2011 -thank goodness that's over. Looking forward to 2012

It would be fair to say 2011 hasn't been the best of years on the hobby front "real" life has found away of making sure that it has intruded on my hobby several times this year.

Putting my back out, financial wobbles with the family budget, risk of redundancy (luckily averted but stressful at the time), my motorbike going to the great scrap yard in the sky, being knocked off my new motorbike by a new driver and the my kids seeming to have endless social functions and clubs to attend.

Have all combined to make for a very poor hobby output this year either enforced, like trying to paint with a bad back, or just plain sapping my enthusiasm for doing anything.

So drawing a blue line under 2011 I'm looking forward to trying to get more hobby time in 2012

I have projects I really should finish off which include

* a few extras for my new AK-47 army (a couple of armoured cars and some air power)

* a soviet Fow infantry battalion (half done just need to finish painting all those pesky infantry)

* a Fow US tank company (half done again more infantry to paint and some tanks)

* Darkest Africa Arabs (mostly done just 24 Askaris and some baggage and one offs like attendants to go)

Projects for which I have all the miniatures but are yet to be assembled or see a lick of paint include

* GWs Dreadfleet game basically I need to assemble and paint the whole thing

* a US taskforce for Rapid Fire to go against my German Kampfgruppe

* an entire Mantic Elf army that I got cheap last year

Projects for which I have nothing but take my fancy at the moment include

* more Darkest Africa Ngoni, Ila, Lozi/Kokolo and British lakes company all looking tempting

* to branch out my Darkest Africa stuff into VSF with steam tanks, dirigibles and fantastic troop types.

* post Apocalyptic skirmish games road warriors, zombies, mutants, survivors and gangs of guys in SM gear (well maybe not the last ones) - talking to my 10 year old about this other day and he reckons this is what I should go for.

So plenty to have a go at in 2012 just got to get stuck in and see how I go.

Cheers and happy new year everyone.

Jon