A lot has happened since my last post and the last two to three months have seen enormous change in my life as I finally moved back north to start a new chapter in life. It all happened very quickly in the end with a neatness and ease I never, ever expected, even down to being able to transfer in work with no other pain than learning new routes and a few different procedures.

Scenes like the header image are now everyday for me but never to be taken for granted. All my life, I’ve dreamt of living in a small, rural place like this and the sea is an incredible bonus ball.

The place I live now is essentially a 1920s flat in a block of four. There is as much living space in it as I had in my old semi. On top of that, there’s a massive loft and a fireplace, currently boarded but ready to be opened up to accept a stove.

But it’s outside where things get really interesting as there’s a massive amount of garden space that will allow me to properly grow my own food. Not only this but a garage for heavy DIY and crucially a shed that is about to undergo substantial rebuilding to become the new ‘kennel’, or as we’ll know it, Alba Weathering’s new Hercules Works.*

My intent is to substantially re-timber the shed and add a couple of lower courses of Engineering block to remove the risk of rot again, along with some drainage work at the front. It’s a big job, but it will put all the lessons I learned from Kingmoor Works about workspace design to practice.

Things are beginning to settle down at work and Scubaidh is getting used to his new world; I don’t think he’s had so much fun anywhere else before coming here. Always a new adventure to be had. In fact, he’s already had Class 08, 26, 27 and Barclay 0-4-0 haulage on the Caledonian Railway at Brechin!

Of course, these are side issues for your average dog and I think he is probably more impressed with the places he gets walked these days, particularly the fantastic beach at St Cyrus Nature Reserve!

Yes, I think he’s happy in his new world!

There’s a lot to do before normal modelling resumes here, but the process of getting to that position is going to be an interesting project in its own right and will certainly be the subject of several posts.

*And finally; Hercules Works? Well, it’s a nod to both Hercules Linton, designer of the Cutty Sark who started and finished his time on earth in this village, and two the Atlas Works of the old NBL company. I think it’s fitting anyway!

In the last couple of weeks I have received a suitable offer for the house, the paperwork has been submitted and it’s now pretty much just a case of working out a suitable date.

And at that point, an association with this house and this city, dating back to the last days of the 20th Century comes to an end.

In some ways I suppose I should feel some kind of sadness, given the length of time I’ve been here and the decent neighbours. I’m giving up a job too, but that’s something I can deal with once settled in a new place. I’m ready for this change and looking forward to the fresh start, back under my own sky.

Whilst I haven’t found a new place yet I do have somewhere to go whilst I sort this. This arrangement gives me the advantage of being able to make a cash offer and without the bother of cross-border conveyancing.

And with all that out of the way, I can seriously focus on creative stuff, including breaking through the block that has been holding this blog back.

I really do need to get back into the habit, so I’ll share some of my recent work tomorrow.

One of the first thing I’m going to do once I’m home is make a scenic display piece for photographic work. It’s become patently obvious that my work really does need proper presentation to be seen at its best.

I also feel that a couple of small dioramas will be a good way making a serious stab at developing my scenic modelling skills.

Apologies for the ‘on-off’ nature of postings at the moment.

Regular readers will know that I’ve been on a long journey for the last 6-7 years on a number of levels;

The primary thrust of that journey is the physical one I’ve been building up to in preparation for my return home at long last.

Most of my physical, mental and economic capital has been tied up in the process of preparing the house and getting it into a viewable and marketable state.

This process is now complete and a few weeks ago the place finally went on the market. An initial flurry of viewings in late November has been followed by a probably inevitable lull in December while people’s minds are occupied by the Great Consumerist Festival. So be it; I plan a quiet peaceful Solstice for myself and hope that things pick up once we are through that period. All I can do from this point in is wait now; all the work and preparation is done. All unnecessary things including most of the models are packed away at a secret holding location in Scotland already.

A small quantity of modelling things and the workshop tools remain out and available for use now and finally some headspace to make use of them.

Hopefully this will manifest itself in some new postings before long but while I just want to get packed up and away now, I guess the situation is in the hands of the Universe now. I have learned to be patient but hopefully when it happens the journey will proceed to the new destination with the speed of a WCML electric. Good Yule, folks!

Despair might seem like the most natural – possibly only – response to the conveyer belt of crises coming at us all. So much so that it’s easy to …

Stop Funding Madness

It’s been a strange old time for all of us this year, myself included and from a personal perspective, lockdown led to the surprising revelation that apart from trips out through the Borders, Galloway and beyond and going out to work three days a week, my life wasn’t that different. I have lived a increasingly solitary existence for sometime now and the realisation that this probably isn’t a healthy situation long term is at the forefront of my mind now. It’s something I need to address although with my head full of what I need to get done to sell up and move it’s something I can only fully apply myself to once I’m out the other end of that particular process. It is however something that needs addressed and hopefully soon. It’s taken a situation of global proportions to illuminate how small my own macro world has become! I look forward to renewing old connections and forging new ones in a new chapter of life. I hope this starts to happen soon!

Meanwhile, modelling has been a little quieter and the only activity this weekend has been in relation to a Heljan Class 27 and my sole remaining Bachmann Class 37/0, both undergoing renumbering from previous condition. All being well, weathering may take place later this week.

A trio of Accurascale STS Cement hoppers also recently arrived and will get the treatment in due course.

Anyway, I have an early start in the morning so signing off now and stay safe folks.

Now and then a new release arrives that inspires you so much that you throw all your creative effort at it to make it as special as you can.

Dapol’s Class 21/29 is precisely one of those though in fairness, Hattons’ Barclay Pugs and Hornby’s J36 (plus the impending Rails 812 Class and Hornby 2MT) fall into the same category for me. It’s taken forty years but they all seem to be arriving at once! 😀 However, I digress; these two 29s arrived in recent weeks after I finally cleared my stash at C&M Models in Carlisle (can’t recommend Mike’s good customer service enough!) Both fit in with that last year of Class 29 Operation in 1970-71 and are finished accordingly; though I might have to obtain another 6107 to do her in April ‘68 condition with D prefixes as photted by Derek Cross in an uncommonly accurately captioned shot! 😉.

However, in the best traditions of ‘Wordless Wednesday’, it’s time for the photos to do the talking… DISCLAIMER; I know the cocks and bags aren’t attached. I’m waiting until I get decoders installed in the locos first! 😉

Another reblog from Albion Yard but I couldn’t resist sharing as it encapsulates exactly the kind of modelling I wish to emulate when I finally get to start building layouts!

Wordless Wednesday (08 in the woods)