For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for November 15, 2020

Quite unintentionally, John has sure stepped in it again.

I’m sure I was in my own world once in a while when so engrossed in playing and constructing with LEGOS as a child and teenager.

Maybe John was remembering a nagging mother when he heard his wife’s yak yak yak.

I can remember the sound of the westbound Broadway, the GG-1 blowing for every crossing between Lancaster and Landisville on winter nights. At certain places to the south one could see the lights in the passenger cars going by like faraway Lionel trains. I know what John is saying.

John’s freaking me out.

Right John. I operate my guitars too.

John sharing Rod Johnston’s thing with trains is an interesting character quirk- Lynn seems to find it equal parts weird and amusing. Sometimes he’s basically OBSESSED with them.

Once again, it’s amusing that Lynn is honest enough with herself and her audience that mothers nag- Elly definitely was like this quite often, which other characters commenting on it. It’s a bit nice to see, actually- many weaker writers create these idealized alternate selves that get to “win” all their arguments and be seen as the “sane” one. Lynn would rather exaggerate and cartoonify herself- drawing herself as a big-nosed potato of a woman who was constantly yelling and lecturing. It feels more “real” than if she’d just been a put-upon mom.

When he is hungry, he will eat. Geeze.

This is how I used to be while reading Harry Potter. It would have to take a mountain for me to move out that spot.

Gomez wants to talk to you, John. He has some ideas for upping your enjoyment of trains…

That "Ding, ding, ding, ding ding reminds me of “Close Encounters of the third kind”.

I know adults who’ve spent many thousands on train setups. Not exactly in the league of a kid’s toy anymore.

Lynn’s Comments:

My husband was a serious model railroader. After a while, I understood the vocabulary and the methods for creating good tracks and dioramas, but I never understood the passion.

Bittersweet, Dad, bittersweet.

I understand the allure of setting up trains and building a scene for it. It’s like you are the architect of your own little world. If you do everything just right, it works.

John must goover the detail on his HO railroad.

Yes, John. Thirty years ago your life was thirty years longer.

I love to see Elly caught with the spoon half way to her mouth! You don’t want sit at the table when my DH eats a bowl of soup. He slurps it in with each spoonful. I can’t seem to break him of the habit, so I have given up.

Model Railroading is a creative outlet; like vaughnrl2003 says, you are creating a world from your own inspiration. Most of the fun is in the building, and it’s somewhat like creating a 3-dimensional portrait of a town, a city, farm country, logging operations. Then, there’s the commeraderie with others, sharing ideas and their own layouts! As a former owner of a model train store, I heard many a wife say that they were glad their hubbies were into the hobby because they always knew where he was!

Kudos to Lynn for a pretty realistic rendition of the ’50s Canadian National livery on the model train.

The way my little brother discovered there was no Santa Clause was when my dad accidentally woke him up playing with his new train set under the tree on Christmas Eve.

We don’t stop playing with trains because we’re too old; We grow old when we stop playing with trains!"

Next door neighbor was well known locally for his model trains layout. His name: Harry Train!

Totally with Jon on this one. It rarely makes sense to those who haven’t lived it.

I have always liked Gomez’s way of train demolition.

And another thing. John says he “operates them”.There is a class of model railroaders who do just that! They build a large layout, usually maxing out the basement. They have several sidings, at which some industry or commercial establishment is located, to accept deliveries. All switches are controlled at a desk, which is sometimes in a small adjacent room, and the controller cannot see the actual train layout. BUT, there will be a board in front of him, showing the tracks & sidings, with LED’s signifying if a switch has been activated to go to the siding, or stay on the main line. The RR owner will have several friends over. Each is given a small freight train, with a few boxcars, tank or flat cars, and a set of cards to deliver to multiple destinations. This means temporarily “parking” some freight cars while removing an empty one, parking the loaded one in its place, going back to retrieve the rest of the consist, then go to the next one. You CANNOT “temporarily” park freight cars on the main line! You must communicate with the controller (who is watching the WHOLE scenario) to get the switches thrown, to get in a siding, and to get out. THIS IS OPERATING LIKE THE REAL DEAL, and it is NOT easy! I was invited a few times by customers, and found out first hand just how complex a job these train controllers have! Still, this is one part of the hobby which draws many practitioners, and keeps alive a part of our history.

My husband was a dedicated model railroader until he smashed his ankle and was never again able to stand for hours working on the layout. He had a fabulous working layout in a shed in the back yard we called “The Depot”. He even had the start of the dioramas and landscaping. Giving all of that up was very hard for him. A few years ago, I bought him a Lionel “H” scale layout to run around the Christmas tree, and since then we have added an “HO” scale and an “N” scale to the Christmas layout. All 3 are Santa Fe Warbonnets and when all 3 are running, it is a lot of fun.

When I was a kid, my uncle had a large model train set in the basement of my Grandpa’s house. I could have watched it for hours.

I feel the same way as John ♥ Train is my mode of travel; when I see it pull into the station, knowing I’m on another adventure …

Passenger trains still run in North America: Via Rail in Canada, and Amtrak in the USA. The latter was even running fairly well until COVID-generated cutbacks (which, hopefully, will be uncut soon).

Somebody on Reddit just posted an Entitled Parent story where a mother tried to steal his model trains cause her bratty kid wanted them. He was moving and set the bag with the models in it down while opening the door and she came and tried to snatch them and run. He got them back and she called the police on him for stealing her son’s trains, but he had kept all his paperwork and invoices with his name on it, so mommy dearest got in big trouble.

Hearing childhood sound can be nostalgic. Childrens are bestowed with the happiest moments.