Thanks Mike, your new train room is coming right along. Looking good!
I had to make an eye doctor appointment on short notice Friday morning, and was lucky enough to get a 9 AM Saturday. Still not sure if it's pink eye, but she gave me some drops.
Home opener for the Loons, our MLS soccer team. The stadium was only a half mile away from the doctor on the U of M campus, but the gates didn't open til 11:15. Even after waiting for the prescription, there was still over an hour to kill. Why not hit the hobby store, about five miles away? I don't go there very often, but it felt like old times, being there on a Saturday morning, with no sense of urgency, just wandering the aisles. The big purchase was a couple of Lionel jigsaw puzzles, a few incidentals for the layout, and a couple back issues of OGR. Alex Mueller's name caught my eye on one cover. I know his layout! 
After the game, went to a Thai place with friends, and never got downstairs.
Sunday started with "train church", hanging out with my squinting 2 rail buddies. Bunch of N scalers in that group, as well as some HO guys. When I got home, it was back to work. I cleaned most of the rail over at Western Ave, getting the glue and paint off the rail heads. After that, I finished stacking my ceiling tiles over at Hoffman, then began the carving process. I use just three things to do this carving. First, a spray bottle of water, mainly to keep the dust down, but it also softens the material. Second a wire brush, which leaves nice striations in the sedimentary rock. Finally a utility knife to cut crevices.
I'm about half done with this part, then I'll prime and paint it. I'll be working from actual photos of the area.
This is getting exciting. When the upper section foam work is done, and all covered with greenery, I'll call my guy back for another photo session. I think he'll be sufficiently impressed.
