A New Link or Two. . .

Not much painting going on at the moment, though hope springs eternal. Young Paul has has not required copious amounts of time this last week, but I find myself, frankly, too tired mentally to contemplate sitting down to paint by the time 9 or 10 pm rolls around n the evenings. In truth, I've used available time to write and refine a 5000+ word piece on painting figures, so it's not as though I have nothing to show for the past week where wargaming, or at least thinking about it, is concerned.

The Grand Duchess and I got almost five straight hours of lovely sleep last night, and another three very early this morning. Sonja looks more refreshed and rested than I've seen in some weeks, and we were able to enjoy our first BIG Sunday sit-down breakfast (prepared by yours truly) since Young Paul's birth and arrival home almost four weeks ago. Might domestic bliss and some semblance of peaceful quiet have returned to Stollen Central at least for the time being? We'll have to wait and see, but I fear it's too soon to make any firm plans!

On a more wargamingly note, Battlegames #19 arrived yesterday in the mail! As usual, it's full of all sorts of interesting articles, including one on the Battle of Solferino in 1859. Mid-19th Century conflicts have always held a certain fascination for me, so this was fun reading late last night and yet one more indicator of what I'm leaning toward once my two Charge-sized forces for the Grand Duchy of Stollen project are finished in another year or so. And I've even looked carefully at various suitable miniature ranges available from Spencer Smith, Tradition, and Holger Eriksson, because I'd like to keep that project as old school as possible of course! Ah, the joys of drreaming and planning. Hmmm, Young Paul has finally fallen asleep in my lap as I write this posting.

Finally, I've added a couple of new links to my Links section at right, which you might find interesting and useful. The first is that famously sought article from Scribner's Magazine on Robert Louis Stevenson's wargames. Can't recall at the moment which OSW member provided the link a day or two ago, but I've taken the liberty to note and provide the link here since it's every bit as old school as Little Wars by H.G. Wells et al.

Second, I've added a link to The Miniature Building Authority, a place that has all kinds of useful building and terrain goodies for those of us who like to produce stuff like that by our own hand. Look especially for the set of 28mm metal signs, to hang over the doors of your scratch-built houses. It retails for about US $9.95, and I think I might have to add this particular item to my pre-Christmas letter to you-know-who at the North Pole. Hopefully, the Northern Polar Bear*** will not involve himself in filling such an order. The resulting chaos and hilarity might mean that the signs are left elsewhere accidentally by Santa Claus/Father Christmas when he makes his yearly trip around the world in one night.

Ok, I've got some painting to do and some time to do it. Keep your eyes open for some photo updates on those RSM cuirassiers that I've been working on in the next few days or so.



***Some of you might remember this wonderfully accident prone character from Tolkien's The Father Christmas Letters (pictured above), which my maternal grandmother, Vivian Roberts-Stokes, read to my sister and me in the weeks leading up to Christmas 1973 when I was seven.