Turns out, you can put a round peg in a square hole...

...ya just gotta square it off first.

The 'round peg' in question is the one on the left.

Note the svelt meatball shaped physique of the sitting quar in the photo above. I needed two of the rotund little guys to fit into the driver/gunner's compartment of my Warlord Games' universal carrier. That was no easy feat I can assure you, especially the driver's position as its a lot narrower than the gunner's spot!

Short, fat, metal, and with an integrated base, yay. Now largely legless, these two will never walk again (if they're ever removed from this little carrier). The driver meanwhile underwent a um...diet, via a hacksaw whilst being held in place with channellocks. Those were in addition to the snips, x-acto, and hobby saw which had already been used on the two! 

Between games, this will serve as the tow for my light tesla AT gun for Konflikt '47, as well as the ride for my Lt. & FO. As for the AT gun's crew, they'll have to walk.

In the end though, whilst the literal hack job was a little ugly, it worked and in they went! Then I finished assembly aside from the tracks (which are still removable), primed and began base coating this tiny tank. Hopefully I'll finish it up this week.

*****

On a sadder note, this past weekend was in a word: heartbreaking. We had to say goodbye to our beloved Sheba. We only had her a little shy of 3 years, and whilst we knew that getting an older dog meant we wouldn't have her long, as it is with so many, cancer took her well before her time. She is already sorely missed. :-(  

They're wonderfully gentle dogs and we highly recommend greyhounds to anyone who wants what is essentially an 80lb cat. The link above is for our local greyhound rescue, but if you're interested just google rescues in your area, I'm sure there's one nearby. 

WHITE OUT CONDITIONS!!!

o/

Our greyhound Sheba romping around the yard in her tiger coat!

Yes, Da Masta Cheef likes playing in the snow too!

Blizzards, and anything approaching the like are quite rare here in the Appalachian Subsector, but luckily we awoke to just that Sunday morning! When I measured the white stuff around noon, we had 8" but it kept on snowing for quite awhile so we probably got more like 9" in total. Meanwhile, at my sister's house in Knoxville, a mere 2 hours away all they got was a dusting of snow, and another and a half further south, a friend of mine in Chattanooga reported that all they were getting was a cold, miserable downpour all day! Yes I'm bragging and no, it doesn't matter since neither reads my blog, lol!

This probably isn't even worth a mention by the likes of
Mordian7th  and his fellow Coloradans!

Whilst I excavated my trukk to make life a bit easier Monday morning, I made no effort to reduce the 1.5-2 foot high berm of snow the plow trucks have left about 5 feet behind my trukk.  I'm not gonna lie, I can't wait to finally have an excuse (albeit a brief one)  to actually use the 4WD that I haven't used since buying it almost 3 years ago when I leave for work!

At this point, I'm pretty sure Baxter was still thinking: THIS! IS! AWESOME!!!!!

With the white stuff falling, we opened the mini blinds all the way, put on the Christmas music and decorated our tree. Its the first time our kitty Baxter has ever experienced one and he was having a field day with it! After a few passes amongst the faux branches, he decided to romp thru the packaging of the decorations when a vicious gift bag attacked him! (he got his head stuck in the handle). After ramrodding around the house in a panic he broke free after colliding with the threshold to our bedroom at full speed! Luckily he was alright, but after removing the remnants of the offending bag, he's avoided the living room since. Clearly he's had enough of this holiday shit.

They're getting there, slowly but surely...

As for the hobby front this week, not much to report I'm afraid. I did at least paint the metal bitz on my mech lance, clearing the way for touch ups and detailing before slathering them in ink. With luck I'll finish 'em up this week, but don't hold your breath on that...

Sheba!

Nope, notta thing to report on the hobby front.

This past weekend Wolfy and I went on an overnight trip to Asheville, NC to see Loreena Mckennitt. The concert was fantastic! As was our entire stay...well, except for the bed in our room, that was akin to sleeping on a hardwood floor (and my back is still a mess as a result). As such rather than sleep-in (an impossibility) we were up and going early Sunday morning, and after a much needed nap at home, we eagerly awaited the arrival of our new greyhound!

Wolfy, Myself and Sheba.

Sheba, has joined our family after we went to a greyhound 'meet & greet' the weekend prior and we 'clicked' with her. It was very much a case of she picked us rather than the other way around. She's very laid back and has yet to bark (which is not at all uncommon for Greyhounds). She's a retired racer and breeder and is learning what 'retirement' is all about.

She made sure that nothing was missed in her adoption contract!

Here are a few of Sheba's 'stats':

• 8 1/2 years old
• She raced in 32 races, with 13 wins
• Her average winning speed was approx. 37 mph!
• Mother of 35 pups from multiple litters from 2011 thru 2015
• One of her grandfathers was named Oswald Cobblepot (luckily no limp was inherited, lol)

More often than not she can found sleeping in this spot in our living room.

As you can see, she just about takes up a queen sized bed all by herself!

We're learning too. for example: I took her on a walk on Monday, leisurely paced and maybe 3/4 of a mile. The poor thing, at the end she was so tired I had to pick her up to get her back into my truck's back seat! Odds are she's never walked that far-ever! Indeed, as far as we know she had never gone a walks period until getting into foster care a few weeks ago. Likewise, we're trying to teach her that she can stay out in our fenced yard for as long as she likes. She doesn't have to just go out, do her business and come right back in.

Additionally, I've never had a dog who can watch your every move in the kitchen because her eye level is higher the counter top, and then there's that tail! When happily wagging its a thing of (of potential) destruction! Luckily, our decimator survived unscathed when Sheba's tail caught it by the flight stand and launched it almost clear across the dining room yesterday!

Greyhounds get chilly quite easily, but she slept like a baby under this blanket.

As I'm sure you can tell,  we're very happy with our new pup...well, except for the kitties, they're still mad...but they are adjusting (begrudgingly).