@Paul Kallus posted:I suppose this is like a confessional...for me, as an adult, the hobby has been about an imaginative world that I can design and implement. Even when I am at work and things are not going well with projects, bosses, clients, etc., I can "escape" via photographs, design drawings, and train-related internet sites. In retrospect, when work has been challenging, these seem to be the times when I've make impulse buys via the internet, kind of a "fix" to get me through to the end of the day. Definitely pathetic and childlike behavior on my part.
However, when I am engrossed in work and productivity is high and projects are coming together, clients are happy, etc., I seem to be more productive in the rare time I can get down to the basement and work on the layout. I tend to have less impulse buys during these times and enjoy what I already have.
Paul, I similarly used model railroading as an escape 10 to 20 years ago when I was in my 40s and 50s. Hence, my tag line: in my little world I leave this troubled world behind. Arnold
