Milwaukee_F40C I know a guy who collects thousands of dollars worth of basketball sneakers such as limited release Air Jordans, Air Pennys, Kobes and so forth. These things in the boxes took up an entire wall of the room that he was renting. When he lost his job and ran out of money to pay the rent, he asked me to store some stuff and help him move. He wouldn't sell the shoes. Basketball shoes are kind of a main stream hobby these days, but a lot of collectors seem to be in similar situations as my friend. There's no way something like that is less crazy than collecting anything else. I'm not going to get in to the release camp outs and fights, but I will mention that these things happen. You can't even wear the sneakers often if you want them to keep the value, because they will turn yellow. At least the trains don't just sit there like a bunch of shoe boxes, you can develop some skills, learn history, and using them won't hurt the value too badly. Its easier to involve friends and family members in the hobby. Fewer people get stabbed over them.
I know a guy who collects thousands of dollars worth of basketball sneakers such as limited release Air Jordans, Air Pennys, Kobes and so forth. These things in the boxes took up an entire wall of the room that he was renting. When he lost his job and ran out of money to pay the rent, he asked me to store some stuff and help him move. He wouldn't sell the shoes.
Basketball shoes are kind of a main stream hobby these days, but a lot of collectors seem to be in similar situations as my friend. There's no way something like that is less crazy than collecting anything else. I'm not going to get in to the release camp outs and fights, but I will mention that these things happen. You can't even wear the sneakers often if you want them to keep the value, because they will turn yellow.
At least the trains don't just sit there like a bunch of shoe boxes, you can develop some skills, learn history, and using them won't hurt the value too badly. Its easier to involve friends and family members in the hobby. Fewer people get stabbed over them.
Oh geez, that is quite a story.
I have an idea.
Introduce this guy to the OP who, in turn, can introduce the guy to his family at a family get together. Then, the OP's family can spend all day teasing the guy who collects basketball shoes.
Rich
Alton Junction
Jeff,
I get exactly the type of grief that you've described, usually from a particular cousin. I get questioned whenever I get another train, when I bought my Mustang, or when I rescued a neglected 91 Probe GL from a small used lot. It was "Why do you need three cars?" and "Why do you need a second Probe?" just to cite a few.
I don't know if you've had the offenders also ask how much you paid for whatever you bought? That really gets me. That cousin of mine asked how much I paid for the 91 GL and my answer was "$1280 off the lot and another $1K on top for the parts that it needed to get things rolling. Can you help me out, because I need more yet and the body is rotten?" That put an end to that discussion.
The two replies in this thread that really grabbed my attention were Becky's and C.W. Burfle's. Maybe these people are just jealous, or maybe we need to show them the door. That would get the point across.
In the end, do whatever you want to do. Buy as many trains as you want while I work on the most expensive first generation Probe around.
I am 62 years old, and have had trains all my life. It started wwith my grandfather who was a real railroader, as was his father, and my mother's uncle.
I remember one time when I was still in my teens, an uncle of mine saying something about me being to old to be playing with trains. I hurt me at the time, and truthfuly today don't understand it as his sons too had their trains. In fact his first son, my cousin is still actively involved in model railraoding today, and he is older than I.
My mother supported me in the hobby when I was young. She said that when I was in the basement working on trains, she didn't have to worry that I was out on the street getting into trouble.
My dad supported me by getting me materials to expand and better build my trains. He also had the sense to ask me what I wanted to do with the trains when I left to go to college. I am glad I kept them as they developed into a lifetime interest.
I do not have an operating layout at the time being, and most of my trains are in storage. However this week, my son set up some trains for Christmas which I have run each night as I come home from work. Most of my training now is that I always have trains on my workbench that i can tinker with, and my interest range from real trains to models. That brings me to my next point.
I work as an engineer for a large computer company. I and a number of other people I work with or have worked with attribute having our jobs today due to our having our trains when we were younger. We learned certain skills in working on them and expanded it into our careers.
At the same time those trains on my work bench, and my trains when I have had a layout have been good for me. They were a stress relief when I came home from work and needed to wind down. They keep my hands and mind busy, and let me continue to polish my skills in how I would fix this or fix that, and they let me rest from the business of day, just as other hobbies and/or activities we do for recreation. I like to camp, cook, play tennis, walk, read, plant tomatoes and other things too. As long as they don't interfere with my life, or take food or provisions from my family, why not, they are a good clean hobby.
So without much more to say, enjoy your trains. I will be the first to tell you if it becomes a problem that they are hurting your performance at work, or with your family to stop, but if you aren't hurting anyone, enjoy your hobby. They are a great way to meet people, and as someelse said when people come over they seem to like the trains. I give thanks for mine and practice moderation.
Merry Christmas...
What would be wrong with ending the visit when the ridicule starts?
If you have taken care of all your obligations like a responsible adult should, what you do with the money and time you have leftover is your business.
Let those trains run.
Personally I think they're just jealous.
Becky
Trains, trains, wonderful trains. The more you get, the more you toot!
Thank you 11th Street for the great BB King and band Video!!!
Ralph
When our friends call on the phone, they ask where I'm at. " just out in the garage playing with his trains" my wife would say. But when they come over to visit, they always want to see what I've added to my model railroad train layout. That is how you keep my friends and critics interested in model railroading. Give them something new to watch, Action, Sound, with three train running at the same time in different directions on "My Classic American Flyer Cabinet-top Train Layout"
Have a Great New Year,
Az-Flyer
“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.”
AZ-Flyer@American Flyer Cabinet-top Layout (5'x16'): http://az-flyer.blogspot.com/
A friend and fellow model railroader often says to critics and friends, "I play trains." I used to be shocked until I remembered that people play cards, board games, baseball, football (i.e., sports) computer games...well you get the idea. Now, whenever I run into someone who snears at my hobby, I smile at them, kindly ask them what they do for fun, and say, "I'm having FUN! What's wrong with me having some innocent fun, just like you do?" Once in a while they will say, "I guess you're right." Sometimes they just walk away. Perhaps it takes a little bit of a thick skin to make lemonade (if you don't mind me mixing my metafors.)
Also, pull out a photo of President Reagan for your family, he was also a member of the Train Collectors Association (TCA).
Don U. TCA 73-5735
You can add Nat King Cole and pro quarterback Gus Ferrotte to that list also.
Several responses are possible at this point;
1) You don't tell us if you are the main wage earner in the home. If you are, you can remind your loving family that you pay the house payment, utilities, taxes etc which makes their standard of living possible. Then inform them that if the trains bother them that much, they are free to live elsewhere. You will be glad to wave as they ride off into the sunset.
2) If you are a "little kid" then so are Rod Stewart, Neil Young, The Late Frank Sinatra and the late Tom Synder.All of them pursued toy or model trains in one form or another. All of those men were great success stories in the feild of entertainment. I suspect none of your critics have attained that level of success have they?
3) You should not try to live someone else's life that they have laid out for you. If you do, you will wake up an old man wondering where it all went.
George
Huh? Wife/wifey's family? What you are getting from them is called group abuse & victimization and I'm sure it is not limited just to toy trains.
bigdogjeff - Now that you've named the source of your torment, rest assured...it's not the trains they dislike...
In your example, I would reach out to those that would embrace your hobby---> the little kids. Find out what their interests are, and odds are, you can mate up the appropriate freight car to them. Then the tumblers will fall into place.
The love for trains is either a 1 or a 0. You cannot explain your love of trains to someone who is a 0. And you don't need to explain your love of trains to someone who is a 1.
"No other product of man's mind has ever exercised such a compelling hold upon the public's imagination as the steam locomotive. No other machine in its day has been a more faithful friend to mankind, nor has contributed more to the growth of industry in this, the land of its birth and indeed throughout the whole world. Those who have lived in the steam age of railways will carry the most nostalgic memories right to the end.." The words of R F Hanks, Chairman of the Western Area Board of British Railways at a ceremony in Swindon Works on 18th March 1960, marking the end of steam locomotive construction in the UK with the completion and naming of 9F 2-10-0 No 92220 "Evening Star".
From : http://www.5at.co.uk/
Steam engines ruled the rails for 150 years, from Richard Trevethick's first loco until the Garratts stopped running in Africa. Can any other machines of the industrial revolution make that claim?
Servoguy, I am both a model train guy and a golfer.
I know exactly what you mean about your nephews.
Sounds like that son-in-law of mine who does not understand my love of trains.
He is a 3-handicap and I am a 24-handicap.
I am like you, yet I play golf in spite of those two reasons. I have no talent for the game, and could never get good at it no matter what. So why do I bother? LOL
RIch
You could compare trains with golf or skiing or some other "approved" hobby. Now about golf, I have two nephews that are professional grade golfers. If they shoot a round of 72, it is a bad day. The regularly shoot below par. This is one of the reasons I don't play golf. I have no talent for the game, and could never get good at it no matter what. So why bother. I enjoy trains, hot rods, engineering, and a few other things. Hot rods have been an issue with people around me for 55 years because of the "dirty T shirt" appearance. Working on cars is usually somewhat messy, so people object. However, when their cars breakdown, who do they call?
Golf costs more than trains, and there is very little ROI. Trains, on the other hand, teach people valuable skills. When I was a kid, I learned a lot about mechanical things and electricity from the trains. This interest in trains became a degree in electrical engineering which I have found to be very useful.
Hey, bigdogjeff, look at it this way.
Your wife's family are your in-laws.
Need I say more?
hi guys i am so glad i can vent my problem with you guys it was great comment that really cheered me up on this holiday. Let me tell you this also my father and mother and brothers i grew up with trains live across America from me, when i say family that think this way about trains i meant my wife's family but is the closes family i have during these holidays and they are very strange when it comes to trains. i will never stop loving my trains I just will not share the joy of trains with the hatters of this great hobby.
balidas Ya know what, I've found that when somebody teases somebody else for something like what you experienced the ones doing the teasing are simply jealous. Of what or why who can say. Invite them to operate the trains with you, if they decline, just simply ignore them and enjoy your own activities. One way to disarm the teasing is to laugh with them and make your own jokes.
Ya know what, I've found that when somebody teases somebody else for something like what you experienced the ones doing the teasing are simply jealous. Of what or why who can say. Invite them to operate the trains with you, if they decline, just simply ignore them and enjoy your own activities. One way to disarm the teasing is to laugh with them and make your own jokes.
Big Dog.......
I like this answer from Balidas.
I don't feel a compelling need to be "validated" by my family and friends for my interests, hobbies, and actions, as long as they are not harmful to others. Nor do I choose the confrontational or the defensive position. I like what I like.
There is nothing to be gained arguing the point, so I choose the high road.....with a huge smile on my face.
Yes, I admit I do get a pleasurable kick out of the consternation from some over my passion for toy trains. The trains have been in my heart pushing 6 decades and will remain there. They see I am well-grounded in my past with the trains, in a good way. That is all I need to know.
I have gone through these types of "discussions" over the decades regarding my choice and color of automobiles, raising kids (and now helping with the grandkids), marital choices, business decisions, health decisions, educational decisions, and the list goes on. When the smoke clears, I am still standing and moving forward, comfortable within myself and having offended no one in the process by getting into a chidish exchange where no one wins.
Would you rather win? Or would you rather be right? There is quite the difference between the two. I'd rather win.
Sooner or later the rest follow because on balance my choices have made me happy. That happiness has placed me in a better position to bring rhyme, reason, and contentment to others. It has been no different with my trains. My wife, family, and friends eventually fall in line and follow, either through acceptance or through actual participation. And while they may choose to not share my hobby interest, they can't deny the result. Traditions sell. Christmas traditions endure.
I finally have my family capitulating. My son, daughter, and son-in-law are finally collaborating and buying me a toy train piece each Christmas. They see their Christmas present endure, run every year on the Christmas layout. Their present is showcased. "Grampy is nuts! But he sure does like my present!!!! So does everyone else!!! " And I am winning.
Even my wife this morning got on my case to straighten out the mess under the tree from the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day chaos and get the trains back in action. Why? She loves to see the excitement on the granddaughters' little faces and the fun they have playing with Grampy and the toy trains every time they come over. And she knows what is coming in a few days.
New Years Eve is at our place, beginning at 6PM for a buffet-type dinner, as is our tradition. And the sight, smell, and sounds of the mostly vintage toy trains running under the tree will once again suck in even the naysayers!!!! I may have to bring some folding chairs up from the basement this year.
Jack
IF IT WON'T COME LOOSE BY TAPPING ON IT, DON'T TRY TO FORCE IT. USE A BIGGER HAMMER.
bigdogjeff i have a horrible story about how my family thinks i am alittle kid because i play with trains at the age of 41. they teased me all day and night to the point i turned the trains off and put them away. does anyone have this problem.
i have a horrible story about how my family thinks i am alittle kid because i play with trains at the age of 41. they teased me all day and night to the point i turned the trains off and put them away. does anyone have this problem.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
My Biggest advice is just dont let it get to you. when they tell you to put away the trains, you just add another loop. Tell them its what YOU do as opposed to sitting around on a computer all day something or the sort. Call me crazy, but I find spendind hours watching a bunch of men fight over a ball (dont get me wrong, I love football) just as, if not more immature then admiring an important part of American history. I get alot of flack for being into model trains. My Paretns and Grandparents were always supportive, but my extended family always had a hatrid for it thinking I was "chldish". High School is also not a safe place to admit you have a model railroad at home, but the best response is to not listen to them and stop your hobby, but to but to stand up to them, tell them you dont care what they think keep going even stronger.
"No childhood should be without a train!"
Here is an interesting comment that pertains to this situation:
Mat 18:2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
Mat 18:3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
It's a little unclear about what "family" you're talking about. Your parents and siblings? Your wife and kids?In either case, if you let other people dictate to you what your hobbies can be, then the problem is twofold: theirs for being so immature and yours for letting other people dictate your personal preferences. You can't do much about problem number one, but you have full control over problem number two. Use it.
Making a mountain over a molehill tells you it's they who have a problem as far as being juvenile. It's their problem, not yours unless you chose to own it by taking arrogant pettiness to heart. They sound like an unhappy bunch..and if it wasn't the trans it would have been something else they could feel superior about..My mother in law at one time started to rag on me about the trains, and I told her in the nicest way possible it was none of her *** business, and it was never brought up again.
Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has.
C'mon, Jeff. You da big dog! Put a dead bolt on the inside of your train room door and tell your family to BACK OFF!!
Pete
"You can’t study the darkness by flooding it with light." - Edward Abbey -
Seayakbill Its a hobby, seems like some folks have a hard time accepting the fact that building an electric train layout and operating trains is no different than building and operating RC race cars or airplanes. No different than photography, fishing, hunting, collecting stamps & coins, or chasing a little white ball around a couple hundred acres.
Its a hobby, seems like some folks have a hard time accepting the fact that building an electric train layout and operating trains is no different than building and operating RC race cars or airplanes. No different than photography, fishing, hunting, collecting stamps & coins, or chasing a little white ball around a couple hundred acres.
Hey, wait a minute!
Are you teasing me now???
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