Hi!
I was born in 1944 in Chicago, and spent my youth around the C&NW tracks - and the IC tracks in southern Illinois in the summers. I started with Lionel in the '50s, went to HO in 1960, and did a short stint in N in the '80s. My current HO layout is under construction, replacing a room filling 11x15 two level layout I built in 1993/4. My main interests are the Santa Fe and Illinois Central in the 40s/50s, along with the DCC operating system I went to with the new layout (2009-?).
The HOBBY has been a lifelong joy and got me through some difficult times, and I enjoy it immensely. While I am a "lone wolf" modeler, I have belonged to the NMRA, and the Santa Fe and Illinois Central modeling/historical societies for many years.
In 2006 I retired after 40 years in the oil business, and my wife (# 2) and I live just north of Houston.