Christmas 2012......by Ana Donzino (1 Viewer)

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

When Christmas comes around, we find out if we have been good or bad. Hopefully, we have all been good and Santa rewards us with some of our favorite toys. Apparently, this Christmas, I have been much better than I thought. Perhaps I can show you how I reached this conclusion.

One of my favorite toy soldier artists is Ana Donzino. She is multi-talented. She plans, she researches, she sculpts, and she paints. She excels in all four of these areas. And,...she loves Delhi Durbar figures as much as I do. Consequently, if I receive some of her delightful Durbar figures for Christmas, I know I must have been good.

This Christmas, I have been fortunate to have been rewarded with some of Ana's wonderful figures, not once, but several times. I have only now been able to begin to unpack the figures and photograph them. Within the next several days, I should be able to show you what new and wonderful Beau Geste Durbar items are now present in my collection.

To begin with, I received Beau Geste set #92, the Nawanagar State Music Band. A few photographs of this set can be viewed below. Please disregard the "lopsided" nature of some of the photographs and focus on the figures.

The band is dressed in impressive yellow and blue uniforms. These uniforms must have dazzled the throngs of people viewing the Durbar parade. I can easily visualize the joy the band generated as they progressed through the city. I hope you enjoy viewing the set. I am extremely proud to have placed this set in my collection.

I should also warn you I received a couple more Beau Geste Durbar sets. I have not yet photographed them, but when I do, I shall post them in this thread. Watch for a few more photographs to appear in the next week or so.

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

I have a couple more photos of this wonderful band that provide you with a closer view. You may view the photos below.

More photos will follow in the next few days.

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[kogu]

Seeing this set, and your announcement of more photos to follow in this thread, I think you have been good, Pat ^&grin
A wonderful addition to your already impressive Delhi Durbar line.
Congratulations!
Konrad

 

[GICOP]

Superb set Pat....good to hear you have been a very, very good boy too....it sure works {bravo}}{bravo}}{bravo}}{bravo}}

Cheers

Martyn

 

[johnnybach]

Love the "blonde" hair on the two drummies Pat. I have "blonde" hair too, you see! jb

 

[jazzeum]

Pat,

Beautiful set. I was wondering if you got that special Hocker set you saw/purchased in Chicago.

Brad

 

[wadepat]

Pat,

Beautiful set. I was wondering if you got that special Hocker set you saw/purchased in Chicago.

Brad

Hi Brad,

Yes, I received the special "mystery" Hocker set. My schedule for the next few days is very, very busy. Consequently, it may be a few days before I can provide more information and some photographs, but rest assured I will provide the information soon. I will post the information and photos on the "View from My Chair" thread.

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[Ana Donzino]

Merry Christmas, Pat. You see, I love bands

Crossing items from the registered gift list you have in Beau Geste

You are such a great photographer!

Ana

 

[wadepat]

Merry Christmas, Pat. You see, I love bands

Crossing items from the registered gift list you have in Beau Geste

You are such a great photographer!

Ana

Hi Ana,

Thanks for making these wonderful figures! As you know, I, too, love the bands!

Be sure you make no mistakes when crossing off items from my registered gift list. I would hate to miss a set because of a simple clerical error. ^&grin:wink2:

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[MCKENNA77]

Pat:

Awesome dude. Happy holidays and have an excellent and healthy 2013.

Keep it silly

 

[lancer]

Beautiful set, Pat. BG just does marvelous work. Congratulations on the get. :smile2: -- Al

 

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

In Post #1 of this thread, I shared my conclusion that I must have been good this Christmas. The data on which I based this conclusion was fact I received a beautiful Beau Geste Durbar Band as one of my Christmas presents. However, I am in possession of more data on which to base my conclusion. As I tell this portion of my Beau Geste Christmas story, you should find ample evidence with which to agree with my conclusion.

For a number of years, I have been chasing Ana's magnificent Durbar Elephants with the intent of completing my collection of them. I know, I know. It is a dream that will probably never come true, but it is still great fun to pursue these practically perfect pachyderms. They are true works of art. Little by little, I have made progress toward my ultimate goal, but the goal has yet to be realized. Each year I attend OTSN in Chicago, I manage to add one, and, on rare occasions, I have managed to add two to my collection. Usually, the elephants that are available at the show are the newer ones. And, to add to my worries, Ana usually releases one or two brand new ones at the show, thereby making it difficult for me to even come close to achieving my goal.

Given the above background, you can imagine my panic when I very unexpectedly learned Ana was retiring Set #87, the Patiala Elephant with Maharajah, Mahout, and Servant. The Patiala Elephant set is one of those sets I had never managed to add to my collection! {eek3}

We all know that Ana's elephants are very prized items and they are priced accordingly. In other words, purchasing one is a serious endeavor. Consequently, I rushed to talk to Ms. Santa (a.ka. my wife, Diane). My conversation with Ms. Santa went something like this:

Pat: Oh, marvelous and beautiful lady, I am consumed with dread regarding a dilemma in which I find myself.

Ms. Santa: What is the delimma?

Pat: Very unexpectedly, Ana is retiring a Durbar Elephant set that I do not own! Oh, woe is me!

Ms. Santa: Have you checked with Treefrog to see if they have one?

Pat: Oh, yes, most highly esteemed lady and they have two, but I do not expect them to last the day!

Ms. Santa: This is no dilemma. Call Treefrog and tie one down before they disappear.

Pat: Really? You mean it? For sure? You don't mind? etc., etc.

Ms. Santa: No, go for it!

Like a flash, I was on the phone talking to Marsha at Treefrog and Marsha indicated the elephant was still available. I quickly shouted to Marsha, "Do not sell that elephant before I am off the phone!!!" There must have been a slight bit of panic in my voice as demonstrated by Marsha's laughter.

If you connect the dots in this story, you will note that I received timely information from Ana, followed by permission on high to purchase the elephant, and concluding with the acquisition of the elephant set via Treefrog. You have to have been good all year for such a highly gratifying experience to occur. Sure, it was not really a planned Christmas present, but since it all occurred during the Christmas holidays, I have declared it an important segment to my Beau Geste Christmas. Thank you Ana, Shannon, Marsha, and, most of all, the Lovely Lady Diane (a.k.a., Ms. Santa).

If you have managed to follow my post to this point, you have earned a view of the elephant, which you will find below. I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoy viewing the elephant in the flesh.

So, you see, there is ample evidence that I have been good the entire year. But, if you have any reservations concerning my conclusion, you might wait a few more days for me to present a bit more data in a forthcoming post in this thread.

And, oh! The second Patiala Elephant set that was in Treefrog stock disappeared later in the day.

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

By now, you must be tired of reading my story, so I will give you a break before concluding it. Yes, there is another installment in this Beau Geste Christmas story, but you will have to wait a few days before I can conclude the tale.

For now, please enjoy the additional photos of the Patiala Elephant set that you will find below.

Warmest personal regards,

Pat :wink2:

 

[Go for Broke]

Pat, after seeing your elephants, I went to the Beau Geste section and was surprised by all the Delhi Durbar sets, including all the different elephant sets. And yes, they are quite pricey. Congratulations.

 

[kogu]

Hi Pat,
I am really glad that you managed to secure the Patiala Elephant for your collection.
Yet another great addition to the Durbar.
Congratulations, and my best regards to "Santa Diane"! ^&grin
Konrad

 

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

In Post #12 of this thread, I outlined a series of events that transpired which resulted in my acquisition of Ana's Beau Geste Patiala Elephant set. My discussion included the following main elements:

1. Ana announced the retirement of the Patiala Elephant set to an unexpecting audience of collectors.

2. I learned of the retirement and immediately contacted Treefrog and determined they only had two remaining in stock.

3. I purchased one of the two remaining Patiala Elephant sets. The single remaining set disappeared from Treefrog stock before the end of the business day.

4. I recieved the elephant, photographed it, and posted the pictures in this thread.

In the tale of Yuletide excitement I have outlined in my previous posts in this thread, I failed to mention one or two important details. Let me explain.

First of all, Ana did not simply announce the retirement of the Patiala Elephant set. She included in her announcement the fact she was also retiring the Narsingharh Elephant set. Even though I am blessed to possess a number of her exquisite elephants, in addition to missing the Patiala Elephant in my collection, I was also missing the Narsingharh Elephant set! Can you begin to imagine the depth of my panic when I realized she was retiring not one, but TWO, of the elephants I needed? Once again, Ms. Santa came to my rescue and said, "You need them, Go for it!"

So, when I contacted Treefrog to inquire about the availability of the Patiala Elephant, I also inquired about the availability of the Narsingharh Elephant. There was only a single Narsingharh Elephant remaining is stock and I was able to purchase the last such available elephant. Now, how is that for good luck? Obviously, Santa was on my side that day.

By now, if you have not reviewed enough evidence in this thread to conclude I have been very good this year, then it will be impossible for me to convince you otherwise. There is simply too much data at hand that screams, "YOU'VE BEEN VERY, VERY GOOD!" ^&grin

And,...as further proof of the reality of my story, I am presenting a few photos of the Narsingharh Elephant set below. Enjoy!

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

Presented here are a few more views of Ana's beautiful Narsingharh Elephant set. I think you can imagine the joy I experience to have both the Patiala Elephant and the Narsingharh elephant in my Delhi Durbar collection. It has certainly been an excellent, excellent Christmas!

However, if you think my Yuletide story is complete, you might guess again. During the next couple days, keep an eye on the "View from My Chair" thread in the General Discussion section of the Forum. And, with that,...

Happy New Year to all!

Warmest personal regards,

Pat

 

[Ana Donzino]

Wow, thank YOU, Diane! You have a beautiful lady there who loves you VERY much. Pat. Take care of her

Happy 2013. For many more elephants,

Ana