Can’t get over this 1986 description of a vase in the J. Paul Getty Museum:
‘A bearded reveller with broad dotted fillet and wreath, naked but for a mantle slung over his left shoulder and his left and upper right arms, appears in his great excitement almost unaware of his boy-servants rescue operation. The small procession, on its way to the right, has come to a stop, and the boy must have turned around to answer his master’s call for a substitute receptacle: “ἀμίδα παῖ”. The reveller’s grand gesture, half-open mouth, and inspired upward gaze seem to reflect his devotion to the god whose gift he must have sampled to a great extent, as well as to express his pathetic urgency. Yet, because of his aroused state, nature’s call is forced to wait. The boy’s attitude, however, is calm and matter of fact. While shouldering his master’s knotty stick, together with the strings of a picnic basket, neatly covered by a fringed embroidery napkin, he proffers the large jug and steadies it to wait things out.’
Sir. Just say it’s a vase of a drunk man trying to piss in a jug a kid is holding for him.
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Who are some IRM guys we haven't met yet? Like how you did with the planes but at the other museum.
Oh, great question! Yeah we have about a million guys at the IRM, most of whom we haven't even touched on publicly. Unfortunately, because there are so many, it's not going to be quite as in-depth (or artistically rendered) as the one about Texaco and Jenny, but I can give you a pretty good sampler with pictures and the power of imagination!
The Silver Interlopers: Birmingham and Loch Sloy
Occasional guests on the Nebraska Zephyr due to their streamlined silver appearances (even though Birmingham is actually Pullman-Standard, a great affront to the Goddesses), these two fill out the train nicely for special occasions and film shoots and are always pleased to butch up the prettiest train at the museum when called upon.
Birmingham in particular has a great story. From 1986 until his arrival at the IRM in 2004, he could be found in Lansing, IL serving as the local ice cream parlor! His interior layout as a diner made for a perfect transition into a seasonal shop. While many old railcars find new life as buildings (usually places to eat), Birmingham is very proud that he was in good enough condition to return to his original function, even if a lot of other cars make fun of him for it. Venus has to work extra hard to keep them in line when he's on the train, or Vesta will be leading the charge against him. "We already have a dining car" ain't gonna fly when you're supposed to be showing off all the silver equipment. Plus Birmingham is very well-behaved when he's guest-starring alongside them, and Venus appreciates a gentleman, even if his origins are a little humbler than her own. The rest of the Goddesses accuse her of having a soft spot. Maybe she just likes ice cream.
Loch Sloy is a Budd sleeper car, something the Goddesses do not object to quite as strongly. Since their train was never an overnight and has never had a sleeper, he's not treading on any toes. He's pretty quiet and reserved, if a little dopey looking with all those windows. That he doesn't exactly fit in visually would have been cause to give him a hard time as well if Birmingham wasn't already taking most of the heat. If anything, he gets a little bit ignored. He and Birmingham are pretty tight though, and having a name helps a lot in standing out, even if he doesn't like to draw attention to himself.
The Other Santa Fe: SF 92
One of my personal favs and definitely an engine I think deserves more of a spotlight, SF 92 was originally built as a passenger diesel in 1967, but was later overhauled to pull express freight trains as well.
The idea of an exclusively passenger diesel engine is one that was eventually phased out of use, but 92's history as one gives him a unique perspective on his role at the IRM. It's something he and Pilot have in common, and as a result the two have a relatively good working relationship. 92 is a little younger and peppier than Pilot is, and takes a less old-fashioned approach to the work, but Pilot thinks their different approaches lend a nice variety to what visitors to the IRM get to experience. Having 92 pull the Nebraska Zephyr on Diesel Days is eye-catching and a special treat for everyone. Not even the Goddesses complain too much. At least he's got silver on him!
Really though, I like the idea that 92 has a great deal of admiration for 2903. Not just because they're both AT&SF, although that's part of it. They both did mixed traffic work, which is something that 92 feels is not appreciated enough, and he thinks the wartime build of the 2900s is unique and cool! 92 underwent mechanical alterations to keep up with the changing times, and 2903's modified construction feels similar, in his opinion. Also, 2903 is cool! I just like the idea that the guy who had trouble finding his wheels at the MSI gets to come to the IRM and not only fit in but be admired and appreciated for the things that make him different is fun. I like giving 2903 nice things.
The Shunting Buds: CRI&P 4506 and IT 1605
There's a lot of shunting to be done at the IRM, so it's important to have a good lineup of switchers. Not to be outdone by CE 15's charming presence or Shay's incredible moving power, these two are the pretty faces of the shunting team and love to play it up for guests.
4506, has a sweet demeanor and bubblegum disposition, but enjoys the surprised look on people's faces when she drags a whole line of cars across the yard without breaking a sweat. It's not easy looking this good when you're also trying to get everyone into position for a busy day of work, but she makes it look like a cakewalk.
1605 is equally charming, if a bit more of a showboat. Maybe he's making up for being more citrus than sweet. 1650's been at the IRM longer and did his work efficiently alone for the better part of two decades, but when 4506 arrived he readily stepped into the spotlight alongside her. It makes the work more fun!
The two together make an extremely efficient team, being a similar class but built one year apart. They work from the same playbook and make shunting work look like it was choreographed ahead of time. Since they look so cute together with their similar but contrasting liveries, people assume they're "together" but it's more of an act for the visitors than anything. 1605 has designs on setting 4506 up with 92. He thinks the red and blue would look real cute together.
Imagine living in Ohio: SHRT 18 and CTUSU 19
A pair from the (now defunct) Trolleyville museum who were then sold to the (also now defunct) Lake Shore Electric Railway in Cleveland, these two have been through a lot together! 19 in particular has a very interesting history that I think is ripe for characterization.
CTUSU 19 is a transplant, first built in 1914 by Brill and lived out his service live south of the border in Veracruz. This in itself would be enough for me, because I love the idea of a Mexican streetcar immigrating to Ohio, but it gets better! The JG Brill company only built 18 of this particular open car, so this one being numbered 19 is interesting in and of itself! The IRM website suggests that 19 was cobbled together out of spare parts from older or wrecked cars. I love this concept, I think the idea of a mysterious foreigner hiding his pedigree because of that unsavory little detail is fascinating. Of course, now it doesn't even matter because the IRM thrives on strange little misfits. Maybe 18 tries to convince him it's a good detail to share, but 19 is steadfast in preserving his mystique. Can't say I blame him.
Like Spitfire learning German for his bestie, I like to imagine 18 being a fluent Spanish-speaker in order to keep his bestie informed and engaged with the visitors, though I expect by now 19 is no slouch when it comes to speaking English, unlike some warplanes.
The Green Hornet: CTA 4391
This little lady got a mention in the letters, so it's only natural that she's on the character roster as well. I'm particularly fond of the postwar PCCs for their gorgeous colors and elegant design, and when DJ suggested that she might make a good match for 40B given their shared even-tempered dispositions and desire for timely, sedate transit, I was 100% game. It's nice that they're both green, too!
There's a few others we're looking at characterizing in the future, including a sommelier car and his milk-carrying companion, and the remaining Oscar Meyer Reefer Cars, four of whom live at the IRM now but several of whom were traded in exchange for a CB&Q engine. More on that story another time, perhaps. Thanks for the ask!
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House of Leaves, Chapter 7
Holloway Roberts, the big fuck-off manly man. That's at least his impression in this chapter.
Chapter 7 here deems to deal heavily in manliness and infidelity and threat. I can't really speak to machismo, I don't really get it. When I see Navidson and Holloway beefing over their perceived roles or alpha-fights or whatever you wanna call them it strikes me the same as any other time I see it. Like, why? You hired the man to explore your hell-hole expanse of literary symbolism, let him. Johhny has interludes here, though, and you can bet he's in thematically similar situations. This one¹ here about his relationship with his father and his bully troubles almost perfectly reflects Will and Holloway, but even more pressingly, Chad. Fighting in school, getting caught in the lines of battle of machismo, with authority. Of course it's just like the book. My man Johnny is becoming the damn book.
It's... really distressing to see what's happening to the kids² while all this focus and effort goes into that hole in the house. Daisy having scabs on her wrists is highly concerning at best and heartbreaking at worst. Though the turn of phrase, "Chad turns out to be the most problematic." was to reading what sticking a fork in my toaster is to my nervous system. Fuck. Not only does it perfectly, insidiously sweep these tiny quiet scabs under the rug, it paints Chad as a problem. An ongoing issue that needs to be solved. And everyone is so damn obsessed with the mystery that both of these fall off to the side.
The book loves doing this. While the house grows, Daisy, Chad, and Karen's literary presence shrinks. It's surreal how little notice goes to them. In writing, in the world of the story, in the literal number of words attributed to them. I find no shock at all in how this final revelation about Karen happens at the end of this chapter, written as thought it were already said and done. Like I'm watching from Will's editing room.
Karen's... yeah let's just call it infidelity for now. It's strange and striking. I feel like I'm getting gaslit a tiny bit. While earlier in the book she was mildly defended from other critics' opinions on her³, and although she was all too thrilled to see Will again⁴, now the promiscuity of a make-out session is such a large focus? Maybe I'm going mad, I fully admit I may have had an erroneous image and that these passages are the real intent. But I sure feel... Like I'm watching an author change this character's role. Shift her being a bit for better drama. And worse still is I think this is entirely intentional. The house... is warping her. The grander house. The bigger, more labyrinthine... house.
Also yeah yeah, we know you fuck, Johnny. His interlude here⁵ deals with infidelity too. That of Kyrie and a few passionate, drug-laden moments. He is once again the mirror by which we better understand the Navidson/Green family. Thrill, danger, mastery, the allure of it all. The entire chapter's rank with it like some kind of musk. No wonder the house and the formatting are both staying polite. We're prepared for it and we're sitting in this stewing tension instead.
Well, now I'm just waiting to see what becomes of Exploration 4 and this gun Holloway—
Is this fucker's name HALLWAY ROBBER?
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Balcony railing from Mecca Apartment building at State & 34th Street
Willoughby James Edbrooke & Franklin P. Burnham, 1891-92
ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
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