How to Avoid Misfortune

After all the inspection work and operation over the last week or two, it's time for a break. So back to work painting. Al Reinschmidt and I kept going on the 36 with finish blue and grey, and the south side is now about 7/8 done with the first coat.

Here Al is finishing up the lower siding.

I removed the inner metal plate from one of the side doors; it had rusted out at the bottom. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the wooden frame of the door was not rotten at all, and this door will not need any major repairs. This is another one of those cases where wood is stronger than steel. In any event, we'll need to have two new steel plates made for us. And we looked at what Al has been doing to refinish the first side door we took to the shop a couple of weeks ago.

This weekend the 319 and 308 will be operating, unless all the rain dances people have been doing take effect. So I spent some time while Al was painting to uncouple them from the 309, and check the compressors and main journals. And make a repair: the buzzer cord had been pulled out of its hook, so I reattached it. And made sure we had the regulation red flags at each end of the train, as well as a motorman's stool. So we're as ready as can be.

Did I ever tell you I have unique psychic abilities? It's true! As I gaze into the future, I can see clearly that this would be a good weekend for you to visit IRM and bring as many friends as you have. You won't be disappointed. On the other hand, you could of course ignore my advice and stay home. In which case, you will probably fall down the stairs or meet with some other karmic misfortune. Don't say the Swami didn't warn you!