Happy Birthday Ted

It may not be a good thing to have your birthday fall on blog day for America's Finest Blog, you just might not like what happens. That said, Ted, I am actually going to avoid the real nice photos I have of you and I'll avoid telling the story of a St. Patrick's Day 10 years back, that left you running the wrong way home. I guess I'm getting soft in my old age, because even a couple years back this post would be about the real nice photos and how it came to past the unabomber stood over you and laughed. Instead, Ted I'm going to say that you are just a damn fine American citizen and deserving of a good and creative year.

Cheers

Rails to Trails

The whole concept of rails to trails seems nice doesn't it? You turn some dirty old railroad tracks into an utopian clean walking/bike path. After all, a nice quiet path is so green and railroads are a vestige of the gilded age, when we looked the other way so a few men could rape the earth for their profits. But trails from rails isn't 100% rosy, after all, the rails would not have been pulled up it the line was still profitable. So the sad piece is that our consumer economy has rendered the twice weekly local freight obsolete. After all local freight works better when there is local production. Again we tie into the death of the boxcar and the rise container trains full of plastic crap from China. Now is it greener to have the Chinese make plastic crap and put it on a ship and it sail across the Pacific, or have it built locally and then shipped by diesel electric train across the land. I don't know. But you wonder if we will ever turn trail into rail...
Tonight a picture from the Preston-Snoqualmie Trail, once a upon a time, the Seattle, Northshore and Eastern and then later the Northern Pacific.

1001

1001 is so named as it will be picture 1001, in America's Finest Blog. It could represent change and a new beginning, or it could be a quiet fall day on Green Lake.

1000

Tonight I will post this blog's 1000th photo, so that's a milestone. Since it is also an old friend's birthday, the photo will be of her and her daughter from a few years back. Happy birthday Heather.

Dan

The Grass Isn't Always Greener

Today's my sister's birthday and it got me thinking about what a funny thing the mind is, you can convince yourself that the past was truly one way or the future will be glorious, all the while ignoring the present. Now some folks ignore the present because of hardship, others ignore it to live in past glory, for the latter photographs can be very difficult things to look at, since they tend to show the actual event. Albeit just a snapshot of the event, the event none the less. Now what this proves is that you better start enjoying the moment, because otherwise you'll not have anything when your photograph shows up on a blog 20 some years later. But if you can say with conviction, "Yeah that's me rockin' the shorty shirt and I'm still enjoying it," you have defeated the sinister power of the old family photo.

Dan

Things I Don't Much Like

I don't much like Yellowjackets or bees or eggs or...lets just say the list is probably too long. Anyway today as a wandered around the Medowbrook farm I was buzz several times by very large bumble bees, it was annoying to say the least. But it made me think about the orchard, or whatever that place was, in Prague that I wandered into, trying to get this building with the American Flag flying. Anyway in this orchard there were bees the size of hummingbirds, or so it seemed. Now when I say I don't much like bees, I'm actually rather freaked out by bees buzzing about my personal space, so this orchard wasn't a lot of fun to be in, but it was beautiful. I made it in a couple hundred yards and realized I had really no clue to how to get where I wanted to go, so turned around and walked back out and left the abnormally large bees behind. But come to think of it, I problems with yellowjackets in Prague too. As I would relax in the beer garden, I found them trying to drink my beer every afternoon. Now that I didn't much like...

The Burlington Northern

Well today is the 40th birthday of the Burlington Northern. The final merger of Mr. Hill's railroads into one unit. When I was a kid I remember lots of Great Northern and Northern Pacific boxcars all over the place. When I got older something happened, there were a lot less boxcars in general and Great Northern and Northern Pacific boxcars specifically. Now there are even fewer Burlington Northern boxcars. Trains, I hate to say have become sort of boring, long lines of containers full of plastic goods from China, are not nearly as fun as boxcars.

Oh well.

Mt. Rainier's 111th

Today is the day Mt. Rainier became the 5th National Park back in 1899. Now that was a good idea.

Wellington

Today is the 100th anniversary of the deadliest avalanche in U.S. history, 96 people lost their lives when 10 foot high, half mile long, quarter mile wide slab of snow broke loose above the railroad on Windy Mountain, knocking two trains down an 150 foot hillside to the Tye River. It would take days for the line to be re-opened and months to recover all the bodies. The avalanche had some lasting impacts on the Northwest, first Wellington, the scene of the avalanche was renamed Tye, shortly after the accident. Then 9 miles of snow sheds were constructed between Scene and Tye and finally in 1929 the 7.8 mile tunnel under Stevens Pass was opened and Tye passed into history, the tracks were pulled and the town burned.

When I was a kid I can remember the snow sheds on the opposite side of Stevens Pass, my dad and I did a lot fishing in those days and drove over the pass several times a year, the sheds always fascinated me, ghostly reminders of an antique age. For 10 or 11 year old, time is hard to put into perspective. I remember we drove over pass one spring after a tough winter and the sheds had collapsed. I was sadden no epitaph, no words of thanks for years that they stood quiet guard, the lasting legacy of Wellington. Of course, I didn't know of Wellington at the time, all I knew was that this stoic old sheds had given up the ghost. From then on the trip over the pass was always a bit sad.

Back before the sheds the Great Northern relied on men with shovels, whom were paid 15 cents a hour, and rotary snowplows to clear the tracks. When the big storms hit in late February 1910, the big rotaries worked for days to try to open the route between Wellington and Scene but at last, with Wellington cutoff from the east and the west, coal began to run short, finally there was only enough left to warm the passengers. The rotaries where silent, then shortly after midnight on March 1st, in a driving rain and thunderstorm, the snow gave way and took 6 locomotives, 15 rail cars and 96 lives down to the Tye River.

Tonight's photo is Rotary Snowplow # 10. This plow was the Northern Pacific's plow to keep Stampede Pass clear, it was built about the same time as those used by the Great Northern on Stevens Pass.

Focus

Well, I had every intent to go and photograph the rolling stock and locomotives in Snoqualmie today, I have probably done that close to a dozen times over the years. But alias I found myself at work for 3 hours this afternoon so that was shot. I did manage to get a couple shots of the river above the falls before it got too dark. One will be featured tonight. I am struck by the how for the first time in years work actually trumps so much of what I want to do, and how my kid will demand the rest. Simple things like calling a friend, I've tried to find time for over a week now, and yet no luck, are monumental tasks. This is one reason I have not been scanning photos since just before Christmas, the other was I kind of got burned out a little bit. But I am planning on starting back into scanning in March, hopefully work and the kid will allow for that. I am looking forward to it, I need to see other photos.

Dan

First Train

Today marks 114 years since the first Northern Pacific passenger train reached Ellensburg. So here's a picture of the train depot in Ellensburg. It wasn't there when a the first train arrived, a small wooden depot was, this lovely old building was openned in 1910. I have many fond memories of walking down to the tracks in my early days in Ellensburg. Back then the Burlington Northern had abandoned the old Northern Pacific line over the Cascades, mostly due to the tunnel at Stampede Pass was too short for container traffic. So the depot and the yard were quiet. I remember sitting out on a loading dock taking in the early evening sun and realizing as I scanned the horizon, that this was the west, the golden hills and the endless blue sky, a scene that I figured was nearly the same in countless towns across the west and as far east as Minnesota. Peaceful and beautiful, even the McDonald's and Burger King signs down by the interstate seemed to be fit into the scene well. Eventually the trains came back, and I had to trade the peaceful old train yard and depot for the lonesome sound of a train's whistle on a cold and dark December's night.

Dan

Signs of Spring

We were in Snoqualmie this evening, I noticed tulips starting to bloom, the daffodils in the front of our house are starting to peek through as well. But tulips always will remind me of the ol' 3rd Street house, it was a run down old place the years I lived there, but for each spring, it was then the tulips came up, and we enjoyed them. Their reds and yellows made us feel a bit better about the world and our lives.

A Photo I Like

Tonight's photo is one that I have always enjoyed and I have wanted to share for quite some time. However for one reason or another I have not got around to sharing the photo until now. It is a photo of my Uncle as a wee lad. I have no idea what you call the thing he is sitting on, but it's way cool and I wish my boy had one.

Enjoy

Dan

Gas Works Park

About a year and a half ago, my family and I went to have our pictures taken at Gas Works Park. I'm not much for being on the other side of the camera, but that's another story. To kill time while we waited for the photographer to show up, I took photos, of the machinary and other rusting pieces of the Park's past. Looking at stacks and pipes it reminded me of Charles Sheeler's photographys of the River Rouge Ford Plant. Here are a few photos from that morning.

Enjoy

Dan

It's in Print

I was able to get a photo printed in the Snoqualmie Valley Record, as part of their photo contest. I didn't win but that's another story. Thanks to those who helped convince me to actually submit this particular photo.

The Whalebone Tree

What is the Whalebone Tree, well it is an Elm tree in Ellensburg with a jawbone of a whale coming out of one side. How the whalebone got there is a bit of a mystery, a 1976 Ellensburg Daily Record article, states that some residents can remember the whalebone in the tree as far back as 1909, although it is evident that the bones were in place sometime before that. Apparently there were two whale bones, one on each side, but in 1929 one was cut out and given to the owner of the Ellensburg Lumber Company to hang in his office. Even then it took quite a bit of cutting to get the bone out of the tree. The town legend goes that an old retired sea captain moved into the house and brought the whale bones with him. It is thought that when whalers moved inland they would place whale bones in their yards to let other former whalers know that they could stop in. The house itself was built as a parsonage for the Church that had burnt during the 1889 fire. It seems that few believe that any of the pastors that stayed there brought the bones. As late as 1999, I can recall articles in the Daily Record about the tree and the mystery sea captain that left the bones. I haven't been able to get much information that is more recent, save for a photo taken sometime prior to Summer 2002. In fact I am not certain the tree and the bone are still entact, last spring I drove past was I thought was the right house and I don't remember seeing the tree. I would be interested to know if the tree is still there.

Dan

Don't Write Important Stuff on Your Hand

Now I have been known to write things on my hands, especially in middle school. So we'll give Sarah a pass on that one, it is not like she is really doing anything all that important. I mean rilling up a bunch of angry Conservatives isn't really that tough, its like making a hornet angry. It just comes natural, and I suppose so does Sarah's ability to get liberals all tied up in knots, with her folksy speak and that naive small town persona, they dislike her. But there is something that Sarah, angry Conservatives and angry liberals all have in common, they are really useless. All their combined anger just creates more waste and a bunch of dialog about what is wrong with liberals in America or what is wrong with the Tea Party people or what is wrong with Sarah. Complaining does not create leaders or solutions, just hot air and we have enough of that.

Out and About in Winter Time

El Nino is the best, especially in the Northwest. Now if you really like skiing or winter sports you will disagree, but sorry, El Nino is still the best, mid-fifties and sun in February you can't beat it. Oh, so what California is slipping away, and the rest of the nation is suffering one of those worst winters even type winters, in the Northwest the winter has been lovely. Instead of being cooped up inside because of wind and rain, we can get out and do stuff in the outdoors. This is especially nice when you have a 3 year old son. Al Gore told me climate change is bad and we are all going to suffer because of it, but warm and dry February days really are sort of nice. In celebration of the latest coal power plant in China (I believe 3 have opened, during the time it took to write this blog entry), pictures of us enjoying dry and or warm winter days.

Dan

Its Glove Time Again, but It's Late and I'm Sorry For That

It is glove time again, Quin just had another birthday, well in January. Anyhow, the astute readers of this blog will remember the wonderful entries entitled, Quincy and the Glove and Quincy and the Glove Redux. So there is really no need to go into great detail about the glove or Quincy or why we do this. What I can say is that for the first time in about two and half years the boy was as easy to work with as the glove. This go around, the pictures were taken at the Interbay Playfield, next to the old Great Northern Train Yard (Balmer Yard), thus incorporating two of the boy's main passions, baseball and trains.

Enjoy

Dan

Another Long Week

I could use a vacation, a raise and an ice cold beer. Sadly none of that is coming my way soon. But what there will be, is more work and hopefully time with the family. So here are some February family adventures. But first, as a kid I really don't remember doing a whole lot family-wise between Christmas and Easter, its as if we gave up leaving Mountlake Terrace for lent. Of course we must have done something at some point, but it is strange I cannot recall anything. Lucky for me, we do stuff occasionally in February and here are the pictures to prove it.