Nothing to say, me?

I haven't posted recently because unusually [for me ] I didn't think I had anything to say. I say unusual because normally I can talk the legs off a donkey as it were. But I had a couple of old school friends come and stay with me a couple of weeks ago and whilst reminiscing as one does I pointed out to one of my old school mates that he had given me, my first metal wargames figure. Before that I had used Airfix, but after a very long game of Diplomacy, Nic my mate had suddenly produced a mounted metal Napoleonic figure.    

I remember it was a Hinchliffe French hussar, mounted on what I later discovered was a Hinchliffe charging heavy horse. Even back then I could tell the horse was too large for what should have been a light-horseman. I painted him as a trooper of the French First hussars and thought Id done a pretty good job. No doubt it would look horrendous now. Sadly I lost him many years ago after his sabre broke off. No flattened pins back then I'm afraid. It just showed me how profound that small act of kindness was and how big an impression it made on me, well over fifty years ago. 

  Strangely I also remembered how enjoyable I'd found the game of Diplomacy on the same day. I never played the game ever again, probably because I had no one to play with me. And before anyone thinks how boring my life must be if I was reminiscing with old school friends about a metal toy, we did get through a lot of alcohol and also discuss how one of my friends experimented with fertilizer bombs and blew up an old shed as he prepared to start an anarchist rebellion. Ah those heady days of the early 1970's. No doubt we would have all been on remand or the reform programme. 

What I am attempting to say is even back then wargaming had a huge impact on me as I attempted to understand what it was all about, I do know I never painted up any other First hussars made by Hinchliffe and opted for Mini Figs for my French light cavalry. I wonder where they ended up?

To be honest I seem to have been busy pottering on with other things, and found little time for painting. I did have a cracking Hail Caesar battle with John using the new revised rules. I was impressed, very little has changed, but what has makes the game flow.

  Naturally I lost, but it was close. Unfortunately? I now want more Gallic warbands so I am trawling through my stuff looking for figures to paint. I did paint up this organ gun for my Burgundian's. I didnt need another one but I had purchased the Games Workshop, Da Vinci figure and wanted to paint him.The gun is a Redoubt piece that I glued upside down. Super glue is a bugger to separate, especially from ones fingers but I finally managed, not my best work but its done now.