As with any plan, be prepared to accept that it will never work out the way you have it imagined.  Low expectations maybe, but I keep this in mind so that I'm not too overly disappointed when things don't quite go the way I want it to.  Case in point was all the work I had planned for my time off last week.  I have a number of z scale repaints I am working on but waiting for the decals to show up.  I normally pull this off with my Alps, but cannot get the stupid thing to do overlays for color.  Thankfully PE is all white and black and those functions work very well. 

So, I painted the shells and started working on my module some...and then life got in the way....or lets just say, the weather got real nice and I needed to be outside to soak up some vitamin D after a long sunless winter.  I did follow through with some research, went north to attend the SP in Oregon meeting in Eugene, went to the beach (no easy task in Oregon) and paid a visit to my great friend and favorite layout in Dunsmuir...that would be Bruce Petty and his Burbank Junction Layout in that order.

It was a nice visit and got to run a few trains around the layout.  I dropped of some weathering work I did for Bruce and added to his tank car fleet.  A chance to run on his layout is worth the self imposed price of admission. :o)

I did stop at a small hobby shop in Roseburg Oregon on my way back from the show in Eugene and scored a few new additions to my modest fleet.  The prize was a pair of Accurail 40' Gondola's that will go along well with the three PE drop bottom gons I got last year.  Those 5 cars should be all I need going forward as there's not much need for gons on the Mission Spur in real life.  But they do offer some variety and I can pack them with all sorts of loads to break up the routine.  I also picked up an Athearn flat with a pair of SP short trailers in Daylight Scheme...important splash of color here and there on the line. 

This is a raw shot, mine are weathered now and once the weather clears (yes, got cold and cloudy again) I'll shoot them.

Another score thanks to Bruce was the loan of the new PE book on the San Fernando Valley which solves three major research projects:  one, what does the rest of the structures at the Chatsworth Spur look like, What's at Mission Spur and what does the front of the PE Plymouth Switcher look like.  Ample info on all of these issues is provided and I can move forward.  As noted in the intro, I don't get too worked up when plans fall short, but in this happy instance, stuff is coming together.  I though much of this would be "fly by the seat" modeling, but armed with reader submissions and this new book, I have a handle on what's going to happen.