May 25 2016 was my first blog post featuring cheap Pound Store Plastics painted up old Toy Soldier style: very VFS Steampunk!
https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2016/05/25/pound-store-wars/
Another International Star Wars Day (as well as May the 4th) to dig out some familiar old childhood favourite figures that I still have.
Geek Pride Day is another excuse for another Star Wars Day, the 25th May being the first showing date of Star Wars in 1977 in the USA.
The playground changed forever.
Last year’s 7th Blogaversary 2023 saw me working towards Close Little Space Wars
This year’s new Backyard Battalion Figures could easily be us as 1970s and early 1980s kids playing at Star Wars, any old helmet or saucepan acting as a Space Helmet – pew! pew! pew! 
Backyard Battalion figures
Backyard Battalion – fighting in a Backyard Galaxy Far Far Away … Stick laser rifles and Space helmets …
Thanks to the many blog readers who have left likes and comments (if they could) this last year.
Enjoy your (Gaming) Geek today, whatever that is!
Blogaversary Post by Mark Man Of TIN, May 25th 2024
Back to the source …
Donald Featherstone, War Games (1962): Eight blogging years on from 2016 or 40 to 50 years on from my first childhood encounter in the branch library, still an inspiration … Blogaversary Post Script
Following the blog tag reveals an interesting slice through my blog and gaming: https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/tag/blogaversary/
My 6th Blogaversary 2022 saw me DMZ demilitarised with the recent outbreak of fighting in Europe
My 5th Blogaversary 2021
My 4th Blogaversary 2020
https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2020/05/25/a-romantic-walk-in-the-forest-interrupted/
My 3td Blogaversary 2019
May 25 2018 last year my 2nd Blogaversary!
https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2018/05/25/happy-2nd-blogaversary-from-the-man-of-tin/
May 25 2017 was my 1st Blogaversary!
https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2017/05/25/may-25th-2017-my-1st-blogaversary/
Man of Tin blog 
Time flies!
Interesting that you added the photos of Donald Featherstone’s ‘Close Wars’, as it was at your blog I found them, and wanted to try them out (in my modern scenario) as they were free and in my aim of ‘budget wargaming’.
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Thanks Roger. I think ‘Close Wars’ Rules have been a consistent vein of inspiration and simplicity not only for 8 years but also since childhood.
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Congratulations! Here’s to 8 more!
-Ross Mac
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Thanks Ross – always interesting to look back and see what I was working on when, who know what it will be in 8 more years!
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Mark, congratulations and here’s to the future!
Alan Tradgardland
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Thanks for all your support and inspiration throughout the year as one of my go to blogs each morning.
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Congratulations to 8 years. I look forward to another 8 years of inspiration.
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Thanks John. Glad all this happy nonsense is inspiring. Who knows what I will be playing with in eight years time? Probably still very simple rules like Close Wars.
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Congrats! Have just had my own third Blogaversary. Yours has been an inspiration, and I’ve also recently gotten hold of the last early Featherstone book I discovered here, Tackle Model Soldiers This Way, with its basic rules I still hope to try. I’ve even started building some WWII Paperboys for use with the “modern” rules in that book.
A lot of good memories here. You should be proud.
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Congrats! Have just had my own third Blogaversary. Yours has been an inspiration, and I’ve also recently gotten hold of the last early Featherstone book I discovered here, Tackle Model Soldiers This Way, with its basic rules I still hope to try. I’ve even started building some WWII Paperboys for use with the “modern” rules in that book.
A lot of good memories here. You should be proud.
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Thanks Jen. Congrats on three years of interesting blogging and engaging a public / youth audience. I like the short wargames rules chapters that Donald Featherstone wrote in other military modelling books such as his own and Henry Harris’ book (I think I have blogged these as well).right back to Little Wars and his own War Games.
WW2 should be a popular topic for public engagement with the 80th anniversaries of 1944 D Day onwards and 1945 coming.
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Congratulations Mark well done for sticking at it for so long!!
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Thanks Pat
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