|
Post by ptc on Oct 29, 2019 18:12:57 GMT
After two months of fighting a nasty infection, I was able to start working again on the layout. Boy, did I miss it. What I missed most was the feeling that you can only get when first entering the train room. To say that it is a magical place would be an understatement. The first five minutes or so, I typically spend just soaking it all in. There is so much to see. For us, there are two very different parts of the layout. Christmas in the City takes you to New York City at this wonderful time of the year. You could spend five minutes just looking at the Grand Central Terminal and all of it's details. The other side, you step into the North Pole with Santa just starting to take his "magical" journey around the world. It's not just one scene that caches your attention, it is the grandeur of taking it all in.
Then it is time to go to work. Work, not really, as I enjoy every part of making improvements.
Do you think of your layout as a magical place as well?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2019 18:17:46 GMT
100% Brian! Time doesn’t exist, and the possibilities are many. I completely lose track of time because I’m so intent on the project at hand. Unfortunately life does get in the way sometimes. Even when I’m working on something as mundane as ballasting, it’s all for a larger purpose. I feel like I’m on vacation sometimes.
Andy
|
|
|
Post by Joe Saggese on Oct 29, 2019 18:29:55 GMT
Not at the magical moment yet but I am having fun...............
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2019 18:32:18 GMT
I do understand your feelings about your layout. When you think about the effort undertaken when you began the planning it is a wonder how it all came out so beautiful.
I look around my layout and remember the countless hours put in to creating a scene. Or you take pride in the fact visitors came to see it and called it a work of art. Or you ran the trains for two hours and not one "Train Wreck". Or every switch worked properly. Or that new block signal changed colors just at the right time. Or your wife comes down the stairs and tells you it's time to add another level. Or even the fact something needs fixing or altering, you know you can do it.
Our hobby is a great pleasure and I am glad you are so proud of yours.
|
|
|
Post by thebigcrabcake on Oct 29, 2019 19:00:16 GMT
Magical sounds about right. Therapeutic definitely. There's no better place to go for a temporary reprieve from the distractions and complications of daily life.
|
|
|
Post by dennym57 on Oct 29, 2019 19:57:41 GMT
I understand completely. When I was able to get down the stairs to the basement after I got out of the hospital, I saw the layout for the first time in 2 1/2 months. I just stood there starring at it then I realize I couldn't remember how I powered up the layout.
Everything was plugged in. I figured it out eventually, but at that moment it alluded me. I use a wireless ON/OFF switch and I forgot that.
Something that is a part of my life that I hadn't see for quite a while. I can't really describe how I felt.
|
|
|
Post by Charlie on Oct 29, 2019 20:36:19 GMT
"Do you think of your layout as a magical place as well?"
Hey Brian, magical and calming... even when something goes wrong. Yes, the layout is a special place.
I am at a point in my life now that my own sons have lost interest in the layout they helped build. However, we are starting to see repeat visitors who saw the layout many years ago and wanted to see the layout again, that is the magical feeling to me. Since I have a basement, I usually start the layout in the dark with just the lights from the layout glowing.
I then start the three trains one at a time and slowly bring the room lights up and start to play with the accessories.
Reminds me, maybe I need to take a break from the computer.
Charlie
|
|
|
Post by Country Joe on Oct 30, 2019 20:33:18 GMT
Brian, I also experience my layout as a magical place. The train room is different from every other room in the house. When I walk into the room and switch on the power to the layout I'm transported to another time and place. I experience a joy and a satisfaction in just watching the trains run through the various scenes on the layout. Yes, truly magical.
|
|
|
Post by laz57 on Oct 30, 2019 20:42:22 GMT
Yes it is both Magical and Therapeutic. I enjoy being there and dreaming of things need to be done. Also a great place to be myself and enjoy sights, sounds, and memories.
|
|
|
Post by MichRR714 on Oct 30, 2019 21:12:27 GMT
The train room is definitely an escape for me. I walk in and let everything else that is going on stay outside of that room. I don't even let engine problems bother me any more. They just got plopped on the bench and I grab another to run. Maintenance and fixing them has just become part of the hobby for me.
Right now I have a Pennsy center cab on my bench that is apart for some shell work. It will get a repaint into Duluth, South Shore & Atlantic livery...
|
|
|
Post by kstrains on Oct 31, 2019 0:47:38 GMT
A magical place is a good word to explain the Christmas layout I make each year. I have Pinecrest which is the home of the Peanuts Gang with Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Snoopy. Then a country town which is a respresentation of a town in North Carolina called McAdenville, nicked name Christmas Town USA. Every time I turn on the lights, I can escape from the world for a bit of time. However, I must now leave this thread and work on my layout!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 31, 2019 1:20:57 GMT
Definitely magical! It's funny how I can be in my traincave for 3 hours and it seems like 5 minutes. Like others have stated - the rest of the world goes away once I walk through the door.
|
|
|
Post by harborbelt70 on Oct 31, 2019 2:06:11 GMT
"Do you think of your layout as a magical place as well?"
Yes, but the closest I get (not having a dedicated train room or cave) is when I can leave the carpet layout in place because nobody's going to be home for a while and I'll be the first one back. As it runs around the perimeter of the living room furniture, it has to be stepped over and I go berserk if anyone accidentally kicks an engine or car. There is a console bookcase tunnel where I can park some things I decide to leave out. Anyway, it is magical and therapeutic to come back to everything being set up.
My family put up with me very nobly.
|
|
|
Post by Adam on Oct 31, 2019 10:17:41 GMT
Brian,
You and your wife created something truly special. I am in awe every time you post a photo of your layout. It’s incredible.
I do consider my modest layout special and also get that feeling when enter the room. I also get this excitement about what is possible. There is always a new idea about how to improve it and make it more fun. That creative energy always does it for me!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 31, 2019 10:22:21 GMT
This is the final paragraph from my first page on my website. I think it says it all about what trains means to me...
Trains and Lionel Trains especially have given me a release from the pressures and worries of everyday life. A little escape from my problems and concerns. When sitting at the layout with the controller in hand, listening to the roar of the diesel or watching the drivers of a steam locomotive and everything else no longer matters. I've returned to my childhood where life was so much simpler. No jobs, wife, kids, or worries. Just a boy and his dad's Lionel trains.
Brian I always look forward to seeing your pictures. Christmas with trains is truly magical.
|
|