You guys amaze me... so diverse...great to see! As for me, besides my hobbies listed earlier, I also spend a bit (too much sometimes) of time in the hospital (currently there typing this on call)... I am a pediatric intensive care doctor. Love this part-time (lol) work, but my REAL job is being PAPA. Prior to living here in the NW, I moved all over during training... Madison, WI for medical school, Univ. of Chicago for residency and Philadelphia for fellowship... Unfortunately, I did little railfanning/modelling due to lack of time then, but I am making up for that now! Oh, I almost forgot, being from Green Bay, one of the biggest hobbies is.... GO PACKERS!!!!
Well, graduated from Seminary back in late 50's, took a small church near Topeka KS, needed a second job, went to Santa Fe GOB in Topeka, they hired me, was tested by IBM for computer skills, sent to programming schools all over the US, designed and implemented two major systems for the IBM 360, jumped to the Federal Reserve Bank in KC in 1970, helped design and implement their automation efforts, all the time still serving as pastor of small churches.
Retired early from the Fed, we traveled for 18 months, got bored, I then accepted a call to a small rural church which sits near the Santa Fe Transcon in Kansas, and have been there as pastor for 9 years, starting the 10th.
We have lived in the same house in KC for 28 years, have a large three deck Santa Fe layout in the basement, and a large scale Santa Fe running around the backyard. Life is good.
Bob
jcopilot wrote: Lots of interesting people doing lots of interesting things. My other favorite hobby is Cowboy Action Shooting - using single-action revolvers, lever-action rifles and double-barrel (or pump) shotguns to shoot at big, close metal targets. No bullseye shooting, just hit the target. To add to the fun, everyone dresses in period clothing and adopts a cowboy alias. Some people have chosen names from history, some from the movies or television and some go for a humorous name. My alias is Oracle Jones, a character in The Hallelujah Trail, an old western comedy with Burt Lancaster and a host of other recognizable actors. No target is so big or so close that you can't miss it.If you can't shoot good, you can look good shooting.Yee haaa!
Lots of interesting people doing lots of interesting things. My other favorite hobby is Cowboy Action Shooting - using single-action revolvers, lever-action rifles and double-barrel (or pump) shotguns to shoot at big, close metal targets. No bullseye shooting, just hit the target. To add to the fun, everyone dresses in period clothing and adopts a cowboy alias. Some people have chosen names from history, some from the movies or television and some go for a humorous name. My alias is Oracle Jones, a character in The Hallelujah Trail, an old western comedy with Burt Lancaster and a host of other recognizable actors.
No target is so big or so close that you can't miss it.
If you can't shoot good, you can look good shooting.
Yee haaa!
Howdy Oracle, Thes hyars Sage. I shoot duelist, got me a coulple Wes Flowers Rugers, a Cody Golden Boy, an a 97. An liken ya said we's a bunch a fools thet dress like idjets and blast stuff.
Chip
Building the Rock Ridge Railroad with the slowest construction crew west of the Pecos.
hi
Nope yougottawanta, it is not my 68 Charger mine is the 69 with the blower.
If that made you sick you won't like these.
That is one sweet 68 Charger, I wish it was mine.
Fresh out of the booth, took me about 3 hours to paint.
Hum, dont thing the can where OEM but they fit! It was a joke, Dave's was the first A/C car I did and was apart for around a year. Dave E-mailed me and want to know if I remember how the A/C hooked up. That was the PIC I sent.
Pic of another 68 Charger I did for Allen a good friend that does not understand why I went the way of the train.
If you really want me to make you sick, I will post PIC of the Orginal 32,000 Mile 68 Hemi Charger 4-speed I did here at the house. Still had her orginal Red Line tires and not a speck of rust. It was the last 68 Charger made! Plus I could dig up some PIC of the 69 Charger Daytonas I have worked on as well.
I forgot about this hobby. My hands are starting to fail and don't play more than maybe onces a year.
My Less Paul, all so have a Gibson 335 and a Challanger and Kustom Stack with 250 watt head amp. One of the other reason I am a Audiophile.
As far as fire arms 54 caliber Hawkns and Colt Trooper 3.57 6" nickel. I was in law enforcment as well.
Cuda Ken getting older again
I hate Rust
bogp40 wrote: I am a general contractor, specializing in kitchen/ bath remodel. A finish carpenter for 30+ years, I will on occasion do stairs/ ballastrade and trim for myself or fellow builders. I really enjoy restorations on some of the beautiful old homes around Boston. Always a nice change of pace.
I am a general contractor, specializing in kitchen/ bath remodel. A finish carpenter for 30+ years, I will on occasion do stairs/ ballastrade and trim for myself or fellow builders. I really enjoy restorations on some of the beautiful old homes around Boston. Always a nice change of pace.
bogp40,
Want to hire me. I'm thinking of get the heck out of So Cal and start doing finish carpentry again. I want to go back to Montana, back to a small town, for my boys to grow up in. Problem is my wife wasn't to fond of Montana since she grew up in Los Angeles. I grew up in San Diego but still I love Montana.
Hey Sue, My wife is a Dental Hygienist too. Next week is her last week. October 8th is the due date for son #2. It's been a great job to help us out with trying to live the high life of So Cal. This place just cost too much.
Sorry boys, but my team is the Dallas Stars. Mike Modano is my hockey idol and though they haven't won the Stanley Cup in a couple of years, they're still #1 in my book.
I did forget to say that I love golf but it doesn't love me. I just figured out how to hit the ball straight. That's what I get for being left handed. Happy Gilmore was my movie: golf, hockey, and Adam Sandler.
--Zak Gardner
My Layout Blog: http://mrl369dude.blogspot.com
http://zgardner18.rrpicturearchives.net
VIEW SLIDE SHOW: CLICK ON PHOTO BELOW
EspeeEngineer wrote: This is a great thread! I am a television and film camera operator, editor and technical director....so I shoot, edit and direct everything from news and documentaries to extreme and traditional sports. I did work for CSX at one point as a conductor (one of the highest scoring new hires ever on the tests) but after some time doing that and not getting much sleep or time off EVER, I decided to keep railroading as a hobby and return to television....its fun!As far as other interests, I play ice hockey and I'm an avid hockey fan, i'm into motocross and sportbikes, traveling, snowboarding and other outdoor activities. Here are some fun pictures...
This is a great thread! I am a television and film camera operator, editor and technical director....so I shoot, edit and direct everything from news and documentaries to extreme and traditional sports. I did work for CSX at one point as a conductor (one of the highest scoring new hires ever on the tests) but after some time doing that and not getting much sleep or time off EVER, I decided to keep railroading as a hobby and return to television....its fun!
As far as other interests, I play ice hockey and I'm an avid hockey fan, i'm into motocross and sportbikes, traveling, snowboarding and other outdoor activities. Here are some fun pictures...
I have the same breezers as you. lol.
You mean there's more than model railroading out there?Who would have guessed..
When I'm not trying to create my own little world,I am taking big rocks and making little rocks,or I'm washing the little rocks,or I'm running the secondary plant,or I'm doing rail loadout,or I'm running the sinter flux,or I'm on an end loader,or I'm eating lunch.I for the last 9 years have been working at one of the east coast's largest open pit mines,As of April 07 I received my MCR rating,or in laymans terms Master Control Operator,Or as the supervisors say,know all,do all.When I need to relax a little more,and settle back I tend to my rose garden,61 plants,my wife says that I love the plants more than her sometimes,but thats not true I love the railroad stuff more than the plants.All kidding aside the boss and I will celebrate year 24 this Friday 8-31-07.and I would not trade 1 day away for the time we have had together.Ok thats enough of the mushy crap.
Later people
Mike
In my non train modeling time, my wife refers to my other hobby as a fly fishing fetish. I work in the landscape and irrigation industry to fund my hobbies. Work takes up most of in the summer but the winter season is the model time. I am fortunate to have both great fly fishing and rail fanning here in south central Montana. I model the norther railroad lines in N scale.
Good Luck,
ddevore
The most popular seem to be these:1: Hunting, Fishing, Guns, outdoors.
2: Motor sports, racing, dirtbikes, cars ect...
3: Hockey and Other sports. Just a observation. I know i could of never known what diversity there was on these forums. I just couldn't imagine it.
Now that I am retired, I have time to do many things that I wished to do while part of the working community.
I have White Water rafted the East branch of the Penobscot River in Maine, Class 5 river, did this river twice, found out how long I could hold my breath while under a raft while being dumped in a huge hydraulic. We also did the Kennebec River in Maine.
Travelled to Alaska, rode the Alaska RR fin Kenai Penninsula, and from Anchorage to Denali, and Denali to Fairbanks. Then we rode the White Pass RR from Carcross, Yukon to Skagway, AK.
Panned for gold in Dawson along the Yukon River ( only got $35 worth in 1/2 hour )
Climbed Mt Willard and Mt Crawford in NH. Love to hike in the mountains.
I also like to photograph trains and nature, do my own electrical work, plumbing, gardening, lumber jacking for winter wood supply, and solar energy projects.
I love to read science articles, and anything Railroad history, locomotives, old Railroads in New England.
Anyone who says they are bored in retirement, needs to get a life, shut off the TV, and get going.
Hey Cordon, yeah it is interesting to see what similar interests everyone has on this forum! I have been playing hockey since high school (about 6 years ago) and I really enjoy it...plus it helps motivate me to continue working out and stay in shape. I love my motorcycles though, it is therapy for me when I am riding, O and when I am running my trains, ha ha ha.
Sue, sounds like you stay pretty busy! Rock climbing sounds like fun, that is something I have never tried.
This may sound a little different since it is from the female perspective.
I am a dental hygienist which allows me to play hard. I raised quarterhorses when I first was out of school. I started mountain climbing which branched into rock climbing. I still climb every week at a local rock gym.
I was a skier and that branched into backcountry/telemark skiing. I also mountain bike, ride dirt bikes, lift weights, collect guns for target shooting, quilting, and last summer my husband and I bought a telescope, and have added astronomy to our interests which is limited due to our Pacific Northwest skys. On our farm we have beef cattle, and noble fir christmas trees.
Was that windy or what?
Sue
Anything is possible if you do not know what you are talking about.
Thank you very much, Conrail, for starting this thread. What a great idea!
MisterBeasley, I am very pleased to meet you. What are the chances of two hockey-playing rocket scientists meeting in this size group?
And EspeeEngineer, what about two hockey-playing motorcyclists meeting here?
I grew up in eastern Massachusetts, and the rest of my family is still there. I always wanted to be a rocket ship designer, so you can imagine my delight when the U.S. Air Force sent me for my first job out of college to Cape Canaveral as a test engineer on the Gemini space program, a key step to the moon. Later on I worked on a couple of satellite programs, missile and space defense in the mid-70s, NATO AWACS, and the Joint Cruise Missile. After retiring from the Air Force, I worked for the Navy for 20 years buying radios and electronic control equipment.
I have always had multiple hobbies. In my school years they were bicycles and motorcycles, classical music, foreign languages, electronics, model railroading, and railfanning. The intensity of and the money spent on hobbies took a back seat while my wife and I were bringing up four boys, although I always had a motorcycle and living in Europe for five years let me work on French, Dutch, and German.
I started playing hockey in 1988 and continued until spring 2005. Two of my sons still play in amateur leagues. My wife and I both retired in 2005, and I am now thinking of starting up with hockey again. I am building a new HO model RR and spending a lot of time chasing and watching 1:1s.
I learned computer programming on a Commodore 64 in the 80s. My son, a professional programmer, and I are analyzing railroad radio signals and writing programs to display the data from them.
I'm also riding two motorcycles, a Honda XR650L trail bike and a Harley Davidson Sportster (not at the same time - LOL), and currently am on Lesson 14 in learning Spanish. Finally, I'm in the middle of building a hobby speed radar kit, which is what spurred my contributions to the soldering threads.
I guess that explains the slow progress on the layout.
In my professional life I am a project architect for a small firm in St. Louis, specializing in schools, churches, non-profits and housing. I'm currently finishing up drawings for the Salvation Army corps in Centralia, Illinois.....and yes, their new facility has the IC/CN main line in it's back yard.
In my personal life I have been married for over 25 years to the same woman and our son starts his sophomore year of college tomorrow. We all serve in various ministries at church, my wife and son in children's Sunday school and I as one of the keyboard players in the worship band. I play three synthesizers (Ensoniq SD1, Roland JV1080 and Alesis Ion) and will have an original song included in the forthcoming Keyboard Corner Compilation Vol. 13 (produced by these good folks: http://forums.musicplayer.com/ubbthreads.php/ubb/postlist/Board/18/page/1 ).
Here I am piloting the keyboard rig at Worship St. Louis 2006 at the Roberts Orpheum Theatre, 9 Feb 2006:
Bill
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig"
Big John,
I used to do that in the 60's. As high schoolers we used to party in the sand dunes. A couple of friends of mine and went thirds on a $25 VW bug that ate a telephone pole sideways. We took off the doors and windows and called it a dune buggy. Right about that time another friend found a 6 volt flashing red light, so of course we wired it in.
Naturally, we knew where the parties were so we would come flying over the dunes with the red lights flashing and watch our classmates scatter.
Very handy for collecting free beer.
Hi John,
I thought I had seen it all but that's the first time I've seen an S.O. dune buggy. Sheriff Joe always seems to be willing to try just about anything. It took about three years to get our sheriff to approve the purchase of two dirt bike.
Conrail12,My favorite team the New York Islanders spanked the Pens this season. Also, I golf (just took 2nd in a tournament out of 30), play guitar, basketball (someday I'm going to face WCfan one on one), I like dirtbiking and ATVs (my friend has a track in his back yard), I also like swimming when there is scorching weather.
Conrail12,
My favorite team the New York Islanders spanked the Pens this season.
Also, I golf (just took 2nd in a tournament out of 30), play guitar, basketball (someday I'm going to face WCfan one on one), I like dirtbiking and ATVs (my friend has a track in his back yard), I also like swimming when there is scorching weather.
What a great thread. We had one awhile back about "secret modelers". You really dont know who does and who doesnt. Kinda neat to see such a diverse group. Definatly, breaks the "sterotype" mold.
For a day job, I own a 4x4 fabrication shop. I am one man business that has been at it almost 10 years. Finding the train hobby was almost a "god send" as I was beginning to brun out. I am also a avid offroader and camper. The "trains" have helped me to break the day up and get away from it all.
But my other passion would be my involvment with our county's Sheriffs Office. I volunteer with them and help them out alot where I can when it comes to things in the dirt. And out here in Arizona.... we have A LOT of open desert. With illegals coming in, drug smuggling, and those that are abuseing our deserts, I help the department out by giving rides and supporting their other 4x4's. I do other stuff for them, but not as much fun as this. This picture was taken just before a night detail. It is also a bit outdated as the buggy has changed a little, making it more law enforcement freindly. I originally built back in mid 2005. This thing takes up a lot of my time... and money. Parts.... I am sure Cuda Ken knows exactly what I mean,.
Best Regards, Big John
Kiva Valley Railway- Freelanced road in central Arizona. Visit the link to see my MR forum thread on The Building of the Whitton Branch on the Kiva Valley Railway
I am in radio broadcasting. I program BIG COUNTRY 1027 in Fresno. I am also on the air here. www.bigcountry1027.com We are working on our HD-2 station and have a huge web platform.
Bob,
My deepest sympathy on your loss. I kind of know what you're going through since my wife of 38 years died in November, 2004. It took me about two months before I did anything but wander around the house in my bathrobe so it's not surprising your interest in trains is not what it used to be. Just let things go for now. It will all work out the way it's supposed to in the end. Hang in there.
I am recently widowed, 5 months tomorrow. What was my usual life and desires are somewhat up in the air these days. I have 3 great children, two of which are heading out to college next week. The youngest is just starting UMass Amhearst, the middle has graduated and my oldest is in her 5th year at Northeastern a photo and art major. Really helps with some great RR pics. All 3 kids like trains to a degree and when younger where able to run the expansive DC club layout from any cab or yard.
I love automobiles, especially custom, racing, restoration and Detriot muscle cars. For years I built and raced, owned many, many of some of the fastest production cars. My altime beast was the Chevelle LS6, unbelievable rocket ship. Mopar 340s are actually my favorite, for 16 years and almost 1/2 million miles I ran one of my modified work vans with a slightly detuned version of the 340 GTS, shift kit and posi(Sure grip) A 14 sec Dodge van once first done. Now I still dabble with mine but mostly offer my experience to friends and some local shops.
Camping, backpacking some fishing are other pasttimes always enjoyed.
Like the yard work and gardening. Do some cake decorating as well.
Even though I work with wood on a daily basis, I always enjoy repairing some furniture, building a cabinet or just doing some craft.
Lately Trains have been taking a back seat as I just can't seem to get back into any of the club scenery or the various projects scattered on the work bench. In time my desire should return. Feel like I have a whole new life to start these days.
Modeling B&O- Chessie Bob K. www.ssmrc.org
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums