Sunday 6 March 2016

Today in Tradgardland

It is a couple of weeks since I last posted. Last weekend I was in Glasgow for Model Rail Scotland (my first ever railway show) at the SECC. Most interesting and enjoyable.Whilst there I was mentally comparing and contrasting with wargames shows. The model railway show had more families there, younger folk operating the train ( of both sexes) and being involved and the atmosphere was less smelly than some wargames shows. I didn't find that operating folk were any more willing to engage in conversation than folk at wargames shows on the whole. It is interesting to note that unlike wargaming there are more of a future generation coming through.
I however came down with a fluy/coldy thing and spent the next day in bed and have found it hard to shrug off this week.
Today is Mother's Day and a difficult day for my daughters. It is also my 56th birthday-
I received some lovely cards and some excellent reading material and look forward to a celebration meal later in the day. I am going to potter about with some old school ancients kindly brought for me by the Forbodian Ambassador who visited the Duchy  most enjoyably yesterday.More about his splendid little naval game in another post shortly.
Tomorrow would have been Jan's 54th birthday.All in all a weekend of joys and sorrows.

19 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your birthday!
    Looks like you got some interesting books and something to drink while you're reading them.

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  2. Tradgardmastare,

    I hope that you have a happy birthday and that you are able to come through the next few days without too much sorrow in your heart. Try to remember the good days and to forget the not so good ones. Not easy ... but I am sure that you understand my thinking.

    I gather from what you have written that you have had a visit from the leader of the Forbodians during his recent sojourn in Scotland, and that he has demonstrated his new naval wargame. I look forward to reading your opinion of it as it certainly looks like it is great fun.

    All the best,

    Bob

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  3. I even have photos of the Ambassador and his game in action...

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  4. Happy Birthday to you! It sounds like you've had a bitter/sweet few days.
    The comparison of wargaming shows to model trains shows was interesting, especially the part regarding future generations. I still don't understand why wargaming shows the world over have to involve bad smells (that is certainly true here in Canada).

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    1. Reluctance to buy deodorants over lead/plastic?

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  5. Hope you have an enjoyable birthday. Another milestone gone by. I find model railway shows vary greatly. I was at a small village hall one up the road yesterday and the layout operators were all happy to chat. I always find some idea to borrow or adapt. These days it is usually the large club operated layouts that seem unfriendly, as the operators are all usually behind the backscene at the controls or chatting to each other about which train to send out, while the smaller layouts often operate from the front and chat away.

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  6. Was it not Virgil who wrote "Beware Forbodians bearing gifts." Well no it wasn't but the warning still holds true. Have a good day!

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  7. Bittersweet days, indeed. I wish you a Happy Birthday, Alan. I look forward to the Forbodian naval game report.

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  8. Hard to celebrate and mourn at the same time but many happy returns none the less Alan. May this be a year of renewal for you and your daughters.

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  9. Hi Alan
    hope you had a decent day. A nice lot of presents and some very tasteful cards there too!

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  10. Happy birthday! My condolences that it's now more than twinged with sadness. Bob's advice to remember the good is worth practicing. Best wishes!

    (wouldn't have recognized you sans beard)

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  11. Happy 56th Alan. Look forward to the Naval game. KEV.

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  12. Hope you had a good birthday and the weekend wasn't too tough.

    I used to see the One Gauge railway show in the Woking Leisure centre when I was at the gym. The attendees seemed similar to a wargames show with a sea of grey hair - though they did seem better dressed!

    What always amused me were the occasional woman seen sitting in a camper van in the car park knitting...

    Mike

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  13. Visiting model railway shows is bad for you. I blame them for the wargames terrain that we now see on a regular basis and the quality of wargames tables achieved today. Seriously though, anyone wanting to see how scenics should be done should visit MR shows. I started my life in the model world a million years ago with my dad building a railway in our cellar. We went to many shows and the quality of work produced is mind blowing. Moving house and losing the cellar led us to wargaming but I never forgot what a good MR modeller can achieve.

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