"Takin' Twenty with the Virginian Brethren by Skip Salmon

[NW Mailing List]

Last night, on the last Wednesday of winter this year, I had the pleasure
of "Takin' Twenty" with seven of the Brethren and Friends of the Virginian
Railway. We discussed the passing of some friends this week.  Several
remembered Virginian Signal Maintainer George Henry Lewis of Princeton and
Hobert L. Scott, Jr. who served in both the Operating Department and
Mechanical Departments of the N&W.  Landon Gregory remembered Scott as
Suptentendent at Crewe, VA and I remember Mr. Scott as Manager Motive
Power.  Both will be missed.



I told the Brethren to be on the look out on DIY and HGTV for the "Salvage
Dawgs" TV show for an upcoming episode involving the Mechanical Department
of the Roanoke Chapter of the NRHS. They taped a session at our 9th Street
Yard using some of the Chapter's equipment and "stuff" of Chapter members
in this episode.  The Black Dog Salvage 13th Street Roanoke antique store
is also involved with the Virginian Station Project.  More on this later.



The Jewel from the Past, like those in a Hamden "Special Railway" 23 jewel
hunting case dust cover, is from October 25, 2007:  "This month is the 50th
anniversary of the Russian 'Sputnik' launch, the first satellite or Russian
'fellow traveller' that started the Space Race in October 1957. I asked the
Brethren how they remembered it as they went on their normal duties on the
VGN.  Glen McLain, who was working at Sewells Point, remembered a lot of
his friends who were going to W and M fabricating radios to listen to the
beeps.

Jimmy Whittaker remembered hearing that when the Sputnik made its pass over
the area every 96 minutes, people's garage doors would go up and down."



I told the Brethren about Gordon Hamilton's power point talk tonight at the
regular meeting of the Roanoke Chapter NRHS at the O. Winston Link Museum
at 7:30 PM.  All are invited to hear about "Railroads, Raids and Ruin,
Building to Big Lick and Beyond"  If you are in the area come join us and
hear Gordon's presentation.



I passed around a list of 20 "Ponderisms" and asked the Brethren to pick
their favorite one.  Landon Gregory picked number 11, "How is it one
careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a
campfire".  He then proceeded to tell us about when he was about 9 on his
father's tobacco farm in Callens, VA and made himself a cigar out of
freshly cured tobacco but could not get it lit with a whole box of matches.



Since St. Patrick's Day was last Monday I have this for our Irish friends:
A Texan walks into a pub in Ireland and gives this challenge: "I'll give
500 American dollars to anybody in here who can drink 10 pints of Guinnes
back to back.  The room is quiet, and no one takes up the Texan's offer.
One man even leaves.  Thirty minutes later the same gentleman, who left,
shows back up and taps the Texan on the sholder and says I'll take the
challenge.  He then downs 10 pints of Guinnes in a row.  The other pub
patrons cheer as the Texan sits in amazement.  The Texan then gives the
Irishman the $500 and askes him "I do need to know where you went for the
30 minutes".  The Irrishman replies, "Oh, I had to go to the pub down the
street to see if I could do it first".



Time to pull the pin on this one!



Departing Now from V248,



Skip Salmon



DVIX
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