My ex-wife gave me significant grief about almost everything, so you can imagine the eventual outcome. My girl friend gave me grief once she found out how much I was spending on mrr which made the break-up swift and painless. LOL!!
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.”
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.[8D]
How many wives out there would love their husbands to be hanging around a train room rather than seeing the old guy living 3/4 of his life in a bar, just imagine if the bar money went towards a train layout, it would be featured on a 3 page spread in Model Railroading magazine.
Guys and (gals) I think we can safely say that for those that are single there are no worries regarding MRR. Those with a spouse, partner, significant other etc wind up having them fall into a few catagories:
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not interested and questioning your sanity
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not interested but respecting your hobby
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interested and involved to one degree or another.
FWIW, im unemployed, been married for 31yrs to my college sweetheart . so long as i put food on the table by gardening and hunting, i get little greif over my rr time. then again ive never tried to model time 
Nope, my wife was the person who got me back into the hobby by buying me some cars and other model railroad sfuff. Bonnie actually told me I could have a much larger room for my layout than the one I chose. Love my girl.
No, my wife supports my trains hobby, but she doesn’t understand. She let me build a brand new 1800 sq ft basement for my trains and allowed me to place her dream home on top of the basement to keep the rain off of my trains.
She keeps a list of my MRR wants in her purse so she knows what to get for my birthday and Christmas.
She went with me on my last trip to Caboose Hobbies in Denver and complaind that we drove 3 1/2 hours to Denver and I did not buy very much.
She doesn’t like the long rows of old MR Magazines on the shelves in the den. I told her I could get rid of them if I had the new MR DVD. So she is going to order it for me.
She is a keeper and I am very happy. It is not a one sided hobby relationship. She collects American Girl Dolls (Molly) and has about everyting in the catalog for her doll.
No grief. In fact when I retired she said “I expect to see a railroad in the basement”. OTOH I don’t spend every moment there.
Enjoy
Paul
No, I don’t get grief about my MRR time, which is few and far between, but I do get the occasional “have you lost it?” look when I mention the price of some of the locomotives. Heck, I figure she’s a keeper as we went to Atlanta for the Greatest Hobby on Tour show in February, which happened to also be our wedding anniversary. I also don’t have much of a MRR budget as the bills and other household needs are taken care of first and foremost (this includes keeping the “rainy day” account topped up), but there are times when I can pick up a few small items.
I cringe whenever one of these threads comes up where a fellow model railroader seems to indicate that they are held back or criticized by their spouse for pursuing the hobby. I wonder what else there must be in their relationship that would allow for one partner to be subjugated to the other.
I am blessed by having a spouse who encourages my model railroad activities (and occasional expenditures) even though I have retired and she is the main bread winner.
Dave
I get no grief from my wife about my model railroading and railfanning hobby. She usually says to me what it taking you so long to finish the layout. How many guys out there can say they rode a steam excursion(I rode on the Western Maryland Scenic in Cumberland) on their honeymoon? Earl…
I cant say we rode a train on our honeymoon but we drove cross country from Virginia Beach to Tacoma WA, following I-40 and chased a few trains!
Massey
Hi!
Wife # 2 is pretty much the ideal MR’s other half. She appreciates what I do, enjoys tourist train outings (we are going to the C&TSRR again in October), and just railfanning in general. In fact, for a couple years she was a key punch operator for the SP here in Houston. In our 11 years together, she has never said anything against the hobby or my participation. And,she has often encouraged me in my efforts.
One of the keys for this is having an “other half” that has their own hobby. My wife does computer graphics (and is pretty good at it), and other pastimes that keep her involved and enthused. And of course, I support her fully in any way I can.
There use to be a guy that posted here about the “hurricanes” that would hit his layout from time to time. His wife would actually destroy things on his layout. If my wife ever took a hammer to anything I own she would be my ex wife very soon. I could never imagine my wife even putting that thought in her head.
Well, my wife has decided that it would be a “good idea” for me to attend the MER convention in Cary, NC!! Our daughter, who is 26 years old (and was my modeling partner in the 1990’s) wants to accompany me!!. [:D]
I have sent in the application for the convention and booked the hotel. I am looking forward to my first Regional Convention in more than a decade. I am sorry not to have any model to enter in the structures contest. I have a few Fine Scale Miniature kits that I have built but not yet installed on the layout. Maybe I will bring one of those with me.[swg]
What wife???[:)]
Ohhhh the joys of being a bachelor!
LIke i tell my buddies! I still have all my toys!![:)]
I have just started my new layout in a spare bedroom, which really isn´t spare, as my wife and I share it. It´s our office, guest room, storage and laundry room. My new layout is quite intrusive, as it is T-shaped and will also have an extension right in front of the windows.
I had my wife share in the planning stage, so I had hoped she had been quite aware of what was coming up, but seeing a layout on a computer is very much different from reality. When I put up the benchwork, she had to swallow hard, but it didn´t take much time from a frown to a smile again.
My wife is very understanding and supportive. She likes the artistic touch to the hobby and often has valuable hints and tips for me.
She is for keeps - I am married to her for 30 years now.
You even have enough time to read 3 year old threads. You are so lucky.
My wife of 46 years has not cost me any of my toys. They have just been changed to OUR toys. When we introduce people to our model railroad, she likes to point out the things that she bought me, or that were build at her request.
LION is single. Lives in a big cage with 34 other lions. Him has layout in old classroom above library.
LION gets no grief about layout, and seldom an issue when him ask zookeeper for some money for parts. Parts, resistors, wire seem to be ok. A request for another trainset would be frowned upon… go figure.
Well, LION has no complaints, him gets other wrok done, makes trains when time he has.
Pray for Prey!
ROAR
Gee, 3 year old thread and I can’t recall seing anything posted form Aikidomaster recently, I may have missed it. I DO remember him though.
I am SO lucky, MOH {My Other Half} shares my love of trains, though growing up with a german mother and spending time every other year in Germany with grandmother for summers, MOH likes the European/German trains and RRs, not so much the American models.
Although I built a small HO layout, and there is no room for MOH to do an N scale layout, there is no arguement.
Although we have changed themes this for year, we generally go to some tourist line that runs Steam Locomotives around the NE. There is never any arguement! MOH enjoys running/breathing/coal belching steam locos as much as I do!
Have fun!
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