Massey,
I have used the same logic with my wife of 29 years. I do not gamble, run around with other women, or go to bars. If I am anywhere but at work or with her, I am down stairs.
Craig North Carolina
We're both second-time-arounders with awful past spouses, so there's a high degree of patience and tolerance. She quilts, plays oboe, and gardens, I play with trains and cars and cameras.
This reminds of a friend's comment during an open house. Visitor pointed to a nice PFM Santa Fe 2-8-0 and asked, "How much did that cost?"
Buddy's answer: "A couch and a new dinette."
There's never time to do it right, but always time to do it over.....
My wife considers it "behaving."
- Harry
Well I am not the drinking type, so my wife does not have to worry about me hanging around in bars but I do get her ok to hang out in the shed and work on the layout. Her reasoning is I am home and she knows where I am and that I am not out getting into trouble. My son is still too young to work on the layout with me but he likes to watch what I do. Also she likes to garden and I really dont care for that activity. So I build trains, she gardens and soon I get to build my trains in the garden, but that is going to come later when we can put some more money aside.
Massey
A Veteran, whether active duty, retired, national guard, or reserve, is someone who, at one point in his or her life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" for an amount of "up to and including my life."
I knew there were advantages to being single!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No more than car restoring time, reading time, skiing time, hiking time, etc.
Which is to say, hardly at all.
She often encourages me to play with my 2-8-0 and 0-6-0 to "let off steam".
Definitely a keeper.
Sean
HO Scale CSX Modeler
Of course not, but then again I chose carefully.
"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/
I can work on the layout as much as I want to because I'm single.
Aikidomaster Wayne, Does your wife have a sister? My wife is actually pretty good about my model railroad hobby. She has allowed me to have a "train room" in the last 3 houses (even if it was an unfinished basement). She does "buy' me the latest Fine Scale Miniature kit for Christmas the last 8 years. She has gone with me to Cass Scenic Railroad, Great Smoky Mountain Railroad and on 2 excursions. I do get "the look" when something comes via UPS or FedEx. Brass is a real "no-no". I would have been great helping smuggle slaves with the "underground railroad" or helping the Jewish people avoid the *** during WWII. But, in all of these scenarios, the good guy (or gal) does get caught once in a while. Please, no comments about the "underground railroad" and avoiding capture by the ***. These were not meant as political comments or to in any manner demean the valor of those brave individuals who did such honorable deeds.
Wayne,
Does your wife have a sister?
My wife is actually pretty good about my model railroad hobby. She has allowed me to have a "train room" in the last 3 houses (even if it was an unfinished basement). She does "buy' me the latest Fine Scale Miniature kit for Christmas the last 8 years.
She has gone with me to Cass Scenic Railroad, Great Smoky Mountain Railroad and on 2 excursions. I do get "the look" when something comes via UPS or FedEx. Brass is a real "no-no". I would have been great helping smuggle slaves with the "underground railroad" or helping the Jewish people avoid the *** during WWII. But, in all of these scenarios, the good guy (or gal) does get caught once in a while.
Please, no comments about the "underground railroad" and avoiding capture by the ***. These were not meant as political comments or to in any manner demean the valor of those brave individuals who did such honorable deeds.
Nope no sister in her immediate family, sorry. But she did in fact ride with me on the Cass Scenic Railroad two years ago and she loved every minute of it....what's not to like riding a steam locomotive through some beautiful country in West Virginia? But not just any steam locomotive but a Shay! But like you, the only brass thing in our house is cook-ware. A brass locomotive might be pushing things for me.
Wayne
Modeling HO Freelance Logging Railroad.
Good point! I did my duty and brought her home. Believe me, taking her to the wine tastings or on a day trip somewhere are worth their weight in gold!
I guess that is how your wife became your "ex" and the other woman became your girlfriend!
I can feel trouble coming on with mine...but she gets strangely offended when I so much as mention the idea of stitched photo backdrops. How can you want to make most of the scene of something you hate? (She wants to paint the backdrops, the lovely artist)
I have no objection, since she's working on an illustration degree, bachelor of design...
Go here for my rail shots! http://www.railpictures.net/showphotos.php?userid=9296
Building the CPR Kootenay division in N scale, blog here: http://kootenaymodelrailway.wordpress.com/
My wife is a jewel, she gives me no grief at all about my hobby and in fact she encourages it. She'll occasionally put some money in my Pay Pal account and I'll get an email saying it is for my trains. Right now my hobby time is split between trips to the basement and yard work, but she has never once complained about how much time I spend on model railroading.
I was quite blunt. I said we have 4 bedrooms. We use one as a bedroom and one as an office/studio/study. I said I am taking over the other bedrooms! The layout is in one and the shop is in the other. Nothing is ever said about my expenditures for the railroad. I leave my MRRs all over the house. In the bathroom and living room mostly but sometimes in the aforementioned bedroom. No complaints! I have a silent partner.
Now the reality. Everything above is true. But I am like Jeff. Devoutly single for almost 51 years. My empire is limited only because I do not qualify for Gov't Grants. I do have Gov't Mule though.
Andy
Modeling a railroad hypothetically set in time.
My wife doesn't give me grief about any aspect of my hobbies. In fact, she encourages me to pursue them since she knows hobbies are a great way to reduce stress. Of course I reciprocate, because I know that her hobbies help to reduce her stress level. And heaven knows we both have enough stress in our lives without creating more for each other!
That said, we both try to be reasonable about our hobby time and money expenditures, and we both also realize that at any given time there may be other more important and/or more immediate priorities. In those instances, hobbies definitely take a back seat.
I think the "secret", although it's really not very secret because it's true in all relationships, is to be reasonable and willing to compromise.
Paul3 As a bachelor, I'm not one to normally post on these kinds of threads, but I recall a funny post about the subject matter (I think it was posted here, but I couldn't find it).Anyways, it goes like this:Imagine your significant other likes toasters. They like them so much that they build little models of toasters. They buy magazines about toasters. They watch hours long movies about toasters. They go out with their camera and take pictures of toasters. They go to toaster shows, talk about toasters with other toaster people, attend seminars about toasters, and buy toaster memorobilia. They join a club about model toasters, and have model toaster operation sessions where they try to emulate real toasters. They go to toaster musuems and base your vacations around seeing...more...toasters!!! Makes you wonder why any non-train person puts up with us, doesn't it? Paul A. Cutler III
As a bachelor, I'm not one to normally post on these kinds of threads, but I recall a funny post about the subject matter (I think it was posted here, but I couldn't find it).Anyways, it goes like this:Imagine your significant other likes toasters. They like them so much that they build little models of toasters. They buy magazines about toasters. They watch hours long movies about toasters. They go out with their camera and take pictures of toasters. They go to toaster shows, talk about toasters with other toaster people, attend seminars about toasters, and buy toaster memorobilia. They join a club about model toasters, and have model toaster operation sessions where they try to emulate real toasters. They go to toaster musuems and base your vacations around seeing...more...toasters!!!
Makes you wonder why any non-train person puts up with us, doesn't it?
Paul A. Cutler III
If Athearn made toasters, they'd have dropped their Blue Box toaster kits a few years ago and made everything RTT (Ready To Toast).
If MTH made toasters, there would be three different ways to operate the toaster. The MTH propietary toaster system would be rich in features, but totally incompatible with other operating systems. No other manufacturer would use the MTH TOS (Toaster Operating System).
If Walthers made toasters, they'd make more toasters than anyone else and they would also carry other toaster brands. However, they would be out of toasters most of the time.
If BLI made toasters, they'd announce an incredible variety of toasters to be made, a few of which would actually go into production (eventually).
If Bachmann made toasters, they'd be generally cheaper than anybody else's toaster or at least be sold at a deeper discount. They'd also be the only ones to do a B&O EM-1 toaster.
If Division Point imported toasters, they'd all be made by the Boo-Rim Toaster Company and would be so expensive that no one in his right mind would use them to make toast.
If Kalmbach Publishing made toasters, they'd offer a collection of the last 75 years of toaster production for the incredible price of around $0.09/toaster.
Andre
Audrey and I are like 2 peas in a pod...we share each others hobbies....my hobbies? Music, building synth modules, and mrr....
Any argument carried far enough will end up in Semantics--Hartz's law of rhetoric Emerald. Leemer and Southern The route of the Sceptre Express Barry
I just started my blog site...more stuff to come...
http://modeltrainswithmusic.blogspot.ca/
I am lucky my wife doesnt complain about anything.No matter what she will tag along if I want to see some historical site a old station or right of way.Her only order is to use a mat if I am doing some modeling on the kitchen table.The only time she looked annoyed with me had nothing to do with trains. I was stationed in England and wanted to see Stonehedge.She was 7 months pregnant and her only comment was "You took me all this way to see a pile of rocks".Guess I cant blame her
Aikidomaster The day before, I took my wife on a 90 minute (one way) drive ..........
The day before, I took my wife on a 90 minute (one way) drive ..........
If you drove her one way, how did she get back home? No wonder she's upset with you.
"Does Your Wife Give You Grief About Modeling Time?"
NO, Just like I don't give her grief about shopping for the grand children, watching crime dramas, or eating out.
Sheldon
I get grief sometimes. Somehow, she gets the idea that if I weren't working on (or playing with) the trains, I'd be all kinds of excited to help her with gardening, or yardwork, or decorating. That's just not the case. I have to remind her sometimes that I work 5 days a week (she doesn't) and when I'm home, I'm more interested in my hobbies than hers.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
My wife encourages me to spend time with the trains. Of course, my layout is in one of our living rooms with both computers and one of our TVs. It's actually the room that gets used the most other than the downstairs living room with the big TV and surround sound. She frowns at the money spent sometimes, but I think she sees it as a good investment in my sanity. Besides, with her in the same room as me, she can keep an eye on me! Oh my gosh, I just figured out why I "get" to play with trains. I'm being distracted!
My wife is very much in favor of the layout and from time to time does projects for me that go on the layout. She does roll her eyes at times when a big box is dropped on the front porch by Post Office or UPS, but she has always been favorable to the hobby.
Can't ask for more.
Bob
No..My late wife didn't care..She figured my hobby time was far better then time spending in barrooms chasing lewd women like some husbands would do.
The best part she join my modeling and became a all round helper.
There was a downside-I guess.
I lost my "me time"..
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
No wife giving me problems about working on the layout. That's because there's no wife to cause a problem. Happily single for 51 years.
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 wife is very supportive as she has her hobbies (weaving, soap making, jewelry making) and she does not have to wonder what to buy for my birthday, Christmas, etc. Also, my mother-in-law has purchased some nice train gifts for me and asks how the layout is going. I guess some of us just live a blessed life.
I must be really lucky!
Though not sharing my interest, my wife very much approves of my hobby and does not complain at all, should I exceed my time budget working on my layout. I appreciate her judgment on scenes I created, which is a big help for me.