First of all, a (belated) very happy new year to one and all! I hope all went well in whatever way you chose to celebrate (or not).
Ours was a quiet affair as SWMBO and I binged watched the final three episodes of The Winter King - it was OK-ish - before retiring in advance of midnight. That was probably not a smart move as the fireworks marking the new year seem to go on for ages and with a disturbing level of WW1 barrage intensity!
2024 was a little like the curate’s egg in many ways. My redundancy and four bereavements - one of which hit us both particularly hard - set against the backdrop of Laurels continued struggles and for me a prolonged series of bouts of my seasonal throaty/chesty/coughing thing over the last quarter, and now an infection in my right eye means that yours truly was probably less than enthusiastic about seeing the new year in! Nothing fatal in there though, just tedious and energy sapping.
The brightest spot of the year was when Laurel and I headed off to Andalusia in June for our first trip abroad since 2019 (when we went to Cuba). It was a fantastic week that all went off swimmingly - much to our (especially for Laurel as this was her first trip as a disabled traveller) relief. Flying from our local airport (Southend) was a huge advantage as it is small and less busy than the larger ones and so less stressful. The staff on hand for the assisted travel were absolutely top drawer - all of which helped to settle the nerves etc. My daughter said that in many ways it was like ‘ripping the plaster off’ as all the imagined problems did not materialise although Malaga airports for the return was a different story. We will know how to deal with though, when we return this June for two weeks, with a visit to the Alhambra Palace.
The gaming front has been relatively quiet but with a few bright spots. The hex based version of David Manley’s Steamer Wars was written and published and of course I was able to build some models to go with it. It was great fun to do and a couple of cracking games came out of it - along with some ideas for my planned WW1 Madasahatta inspired campaign plans.
A number of boardgames came into the collection as well as a fair few going out and also the library saw a lot of ‘churning’. The books have been greatly reduced but some choice acquisitions have kept it honest and more importantly, me inspired! In both cases the reality is that I am no longer able to get out as much I used to due to caring responsibilities and also, inevitably the day will come when a down size will be needed. The more precise focus has certainly been beneficial though as concentrating on a mere 247 projects instead of the usual 862 is easier to manage….
I was finally able to get to The Other Partizan in October. It was a flying visit but an enjoyable one and next time I shall be better prepared.
I managed to get a couple of ACW Portable Ironclad Wargames in which were great fun and indeed, there are a few more models to be built for the collection - once the Royal Navy and Turks are finished.
Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame is three quarters ready in terms of text. Some 24 of the 16 models needed are now under construction and as soon as a couple of things are in place I should be good to crack on with them. On the writing front I have some pretty good news but this will have to wait until after DTPIW is published, hopefully at the end of Q1.
That is about it for now as concentrating for long periods is quite wearing at present so once again,
Have a great new year - stay healthy keep rolling whatever you need to roll!
Catch you all later!
