By Kevin Siembieda

Another week has flown by, and this one felt a little stranger than most.

Sales shot up for no apparent reason. Cool, please keep the orders coming.

Jeff was in the office only half the time. The rest of the time I let him work at home on various pieces of artwork.

My birthday was Wednesday, so that day was unusual because I received dozens and dozens of well wishes on my Facebook page, the Palladium Facebook page and via telephone calls, text messages, emails and private messages. I spoke with both of my children, my brother and a host of friends. It all made for a very enjoyable day. And despite a million interruptions, I got a fair amount of work done. Not sure how. I only worked nine hours on my birthday, coming in later than usual and heading out about an hour earlier. I enjoyed a delicious dinner and a quiet evening with Kathy and Alex. We talked and laughed while we watched TV shows I had recorded on the DVR. I also got a couple of nice gifts. Half the Palladium staff has birthdays in April (me, Matthew Clements and Julius Rosenstein), so we’re doing a three-person Palladium party the end of next week. That’s when more good eats, cake and presents will flow freely. lol

The weather finally turned with a day or two in the 50s. That meant I got to do my daily 30+ minute walk outdoors for the first time in months. That was very nice, though the wind was fierce as hell one of those days and all kinds of crazy stuff could be seen blowing by me on my walk: leaves, bags, paper, sheets of plastic, someone’s shirt and a giant tarp. I was waiting for a cow carried by the wind next. Some of those wind gusts were something else. I’m amazed (and thankful) that we didn't lose power at the office. Even with the warm temps, the nights have been cold and there are still a few quickly dwindling mounds of packed snow and ice remaining. That’s how big and dense those suckers were to begin with. Yow. Glad spring seems to have finally arrived, even if it’s a timid arrival.

A strange rumor surfaced that I had broken one of my legs. It is NOT true, by the way. I’m entirely whole, unbroken and feeling fine, even though Wayne has some kind of hideous plague-cold-thing and Jeff seems to be coming down with it. So far, I have managed to avoid this particular plague. :)

I wrote a couple of Murmurs from the Megaverse® in the same day this week. I’m really sorry I haven’t written and posted more, but we are working like fiends to finish a bunch of different projects.

I’m FINALLY writing with better speed and momentum. Thank goodness. By the way, when I say I wrote 10 or 20 manuscript pages, that’s not typeset “book” pages. Two manuscript pages turn into one typeset printed page. A typical manuscript for a big book like Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two is 400+ pages. Getting there . . . very soon I hope.

By Kevin Siembieda

It has been an extra long time – 10 days – since the last Weekly Update posted early on Tuesday, March 18th. In some ways a lot has happened since then.

Wayne and the GAMA Trade Show

The reason the previous Update was posted early was that Wayne had to leave for Las Vegas to represent Palladium Books at the GAMA Trade Show. He was met by long-time Palladium helper and pal, Joe Bergmans, who served as local native guide and Palladium Representative. Together, Wayne and Joe talked to retailers about upcoming product releases and the new releases stores could expect in the Spring and Summer. The greatest interest was in the long-awaited Rifts® titles and, of course, Robotech® RPG Tactics™. Retailers was delighted with the prototypes on hand, and we ourselves were surprised to have John at Ninja Division drop off four new factory prototypes, including the Mk.II Monster, one of my personal favorites. They looked great and were a nice addition to the display. Like everyone else, retailers are anxiously awaiting the initial release of Robotech® RPG Tactics™. (Us too.) When not at the trade show, Wayne and Joe enjoyed some of the local cuisine, including a phenomenal sushi restaurant. Wayne left Tuesday afternoon and arrived back at the Palladium office on Friday afternoon looking rather worn out.