Quoting from the newspaper article referenced in the initial post:
"There is his age, along with the couple’s desire to spend more time with their grandchildren. And Gamelli wants to spend time on his own hobbies. That includes creating an outdoor model railway — a “garden” layout, in the hobby’s parlance, that he’s started working on at his home."
My comments:
He's pretty darn lucky to be able to retire at 65, although I wouldn't have done it at that age even if I could have afforded it. I know (or knew) far too many people who retired fairly early and then came to regret it (or worse).
I can well understand wanting to spend as much time as possible with the grandchildren. I now have two grandson's, for the first time in my life and at my "senior" age, and they are at the top of the priority list for my remaining years. Lucas, who will be three in October, is playing with Brio-style Thomas trains now, and he will be advancing to his own Lionel Thomas stuff after his birthday this year (I have a full still-in-box assortment including Thomas, James, Percy, and others, so all that's needed is setting up a FasTrack layout on the train room floor).
Like Dennis, I would dearly love to have an outdoor garden railroad for all my Large Scale trains, but that has eluded me to this point. I have not given up hope though, 'cause all I need is something modest that will afford me the opportunity to run some trains or trolleys and make use of some of the still-to-be-built structure kits that I have.
Anyhow, I can relate to your thinking, Dennis, and just want to thank you for your contributions to the hobby. Here's wishing you all the very best in your retirement!
