"Takin' Twenty" with the Virginian Brethren by Skip Salmon

[NW Mailing List]

Last night I had the pleasure of "Takin' Twenty" with seven of the Brethren
and Friends of the Virginian Railway.  Landon Gregory passed a drivers
permit check on the way to the Restaurant and promped several of the
Brethren to tell of such happenings.  I told of my Bride Judi being stopped
at one recently and she is very much "bedazzled" by such things, and when
asked for her ID gave the officer her Master Card.  Most times this might
be considered a offer of bribery, but the officer recognized the name
because he knows my oldest son Josh, who served as a Deputy Sheriff for
Roanoke County and is now a Major at the Western Virginia Regional Jail.
He asked Judi "Are you Josh's Mom?" which put the world back in its grooves
again.


For Show and Tell I took the July/August/September "The Arrow" magazine of
the N&W (and VGN) Historical Society quarterly,  Gordon Hamilton was able
to tell the Brethren about his outstanding account "Inside Roanoke Shops
during WWII".  He pointed out that during that conflict, 284 steam
locomotives from 8 railroads other than N&W, were repaired at Roanoke
Locomotive Shops.  Page 12 shows a C&NW Mikado after repairs posing where
you have seen many famous N&W locomotives under the  "N&W Roanoke Shops "
sign.


The Jewel from the Past like an Arsa precision Swiss made 17 jewel railroad
watch is from October 16, 2008:  " Rufus Wingfirld mentioned passing
Reserve Ave in Roanoke recently near where the Vuirginian Roundhouse was
located and a new motel is currently being built in the Carilion Complex.
He remembers that several fellow VGN workers were allowed to have a
vegatable garden in the very spot that will become a 4-star hotel/motel,
and close to where Cornbread watched his own brand new Plymouth being
unloaded from a Virginian Auto Box Car.


Thanks for the suggestions submitted for ideas for items to be put into our
time capsule at the Virginian Station during Phase II of Restoration which
is about to begin.  I turned over the keys to G&H Construction on Tuesday.
Please respond if you have an ideas or items you would like to be
considered for the capsule.


This Saturday at the Historic Spencer Shops Train Show I will be speaking
at 11AM  in the Roundhouse.  If you are in the area, come by and visit.  I
will certainly mention our Fallen Flag Line in my talk.


Then there's this (letting the blondes rest for a while):  The 98-year-old
Mother Superior was dying.  The nuns gathered around her bed trying to make
her last journey comfortable.  They gave her some warm milk to drink, but
she refused.  One of the nuns took the glass back to the kitchen and poured
a generous amount of whiskey into the milk.  Back at Mother Superior's bed
she held the glass to her lips.  Mother drank a little, then a little more
and before they knew it, she had drunk the whole glass dwon to the last
drop.  "Mother". the nuns asked with earnest, "please give us some wisdom
before you pass."  She raised herself up in bed and with a pious look on
her face said, "Don't sell that cow."


Time to pull the pin on this one!


Departing Now from V248,


Skip Salmon


DLXXII
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