Ghost of Christmas Past.......

The New Year has finally shuffled in with plans of new armies and periods in which to dabble, but I found myself thinking back to a Christmas a long time ago. I suspect it was around 1972 and I had finally got hold of a copy of Don Featherstone's 'Wargames'. On a Saturday in December my Dad took me to Robin Thwaites' Model Shop in Arundel Street, Portsmouth (and if you are of a certain age you will remember it with fondness I'm sure) and asked me what I'd like for Christmas. I asked him how much I could have, and he said 'I'll tell you when to stop!'
So, having recently read 'Action in the Plattville Valley', I plumped for some ACW infantry, cavalry and artillery.
'Keep going' said my Dad.
So I added more and more Airfix ACW until I could barely hold all the boxes I had so many.
'And how about this?' said Dad, adding a Bellona vac-formed Log Fort to my booty.
Needless to say it was all paid for, then hidden away until Christmas Day when I had one of the most memorable and happy Christmases I can remember, fighting battle after battle on the parquet floor. Looking back it wasn't a huge outlay for my old man but it was the way he did it, knowing the joy it would bring me.
And that's what I was thinking about today, over forty years later, whilst contemplating my ridiculously large backlog of unpainted troops....
Happy New Year to you all.

(Airfix and Bellona pics shamelessly stolen from other Bloggers)