The Grand Duchy of Stollen

  B ut not of the toy soldiers arrayed across a Gilderesque table variety.  No.  Instead, I was in a hobby shop somewhere rooting through stacks of old, hobby-related magazines  -- for just 10 cents US each -- and managed to find copies of Wargamer's Newsletter and Battle along with early issues of Miniature Wargames , Practical Wargamer , and Military Modelling in reasonable condition.  Dog-earred and faded, sure, but still good enough to read and enjoy. I managed to gather a selection of about 24 or 30 before others in the throng had picked through everything.  Then, I had a quick conversation with the guy at the cash register about having lived in Madison and Minneapolis before leaving with my new stash.  The dream was so real that it woke me.  At 5am on a Saturday. The subconscious is cruel sometimes. -- Stokes

  A selection of Continental Army infantry uniforms to mark the day.  Kind of plain, almost Prussian in appearance, but handsome nonetheless.   S till alive and (barely) kicking here in the Grand Duchy although the hobby mojo has been next to nothing since the late winter-early spring.  Simply pulled in too many directions with work and family.  As I discovered when I went to work in a supermarket at 19, and became a department manager at 20, there simply are not enough hours in a day for everything.  The Eureka Saxon cuirassiers wait patiently nevertheless in a clear acrylic box until a time when I can return to painting and more routine hobby pursuits.   But today is July 4th, more or less the midpoint of Summer here traditionally speaking.  We actually had a unexpected greeting and best wishes from a family friend in Berlin this morning, which was a lovely surprise.  Nothing special planned here beyond an easy day with some light yard work outside in the sun, grilling o