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BrokenKnucklez posted:most of the time, old farts keel over 3-5 years after retirement. Your body really doesn't like the life style but adapts. Do this poo poo for 35 years then all of a sudden stop doing it? Not looking good. Is that engineers and conductors, or anyone else in the industry? Just asking as my friend's husband is a ramp supervisor with BNSF. They're young yet though.
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# ? Jul 24, 2014 20:39 |
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# ? May 15, 2024 03:26 |
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Depends. I know UPS guys struggle with life after retirement. They were used to being super active every day then all of a sudden go to a sedentary life, its hard to adjust. The only way go keep it is to stay active or in our cases, keep the strange hours. I know managers struggle with stress so :/
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# ? Jul 24, 2014 20:49 |
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B4Ctom1 posted:Some guy from Virginia took this pic. You need to like and follow Hogg Law on Facebook. Shhhhhhhhh, it's sleeping
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# ? Jul 24, 2014 21:24 |
Wilford Cutlery posted:Is that engineers and conductors, or anyone else in the industry? Just asking as my friend's husband is a ramp supervisor with BNSF. They're young yet though. I have the same job and I fully expect to be dead when I'm 40.
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# ? Jul 25, 2014 00:23 |
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Wilford Cutlery posted:Is that engineers and conductors, or anyone else in the industry? Just asking as my friend's husband is a ramp supervisor with BNSF. They're young yet though. Basically, everybody in the railroad industry is subject to a workplace where "You are not done until the job is done." Exceptions might be diesel mechanics/carmen/other terminal workers who can count on someone to relieve them at the end of their shift. Track workers have a nominal 7a-3:30p workday, but if it hits 3:30 and you don't have the track back together, ain't nobody coming in to finish your work for you. Plus, you can still get called out to the track in the middle of the night to take care of an emergency, let's say an insulated joint goes out or a tree branch falls over the tracks in a storm. The further you go up the seniority roster, the better runs you're assigned or better duties you're given. With management, you'll get more and more insulated from needing to put out the day-to-day fires. However, this could take a decade or more to happen for you, if it happens at all. I spent a year and a half as a track supervisor and decided not to stick with it, it was a tough decision to make since I had a passion for my work and was doing pretty well for myself. The thing was, I did nothing else. I stopped taking care of myself, lost contact with most of my friends, my relationship fell apart and I couldn't sleep without waking up in a panic every few hours. I could see where my life was headed from my peers in my position, who had been with the railroad 3, 5, 10, and 25 years. Ulcerative colitis at 27, diabetes at 35, lung cancer at 50 and a heart attack before retirement.
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# ? Jul 25, 2014 00:47 |
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I have learned rather quickly that the less responsibility I have out here, the better. I work to live, not live to work. Sure, it is very easy to move up if you want it, but it comes with stress and negative side effects. I see so many guys out here that make the railroad their life, and I can't help but feel like they are gonna be the first ones to keel over after retirement.
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# ? Jul 25, 2014 01:59 |
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I know several people in their late 20s/early 30s working for class-1s in field management (foreman of engines, etc). Every single one of them is as crabby as someone twenty years older.
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# ? Jul 25, 2014 02:30 |
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Questions about those boeing fuselages in the river now answered http://missoulian.com/crews-dismantling-boeing-fuselages-pulled-from-river/article_d99e81e0-1386-11e4-93eb-0019bb2963f4.html
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 00:51 |
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Strawberry posted:I have learned rather quickly that the less responsibility I have out here, the better. I work to live, not live to work. Sure, it is very easy to move up if you want it, but it comes with stress and negative side effects. I think a big thing is what you do after work and on the weekends, if you stay active and eat well then you might be better off. I recently promoted to the management side from the craft (went from hourly to salary) and while there is a bit more stress on certain days, most of the days are much better than when I was in the craft (MoW). Weds and Thurs of this week I played golf with roughly 100 other supervisors, ate nice steak dinners and had unlimited alcohol all on the companies dime. Mean while my guys shot 15 thermite welds, inserted a ton of ties and got told they must mandatory work the weekend. There are days when I miss the craft, and I still pay my union dues just incase, but I think that getting out of swinging a hammer, cutting rail and standing 5 feet away from trains on a daily basis will help me 30 years down the line. Don't take the job personally, use your drive home to unwind, and have fun at home with you family and it goes a long way. I will enjoy grilling out and golfing this weekend while my crew is installing 3 crossovers with 12 hour windows both days. If an IJ fails at 2 in the morning I get a call about it, call my foreman and he gets a crew together an handles it. I go back to sleep in my nice bed at home. If they don't do their job, or if they mess something up then it comes down to their choices and I will take the appropriate action, it's no skin off my back. Z train is late, oh well my guys have an overstay, oh well. The railroad will continue to run without me, without my boss, and without my team, we just help it run better. Don't let the stress get to you…it's just a job.
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 02:19 |
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Rabid Anti-Dentite! posted:Don't let the stress get to you…it's just a job. I'm glad you posted all that, recently I've just been letting poo poo get to me, it just seems like everyone else is trying to save the drat railroad. I was wondering what happened to you. Speaking of management, what are the chances of a guy with a non-engineering degree and 1 and a half years in the craft becoming a roadmaster? Everyone is telling me I could.
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 04:35 |
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Strawberry posted:I'm glad you posted all that, recently I've just been letting poo poo get to me, it just seems like everyone else is trying to save the drat railroad. I was wondering what happened to you. You shouldn't have a problem. I couldn't let poo poo go when I was dispatching. I gained 30 lbs, quit sleeping correctly and turned into a miserable asshat. Moved back to being a conductor.... Life is better.
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 05:10 |
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Strawberry posted:I'm glad you posted all that, recently I've just been letting poo poo get to me, it just seems like everyone else is trying to save the drat railroad. I was wondering what happened to you. It is very likely, PM me and there is something that I think you should try if you are serious. I only had 2 and a half years on the RR with no degree and I promoted up. The big thing is having a leadership role on the hourly side, like a head welder, foreman or track inspector. They want leaders out of the craft to promote so its an easier transition.
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 17:51 |
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Looks like a guy went railroad in Klamath Falls. http://m.heraldandnews.com/news/public-safety-bnsf-shooting-suspect-gets-new-lawyer/article_3523d0aa-fdad-11e3-a1d7-0019bb2963f4.html
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 22:12 |
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There is this as well http://railworkersunited.storenvy.com/products/5798416-rwu-t-shirt-with-no-single-employees-cartoon
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 23:15 |
B4Ctom1 posted:There is this as well Were trains any safer in 1970 than they are now? How have human factor derailments per revenue ton mile(or whatever the metric is) changed as crew sizes have changed? I honestly don't know but I'm sure someone does.
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 23:30 |
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MassivelyBuckNegro posted:Were trains any safer in 1970 than they are now? How have human factor derailments per revenue ton mile(or whatever the metric is) changed as crew sizes have changed? I honestly don't know but I'm sure someone does. No. http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/publications/national_transportation_statistics/html/table_02_43.html Suggests that the accident rate has gone down consistently over time since 1970. It probably correlates more to improved communications and safety equipment than the number of crew though.
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# ? Jul 26, 2014 23:47 |
SybilVimes posted:No. So...are you saying that the 3rd, 4th, and 5th guy did not contribute to safer operation and/or they were made unnecessary by improved communications and safety equipment? What happened between 1970 and 1990? Train accidents dropped precipitously. vains fucked around with this message at 00:30 on Jul 27, 2014 |
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 00:27 |
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MassivelyBuckNegro posted:What happened between 1970 and 1990? Train accidents dropped precipitously. My limited understanding is that the 1970s were the real heyday of deferred maintenance, so maybe that played a role.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 00:58 |
StandardVC10 posted:My limited understanding is that the 1970s were the real heyday of deferred maintenance, so maybe that played a role. Seems as good an explanation as any. The 70s saw a ton of bankruptcies and consolidation, as well as the final act of the Penn-Central shitshow. You know how in even railroad produced promotional/training films from that era all the equipment looks 30+ years old and seconds away from crumbling into a pile of rust? That was the least dilapidated stuff they could find.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 03:21 |
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Theris posted:You know how in even railroad produced promotional/training films from that era all the equipment looks 30+ years old and seconds away from crumbling into a pile of rust? That was the least dilapidated stuff they could find. Half hour long documentary video on the Penn Central's deterioration circa 1974: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHmyYqfNYnc The first derailment is at 0:22.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 05:21 |
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MassivelyBuckNegro posted:What happened between 1970 and 1990? Train accidents dropped precipitously. I've got no evidence to back this up, but I feel like the majority of those fatality numbers gotta be people getting hit by trains. Wonder if the ever decreasing number of unprotected grade crossings, and less unfenced rail in towns/cities, played a role. Pretty big drop off over the years.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 10:00 |
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When a gearbox dies and you are unable to tow the tram with another:
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 13:54 |
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bytebark posted:Half hour long documentary video on the Penn Central's deterioration circa 1974: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHmyYqfNYnc 649 derailments in a single month.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 13:58 |
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drunkill posted:When a gearbox dies and you are unable to tow the tram with another: Haha, holy poo poo. Lucky it wasn't one of the segmented trams or it would be a hell of a headache. For the filthy 'mericans , that's on the main line just on the edge of the Melbourne CBD that all the various routes out into the south suburbs branch off from. They'd have to work very fast to get that cleared before a backlog builds up (there's a tram on that line about every two minutes or so at peak, if not sooner). Though thankfully it's on the line going into the City rather than out, or you'd have enough disgruntled commuters on-hand to toss the tram off the bridge and into the Yarra River come 5PM. And the Yarra River would probably just dissolve it into a melted pool of tram the moment it hit the water.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 14:06 |
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 16:27 |
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Neddy Seagoon posted:Haha, holy poo poo. Lucky it wasn't one of the segmented trams or it would be a hell of a headache. For the filthy 'mericans , that's on the main line just on the edge of the Melbourne CBD that all the various routes out into the south suburbs branch off from. They'd have to work very fast to get that cleared before a backlog builds up (there's a tram on that line about every two minutes or so at peak, if not sooner). Though thankfully it's on the line going into the City rather than out, or you'd have enough disgruntled commuters on-hand to toss the tram off the bridge and into the Yarra River come 5PM. Swanston Street is the busiest tramway in the world. It is where the majority of the Melbourne tram routes end up though the city, more like 3 trams per minute in peak. It was blocked for an hour or two, lazy sunday so not too bad. Also it wouldn't have happened with a segmented tram because they are newer and not un(in?)maintained 70's Z class. drunkill fucked around with this message at 17:31 on Jul 27, 2014 |
# ? Jul 27, 2014 17:26 |
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gotta strap somethin
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 17:41 |
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ijustam posted:gotta strap somethin The rulebook probably says to secure every load with straps. The managers said, "do it every time or you will be fired".
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 18:58 |
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drunkill posted:Swanston Street is the busiest tramway in the world. It is where the majority of the Melbourne tram routes end up though the city, more like 3 trams per minute in peak. It was blocked for an hour or two, lazy sunday so not too bad. Are those Z-class PCC-derived? They look sort of like it, particularly the front doors.
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# ? Jul 27, 2014 22:32 |
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This email is making the rounds. It's a chain mail, and I have no research to of check to see if it's true or not myself.quote:Standard Building ? I hope there's some good reason for this, or that it's not true.
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# ? Jul 28, 2014 01:01 |
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B4Ctom1 posted:This email is making the rounds. It's a chain mail, and I have no research to of check to see if it's true or not myself. I don't know, it might make some sense in a way. Maybe BLET saw pension funding issues in the future and saw an opportunity to cash in on a building that they're not fully utilizing. What is 'state of the art' for a training center? Is it just decent computers and projectors in dedicated classroom settings? If so, when they move, they just yank out what's worthwhile to move and take it along. As for the building, city-data had this: 1370 Ontario Street Cleveland, OH 44113 Find on map >> Show street view Owner: BROTHERHOOD LOC ENG BLDG ASN Total land marked value: $2,267,600 Total buildings marked value: $6,482,400 Total marked value for property: $8,750,000 Total land assessed value: $793,660 Total buildings assessed value: $2,268,840 Total assessed value for property: $3,062,500 Assessments for tax year: 2008 Parcel usage: Office Buildings - 3 Read more: http://www.city-data.com/cuyahoga-county/O/Ontario-Street-1.html#ixzz38iZetUSd I'm not sure what the difference between marked value and assessed value is, but BLET got about 30% above the assessed value. ed: Their typo, apparently should be'market value'. ed2: According to the Cuyahoga county auditor, in 2104 the assessed value is $2.123M and the market value is $6.066M. So they got significantly more than the assessed value but less than the full market value. Pigsfeet on Rye fucked around with this message at 01:47 on Jul 28, 2014 |
# ? Jul 28, 2014 01:35 |
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I lurk in this thread because I like trains despite not knowing much about them. I have worked in real estate, though, so for whatever it's worth: assessed value on, say, a home is basically determined by a mathematical formula that involves the cost to build it new, plus how much it has appreciated in the meantime, minus a certain amount for wear and tear. It's generally much lower than what the building is actually worth on the market, which is good since you pay property taxes based on the assessed value. The problem, especially in large commercial buildings, is that "market value" is basically someone's best guesstimate of what the property "ought to" be worth. Unlike a house, which might attract twenty or thirty interested buyers to a given listing, there are not many people in the market to drop millions of dollars on an office building in Cleveland. If you want to sell and the only person who wants the thing is offering $3 million, then the market value is $3 million, end of story. You could make a certain argument that the building ought to be worth more by looking at how much comparable buildings in the area have sold for recently, but at the end of the day, if there's only one buyer then the market value is whatever that guy wants to pay; your only choice is to take the offer or hold out for a better one. In those circumstances, I would say splitting the difference between "assessed value" and "market value" is a pretty reasonable deal. It may still be more cost-effective for BLET to lease space in the building they just sold than to continue paying maintenance, upkeep, and property taxes on an office building they're not fully using.
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# ? Jul 28, 2014 02:57 |
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ctishman posted:Are those Z-class PCC-derived? They look sort of like it, particularly the front doors. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z-class_Melbourne_tram quote:Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board (M&MTB) staff were sent to Europe in 1965 to investigate other tramway operations, they took interest in Swedish trams, and upon return in 1966 drew up specifications, and had a timber mockup built. This mockup was to be the basis for a new tram design for Melbourne. The M&MTB approved of the design, and in 1972 requested a prototype be constructed, the result was PCC 1041 being built at Preston Workshops. It was 'European in appearance' and utilised components bought new, and recycled from an earlier prototype tram, PCC 980.[1]:195–196 Prototype PCC 1041 became the basis of the Z-class trams, with 230 trams – influenced by the Gothenburg, Sweden M28 and M29 design – built by Comeng, Dandenong between 1974 and 1983. The A and B class trams were sort of upgrades on the Z class, using a similar design but lengthened. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_class_Melbourne_tram http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_class_Melbourne_tram Then in the early 2000s the C ( Alstom) (and C2) and D (Siemens) classes came in, built in France and Germany respectively and last year the new locally built E class trams have been introduced to the network, with 9 of 50 built and a possible 50 more in another order in a few years. They are far quieter than the C and D classes, more suited to the local environments. drunkill fucked around with this message at 06:19 on Jul 28, 2014 |
# ? Jul 28, 2014 06:16 |
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There was a whoops the other week on our brand new track, this was the reason: Above is test train with 145mm treads on the wheel (Vic standard), de-railed train has 125mm treads (NSW standard)
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# ? Jul 29, 2014 14:11 |
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CrazyOldGuy posted:
How the hell do you not notice that the moment it's on the tracks? drunkill posted:Swanston Street is the busiest tramway in the world. It is where the majority of the Melbourne tram routes end up though the city, more like 3 trams per minute in peak. It was blocked for an hour or two, lazy sunday so not too bad. Huh, didn't know Swanston St was the busiest in the world.
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# ? Jul 29, 2014 14:15 |
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It was listed as that a few years ago, probably still is because most cities don't have a central route like that but a network which criss-crosses.CrazyOldGuy posted:
Not to mention it was the first week that line had been in use, the new Regional Rail Link (dedicated tracks for regional trains to get out of the city without waiting for suburban trains) this is about 200 meters from the station it departed, which is the hub for regional trains in the city. And yeah, gently caress Sydney. Melbourne had Australias first trains and they had to be special and use a different gauge thus splitting the nation for the next 150 years. drunkill fucked around with this message at 14:55 on Jul 29, 2014 |
# ? Jul 29, 2014 14:22 |
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Neddy Seagoon posted:How the hell do you not notice that the moment it's on the tracks? They ran test trains for a week over it, all Victorian built with the wider wheels. XPT (NSW Made) hasn't run since January when all the new track work was laid down. The crew complained about a 'rough ride' on the way in (empty) over a different turn out with the same design (but different direction of travel) and people were on their way to investigate when it fell off on the way out (full of passengers). So this was the very first time it had run on this new track, and it fell off
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# ? Jul 29, 2014 14:59 |
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CrazyOldGuy posted:
This happens more often than you'd think. It's better now, but there's still a ridiculous lack of coordination between departments and design/build principals. It leads to systemic mistakes a child could point out. Not sure about this case in particular, but I've seen identical probs. LA metro
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# ? Jul 29, 2014 20:52 |
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Why do you not, like... have a freaking stick cut to the right length? It's not like sticks are expensive... you shove it up against one rail, and if it's not touching the other you have a problem.
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# ? Jul 29, 2014 21:07 |
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# ? May 15, 2024 03:26 |
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"I stubbed my toe" http://on.aol.com/video/watch--women-narrowly-escape-death-after-train-rolls-over-them-518347089
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# ? Jul 29, 2014 23:51 |