FIAMMA'S FUN FACTS FRIDAY

This is the end of the line, folks - you don't need to read any more posts this week after mine! In fact, I might need to charge you for this journey! I'm going to be talking about train whistles, Casey Jones, and some fun facts about railroad laws and rules! I've been playing my toy train whistle all day.

First, I have to explain what a cowcatcher is; more commonly referred to as a pilot. Invented by British engineer Charles Babbage, the cowcatcher was a v-shaped device attached to the front of a train in order to clear obstacles off the track without disrupting the movement of the train. The shape of the cowcatcher lifts any object on the track and pushes it to the side, out of the way of the locomotive behind it. We may need one or two of these on this blog at times!

John Luther "Casey" Jones (March 14, 1863 – April 30, 1900) was the heroic railroad engineer of the Cannonball locomotive. As a boy, he lived near Cayce, Kentucky, where he acquired the nickname of "Cayce" which he chose to spell as "Casey." He worked for the Illinois Central Railroad (I.C.R.R.) and was known as the man who always brought the train in on time. He was considered by his peers as one of the best in the business and known for his insistence that he "get her there on the advertised" (time) and that he never "fall down" (arrive at his destination behind schedule). He was so punctual, it was said that people set their watches by him.

He was also famous for his unique whistle which involved a long drawn-out note that began softly, rose, and then died away to a whisper. It was said that people would recognize that whistle and know when Casey was driving past. It was described as "a sort of whippoorwill call" or "like the war cry of a Viking.”

In 1893, during the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, the I.C.R.R. was charged with providing commuter service for the thousands of visitors to the fairground. Jones took the duty, shuttling many people from Van Buren Street to Jackson Park during the exposition. It was his first experience as an engineer in passenger service and he liked it. He was also a hero when he rescued a child from the tracks in 1895. Walt Disney made a cartoon called The Brave Engineer in 1950, based on the exploits of Casey Jones.

On a rainy and foggy night on April 29, 1900, Casey brought the Cannonball into Memphis on time. As he was leaving, he found out one of the other engineers was sick and unable to make his run, so Casey volunteered to help out his friend. He pulled the No. 638 train out of the station about 11 p.m., 1 hour and 35 minutes late, along with his friend and fireman, Simon (Sim) Webb. (The fireman and engineer operated a steam locomotive as a team. The fireman managed the output of steam. His boiler had to respond to frequent changes in demand for power, as the train sped up, climbed hills, changed speeds, and stopped at stations. A skilled fireman anticipated changing demand as he fed coal to the firebox and water to the boiler. At the same time, the fireman was the “co-pilot” of the train who knew the signals, curves, and grade changes as well as the engineer.)

Casey was determined to make up the time, reaching a speed of 80 mph. About 4 a.m., when he had nearly made up all the time on the run, Casey rounded a corner near Vaughn, Mississippi, and saw a stalled freight train on the track and shouted for Sim to jump. Traveling about 50 mph at this point and about 100 feet from the train, Casey Jones sanded the track, threw the Johnson Bar in reverse, and set the air brakes. Sim Webb was uninjured, but Casey Jones rode the train out to the end. Popular legend holds that when he was pulled from the wreckage, he had one hand on the brake and one on the whistle chord. "I remember," Sim Webb told Casey's widow, "that as I jumped, Casey held down the whistle in a long, piercing scream. I think he must have had in mind to warn the freight conductor in the caboose so he could jump."

His dramatic death, trying to stop his train and save lives, made him a hero again. He was immortalized in a popular ballad sung by his friend Wallace Saunders, an engine wiper for the I.C.R.R. The Ballad of Casey Jones was performed by the Grateful Dead, who also wrote the song Casey Jones, which was first released on their album Workingman's Dead in 1970.

At one time or another, these were railroad laws or rules:

• West Virginia law required that if a railroad passed within one mile of a community with 100 or more people, then it was required to build a station and stop their regularly to pick up and drop off passengers.
• Texas law once said: When two trains meet each other at a railroad crossing, each train shall come to a full stop and neither train shall proceed until the other has gone. Huh??
• A New York City Ordinance prohibited the shooting of rabbits from the rear of a Third Avenue street car if it was in motion.   
• Putting salt on a railroad track in Alabama was once punishable by death.
• It is considered a misdemeanor offense to throw pickle juice at a trolley in Rhode Island.
• It is against the law for a railroad to remove itself from a town of more than five hundred people in South Carolina.
• In Washington state, a dog must have accompanied the cowcatcher to scare livestock from the tracks.
• In West Virginia, it was once illegal to sleep on a train.
• If you attack a train in Indiana, you're going to jail 
• It is illegal to place soap on railroad tracks in Mississippi. 
• In South Dakota, it is illegal to place firecrackers on railroad track. The fine doubles if they are lit. 
• In Wisconsin, it was once illegal to kiss on a rain.
• A Gary, Indiana ordinance once prohibited anyone from attending a theatre or riding on a public streetcar within four hours of eating garlic.

This post was definitely no "train wreck," but there's always next week! Let's watch the Brave Engineer in honor of brave Casey Jones.

WHAT'S MAJOR TOM THINKING ABOUT TODAY?

I'm "training" my eyes on all the finches at the bird feeder outside my living room window. With the solar screens, I can see out, but they can't see in! Even though it was Labor Day, I still needed to prepare my blog for you today, which I always love to do. 

I wanted to tell you about Skimbleshanks, who was a cat character in T. S. Eliot's book of poetry Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats and in Andrew Lloyd Weber's musical Cats. Skimbleshanks was described as an orange tabby cat who lives on the night mail train that travels the British West Coast Main Line. He is very important to the operation of the train, as it will not leave without him and he frequently looks in on the passengers and crew to ensure that everything is running smoothly. When it is time for his song in the musical, he is seen wearing a brown vest with a pocketwatch chain.

These are the last lines of the last verse of the poem:

He gives you a wave of his long brown tail
Which says: 'I'll see you again!
You'll meet without fail on the Midnight Mail
The Cat of the Railway Train.

Of course, I have to tell you some history about Thomas the Tank Engine. It began with a boy named Wilbert Awdry, who would lie in his bed at night and listen to the trains nearby on the Great Western Train Line, sounding as if they were talking to each other as they huffed and puffed along the track.

Many years later, Wilbert Awdry became Reverend W. Awdry. In 1940, he married and had a child, Christopher, and passed on his love of trains to his son. In 1943, when Christopher was confined to his bed with measles, Wilbert amused him by making up stories about the steam engines from his own childhood. This was the beginning of the adventures of Edward and two other engines, Gordon and Henry. These original stories were told over and over again until Rev. W. Awdrey finally wrote the stories down and published his first book, The Three Railway Engines, in 1945. At Christmas of that year, the Rev. Awdrey made his son Christopher a simple wooden toy engine that was later christened "Thomas." And that's the beginning of the legendary Thomas the Tank and Friends!

In 1983, following in the footsteps of his father, Christopher began writing stories for his son, Richard. "Really Useful Engines" was the first of 14 books by Christopher Awdry. Do you know the members of the "Steam Team" and the other engines? There's a lot of new members, too!

During its 16th consecutive year, Day Out With Thomas will make stops in more than 45 cities in the United States and Canada and is expected to welcome more than one million passengers in 2011. I've checked the schedule and it's currently in Tennessee, then Ohio, then Colorado, and other locations until the end of the year. Check the schedule to see if the tour is near you; if not, I'm sure they'll be gearing up for their 17th season in 2012! 

I may not have been born in Texas, but it's my forever home now and I'm real proud to tell you about the Texas State Railroad, located on Hwy 84 between the cities of Palestine, Texas and Rusk, Texas (about 2-1/2 hours from Dallas). The Rusk depot has an RV park and campground with 71 camping sites with full hook-up and a 15-acre fishing lake, plus a lot more.

The Texas state prison system established the railroad in 1881. Inmates from the Rusk Penitentiary built the line, which was used to transport hardwood that was used as fuel for the furnaces at the prison-operated iron smelter. The furnace supplied the state of Texas with iron products. In 1906 prison crews extended the rail line to Maydelle and in 1909 reached their final destination of Palestine. Since 1977 the Texas State Railroad has appeared in several movies, television series, commercials, and music videos. The TSRR is currently restoring steam engines that were built in the early 1900s and also passenger cars that were built in the 1920s. Here are some upcoming events!

Coming in October, you can enjoy Peanuts - The Great Pumpkin Patch Express Train Ride which departs in Rusk on October 2, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 22, and 29. You can meet Snoopy, pick your own pumpkin, visit trick or treat street, and more!

You can enjoy The Polar Express Train Ride which departs in Palestine on all through November and December! Look at these pajamas that you can purchase:

Wow - I have lost all "track" of time today, but we still have time to watch a video. You don't even have to buy a ticket to watch The Little Engine that Could!

TROTTIN' ABOUT TOWN WITH HAIRY TROTTER

Guess who went to Railroad Park Dog Park on Labor Day? Check out Charlotte and her pals around the water cooler! People and pets had a great day at the park!

Since it was a little cooler, I found a frisky little squirrel eating away on a sweetgum seed ball. I took several pictures of him choo-choo-chooing away! The fallen fruits are also called ankle biters, burr balls, cuckoo birs, pinkelponkers, and sticky balls! The sweetgum tree has five-pointed star-shaped leaves and its wood is used is used for lumber, furniture, and railroad ties!  Its seeds are eaten by birds, mice, rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks.  Sweetgum trees produce a fragrant gum resin, also called liquid amber because of its golden sap, and is a relative of witch hazel, the medicinal plant.

Hey, Hamilton, I think your mother is whistling for you! I love to rib my porky pal! The oil painting Arrangement in Grey and Black: The Artist's Mother, famously known as Whistler's Mother, was painted by American-born painter James McNeill Whistler in 1871. Anna McNeill Whistler posed for the painting while living in London with her son. There are several  stories surrounding the making of the painting itself; one is that Anna Whistler acted as a replacement for another model who couldn't make the appointment. Another is that Whistler originally envisioned painting the model standing up, but that his mother was too uncomfortable to pose standing for an extended period.

In 1997, Whistler`s Mother had a leading role in the comedy movie, Bean - The Ultimate Disaster Movie. Mr. Bean is a well-meaning, but clumsy and destructive guard at the Britain's Royal National Gallery in London. To get rid of Mr. Bean at their gallery, his employers send him to the United States to handle the transfer of the painting to a Los Angeles gallery. When he arrives at the gallery, he happens to sneeze on the painting. He then tries to wipe the spray off the face of Whistler's Mother, but he isn't aware that his handkerchief is full of blue ink. Now the face of Whistler's Mother is covered with blue ink. After a second try to remove the ink with some chemicals, the face of the Mother vanishes from the painting and is just a big white spot. To cover this up, Bean uses a poster of the painting, glued to the frame with some gum. At the official opening, it now looks like nothing really happened to the face of Whistler's Mother and nobody knows that Bean destroyed the valuable painting! Let's watch:

Like I always say, "whistle while you work" and it will make the day go by faster (maybe one short and two long whistles, just to be different!)

HAMMIN' IT UP WITH BLOG HOG HAMILTON

I guess I’ll have to be the “whistle blower” of this blog and tell you about steam whistles which originate back to 1832, when a local musical instrument builder was asked to provide a steam-powered whistle, then known as a “steam trumpet.” Whistles were used as a warning signal for people and animals that a train was approaching and for communicating with rail workers. The older steam whistles were attached to a pull cord or lever which different locomotive operators could use to "express" their unique style of blowing the whistle. It was often apparent who was operating the train by the sound of the whistle!

Steam locomotives have different sounds from one another, ranging from a tiny single-note shrieker to the multi-chime whistle. This is still considered the "king of train whistles” and is the most copied train whistle in the United States. It was originally developed by Casey Jones, a railroad engineer, but improved upon by Nathan of New York. The most loved of all three-chime train whistles (to the public and railroaders alike) were the deep-chorded "steamboat minor" long-bells. The five-note whistle was also very popular, which even the Chinese copied for their locomotives. Two-note and four-note train whistles never caught on with North American railroads. Some whistles were commercially made, while others were shop-made by the railroads themselves.

A few well-known American railroads were famous for their whistles:

• Southern Pacific for their six chimes.
• Union Pacific for their "steamboat" chimes.
• Reading Railroad for their high-pitched passenger six chimes.
• Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad for their five chimes and three chimes.
• Baltimore and Ohio for their three chime step-tops and six chimes.
• Grand Trunk for their shop-made six chimes.
• New York Central for their shop-made six chimes.
• Norfolk and Western for their low-pitched, distinctive-sounding “hooter” whistles.

Now, I've lost my "train of thought"! 
Oh, don't get all steamed up, at least I have riddle for you:

Q: If an electric train travels 90 miles an hour in a westerly direction and the wind is blowing from the north, in which direction is the smoke blowing?

SCROLL DOWN TO GET THE ANSWER - REMEMBER, I'M PROTECTED BY THE WHISTLEBLOWERS PROTECTION ACT!

A: There is no smoke from an electric train!

Here's another "slice" of humor!

I thought I could, I thought I could post my blog today! Let's watch my favorite pig Porky in Porky's Railroad:

DEAR TABBY

DEAR TABBY:  I hope you didn't get "railroaded" into working on Labor Day to get your post ready for today! I have ridden the Amtrak Texas Eagle train that takes you from Chicago to San Antonio, where we visited the Alamo and Riverwalk! It was fabulous, but I thought you might want to blow off some steam and tell us about any adventures you have had ridin' the rails!  TOOTY, WHISTLER, ALABAMA.

DEAR TOOTY:  I am well "trained" to work hard any day of the week! I have not had any adventures aboard a train in my lifetime, but have always wanted to ride Amtrak, which is a blending of the words America and track. I do know of two cats that served as mascots aboard two railway lines - Chessie and Tama. Chessie was the symbol for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. Her image first appeared in an advertisement in the September 1933 issue of Fortune magazine with the slogan "Sleep Like a Kitten and Wake Up Fresh as a Daisy in Air-Conditioned Comfort."

The ad was so popular that the image grew to include calendars, clothing, and even two children's books about the character. Chessie acquired two kittens named "Nip" and "Tuck" in 1935, as well as a mate named "Peake" in 1937. During World War II, the Chessie character was used to promote War Bonds and support for the war effort, depicted as working on the home front to support Peake, who was off to war. The Chessie image continued to appear in advertising until 1971 when passenger train travel was consolidated under Amtrak.

The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway merged with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and Western Maryland Railway. The company was named the Chessie System and adopted the "Ches-C" logo, which incorporated the silhouette of the kitten into the "C" of the railroad's name! The Chessie System later merged with other railroads to become the CSX Corporation. The Chessie logo is no longer found in advertising and was phased out of usage on trains, but Chessie is still the mascot of the CSX Corporation, and there are still trains that still feature the kitten logo, having yet to be repainted.

I hate to toot my own horn, but if that wasn't enough, I have a story about Tama! She is a calico cat, born April 29, 1999, who is the station master and operating officer at Kishi Station in Kinokawa, Wakayama, Japan.

In April 2006, the Wakayama Electric Railway converted all stations on the Kishigawa Line from manned to unmanned in an effort to cut costs. Station masters were selected from employees of local businesses near each station. For Kishi station, Toshiko Koyama, the neighborhood grocer, was selected as station master. Koyama had adopted Tama and other stray cats, and she fed them at the station. In January 2007, railway officials decided to officially name Tama the station master, whose primary duty is to greet passengers. As you can see, the position comes with a stationmaster's hat, and instead of a salary, the railway provides Tama with free cat food! Now, that's the cat's meow!!

A study has estimated that the publicity surrounding Tama has contributed 1.1 billion Yen (about 13 million dollars) to the local economy. In January 2008, Tama was promoted to "super station master" in a ceremony attended by the president of the company and the mayor. As such, she is the only female in a managerial position in the company. Her new position also has an office - a converted ticket booth containing a litter box! 

In January 2010, railway officials promoted Tama to the post of "operating officer" in recognition of her contribution to attracting new customers. Tama will maintain the stationmaster's job while taking over the new job, and is the first cat to become an executive of a railroad corporation! Her staff consisted of two feline assistant stationmasters, Chibi (born May 12, 2000), and an orange tabby named Miiko (born October 3, 1998), who passed away on July 20, 2009. 

Kishigawa Line announced that it was releasing a new "Tama Densha" (Tama railcar/train) train that was customized with cartoon depictions of Tama. It began running in spring 2009.

Now, that's ridin' the Gravy Train! Let's watch a video of Tama in action and take a tour of the Tama Densha: The Cutest Train Car in the World:

I'VE BEEN WORKING LIKE A DOG! by Blog Dog Dan

As you know, I am a working dog and have been "doggedly" repairing my computer, camera, and phone that stopped working all about the same time! I guess I have been using them a lot....Since I've been working so hard, I think I'll take the rest of the day off and enjoy Labor Day, or UnLabor Day! For many adults and children, Labor Day represents the end of the summer and back to school. It used to be considered the last day of the year that it was fashionable to wear white. In U.S. sports, it marks the beginning of NFL and college football seasons.

Labor Day is observed the first Monday in September and pays tribute to the contributions and achievements of the American worker. It's kind of ironic that the first Labor Day holiday was actually on a Tuesday! In the 1800s, during the Industrial Revolution, the average American worked 12-hour days and 7-day weeks, often under unsafe and unhealthy working conditions. In the late 18th century, as manufacturing jobs replaced agricultural jobs, labor unions became the voice of the American worker.

In 1880, George M. Pullman designed and developed the town of Pullman, Illinois, from 4,000 acres of open prairie and marsh land, with the help of architect Solon Beman.  When Beman asked Pullman if the town could be named after him, Pullman responded, "Sure, we'll take the first half of my name, and the second half of yours." (Both names ended in "man" - pretty sneaky, huh?) Four years later, over 1,000 homes and public buildings were completed. George Pullman owned the banks, the stores, and the housing, so everyone in town worked for George Pullman!

This worked out well until the economic Panic of 1893, which caused hundreds of workers at the Pullman Palace Car Company to either be laid off or suffer pay cuts, but their living expenses were still the same. On May 11, 1894, 3,000 workers at the Pullman Company went on strike to protest the 16-hour days, low wages, and the firing of union reps. On June 26, the American Railway Union called for a boycott of all Pullman railway cars, shutting down much of the nation's transportation system with undeliverable goods, including the U.S. mail. I guess it was marked "UNDELIVERABLE"! At its peak, 250,000 workers in 27 states were involved in the strike. 

To break the strike, President Grover Cleveland sent 12,000 U.S. Army troops and U.S. Marshals to Chicago, resulting in a wave of riots. On August 3, the strike was over and all of the workers for the Pullman Company signed an agreement to never unionize again (called a "yellow-dog contract"). Six days after the strike ended, a bill was passed through Congress stating that the first Monday in September of each year would be a legal holiday holiday in the District of Columbia and all the U.S. territories.

Industry cannot flourish if labor languishes. - Calvin Coolidge

Labor disgraces no man; unfortunately, you occasionally find men to disgrace labor. - Ulysses S. Grant

  
Stephen Grover Cleveland was our 22nd and 24th President of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms (1885–1889 and 1893–1897). A few months into his second term, the Panic of 1893 produced a severe national depression that Cleveland was unable to reverse. This was caused by railroad overbuilding and shaky railroad financing which set off a series of bank failures, along with people panicking and withdrawing their money from banks and the run on gold supply.

Until the Great Depression, the Panic of '93 was considered the worst depression the United States had ever experienced. When the decline of the gold reserves stored in the U.S. Treasury fell to a dangerously low level, President Cleveland was forced to borrow $65 million in gold from Wall-Street banker JP Morgan in order to support the gold standard.

Okay, since that was a little "depressing" and we don't want to "labor" on the past, we'll talk about another Grover that we all know and love!  That's right - Grover from Sesame Street. Grover is lovable, cute, and furry and almost never uses contractions when singing or speaking (he would never use the words "don't" and "we'll"). Grover's skits usually involve him in a variety of customer service jobs, with his first skit being a waiter at Charlie's Restaurant and Mr. Johnson as his customer. He also performs skits wearing a cap and gown trying to give lessons for simple, everyday things. Grover would often greet Kermit the Frog by running up to him and yelling, "Hey, froggy babeee!" and then giving him a hard slap on the back, which knocked him over. 

Grover also had a semi-secret superhero identity as the well-meaning but inept SuperGrover. The announcer introduced each episode with the lines: "Presenting the further adventures of everybody's favorite hero. A man who is faster than lightning, stronger than steel, smarter than a speeding bullet. It's.. SUPERGROVER!" SuperGrover would then burst through a paper wall bearing his crest, trying to move his helmet up off his eyes, and adds, "And I am cute, too!"

I think I've labored enough on my first day back on the job!  Let's watch an episode of Charlie's Restaurant.

Because we work so well together, you can click on the link below to hear A Little Bit of Life by Craig Morgan with The Fox and the Hound Gang: http://youtu.be/UWUmmO7TtFg

NOW GO READ A BOOK AND DON'T WORK SO HARD TODAY !