Re: Final Exam for Foamoequinologists . . .

Wayne Hoskin Wrote:
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> Love it all, it has all been educational and
> entertaining at the same time, and I still
> have so much more to catch up on evi-
> dently.  

Russo Loco Wrote:
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> There'll be a final exam next week, Wayne -
>
> If you pass you'll be awarded an Associate's
> Degree in Railroad History.  I.E., you'll be
> certified as a Foamoequinologist . . .  

Wayne Hoskin Wrote:
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> Do I get a certificate and commemorative
>T shirt??


I'm not sure about the Tee-shirt, Wayne -

IIRC, The Friends still have a few Polo shirts left over from the C&TS' 40th Birthday Party in 2010 - will one of those do?   If not, there could be a long delay while an appropriate logo is designed, and I'm not sure if the package of ink-jet printable tee-shirt transfers that I bought ten or twelve years ago will still work.  OTOH a certificate, complete with the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval®, should be a piece of cake. Without the seal, anyway.

Also, you've really put me on the spot - it's gonna be tough coming up with a fair and balanced exam by next week.  After all, there's a LOT of narrow-gauge lore here on The Lilly – not just silly arguments over boiler jacket colors or the Georgianatown Loop-de-Loop, but important stuff like culvertization of histöric trestles, opinions on how best to market your local tourist railroad / museum, fundraising for lots of different projects all over not just the U.S. but the entire world, and - most important of all - which railroad had the coolest-looking locomotives.  I guess the best solution - so you and all the other candidates don't get to see the questions ahead-of-time - is to ask everybody here on the NGDF to each send ONE (1, count it, 1) multiple choice or THREE (3, count 'em, 3) true/false questions by private message to my trustworthy lab assistant, Johnson (Eyegore) Barr, before midnight on Honest Abe's birthday (Sunday, February 12).  I'll pick out a wide selection covering narrow gauge railroads all over the world (but with the bell curve favoring Colorado railroads somewhat since that's what we mostly talk about here), add a couple of challenging essay questions, and try to have a test ready for anyone interested in taking it by Saint Patrick's Day (Friday, March 17). I'll do my best to have them graded and the results posted by April Fool's Day (Saturday, April 1) so as to be free to help celebrate my grandson Alexander's six-month birthday on April 2nd.

- El Abuelo Histœrico, Greengo y Curmudgeoño de los Locomoturas Viejos y Verdes,
aka Der Grossväterlich DünkelOlivGrünDampfKesselMantelLiebHabender