The best laid plans...

...of mice and men gang oft awry! Well, we would be in Aberdeen now staying with our friends Kevin and Vivian Calder as a prelude to visiting Claymore on Saturday. Instead, I'm here in GHQ passing the time between bouts of nursing the sick and ailing: Sue has developed a bad case of Shingles and is confined to bed! Thankfully, she's over the worst I think, but she is sleeping a good deal so I have managed some painting at the fag end of the month. In fact, my monthly total is a respectable 102 items painted and six Old West buildings made! More respectable in fact than my total of five games played and all Lost!!!!!

Painting has all been for existing projects, a theme I think will dominate the second half of the year here in GHQ. I've added to many collections: the Anglo-Zulu War got four more bases of Zulus to round the Impis up to an even number of bases and another base of mounted and dismounted Boers; the ECW got a unit of Forlorn Hope; the Indian Mutiny got more Bhurpas, aka Hill Tribesmen, and some neat Victorian ladies on camels for the Baggage Train; the F&IW got two large war canoes and crews for the Paddoquoi, finishing off the project for now; the AWI got a grasshopper gun and crew/limber for the US Continentals; the Old West got six Battleflag MDF buildings and interiors from Frontline, together with another armed guard for the stagecoach from Dixon.

Our games were a further trial of A Crowning Mercy, my putative ECW rules; two Black Powder games ~ an AWI and a SYW game; and, finally, two Sudan War games, using my own A Good Dusting rules. As I mentioned I lost them all! I think the last three Blog entries are showing a bit of a trend here...

I've not bought a lot this month, baring the six buildings for New Paddock City: the ladies on camels from Hinterland and some Foundry paints; Hill Tribesmen, WWII German motorcycle combo, and some cheap Peninsular War British Generals, for the War of 1812 of course. I forgot to mention the plastic palm trees and Indian statue from Tiger Miniatures, oops!

I managed two wargames related visits this month: to Stoke Challenge ~ see a previous Blog, and to the Foundry's latest Open Day. The latter is worthy of passing comment: personel mostly changed; old ranges being recast for reintroduction; absence of the many baskets of Bargain Blisters ~ the main reason I go if I'm honest; and a general sense of reorganisation/chaos of change. I'll probably give the next one a go, but if the BBs don't reappear then visit will become much less frequent!

Well, time to re-enter Florence Nightingale mode! Toodle Pip!