#santa train

[aryburn-trains]

Another Christmas Cab Unit by Will Rasmussen Via Flickr: Trainboy made a quick run down to Springfield in order to nail the NS Santa Train running out of Decatur with me. His truck came in handy to navigate the 5+ inches of snow that fell during the overnight and morning hours. Another nice series of runbys were performed by the fine equipment of the Monticello Railway Museum with Wabash F7A 1189 leading the way at Righter (Harristown, IL).

12-14-2013

#santa train #ns #norfolk southern #wab #wabash #cn #canadian national #ic #illinois central #2013 #trains #passenger train #history #harristown #illinois #business car

[schweizercomics]

Companions of Christmas 18: Hogger Boggs! During World War II, Santa generally had to fly much lower than he does during peacetime, for fear of attracting the attention of aircraft spotters and putting local towns into panic. But this made delivering presents in some areas difficult, and in the mountains of eastern Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee, with their dense trees and steep peaks, it proved all but impossible, and Santa was at a loss for how to get gifts to the children in the coal towns. Santa reached out to his department store ambassadors in the area to ask if they had any ideas, and his proxy in Kingsport, Tennessee brought the question to the town’s merchant association, who suggested that Santa use the local rail line. But there was a problem: the Clinchfield line, which hit every mining town between Marrowbone & Kermit, was an extremely busy one, with its cars constantly loading the coal needed for both civilian life and the war. With its frequent stops, Santa would never have time to get all over the world. At a loss, they went to see Hogger Boggs, the retired train engineer reputed to know the mountain grades and switches better than anyone else on the railroad. And Boggs set to work, charting a schedule that would allow them to barrel through at full speed without stopping. Boggs’ timetable had to be precise to the very second in order to miss the other trains by mere inches, and the railroad, knowing how hard a time the miners and their families had been having with so many of their number off at war, agreed to give Boggs use of an engine. 6/ When Christmas came, Hogger Boggs was ready, and, with Santa aboard, navigated his train through winding mountains, artfully managing its pace as it climbed and dived, with Santa throwing toys and candies along the way to the children who otherwise wouldn’t have received them. After the end of WWII, Santa returned to delivering presents to Appalachia by sleigh, but the people along the Clinchfield line had so embraced the “Santa Claus Special” that it’s become a yearly tradition. These days, Hogger Boggs lives at the North Pole, where he serves as chief engineer of all Christmas trains, and Santa's chief consultant on planning and scheduling delivery routes for St Nicolas Day, Christmas, and Epiphany. But late each November, Santa and Hogger Boggs take a trip from their northern home down to eastern Kentucky to ride the southbound line through a hundred miles of coal country and distribute toys, school supplies, and necessities to its children.

#Santa Train #Appalachian Folklore #Appalachia #Appalachian #Trains #Train #Christmas

[iamindifferenttolamp]

#ofmd #our flag means death #one day at a time #odaat #1899 netflix #shadow and bone #tuca and bertie #sense8 #santa clarita diet #glow netflix #the babysitters club #the midnight gospel #first kill #warrior nun #dead end paranormal park #infinity train #lovecraft country #dc titans #a league of their own #these tags aren't spam btw this is just a fraction of the crimes streamers have committed #doom patrol #inside job #snowpiercer #the muppets mayhem #paper girls

[mamaspark]

We took our grandson on his first train ride. A Santa train. Then he got to meet Santa after. A magical day!

#santa #Santa train #personal

[keshetchai]

Do you ever just get obsessed with how cultural Christians (esp atheist or agnostic ones) often openly choose to maintain Santa Claus for their kids?

Like think about this with me:

A group of people who don't actively align themselves with religious life, religious institutions (churches) or other traditions, and may even be total atheists STILL sometimes choose to do Santa Claus for their children, because THEY had Santa Claus as children.

The parents give their child a folk demigod (lesser deity?) of outsized importance to children SPECIFICALLY, and teach them the demigod is definitely totally real. They maintain this active belief as long as possible through childhood. They may encourage and actively engage in this belief with their children moreso than anything else involving the religion it comes from (aside from perhaps, the easter bunny). They know Santa isn't real, does not exist, and is a fiction.

They know their children will learn this demigod is a lie. Subconsciously or consciously, the child then learns that Santa Claus is really only as real as the parent intention to make him real, and the child belief in that truth. The child grows up. Knows Santa is a fiction. And then they make Santa for their children too, because that's the only real thing about Santa — parents knowing it's a fiction and then passing it on anyways.

I just like...am deeply fascinated by this unique cultural training of accepting that the Santa deity isn't dead or anything so extreme, and even though he's made up, he is still extremely important and the fiction gets passed on while explicitly knowing and acting upon the fiction. Parents have to be Santa, they can't just encourage belief and sit back. No no, they must actively CREATE Santa's existence for the belief to work. And they do this willingly!

It's not that I think believing in a myth is unusual in any religion (like we don't need to believe hundreds of thousands of Israelites fled Egypt all at once to observe passover or even to think some Hebrews did flee Egypt and the legend developed from there, or w/e), so much as like, this is an incredibly obvious and well known one that every adult Knows 100% is Not Real, not even based on any kind of reality or possible actual legend, Santa doesn't have all those powers, he does not come to your house or get your wishlist (prayers).

No adult has a pure and genuine belief that Santa is a real being who visits and brings children gifts.

I just want to study everyone who actively is like "I don't believe in God or go to church but like, I'll obviously still do Santa for the kids, that's fun."

(Regina George voice: so you agree? Religion doesn't need to be grounded in imperial facts of science in order to provide substantial benefits to people, foster positive emotions and connections within communities, and for people to derive meaning from it? It doesn't matter if God is real, if you yourself make the benefits of God being real happen for yourself and others?")

#if youre an atheist who doesnt do santa this isnt about you so dont get worked up #santa claus is important religious training wheels for cultural christians #also i feel i should say this but im actually anti-modern santa claus because of capitalism and classism #but the love and parental lying isnt my problem lol

[20th-century-railroading]

Grinding around Breezy Point by Mike Danneman Via Flickr: Four Burlington Northern GE C30-7s pull hard on a PSCX coal train rounding Breezy Point west of Belmont, Nebraska, on the climb over Crawford Hill on July 7, 1996. In the background on the other side of the horseshoe curve is the end of the train and a helper set of three EMD SD40-2 and a fuel tender.

#bnsf #burlington northern santa fe #bn #burlington northern #1996 #trains #freight train #history #belmont #nebraska

[swoleisthegoal]

if you got it, flaunt it.

#patrick leblanc #bodybuilder #bruh #muscle jock #young men #shredded abs #flexing biceps #masculinity #hot guy #hot jocks #gymlife #muscle twunk #jock #weight training #male beauty #male physique #men #handsome #santa claus #young guys #college guys #cocky jock

[gourmet-trash]

neither david harbour nor santa claus have ever been more fuckable than in violent night

#i will not apologize for this #on god y’all when he pulls his santa hair up #and starts brutally murdering trained killers #HNNNNNNG #go see this movie #10/10 highly recommend #violent night #david harbour #gourmet trash talk

[rabbits-of-negative-euphoria]

you are pitting Jesus and Santa Claus against each other. I am acknowledging Santa as both a mythic symbol of Christ and a cultural legend based upon a real man whose faithfulness to Christ was used by God to grant common grace not just to the people of Myra but throughout the entire world. we are not the same.

#- HK #I know anti-Santa people who are not smug but the anti-Santa influencers are getting smugger and smugger each year #my generation was not raised to cope with loss of childhood #pro-tip: it comes back when you have your own children #I know because I get a taste of it whenever I visit my friends’ kids #mobile #x #Christmas #Christianity #history #mythology #let kids believe in magic again #you know what believing in magic did for me? trained my heart to recognize the wondrous when I see it #trained me to accept that I don’t and can’t know everything #trained me to live by the faith of adherence when i cannot enjoy the faith of assurance (Matthew Henry) #I was the only person in any of my friend groups who ever believed in Santa #and you know why I didn’t feel betrayed to find out I’d misplaced my belief? because Santa is real. #someone moves even terrible parents to give good gifts to their children on the same holy day every year #someone moves the imagination to ensure that the darkest week of the year will produce the most ethereal lights #someone moves the ancient and forgotten back into our conscious present minds #and if you’re wondering whether I’m talking about Jesus or Santa that’s a GOOD thing! #that’s the whole point! #the Santa mythos *impacts* people all over the world. and that is an act of Providence whether you believe in God or not

[commoncoel]

midwest

#very unpolished sketch i was on the train ... im alive but inbetween moving houses still #but i replayed gta recently and i want to squish him violently #gtav #gta v #grand theft auto v #michael de santa #michael townley #my art #NORTH YANKTON ERA I LOVE YEEEEEWWWW

[aryburn-trains]

"FL9 on the Santa Train"

NS 3010, the usual power for the Morristown and Erie's Toys for Tots train had suffered mechanical issues on its way back from the NYS&W Toys for Tots train which rendered it unusable for the following days train. This yielded two unique photographic opportunities, the first of which was the M&E Toys for Tots train operating with an M&E unit (as opposed to 3010) and the second was the chance to see the Maine Eastern FL9 leading the Whippany Santa trains. The FL9 did not power the train, it simply served as a cab car for the crew on the West end, but offered a very rare opportunity to see the engine leading a train in New Jersey before being sent back to Maine after the M&E repaired the locomotive. Here we see the train making its way back to Whippany as they cross the Algonquin Parkway. Hanover, NJ December 11, 2011

#santa train #merr #maine eastern #me #morristown & erie #2011 #trains #passenger train #history #hanover #new jersey

[coolthingsguyslike]

#Southern Pacific #GP9 #Santa Cruz #California #1987 #railroad #trains

[dutchs-blog]

First Snow Ofer The Polar Express

#polar express #snowing #winter #steam locomotive #locomotive #steam train #christmas movies #amazing #video #santa claus #my video #weird #strange

[beezyland]

The urge to write a cheesy made-for-tv holiday movie/winter sports wolfwren au is so strong….

Shin Hati, a phenom brought up in the world of competitive alpine skiing, seeks out Baylan Skoll, her first coach and estranged adopted father, to train for the biggest race of her career. She never expected to find him in a small mountain resort town obsessed with Christmas. She expected Sabine Wren, an annoying member of Mountain Rescue, lifelong snowboard enthusiast and supreme distraction even less.

Sabine Wren could have gone to the Olympics, but mysteriously quit her training, causing a rift between her and her family of Olympic gold medalists. She’s made peace with what could have been and learned to enjoy winter sports for the fun and freedom, living an exciting life with a community she loves. Then this arrogant, single-minded skier just shows up and prods at old wounds during what should be the happiest time of the year!

They have a lot to learn from each other on and off the slopes, if they don’t kill each other first.

#wolfwren #sabine wren #shin hati #shin rolls up ready to reclaim her former glory aaand sees baylan in a santa costume being nice to kids??? #participating in community events instead of training??? witch magic #jedi ski mandalorians snowboard for the banter

[whatbigotspost]

I wish parents who are hardcore “wHat do YOu wAnT froM SAnTa????” “be GOOD or SANTA won’t come” “the elf is watching” general Christmas surveillance parents could figure out their lies w/o impacting or involving the rest of us.

I don’t wanna be complicit in this charade 😅 Esp when kids are asking me redic questions?? Like noooooo. I’m not saying shit bc I don’t causally lie sorryyyyyyyyy.

I get they think all this is cute or whatever but I didn’t like it as a kid and I don’t like it now.

#not that the elf existed when I was a kid just the general Santa lie #the surveillance training kids go under these days is CRAZY NEXT LEVEL #and this doesn’t even touch on how when you tell your kids Santa rewards goodness with amazing gifts #you’re setting up poor kids to feel like shit for no fucking reason when they compare themselves to rich kids #sorry y’all this shit is dumb and I hate it #it’s all kinds of terrible messages for kids and I want NO PART

[20th-century-railroading]

AT&SF train, engine number 185 + additional diesel unit, engine type EMD FT Freight, northbound. Photographed: near Palmer Lake, Colo., ca. 1962.

#atsf #santa fe #1962 #trains #freight train #history #palmer lake #colorado