Ahhh.. Males , and the "train" gene

[SoCalDem]

Article Last Updated: 12/18/2004 09:00 AM


Wharton: The time when visions of electric trains dance in our heads

By Tom Wharton
Salt Lake Tribune Columnist
Salt Lake Tribune

Christmas Eve loomed large in the mind of 6-year-old Bob Nielsen.
It was 1937, the height of the Great Depression, and all the youngster wanted from Santa was a Lionel train. Nielsen, who now spends many of his days working at the Train Shoppe in Salt Lake City, remembers the story as if it happened last year. “My mother took me to Long Beach and there was a big display layout,” he recalled. “They snuck out the train but I had no idea. It was the first year Lionel had a train with a whistle.” As Christmas Eve approached, Nielsen was so excited he simply could not get to sleep. He had asked for that toy train but had no idea whether Santa would deliver. As things turned out, it was Bob's father - not Santa - who delivered the train, wanting to surprise his son with a gift both could enjoy, no small task during a time when money was tight.

On Christmas Eve, Bob's father put the tracks together around the tree on the floor.
Being a dad, the elder Nielsen had to test the toy electric train. That, of course, meant blowing the whistle. “When I heard the whistle,” recalled Bob, “I knew what it was. I went to run out of bed and mother made me go. Then I heard her talking to Dad. I had no idea when I finally went to sleep. I was awake at the crack of dawn and that train was sitting right in front of the Christmas tree. I didn't care about any of the other gifts. The train was a big thing.”

Bob's father could not keep his hands off the train.
“My dad wanted to borrow my train,” said Nielsen. “The neighbor had bought an American Flyer train. So he took my Lionel over to play a while. In the afternoon, I told my mom I wanted my train back.” Nielsen walked over to the neighbor's house where the fathers had a big train layout set up. There were three or four electric trains going everywhere.
“The mothers finally made the fathers give the trains back to us,” he said. “I'll never forget those days.”

snip.....

Now, starter train kits sell starting at $160, but a custom die-cast steam locomotive can sell for $1,100. As for Nielsen, he still has the first train he received as a boy. It continues to run.

[e-mail]

[trotsky]

1. Reminds me of the somewhat naughty joke.

Q: How are breasts and model trains alike?

A: They're both meant for kids, but the dads end up playing with them.

[SoCalDem]

2. oopsie.....forgot the link for the rest of the article

http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_2490935

[antigone382]

3. I must have gotten that gene too!

Or maybe it rubbed off from my five brothers. I don't own my own train set, but I bought one for my little brother last year. My family grew up on "Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends," and I can quote entire episodes. And I'm one of the few people I know who loved it when I lived near the train tracks. I still get excited every time I see or hear one coming.

:)

[RetroLounge]

4. Mmmmmmm, Trains!

RL