Happy Day After. . .

 

As my much loved and missed maternal grandfather used to say, while he stirred his mid-afternoon scotch and water with his forefinger and flicked the drop or two of moister into the nearby kitchen sink, "Happy day after!"  There is something very pleasant about the relative quiet and calm of December 26th after the busy run up to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as nice as they are in their ways.

Here in The Grand Duchy of Stollen, we have continued to enjoy too many seasonal treats, Christmas music, and yet more Christmas dinner with some delightful French and Italian red wines.  The Young Master enjoyed receiving his Russian artillery, and we hope to have a game sometime during Christmas week although that depends on what he decides to do since it is Christmas Break and he is so over scheduled the rest of the time with one thing and another.

In any case, I am already thinking ahead to what I might paint up for him for his next birthday and next Christmas.  One very manageable possibility might be a company of about 15 Minden and RSM95 Croats that I've had base-coated for some years but have yet to do anything about painting.  Painting them as a company of Russian Pandours might be just the thing.  

I'm already thinking too about a large regiment of infantry of some kind during the next year.  All of this would provide him with a small brigade of his own along with artillery and cavalry support, but this is putting the 1/56th cart before the 30mm horse.

Looking at what must be done to finish his Prussian garrison battalion, I see that it is mostly details that I can take care of for Your Paul if he decides he is too busy with other things to join ol' Dad at the painting table.  I'll float the idea to him though. You never know.

In any case, I'll have a look at his in-progress garrison infantry and dive in for an hour or so this evening to make some headway.  Hopefully, we can finish them and start his new squadron of 14 Russian dragoons before too long.  

And, of course, there are my own troops to think about.  Probably time to have a go at some Austrian infantry with some of those lovely Charles IV flags.  

I might also paint the planned infantry regiment in earlier uniforms with colored breeches and waistcoats rather than the white of the Seven Years War.  Some interesting stuff coming up then as 2021 turns into 2022.  

As in previous years, I am not making any concrete painting plans beyond what is outlined above since available hobby time is already scarce, but it's nice to have some general idea of the way forward even when you aren't quite sure of where the journey will take you and how you might reach the end destination.  Agreed?

-- Stokes