This issue marks a milestone for MWAN as it completes twenty years of publishing. In no way did I ever think when I was starting out that I would be going so long! I remember mentioning many years ago in an editorial that I was aiming for one hundred issues for twenty years and here we are! During that time, our daughters have grown up - the "address putter-onners," Annie (22), who spent the year in studying in Puerto Rico, and Katie (16), finishing up her sophomore year in high school have grown up knowing their Dad has a passion (probably madness, in their eyes) for toy soldiers and his "newsletter," and my understanding wife, Barbara, has many times sat in the basement with me performing any number of MWAN-related tasks - do you have any idea how daunting a wargames table filled with stacked MWAN' s, unstamped and unaddressed envelopes, and everything else associated with mailing out an issue can be? Having her help me with the job makes it much easier and more enjoyable and I have to thank her for her many years of understanding that this is something that has become a major part of my life.
Twenty years is a long time; I am probably within a year and a half of retirement, if I choose to do so. When people ask me what I plan on doing, if I'll have enough activities to keep me interested, I tell them I have my "newsletter" - it's funny, most of the people I know well at work know about the "newsletter" - I've been surprised over the years how interested they are in it. They know it is part of my life, as it certainly is, and view me, I suppose, as a little eccentric, but accept the fact that doing MWAN is something I would do; something I would treat with the same respect as I view my livelihood. I appreciate that very much from my friends.
It's amazing to me how everything has changed so much in the last twenty years as regards publishing a "newsletter." From a copy machine to mimeograph machine to a, computer. I experimented around with a scanner for sometime and actually got pretty good with my old one although my "new" scanner sits unused for the last two years. Katie can operate it, but I can't! I have to ask her how to use it effectively someday!
The mechanics of publishing is not the only thing that has changed. I've changed as well - I assumed that as I got older, I would have more time for my hobby; well, as many of us have found out, that's not the way it works! Much of this is because of personal choice -- like many of us, I spent far too much time on my hobby for many years at the expense of my family, which I regret. I enjoyed the time in the basement madly painting figures but it was a foolish thing to do and I'm glad that I realized that. It is very difficult for many of us to take this hobby activity for what it really is and should be - a relaxing hobby which allows us to continue our boyhood love of "toy soldiers." It should not be, although it is hard to stay away from, an obsession. Whether we are obsessed by our love of "toy soldiers," rules, or history in general, it is still just a hobby in which we put beautiful little painted soldiers on a tabletop and push them around.
We all go through phases in the hobby; MWANers send letters saying they "dropped out" of the hobby for awhile and are now back. Life gets busy sometimes; we have traumatic events in our lives; sometimes we have tragedies; because of all these events, we change the way we view the world and our hobby. I uneasily remember traveling to Champaign many years ago for a convention shortly after we started HMGS-Midwest for a convention on a Friday night so I could host a game. The next morning, I drove in a snowstorm up to Milwaukee to "showcase" the hobby at a wargames-related convention. At the time, I felt this was the thing to do; I thought it was very important. Very foolish indeed.
My hobby "phases" mirror my personality, as it does for all of us. The MWANers who "drop out" for awhile and are drawn back return with a different view of the hobby; perhaps this is the way we change. We immerse ourselves in this wonderful activity, at the expense of other parts of our lives, then for one reason or another, draw back and perhaps completely withdraw. However, the majority of us find that there is "something" about our hobby that we really miss: whether it is our love of military history, toy soldiers, painting, constructing terrain, gaming, the fellowship, etc., we miss it. Coming back with a slightly different attitude is probably a good thing. When we return, it is almost always with a different outlook, a different approach, probably more subdued and one which "fits" into our life in a more functional and realistic manner.
I find myself in a hobby "phase" where I still love toy soldiers; I still enjoy seeing them on the tabletop; I love putting armies together; I enjoy the planning aspects; however, I don't game. It occurred to me recently while I was at the LITTLE WARS convention, which I thought was very well run, by the way, that I probably will never host another convention game. I can't imagine hauling my "toys" into a convention room and setting up a game and then taking it all down again. I used to greatly enjoy "running" games at conventions; not any more. I don't see this as a negative thing; it is just the phase I am in at this time. Holds no appeal to me.
I do wonder lately what my motivation is for staying in the hobby and I wonder what my hobby involvement would consist of if I didn't do MWAN? If I don't game and my painting activity is very limited, what about this hobby still can hold my attention`? I admit that much of the motivation has to be the fact that MWAN is still very much a part of my life. I tell myself when I am building armies that I shall really enjoy playing with them when I retire. I find myself wondering if that will really happen; will I somehow, upon retirement, be moved to set up toy soldiers on my tabletop and actually play a game? I don't know the answer to that but it drives me to continue my hobby involvement with building new armies or getting terrain.
It seems to me that everything we do in our hobby takes patience. I've always been someone who gets involved in activities that are basically solitary in nature and require a "step-by-step" approach. I played APBA baseball for years before getting into wargaming; playing out 616 games of an entire major league season and keeping statistics takes the same qualities that putting together an army of toy soldiers takes. You accomplish it bit by bit; although you look forward to completing the "project," each part of the activity is enjoyable in it's own. You take pleasure in completing five or ten painted soldiers and it moves you closer to completing your army. As you paint those individual soldiers, you can visualize them on the tabletop. Reading military history motivates you to recreate what you read on the tabletop. Watching an historical movie motivates you to go down the basement and start another batch of toy soldiers.
What do all these "phases" mean? Are we all going to eventually "phase out" of the hobby? I don't think so; there is still "something" about wargaming that will always hold my attention in some way. That "something" for me, I believe, is my love of toy soldiers. I can lose my interest for hosting games, writing rules, painting, constructing terrain, whatever; however, the attraction of toy soldiers remains as does my love for history.
I know I've been rambling today, however, when you've done something for twenty years and sit down to write about it, it does make you think about what you've done and why you continue to do it. Publishing MWAN no doubt motivates me to stay involved in the hobby.
When I've experienced these phases in my hobby activities, MWAN has always been the "stabilizing" factor; I might change the way I personally approach my hobby, but the fact that MWAN goes out every two months dictates a steady involvement. Longtime MWANers have, I am sure, noticed changes in my "enthusiasm" or interest via the editorial content, but MWAN continues to show up in your mailbox every two months.
I've wondered how much longer I will continue MWAN; to be honest, carrying boxes of MWAN from the printer down to the basement and then two days later emerging from the basement carrying huge mail bags up the stairs gets a little tiresome for a fifty-five year old fellow! Not my favorite activity! To continue any activity requiring a lot of effort also requires that one obtain a sufficient amount of motivation to do so. For me, it is enough to believe that for whatever reason(s), I continue to have that motivation; there will come a time when I don't but I don't see that happening for awhile yet. I still believe that retirement will find me in the basement moving little armies around the table and writing about it in my editorials. Being excited when I see an attachment on my e-mails; opening a box of sample figures; waiting for terrain in the mail; planning my next period; getting together with my good friend, Len Brewer, to talk about wargaming; reading about someone's wargaming activities; all of the things that I still enjoy about this hobby of ours.
What still holds your personal interest in wargaming? Take the time to put your thoughts down and drop me an e-mail. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
One more reflection, if you will allow - a sincere THANK YOU to all of you who have supported MWAN, and myself, over the last twenty years through your articles, letters, e-mails, phone calls, feedback, subscriptions, and advertising - this would not have been possible without all of those components. I very much appreciate it and see it for what it really is - I am indeed a most fortunate man! Thank you very much!
Wally Simon has ceased publishing the PW REVIEW; I don't know how many years it has been since he started, but I would guess around twenty or so.
On Military Matters, 3 1 West Broad St., Hopewell, NU 08525 (609466-2329) Email: mililtarymatters@,worldnet.att. net has a wide selection of military books of interest to wargamers.
Vatican Enterprises, 43259 Herring Dr., Clinton Twp. MI 48038 (586-822-7874) Email: info@,wargamescenics.com (web: www.wargamescenics.com) is the distributor for the wonderfully done Hudson & Allen Studio 25mm buildings. I can highly recommend these items!
True North Productions (http://underworld.fortunecity.com/grand prix/623) has 15mm and 25mm WWII figures as well as 1/144th scale aircraft. They are adding to their 15mm Napoleonic line and adding 25mm WWII Belgians and French. Very interesting 15mm WWII lines; check them out!
The Miniature Service Center (www.miniatureservicecenter.com) announces that ICON Miniatures has changed their name to Black Tree Design, Ltd.; they offer a nice selection of 25/28mm WWII, Zulu Wars, and Ancients. Drop Doug a note at 1386 Portifino Dr., Yuba City, CA 95993 (530-673-5169; Email: MSC1D@AOL.COM). Doug also carries the Front Rank Napoleonic line and reports they have added an extensive Spanish line of infantry in round hat and shako, Tarleton, gun crews, and Spanish Generals as well as Portuguese cavalry, gunners, and Generals. I always liked the Front Rank figures!
My old friend, George Johnson of GAJO Enterprises, reports he has sold his business to Craig Tyrrell of 8547 S. Senda Circle, Sandy, UT, 84093-1469 (phone: 801-566-2186). (GAJOminis@aol.com). George has always been one of the true "gentlemen" of the hobby; in his letter, he states..."You can rest assured that one of my main considerations in choosing someone to continue this enterprise was finding a quality fellow who would carry on with my business principles: Fair dealings, speedy delivery of products, a 100% guarantee on all of our figures, and `On Approval' shipping of used armies, which is based on the trustworthiness of wargamers." George is now on his second retirement and I wish you the very best, old friend!
I am saddened to report that MWANer Chuck Vadun passed away April 13`h, 2002 at the age of sixty-one. I had known Chuck, through MWAN, for many years. He designed MWAN's cover many years ago and was a frequent contributor to MWAN over the years. He had a love of Colonial History and wargaming and shared it with many of us. Cards may be sent to Monika Vadun, 2335 Presidio Drive, San Diego, CA 92103. My condolences to his family - we shall miss Chuck.
CHARLES EDWARD VADUN June 20, 1941 - April 13, 2002
Back to MWAN #118 Table of Contents
Back to MWAN List of Issues
Back to MagWeb Magazine List
© Copyright 2002 Hal Thinglum
This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com