My new "Art" site.

I have just created a new Art Blog, the latest in the Montgomery Productions series. I trust you will at least get a smirk out of it.

I want a garden railway!

Yes, it's true. I finally have a desire for a railway.

That's not a fair statement. I've had inklings towards a railway for some time.

My childhood 'N'-gauge never really got far. A freight train, and a passenger train with one diesel and one tank engine, and a couple of buildings.

The concept of a 'Z'-gauge briefcase railway was appealing. Can you imagine a layout of flex track building a simple diorama. All in a compact form. Great fun, uses some creativity, and would satisfy the urge. But have you tried buying for a 'Z' gauge system?

Another idea was just to build some static dioramas. Display cases about a foot long, and 4" deep. That would give the option of say putting a streetcar on a high street. A painted or printed backdrop of mill chimneys, and frontages for the buildings. Tracks set on cobbles. Could work. How about a deep picture frame and put a logging train, or Swiss train hugging a mountain side with trees and trestle bridges?

The next obvious one for me is a Lego system. That sounds great, but it would just take up space, and the boys would want to borrow parts. Who could blame them?

So, garden gauge? How about that? We have a yard that is 15'x19'. I can do something with that. I am thinking of running it at ground level. There is nowhere really to bank up earth or terrace it. I would like to use this as an excuse for a shallow water feature too. No one uses our back yard. It's too small to run, or ride a bike. The basketball hoop is unused. The sand box is retired. It's too hot in the noon sun, it's too dark and closed in the evenings, and we're close enough that partying outside at night would disturb the neighbours.

So my next question is what do I go with? I'd love live steam. I'd like Lego. I want ease of maintenance. The electricity out there is completely in the wrong place. And I want to keep it low budget.

The other thing, since the sandbox is coming out, I think I'll pull out the bench too. I have carte blanche in one wall of the garden and an eccentric shape of soil. I can see pea gravel, alpines, and miniatures. I can see moss and baby's breath. I don't see banzai though.

Are my ideas above my energies and skills? Only time will tell.

Fremont

The Saturn sat sulking in the back of the garage. Abandoned for a week it seemed, no daily jaunt to the nucleus of the high tech industry. Next to it the Explorer ticked smugly as it cooled, the sweat of it’s labors dripping from the condenser of its air conditioner. It had done it’s work, two kids to school, a run to Starbucks, then home again by way of the grocery store.

The 2 ½ car garage stood sentinel in front of the 2.5 bath, 3 beds and large family room that made up part of the half million dollar single family home. The house quietly sucked electricity into its Tivo, its fridge, its air conditioner and the PC. It breathed out a quiet hum of perfume scented laundry air. It listened inattentively to the bumble bee hum of the gas powered leaf blower at the end of the close. It sheltered Meredith from the heat of the day, a quiet seclusion for her work from home, self sufficient self employment. Her cell phone rang with the pomp of Elgar, her 10 am phone conference with Sally.

“So where’s Martin?” inquired Meredith’s marketing department.
“He’s gone to Austin for customer integration, they’re going live this month” Sally had an implicit NDA as the friend of the wife, and so far had either rewarded the trust, or not known what to do with the information she didn’t realize she had.
“While the cat’s away…?” Sally was eager for a girls night out, they both deserved it she reckoned. Silicon Valley widows, collecting the wages at the cost of losing their husbands to the incessant grind of the techno mills.

The evening was planned and sitters secured. A girls night of vino, karaoke and maybe a visit to a club.

Just some random excerpt from my novel.