Steam & Excursion > I need your help....I’m going to try to change a bad habit..

We’re a little over a month away from beginning a new year...

The habit that I want to reform is my weakness to ‘attack’ people that post ideas or suggestions that appear
simply wrong, or inadequate to the realities of steamers.

My new pattern that I want to adopt is to be more curious, than presumptive.
My goal is to try to honor the kernel,of an idea that might lie at the root of a fresh idea or a new solution.
I need to try to tease the proposals into a clearer statement of the intent of the inquiring person.

I typically ‘poo-poo’ novel ideas as being impractical or not worthy of consideration.....

So, if you read one of my posts that is rude, too terse, or ridicules the nascent idea, or point of confusion, 
please remind me of my intended commitment to be more inquisitive, than disrespectful.

That’s the new behavior I want to change in my behavior as a poster on this message board.  
The old behavior is decades old, and well,ingrained —- but you’re never too old to change.
Or, at least that’s what I’ve heard.

A friend of mine, from out west, last year asked me to rethink a lot of the responses I had the habit of posting
unnecessarily negative and derogatory comments. He asked me to change that behavior ..... I quicliky realized that
was a bad habit that i needed to break...  

Earlier, another friend called me on the cell phone and requested that I restrain my desultory, & too frequent
negative comments about a loco he was undertaking to restore, for a customer.

He was beginning a loco restoration job on an old loco that was in rough shape.... but, my caller was one of
the most competent loco restorers in the business.   I immediately agreed to to his request —— I stopped.
I need to keep him as as dear friend..

So, there are two deeply respected friends, that called on me to calm down my poorly stated critiques.
I immediately ceased my thought attacks.

So, I’m embarking on a new journey to be more inquisitive, than accusatory...
Thanks for your future help—- as I try to change a life-long bad habit..
It creeps out so unexpectedly —- I know I’ll be shocked when I will have to confront the obviously embarrassing
reality, when it rears it’s ugly head.. 

Wes Camp

.....yet to be proofed...
 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/28/19 17:09 by wcamp1472.

Whaaaaaat?

Out

I support you Wes! Happy New Year 2020!

I have learned a lot about steam locomotives from your pots and I like your style

hollywood
NS B Line MP 74

My aim is to get better....

Another skill I need to learn ( this coming year) is how to post something, like some of my pics ...from my days as a
“picture taker”, and, then also: how to post drawings and book-photos, here on T.O., to accompany my verbiage....
One picture is worth a thousand words....

2020 will be a year of improving...

​W.
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/28/19 19:22 by wcamp1472.

Self examination can be a wonderfui thing...........sometimes. Happy Thanksgiving to all, especially to BNSF who's
mainline is under a flash flood warning, and you too Wes.

Out

Only one? That's a start.

In the words of Bob Dylan:
"I was so much older then;  I'm younger than that NOW..."

W.

I have learned a lot from your posts. I never saw them as offensive. Guess that's what working for the rr does, it destroys any sense of being offended.

sam

Wes, whatever you do never stop posting. Although older I have little knowledge of steam and I learn huge amounts of knowledge from you, although sometimes thing go over my head. I personally have never found any of your posts inappropriate although with your knowledge I can see frustration crop up over "ridiculous" ideas or questions. Keep up the excellent work in any form you like.

Posted from Android

I think everyone, including myself, can be more tolerent and patient on this and other sites.
A question may seem dumb, but many of us know little about steam engines.
I think many questions don't get asked because oF the tone of the answers.
People don't have to chap their lips on a persons behind, but they don't need to bite it off either.
Just my opinion.

Posted from Android

I realized that I ought to be more inquisitive.... dig a little deeper , before type-bangin’ away.
I also noticed that I would not have read the inquiry sufficiently ( thought that I knew, without truly understanding) —-
and then I generate a response that was “wide of the mark”...

I need to improve and pay closer attention to what was actuality the point of confusion.

Thanks,

​Wes

 

I am glad you are looking introspectively. We all need to take a fresh breath of air sometimes and rethink our purpose here.
I reference the gentleman who asked an interesting question about better heating surface by using fins on the heat tubes in the boiler.
Instead of trashing his Idea I merely asked how he intended to install these through the tube sheets.
Sometimes answering a question with another question will generate thought into the original question.
Keep up the good work Wes. 

Bob Krieger
Cheyenne, WY

EXACTLY...!

​W.

( Just because a concept, a maneuver, or an appliance is confusing, does not make an inquiry about it  “a dumb question”....)

Wes, your not one I would normally associate with a negative response to a question. Questions seldom require a negative response and if I find myself going down that road on any post, I try to walk away from whatever device I have and reapproach the post at another time with a clearer, calmer head.

Once you can separate the Trolls (ignore), from the Asshats (maybe not), from the odd sense of humor ( like me) on here, its not to hard to stay positive.

 But hey, we’re all human and things are going to get said on a bad day. Like you, I still have work to do.

Chris
 

Bob3985 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am glad you are looking introspectively. We all
> need to take a fresh breath of air sometimes and
> rethink our purpose here.
> I reference the gentleman who asked an interesting
> question about better heating surface by using
> fins on the heat tubes in the boiler.
> Instead of trashing his Idea I merely asked how he
> intended to install these through the tube
> sheets.
> Sometimes answering a question with another
> question will generate thought into the original
> question.
> Keep up the good work Wes.     I find questions like the fins beg curious minds to seek alternatives. The thought that came to me was install the tubes into the back sheet without the the front sheet in place.  Using a "dummy" sheet that had additional holes for water to get through would hold them in place for the actual sheet to be placed. How could the front sheet be pressed onto the tubes so it could then be affixed to the shell? I'll let someone elses imagination take it from here.

Kennard Britton
Bedford, TX

You do a thin sheet to guide the tubes, install the full sheet and then roll the tubes. Thin sheet could be
held in place with a few bolts since it really has no loading on it. Same thing could be said for installing
full diameter baffles in the boiler shell to slow and direct the water movement. Stuff is pretty much
theoretical and while it works on paper, actual results might not support the effort. Wes' comment on the
bulk of the "boiling" being done around the firebox is very true though a decent amount of heat still goes
out the tubes. For a device that's 6% thermally efficient there's got to be some places to pick up a point
or two.

Out

Well W, we (myself included) could all be kinder with our posts. It takes a lot for a man to say what you just did. Thanks.

I don’t know much more about steam that the average guy on the street. But I sure learn a lot here from experts and especially from old timers.

I’m realizing that a deceptively simple question could relate to significant scientific or engineering concepts.
So, the behavior I want to work-on is to be digging deeper to find what the questioner really intends to learn about.

My present state of responding-reflexes relate to pouncing-on what it was that I think the questioner intended. 
By cutting-off the early discussions I risk the greater opportunity of exciting the reader and have his interest flourish...
under the influence of sincere communications that lead to greater participation by the party making the inquiry.

We constantly need to be bringing new folks to this business of keeping steamers flourishing.
Cutting-off the curious, works against that goal....  I need to be aware that my sharp responses could be discouraging
that spark of initial interest...

W.
 

Sounds like a New Years Resolution, Wes.  You are an encyclopedia of steam.  Never stop educating us.