Well, I went to the MMSI show in Oakbrook (just outside Chicago) today. Let me put it this way....I was ready to come home and systematically throw away everything I've ever done and planned to do!!!! I brought my Kamikaze bust and entered it in the painting category. I'll know what the results were when I go pick up my bust tomorrow. I was feeling pretty happy with the final look of my bust, but once I put it among the other offerings I felt like a shmuck. Many of those guys are absolutely amazing! I don't even hold a wick let alone a candle to them. I won't even tell you about Bill Horan's stuff....it blew my mind. That man is a genius with paint. I'll post some pictures soon. I took over 100 pics, so I'll weed through them and show the best ones.

Porkchop & Mel, there were people who entered the U-boat captain bust and the Von Blucher bust. They looked really nice. I'll post those as well.

I'm not going to give up, but man I sure got a long road ahead of me. Oh well....these must be the growing pains you hear about.

Talk to you guys later.

John

Hi John,
I have a couple of friends here tat keep asking me to go to this show. Maybe one of these years I'll make it there.
Don't be discouraged by the quality of what you see there. It's bound to be among the best around. I know my stuff will never compare to what these guys and gals can do but I don't let that stop me from having my own fun . Just keep pugging away at it and enjoy yourself.
Good luck with your kamikazi bust. And I'm looking forward to see the pics you took.

Hi John, I was at the show too. I missed you again. Lots of very impressive stuff, including your Kamikaze bust. Heres a small sample of what everyone who didn't go missed.







And this is John's excellent Kamikazi bust

Well thank you Don for your kind words. I only wish others felt the same. I must admit I'm feeling a little sorry for myself right about now.

As I was not there for the award presentations, I did not know if I had won or not. I spent the whole week eagerly checking the site. Today they finally posted the results and I had not won any awards. They judge each piece on the merits of its own look and quality. You are not competing against the other entries. There are 3 judges and they each give your piece a score. Based on the total score you receive either a gold, silver, bronze medal, or a certificate of merit. I didn't get any of those things. I certainly wasn't anticipating a gold, but I thought I would at least earn a certificate of merit.

Oh well, it may have me a bit discouraged today, but I will keep trying and keep improving. Like they say...."there's always next year."

One thing I can say is Doug Lee won a Gold medal and Best of Show with his outstanding diorama of two German tanks and a charge of Polish cavalry. It was phenomenal and I was hoping he would win. Here's a few pictures of it:





John