Everything

Realising the remit in my blog intro/description, here's some stuff in general:

5-a-side - we've had a lot of trouble of late; regulars have been dropping out, numbers dwindled...it took an impassioned plea to get everything back on track and all seems to be well again. I'm hoping we're good for another block booking as we've been playing for about 8yrs in different guises.

Rugby - RWC 2015 looms large. Wales are in the same group as England, Australia and Fiji, a stinking arrangement caused by the WRU's greed in insisting on the annual 4th and unsanctioned Autumn International game allied to some poor results, albeit against top teams, in the period prior to the RWC 2015 draw, despite a 4th place world cup finish and 2012 championship win if i remember correctly (lots of commas there - not too many I hope). Anyway, the first warm up game at home versus Ireland went badly for the pack, but we had a developmental team out against them (they did too but were far more canny in the pack selection). We play them again next weekend in Dublin and this time we need to look tidy with a decent team expected to be running out.

Beer - to be fair, as a near 2-month vegan, real ale is off-limits to a degree. I need to check which i can drink as they are often made with finings made from fish. Other drink like wine (sparkling or otherwise) is often clarified with animal products. It's a steep learning curve but scotch is a-ok!

Cooking - I'm loving this vegan lark. Been making ratatouille, falafel, Thai broths, aubergine curries, mexican jazz, all sorts. I miss cheese though. And proper gravy 😐.

Minis - i have been somewhat active of late in the trade business. By which I mean i have traded x3 pieces. But i also got a freebie from a comrade in the north of Wales. In total, for the loss of x1 chaos warrior, x1 Marauder greatsword type fellow and an orc with a spear and a goblin skin hat, I have received the classic Space Wolf captain with the wolf helmet, a skeleton champion with 2 swords and a spike helmet, an Yyrkoon model (Eternal Champion), as well as that freebie I just mentioned: Moonglum, another Eternal Champion piece. I'm one piece up! Can't fault it. Still looking for Elric, Dorian, Erekose and some other bits, as well as moon face Tzeentch feller and Nurgle fly head dude. Feel free to contact me for trade 👍.

Religion/atheism - weirdly, a Polish couple and their kid knocked the door earlier asking if there were any other Polish families locally. They were JW's looking to spread the insidious word. It struck me that the kid had no chance of a normal life and would no doubt have to carry the mental baggage of his parents' belief system all his days, whether happily within the narrow confines of that organisation or else perhaps awkwardly if he is ever able to break out from the belief system his parents have forced upon him. Other than the fact the doorstep evangelisers thought us unworthy of the good news they had for their Polish compatriots, that got me a bit riled this morning. Religion is a choice, so don't force it on your kids. I can only hope the poor feller has a chance to break away later in life, but judging by the rallies we have in Cardiff every year, it's unlikely: there are teenagers and young adults by the thousands lapping this stuff up. As a willing victim of Christianity in my young adult life (I successfully pulled away when I employed logic and free thought, but it was one hell of a wrench - more of that another time) I know the pitfalls and the difficulty of stepping away from a very loving, caring group. It's not easy, and that's an understatement. Good luck to them all.

Piffle - see above.

Nos da...

Dark Torgt Hell Grim

Bagged him. Oh glorious day! What a piece. Just waiting on delivery now.

Loose Command Groups and Sundries

Having had a look at what figures I've got I've put them into loose command groups. There are some big size differences, particularly in the undead lot. Here they are, including a few loose ones for the sake of cataloguing...

There's a whole load of collecting and painting to be doing right there. Problem is I'm lazy and tend to prefer cooking over painting most days. But hey, it's not a race. Got falafel to cook right now so they'll keep.

Kimril Untethered

He's out of the Dettol and scrubbed up. Been in there x2 days. Still some black paint residue on parts but with the sort of undercoat he'll receive I'm not stressing about it. Here he be:

And here's a shot of brekkie - Shreddies, soy milk and black decaff coffee:

eBay Haul and Man v Machine

Been picking up some stuff on t'Bay. One of them is floating around in a jar of Dettol:

He's a classic piece by the name of Kimril, called a Giant Slayer on his tab. I've fancied grabbing him for a while.  He's actually below in all his eBay glory, pre-soaking:

I picked up up a mixture of other stuff too, having great fun with muppetpasterian, the seller. He's quite happy with Best Offer bids, and although I pay slightly over what I'd like it's still a lot better than silly bids on auction pieces (you know what I mean - sometimes it's hard to pull out till it's too late and you've committed loads of cash with oodles of regret) and stoooopid BIN prices. It's the perfect compromise. Here's the rest of the stuff I mopped up, including x2 pieces I'd normally never buy - a Cthuhlu piece (sp?) and a Wargames Foundry Viking.

The gobbo is class.

My overall aim with all the pieces I'm picking up is to be able to make a 4-piece command group. They'll be pretty eclectic rather than traditional, but that's all about choice - I don't game, just harbour painting dreams. If I can get x4 of each race and style I can put them together as I see fit. It's a self-imposed system that prevents me spending too much as well, always a sensible ploy.

I'll start working out the command groups as I flesh out the collection and photograph them. I've probably just about got a couple completed.

On another note I lost my most recent battle with machines, no doubt putting humanity even further behind in the aggregate scoring system. Suffice to say that a hotel room, a work shirt and an iron with a faulty reservoir cap saw me come off second best. The vagaries of travelling with work 😐. Added to hoover issues (can anyone tame a hose tube safely?) and bluetooth glitches in my motor, I'm slipping way behind. I'm not sure what would see me come back into contention, but I'm thinking of Father Ted's Mrs Doyle vs the Teasmade. Google it. It might just do the trick.

Onwards and upwards and all that jazz!

Finally, I'm big game hunting at the moment. I want this piece: