Looking back ... looking ahead

 Another year ended only a month ago, this time it was ended in the mad rush of moving out from a somewhat cramped home and into a larger home with more families and connections in that home.

I am also noting that this year will mark the 20th anniversary of this blog.

In the process of unpacking and setting up in the new home I am also finding that many of the things I have collected up are reaching their limits.

an award I was presented in 1988

I have decided to release this award, as it has not been on any display for at least eight years.

This got me to also examining the photos of the various games that I printed out for being in frames, I am not certain that these will be put up in the new games space yet, though their fate has not been fully determined either.

There will be some books that are likely to get culled from the collection, as they are somewhat surplus now and it would be great to see them have new keepers that could use them.

While I still plan to finish off the minis I have cast and complete the games sets that I have been building (notably the ACW campaign set beyond Gettysburg), I am seeing more now that I have less time for construction and want more time for game play with what I already have.  Notably with my sons last year with some Napoleonic and ECW games that I really enjoyed.  Meaning that I am more likely to get back into some sort of a campaign game set-up, like the Campaign of Nations from 2013-18, so that the tabletop games get into action and will have some 'meaning' beyond the instant of that evening's game.

Lots of good memories of the 200th anniversary games that have been chronicled in this blog from early on in 2006 to 2015, so I suspect that there may be more reviews done of them over the course of this year.

I have had nagging interests in space games (based on the Star Fleet Battles game) and given that the interest among other players is limited, these urges might have to stand by longer.

The design and set up of the game spaces continues to take up time, along with the rest of the unpacking, and I think I might share some of the table planning thoughts here in the next week.  The building of this table will round out the new game space and put it into more likely a location for regular games - the aim being to do some game action on the table at least once a month after the construction is completed.

Not wanting to get more melancholy here, just looking for a place to get the thoughts put down before releasing many items. 

creating space

 the boxes progress has picked up speed now that the work I was doing at the old house is done and it is on the market for sale

still many boxes to go through, likely into next week, before any momentum picks up for table building

though for now there may be a game in the month of February, even if it may not be a miniatures contest

the current state of affairs, many of the
bookcase games are now out and the 15mm
ACW forces have been located

Peter & My shared spaces for games work
eventually there will be a 42" high 4'x6' table
that can be modified in the center of the spaces

the minis storage was still being 'sorted'
when this image was taken

The process will take some time and I can now forsee a possible minis game in April, unless other things get in the way.

 Hopefully your spring will be more game active than mine looks. 

litte bit of moving reality

 Having had zero time to do much more than move the boxes into the new game space, no table yet as there are building plans for that.

I have a little piece of video from the removal from the old location, so I have taken the time to post it here.

Maybe I'll get a video of the new table construction?

 

There's a rumor of a Leipzig game on the horizon, using Napoleon's Battles in 15mm (others collections), I am planning to take part, in all of the game if I can.  More about that when I know more.

Have a good end to your winter actions. 

Panorama of the spaces.

 

A panorama of the home spaces
left - Dining Room/living room
center - game space
right - Kitchen

A view of the spaces during unpacking and laying out the furnishings and preparing to put it all into use.

This photo was taken on December 31, 2025, sometime in the afternoon.

We are still in unpacking mode and plenty of boxes to go through along with many items to 're-home'.

Maybe a game might get put into action before spring?

The last view of table before moving.

The game table in its last moments before moving

Miniature towers and the terrain supplies
moments before packing up and moving it all.

 

A little RPG encounter

 During the move, our new house mate had his usual RPG night and I offered to drive, as he's less confident with driving at night (especially after doing a full shift all day).

 

the D&D crew in action

 Sadly for Peter, his character was knocked down early in the action.

the characters in action

He did manage to get healed and stand up into action.  I was a witness and new year came next.

lights display near the RPG home in the Comox Valley

 Then more moving and boxes activity was to come.

Here we go again ... its moving time.

 

I still had this image on my system from last time ...

Well, no hiding it now.  The house move will be in-progress by the time this post goes live.

Maybe I'll be able to get in a year-in-review posting before the move and schedule it, or be able to post something after the move has happened.

Either way, January and likely February 2026 are going to be loaded up and rather busy with the odds and sods of moving into a new location with a new paradigm.

May your holiday season be less exhausting than mine looks.

Chat in the new year.

Another Star Wars commission

 My middle son's collection of vehicles expanded again, with these models taking on a coat of paint from my hand:

there was also the imperial ship in the set, it was relatively simple to paint, coming out like a tie fighter

this was the last painted models at this location
the rack has now been moved away, ready for the next step ...