How Do You Enjoy the Hobby?

I want to pose a question to the group here about how we hobby because I know not everybody plays or if they do, maybe they don't do so conventionally or maybe they just paint and maybe, like myself, it really depends on where they are in their lives at the moment. With that said, I just want to generate a little conversation and share a few thoughts.




So just due to the nature of the blog and our history of being pretty GW game-specific, I know most of the conversation will likely be in the light of 40k and maybe fantasy, but certainly I can see the issues applying to any wargamer.





For me, the act of playing the game came first and painting my models was something that I wasn't good at and sort of had to do to be accepted while playing, so I did it.




Then I met Capt. Obvious, who was into painting and had some skill, but not so much that I thought it would be impossible to replicate. Suddenly, the way my models looked became important.





As time progressed, I went to my first Adepticon, saw amazing models, became a part of a great group of friends who played. My accessibility to gaming with a very awesome group ramped up my interest in play and also competitive play. I also became friends with Chris Vinton, who already had a ton of talent and a friendly rivalry developed which pushed us both higher into the hobby realms for a few years.





Once I moved away from Michigan and gang, I had some wet and dry times, but spent most of sixth edition playing competitively and playing armies with power and thanks to Chuck Groff, I stayed high up on the hobby front, making some of my best work ... however, game availability dried p and local tourneys became much less local. This has made 7th edition interesting to me because I haven't kept up with it and when I try to read in depth, I just hit a point where I lose interest. I have been slow building models however and taking my time has opened up some door to improving my sculpting and basing skills and has me looking at projects that are just dream conversions that have nothing to do with my army.




The feeling that tugs on my sleeve here feels like freedom. The promise to make whatever I want without regard to an army or even a game is foreign to me ... and at the same time the pragmatic side of my personality seeks the justification promised by having a model fit an army if for no other reason than to give it more of an excuse to see table time ... but then I wonder how much table time is really in the future?




I ask about how we hobby because I am interested in how people enjoy miniatures and even if that was a journey or if they have always enjoyed them the same way. Maybe it has been cyclical? I am very interested in your thoughts and your experiences as I ponder my current transitional state.