Rambling Update 3-20-2024

I just got off the phone after doing the first part of an interview for a print publication.

I am working on a new "comic book advice" comic for the Patreon (see above image).

I'm inking a commission and started pencils on another. I am also working on a commission which I have to do some stuff to figure out how to lay it out. Some of the drawn elements have been sitting for a while. Apologies to everyone involved.

I started a few new "Experiment" card drawings while sitting in front of (mostly) terrible movies before bedtime. I also have doodled a few non-horror card drawings to nose along. I seem to be throwing away a lot more of these card drawings because of my hand. It's only some days, depends on if I've been to physical therapy or slept on my arm.

Physical therapy is going well. I like the staff at the place I go, the vibe is good and they take their time to explain why I'm doing whatever it is I'm doing. They've been adding more exercises and it's rally pointed out how out of shape I am. Aging and being sedentary. Today I did some stretches and stuff besides my hand and neck. I need to walk more and just breathe more easily. It's a vicious circle many people working with their hands find themselves in -- the more you work, the more pain you have, which affects the amount you can work, which affects income, so you work more, blah blah blah. We all have problems, I'm grateful it's not worse.

I got an MRI last week but the results haven't come back yet. If they pinpoint my main arm issues with my neck problem, I won't be seeing the hand specialist anymore. I also had a follow up with my periodontist. The good news is that he feels I only need to have surgery on two of the four quadrants in my mouth. The bad news is that's still going to run $3500. I have crappy dental insurance. Dental insurance tends o be crappy on the whole, but my insurance must be lousy because even my periodontist says it's not good. It's no an emergency but something I have to figure out. We all have problems. Etc.

I'm not stressing any of this, which speaks well of my therapist. I think the biggest worry is having to see so many doctors. But that's had a positive side effect, my therapist and I have talked about how seeing all these people and having to go to their offices is like immersion therapy. The more I have to deal with these situations the easier it is on my social anxiety. So there's that.

I finished inking a variant cover. I think it came out pretty good. Sarah's coloring it and I'm looking forward to posting it here as soon as I can. It's the closest thing I've done for print that's like one of the Experiment drawings.

I'm wearing my reading glasses a lot more when I ink these days. I can't see the details with the naked eyeballs. Sometimes I can't see the pencil lines well enough. Aging is so weird. Like, friggin' inexorable, dude.

I am talking to a friend about working together on a thing, which I think would be really cool.

I wrote some solicitation copy for an upcoming publishing project.

Neither of the two variant covers we've done has been solicited yet. I don't know anything about comic book schedules and time anymore. I remember that days when people did a cover for solicitation and if it got enough orders they started working on the book.

I have to start on another cover asap. Can't solicit what you don't have a cover for, then or now.

I got invited to a convention. Yay! I'm trying to figure out if I can go or not. Sarah's not up for it, which is understandable. I haven't done a big convention by myself in decades. And I'm not sure how I'd get there. Or if I can take a week off. And what about Winky? I've never left her for more than a day or so before, and that was just the one time. Also, I'm so tired.

I sold the last page of original art from The Northwest Comix Collective story.

I have been asked to do a few interviews about The Eltingville Club by some people who do online stuff. I'll talk to anyone. Well, almost anyone. No villains.

I re-upped my donation to WFMU.

I have been watching the Utrecht fish doorbell. So far I haven't seen any fish. I am hoping I do, so I can ring the doorbell and help them to swim upstream. Right now there are 930 watchers. And no fish. https://visdeurbel.nl/en/the-fish-doorbell

Looks like Paul Y and I are going to dust off the mic to record a new episode of the Tear Them Apart podcast. I'm looking forward to it.

I got my unanswered e-mail down to the low twenties. I am pretty much caught up on Instagram message replies. I am caught up on Twitter DMs. I think I'm caught up on DMs here.

I've been craving pizza parlor food for weeks but haven't just gone to a pizza parlor to get it. A chicken or eggplant parmigiana hero and some spaghetti. I'm working my way up to it. It's not the money, I just can't make myself go in anywhere that I'm not used to, like the supermarket. And I don't get food delivered, that's a different anxiety. I get stressed that I'm going to screw the order up, and then I get anxious waiting for the person. And I don't like making people deliver food. These are back burner anxiety issues so I punt them along at therapy.

I got my 2023 4th quarterly statement from Dark Horse. It was late, I forgot to ask about it because of everything going on. Not much to talk about, the usual results, which is probably why I forgot to look into it. Calla Cthulhu has only $35 to earn to break even. I'm trying to find out if the digital rights expired yet from Stela so DHC can offer it digitally. I'd like to see it crawl up to the finish line and maybe make a few dollars (literally). It's small potatoes, but I like small potatoes. Eat enough of them and you're good. Potatoes are good. Hmmm. Potatoes.

I did a drawing that I can't show you because it's a surprise for someone. It was a commission, but it was also a job. It's a dessert topping and a floor wax. It's complicated. Well, not really, 'm just being weird about it. I worked fast and it hurt my hand but I think it came out decently, all things considered. I shouldn't have worked in all the lettering. It's usually the lettering that does it to my hand. One day I'll get a font made and learn digital lettering or something. Right after I collect Hectic Planet with new material and debut in CMML.

I had dinner with my parents, brother and nephews a few days ago. You know when you look at a menu in a fancy joint and you forget for a second you're not paying for your meal? Well, that was me like crazy. It was nice to eat a nice meal out. My nephews are adorable. It was nice. And the car made it safely to New Jersey and back! B-b-b-bonus!

I've been asked to pitch something to something. It's a short thing so maybe I can do it.

There's a cat that shows up in our backyard that I have named Lanky. Lanky is a big, long gray cat with pronounced toes. I don't know if he's a polydactyl cat or not. I sneak-fed him a couple of times (we stopped feeding animals in the backyard because rats showed up). Lanky's been around for a couple of years. Anyway, Lanky's been coming by and I'm glad to see him. There's probably a German word for the relieved feeling when you are worried about an outdoor cat and it comes back after a while. I will not try to fake one or look it up because this is not school. I just like cats, as many of us do. My physical therapist does not like cats because a cat attacked him when he was little. He needs to get over this (says the man who can't park his car and walk into a pizzeria. Or pizza parlor. Or Pizza Town.) I watch him closely for any signs he's a villain. "Doesn't like cats". Hmmm.

I watched Herzog's "Even Dwarfs Started Small" and I don't know what the fuck to think. That one guy's laughing has haunted me for days. If you've seen it you know who I'm talking about.

I am ages late on so many things. I want to catch up this year and make good by everyone who has put their money and/or faith in me. That's the goal.

I'm probably not going to go to that convention, but I hope to go to one as soon as I can. I honestly miss them, and miss seeing comics people.

I also miss getting stuff at the pizza parlor. Does anybody still call them pizza parlors anymore? I'm sure old folks on Staten Island still do. Pizza parlor. Funny term. Nobody says hamburger parlor, or hot dog parlor or pierogi parlor. Actually, they should say pierogi parlor. Pierogi parlour, if you're uptown. Pierogi parlor sounds fun and wholesome. To me, at least. (Why isn't pizzeria spelled pizzaria? I guess there's a reason. I mean, duh, obviously there's a reason, why did I even type that? Whatever the reason is, I'm not looking it up. I'll just forget it, and it won't get me any closer to getting some pizza)

Winky's asleep on my drawing table chair. And she's snoring. It's so cute. I love her.

I've been reading Peanuts strips from 1971-1972. So good. So, so good. Schulz was amazing. I could type for hours. I can't stand it, it's just so good. I was probably reading these strips as a kid. Peanuts was my favorite newspaper strip. It might still be. I got a good eBay price for the 1974-1978 boxed set. I need to have and read them all before I take the long hike.

That's all for now. I'm pretty sure I forgot a few things that I meant to talk about. I should plan these things. I can't remember what I wanted to mention. Because -- I got sidetracked into nonsense! Sidetrack Into Nonsense is going to be the name of my pre-code horror/humor comic.

There, I did it again, I got sidetracked into nonsense. Nonsense! Stupid pizza talk, that's what my brain tells me to type up. Oy, oy, oy. Such a brain, I have.

Such a brain tells me I have to get back to work.

Hope you're all okay out there.

More soon, later!