Elliot, nice and easy does it every time, they say. Just keep pacing what you do especially with that knee. You don't want to agravate it again. Keep it healing. With all your BNSF engines you got me interested in them. I ordered the Lionel oil train set with an extra dummy unit. Also you like Canadian road names. I got the two torpedo GP-7's done in the TH&B paint scheme. Look forward to the end of February report. And whether it is a big report or a small report it is still progress toward completion.................Paul

Elliot-you have secured your title as the Forum’s all-time MacGuyver master with the homemade electric flyswatter/battery powered/kitchen strainer/magnetizing/synthetic grass standerupper!!!! Awesome work!

Thanks guys! 

Roman - I can always count on you to be the first to post each month. Now that's loyalty!

Mike - Yeah, the BN has always been my favorite. Maybe part of the reason is I was born in May, and emerald is my birth stone. But as you can see, I'll buy anything with a local connection. The Montana Rail Link was a bit of a stretch, but I have seen them running through the Cities, so they're fair game. When I made the static grass applicator, I was all worried about choosing the right strainer. That turned out to not be a problem because the static charge was so good, it just pulls even the long fibers right through. The Noch actually came with 3 different mesh screens. Whatever.

Bob - I'm slowly building back up to longer sessions in the train room, which is an indication that my post convention funk is wearing off. Lionel does make some beauties. I just pick them to match my railroad motif.

Ray - The knee is barking a bit this morning after I pushed it yesterday. I think the solution is going to be having a pad around to help with the transition from standing to sitting on the floor. That's something I'm going to need to be doing a fair amount of to fix those switches. I want to say they went bad when I was ballasting over at Hoffman, and some glue dripped down on the relays. Tey only want to throw one direction. The debugging process will take me all the way over to the dispatcher's desk and the hidden yard control panel. The next place to test is at the relay panel under Red Wing. If the signal is OK there, then it's back to the panel back at Hoffman. I don't have a phone, but there is an old iPad floating around somewhere that I could use. The BT is really for the guests though it could really come in handy if a train gets stuck in the helix. iPad to the rescue. Yeah, I picked up the cords right after I snapped that picture.

John - It's no real secret, I buy most of my stuff from Charlie Ro. All my Lionel and most MTH comes from them. I do a little business with Mr Muffin and Caboose Stop Hobbies, mostly Atlas with them.  I guess you could say I jumped into this BT thing with both feet, no dipping of toes.  I have four more on order from volume 2, and I think there may be another four in  the new 2019 catalog.

George - Two things for that bald spot, use some kind of more permanent glue than Elmers, and they have some decent blond shades. I doubt green is your color.  As I said to John above, all of this stuff came from Charlie, been doing business with them for over a quarter century. I just look at the catalog, write my list on a piece of paper, call and usually talk to Butch, and read him my list. Then I wait patiently, and trains land on my doorstep. They have my credit card on file. I'm not looking forward to this month's bill, but I expected it when I ordered. It could have happened a little earlier or later though. It nailed me right in health insurance deductible season, when the pharmacy is pounding me. Oh well, perfect storm, but it won't sink the ship. Hopefully this is more of a one time splurge. 2019 is looking more like half this amount. Thank God!

Mark - I stepped over those cords 100 times prior, but it only took once. I'm slowly learning that I'm not as tough as I was even ten years ago. Neuropathy sucks, and it has been the underlying cause of all my injuries, toe, finger burns, and the knee. I just didn't feel the cord wrap around my ankle soon enough, like a normal person. With the neuropathy in my hands, it's a bit of a challenge to unpack all those engines. They were all in a large outer box, and it's hard to grab them and pull them out. Then they all had their brown outer shippers. I open one end cutting the tape and tip the box, letting the inner box slowly slide out to the floor. I struggle to get the tab out of the slot on the orange box. Once I manage that, I do the tip and slide with the styrofoam. I can't lift the engine with the blue ribbons, too slippery, and have to flip and catch it in my right hand, always worrying about dropping it because of the plastic wrap. I carefully pull the plastic away, and set the engine on the desk. The next trick is to remove all the foam bits protecting the handrails. I found a great tool for this step. A pencil! I use the eraser end to work it out, until I can grab it. Finally there's the cardboard pieces between the trucks and the frame. I forgot to do this on the SW7 because I didn't see it, then tried to run it. It sounded like a playing card in bicycle spokes as the worm rubbed against it. Scared me for a minute. I have nine Cab-1's for guests to use, but BT and the app add the option for these new engines.

Jim - I meant to shoot a video of the newly combined Empire Builder. It's kind of impressive, but I put it back in the yard then forgot and ripped apart the electrical box. I'll try it tomorrow when I get the power back on.  

Art - The little bit that we tried the BT it was great. We did have a spot over at Hiawatha where it dropped a couple times, but over the mainline it was solid. We'll do more testing, but it's not easy to get my wife to come downstairs and do it. The first engine that I ever saw with the tanks on the roof was an HO Atlas SD24 in Santa Fe blue and yellow. I fell in love. So when I saw the GP9's in local roads, done deal. That's part of the reason my order got so huge. The Milwaukee may be assigned permanently to Hiawatha. The C&NW may be assigned to Western Avenue, or possibly East Minneapolis.

Paul - You don't get a lot of exposure to BNSF where you are. Welcome to the dark side as it were. I'm going to have to get that oil train too, and all the new tank cars. Oil trains are a common sight around here. It's not just any Canadian roads that I like, it's the ones that come to the Twin Cities that interest me. I steer pretty well clear of engines from roads east of Chicago. I have a few from CSX, NS, and even Conrail, but thanks to pool power, they do pass through. That's part of the realism factor in my world. Maybe after I get these few things repaired, I can get back to work on some ballast and scenery, or maybe my uncoupler magnets.

Pete - Thanks, but I can take no credit for that. I just watched a YouTube video, and cobbled it together from the instructions. You do make it sound very impressive when you say it that way though.

Finally to all, thanks for getting me through almost an entire dialysis run. Doing this makes the time go a lot quicker. 

It looks great!  I second your findings with the static grass applicator.  Years ago when building my old layout I ordered the Noch version and did the grass using it.  Once done (yeah, like you're ever done) I sold it on the forum.  A few years later I built an extension.  Fortunately, I was a bit wiser by this time and was going to make my own, however, York week arrived and while there I found someone who had made their own version and was selling them for $35 apiece.  Of course, I purchased one and found it worked better than the expensive version.   When I get my new layout under construction in a month or two I'll once again bring out the $35 version to use.

-Greg

Wow, I didn't know you have neuropathy in your hands too.  That does sound a bit precarious getting the engines out of the box and onto the rails!

As always Elliot great work, tips, and happiness in seeing your progress! Keeps me motivated here. If you get a chance, can you shoot me the info or a link to the fine gauge wire you showed me for your signal leds? I’m going to build a couple signal bridges in the near future. Thanks!

Thanks Greg. Now what you've gotta do is sell your $35 one for $70 which is a really reasonable price compared to the going rate these days, and make six for $11, and sell them for $35, then you've got a little business.  

Yeah Mark, and it's no fun. I have a very difficult time with small things. Dropping a coin on the floor is nearly impossible to pick up. Papers are terrible. I don't read much that is printed on it anymore, no magazines. Getting my keys or wallet out of my pockets take multiple tries, then getting a credit card out of it is a real challenge. Plates and silverware are very slippery to me. Tools like pliers and screwdrivers have become a challenge. You don't see how much trouble I have with typing, because I use spell check and proof read what I type, so I catch most of it. There are a lot of errors due to too light of a keystroke. The letter "N" is my most often missed. In spite of all that, I can still work on the railroad, but it does slow me down.

Thanks Jim. Actually, I can just send you some in an envelope off my spool. Just email me your address. Is 20' enough? The spool had 1000 meters on it. I have enough for three lifetimes.

Elliot, I think I can imagine a bit how it is for you.  I had carpal tunnel surgery twice on each hand.  At first it was misdiagnosed for ten years.  After the first pair of surgeries I don’t think they came back quite right.  The second pair of surgeries were necessary because of scar tissue. Anyway, that coupled with arthritis and I have the problems you described, but to a much lesser degree.  That is why I opted to buy Mianne Benchwork after floundering last winter.  I also can’t handle tools well enough to scratchbuild any more.  Thirty years ago I was scratch building in N scale.  Again, it is only a bit like you described, but I can imagine the frustration and also the acceptance of it.  Keep hanging in there!!

Elliot, looking good like always!

A locomotive box opening trick for you Elliot.

I just put a towel on my bench and turn the box over gently and lay it on the towel.  Then I gently shake the box and "dump" the locomotive out.  The ribbons are useless for many engines, so I've stopped even trying to use them.  I've done hundreds this way, and I've never damaged anything.  They don't really fall, they just stay on the towel and I lift the Styrofoam away.

As far as the box tabs, I use a small screwdriver to flip it out.

Well Mark, it sounds as if you can best relate, of anyone here on the forum, to the challenges I face. Slow and steady wins the race. I'm off to Menards to pick up that light switch and circuit breaker, so I can finish my reprogramming kick, and run trains again.

Thanks Conrailfan.

John, I like that towel idea. It's a lot safer than the juggling act I do. Next round, that's the plan!

I really like the cnw gp9s.  

February 2019 Update

Well, it's that time again, another month in the books. Not a lot going on this month, but I did get a little work done. I'm just having a hard time wanting to work on trains these days. Some of my health issues are getting better while others may be getting worse.

The toe is so much better that the doctor has me going two months before my next visit, instead of the usual week or two since last May. That's great, because it's a long drive out to his office, and that'll free up a lot of Tuesdays to work on the layout. Let's see if I can start to take advantage of this.

The knee is also better, but the improvement is slowing down. I'll wait it out a little longer, but it may be necessary to get a cortisone shot or some more serious imaging than an X-ray. I'm getting around pretty well, but I'm still worried about sitting on the floor to work, and then getting up.

After last month's report, I was explaining to Mark about the neuropathy in my hands. I think that may be getting worse. I can still do things, but it seems like it's getting more difficult.

Then there's my vision. I have an eye doctor appointment coming up in March. I was once told I was developing a cataract a number of years ago. I'll ask about that when I go in. The left eye is always fuzzy now.

All these health issues have a direct effect on my working on the layout. I just feel like I'm getting slower and slower.

So, what did get done? I finished the with my electrical problem, by changing out the master layout power switches, and swapping the worn out breaker at the panel.

That breaker took twice the time it should have, because when Comcast installed their alarm system, the needed to use the existing sensor wires, but they were a little short. I have a plywood panel just to the right of the electrical panel. So what did those idiots do? They hung their box over the edge of the plywood, and covered over two of the panel cover screws. So I had to move their box before I could do the breaker. It's done, and everything works great.

My wife and I took an afternoon to work on car cards. She wrote out the engine cards for all the new ones I put on the layout last month, then put the fold into a couple hundred car cards. I know I'm going to need to buy more, but this finishes off what I have on hand.

Then I taped the sides of the pockets, until I ran out of tape. We got more, but I haven't gone back and fin ished the last few.

Each engine has a "token" with its channel number on it, so I made those up for the new ones.

The purpose of these tokens is to tell me which engine is in which position in the hidden yards. This rack has all the engines that aren't in a hidden yard, otherwise known as, scattered around the layout.

This rack represents the big hidden yard, where each of the five tracks, holds five trains. Right now, I'm keeping track two as my run through track for display. Eventually, there will be 25 trains stored down there.

I did do some more work on my BN baggage / dorm kitbash. The first thing was to repair the pieces that got knocked out during my first attempt at drilling out the windows. I'm learning that epoxy isn't very good for this application. No grip on smooth surfaces. It just occurred to me as I was typing this, that maybe contact cement would work better.

The backing piece is reglued.

Time to put the filler slug back in the old window.

I took a 2x4 and cut it down to the inside width of the car, in order to support the future drilling operations.

The slug is back in place, and I've started to file out the first window.

With the support block in place, I spent about 20 minutes out in the below zero workshop drilling out the rest of the windows. Here's one side...

and here's the other. I still have to do the doors.

Two steps forward, one step back. As I was removing the wood block, more backing plates came loose. Hmmmm contact cement... thoughts?

I almost forgot, I shot a new video of the newly combined Williams Empire Builder.

Hmmmm contact cement... thoughts?

Elliot- great update as usual!!

I admit that I haven’t ever done what you are doing but I have definitely done my fair share of gluing objects that weren’t meant to be together.  Have you thought of trying either gorilla glue or JB weld (the steel epoxy kind)?

Elliot,

I'm glad your health problems are looking better for the most part.  I know what you mean about having a bad knee and worrying about getting up off the floor.  I hope it gets better.  Last January-February I had a cortisone shot and the series of three that they commonly use, but the name escapes me.  I just made an appointment yesterday to get the knee looked at again.  The shots gave me one year of pretty good relief.

As to the eye, I had cataracts removed in September-October 2017.  Prior to that I had worn bifocals for about 20 years.  I was far-sighted.  In a year's time my eyes totally flipped to nearsighted all because of two cataracts.  The cataract surgery made it so I went back to where I only needed reading glasses.  I do think I may need bifocals again after 1 1/2 years and have an appointment.  If your eye doctor recommends cataract surgery, I encourage you to get it.  It only lasted about 10 minutes, and I was seeing better immediately.

The projects you worked on in February were excellent ones to do while you were recovering.  The engine tokens and rack are impressive!  It looks like a great way of keeping track of trains.  The BN car bash looks great!  I'm like Jon and thought of JB Weld also.  I don't have much experience with fastening metal onto metal, but that is what I used.

I hope your health continues to improve!!!

Elliot, great update! I too am glad that some of your health issues are getting better! I hope your eye doctor can do something for your eyes! I wear glasses when working on the layout cause some of the stuff I cant read without them!

The projects you have been doing are great ideas and even though it may seam small to you they are huge to me! Just remember that your still moving forward! I am glad your electrical problems are behind you and they stay that way!

If you can rough up both sides with some sand paper JB weld would work great, The roughness gives it something to bite to and hold!

Great little video, shows a wonderful train on a great layout! You should be very proud of your self! You and your wife deserve a big applause !

Looks good Elliot. Glad you got some problems fixed. I've never worked with JB weld but a lot of guys on the Forum mention how well it works.

The Amtrak train looks sharp.

Hope your health continues to improve. I'm with Mark- get the cataracts fixed. My father-in-law had his done a couple of years ago- made a huge improvement in his vision.

Bob

I haven’t checked in here in a while. You’ve made tremendous progress. I am glad you’re getting better health wise. I love the Empire Builder. It’s a great looking train. 

Thanks guys, sorry it has taken so long to get back here to reply. I haven't been even thinking about trains much lately. I've gotten sidetracked with a 2000 piece puzzle of the Vegas Strip. I can do 1000 pretty quick, but 2k is a different story

I guess I spoke too soon about my feet. All this snow has caused me to mess them both up. Not wanting to go through the house with wet shoes, I walked around barefoot sometimes for the last few weeks. I ended up with blisters on both. If there's a bright side to this, they both bled, which is an indication that they should heal.

Jon - I haven't done anything like this before either. I've been using Gorilla brand epoxy, but because I've had to be a bit rough with the drilling for the windows, it pops the bond, and I have to start over. I've never tried JB Weld, but I should get some, because I still have the baggage car to do after this one.

Mark - Thanks for the health previews. My eye doctor is actually a back of the eye specialist. I did see a front of the eye specialist nine years ago, when I had shingles. That's who said it, but I haven't been back to him since the episode resolved. I'll bring it up when I go in. The tokens were just the first thing I thought of to solve the issue of keeping track of the trains in the hidden yards.

Mike - You are right on about roughing up the gluing surfaces. I should have done that from the start, regardless of the glue being used. From now on! It just doesn't feel like I'm making any real progress on the layout. Part of my problem is it has been so cold, and the shop is still a mess. I don't have access to all my tools. That and I haven't seen Patrick since well before the snow started to fly.

Bob - Thanks, I've been wanting to do that Amtrak train for a long time now. I just wish it it had a lounge car, the one with the upper row of windows. That would mean cutting a ton more windows, and I'm not sure if I could keep the car from getting too scratched up in the process. It should really be done on a mill. If I did one, I'd probably do two just to keep the 6 car sets the same. It'd probably raise the value, though value isn't really an issue for me, since I have no plans to sell when I'm alive.  

Phil - Welcome back. Sorry you caught me on a slow month. I'll try to kick it in gear in March. I have an open house coming in April or May. A lot has been done since my last one (for this group) a few years ago. I'm torn between making progress, and making a mess which will need to be cleaned up.

March 2019 update

I only worked on the layout one day this entire month. Last Tuesday Patrick came over for the first time since last fall. It has been a long winter of little progress.

I did have a few visitors this month, including forum member Matt R and his family. The others were some old train buddies of mine from here in town. So the Builder made a few trips around the layout.

Patrick and I started out in the unheated shop. It was still pretty chilly out there. We moved a bunch of stuff around, so we could use the table saw to cut plywood strips for the new project, which is preparing to add skirts to the lower benchwork. I'm going to be using landscape fabric, and it will be stapled to these plywood strips we're adding.

My knee was doing pretty good with all the rest I had given it by not working. I managed to get down and sit on the floor, and more importantly get back up, probably a dozen times last Tuesday. However, by the end of the day, I was hurting again.

We started with the south side of aisle three, because it was a nice straight section, and the best place to figure out how to do this. The only thing we had to work around was the outlets, which after the first one were pretty easy.

This is where it started to get interesting. We added some supports, then using 1/4" Luan plywood we bent a curve, trying to follow the fascia. Here we're gluing on the second lamination.

Finally, the third lamination is glued.

Patrick added latches to three of the four hinged electrical panels. We'll get to the last one this week when he comes over on Tuesday again.

After we had done those parts of aisle three, Patrick did a quick project on the upper deck behind the East Minneapolis yard. He added some of the plywood strips so I could build an embankment between the Roseville lead and the back yard track. Without them there was nothing to attach cardboard to.

Then we moved over to aisle one and did the long straight section on the south side.

We also did this short piece on the north side.

Getting this latch on wasn't as easy as it looks. The wires on the other side of the panel, were hitting the leg of the benchwork. The only solution was to trim the corner off the leg to make room for the bulky wire bundle.

I'll try and get back into the groove in April. Having Patrick come over again helps a lot with motivation.

Elliot, I'm glad you and Patrick got back at it a bit!  I'm glad the knee seems to be recovering some.

Looking good Elliot! The skirts are going to make a big difference.

Bob

At least a little progress Elliot.

FWIW, I'd recommend Velcro for attaching the curtains to the layout.  This makes it easy to get them totally out of the way for access under, not to mention washing them in the future.  Staple the matching Velcro strip to the fascia and sew it onto the curtains.

Sorry I haven't been visiting "What did you do on your layout today?" last month, but there just wasn't any work being done, and there isn't a topic for that. This month should be better, because Patrick is back on the case.

Mark - Thanks, but I may have to go back in to find out what's wrong. I didn't just fall on the left one, I got the right one too, just not as badly. I went on a layout tour on Saturday. Between all the stairs and one wicked duck under it was a bit rough. The duck under almost had me stuck in his layout. Been there before too, and it was never that difficult.

Bob - Thanks, I think they will. I may be jumping the gun a bit, since the scenery has a way to go, but it will look like real progress. I see you got a new avatar pic. Looks good!

John - Thanks, these days I'll take a little. It'll be my turn to be on the layout tour next month. It's a rather small tour for the hosts from the convention, plus the NMRA division. The skirts are not going to be fancy, just landscape fabric. If they get dirty, rip them off and just redo them. Velcro is pretty expensive. Remember, I would need a lot, with four aisles to cover.

Elliot, you can get "hook and loop" Velcro clone for a lot less money.

Elliot,

yes I understand about getting stuck.  I am there right now with the left knee and right leg.  The knee needs replacement,but I'm going through the series of shots for the second time.  The sciatic nerve in the other leg was damaged by a bulging disk, which has left the foot flop.  So I get down and I can't get back up! LOL

So I saw the back doctor today and the knee doctor last week.  If insurance keeps dragging there feet, I may die first!  LOL

Thanks Elliot- The old one was taken on Lake George, NY, several years ago. We rented a platform boat for the day. Got to relive my days on the bays of Long Island as a kid fishing, crabbing, and generally goofing off.  As much as I'd like it to be summer on Lake George all year it was time for a change.

Bob

We sew Velcro onto pre pleated banquet table skirting.  (17' X 30" for  $21.00).   Different sizing and pricing.  Use your favorite search engine.  The church uses these for dozens of tables with set up and tear down weekly.  Durable and easy to R & R.

I used a 3' roll of geotextile cloth once without pleats and it was a pain to gain access under the layout.  The banquet table pleats provide a lot of excess material for reaching down under.

Elliot, its really nice to see you posting again! Weather you post about your layout or your knees it doesn't matter. Its just nice to see your still around and still have a layout that you know of! LOL Just kidding, I love that your back!

Thanks guys. I've put a good deal of thought into this skirt business. Patrick and I have done around 100' of the hanger railing already, with almost another 100' left to do. I'm going to hit Menards tomorrow and pick up the fabric. I hope the rolls are 4' wide, which would be perfect, because I need them to be 24" tall.

Why so short you may ask? Because my aisles are raised up a foot. From the bottom of the fascia to the raised floor, it's 24-1/2", which will leave room for the carpet. I'm going to cut the roll in half on the table saw. The speed of the blade will give me a nice clean and even cut.  I plan to pleat the skirts as I hang them, and leave openings to access the underside by in critical locations, by just cutting the material and doing additional pleating to conceal the opening, making access quite easy.  I'm just going to staple the fabric to the rails, it'll be fine. If a section gets damaged, just redo it. No muss, no fuss.

John, that's good to know, but staples are still cheaper for the distances I have to work with.

Mark - That sounds horrible. Patrick came over again yesterday, and my knee was still sore from the last week. I tried to keep my trips to the floor to a minimum. I still had to get up around a dozen times. Once again, by the end of the day, it was pretty tough. I've found that my only chance to get up, is to use my left arm to push off on something very solid. As long as I can get myself to a good spot along the benchwork, I can do it.

Bob - Ah the good old days. Sounds like fun.

Tom - As I said, the quantity required, kind of precludes the use of commercially available skirting, though I have taken to heart some of your experience regarding pleating and access. I've got this.

Mike - Thanks, but it's kind of hard to be back, if I never went away. Just because you didn't see me, doesn't mean I wasn't here. You just needed to turn over some different rocks, and I would have crawled out.

Elliot, I will be watching with great interest as it is a job I have ahead of me soon too.  It is good to read about your adventures, it always gives me inspiration and perspective.

I have been quiet on the forum, but busy overall.  Just finishing shooting the TM video of the layout last Tuesday a week ago.  Now I am working on still photos for a prospective magazine article.  I would say I have my scenery about 90 to 95% complete now.  I still have a large freight yard to ballast yet and a fair amount of detailing and of course super detailing to do.  But it feels great to have finally reached this point.

I need to finish a small amount of fascia, skirting, track lighting and then on to weathering cars and engines.  Seems like a model railroader's work is never done.

Looking good, Elliot.

Art

Thanks Art. I've noticed that you haven't been around much, nice to know why. I'd love to get my layout to the point where it was ready for video and magazines. I did have the opportunity to do those things with enterTRAINment, but that was more than a quarter century ago.

Ain't it the truth, that a model railroad is never done. There's always more that you can do.

hello Elliot sorry to hear the knees are not cooperating yet but hopefully you will be able to do more soon.

have you gotten burned out from all the work done last year? happens to me at times and just walk away until the mood strikes me again.

hope your days improve summertime and maybe a road trip this year?

a side note, I see the mighty Mississippi down by the train depot is a tad wet! 

Thanks Ray, sorry I missed your post until now. After the 4th or 5th of the month, I don't usually check in here, so it goes back to sleep.

I may have to go for a cortisone shot to see if that helps the knee. Getting up from the floor and climbing stairs are still a bit painful. Walking is OK.

Yup, burnout and no major goal with a deadline, plus the aches and pains, have left me less than motivated. Now that Patrick is back, it's a little better.

Not planning any road trips these days. Dialysis keeps me close to home, though travel is possible, it just takes a lot more planning and time on the road to do it. We had a great trip planned last year to go out east, til I stepped on the nail. Almost been a year on that one, then I did my knee in November and that really slowed me down. Money is a little tight this year as well. That will improve later this year when we're done paying off a large bill, so maybe next year if I can quit hurting myself.

Yeah the river is high. Warner and Childs roads are closed. Not sure if the businesses are open down there. You an check the closure status on Google maps, by selecting the traffic option, to see when they reopen.

Elliot   I understand the late reply I responded late as well all is good. I can relate to your knee my right knee is not happy I didn't fall but Arthur brothers and old age and the abuse that leg and right arm took when working in printing picking up and loading heavy paper rolls onto a collators shaft when young its not an issue but in old age it lets one know you abused it!

the skirting project should give the layout a finished look even though the layout is not actually finished yet. I would think the cortisone  shot would aid in the pain just remember it is only a mask the main issue still there. I can see you soon outside enjoying the spring/summer season.

Tammie had a bad UTI was in hospital for 5 days home now but just cant seem to get past being tired and weak hopefully in time will get past it . ironically she sleeps and dreams of the scenery items she wants to do now that's dedication!

thanks for the google tip on roadway opening right now it looks very dirty on warner road but I see on stations train cam the lower town folks are again using the walkway. 

hope you and Patrick have a great productive day.

Give her our best Ray. The word is it takes a week at home to recover, for every night in the hospital. I had to spend two nights back in December, and it really did take a couple weeks, just drained. Nothing too serious for me, but I was climbing the walls to get out of there. Gotta go back in for the same procedure on Tuesday, which is normally an out patient, but last time things were way out of whack. I expect this one to go much better, and should be home for dinner. Tell her to hang in there.  

Elliot, always good to see and read about your progress and health. Every time I see your"Empire" it amazes me, it really is beautiful and magnificent!

ConrailFan posted:

Elliot, always good to see and read about your progress and health. Every time I see your"Empire" it amazes me, it really is beautiful and magnificent!

Thank you. All you have to do to see it in person is, make it to Minnesota, and tell me you're when coming. Making it to Minnesota is the hard part.

Wanting to go to Minnesota is the hard part!   I spent a January and February in Rochester, MN, and that's the last time I was ever there, cured me of wanting to go!

On the positive side, I learned what the outlets on the parking meters were for.

gunrunnerjohn posted:

Wanting to go to Minnesota is the hard part!   I spent a January and February in Rochester, MN, and that's the last time I was ever there, cured me of wanting to go!

On the positive side, I learned what the outlets on the parking meters were for.

Sounds like you had a Mayo visit. 

Rochester is great from April through October. Same for the Twin Cities. Elliot’s house in Stillwater is near some awesome scenery.