I have spent nearly 2 years building a model railway station that I created based upon my love for Edinburgh & travelling Eurostar
Modelling & railways things have always been a passion of mine since I was a child. Battling through my childhood troubles & being in care, it became my comfort & passion even more. My 00 gauge layout has all been hand made with all buildings from Bus & Coach Station to Train Station all built from scratch & imagination. Since the start in nearly 2 years ago, I have built a unique station based upon my love for Edinburgh & my experience travelling to Paris with Eurostar. I did plan to have the layout run for another 20 feet with different villages, canals, a cliff edge where the train would go over the top like when arriving at Berwick Upon Tweed from Edinburgh in real life.
The project itself was being built on my memories & some amazing sights I’ve seen showcasing the beauty of travelling by train. I have built around 18 foot of the layout including main station however due to funds I don’t have the correct train companies in place or able to finish the layout as designed originally. Most of all the Eurostar services that the station was built around are on the platforms but nowhere to run them in & out of the station.
I have been battling with many health issues including brain lesions causing forgetfulness, lung nodules which affect my breathing, suspected MS or ME (being investigated urgently) as issues with my nerves in legs. I was admitted into Warrington hospital in October 2020 for 7 days during a pandemic, I was unprepared for the road ahead. My stomach has swollen so I look 3 months pregnant even though size 8 & tests are being done & had a Colonoscopy which also showed my pancreas working at 40% causing issues with other organs. I attended on 08 December for my MRI to allow more in depth look as to what is happening.
Due to the pandemic, recently I have been unable to go shopping in local centre on mobility scooter & getting out is now limited due to pain. I am on dihydracodeine & Oxycodone 4 times a day for pain but this only removes the edge off. I am hoping in next few weeks that I will know what’s going on fully. It does sadden me as I know the likeliness due to my poor health since early 2020 especially& will ruin my favourite time of the year, Christmas. I have looked into the support that would be available if this was serious & life limiting & decided I would sell my collectibles to save my family any financial burden if it was terminal. I also accept that morphine which is a powerful drug couldn’t help my pain & I was placed on a drug for severe pain relief for cancer patients. I have no idea what it will be whether fatal or cancerous but all I do know is my body is struggling, My heart rate can be really slow or really fast with oxygen at times dropping to 90%. Due to the pancreas having issues along with stomach etc, everytime I eat even something small, I am in a lot of pain & swelling happends. The pancreas is in charge of changing food to fuel & insulin but mine struggles & works at less than half the amount. Due to this & the effects, there are also days I'd love to get up & model some more bits for the layout but feel too exhausted to even move off the couch. Sometimes also if I push myself too much walking around, talking the dog to the garden, I end up sleeping for 2 days & each time I awaken, I feel so weak & fall back to sleep in seconds.I have hope that I can finish the layout in the room & are the trains & my creation come fully to life & it was after speaking to a close family member, they recommended doing some fundraising.
My hope would be I would be able to invite a selected few to visit the layout for themselves & enjoy it. Unfortunately I cannot give further details until I am aware of the full outcome. Also the restrictions placed upon the UK due to Covid 19, this is also not possible until the situation is more safe. I will post updates on here but can be found on YouTube & as “EdinburghInternationalLayout” & Facebook as "EdinburghInternationalStation" where more updates are shown of the layout.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this it really does mean a lot. Christmas ain’t gonna be the same for anyone but stay safe & keep loved ones close by even if by telephone or virtually. Love is why the world keeps going round & will continue to do so.
Lucy xx
This project successfully funded on 19th December 2020