Category Archives: childhood memories

WHAT SAYS “NEW ENGLAND” ?

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My model layout wanders it seems

Away from cherished themes…

What for you

Says “New England” too,

Beyond operational schemes?

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 Does NISSEN BREAD,

MOXIE, barns red,

SPAGS and stores

With “colonial” decors,

Monuments to Revolutionary dead?

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Dairies and granite quarries

In earlier days held stories…

Ice cream and views

Along the Turnpike count too,

And whaling ship stories!

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Broad “a’s” in speech,

A Kennedy’s reach…

Where Plymouth Rock stays

And Sturbridge Village ways

Are preserved to history teach!

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So for my small train set,

What industries are best…

Beverages and rock salt

Metals, food stuffs sought,

And historic touristy nests?

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Gravel still travels by train,

Lumber and minerals same…

Environmental ire

Has dampened coal fired

Power plants, but garbage still flames!

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A water-powered mill

And museum of trains fit the bill…

For small excursions

Of rich incursions into filling the local till!

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Do you think I’ll have enough room,

I figure some things will die soon…

New England gives

And takes to live,

But survival cannot be assumed!

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–Jonathan Caswell

MID-FEBRUARY HAIKU ASSORTMENT

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(Each individual three-line haiku is considered a poem on its own,

despite perhaps being related to a common theme.–J.E.C.)

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(Additionally, haiku may or may not include punctuation—traditional haiku generally do not  have it –J.E.C.)

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Presidents’ Day off

Waving away package trucks

Skeleton crew on

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American loss,

Long weekends not historic…

Blurred history lost!

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High snow banks turn brown

Road salt stains on pavement grey

Waiting for snow days

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Plow trucks stand idle

Except for salting road ice

No more overtime?

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Winter buds wonder

Is it time to grow and sprout?

Freeze burnt other years…!

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Swans in ponds feeding

Youngsters finally on their own

Mommas drove them off

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Easter candy sales

Set up before the fourteenth

Valentines half off

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–Jonathan Caswell

BACK—TO A SCRAP METAL YARD!

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Layout planning changes,

History one rearranges…

In the seventies around here

Boats to carry scrap appeared,

In Boston to be filled before market price changes.

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When a boat arrived

all area scrap yards came alive…

To fill this boat

all would devote,

A few weeks and then stay alive.

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Thus like grain or snow,

Scrapyards have seasonal flow…

Like winter for salt

In autumn would start,

Ship arrival told when to load.

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Where was this metal heading,

Japanese car makers  getting…

Ready to sell

More cars that kept well,

Unlike the American vetting!

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Rolling stock needed I’ll use,

Body shells from old “choo-choos”…

A yard with two tracks,

‘Though I might take one back,

Lots of switching for short line train crews!

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–Jonathan Caswell

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–Jonathan Caswell

A TOAST TO FRIENDS PRESENT AND MISSING…AT CHRISTMAS TIME!

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People we miss and love,

Missing or taken above…

Oh how we miss

Their joy or hiss,

Their gentle comments or rough!

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Among them is Esther Ling,

She was in the lesbian thing…

Opposite were we

But she was a Mommy,

Ran to her when figuratively I needed mothering!

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Numerous friends I had in school,

Have slipped or drove away (I’m the fool)…

Some I drove away

Or ignored to this day,

Elementary through college kept only two

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Bloggers–many follow some not–

Never sure of how many give you thought…

Over a thousand mine

To whom I give little time,

Just a handful  of their blogs I’ve sought!

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Surrounded by my family we are,

Been slow to contact any (my par)…

Younger ones I don’t know

As familiar ones go,

What can I do, having delayed thus far?

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Does any of this make sense,

Is loss of your friends as immense…

I’m sure it is–

Friends we miss,

We remember  our friends in the past tense!

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–Jonathan Caswell

TRAPPIST FOODS

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When J. J. NISSEN folded,

My image of a bakery molded…

Its replacement too big

So I had to dig,

To see what research “beholded”.

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My past is in two places–

It one ever traces–

The lines of “me”

Diligently

For personal data chases!

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Massachusetts, New York State,

My two major windows of fate…

Born here

But raised over there,

Memories in both are great.

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One of my faves was Monks Bread,

A Trappist Monastery did…

And still does

The bread funds their cause,

Producing jams, jellies, plus all kinds of bread!

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A model flat against the wall,

Leaves hardly space at all…

Have to use what I have

Of plastic walls saved,

Modeling a bakery et. al.

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So I thought of TRAPPIST FOODS,

A catch-all title to use…

Producing bread

And conserves, I said,

Switching different train cars is a ball!

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Specifically, flour and fruit,

Corn syrup and sugar to boot…

Isn’t enough?

They brand other stuff,

The question of a brewery—moot.

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MONKS BREAD  from Western New York,

From that Trappist Abbey of course…

A college friend

Heading toward that end,

Found a wife and went in another!

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–Jonathan Caswell

MEMORIES OF CHRISTMAS TRAINS

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EDAVILLE is where one goes,

Riding narrow rails when it snows…

Christmas displays

Along rights of way,

all lit up in lights!

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The “North Pole Express” is running,

All over the country by cunning…

Railroad lines

Wanting happier times,

Santa they know is coming!

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Look in the papers to see,

Where Christmas trains are running shortly…

It’s worth paying

For children’s playing,

Making positive memory!

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–Jonathan Caswell

THREE RAILS TO WONDERMENT!

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A train trip around the tree,

In wonder imaginary…

Looking for sparks

From wind-up Marx,

At Christmastime under the tree!

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–J.E.C.

A VISIT TO ALCO #11 IN NEW YORK STATE!

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I often wanted a model

Of this one engine to throttle…

But the full size is hard

With no back yard,

Not as rich as Onassis, Aristotle!

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On the MIDDLETOWN AND NEW JERSEY,

It was being rebuilt–no hurry–

On an engine house visit

They let me go in it,

To take my pictures–no worry!

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I was taking color slides,

Harder to share, besides…

My pictures are locked

In a photo slide box,

Converting to the cyber world…dollars and time.

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I learned of Number Eleven,

Reading a book–rail fan heaven–

The Narragansett Pier

And Bath and Hammondsport near here,

And Rail City Museum given.

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Until in New York State,

Where the B & H and Rail City wait…

She went to Middletown,

New York, I was around,

But in Pennsylvania she’s running great!!!

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–Jonathan Caswell

A GARDEN STATUS REPORT

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Here at work the gardens

Look fine while the soil hardens…

In cold air

The mums are fair,

The rest of the plants reach their life margins.

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–J.E.C.

ANYBODY LISTENING?

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A tartan pencil skirt,

Is any out there alert…

Nice to see

Fashionably,

I remember a teacher so girt.

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While strict, she had her charm,

Frequent knits to stay warm…

Knee-length hems

I considered gems,

A high-pitched voice when in alarm!

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For a Junior High School boy,

Her outfits were sources of joy…

Modest, severe,

But oh what a year,

With some imagination…oh boy!

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–Jonathan Caswell