Time to Change the Display

 

This display has been up in the corner of our living space since just before Christmas and I figured it was about due to be changed out.

But first, a little cerebral side trip.

I've always been drawn to creating small slices of fantasy worlds.

I'm not sure how old I was but I was pretty young when I first crafted one of these private worlds with words when I wrote, with my limited vocabulary at the time, about a family that moved onto a small sailing ship to travel the oceans together.

And as far back as I can remember I was building models and diorams, little miniture, ordered, controllable, worlds. (I'm  from a generation that was raised part feral. After an admonition to "don't sniff the plastic cement", we were then left to our own devices unsupervised in the downstairs rec-room with limited ventilation. What a fantastic way to grow up! Discovering the posibilities and limits of the world unfetered by overly restrictive restraints!)

I'm no psychiatrist, but I speculate that the attraction to crafting these things is being able to immerse myself in a world of my own creation and control to the exclusion of real-world pressures. Creating backstories for groups of miniture people without the angst of actual social interaction. Creating places where I can sit quietly on a mythical porch, free from the drone of lawnmowers (I grew up in the midwest where people are obsessed with lawns and lawnmower-drone is constant from sunup to sundown from early spring to late fall), free from medical appointments, car repairs, insurance brokers. A place where my mind can settle, can reset.

And as a septuagenarian I'm still alright with playing with models. Fantasy worlds rock!

So, (back to our originally scheduled program) time to move the old display to a protective storage container out in the dusty barn.

But before I do that,

I need to gussy up a couple of rather plain looking wooden 3D models

with some paint,

people,

and lights.

Except that didn't quite feel like enough for the display soooo - - -

I grabbed some foam-board, gathered together some scenery materials, more people, three miniture lamp-posts, some glue, paint, a few random pebbles from the driveway,

along with some trees, and more lights for the trees,

to create a little park to stroll through.

And since I was on a roll, and they were there in my box of crap, I slapped some little whicker balls, a string of lights, and india ink of various colors, onto the bench just to add a little more clutter and sparkle.

All of which

went together

to create

the new display.

Hummm, what world should I create next?