A word of thanks to USAK

**Bugbear** · 25th February 08, 04:33 PM

Originally Posted by Nighthawk

My name? It goes back to the trip that my friend David and I took to Taos, New Mexico after we graduated high school. Dave's mother had a rare bird aviary, and Dave spent the entire year collecting the feather. We took 10 pounds (!!!) of feather to trade with the Pueblo natives. We got a wonderful handmade piece pipe and some wonderful tobacco to smoke out of it, a deer bone choker, and numerous other things. One of the Pueblos that I was hanging out with started calling me Flies With The Night Hawks, so I kept the name as my Pagan name and shortened it to be internet friendly. My avatar- it's the Wolfe family tartan. My grandmother was a Wolfe.

They also have good red chili in Taos,... neat place. In fact, don't know how they do it, but I've seen green chili powder that came from, Taos. I grew up partly in Tucumcari, New Mexico, for the first twelve years, then was sent to the "Blind School," in Alamo Gordo, down by White Sands.

That's an interesting story... And yes, it was interesting to see what everyone fessed up to on their names.

Went to "The School" with mostly Pueblo, Zuni, and Dine' as fellow students, just to throw that in.

**Bugbear** · 25th February 08, 08:00 PM

Nighthawk, are you getting a vest and Braemer jacket from USAK? I have a question... more in general about kilt jackets with a vest or waistcoat. Does the vest extend down passed the cut away in the jacket that goes up and over the sporran area? I know you aren't supposed to button the jacket when wearing the vest, but I'm having trouble understanding how all this looks. Oh, and I can't look at the pictures, or I would.

**Nighthawk** · 25th February 08, 10:04 PM

Originally Posted by Ted Crocker

Nighthawk, are you getting a vest and Braemer jacket from USAK? I have a question... more in general about kilt jackets with a vest or waistcoat. Does the vest extend down passed the cut away in the jacket that goes up and over the sporran area? I know you aren't supposed to button the jacket when wearing the vest, but I'm having trouble understanding how all this looks. Oh, and I can't look at the pictures, or I would.

You know, Ted- I'm not sure. I have a vest, but I don't have the cash for a jacket yet. That will be my next major purchase. And just so you know, I'm a solid colors kind of person when it comes to my clothes from the waist up. I wouldn't be able to pull off a Braemer at all. It's an Argylle or PC for me- in black.

So getting back to the last subject we were discussing- I grew up in a little town in New Mexico called Chama. I have never heard of Tucumcari, but of course, Alamo Gordo, that one I know. The chili in Taos is good, but I'm a black bean soup and tomatilla sauce person myself. The black bean soup you get in Taos is just...

while what you get here in Denver is

oop:

**Bugbear** · 25th February 08, 10:14 PM

I know Chama! And the Chama train, the aspens. That's funny that we were hatched in the same state. Tucumcari is down I 40 to the East like if you were going to Texas... about three hours from Albuquerque on the way to Amirillo. Ah, what a small world Sorry you can't get no good grub up yander......

I'm just working on getting a brown corduroy suit jacket and vest converted to go with my Weathered half Lamont.
Just something nice to go with that outfit.

Oops! No, USAK doesn't have anything in that material... Sure is a good company, though. I'm going to look at their hose too because I need a pare of brown and a pare of kakhi-ish hose to go with that outfit... That Grey Granite tartan is on my list too... I think an all gray outfit would look great.

**Nighthawk** · 26th February 08, 09:37 AM

The Cumbres & Toltec is actually the reason my parents moved out of Ohio. My dad was a railroad man, and helped to restore the train after the Rio Grande abandoned it.

**Bugbear** · 26th February 08, 10:09 AM

Originally Posted by Nighthawk

The Cumbres & Toltec is actually the reason my parents moved out of Ohio. My dad was a railroad man, and helped to restore the train after the Rio Grande abandoned it.

Now that is very cool. My family, when I was a kid, went on that trip several times, and I very much enjoied it. And here it was all along that your father helped all that happen. That makes my day, Nighthawk.

Also, I found out the answer to the vest question. The jacket should always be left open, but if it were closed, it would hide the bottom of the vest.

I loved that old steam train and the trip...

**Bugbear** · 26th February 08, 08:58 PM

That's right... you could get up and go to the different cars... Wow, flash back time... I don't know about the snak car, though. Dude! we've seen the same trains, the same mountins, the same so on and so on, and I don't even know who you are... Weird. And the watertower, I think at the top of the mountin or something.

That's so funny,

it's freaking me out because there are all these pictures flashing in my mind.

I'm remembering boardwalks around the train area and stuff like that. Like I said I was young, at least younger than twelve when I saw this stuff.

**Nighthawk** · 26th February 08, 10:03 PM

In the Chama station, there are board walks. The water tower you're talking about could one of three. There is one at the top of Cumbres Pass, which has a restored conductors station. It could be the one at Osier, which is where you stop for lunch, or there is one at this huge curve in the tracks. When the train was first running, the crew made a game out of running from one side of the curve to the other, trying to beat the train and get back on. I remember my dad beating it more than once.

So- onto more neat stories. There is a caboos that was concerted from a box car. My dad helped to convert it, but never got to ride in it. 4 years ago, my brother and I saved up our money and chartered the caboose so that Dad could actually ride in it! We spent three days there camping, chasing the train and taking a ride. It was my sons first ride. You have actually inspired me a little. I am an amature photographer, so I'm going to post a link to my photo gallery in the pictures section. I have beautiful pictures of the train.

**Bugbear** · 26th February 08, 10:09 PM

I remember the curve and that story! I know I remember the lunch water tower, and that is the one I was thinking of... I think you should think about starting a thread and posting some pics of these things. OOOOU, do you have any pics from the train looking out on the aspens as they are turning gold? That's wild...