Thanks.  I'll check.

 After getting my F7A to run again by having its wheels cleaned, I next had a problem of power to its track being interrupted.  I have 3 concentric tracks, each one wired separately.  The F7A-B runs on the middle track, the only one without a terminal rerailer.  I got a terminal rerailer to make a better connection.  The next problem was that one or another passenger car uncoupled when the train ran on one long side of my oval, but not on the other side.  I have 22" curves, but the uncoupling does not happen on a curve.  I have 4 Bachmann passenger cars about 76' long & 2 Athearn 72' passenger cars bringing up the rear.  Last night, I tried running the train at full throttle.  I'd assumed that running the train faster would only increase uncouplings, but there were no uncouplings during a dozen or so laps!  I'd also assumed that uncoupling would be more likely to occur on curves.  Neither assumption has proved to be true.

 I had a good time at the train show.  I brought my Intermountain F7A DCC with sound that has not run for about a year.  I had tried to clean it.  I had removed the shell to look for a loose connection.  I asked at the front desk if there might be someone who could help me.  I was directed to Michael Chapman of MAC LOCO WORKS, who determined that the wheels were very dirty.  He cleaned them with Electric-Motiv.  Now my expensive locomotive runs again, & it cost me only $5!

Joe hasn't replied to my e-mail.  The next time I see his sister in church, I'll ask her.  I did mention to her last week the train show, & she said she thought Joe would attend.

 Since I can't find an announcement by Joe Satnik this year, I'll mention that the annual train show in Menomonie, Wisconsin will be at the Menomonie Middle School on Saturday, April 14th & Sunday, April 15th.

 I learned about this program only about 2 hours before it ran.  David Suchet, who plays Agatha Christie's detective, Hercule Poirot, in Murder on the Orient Express, takes a trip on today's Orient Express, provides some history, & inserts excerpts from the new dramatization of the novel.  Maybe it will be re-shown.

Thanks for the suggestions.  I am thinking of something coarser than sawdust.  I looked at bags of wood shavings for pet bedding today, but they range from sawdust to pieces that are too big.  I probably will make my own, if there isn't an easier way.

 I gave up attempting a grade under which I could even have a road.  If one needs 100" to raise a track to 3" with a 3% grade, he needs another 100" to get back down again, 200" in all!

 I just bought a 60' Milwaukee Road wood chip gondola car.  I am wondering how to get wood chips for it.  This should be easier than the twigs I cut & glued together for my 60' wood pulp car last year, I hope! 

Thanks, Joe!  I thought I'd spent enough last year to get a notice by postcard, but I had to rely on you.
I will probably come on Sunday afternoon.

Bill

 I have both EZ Command & Digitrax Zephyr.  With EZ Command, I have only two options:  press 1 or 2 for bell or whistle for continuous sound until I press the button again, or press the button for a short sound & quickly press it again.  Digitrax Zephyr has about the same options for the bell sounds, but the whistle or horn sounds play only as long as I hold the button down.  I can elicit different lengths & variations of sound by how long I hold the button down. It's much more fun to blow the whistle on my BLI Heavy Mikado & the horn on my BLI SD40-2 using Digitrax Zephyr than EZ Command.

Doneldon, do you often invite yourself to dine at the homes of strangers?  If you are so concerned about bug parts, I recommend Life on Man by Theodor Rosebury.  Have you ever wondered about all of those cooties on you & in you?
Joshua, one could always use a covered container in the microwave.  I don't know what rock cuts are.

 Thanks, J3a-614!  I did take a shortcut with the baking & used the microwave.  I have only one car.  I don't plan to get any more.  Making one load is enough for me.  While I was waiting for the pulpwood car to arrive, a package of wooden skewers for about $2 caught my eye in the supermarket.  My wife, the temptress, said, "Why don't you use those?" & I could put a layer of twigs on top . . . .

I got my CN 63' pulpwood car, but it took me 5 days to find, cut & glue 10 layers of twigs!  Sunshine Express, nobody would pay what it cost us in time (8-10hours for me) to make our pulpwood loads!  I tried to approximate the 6-8" diameters of the real logs.  I wanted poplar (quaking aspen), but the twigs are too thick & knobby.  I used Loctite non-toxic glue, which spared me breathing a lot of fumes from my hobby glue.
I hope I remember how to include pictures here.

 I just searched this forum for anything new about Yampa Bob.  He helped me a lot here & in e-mails.  Thanks, pdlethbridge, for the update.  I miss, him, too.
--Bill