Charlotte Belch, my dear “Aunt Lottie,” passed away July 3rd at the age of 91. She was my Dad’s older sister and she is survived by her son and three daughters, a number of grandchildren, and a couple of brothers.
Aunt Lottie was one of my favorite people. She was honest, sincere, and full of life and energy. She didn’t take guff from anybody, spoke her mind and was 10 tons of dynamite in a 5 foot tall bundle.
Regrettably, since my divorce and the troubles Palladium has experienced, I hadn’t seen her much these past few years. (Falling out of touch with friends, family and freelancers has been the greatest loss and sacrifice as I work crazy hours to get Palladium Books back on its feet and strong again. I hate it but . . .) I only have fond memories of Aunt Lottie. Funny, her given name is Charlotte, but it sounds alien to me. “Lottie” somehow fit this unpretentious lady best.
I didn’t know this, but apparently Aunt Lottie was very proud of me and kept my letters, stupid drawings, and my A+Plus comic books. One of her favorite letters was a rather lengthy one I sent telling her about the Rifts® Movie option with Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer, along with a copy of our formal Press Release announcement. Apparently, she read it to everybody who visited, so I got a bunch of questions asking, “So when’s the movie coming out? Whatever happened with that?” I’m sure Aunt Lottie is upstairs behind the Pearly Gates, so maybe she can help pull some strings for us on that matter, eh?
I’ve been blessed with having several bold, brave, beautiful women in my life. Aunt Lottie was one of them, my Mother, Grandmother, Aunt Jo, and Aunt Pauline are counted among the others. Of course, the passing of a loved one reminds you of others who have passed. So I found myself thinking back to the booming laughter of parties held at Aunt Lottie's in my childhood. It made me think about my grandparents, mother, brother, dad and childhood. Of triumphs and failures, adventures and misadventures, and especially about my Mom. My Mom was my best friend, confidant and advisor. She knew more about life and love and all the important things than anybody I have ever known. She passed away in 1989 and I still miss her radiant smile, warm hugs, spirited conversations and wise advice.
The memories are all good. I haven’t been depressed or melancholy, but I have been a bit distracted. I spent a good portion of yesterday at the funeral home meeting and greeting friends and relatives I haven’t seen in years. For some reason we seemed to have drifted away from my Dad’s side of the family even while I was still a teenager.
Today was the funeral and I had a great time. I know, it’s odd to say you had a great time at a funeral, but you know what, Aunt Lottie would love it, and I know she’s smiling as I write this. She and Uncle Frank threw some of the biggest holiday bashes I ever saw as a kid. (And I sometimes wonder if they weren’t the inspiration for my own gatherings of friends and family in later years.) She loved family, friends, and sharing time with them. So, yeah, she’s smiling that so many of us got together and shared stories, hugs, kisses and laughs.
I especially enjoyed reconnecting with my Godfather, Uncle Jimmy. I had the opportunity to spend a great deal of time with him. He’s one of those people who, thankfully, never seemed to change. Warm, fun, funny, charming, considerate of others, friendly and instantly accepting. It was great hanging with him again. I also enjoyed visiting with my many cousins and their husbands, wives and children, not that I’ll remember half their names by tomorrow. (I'm terrible at remembering names. Terrible.) I enjoyed chatting with Aunt Lottie’s oldest friend, Sophie, who is a spry and charming 97 years old! Wow. I also got a kick outta hearing, “Oh, you’re Kevin the Artist!” about a dozen times. Heck, I enjoyed visiting with everyone. Considering the circumstances, it was a good day.
Back at Palladium
Perhaps needless to say, this week has NOT been a good one for getting a lot of writing and editing done. I didn’t even get to the office today before 4:00 PM. Oh well, loved ones and family should always come first. I plan on working late, sleeping over and putting in an undisturbed 12 hours work on Hades Saturday. The book is coming along wonderfully, by the way.
The Rifter® #39
The Rifter #39 is on schedule and will ship Wednesday, July 11. I think it’s an especially fun issue with the 20 femme fatales statted out for various Palladium RPG lines.
The Rifter #40 is going to be special too, as we plan to add 32 pages, making it 128 pages without increasing the cover price. The bonus pages are a tribute to the fact that issue #40 marks the 10 Year Anniversary of The Rifter®, and of Wayne Smith’s tenure at Palladium. Two milestones that we decided to celebrate by making Wayne do more work! Seems fair to me, but Wayne seems to have a different opinion on the matter.
Rifts® and the Megaverse®
The John Zeleznik art book is also on schedule for a July 20 ship date. I’ve already talked enough about this masterpiece of art, imagination and game memories . . . so I’ll leave things with: Many of you are going to LOVE this book! So please make sure you take a look at it when it comes to a store or convention in your neighborhood.
There’s probably more to talk about, but its been a long week and I need to get to work writing and editing if we’re EVER going to see these darn Hell/Minion War books. I asked Wayne to post our latest Press Release tonight, so there’s more news and updates in it.
Call your mom or dad, brother or sister, aunt or uncle and tell ‘em you love them. Then step outside, take a deep breath, soak in the splendor of the day, and remember that life is a grand adventure to be shared with those we care about. Have a nice weekend.
Sincerely,
Kevin Siembieda
Publisher, Writer, Artist, Son, Father and Friend
© Copyright July 6, 2007