So It Begins…
Why are we here? That’s a question many of us ask ourselves at some point in life. The answer will vary across the globe and change over time. Hopefully, for the sake of this blog, you’re here to have some fun and get motivated to paint toy soldiers and play games because that’s why we’re here. So it begins…
Several decades ago I was a young lad in high school asking myself much the same question. I was wondering what to do with my life. I wanted to make some money but I wanted to have fun doing it. My type of fun is playing with little toy soldiers. As it turns out there are not a lot of jobs that let you play with toy soldiers and make money, but I did find one. I managed to find a job working for a large company that manufactured and sold toy soldiers and had stores all around the world. While working there I meet a lot of great people but two, in particular, ended up living close by and remained regular hobbyists all these years like me. Their story is similar to mine. They’ve spent their lives buying toy soldiers too.
Buying plastic soldiers for a living
When you work for a company that sells the exact thing that brings you joy, you end up spending a lot of that money you earn right where you work. “Never taste your own product” is a line that comes to mind here. So over many decades, I have amassed what I refer to as my pile of plastic. A simply unfathomable pile of plastic and metal toy soldiers and terrain that sits there, unpainted, just begging me to retire and spend the rest of eternity painting it all.
Some may call it a pile of shame, others a pile of opportunity, but all I ever think, every time I walk into the room and see it, is how the hell am I ever going to get this all painted before I die! Despite thinking that, it never stops me from buying more and adding to the pile.
So for years, the pile of plastic has grown. Like a dragon and its hoard of gold, I kept buying. I changed jobs and couldn’t paint every day but I kept buying. I got promotions, made more money, and was busier with work, but I kept buying. I got married but I kept buying and just hid them away. I had kids, so of course, I kept buying because one day they will want to play as well. The kids grew up, so I kept buying because now they can play too and we both need armies. All the time I kept buying. But painting and gaming got less and less.
Can you ever have too many models?
Occasionally it reached a point where I stopped. Those moments were fleeting though and soon I was buying again. I don’t think you can ever have too much of a good thing. The armies grew and the gaming systems expanded. I managed to keep in touch with those two guys I worked with all those years ago. It turns out they were addicted to gaming just like I was. They now have piles of plastic as well, which is why we have ended up here.
A few weeks ago the world changed a little and I stood, looking at the pile. I couldn’t game but I figured I had time to paint now. Something was missing though. I was lacking the motivation and needed a reason to paint. So I threw down a challenge to my fellow hobbyists.
Paint an army a month
They have amassed just as many models as me so the challenge has been set to build and paint an entire, playable, army each month. I’ve gone easy on them this first month and let them pick the game system. For me, I have too many armies to even choose from so I made it a little more interesting. I let our local gaming club vote on which army I have to complete.
Join us here and over on Instagram as we introduce you to our piles of plastic. We’ll share the techniques, photos, stories, and escapades, as we motivate each other to get our entire hobby collections painted. Who knows, maybe we will motivate you to get through your pile of plastic as well. We know you have one!
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