Most of us in the Great Lakes area dread the approach of Winter. Snow, bitter cold, and endless gray skies can dampen your enthusiasm for leaving home. College football Saturdays draw to a close, and summer softball or outdoor cookouts are a distant memory. The bright side is that an afternoon or evening at the painting table becomes a more appealing idea.

As the temperature drops, my painting production goes up. At this point in the year, my purchase from Cold Wars (my favorite convention) half a year ago are usually still sitting in their bags, unpainted. However, I normally finish them before January's end. Last year, I polished off my Slavs and Avars over Winter. This year, my Vikings should first see the gaming table as Nordic weather descends upon Ohio. And as the Winter drags on, odds and ends that I'd picked up are primed and painted so that I can almost see the bottom of the boxes I sort my unpainted miniatures in.

The "light at the end of the lead tunnel" is a mirage, though. As Cold Wars arrives again, fresh waves of unpainted troops fill in the ranks. By Spring's thaw I am in no danger of testing the old maxim, "If a miniature gamer runs out of unpainted figs, he will die." A somewhat morbid thought, actually, but a good justification to wink and buy those miniatures you know you may not get around to painting for a long, long time.

I want to thank everyone who sent in articles or advertisements. Last issue was the first time since I became editor that I used up everything I'd received. This Herald will see a surplus, again, with a few articles I couldn't fit to be carried over to next issue. You may notice that there are more pages this issue, too. Thank you, and keep those reviews, battle reports, etc., rolling in!

Unfortunately, one thing I've been trying to keep OUT of "The Herald" rears its ugly head this issue -- politics. Your Great Lakes president and secretary discuss some of the political infighting going on about the HMGS National Board. You have my promise that this magazine will not be turned into a political battleground while I'm editor. These officers agree, but felt you should know what was going on. This will not become a forum for rebuttals and replies, though. "The Herald" will be about gaming -- not politics.