traingeekboy Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Yep, there is actually a take out burger joint here named Griff's. My father and I ( G2 and G3 respectively) decided to go see if we could get free burgers; we showed our id's to the order taker drone, the underpaid worker didn't even smile upon seeing two Griffs wanting free burgers. I think we PI**ed him off. This shall be my place for profound stupidity; I have arrived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ba14eagle Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Oh what a way to start the day... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleanerg6e Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 We don't have 'Griff's burger over here, we have Macca's ( Mcdonalds) KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken), Subway, Hungry Jack's, Pizza Hut, Red Roaster,(another chicken joint) Dominoes, (another pizza takeaway) all convenience food and tasting like it just came out of one. I prefer to go to my local fish and chip shop which is different to the ones in the UK as you can also buy a proper made on the premises hamburgers and ice creams, drinks, bread, newspapers. At fish and chip shops here you don't get vinegar, but a quarter of lemon and your choice of sea salt or chicken salt on your chips. We also have the usual assortment of Chinese takeaways and nowadays Thai takeaways, if you like your food burning hot and with one fart you burn a hole in your undies. We don't seem to have many Indian takeaways at least not where I live. 'Oh goodness gracious me.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Oh dear, the tone of the coversation has gone downhill somewhat... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 Yep, I do like my food hot. Sara and I buy thai curry in tins/cans that cost 1$ apiece and we make this lethally hot curry that I also pour rooster/cock sauce on. It is best described as "You think it's hot now... wait till tomorrow" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 ok, next up in Griff's Burger joint is the continuing saga of Griff's search for a British outline steam engine. A link for historical reference: http://www.oogardenrailway.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=301 Last night I spotted a King george I on ebay for only 47.00$ which comes out to around 30 pounds. It was a nice loco with a pretty blue paint scheme, still in box, recent model, etc.... and it was a buy it now sale, so no bidding just snag it if you want it. And it was in the USA; so low shipping. In my caution I decided to do some research first. I went to ebay.co.uk to see what kind of value this newer hornby loco was getting there. That is how I found out that the loco was at a decent price. i was well on my way to switching targets from my previously determined loco shopping list since it looked like a really nice loco. I go back to ebay.com and am ready to pull the trigger and it's sold.GRAARRGGHHHHHHGROAN.............. I think the item was on ebay for a total of 10 minutes. I blew it. I was too cautious. This would be item # 3 that I would be willing to put a serious bid on that I have lost. I do the occasional low bid just for kicks fully expecting to lose, but this seemed like it would fit the ticket for a good starter loco in my collection. I am upping the anti. There had been a evening star that was only 56 dollars still in box like new etc. I held back on that thinking there might be a better deal. There was a complete Air fix passenger set with loco in box that I wasn't willing to go the extra dollar on. I really need to find a loco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 In my caution I decided to do some research first. I went to ebay.co.uk to see what kind of value this newer hornby loco was getting there. That is how I found out that the loco was at a decent price. i was well on my way to switching targets from my previously determined loco shopping list since it looked like a really nice loco. I go back to ebay.com and am ready to pull the trigger and it's sold.GRAARRGGHHHHHHGROAN.............. I think the item was on ebay for a total of 10 minutes. Be patient Griff, stick to the original plan - something will turn up in the end, and when it does you'll be glad you waited... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 I am trying to stick to the plan. But... if a nice loco that fits my idea of nice loco shows up, I'll switch course. Definition of nice loco: Long boiler Large wheel base Britishness ( am non denominational, LMS, BR, LNER, etc.) I've got my eye on an evening star with a DCC decoder in it now. Waiting a couple days to see what happens. I feel like a hunter sitting in his blind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 I had been feeling like i just didn't feel like I had a train running feeling. Today I got the feeling. I ran the my french coaches with my e 424, and then I ran the SNCF diesel, and of course I ran the 241P steam engine. The P241 has some distinctive features that make it seem like a british engine. Most notable is the pointed roof where it joins the boiler which looks like some Brit steamers I've seen. My lima ran like a charm after the cleaning and lube. It's great now. Well, great for a Lima. The sncf is not as great as the LIMA now even though it got cleaned as well. I have videos too, so I'll be posting those sometime soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 I had been feeling like i just didn't feel like I had a train running feeling. Today I got the feeling... I'm beginning to feel there's some hidden message in there that I feel I should be able to feel but I don't feel anything at the moment... Good to hear that someone's still running trains. Wish I could add my tuppenceworth too - seems ages since I last filmed anything and uploaded to Youtube. Looking forward to your videos. I would recommend Evening Star. The 9F 2-10-0's are one of my favourite loco's - excellent at the head of a heavy freight as well as being ideal for a preservation line. I have the Bachmann version which is superb. The Hornby one I'm not sure about. You watching the Bachmann one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 25, 2011 Author Share Posted November 25, 2011 I feel like you may have understood the feel of it. I'm looking at a horrnby one. There isn't much bachmann on the Us ebay. Thing is they do come up a lot on ebay, so it's not a high pressure deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 The current model of Hornby's 'Evening Star' (model no: R2785) is in their Railroad section, the budget end. That said however, it is one of their better Railroad models IMO and in appearance stands up quite well to more expensive versions. It's loco drive rather than the older tender driven models so performance should be fine. Considering it can be obtained new at less than 50% of the cost of the more expensive Bachmann version it offers excellent value for money and would prove an ideal acquisition for your garden railway. Good luck with your bidding but stay focused! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Well... My search for a British loco at a decent price has fizzled out, yet again. I had my eye on a evening star that had a decoder in it. With two hours to go I decided I better do some research; off to ehattons where I discovered that a new one with shipping and decoder would come out around 120.00$ Good deal now I knew my price range. I'm not buying a used loco at new prices. So I bid up a couple times all the way to 71.00 ( that's with the shipping included.) Meanwhile there was this ex caledonain 4-2-2 that was interesting to me as it was LMS, but while I was away at work it sold for a mere 47.00 complete with box; that would be around 30 pounds or so. So my focus on the large loco kept me from the smaller cheaper odd looking beast. oh well it was done, but I expected the Caledonian to go higher as I see them on ebay.co.uk for easily 3-4 times that. Back to the evening star: Loco around 80.00 new Decoder about 20.00 new shipping around 20.00 from britain. As i made my final bid I realized that many modelers fear putting in decoders. A loco with a decoder would fetch a higher price just because of that. I've done a sound decoder install speaker housing and all; I am not afraid of this kind of work. It's fun and it's satisfying. I just wanted the loco. But I figure the decoder may have been behind driving the price up. I stopped bidding on it and checked the final price this morning. It seems we have a winner; someone paid 108.00 dollars for a used engine. WE HAVE A WINNER! Or do we? I think it's the seller who won that time. I am disappointed to have to wait for another good loco to show up on ebay, but not disappointed to be a wise buyer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Is it drivel or drool? I think in my case it's drool. I just spent the past hour looking at ebay stuff. Mostly Uk ebay. Lots of pretty things. Oh oh oh and sets; yes, sets of things. I am a sucker for something that comes complete in the box, like a whole train with coaches in a shiny box. I also like sets of small things, like a shunter with three cars. I saw some sets with what I think are 08 class shunters and three cars; little cute thing like shoe boxes on wheels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted November 30, 2011 Author Share Posted November 30, 2011 The big thing for Sara and me is cooking. We both love good hearty food. We almost never follow a recipe completely either, it just evolves. Tonight we boiled a chicken with some carrots and onion. Then I realized I had about a pound of fresh roasted green chillies, "wanna put em in?". "yeah that sounds great!" So we spent 15 minutes peeling the skins off the chillies before adding that; seeds too, gotta get those or you're in for a devil of a time with how spicy it'll be. This was followed by, "Do we have canned beans??? No only dry ones , darn that takes too long." "But I have a half a bag of froze corn!!!!" "Oh I know lets put rice in it" It goes on like this every time we cook dinner. Then I had concerns about carrots in green chili soup, so I looked at recipes on the web, nope they don't use them south of the border; but they do use spices. So in goes oregano and corriander and cummin. Then some chicken bullion. We started with traditional chicken soup and it ended up as mexican chicken soup; we tasted the broth and it's amazing. Now we have to wait for the cooking to happen. But it will be so good. i should post up my official italian pasta sauces too. The art of Italian cooking is simplicity. ok back to trains! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted December 3, 2011 Author Share Posted December 3, 2011 Well... I hadn't had enough money to buy a new water heater, so I hadn't had hot water in the house for a few months. It was getting to be a drag really. My dad bought me a water heater so I needed to install it. I think I've spent a good 12 hours messing around with plumbing and it's still not done but very close. It's the very last bit that was giving me trouble. If you've ever done plumbing you know what I'm talking about; the last joint won't torch properly. I knew the old plumbers trick of using white bread to clog the pipe so that there isn't any water dribbling out. I had forgotten that you have to shove it up there a bit so that the water can't act as a heat sink and steal all the heat from the spot you are torching. Finally got the last bit done and it's all holding water now. Just need to go connect the gas tomorrow. Oggled ebay some and sighed over pretty things. Guess it'll be a while before I can get more toys, but I can take a shower anytime I want soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted December 5, 2011 Author Share Posted December 5, 2011 I don't know how cold it gets where you are, but we are having unseasonably cold weather. I would expect this kind of cold after new years. The local tv station says it's 3 degrees and it's expected to go to 0. Brrrr..... my old house feels very cold right now. Time to climb back into bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 Still struggling with water issues. Hopefully today i'll get it "sorted out". (love this expression you brits use) i have a friend who is a linguist, he lists his known languages which is about 9; two of those are American english and British english. i told him he was cheating and that he may as well learn ebonics so that it can be 10 languages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted December 14, 2011 Author Share Posted December 14, 2011 Finally got the plumbing sorted. I do plumbing once every few years so it's like relearning something I barely new every time. I am maybe 20 minutes from a hot bath in my own tub. My Pc is running on Ubuntu 11 now. It's a reliable operating system with a nice slick look to it. I am pleased so far, but I have heard hey aren't so up to date on printer drivers. It's my laptop so I don't have a problem there. I noticed people aren't chatting away on here the last few days. I sort of missed the company of my train friends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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