A Momentary Aside: Its the Virus...

COVID-19 - ALISSA ECKERT, DAN HIGGINS/CDC

The COVID-19 virus has changed a lot of things. I had been doing a pretty good job posting on the blog, up until being sent home to work virtually in Mid March. Since then, posts have been few and far between, and hobby time has been almost nil.

Working virtually it turns out is more time consuming than working in person, at least for me. At a sometimes flakey internet connection, and trying to manage life in this COVID-19 world, and tornados and well you got lots of things to eat up your time.

I had been hoping to go to the regional NMRA meet in March, but had to forgo that since after my surgery I am in the high risk group for COVID-19. Similarly, I had to pass on going to RockyOp2020. Now, the PCR is canceled, the NMRA national is cancelled, and a bunch of other events are cancelled. Still waiting on the SER convention, but I won't be going. On the bright side, I hear that interest in hobbies such as Model Railroading has picked up with so many people at home these days and looking for things to do at home, inside.

An N-Scale Operating Session - Photo by the Author.

It is sad to see some of the social elements of the hobby coming to a halt, the ops sessions in particular grinding to a halt as people either are unwilling to conglomerate in a basement empire, unable to conglomerate in a basement empire or are unwilling to host people who might have COVID in a basement empire. Its been making me think about the layout I might build. Will it be the operating haven I had imagined, or does it need to be something else? How can I make the layout fun to operate with only a few people - or even just me? Is this what I want to build - or should I be looking at other options that I had not considered? When can I start? With what can I start?

I have a few more posts planned on the Moffat Line plan I had put together, and I have started the next generation of planning, making a few more compromises to allow better access to the crawlspace. And, I have done some work on another, shorter term project that I hope to actually cut wood on in the next couple of weeks. But my wife and I are alive and well. We are holed up, awaiting the all clear - the chance to step out into an all new world.

Oh, and I mentioned tornadoes? Turns out a property my wife and I bought as an investment, met up with one the other night. Nobody was there, but the remodeling job done on the kitchen is very...rustic.

A Rustic Kitchen Remodel. There was actually another room past the sink in the house. Photo by the Author.

It was apparently the result of an EF-3 that placed 3 80 foot trees into the house. Only two rooms do not seem to have visible damage. So, this will be another project coming up...

Stay safe everyone. Stay in. Keep your distance.