4'x8' plywood, all kinds of cool stuff.. my goal was to buy two new structures a week for the town plus at least one railroad related item - like a crossing bar and stuff.. I had, like your brother, painted a pond with a bridge over it and had a mountain set up that the train went through..
..and then it happened...
I left the door open one night.. My Beagle Snoopy made his way into the room where, like a giant version of Beagle Godzilla, pretty much destroyed the entire town - and it wasn't even in Japan.. He chewed up EVERY building, house, bridge, mountain.. I think he even pee'd in the pond.. luckily he didn't touch the trains, but I never rebounded from that fateful night and never rebuilt my little community..
I ended up - in the early 80's - getting an N scale setup, but just never got it setup and started.. I had acquired several buildings and structures and stuff.. Just never got the plywood to put it down..
At my mom's old house, nailed in the garage with the remnants of the town painted on the plywood, is that 4'x8' sheet nailed against one of the walls.. I often wonder if the new owners ever pulled it down - I'm sure they got a kick out of it, if they did.. Nailed on an opposite wall, was a 4x8 plywood sheet, with a fluorescent green sst logo painted on it the entire size of the plywood, with a black background.. I often wonder if they ever saw that, as well..
Friendship is like peeing your pants.. Everybody can see it, but only you can feel the warmth..