introductory post

Fellow builders, this is my first post. I've browsed,perused, and stolen all sorts of info from the internet in regard to this madness I've taken up again after decades of,well, just living life. I always seemed to end up on the pages of Fine Scale,and so here I am.  I gather that my bio is pretty similiar to a lot of other members; built models as a kid, slapped together with plenty of glue and paint, then blew them up with fireworks. Then sex,drugs and rock n roll, straightened up with 4 years in the Corp, married,job, kids,... life. Anywho, this return to modeling came about when one of my grandsons returned from Batleship Cove with a  1/700th USS Massachusetts. His father not inclined to attempt it I offered to build it for him, and it all came back. The hard part was shipping the finished model to Kansas City, but that's another story.  When my 8 year old nephew saw it he wanted in on the action, but he wanted a plane, so then came Revell's 1/48th Tomcat. Two years and hundreds spent on compressor,airbrush,tools and therapy have resulted in a 1/35th M48A2 Patton, 1/48th Mil Mi-24D Hind, 1/48th B-17, 1/48th P-61 and a 1/25th 1958 Corvette Roadster ( for s**** and giggles ). Nothing I'd hold up to what i've seen posted in galleries but it's the challenge to improve and attain that level of craftmanship that drives me on. None the less I build basically OOB and prefer to do my subjects as  "off the assembly line" before they have seen action and weathering. I personally feel that weathered subjects are more at home in dioramas, but have taken a stab at it with the P-61 and B-17, and learned that subtleness is key. One other comment before  I wrap up this long-winded intro : PE will be the death of me. Looking foward to all the help and encouragement I've become accustomed to from these pages. Thanks . BTW, on the bench: Trumpter 1/350th Dreadnought. Stash : don't even go there.