FOR ME NOT MUCH AT 81 and a HALF, A LOT OF READING, WHEN YOUNGER GOLF and WORKOUT, RAQUET BALL. Don
That's perfectly understandable. Friends and I do WWII reenactment. Here in the US, wearing all the German WWII equipment and uniform is part of taking part in the reenactment. In the minds of reenactors, the uniforms have no more political significance than a football sports jersey. The aim for the reenactors is to try to capture the feeling of being back in time, minus the real blood and loss of life. The fun for us is we get to shoot blanks in war games at our friends while driving real tanks, halftracks, motorcycles, and trucks using original firearms with an honor system used to determine hits. Some veterans, both American and German, attend the larger events to speak with us about the war as seen through their eyes. I think Germans today themselves are ones who do not understand an "Ami" dressed in Wehrmacht or Waffen SS uniform when doing reenactment events, either public ones for show, or private ones for the entertainment of the reenactors themselves. They see this as just plain crazy, since that part of their history still has a bad impact on German society even today. In some places, when I spoke German, I was viewed with tolerance and suspicion, usually by the older generation, all because of the war. In some places of Europe, speaking English will get you less respect than speaking a continental language like German. It all depends on the people. As someone with an older member of the family who was pressed into service in the Wehrmacht in Austria at the point of a rifle, some of my family members do not see any positive reason to wear a German WWII uniform even for a reenactment event. The history of events they lived through in the 1940's is reason why. It's a matter of perspective.I can't see the appeal of dressing up as a Nazi, but I like to play with old bicycles- the older the better. The earliest I have is from 1869 and is surprisingly rideable, within some firm, and hard limits. Archaeology and local history have always been interests. I've shifted into ship models from science fiction spaceship models. I have also been working out of town and away from home for too many years so I will have time and materials for more projects.