SANTA TRAIN 2012

The Santa Train was a roaring success again this year. As always, it presented its own set of challenges, but the weather cooperated beautifully with temps right around the 60 degree mark and a perfect sunny day. Last year we nearly froze and the year before that we nearly drowned, so this was awesome! It took a lot of work to get the Station cleaned up – all the tools moved, wood stacked, scaffolds folded and put away, bags of insulation packed in the corner – and then setting the “stage” for Santa, Mrs. Claus and the helpers. Furniture was brought in from storage and cleaned, props brought from home, sheets staples to the walls to hide the tar paper and ancient boards. The “office” had to be emptied of all our work stuff and set up for dispensing hot chocolate, cookies, and popcorn. One of our best Santa helpers and his wife even washed the windows!  Imagine that! (I wonder if she rents him out?) (Thanks Paul and Sharon!)

We got to try out our HVAC system – so of course, the temps went up to 60 – wouldn’t you know it? For the first time ever, we did not blow any fuses (Thanks, Dennis!) so the coffee pots and popcorn machine did not have to take turns! LOL! We had a wonderful crew of volunteers – I cannot say enough about people giving of their time to do all this… the Santa crew and our members. Wanda B made hot chocolate for me this year – bless her heart. That is a never ending job. Frank loans us his coffee pots which then stay in my van waiting for the next event next week. Shore Bank brings their popcorn machine and Susan serves up bags of piping hot popcorn. Yes, I ate some! PNC donates a load of cookies, and the rest of the dozens of cookies come from our various members. I have to admit I ate a couple of them, too – nothing like a good home made chocolate chip cookie. So it is not on my list of things I am allowed – this only happens once a year!    

The crowd starts to gather and grow… with someone keeping an eye down the tracks. And then the magic moment arrives. After waiting and waiting and looking down the tracks, that tiny light that seemed to never move started to get a little bigger. I don’t know who cheered the hardest, the kids or their parents (or us!)                                                       Santa and his entourage finally work their way into the building. The long line followed. I bet the chairs felt good. Kids from the tiny to big climb on board and answer such questions as, “Have you been good?” Some of the answers were more honest than others with, “Ummmmm, well, ummmmm, mostly.” Or, “I did my best, honest, Santa, but you know how it is… do you have any little brothers?” It was hard not to crack up.     Some kids brought a l-o-n-g list, others ad-libbed as they went along. Niall found a scrap of paper, as we were cleaning up on Monday, with some little kid’s wish list on it. It was a modest list, the spelling was pretty good… I wish him well. Most of the kids, after seeing our trains told Santa they wanted trains for Christmas. I can’t wait until next year when we have our layouts built and running. Our members obviously were not having a good time, right? Who is happier? Finally, a hundred plus kids later, The Santa family head back to the train and the last stop. One of the elves told me they had started out at 4:30 that morning. What a long day! Thanks to all our wonderful workers for helping to make this a success. Its enough to make even me believe in Santa Claus!

NEWSLETTER, Dec, 2012

______________________________________________________________________________ SOCIETY FOR THE PRESERVATION

OF

THE ONLEY TRAIN STATION

VOL. 1, NO. 5 ONLEY, VIRGINIA DECEMBER, 2012

LATEST NEWS

We are really moving along and 2012 has seen much accomplished in the renovation of our little station.

The roof is tight and sound. The outside walls are repaired, scraped and the painting is almost finished. The big freight door on the south end of the station was completely rebuilt and turned into two giant shutters with attractive strap hinges. A beautiful set of French doors was installed on the inside of these shutters so when the shutters are open you have a clear view of the southern approaches of the rail line. A new front door was also installed.

The inside ceiling joists are now set. The attic floor is complete and we are in the process of insulating the ceiling and walls. We hope to be building train tables within the next six months.

GRANT NEWS

This project is costing a little more than we expected but the town of Onley generously decided to help us finish the project with an additional grant of $5,000. This should be enough to finish the renovations and get the trains up and running, but a method of generating a modest but constant flow of income must be developed.

FUTURE PLANS

We have been truly blessed with tremendous support from the community, not only with financial donations but with train donations as well. Attics are being searched and a surprising number of engines and rolling stock as well as track and buildings are making their way to our door step. We plan on repairing and running many of these trains. We plan on running a small repair shop and also allowing the community to bring their favorite trains and run them on our layout for a very small fee.

LEARNING WITH TRAINS

A summer camp is being discussed where we will teach the history of railroading in America and on the Shore and also teach the older children how to repair, and operate a railroad as well as develop scenery. A child can learn so much building a model railroad. Subjects such as electricity, physics, math and visual arts are all part of developing a layout. We look forward to our years with the children helping them learn to Play with Trains.

HARVEST FESTIVAL

We were invited to exhibit at Harvest Festival this year. Although the venue did not have many children present, those that were there found their way to our tent… even those who seemed to have traveled through time!

We hope to see you at one of our events this coming year. Our meetings are on the 3^rd Wednesday of the month at 7 PM at the Sage in Onley. All are welcome. If you see us working at the Station (usually Saturday mornings) feel free to stop by – or visit us at http://onley-spots.blogspot.com/. Thanks for your support!

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

“Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place.”

Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922-2007

I found this in my inbox this morning and it made me think of several “friends,” folks who let their greed make them miserable when life doesn’t give them all they want, and they are hateful to others… and right now I have to work with a guy who is so mad that Obama was elected, he slams and bangs and snarls at everyone. Most everyone tries to find work in another room when he is around. We have had to make a rule that politics will not be discussed at this place… had to do this months ago.

It hurts me to see people acting hateful towards others when they don’t get their way, and there seems to be so much of it these days. If something doesn’t go my way, I try to move on and not make a public spectacle of my disappointment.

The world is filled with such beauty if we but open our eyes to it. OK, I am blessed – you know the beauty I can see right outside my window… some days I have to do a gratitude list to get myself back on track, and just the ability to be able to see that beauty outside makes me stop and think. Illigitimi non carborundum. If I let my disappointments blind me, they win, I lose. I don’t have to lose today.

Sorry, I guess I just needed to share this.

MORE COLORS, END OF FALL

AS THE FALL SEASON COMES TO AN END, the camellias are just getting into full bloom. Some grow up – these are about 12 feet tall, This is Yule Tide, 10 feet tall, 12 feet across. And this pink one grows outward, again about 12 feet across.  The azaleas are winding down, and the leaves are piling up on the ground. If you keep an eye out, you can see an occasional magic moment when the color is just right as it lasts for only a day. This (blue) hosta went thru a day of serious beauty… today it looks terrible! Who’d believe these leaves were once blue?     The Peace roses are singing their last song – imagine fresh roses for Thanksgiving! And the bushes are full of berries! Today it turned cold – no problem for the berries or the camellias unless we have a serious freeze. They don’t even mind a little snow on them – but I hope it will be a long while before we see any of that!  

     

BUILDING PROJECT

OR MORE OF WHAT KEEPS ME SO BUSY… Sadly I have slowed down to a crawl lately. The Lyme's has been in its mean, bad , and nasty cycle… which means not just a lot of pain, but it means my muscles have been locking up when I try to do certain things – like bend over… reach over my head… sigh. So, it has really slowed me down. Somehow I thought I would have a lot of time to get things done before it got too cold to work outside – but today is the last of the warmer days, and so much has not gotten done. Cold is an enemy of Lyme's.  I did get my addition to my greenhouse finished… got the heat lamps installed yesterday. It is also painted since it is not made with pressure treated (called salt treated around here) wood and there is an added roof of 2 rug samples and a half inch piece of plywood that goes on it when the sun is not shining to keep it a bit warmer – and to keep the cats from scratching the quarter inch Plexiglas. That sheet of Plexiglas for the roof cost a small fortune… double what I paid the last time I had any 1/4th inch cut for me. The rest of the Plexiglas is only 1/8th inch – some of it scrap, most of the wood is scrap, too. It seems I just get more and more plants somehow… and then, I take cuttings of Strobilanthus and coleus – some of them make it, some do not. I am trying to winter over some begonias this year. The Mini-greenhouse will come apart come spring as it is held together with only 4 screws and several corner braces. The floor is brick, for retaining heat. It is amazing how many plants one can cram in a space 4 feet long and 2 feet wide. 

The heated cat box is on top of the larger greenhouse… and is already well occupied on chilly days and nights.

MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE!

Make a Joyful Noise!

A Community Christmas Caroling

            Saturday, Dec. 15th, 2012          

Come join the Town of Onley for Christmas Caroling.

We will be leaving the Onley Fire Hall at 6 pm sharp.

If you know of anyone in Onley who could use a visit or cheering up, please call Jan  or John

Please bring some cookies to share!

This is a non-denominational gathering sponsored by Neighborhood Watch.

OK, I did remove the phone numbers from the blog….. but if you are in our area, you know how to contact us! Note: the title covers what used to be called singing when I was younger, LOL! But old age has really done a number on my vocal chords… The point is COMMUNITY… being together, doing something that is fun…

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER – Building update

OK, SHAME ON ME - BUT, I have been soooo very busy, you just would not believe. The guys have done some amazing work down at the station... so I will catch you up on that, quickly... then do another post on what we are really all about - besides saving this building.

First - the building's progress report. I will spare you pictures of packing insulation into the walls and ceiling... and go right to some major repair work. Several storms ago - the one where they thought we might get an inch or so and we ended up with 9 inches of rain, we got to see how badly some of the old boards had been damaged over time. After all, these boards were put in place 127 years ago, and some of them have split here, cracked there... holes had been drilled to put in electricity (what an invention!) and then even a telephone line (who'd a thunk it?) and, well, the rain came in through these cracks and holes. So, we finally got around to removing the old boards and putting up new ones. Here is the strange thing... I can barely lift ONE of the old 1x12's. OK, they are 16 feet long, but still... I can pick up 3 of the NEW 1x12 x 16'. What does that tell you about the stuff that lasted for 127 years? And does that make you wonder how long the new stuff will last?

Another great invention – we rented a “man-lift” and used it to replace the old wood, and do as much painting as we had time for in 2 days.  So the building is partly painted... some battens still have to be replaced, but we wanted to get as much done as we could before the Santa Train came this year.

MORE CAMELLIAS, MORE COLORS

JUST SHARING a bit more of what I see out my windows, walking around in the yard... The colors have been blowing me away this year, for some reason. I am not taking them for granted as I have perhaps in the past. It still amazes me when folks come up to me in the PO or the grocery store and tell me how much they like driving by my yard.

The camellia at the front door.

Just to give you an idea of the size of some of my camellias. This is the one that usually starts to bloom on my birthday. It reaches well above roof level.

The morning sun on the camellia Yule Tide and the Maple tree out front. Yule Tide is over 10 feet tall and almost reaches the power lines. Note the azaleas behind the maple tree.

On the northern side of the house is another huge camellia. Its diameter is over 10 feet and it is also about 10 feet in heighth. I just thought the mixture of colors was breath-taking yesterday morning as I was "rearranging" the leaves in the yard.

CATCHING UP

 Life has been busy, more than busy, and I just have not had time to be on here. Sometimes "life' happens. And then Sandy happened, and even tho I did not have any more damage than one downed tree, still, as an old friend of mine used to say, my tempest fugited! Where has the time gone? 

Many of the leaves are down, camellias are in serious bloom, and the colors are fantastic. It seems the frost we had killed the daisies, but they were awesome for a while and covered with butterflies. I had so many more plants this year, I had to build an extention onto my little greenhouse! Enjoy the pics!

Who would believe I have had to turn the heat on in these little greenhouses already! Frost is predicted for the morning... yesterday, we were working out in the yard in T-shirts. Oh, well, It is that time of year.

If you are interested, the greenhouses are made out of plexiglass. The "roof" part is 1/4 inch plexi, the sides are just 1/8th inch. Most of the wood is scrap stuff left over from other projects. The plexiglas is held in place with corner braces so it can slide out if I need to get inside to do something. It all comes apart by removing 4 screws.

Veterans Day

Amen.

HURRICANE SANDY UPDATE

Everything here in Onley is fine - one tree down, landed on power lines but held ‘til ANEC came and cut it down. Lost power for a few seconds. Lots of water in the yard, but then we had almost 9 inches of rain. But, I am far (2 miles) from the coastal communities that got drowned by the high tides and storm surge. Onley in on the "spine" of the peninsula.

Others did not make out so well... several people lost cars in high water, salty water I might add for those of you not familiar with our topography... one friend thinks her house is a loss- water up 2 feet on first floor, windows smashed in on sun porch (waves? wind?) ...a few folks lost boats. Many were without power for long periods of time, a few still out as of this writing. But, all in all, the shore made out better than places to the north.

I do really appreciate hearing from some of you, thanks for the pictures, Bobbie (Girl Bobbie) and to know you are all right. Would love to share your story and pictures...

And thanks for all the phone calls Bobby (Boy Bobby)...

In fact I got over a dozen phone calls from folks making sure I was OK. I really do appreciate it! I was reminded of what wonderful friends I have.

Thanks for the emails, also.

For pics of the shore, you can check out http://www.ask4direct.com/albumviewer.asp?albumid=5647 and http://www.facebook.com/groups/238075359655302/

you might be surprised who you will find on here, or who you will read about! I found you, Tiger, mentioned. Did you guys lose your cars?

Those of you off-shore folks, let me know how you made out. If you have posted on facebook, sorry, I have not been on fb for a good month... just too busy!

RUSTY and DUSTY (Charlie’s angels-not)

I believe several weeks ago I mentioned 2 little kitties someone left on a piece of Charlie's land. We took the little boys to Uncle Barrett’s to get their shots, then I made arrangements to have them “tutored” at the Neuter Scooter on the 26^th. Both Rusty and Dusty are very lovable. They are happy sitting in whatever lap is handy, and they also tend to try to get in people’s cars. They don’t seem afraid of anything. Charlie, who claims to be a dog person, is actually quite taken with the little fellows and can often be found sitting in his old rocker in his shop with one or both in his lap.

Dusty seems to be a home-body, Rusty is the more adventurous, apparently not at all shy about going in any open door. One day last week-end he disappeared. We were sure someone had picked him up and had taken him home. Charlie walked around the neighborhood knocking on doors asking if anyone had seen the little orange cat. Oh, yeah, folks had seen him. But no one knew where he was.

Then, one day I went into the Post Office – well, I go in there every day, actually – and one of the girls there asked me about a little cat her husband had brought home. They had kept him for 3 days. I asked if he was orange? Yep, she said – and there he was curled up in the chair at the Post Office. Michelle had put a notice up on the bulletin board and was getting ready to call the lost pet service at the radio station. It was Rusty. Oh, my I was so happy to see that little boy! (And I bet Michelle was kinda sad to watch him go!) I took him back to Charlie's and headed off to Wal-Mart to buy them collars so folks would know they belonged to someone.

Apparently Rusty had been going into Dr Bundick’s office every time the door opened and made himself at home on which ever lap was handy! He even tried to get in several of the patients’ cars. Bundick really did not want another cat and certainly did not want one in his office, so he asked one of his patients to please take him home. That was Michelle’s husband.

Charlie is keeping them inside – after all, their “tutoring” has been paid for and will take place on Friday. Then we need to keep them confined for another week ‘til they heal… in these pictures, you will see they have a heated “bedroom” like Spook and Punkin, but it has not been cold enough for that to be turned on. Rusty really likes his little cloth cat house… Dusty prefers Charlie’s chair. This is a picture of Charlie pretending he is not a cat person!