Raised in Hardin, Missouri, a small farm town where both the Wabash and Santa Fe main lines between St. Louis and Kansas City ran for many years.  I can literally remember having at least 85 to 95 trains a day pass through the community night and day while I was growing.    This proximity to trains left me with a lifetime love of the rails and led me into model railroading as an adult.  Presently I am a Professor at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee.  Check out my "pretend train world" at www.davidrholsinger.com.