Coming Soon. . . A Small Christmas Week Game!

Not the more usual Victorian or Edwardian Father Christmas this time, but a young boy on Nordic skis observing the Christmas Star. This reminds me of when I used to set off for night time skiing on the miles of (unlighted after 10pm) trails just outside Trondheim, Norway during the winter of 1999-2000. It was a snowy year that winter, and there was white stuff on the ground from the end of November through almost the end of March that season. You see a lot when you are along in the woods in the middle of a snowy night. A lone wolf was one particularly unnerving encounter. Luckily for me, he was more interested in raiding a trailside garbage can. I began making my daily ski tours during daylight hours after that.

Fairly quiet here at Stollen Central the last few days as we have enjoyed Christmastime with all of its cold and snow this year. We have had considerable upheaval of various kinds the last 2.5 years since our move to Michigan, but I feel as though some calm and normalcy has returned recently. Certainly during the last several weeks. Hopefully, we are finally settled.

In any case, the planned refight, more or less, of Steve Hezzlewood's and John Ray's 'The Boucharde Raid' is slated to take place on Saturday, or New Year's Eve afternoon this weekend. Stay tuned.

-- Stokes

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Presenting the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere!!!

Here they are, with the rearmost nine figures still drying, three squadrons of the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere, now in the service of the Grand Duchy of Stollen. And now, it's onto that artillery!

Keepin' an Eye on the World Going By My Window . .

'The Nap at the Palace' by Jose Triado Mayol N ot much in the way of hobby-related activity happening here in the Grand Duchy lately. Sigh. And no surprise there really since there are only so many hours in the day, only so much mental and physical energy to spare, and you sometimes simply just have to give in and know when to say, um, "When!" A glass of wine and/or evening yoga by the hearth with the Grand Duchess (who has practiced for over 20 years), and then off into la-la land. Zzzzzzzzz. More immediately, I'm recovering, mentally speaking, from a grueling Friday in which I was involved with three (online) conference sessions, one right after the other, followed by a 90-minute meeting at the end of the day. Also virtual. My brain has been mush ever since, so an easy, completely unproductive Saturday watching intermittent snow fall outside (no accumulation however) and drinking coffee while the visiting handymen completed some repair work down h...

Having a "No Day". . .

F or the almost 20 years that she lived in Mexico, one of my late mother's Irish friends frequently mentioned having a "No Day." A day with no social obligations, chores, tasks, or other work that interfered with whatever personal interests took one's fancy on the day in question. Since today -- a gray and chilly Saturday -- is Mom's birthday, the Grand Duchess is out with friends, and the Young Master is ensconced on the sofa in the TV room with a cold, yours truly is taking his own such No Day. I think Mom would approve of my decision to make the world go away, as the old Eddie Arnold song intoned, even if only for a little while. So, I will spend Saturday afternoon focused on that first squadron and small regimental staff of Eureka Saxon cuirassiers. These have stood waiting untouched over on the painting table for almost three weeks while we skied and otherwise gadded about with snowy, winter outdoor activities. I hope to share a painting update Sunday...

The Grand Duchy of Stollen

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