What a nice suprise

We've all had MSN conversations like that. I had one just a few days ago which went like:

Emma: hey train spotter
Pete: LOOOOOOOOOOL
Me: What the hell?
Emma: can i borrow that train game
Pete: Hahahahahahahahahaha

Then Pete left and me and Emma had a civilised conversation. Then Pete came back..........

Emma: so can i borrow your train game
Me: train simulator?
Me: no
Me: download BVE
Emma: OMG
Emma: y would i want that
Emma: geez, i was only joking

Fortunantly my 'friends' don't seem as bad as Luke's and it tends to be light hearted joking. But it only when 2 or more other people are in the conversation that it happens. On the 2nd half, Pete said nothing but Emma resumed the train talk, knowing she'd get support from Pete. I was ignorant that time and they seem to have forgotten. Most people seem to see being a train enthusiast as a terrible thing.
"Mum, i'm gay"
"Mum, i got pregnant last night"
"Mum, i'm a train spotter"

If some football or other sporting fanatic starts going on about trains or other transport try reminding him that without railways the sport wouldn't exist as it does.

Most town only have one FA club, until the arrival of the railway it was very difficult for teams and supporters to travel far for matches.

So, no trains, no football.

If that doesn't work there's always the angle about 22 overpaid pooftahs chasing a bag of wind round a field and how people with nothing between their ears spend a week "discussing" events that occupied ninety minutes on a Saturday afternoon.

I've often found that the people who take the pi$$ the most are those with no interest or hobby of their own.

Believe it or not, the people i mentioned are actually really nice people! I just ignore them - it's just light hearted fun and i'm sure everyone here has a bit of that at someones expense if they, oh i don't know, took the wrong route?
------------------------------------------------------------------------

No Chris, nobodys having a pop at anyone's personal friends. I just said my piece as a generalisation for I too was one of the "nah, ner nah nah, nah" mob when I was younger I.E All gob and no sense.

When you're very young it doesn't cause a problem, but as a teenager it gets difficult due to "peer pressure". It suddenly becomes unacceptable to like trains, but really cool to like cars, for some reason (I think teens are influenced by the media who are generally anti-rail).

At primary school for me it wasn't an issue, and one of my friends went with me to places up to 25 miles away from home to watch trains. In hindsight, I think we were lucky that our parents let us do this. It really helped to make me independent.

But then I decided to not tell anyone, and to keep it seperate. Unfortunately my parents then started taking me more by car than by train, and I lost my enthusiasm for a while.

Since then however I found websites like this and others, and even co-made one of our own (with tubechallenger), and now I have met many other enthusiasts and lead a double life as a rail enthusiast. And just in time too, as many of the best trains, and the ones I remember from when I first got interested (thanks to my parents taking me to a railway bridge on the Chiltern line from the age of about 1 year old are now disappearing and I'm trying to travel on them while I still can.

Don't let them get in the way of your interests!

Take it all with a pinch of salt! Let it go over your head, i know its hard, but its, to them, only a bit of fun.

However i do not see the need for a thread all about it ?

sorry, it can be deleted if you wish, it just get's to me sometimes.

I'm 100% in agreement with AlanL in his response to this!

I think it fair to say that we all probably have the mickey taken out of us to a greater or lesser degree for the enthusiasm and interest in the topic and IMHO this was just Luke letting off a little steam! No harm in that!

Nice one!!

Amazing how people's attitude changes when money's involved innit?