Money doesn't always buy happiness

[FJ and G]

But it helps if you are in debt...

I've been visiting layouts now for a number of years. Some are very expensive, running upwards of $100,000+++++; and get this, the owner couldn't even recall how many locomotives he had still unopened in the box. Avg. price of the locomotives were around $900 or so; all the best quality.

He and others who'd spent that much were HAPPY.

Then, I've visited layouts that were equipped with bargain-priced pieces and one was just on a 4X6' layout, single loop with just 2 spurs. He was engaged in a lot of scratchbuilding as well.

He and others who'd spent that little were HAPPY.

So, don't feel too bad next time you meet someone with a million dollar layout or see the latest catalog with stuff you can't afford. While people who can afford all of that stuff are happy, so too are countless others who cannot afford it.

dav

[Anonymous]

Dave:

The title of this thread reminded me of an old song sung by Robert Goulet that goes, "Money can't buy happiness! Still, I'd rather be rich."

In any event, as I've said before, happiness comes from inside, not outside.

Tony

[Anonymous]

I can recall hearing the phrase, "Money may not be able to buy love or happiness, but hey-it can buy a lot of other cool stuff!" Seriously, though, happiness comes from enjoying your life and you certainly can have a great deal of happiness if you have cheap trains and a small layout as opposed to a big expensive one. Lionel had the slogan back in the postwar era "An Investment in Happiness". It's important to remember that that doesn't have to be a big investment.

[Anonymous]

In my life its always been a 'money versus time' exchange. In the periods when I had the most money I had the least time. So during the boom I bought a lot of trains and stashed them unopened in a closet.

Now I have far less money but far more time. So now I'm building the layout and actually running all that stuff I bought years ago. Its almost like Christmass; I open boxes and go "Wow, I don't remember buying that??"

Money doesn't equate to happiness. Of course this is a sliding scale; too little money does equate to unhappiness - I'm talking too little as in not being able to pay bills. But when you are in the middle of the scale whether you make a $160k a year or $60k a year the biggest change is in the amount of time you have available.

And of course you can always get more money but you cannot buy even a second of time. So in the end its about what do you want?

[Dave Farquhar]

I've always thought it's about what you do with what you have. Figure out what you can afford and enjoy it. I've been buying stashes of old magazines and one of them had a column that ran for a few years called "Scrounger's Corner." One month the guy built tank cars out of scrap strips of wood and a paper towel tube. The only expenses were the trucks and a bit of paint and glue. So yeah, it's possible to have fun with this even if you have very little money, especially if you like building stuff. I imagine during the Depression and WWII when materials were unaffordable or scarce, people did the same kinds of things.

I don't go to that extreme but I have made my own el-cheapo cars. It can be a lot of fun. It's less time I can spend running trains but I enjoy building (or rebuilding) cars as much as I enjoy running them, so to me that's not a big deal.

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Dave Farquhar

I've always thought it's about what you do with what you have. Figure out what you can afford and enjoy it. I've been buying stashes of old magazines and one of them had a column that ran for a few years called "Scrounger's Corner." One month the guy built tank cars out of scrap strips of wood and a paper towel tube. The only expenses were the trucks and a bit of paint and glue. So yeah, it's possible to have fun with this even if you have very little money, especially if you like building stuff. I imagine during the Depression and WWII when materials were unaffordable or scarce, people did the same kinds of things.

I don't go to that extreme but I have made my own el-cheapo cars. It can be a lot of fun. It's less time I can spend running trains but I enjoy building (or rebuilding) cars as much as I enjoy running them, so to me that's not a big deal.

This is actually what Roadside America is all about. If you have ever visited there, it is the story of a man who created this display mostly out of bits and pieces that he found laying around. Very impressive!!!

Tex, I'm in the time vs money game with you. Right now I'm long on time and short on money. Good thing that I'm well stocked for trains!!!![swg]

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Tex, I'm in the time vs money game with you. Right now I'm long on time and short on money. Good thing that I'm well stocked for trains!!!!

Isn't this funny? I'm short on time and short on money! But I'm not complaining (much) [:D][:)]

There just aren't enough hours in a day to do all that I have to do and all that I want to do. So I prioritize & let some things take longer. All the time I'm trying to save as much as I can for that addition & train room.

It'd be nice if I won the lottery, but I'm not planning on it.

Tony

[Anonymous]

Everybodys right.

I have just as much fun as a 20'-20' fot layout with just one loco, six cars, tubular track, four switches, and postwar cattle set and operating milk car(Dr. FuManchu) and a 100 watt transformer (from Elliot). [8D]

I will play with them on the living room floor from 6am to noon on a Saturday if I don't go anywhere in the morning[:D][:)]

That is what real toy railroading is![;)]

On the cheap....

[Anonymous]

The earth is located on the extreme western spiral edge of the milky way. A very unfashionable place to be, I'm told by my alien friends. (Hitchhikers' Guide)

So next time you see Trump or Gates on TV remember that all their money won't change the position of the earth.

You can't take on the problems of the entire world.
Instead, I think we are here to be happy and to help make others around us happy too.

Sometimes making your own world helps too. Creating a toy train layout is my way.

Alan

[Anonymous]

if you cant make it, buyi it .Thats what money is for,sometimes you have to make the decision better or much better

[Anonymous]

I don't know how David comes up with all this.... but this is a good one to think about!

It's funny, but before I started building the 4 by 8, I sat and visualized what I could about a larger layout. But since I started the small layout, I haven't even thought about a larger one, even though I have more room.

I like running my Railking Proto 1 PA's so much (at a cost of 250), I haven't even thought about spending more than that on anything. Yea, you can sure have fun without breaking the bank, especially if you just enjoy what you have.

[Anonymous]

My tag line says it all............

[Anonymous]

I have done the same as Texas Type ..that is buy trains when times are good and work a plenty. A few years later I opened them up and it was just like Christmas. .........Tim

[goodness]

Money doesn't always buy happiness....but it will rent it for a while.

Paul Goodness

[3railguy]

This a good thread. I had a Caddilac Seville and then a Corvette. Recently I bought a beater 69 Chev truck with a 350 and 4 on the floor for $600 for handyman chores. I put another $700 in it to get it running right. I'm driving it every day now. I love it. Insurance is $260 a year for liability. Repair parts can be found for like $50 and take an hour to replace verses $300 for the electronic crap that takes all day to replace and reprogram. In fact this old truck is so easy to fix it's fun to fix and you hope something else goes wrong. My vette sits in the garage now and I think I'll sell it.

[brianel027]

As John Lennon once said in so many words, 'money may not buy happiness, but it sure makes misery more bearable.'

Being an admirer of Mr. Lennon, I recall how he once talked about having bought all the material possessions and property he thought he wanted, he still wasn't happy. Certainly he and the other lads from Liverpool could have stopped making music after "Abbey Road" was recorded and there would have been more than enough money to sustain the four of them. But thankfully they all kept making music to our benefit. Obviously money always comes into play, but I'm also certain they made their solo albums out of artistic desire as much as anything else.

As I've said before, I love my "Kia" collection of trains. Might be nice to have a "Cadillac" collection, but I'm just as happy with what I have. Fortunately, for the train importers, not everyone feels the way I do on this. Because the vast majority of product offerings seem to be slanted towards the higher level - both in features and prices.

I for one wi***he day would come when they all (the train companies) realize there is a market for respectable quality, lesser expensive items. And that these items will do more to help grow the hobby than the more premium priced items.

Too bad Williams doesn't have the name recognition that Lionel has. Fortunately it seems Williams is working towards changing this.

[railman]

checking in with a 76' Chevy here. Runs good. On engines, my fleet is a "chevy" operation, though it would be nice to have a cadillac to put out there once in a while.

[waltrapp]

brianel: I think the 2 of us are fighting a non-winable battle!!!!