After lurking here at The Gauge since last October, I've decided that it is high time I de-lurked and introduced myself. 
My name is what it says just to the left (I've been online since 1985 (the old FidoNet days) and have never seen the need for a "handle." No disrespect intended to those that use them.) I'm a network administrator for the Canadian federal government, but I'm also about 5 1/2 years away from retirement.
Way back when I was about six or seven, my Dad gave me an O27 5x9 layout for Christmas. He had noticed that I was interested in trains over the previous couple of years, although we didn't see very many on Vancouver Island. I played with that layout for a few years, then dismantled it and played with it my own way for a few years more. During my teenage years (by which time we had moved to Ottawa, Ont.,) I got into HO and N scale modeling, but never progressed past laying some track and running some trains. In my early 20's, I moved out on my own into a small bachelor apartment. I joined OVAR and during the next couple of years I started on an HO-TRAK module and a little 4x6 switching layout (more on that later.) In 1980, I got married, and we moved into a larger apartment with two bedrooms. Fortunatly for me, my new wife was quite alright with me taking over the second bedroom for my model railroading activities (and that is one of the many reasons we're still happily together!) In 1983, we purchased a brand new house (it was not even a hole in the ground when we signed on the dotted line.) Along with the house came a basement with almost nothing in it. Naturally, I started planning what I wanted to do with that basement. Those plans included a 13' x16' workshop, a 20' x 20' family room (with sewing nook for my wife) a laundry room, and most importantly, a 15' x 19' train room.
Well, things changed, and so did my interest in model railroading. Although I roughed in the train room, I lost interest in model railroading at about the same time as personal computers became affordable. I sold off all my MR stuff and started playing with computers (hence the FidoNet reference above.) This also translated into a career change for me as well, as I moved into a computer related job with the government a year or two later. The train room became a storage room and for a while a server room.
In 1990, I was getting a bit bored playing with computers at night, and working on them during the day. So I found a new hobby, RC Airplanes. I'm still very active with RC planes, and now fly turbine jets. If you're interested, feel free to visit my web site at Radio Control Aircraft Gallery.
However, with retirement approaching, my interest in model railroading has been rekindled. Remember that 4x6 layout I mentioned above? I never did get rid of it. It has been in the "train" (storage) room since the mid '80's. One reason I kept it is that I had handlaid all the trackwork, and I just couldn't part with it. Anyway, to make a long story longer, I pulled it out of the storage room a couple of months ago and put on the coffee table in the family room (which, by the way, is where I spend the majority of my time, as it has my computer and TV in it.
)
I was pleased to see that I had survived the 20 or so years well. Again, though, I never did get past the track work stage. So I went to the local hobby shop that specializes in MR stuff and picked up a transformer, a locomotive and some rolling stock. Fixed things up a bit and I was running trains again. Oh yeah, my interest has definatly been rekindled!
I then got a little silly on EBay and purchased some more locomotives and rolling stock kits (mostly Proto 2000. Nice stuff!) I also purchased the 3rd Planit design software and have been having all sorts of fun with that. (I'll be visiting the Track Planning area later.)
The big job I have now is cleaning out the storage room. It's amazing the amount of junk that one can accumulate in 25 years!
I'll finish up with a picture of myself taken last September in Sanford, Maine. RC flying is still my primary hobby, and it is a lot of fun! But I'm looking forward to my not so new second hobby.
Best regards,
...jim
My name is what it says just to the left (I've been online since 1985 (the old FidoNet days) and have never seen the need for a "handle." No disrespect intended to those that use them.) I'm a network administrator for the Canadian federal government, but I'm also about 5 1/2 years away from retirement.
Way back when I was about six or seven, my Dad gave me an O27 5x9 layout for Christmas. He had noticed that I was interested in trains over the previous couple of years, although we didn't see very many on Vancouver Island. I played with that layout for a few years, then dismantled it and played with it my own way for a few years more. During my teenage years (by which time we had moved to Ottawa, Ont.,) I got into HO and N scale modeling, but never progressed past laying some track and running some trains. In my early 20's, I moved out on my own into a small bachelor apartment. I joined OVAR and during the next couple of years I started on an HO-TRAK module and a little 4x6 switching layout (more on that later.) In 1980, I got married, and we moved into a larger apartment with two bedrooms. Fortunatly for me, my new wife was quite alright with me taking over the second bedroom for my model railroading activities (and that is one of the many reasons we're still happily together!) In 1983, we purchased a brand new house (it was not even a hole in the ground when we signed on the dotted line.) Along with the house came a basement with almost nothing in it. Naturally, I started planning what I wanted to do with that basement. Those plans included a 13' x16' workshop, a 20' x 20' family room (with sewing nook for my wife) a laundry room, and most importantly, a 15' x 19' train room.
Well, things changed, and so did my interest in model railroading. Although I roughed in the train room, I lost interest in model railroading at about the same time as personal computers became affordable. I sold off all my MR stuff and started playing with computers (hence the FidoNet reference above.) This also translated into a career change for me as well, as I moved into a computer related job with the government a year or two later. The train room became a storage room and for a while a server room.
In 1990, I was getting a bit bored playing with computers at night, and working on them during the day. So I found a new hobby, RC Airplanes. I'm still very active with RC planes, and now fly turbine jets. If you're interested, feel free to visit my web site at Radio Control Aircraft Gallery.
However, with retirement approaching, my interest in model railroading has been rekindled. Remember that 4x6 layout I mentioned above? I never did get rid of it. It has been in the "train" (storage) room since the mid '80's. One reason I kept it is that I had handlaid all the trackwork, and I just couldn't part with it. Anyway, to make a long story longer, I pulled it out of the storage room a couple of months ago and put on the coffee table in the family room (which, by the way, is where I spend the majority of my time, as it has my computer and TV in it.
)I was pleased to see that I had survived the 20 or so years well. Again, though, I never did get past the track work stage. So I went to the local hobby shop that specializes in MR stuff and picked up a transformer, a locomotive and some rolling stock. Fixed things up a bit and I was running trains again. Oh yeah, my interest has definatly been rekindled!
I then got a little silly on EBay and purchased some more locomotives and rolling stock kits (mostly Proto 2000. Nice stuff!) I also purchased the 3rd Planit design software and have been having all sorts of fun with that. (I'll be visiting the Track Planning area later.)
The big job I have now is cleaning out the storage room. It's amazing the amount of junk that one can accumulate in 25 years!
I'll finish up with a picture of myself taken last September in Sanford, Maine. RC flying is still my primary hobby, and it is a lot of fun! But I'm looking forward to my not so new second hobby.
Best regards,
...jim
ops: ) I've also been looking at Tim Warris' FastTracks site, and am planning to get some of his assembly fixtures.