(Author’s note: I decided to go a whole different direction with this than I was originally thinking. This one has a little bit of a different feel to it. You’ll understand when you read…)
Downtown Train
by Miles H. Rost
Patrick walked out of the hobby shop, happily clutching the bag that held his latest treasure. Robert, his longtime friend, scrunched his face in a puzzled expression.
“So, tell me this again. You’re building…”
“A bullet-style train setup in my garage. Since I don’t have a car, I figure why not use the garage for something hobbyish.”
“And this train is…”
“A KTX-Cheongryong, or KoRail Class 16000. 2 control cars and 4 motor/passenger cars.”
“Isn’t that excessive?”
“Nah. It pales compared to Rod Stewart’s setup.”
“THE Rod Stewart?”
“The same. Seems like a lot of celebs are railheads.”
“Y’don’t say…”
(Little known fact: Rod Stewart has two different rail setups in his houses in LA and England. He’s one of the big names mentioned as a celebrity who is also a rail enthusiast. Others include Michael Jordan, Roger Daltrey, and Elton John.)
Music and Fiction 
I knew Tom Hanks collected typewriters – but did not know Rod Stewart collected rails – and his song was a nice little ending to your fiction. And how fun to know that rail hobbyists are railheads!
Trainspotting indeed
Thanks for the tunes. I do love Rod. Tracey
I just inherited a Lionel train engine and tracks…I can understand the lure of the rails!
I did not know that about the celebrities. Growing up, my dad always had a train set going until he took over the entire basement and some. Lovely story!
I did hear that Rod Stewart loved model trains, Miles, which is a great fact and good for him. It would be great to make a model KTX setup if I had the time and room for it. Someday, perhaps. 🙂
Have a great week,
David
Great story and trivia to boot! What’s not to like.
You’ve certainly gone in a most unique direction with this story. Well done.