Unexpected Sabbatical

This is a message to all my readers and friends who have been wondering where I have been for the last month and a half and have emailed me or PMed me to inquire about my lack of posting and see if I'm Ok.

I truly appreciate the concern and wanted to respond here to let you all know that I am OK. Unfortunately, I took an unexpected sabbatical from the hobby, and blogging in general, when it was confirmed in early January that my father had cancer of the liver accompanied by a massive blood clot. I spent much of that time with him, visiting, talking, and spending some quality time together, as well as bolstering his spirits to fight the horrible disease.

Unfortunately, on January 19, 2012, my father passed away due to complications with the blood clot. It was quick, and unexpected, as he was starting to show signs of improvement on his chemotherapy. Needless to say, this was a powerful emotional blow to me and my family, and afterwards I decided to take a full month hiatus from actively hobbying and blogging in order to support my mother emotionally, and to assist her with all of the details that needed sorting with respect to the burial, funeral services, etc.

Some of you, who are my close friends, were well aware of this, and were very supportive, either by being at the visitation, or the funeral, or being there in spirit and sending me personal PMs, emails, and text messages to let me know you were thinking of me and my family. For this I am truly grateful as it helped me get by when my mind was still and my emotions began to well up.

It's still hard most days, but things are getting better, and I have many of you to thank for helping me through the first difficult month. I can think of nothing more difficult than losing an immediate family member this way. I can only take solace in the fact that I did take the time to spend with my father while we were able, and we left nothing unsaid.

Thank you for your patience, and your heartfelt messages. It means a lot.

So, what of my hobby plans, and plans for the blog?

Well, I will return, though it may be at a slow pace at first. I have many projects planned, or in the works. Some of you have already seen the MK1 Land Raider and Predator tanks that I showcased on the YouTube channel. And I know some of you are champing at the bit to see the wonderful Ork Battleship/Wagon that I received, and have now repaired. And others are looking forward to seeing me return to working on my Ork Army, which is sadly never going to be painted in the original time frame I set, so I will have to rework that time table, but it will be done.
What else do I have planned?

Well, my friends and I are considering what to do for 2012. In 2011, we ran a map based Warhammer 40K campaign which culminated in a massive Apocalypse game to determine the result. And we are now trying to decide what to do for this year. Will we do a "Badab War" based campaign, or a "Doom of Mymeara" campaign? Or perhaps we will return to the Map Based campaign we have just concluded to see what happens next. Plus, 2012 marks the 25th Anniversary of Warhammer 40K and I've been feeling the urge to revisit my Crimson Fists.

And that's just scratching the surface of the hobby with a single genre, and I still remain very interested in Warhammer, as well as other miniature game systems like Heavy Gear, Battletech, and even Star Wars (which has some promise for the future), to name but a few.

There is a lot to look forward to for the rest of this year, and I hope that you all enjoy following along.

Thanks for all the support!

CAUTION: Bonds Skin Instantly Now on YouTube

Welcome back dear readers and fellow hobby and table top miniature game enthusiasts. The new year is settling in quite nicely. Everybody in the miniatures hobby world seems to have great plans and lots of projects lined up. Naturally, Caution: Bonds Skin Instantly is no exception. What started out as a little personal blog has done quite well in the last year, with almost 20,000 views now, which I found quite surprising and inspiring when I learned. I do my best to keep the blog up to date and relevant, with quality content, photos, and articles, even though it is done purely for a hobby.

Happy Holidays

Hello Everybody,

I just wanted to take a moment from my holiday break to wish a Happy Holidays to all our readers out there. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, or whichever other special holiday you celebrate at this time of year, and that the New Year promises health and happiness to all.

The year 2011 has been very difficult for many of us, including myself and my family. But the holidays reminded us of all the wonderful people and blessings we have in our lives, and I wish only the same kind of blessings upon you.

To all my family, friends, and readers, thank you for being so supportive and caring. You are all blessings, and each and every one of you makes the hardships life throws in our paths easier to bear.

Thank you for your continued support and for returning to my musings as frequently as you do, and I promise to do my best to keep it interesting and informative.

Happy New Year, everybody!

Freebootaz Toys for Tots 2011!

Hello everybody! Once again the Christmas season is upon us. And once again, the Freebootaz, of the 40KRadio forum, are continuing their annual tradition of support for Toys for Tots!

Every year, since they have started, the Freebootaz, the 40KRadio forum members, have been running charity drives in the form of donating, building and painting Warhammer 40K armies to auction. This activity actually takes place all year long, as members decide what new army to do, dedicate units and models, decide on the painting schemes, and then spend the rest of the year up to the very beginning of December assembling, converting, and painting their donations.

Editorial: 40K In The News? Another Perspective.

Recently, I talked about an article written about 40K, the hobby, and the people, by a journalist in Greece, and the negative attitude that journalist took towards the hobby and the people.

Well today I offer an alternate perspective. This wonderful little video by students in the Film and Video Production program at SAIT Polytechnic, is chock full of interviews, sweeping scenic views of wonderfully painted armies and miniatures, and showcases a very interesting event that was run in Calgary in 2011, depicting the opening campaign during the Horus Heresy, in the Istvan system. All of this wrapped around with excellent production value.