Where have all my BOTS gone ?

 

Just noticed my last few posts have returned to normal levels of hits/viewings, has Big Brother got tired of my endless ramblings ? , have I broken something - "does not compute ***** bzzzz !" anyway back to the O.S. FPW battle in the next posting . 

I'll just leave this here , and walk away quietly .

 

Just read this - Hmm ! I'm afraid I recognise myself in this ..............

(This has been sat unpublished for eighteen months quietly forgot , now is it's  time)

Toy Soldiers in Art No. 8

 

Found on the interweb - Mrs K has not fitted one to our house - yet !

Mr and Mrs Walker take a holiday -part 2

 

We popped in to Beverly to have a look around the 15th century Minster - a fine looking building .

The only problem was we had to go inside singularly as the other dog sat outside - Charlie moaned the whole time - he doesn't like us being separated whilst on holiday, plus he has no regard for Medieval architecture .

We were lucky enough to see the Gaia exhibition which as been doing the rounds all over the UK .

We also visited the Humber Bridge , when it was opened in 1981 it was the longest single span bridge in the world - it's now the 20th !

Mr and Mrs Walker view the bridge - even Mrs W was impressed !

The only military aspect of the holiday was coming across this pillbox on a golf course near Flamburgh Head 

Side view with dog for scale - a good holiday overall !

Mr and Mrs Walker take a holiday.

 

We've been on holiday staying near Beverly in East Yorkshire . The weather although blustery was mainly dry and we missed Storm Agnes . One of the walks we did was around the deserted Medieval village of Wharram Percy which was hit by the Black Death and finally deserted with the introduction of sheep farming .

The village church which is the only thing still standing nestles in one of the wolds or valleys , I last visited the site about 30 years ago when the archaeological digs on the village were still taking place.

We were accompanied by Mr and Mrs Walker , here seen viewing the church which was still in use in the 18th century.

Reg Walker was very enthusiastic to the see the church interior , Mrs Walker less so .

Some of the carved heads on the arches 

This one has seen better times.

I especially like this one of a woman in a wimple headdress(?)

A rather grim looking man on this one.There is probably a technical term for these types of carvings but I can't remember it.

The author and faithful hound in the Churchyard .

An artists impression of the village in it's heyday (circa1300).

Sadly apart from the church and a few grassy mounds nothing is visible now , but still a magical place I think.

A postponement and a rescue .

 Due to minor repairs in the wargaming room I've had to take down the 2D SYW  battle and will replay it after my holidays . 

In my workshop (a rather grand name for the shed) I have my casting equipment for my homecasting , I also have several boxes of old figures which I metal down for the castings . These have been gifted to me from various wargaming colleagues , whilst I was in there today getting something from the deep freeze for tea I was unaware that the dog had followed me in - he's not allowed in there because he gets up to mischief ! ! . I returned to the house and became aware he had something he shouldn't have in his mouth - so I bribed him with a treat to relinquish it and low and behold it was the above figure ! 

It must have dropped onto the floor from a casting session . It old , I would say it's a 15mm Minifigs ECW figure, one of the early types that were cast in strips, mounted on a piece of card - as one did before the advent of MDF . Whoever owned it had converted it into a standard bearer as you can see where the flag staff was glued to the hand and saddle - I trust the hound has not eaten the flag !?. Call me a bit sentimental but it reminded me of my early wargaming years and so I will save it and it will sit on my painting tray from now on.

The culprit, looking suitably demonic !

Carpet Wargaming at it's best

Pinched from 'Military Toys from our childhood' Facebook group entitled "The Great Offensive 1916" by Samuel B!gg from the Illustrated London News , Don't know what rules they are using (H G Wells?) but the force on the other side of the carpet are taking heavy casualties ! (click on photo to enlarge)

 

The Season's Wargaming Humour.

 

Wargaming humour No. 57

 

Illustration found on the web.

Wargaming Humour No. 54

Things you find on Facebook ........

 

A fortunate find - Johnnie Walker.

 

Popped into town today to get my eyes tested and I had look into 'This n That', a shop that seems to sell off house clearance items . In a box of model railway bits and pieces I found the above figure - he's a 54mm hollowcast Johillco (?) Hiker, rather battered with a good bit of paint loss . I paid £3 for him- cheap! - the figure goes for far more than that on Ebay . I have bought the odd figure from this shop when I see them, mainly Agustini collectables which go for a song, so I'm pleased with this find .

On BBC Catch Up at the moment , Johnnie Walker - 'Walking the Great Patio' a series of programs which does touch on The Great Patio War' at times .

 

The Walkers in Anglesey

 The Walkers are on holiday in Anglesey, here they are at Malltreath Bay and in the distance are the Snowdonia mountains 

                      Mr Walker is keen to visit the prehistoric chambered cairn of Bryn Celli Dbu, 

 .

"This is an excellent chambered cairn , probably the finest on Anglesey" ! comments Mr Walker .

                

                                         "Let's take a look inside" , "yes dear(if we must)".

                                                          "Magnificent and very unusual " 

                                        

                                               The interior looking towards the entrance. 

                         

What little is known of the site. Mr Walker is enthusiastic about prehistoric monuments , Mrs Walker less so . 

                                                    

Wargaming humour No. 17

Freshly reaped from the internet , very true as well - they are a great comfort from the 'real' world .

 

Other people's figures and decorating .

Not a lot of gaming going on here this week , the decorating bug has reared it's head again and we are re-decorating the living room - which is easier than the hall/stairway in someways but harder in others - you are constantly having to move furniture and having decided not to wallpaper again (Huzza !) I am now having to 'improve the wall plaster ready for painting (Boo - Hiss) . I then somewhat rashly took on a painting commission to do about 180 + 15mm Austrian figures for the war of 1866 to help refill my Wargaming Coffers . 

It's ages since I painted any 15mm as I find them to small for my tastes - and a pain to paint , I am using what used to be called (at least by me) the 'black technique' - when the figure is sprayed black and you go over it just painting the highlights and leaving about a third of the figure black to give accentuated shadows . I am progressing well with them as I want to get them done before our upcoming holidays . A combination of the two - decorating and figure painting is keeping me VERY busy at the moment .

 

 

A rural aside .

These photos have been on my phone for a while and seeing I'm having a bit of a clean out I thought I would put them on here before I delete them . My mother used to say "Cats are superior , Dogs are inferior and Pigs are our equals" . 

We took the dog for a walk around Levens Park , as we past the Hall my wife said " do you want to call in for a cup of tea at the cafe"  - seeing she volunteered to pay how could I refuse ! .

As we had the dog with us we had to sit in the courtyard . The Hall is old originally a medieval Pele tower with lots of Elizabethan (?) bits added . I have been round it many years ago - got round free as I was a Lake District Voluntary Warden at the time and it was a freebie day out , for some reason they have one of Napoleon's saddles (!?) .

The fountain who's tinkling water had a detrimental effect on my bladder ! - trickling water and a man of a certain age - went to the loo twice ! .

The spread ! (mine is the Earl Grey - the other hellish concoction my wife's) The scones - homemade a plus but NO jam - a big minus - I did enquire but the didn't have any - I was quite put out !!! and things got worse - the b****y dog sneaked up and scoffed the last bit of my scone - I could have cried (there there - chin up now !)

The magnificent avenue of trees which was once the carriage route to the Hall .

And things got better ! , I managed to locate (with help from Google) an elusive prehistoric Burial cairn I have been looking for , so I got my somewhat sceptical wife to take a photo of me and the dog standing proudly on it ! - being a gal she don't understand the importance of these - as she puts it 'mounds in the grass' . I must say it doesn't appear as impressive as I thought it . It was as 'Wallace' would say - A grand day out ! 

 

The ultimate game mat ! .

I wonder if I can get the local W.I. to make me one !? . (shamelessly purloined from Facebook)

 

Nowt much appenin !

 Well there is nothing much to report this week , we are having various renovations done in the house and although I'm not directly involved I'm busy lifting and carrying , tidying up and now doing a bit of decorating , so very little on the wargaming front .

My decorating skills and methods have more to do with 'The Chuckle Brothers' or 'Laurel and Hardy' than Michelangelo - as illustrated here - paint all over my slippers and a pair of trousers (which have now been designated as 'my painting trousers') . My wife took over today so I took the dog out for a long walk , I arrived back to a burst of bad language from the decorating area as she managed to get gloss white paint in her hair (my wife maintains she didn't swear before meeting me !?) (I beg to differ) .

I was sorting out my O.S. FPW figures the other day (re-boxing them) and found I had only 19 Franc Tireurs - strange !? I could have sworn there where 20 ? , I hunted high and low , but I'll be damned if I can find the 20th one (if he ever existed?) - so I hunted through my bits box and found this figure , he's an officer of the Afghan regulars (a Foundry 25mm figure) , as the Franc-Tireurs seemed to wear a mixture of civilian and exotic military uniforms I painted him up as above and he will join the French ranks . I will now probably find the missing figure now !   

Another Toy Soldier poem .

Not seen this one before I think .