rain late yesterday afternoon.  Looks impressive and ran great at high speed [scale wise].  While doing that, setup two new trail cameras to take to the farms Monday.  Beef up the stairs to two stands and maybe hunt that afternoon.

NC set a new all time daily record of new cases of COVID.  Also, hospitalizations.  Gov. sitting on his butt and doing nothing.  We are still not sure about Thanksgiving.  Will be kids, Grandson [3] and one Granddaughter.  Problem.  Her county [not ours] school system has is one of the largest number of positive kids [1,600] in the state.  Her school only has one right now.     

Enjoy the day.