Did ever you visit someone and think of how different their lives, their space, their houses, are from your own? Perhaps you think you know your town, and yet, you know it only from your own paradigm, your own space. Little do you know all the many lives that live in your town, the secret worlds held behind closed doors. My Town has a flavor and an atmosphere to offer the residents, but it is only the outward persona of My Town. There is another whole story of My Town behind the walls of each home.
Today, we visited a town within my town, though it truly lives only in the imagination of it's creator, Chuck (not Constable Chuck). In a full finished basement, model trains circle and change tracks, running through towns, past one room churches and through tunnels. Based on the topography of Kentucky, the trains click by and strangely, you can become absorbed, feeling drawn into another dimension.
Perhaps it was that the scenery was so real to me, reminding me of places I've been, buildings I've seen. Chuck, now retired, tries to put in eight hours a week working on his model trains and has been working on it for over nine years now.
Tunnels like this exist very near where I live. 
Seeing this secret town within my town makes me wonder what other amazing things, hidden from view, are in my town. Of course, Chuck was well pleased when one small boy said that the train display was the best train display he ever did see.
My Town Monday is a secret place created by Travis Erwin, that he shares through his blog. It is a place of blogs sharing what is behind the doors of towns all over the world. Visit him and leave him a message if you want to share what is in your corner of the world.
Notes:
It is snowing! In Kentucky!
Two of my chickens that are free-ranged said it was dang cold outside and tried to get into their cage a bit early today. They now tolerate being picked up on my arm like giant parrots.
My Cabernet Sauvignon is well past ready to be bottled. Will I get to it or will I drink it straight from the carboy?
16 comments:
I love to look at model train displays! Those who make them are usually so passionate about their creations. My husband still has his trains from when he was a child. We'd set them up if the dogs wouldn't eat them....
My hens aren't wanting to be out too much right now either. And I have a little one who is broody. When I take her off the nest and put her in front of the food, she will eat, but only then.
Those kind of train layouts always intrigue me.
This reminded me of my older brothers' train set. Love the added bit about your hens. What kind do you have?
I should have read the whole blog, before I spent several minutes looking at the first two pictures and wondering where in our town you were when you took them. I kept saying "We don't have double tracks running through our town, only a single track".
(Constable) Chuck
Neat post, girlfriend.
What a cool hobby!
What an original MTM post and like everyone else I love trains.
What an extraodinary little town! I'm blow away by it.
Your words are very simple and rich in this post; well done.
Aloha-
Those pictures were so surreal! The second had me thinking "Juno'sMom" done climbed the water tower...I so didn't catch that they were in miniature until later! Awesome!
What got me the most is your perception, rumination on the subject. We live 5 miles out of town...I like it, but we always have tons of visitors who like to tell us what goes on behind closed doors of this town (what they've heard, anyway). I don't want to know, or even think it. I don't care.
But having lived my life "on the road" in my last corporate job, I was sick of hotels, and drove through residential area's, and see th lights on through a picture window, and kids doing homework, Mom cooking, Dad, setting the table......
I wondered, does he then beat the shit out her? Abuse the children? Does she grab another bottle of wine or call her lover?
You never know....and you should never judge. But that nice little village with it's nice little train? Nice metaphor, analogy, and worthy hobby....Like a writer I guess, create an erudit world you can control!
Great pics and nice insight...why are people bound and determined to make me THINK this weekend?! LOL! Going to attempt to get into this MTM thing soon, as soon as I have blocks of time I can count on! Love it! Thanks JM!
Worlds within...
Reminds me a bit of Blue Velvet, although I know you are not going for that approach.
I am with Debra and Barbara in that I too am always delighted to read about your domestic situations...
Tschüss,
Chris
I love model trains. I'm sure that William was enthralled. In Portland, ME, they have a small passenger train. It amazes me how many different types of trains there are.
My grandson would just love to see this in person. Trains rule.
Wow! very life-like. Can't imagine the time and effort (not to mention space) it takes to create something like that. If only our real-world could be as clean looking and litter-free!!
Right away I thought there was trouble in Dodge City! They are a great way to keep the mind and brain nimble as one works at it.
Great post!
Wow! That is an amazing display. I don't even want to think about how much time that must have taken its creator.
I like what you said about how you wonder what other amazing things are in your town, hidden from view. So true about all towns and people.
What an amazing artist Chuck is. I bet he'd love to visit my the train depot next door and talk model trains with them!
Snow in Kentucky? Do you all have to stay in?
Post a Comment