I agree with just about everything that has been said so far and here are some of my own thoughts.
Fred: I don't remember who the blond was. ( I was, er, at my mother's house eating when the TV was on so I didn't get a good look. And yes, I am single.) I know it wasn't E.D. There are so many Fox blondes they all look the same to me.
I really think model railroading is the "king of hobbies." Why? I can't think of any other hobby that requires so many skills such as: electrical wiring, wood working skills, artistic skills, knowledge of architecture, geography, history, physics, knowledge of the various media (wood, plastic, resins) and how to paint and weather them, etc. The list goes on and on.
This might make a separate forum topic.
I hoped that at some point in my life time someone would change the public's perception of the hobby and change it into the art form that it really is. I think George Sellios came awfully close to doing this as his layout may go into the Smithsonian Museum at some point.
The hobby is about fun but it is more than that for me. I have a great respect for people who can build things with their hands. That is one reason I got into the hobby many years ago. I get great satisfaction out of taking a pile of basswood sticks and turning it into a beautifully, weathered structure. This is what the hobby is for me. In this age of video-games, computers and people who worship at the Church of Instant Gratification, model railroading requires hard earned skills. The challenge is to out-do the last thing you built, to make something look as real as life. It is an art form. It is three dimensional art.
As for the blonde anchor, just a few years from now, when her boiler starts to leak, her pistons need to be replaced, her headlight dims and she gets that greasy, grimey, weathered patina after years of service on the mainline, she will wind up on some abandoned siding just a shell of her former self. She would do well to find a sympathetic model railroader to bring her back to life.
My rant is over. Thanks for all the great replies.
