Toy Soldiers and War Games

I’ve always been a collector, and when I was a kid I had what was undoubtedly the best collection of toy soldiers in the neighborhood. Boxes and boxes of them, occupying a sizable part of the basement. It was my favorite pastime to spend an afternoon, a day, a weekend down in the basement, away from light, air, and healthful exercise, staging miniature wars. Often enough, one or another friend would join my basement sessions, but just as often I would be alone.