Lilith
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Post by Lilith on May 16, 2016 12:14:02 GMT -5
My name is Jacob/Jake, and if you know me on Facebook you know my last name. Not that it's a secret, but I'm applying for college, ya know? That's where I'll start. My life's mission statement is to own a grandiose house decorated with dark Victorian architecture, where my redhead wife, whom I married while Mirah plays our wedding, and single son reside, provided for by my locomotive conductor's salary. Did I just fantasy book my life? Why not, I got nothing else to do. I live in a medium sized town with more bars than car dealerships, more car dealerships than churches and more churches than houses. I believe that's why I'm so obsessed with trains, since they provide a welcome distraction from the otherwise pretty boring city. In September, if you haven't already heard, I'll be going to the Northwest Railroad Institute to train to be a locomotive conductor and get a job with, well, any railroad, I don't mind, but obviously the big money's in the big seven. Whichever one picks me up will determine where I live, but I'd prefer either the south around Virginia (I was very impressed during my three day vacation in Roanoke) or, depending on my impression during the six month course in Vancouver, WA, maybe the Pacific Northwest. The only place I wouldn't want to live would be the flat, arid plains of the midwest. Hiking is one of my main hobbies, and holy hell would that be a boring place to hike. I always prefer going to new places over places I've been before. I have a long list of places I'd like to go before I go out Casey Jones style, from Vladivostok and Moscow, Russia, to Talyllyn, Wales, North Platte, Nebraska, Berlin, Germany, La Paz, Bolivia, and others. While most of these locations are for trains, another big factor is history. I am a huge history buff, and I especially like the stories of countries, how their borders changed, countries which merged with others, empires that collapsed, and the like. Given a blank map I can safely bet I could name every single country which isn't an island (seriously though, does every single Caribbean island have to be its own country?). Most pertinent to my interests are the many, many wars which shaped the world as it is today, especially the Napoleonic Wars, WWI and WWII. I'm not certain when my interest in history began, but my interest in trains has been prevalent since the earliest I can remember. Going off the example of a dad with a terrible job, there's no way I'm settling for anything but a job I can enjoy like being a conductor. I think you guys know most other things about me, like my conservative views but alternate economic ideas, my musical tastes and junk like that. As for this place, I am excited for this fresh start and all the problem causers picking up their collective balls and going home. I was one who got the behind the back ridicule among many others, but looking at this roster, we have nothing but good things to come. A new atmosphere of mutual assistance, fun, and friendliness may make this WCF's best incarnation yet. An unnecessary and completely false statement. Just ignore him, Stewie  now he'll likely respond to you and say further stuff you disagree with lol |
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 12:18:04 GMT -5
Dag, we need to get together one day about the trains and history. If you're ever in Huntsville let me know, I'll take you to the Historic Train Depot.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 12:20:22 GMT -5
An unnecessary and completely false statement. Just ignore him, Stewie now he'll likely respond to you and say further stuff you disagree with lol I only meant it in the best way, honestly. I'm excited for the new age, where no one will be nice to people's face but shit talk them behind their backs. It's about positivity and getting along. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 12:22:51 GMT -5
Dag, we need to get together one day about the trains and history. If you're ever in Huntsville let me know, I'll take you to the Historic Train Depot. That would be great, haha. Nothing's better than having someone to share interests in. Is this what you're talking about? www.northalabamarailroadmuseum.com/ |
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Lilith
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Post by Lilith on May 16, 2016 12:24:26 GMT -5
Just ignore him, Stewie now he'll likely respond to you and say further stuff you disagree with lol I only meant it in the best way, honestly. I'm excited for the new age, where no one will be nice to people's face but shit talk them behind their backs. It's about positivity and getting along. I know, Dag, I know. Im just saying, stating that you disagree with something like that would USUALLY lead to someone responding to said disagreement and then a whole argument / massive disagreement breaks out lol we don't want that |
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Lilith
Newbie
Cancer
Lol
Posts: 60
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Post by Lilith on May 16, 2016 12:25:54 GMT -5
Dag, we need to get together one day about the trains and history. If you're ever in Huntsville let me know, I'll take you to the Historic Train Depot. That would be great, haha. Nothing's better than having someone to share interests in. Is this what you're talking about? www.northalabamarailroadmuseum.com/You two so need to form a tag team or something lol "The Train Brothers" lol |
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 12:28:30 GMT -5
Nope. That's the one we always got confused with. The one I used to work at is the 3rd tallest and oldest Depot left standing. Eastern Division Headquarters of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Three floors, all the big wigs showed up here.
When Huntsville was captured in 1862, even Robert E. Lee suggested the Depot be liberated. The third floor (Bunkers) was used as a Prison after the capture, then barracks for Union soldiers.
Connects to Union Pacific, and goes East to West. Yea, let me know when you're here.
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Lilith
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Cancer
Lol
Posts: 60
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Post by Lilith on May 16, 2016 12:30:42 GMT -5
Nope. That's the one we always got confused with. The one I used to work at is the 3rd tallest and oldest Depot left standing. Eastern Division Headquarters of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Three floors, all the big wigs showed up here. When Huntsville was captured in 1862, even Robert E. Lee suggested the Depot be liberated. The third floor (Bunkers) was used as a Prison after the capture, then barracks for Union soldiers. Connects to Union Pacific, and goes East to West. Yea, let me know when you're here. |
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Post by Nathan "Perfection" Chambers on May 16, 2016 12:31:30 GMT -5
Maybe they can run a train on Lilith.
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 12:32:42 GMT -5
Nope. That's the one we always got confused with. The one I used to work at is the 3rd tallest and oldest Depot left standing. Eastern Division Headquarters of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Three floors, all the big wigs showed up here. When Huntsville was captured in 1862, even Robert E. Lee suggested the Depot be liberated. The third floor (Bunkers) was used as a Prison after the capture, then barracks for Union soldiers. Connects to Union Pacific, and goes East to West. Yea, let me know when you're here. Damn, this sounds awesome. The Civil War is a great blend of my two hobbies, being the first industrial war which relied so heavily on railroads. I wish I could go down there soon, but it'll probably be at least a year from now before I can travel long distance at a whim. Are you generally interested in trains or mainly just their historical and local aspects? |
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 12:34:50 GMT -5
Maybe they can run a train on Lilith.  |
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 12:36:57 GMT -5
Nope. That's the one we always got confused with. The one I used to work at is the 3rd tallest and oldest Depot left standing. Eastern Division Headquarters of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Three floors, all the big wigs showed up here. When Huntsville was captured in 1862, even Robert E. Lee suggested the Depot be liberated. The third floor (Bunkers) was used as a Prison after the capture, then barracks for Union soldiers. Connects to Union Pacific, and goes East to West. Yea, let me know when you're here. Damn, this sounds awesome. The Civil War is a great blend of my two hobbies, being the first industrial war which relied so heavily on railroads. I wish I could go down there soon, but it'll probably be at least a year from now before I can travel long distance at a whim. Are you generally interested in trains or mainly just their historical and local aspects? Mainly their history, but I do advocate passenger service starting up again. |
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 12:48:34 GMT -5
Damn, this sounds awesome. The Civil War is a great blend of my two hobbies, being the first industrial war which relied so heavily on railroads. I wish I could go down there soon, but it'll probably be at least a year from now before I can travel long distance at a whim. Are you generally interested in trains or mainly just their historical and local aspects? Mainly their history, but I do advocate passenger service starting up again. Amtrak is another victim of this hybrid mentality of combining government funded programs with a privately funded economy. Unfortunately none of the Class Ones have any interest in reclaiming passenger operation as their responsibility anymore, as proven by the legislature pushing passenger trains to secondary status behind freight trains recently passed. It's tough because, passenger trains could be a necessity for some communities, but if it doesn't make money, no one's going to want to deal with it. Should the government knowingly run a deficit on unprofitable operations to provide a beneficial public service? That, I don't know, but I think it can be done, but not in the same economy where privately funded people can run profitable operations. It doesn't seem fair to let some people profit while the government would have to run deficit, but is the answer to tax the profitable operations? That doesn't seem fair either. But is fair more important than a successful, smoothly operating country? This is why passenger trains among other things aren't easy to expand  |
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 13:07:32 GMT -5
Norfolk Southern has been trying to get passenger service restored. Lots of legel red tape though.
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 13:09:19 GMT -5
Norfolk Southern has been trying to get passenger service restored. Lots of legel red tape though. You mean NS is giving the go ahead to let Amtrak run through Huntsville? |
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Post by Logan on May 16, 2016 14:27:06 GMT -5
Very well, where do I begin? My father was a relentlessly self-improving boulangerie owner from Belgium with low grade narcolepsy and a penchant for buggery. My mother was a fifteen year old French prostitute named Chloe with webbed feet.
My father would womanize, he would drink, he would make outrageous claims like he invented the question mark. Some times he would accuse chestnuts of being lazy, the sort of general malaise that only the genius possess and the insane lament. My childhood was typical, summers in Rangoon, luge lessons. In the spring we'd make meat helmets. When I was insolent I was placed in a burlap bag and beaten with reeds, pretty standard really.
At the age of 12 I received my first scribe. At the age of fourteen, a Zoroastrian named Vilma ritualistically shaved my testicles. There really is nothing like a shorn scrotum, it's breathtaking, I suggest you try it.
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 14:33:35 GMT -5
Norfolk Southern has been trying to get passenger service restored. Lots of legel red tape though. You mean NS is giving the go ahead to let Amtrak run through Huntsville? Turned out not to be that easy. Amtrak came in, said the tracks were too shaky for them. NS has been trying to get their own service going though. They haven't been successful yet. I did once see some NS bosses show up in their passenger train and stop at the Depot. Southern moved their offices to across the street from the old Depot, and now NS occupies that office trailer. It was a very interesting sight to see. |
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 14:40:12 GMT -5
You mean NS is giving the go ahead to let Amtrak run through Huntsville? Turned out not to be that easy. Amtrak came in, said the tracks were too shaky for them. NS has been trying to get their own service going though. They haven't been successful yet. I did once see some NS bosses show up in their passenger train and stop at the Depot. Southern moved their offices to across the street from the old Depot, and now NS occupies that office trailer. It was a very interesting sight to see. That sounds like a lot going into something seemingly small. I hadn't heard anything about that like I did passenger service being restored to the Virginian city which just got it back. So does NS run there now at all? |
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Post by Thomas Uriel Bates on May 16, 2016 14:45:44 GMT -5
Turned out not to be that easy. Amtrak came in, said the tracks were too shaky for them. NS has been trying to get their own service going though. They haven't been successful yet. I did once see some NS bosses show up in their passenger train and stop at the Depot. Southern moved their offices to across the street from the old Depot, and now NS occupies that office trailer. It was a very interesting sight to see. That sounds like a lot going into something seemingly small. I hadn't heard anything about that like I did passenger service being restored to the Virginian city which just got it back. So does NS run there now at all? NS bought out the entire Southern Railway company. They own the old Memphis & Charleston (Memphis, TN to almost Chattanooga, TN) as well as most other tracks in the South. Virginia has always been a bit different though. NS mostly does freight now though. |
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2016 14:51:24 GMT -5
That sounds like a lot going into something seemingly small. I hadn't heard anything about that like I did passenger service being restored to the Virginian city which just got it back. So does NS run there now at all? NS bought out the entire Southern Railway company. They own the old Memphis & Charleston (Memphis, TN to almost Chattanooga, TN) as well as most other tracks in the South. Virginia has always been a bit different though. NS mostly does freight now though. Yeah, my favorite railroad, the Norfolk and Western, merged with Southern to make NS. It sounded like NS wasn't running at the moment because of track conditions. I hope your town gets this going. I can speak from a personal perspective as when the states were given the responsibility of funding local passenger trains, PA was very tempted to cut it, but people came out in force all along the NS Pittsburgh-Harrisbug line to state how important the trains are to them. I've even had random people come up to me while photographing trains 42 & 43 and tell me how they rely on it to get to relatives in Johnstown and other cities nearby. |
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now he'll likely respond to you and say further stuff you disagree with lol 
