Trains

Nov 1960-Mar 1961 We are at Connelly AFB in Waco, Texas.  We live in Bell in a little home with a big garden next to a train engineer.  He invites Tim, Fran and this old train lover to to downtown Waco at __time.  We go up into the cab and Tim is excited (I think) he is so small.  But a pic there shows Tim extremely unhappy.  Crying as loud as he can.  Why? The train engineer toots the train horn and all hell breaks loose as far as Tim goes.  I remember red-yellow or Katy RR.

Dear Amy,

Now I know you know about this man of yours.  So long ago in far off Turkey this man was 3 years old on the local radio station. (1961-63) You knew this not, we even have a pic with Tim in the room there.  A "peanut" size power on base only radio station.

Then we noticed his attention to detail.  Lots of neat stories about him there.  But let's move on to 1963-65.  Now we are in Germany not far from your birthplace at Rhein Main.  First we lived with the Cliff Devilles in Plattestrasse in Frankfort, then when Fran's mom came in September of 1963, we were in a two bedroom.  Cliff 4 stories.  We were on the bottom.  A Ray Otte and his family above us on the 3rd floor.  We moved to Gateway Garden on Rhein Main and a big apartment.  Our stairwell had 66 children so Tim and Granny made lots of friends.
We have Cindy the cocker spaniel flown to Frankfort in 1961 when Fran and Tim left San Antonio for Turkey.  Cindy was then PVT. Weiland and stayed with LT. LeCompte and his wife while a mission plane heading for Turkey will bring Cindy to us.  So she comes on a secret mission, non-stop from Frankfort to Incivlik AB.

Our general is a toy guy I think.  For some reason Nuremberg in southern Germany the #1 toy store in the world (1963-65).  Should you guys ever get a chance to go back to Germany stop there, it is worth your time. Well, one day we get a call for a one day trip to Nuremberg.  I was so excited! Hard to put into words.  Now the Germans do first class work and and yet even toys, oh my, you can buy a house as a kit of this place and beam and by beam you put these very small parts together and WOW what a house! I mean, detailed window treatments, flower pots with flowers, I mean detail.  So Tim had the track and train in wood that he had easy put together but all the other stuff he did.  I would open the kit and paint the pan and away he went.  Talk about attention to detail.  Guess I did not tell you I too was a train guy.

Lionel train guy.  At 5 years, it's Christmas Eve and well, we open one or two presents only.  The big deal is singing Happy Birthday to Jesus and then after a time in the morning.  Now that was a big.  Apple, oranges,  you know.  Shirt with tie, but the TRAIN.  Now that was given to me on Christmas Eve.  I cannot explain how excited I was.  Smoke, a tablet, came out of the top of the engine.  Tim had 2 boys there in Salt Lake City, so all my train stuff we gave him there.  All the things in our life that just, well, not room for everything.  You would have to ask him ok, whatever.  But that is all in the history books now.

When I was about 14 or 15 a leader in our Scout Troop had a friend who was a model rail roader and told us (Troop 67) to call him and we would be expecting to hear from the scouts for an appointment. Somewhere between 5 and 15 my train and all it's parts were still working but I sorta changed priorities.

I bought knee action world bike and did not have all the cash.  $35 is all I had from a paper route so I gave some Sunther and buildings to make up the difference.  $62, it was a huge amount. OH ME! So these scouts go to this house. It has a full basement.  As we walk down the stairs we put one a train mans hat and a hankie around our neck that was red.  At the bottom of the stairs we all are in near total darkness and hear the train way off in the distance.  A light we can see, and then more things are about to happen.  Trains, stations, forms, land, cities, buildings, pets, people, cars, trucks, water towers; I mean, trains everywhere! I will never forget that place.

Tim would make all kinds of little things to go on the train.  He as a young boy was into trains.  Attention to detail was his name.  But now you have for him his very own tool box.  Yes indeed he is in heaven sorta.  I remember well the look on his face, that hug and his very first train.

FLASH MESSAGE = YWW (Young Weiland Warriors)

Contest of the tribes
Chicago=1
Salt Lake=2+2=4
Seattle=2
Ohio=1
TOTAL=8

CONTEST WITH CASH REWARD

Goal: To cause interest in the building of buildings.  Big ones.

"How many workers built the building that will be completed sometime in 2015?"

Hint > it is 1776' high in NYC

A. 4

B. 3961

C. 369

D. 5000+

Send your Grandpa your answer.  The winner will receive a cash award prize.

(SASE included)

Before the true answer, I spoke with #3 son John and found that my question was not specific enough.  My reason for writing this question was to move each of you to ask your parents for help.  Then I thought your parents could use the TV or computer/internet to find out about this one hour program on the building of this tallest in the USA, yes 1776' high.  Why this amount? Beacause the last 5 minutes of this program one of the four who built this building explains why and how this team put every part together with another part.  

I was amazed and then I was able to understand.  So I thought you all being Weiland Warriors would like to know more.  Maybe even hav an interest in how buildings are built.  For example, there had to be perfect union with all areas before work could start.  For example, wind direction and speed, weather, temperature, humidity, rain, snow, sleet, hail, etc.  All, every possibility of error had to be not.  Never there.  That's a double negative we do not use in the English language, but in Russian language a TRAIN WALKS.  So all the different parts must be absolutely in harmony (just like the band) when it plays.  No errors so when two parts of metal are joined, one has a hole in it and the other has whole in it and then a big bolt is passed through these two parts and must line up perfectly.  All in the area had to be absolutely quiet so these four men went to work.  These two parts together use all kinds of instruments to make sure this happened.  Absolute quiet.    Step one complete, now many people come and fill in all the "holes" that need these big bolts through all the parts.  Then a big nut goes into the thread (your dads will show you).

These four men built this building.  Yes, thousands of others started to work now connecting all the other parts, then these four men move on to connect the next parts, then the next and so on.  For years, almost every single day, until it was finished just a little while ago.  Remember, this was the most perfect building to date, no errors.

After September 11, 2001 and all those people lost their lives, some things were changed in the replacement building so there would be more physical structural help for example wide, really wide stairs and tape on the stairs so if some was there, people could see.  Pressure inside the the stairwell so people could breathe better and so on.  for many, many, many in proving building changes!

Watch this one hour PBS program.  It might interest you in learning more about his this 1776' building was constructed.  

Love you all, 

Pops, Grandpa, the Old Geezer

PS Please find $2.00 for each of you.  My error I did not explain the question well enough according to John.  Ok. He said, "Dad this was fun.  How about more questions for us to work on?" Ok.