h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm a sad bastard who owns three Dremel minidrills as well as a large Black and Decker-type for heavier work.

All of them are meant to fit into their own plastic cases when the job's done: the cases even have allocated preformed slots for everything to fit into.

And because of the bloody flexes and plugs (which the designers of the carrying cases MUST have taken acount of?)can I fit these things in squarely and neatly? Can I bollox... the lids always bulge and the plastic catches need to be forced closed. So either I'm doing something wrong or the bloody flexes make putting these things away impossible for everyone...

BTW, I use the Dremels for modelling and converting work, my prefered area is WW2 with a secondary interest in Ancients. The reason why I ended up with three Dremels is that assorted nephews into Games Workshop come round to use my workshop and tools: having more than one seemed like good sense, so I could supervise up to three lads at once in between getting on with my own projects.

While I'm not really into it, some of those big chunky GW models look quite cool when they're painted and set up, and I can definitely see the attraction. I can also appreciate the craft skill needed to perform surgery on the figures, reposing and re-assembling stock figures off the shelf.

So it annoys me too when the "anorak" allegation, and worse, gets thrown around. Although Herself does smile and point out her rainproofing of chice is PVC, a la Skin Two...

Losing the plot. Definitely

Dremels? Dremels are for wimps... it's not a proper modelling project unless you've had to spend an hour swearing at the model because the pin vice has got stuck.

heh... what I'm saying is that I've got a clutch of four nephews who are all into GW models, and I wouldn't say any of them are socially maladjusted or suffering from Aspergers' Syndrome. (One of them is fourteen and is already avoiding would-be girlfriends, on the grounds they're cutting into his modelling and gaming time)

I do get the point about Dremels v pin-vices, though: it was precisely because the pin-drill kept getting stuck and was hard to extricate, as well as the labour involved in manually sanding and filing, that I got my first Dremel. I have to admit, the lads are damn clever at it: if a mass-produced metal cast figure needs to be re-posed, they'll think nothing of sawing it up into sections (Enter the rotating ceramic cutting disc)then re-pinning the bits, glueing and filling. You can learn a bit from the GW system and its teaching aids in construction, painting and converting, I have to say.

And, speaking as one who is viewed as an old fart for sticking doggedly to Humbrol enamels, I have to admit that there are some uses to water-based acrylic paint. (Although I found it horribly washy and watery at first). Similarly, the GW lads now use Humbrol enamel metallics by choice, as they've found these are actually better than GW acrylics.

So it's good for all of us: we're cross-fertilising ideas and techniques all the time. And we also lead perfectly normal lives, which makes the "anorak" jibe quite grr-worthy!

Does Humbrol battleship grey still taste like bananas?
Not that I ever used to drink it, but I developed the 'lick the brush to maintain the point' habit quite early on.

I definitely prefer the acrylics to enamels and have no problems with the GW metallics.

I was talking about insulting role players to my mates who like me are all role players and the point was made that role playing games are social. People who play them do have lives which involve other people and it's more sociable that shooting at digital people which seems to be regarded as perfectly non-"sad" behaviour by the man in the street. Model making requires skill and manual dexterity and the ability to follow instructions so if it's "sad" at least it's building skills. Often such people who tell those of us who practice such hobbies to "get a life" appear to be those whose idea of a life is to be drinking themselves even more stupid or playing those appaling ring tones on their mobys to the annoyance of everyone else. Sid Vicious once said he'd met the man in the street and he was a w*anker - although not the sharpest tool in the shed even without the damage done by the happy power - I'm starting to think he may have had a point.

I'm confused. What letter did you asterisk out of the Sid Vicious quote there?

My petty hate: Pedantic people.

I've never really understood why an obsession with "Star Trek" is considered to be supremely nerdy and sad, while an equivalent obsession with Manchester United is socially approved and makes you a well-socialised and well-adjusted Lad with a healthy interest in football. There is a certain double standard at play here, one wonders.

It's all obsession, and any form of tunnel-vision monomania is bad for you. (I speak as somebody who quite enjoys the odd episode of Star Trek in any of its forms and can appreciate a well-crafted plot, without feeling any sort of personal need to ponce about in the uniform or become an Authority on the workings of Starfleet. I also have a despairing interest in the fortunes of Stockport County, possibly the most mediocre football club in Britain, but I don't stress too much when they lose, just sigh heavily and get on with life)

Military modelling and wargaming are an interest, and as She Herself says, she knows where I am at nights, I'm not blowing it on other women, and it's a relatively cheap hobby, unlike for instance golf... (now GOLF addicts could bore for England, without a doubt)

That's a fair point AgProv, in my opinion wearing a football shirt all the time is no different to dressing up as a Star Fleet officer.

Of course as a LARPer and official Costume Fascist I frequently despair at the low standards of costumes/prosthetics seen on Star Trek fans. Of course LARPing may be seen as even sadder than Trekking, but hey... we're *much* better at scaring the normals!

Alex - there is no need to capitalise following a colon...

"Does Humbrol battleship grey still taste like bananas?
Not that I ever used to drink it, but I developed the 'lick the brush to maintain the point' habit quite early on."

All I could taste was turps with overtones of salt....

PVA glue, on the other hand, has an amusing little bouquet reminiscent of elderberries.

"Doctor who was created as a means of entertainment, trains as a method of transport, and stamps as a method of raising revenue for the postal service. People derive entertainment from all three. Now, which strikes you as the most sensible?"

Doctor Who... but I am biased there.

Let's see.... railway system falling to bits and trains overwhelmingly voted Least Reliable Mode of Transport.

Royal Mail falling to bits with a diminishing abilty to collect and deliver mail on time, and a growing propensity for losing it altogether.

Dr Who - last series voted Best Ever.

I can see where you're coming from on this one!

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Actually Royal Mail are doing quite well now and have been for the last four years.

Petty hate: people who blindly parrot 'facts' without checking the latest version of events.

Of course. Why spoil a good posting with facts? (Although I can't say the post has improved round here, maybe we just have the wrong sort of postmen)

Going back a bit

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Shurely that is all a matter of perspective. FRom the point of the farter, I concur that 'out' may be considerably more beneficial than 'in', but if am not the farter but in the company of said farter, I am quite comfortable with it remaining 'in'

And going a tad further back, as for gossips in the cinema, my friend told me how he had to endure a talkative, overloud and whiny american g*t chatting away behind him when he was at the theatre watching 'Spamalot' the Monty Python musical. The best comment was at the begining of a scene when the unofficial commentator leaned to his partner and announced

[over the top mid west american accent]
oh oh oh this is a killer, you'll love this, this scene has a song in it called "always look on the brighter side!"
[/over the top mid west american accent]

I think I understand now... you must have the old Mk. 6-d postmen. The current Mk. 8-b postmen are much more efficient.

To be honest when it comes to fandom/obssessions I don't see the problem. Some goon in one of the papers took the hype surronded the release of "Half Blood Prince" to rant against the Harry Potter obsessives and on other fandoms like the large number of people who put Jedi as a religion on their census forms he of course failed to realise that for most people who did it it was a joke or a comment on how meaningless the question was to them. At the end of day (sorry to person who hates that expression but I like it) what harm does obsessive fandom do anyone and aren't there more important things to get annoyed about even within art, the bland state of most music and the "empereor's new clothes" aspect of a lot of modern art is far more annoying to me at least an obsessive generally appreciates what is good. The Levellers sang "there's only one way of life and that's your own" and I think, providing it hurts no one else, you should be able to live your life however you see fit without harnessment from other people. This goes for anything from dressing up as a Klingon to supporting your favourite sporting team.