SofTea, Author at Introducing Tea Railene

The Oregon Coast Historical Railway Museum Will Make You Smile

Meet Steam Engine Locomotive No. 104, built in 1922 by Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia. It is a 2-8-2 Mikado style, oil burning engine used by the Coos Bay Lumber Company to haul log trains in Coos County from 1923 to 1954.

Historical railway sign at the entrance of the museum.

During my well-seasoned lifetime I lived all over southern Oregon, and I visited Coos Bay more times than I can count. Hell, I was born there and went back for a few years later in life. Then only a few weeks ago, we discovered the Oregon Coast Historical Railway Museum. What a treat!! How could I have missed this??

They established this inner child playground in 1982 as a non-profit organization. Their goal is to restore and preserve historic railway and logging equipment of the southern coast of Oregon. For us old farts, you find yourself walking down memory lane, especially if you were raised by a logger. And for your inner child, you get to climb in the train cars and ring the bell!!!

Discover the railway trains

This is the first engine you see as you make your way into the park. The cool thing is, not only do you get to admire it but you get to step inside! Climb up into the engine and see all the controls and buttons and knobs, and best of all, RING THE BELL!

I cannot believe I did not get a picture of the outside of this green caboose, but I was completely fascinated by the inside. I can imagine living in here for long trips with the comfy seats, the stove, and the typewriter to keep notes.

This is the Burlington-Northern wooden caboose No. 11269 building in St. Cloud, Minnesota. This caboose has a cupola which are the high windows where the trainmen sat. It operated on main and trunk lines from Astoria and Bend and was later painted and used as a “break shack” in a pear orchard in Hood River.

This little guy is called “Old Yellow”, engine #099. This fiesty looking engine worked at the Panama Canal and at Bonneville Dam.

Much more to explore

This is just a little taste of all the stuff you can check out. Climb in the engines, ring a railroad bell, and get up close to a miniature train. Recently they also added the motor that operated the swing-span railroad bridge over the bay near North Bend. Be sure to go inside so you can check out the gift shop and the little museum.

This is a fun little afternoon jaunt where you can get some exercise, learn about some local history, and let your inner child PLAY!!!

P.S. Thank you to the Oregon Coast Historical Railway wonderful volunteers and brochure for the background information used here.

Living A Second Life

Do you have a gamer in your life? Someone who sits in front of a screen and seems to melt into some other reality? They have in-depth conversation with people they have never met and talk with words you cannot understand. Welcome to the world of Second Life.

My daughter and I heard about Second Life on an old talk show in 2009 and decided to give it a try. It sounded like a fun way to spend some quality time together because they say you can live your wildest dreams in there.

What we found was an amazing world built by the inhabitants of the game. Residents rent pieces of land or entire sections called sims and have created unbelievable environments on them. Beaches, jungles, forests, ranches, shopping malls, cities, and fantasy lands. The list is endless.

People in the game can build stuff or make clothes and sell what you make. You can own a club and deejay or dance. If you love animals, you can create a horse ranch and breed horses or wild animals or dragons or animals you have not even heard of. You can do anything you want to do. Your only limit is your imagination.

In Second Life, you also meet other people from all over the world. You develop friendships, create families, or maybe even fall in love. This is just such a love story, very loosely based on how I met my husband of fifteen years. We got to know each other from the inside out.

This book took me a few years to write and lots of editing. Every book is a learning experience and a challenge which adds to the journey. Keeping a journal is a huge help, but another thing I had to learn was to slow down and add enough description to bring you into the story. Let me know how I did.

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The Adventures of Chris and Ardel

The Adventures of Chris and Ardel is two books under one cover. They were both fairly short so I put them together so you get two great bedtime story books in one. These stories are based on tales I used to tell my kids when they were growing up. They asked for them over and over so I decided to write some down.

Now the characters in this book are fictional though they may remind you of people you have met. That is a fun part of being a writer. You take details from the world around you, twist them, and mold them into something fun or make the story end the way you want it to.

The setting for these books is an actual place. This was the farm where I grew up with my Mom and stepdad, three brothers, and three sisters. We did have a goat named Shadow and an old stroller. You will see where they come in during the first book, Monsters On The Farm.

The second book is Taming of the City Mouse. This story is a little about bullying and the difference between a city mouse and a country mouse. The book starts with Chris and Ardel getting picked on while riding the school bus, but at least it is the last day of school. They come home to discover that a city mouse is coming to the neighborhood for the summer!!

The neighbor Anna Miller who is referred to in the story was an actual person, a beautiful elderly lady who baked cookies and served them with milk when we walked by on the road. It was the perfect pitstop and we loved her stories.

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The Story in Grammy’s Trailer

The Story in Grammy’s Trailer was written right after the Almeda Fire on September 8, 2020, in Southern Oregon. That was one of the most terrifying days in my life.

We lived on the outskirts of Talent, Oregon, a small town a little north of the Oregon/California border. Our peaceful little country town was in the raging fire’s path. My husband and I rushed to fill both cars with our important belongings. We grabbed a few clothes, medications, paintings my Grammy painted, the hard drive off my computer, and our signed Willie Mays baseball.

After that, we stood in the parking lot of our apartment complex with the the neighbors. The fire blocked the main road out of town as we watched the smoke from the blaze only a block away. We listened to buildings collapsing and heard propane tanks explode. We discussed back roads to get out of the complex.

Helicopters fighting the fire filled up in the pond across the street and then rushed to the fire. They flew so close water splashed on us as they went by. My husband wanted to stay and keep water spraying on the house with a hose, but then the electricity and water went out. It was time to evacuate.

What Happened to Grammy’s Trailer?

Luckily, our place was spared from the Almeda Fire, but we did lose Grammy’s trailer. My grandma had purchased this mobile home back in the 1950s. When she moved into assisted living, it went to my dad, and other family members had passed through there as well. On that day, only by the grace of God, my son had just moved out, and my daughter was getting ready to move in. So, the trailer was not inhabited by people or pets on the day of the fire, though both lost most of their belongings.

This trailer had been the backdrop of so many family stories. Grammy and Grandpa bought and moved it there in the 50s, and through the years, most of the family members had lived there at one point or another. This book is my way of preserving all those memories, even after the disaster of the Almeda Fire.

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Making Tracks From OR to TX

Cover photo from the paperback book Making Tracks from Oregon to Texas — Palmer Making Tracks

Making Tracks from Oregon to Texas is a book inspired by our traveling bear, Palmer. He became part of our family in 2012, shortly after we lost Grammy Jefferies. Since then, he has traveled with us all over the western United States, from Alaska to the Queen Mary.

In 2021, my son’s best friend was getting married in McGregor, Texas. He was chosen to be the best man but he was not excited about flying down there. So, we decided to take a road trip.

My son, my daughter, and I decided to make the trip together and of course, Palmer had to come along for the ride. He was the navigator. This book has lots of pictures and stories from the trip. Palmer also added a little history and fun facts about the places we passed through and his recommendations. Enjoy the trip!!

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