Shipping and duties

 The mercantile actions across the border from Canada into the USA continue to have friction.

In the past I have had limited challenges with sending my toys into the USA, now things have certainly changed.

In order to ship to USA you must first use an app to pay the duties, obtain a QR code to share with Canada Post (or any other shipper) to prove the duties have been paid.

screen shot from the duties system

I managed to get this all done for a BOPPERS shipment I have put out today.

I was incentivized by new information from Bob Murch Pulp Figures, that he put out this morning.

Bob Murch's information that was
put out on the morning of August 14, 2026

 
Edit at 17:34 pdt:

more from Bob Murch only 13 minutes ago

The crazy continues and will persist to mess around with our hobby activities, may you find a simple way past it all soon.

Continuing commercial impact

 Again a topic found me today. 

I have many of these pulp figures by Bob Murch and since I live in British Columbia there’s no tariff nonsense going on. 

I can only imagine the interruptions of projects for both producers and the hobby users. 

Nonsense like these tariffs are just going to push more away from any of the hobby activities and that hurts everyone. 

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.

La manoeuver sur les derrieres - active map

 

map from Dr D. Chandler

This strategy, implemented dozens of times by Napoleonic armies, forms the basis for many 'operational depth' attack plans.  From the WWI original German attack to the 'cauldron' that was the focus point of bewegungskrieg plans used in WWII and the Operation Desert Storm used in Iraq in 1991.

I have taken a bit of time to generate a little video exploring the basic aspects of this stratagem.

How have you incorporated such a strategy into your games?

Travelogue XVIII: London, Ireland and home

 Only one night in London this time, basically after arrival from Paris, so it was a great thing that the musical Hamilton was on and we were able to get rush tickets.

My bride had wanted to see it live in Seattle, so getting to see it in London was even better.

certain tube stations are of a familiar name

one certain tune will continue on in some games
we play on tabletop around here ...

upon return to Ireland, we had an excursion to one
more stone tower, though this one was a re-build

panoramas from the parapet

inside panoramas

many stained glass windows were
featured in a guild hall in Londonderry

including a Nobel prize on display

then a trip to the "Giant's Causeway"

our Irish host

my feet on the causeway
(for a sense of scale)

some of the columns have eroded like organ pipes
sticking out of the ground

then a real score!
I took a last chance at connecting with
Dublin Fire Brigade
gaining this competition team patch

and swapping a shirt for a shirt
and this windbreaker!

Greenland was still there

a visual inspection

just about halfway we crossed into Canada

finally home in YQQ
Comox

There are loads more photos of many of the locations I visited, though I have put most of the miniature related ones on the blog here, as it is hobby related.

I think the stained glass ones may get more attention, especially if I follow up on more units of Irish origin that are featured in the glass.

Thank you everyone for putting up with this travelogue, may you have an awesome summer!