... since I blogged. I'm going to be more positive today, 9 weeks on Friday will see the start of the part of my life where I wonder how I ever had the time to go to work, I will retire in mid December even though the official date is 31/12.

About 3 months hibernating to catch up on sleep should follow (I won't migrate like some of the feathered ones on here) and then it is all guns blazing on clearing the shed, erecting baseboards and generally cracking on. Well that is the plan anyway, it is subject to change.

As for modelling plans they remain N gauge, DCC for loco control and probably servo or tortoise for points. Scenic track is to be Finetrack, planning to get the main circuit built first and then add in the branch and sidings. It is going to be a prototype location, a layout thread will hopefully appear in due course. There will be a couple of compromises though, one will be to accommodate the exits from the station area although, usefully, there are cuttings with overbridges on both main line (north of the station) and branch that define the station area. To the south is an overbridge. That allows quite a good hidden exit to the north with a wooded area, to the south will need some thought. The compromise will be in respect of one or two of the buildings as the joint company style, to me, is plain ugly. Unfortunately (or perhaps not) period photographs for my planned era are almost non-existent.