Northern weather

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Murph! Holy sh*t, just saw that post. My first thought was your blood sugar was tanking. Couldn't read fast enough to see if you were alright.

Which you are.

Thank you,Pete. I have been told I am "hypo-glycemic." Maybe I am, and maybe that was what happened to me.
Thank you, again.
Murph

I did suggest that you eat something before doing that............

[rogruth]

I agree about the walking but leg problems keep to a very short distance.

The other part concerning eating I find is affected by the season [not seasoning]
and find that the cold [?] winter nights keep me in and I snack more.
During the 2004 summer and fall seasons I lost 25 lbs. and this winter have regained 10.

Good luck Murph.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Murph! Holy sh*t, just saw that post. My first thought was your blood sugar was tanking. Couldn't read fast enough to see if you were alright.

Which you are.

Thank you,Pete. I have been told I am "hypo-glycemic." Maybe I am, and maybe that was what happened to me.
Thank you, again.
Murph

I did suggest that you eat something before doing that............

Yes sir and duly noted, absorbed as a missive, and taken seriously.
In fact, just this morning, I ate a little something before heading out to re-do the walkways and sidewalks, but by the time I got there, the 10" overnight snowfall was already being blown into the yard by that same beloved neighbor, helping us once again (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) So, I got to rest and watch him.

However, I got your point and appreciated it very much, Rufus, of course. It has now become dictum for me.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

...Good luck Murph.

Thank you, Roger, I'm going to need it, but waking up this morning "on the upside" felt like Luck was with me. I wasn't certain I was going to, frankly.

[healey36]

Let me know how you progress. I've been advised that I need to shed fifty to sixty pounds myself...not sure where to start.
Healey

I'm starting with "push-offs," pushing off from the table before over-eating. Then, absolutely NO late-night snacking; NO ice cream; one or two slices of pizza - not half pies. Permanently.

And walking. Walking. And walking. My wife says the weight pours off me when I walk and that I look a whole lot better right away - even as soon as the walk is completed for that morning and I am returned to the house (!)

Oh, and did I mention discipline - self-discipline - not an arbitrarily imposed "diet" of monastery-like austerity, from which I would only emerge at the exit door ravenous for the foods I missed. No. For me it is a matter on control and diminishment - both of me and of the portions and types of foods I shove in.

And I'm confessing all this here, publicly, because even Frank53 couldn't get me to behave, even factoring in his significant success at weight control, and get control. So, maybe knowing you guys will notice if I post a photo now and then of some success, it will affect my eventual outcome.

Sounds like a plan. Weighed myself this AM and I've hit a new high...dammit. Laying around with this busted shoulder is problematic. I would agree with everything you've said here...it's primarily a matter of discipline. I need to take get serious about this before I'm in the box...a very big box at that.

Healey

[Tramp]

I never thought the Jungle would turn into diet pep-talk thread. You guys are supposed to be hobos, and one thing I never saw was a fat hobo. How much sugar (any form of sweetener) do you guys eat? Do you drink soda pop? I'll give you a great snack tip. Wasa crackers. They are whole grain without Monsanto wheat (which is sprayed with Roundup).

Daisy and I barely noticed the storm because the power never went out. But I sure as hell noticed the shoveling. Just finished the porch roofs.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

...
Murph, really enjoyed your layout photos. If you would allow one suggestion, less late-model cars and trucks. I think they are distracting in some of the scenes. If you retook a few of the photos minus the vehicles, we could do a comparison here on the Jungle. I would be curious to see the difference...

Generous of you, Tramp, to make that suggestion. Thank you. Regarding those vehicles, as the layout grew (a little like Topsy,) I indulged myself with buying vehicles anytime I had the money handy and wanted a particular model,. So, the array of vehicles you can see around the layout were acquired by happenstance, not intelligent design, and were placed there for personal satisfaction and for the entertainment of folks who come to visit, assuming such items interest them.

Maybe, it is time to make an adjustment in that feature.

A voice on another forum pegged my layout as set in the 50's, though that was never my intention in particular. Perhaps because I am, largely, a product of the 1950's, it must seep out of me through my hands and into the scenery I create.

For Layout Refinements, however, I did quickly learn to leave the vehicles out unless I wanted to anchor a particular vignette roughly into a certain circa. That is, scenes sold if they did not have that vehicular marker, fixing them in an era.

Also, circa-fidelity became very clear to me via Frank53's advice. When I showed this forum a street-fair scene (See photos below of the fair as it was), quite some time ago, a corner of the scene had racing cars in it (some are just beyond the antique candy delivery truck in the background), only because they interested me and were present as artifacts in a fair I had signed as, "Antique & Classic Racing Cars Meet." However, Frank53's jocular and pleasant, mocking criticism was so well taken and put in such a friendly way that I actually did remove the cars from that scene (seen below as it was).

The idea you suggest of going through the whole layout and removing cars that are too many in number and too far off the perceived circa of the layout may not happen, though I am intrigued by your interest and suggestion. Perhaps I will start with one street, take photos, and see if it becomes an enjoyable conversation on MTJ.

I am taking seriously what you have said. I do listen.

An example of my taking seriously the advice and perspectives offered here on MTJ would be an interesting remark Mitch made about a vignette on my layout that had a (bright blue)truck being off-loaded with a major piece of shop machinery. (See photo below.) He offered the observation that the machine was far too heavy to expect the guys configured there to remove it by hand down the available planks; that a fork-lift was needed. I immediately went to the basement and changed the scene to include a forklift. I was certain Mitch knew more about such matters than I. That was a very enjoyable conversation.

So, it looks like I may have been set on the right track, once again. Let's see what develops, Tramp, given my current energy level and other obligations.
Thanks again, very much, for the input and conversation about our train layouts.
Murph

[Rufus T. Firefly]

How much sugar (any form of sweetener) do you guys eat?

Too much. At one time I cut it way down and not only dropped pounds but eliminated another health issue. In the process of cutting it again. I do not touch artificial sweetners.....

Do you drink soda pop?

Rarely now - I will get some juice and cut it 1/3 with seltzer.

I'll give you a great snack tip. Wasa crackers. They are whole grain without Monsanto wheat (which is sprayed with Roundup).

What, you don't like those genetically modified seeds and crops???

Daisy and I barely noticed the storm because the power never went out. But I sure as hell noticed the shoveling. Just finished the porch roofs.

Sounds delightful...........but not for me.

[E7]

Daisy and I barely noticed the storm because the power never went out. But I sure as hell noticed the shoveling. Just finished the porch roofs.

Not much fun that. About 10 years back, I shoveled about three feet or so off of 2 different roofs. Probably not up to the task now.

Rich

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Hi Tramp, You sure know how to get a conversation started! You have me well focused on your suggestion about the number of / presence of vehicles in a particular layout scene. I have given what you said much further thought. What I usually try to do is make the vehicle(s) part of the narrative of the site.
Murph

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Sometimes, having no vehicle present whatsoever tells its own part of the story...

...or just one speaks, also...

You've got me thinking, bro, and re-evaluating...
Thank you, again, Tramp.

I hope other voices will add to this conversation, too.

[Tramp]

Murph, I will find the exact photos where I thought there might be a way to improve the scene by removal. Maybe you can help me? The scenes were all on your layout, not the Murf-O-fantas-MO-ramas. One had an lightning bolt (battery?) sign above, street corner with hotdog vendor, modern plastic-looking truck and race car (Jaguar) below. This one photo should explain my point (valid or not).

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Murph, I will find the exact photos where I thought there might be a way to improve the scene by removal. Maybe you can help me? The scenes were all on your layout, not the Murf-O-fantas-MO-ramas. One had an lightning bolt (battery?) sign above, street corner with hotdog vendor, modern plastic-looking truck and race car (Jaguar) below. This one photo should explain my point (valid or not).

That sounds like an enjoable way of talking further about this.

Regarding the scene you have described here, it does sound in-need, already, just reading what you've described here! I'll go looking for it...
Murph

[MurphOnMillerAve]

still looking..
(edited to diminish the amt. of space I have absorbed w/ photos)

[Tramp]

Bingo! Second photo from the top. Remove all vehicles, and I think the scene with just the figures and the hotdog vendor will have more emotion. Our eyes will be able to notice your wonderful modeling without distraction. If you're willing, let's compare the two and put it to a vote. Okay? Murph, please realize that my only intention here is the possibility of improving what I feel is very warranted modeling.

The blue VW could stay as is. The HD vendor's umbrella will suddenly become the focal point.