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17 May 2013 @ 01:18 pm

A Comedy of PC Errors

Eesh, what a week.

First Spare Oom PC begins its death throes. Then my coworkers' PCs are refusing to connect to the phone bank. Then a few work servers start going all wonky and we're disconnected from our Communicators for half a day.

And for a Friday? First my work laptop decides to lose its VPN connection and I waste a good forty-five minutes disconnecting and reconnecting everything so I can get back online.

And to top it all off? I suddenly realize that the desktop PC I ordered through Best Buy and picked up at the local store? The wrong model. I ordered a Gateway DX4870-UB318 (with 8GB processing memory among other things), and was given a DX4870-UB17 (with 6GB processing memory and without other things the UB318 has, and a difference of $100 in price). So now I have to waste another day I could be going to the gym (and writing in the evening) replacing it.

I'm more mad at myself than the store for not checking the tags in the first place and not noticing until a day later, but I'm at least happy that the Best Buy customer service people have all been "oops, that's TOTALLY our bad, we'll replace that for you right away."

So yeah...that's been my week. A comedy of technical errors.

Here's to hoping the weekend goes better!

Tags: feeling like an idiot, pc problems, shopping

Current Location: Spare Oom with laptop (again)

Current Mood: *headdesk*

Current Music: Radio BDC

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16 May 2013 @ 08:56 am

Thu, 00:05: RT @TimCKelly: Since Ms. Bramson posted this on facebook, here's the cover I drew, Joe Meyer colored, and some guy name Omri logo'd. http:/…

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15 May 2013 @ 02:49 pm

Somewhere outside,
Something is happening.
Should I be aware of it?
How should I feel about it?
Indignant, patriotic, fearful?
How should I appropriate it?
Shall I make it a worthy cause?
Somewhere outside,
Something is happening.
And I'm not sure how to feel about it.

This entry was originally posted at http://jonchaisson.dreamwidth.org/15412.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

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15 May 2013 @ 12:51 pm

How prevalent my PC

Being without my main desktop PC is always a weird thing...I've had a desktop PC every day since 1996 and used it on an almost daily basis for my writing ever since then. [Contrary to how it sounds, my music collection wasn't a part of my PC setup until about 2001, when I started burning compilation cds. I listened to the physical cds for the most part and didn't start ripping them to a hard drive well until about 2004.] And currently, when I'm not on the PC, I'm using my laptop instead. So either way, you could say I'm online and/or working on something pretty much every single day.

That's not to say that I'm chained to the thing. When we're on vacation, I've been using my Nook or my phone to go online and catch up with things if I so choose. I get the occasional twitch that I wish I had my music with me, but it goes away pretty quickly. I can easily check my email and Twitter feed on my cell phone. I still try to work on the occasional thing longhand like my poetry, and plan on doing more of it once the Great Trilogy Revision calms down a bit. Still, it's nice to have the thing when it's needed.

So in light of yesterday's sad and pathetic death of Spare Oom PC [for the record, it turns on, it just doesn't want to run Windows anymore], it's made me think about my writing output. Since I work from home, I have to balance my work stuff and my writing stuff, and creating things like this blog post, which would probably take twenty minutes to type out on any other day actually takes a good couple of hours, hastily typed in the occasional free minutes between things. And the Blogging the Beatles posts usually worked on all Sunday afternoon and posted that evening--that's why one of my ideas was to try working on those over the course of a few days rather than an entire day.

I'm trying not to opine about how I time-managed my writing in the past this time...instead I'm trying to learn from how I did it then and implement some form of it in the present. A lot of it really does have to do with how much time I waste...as much as I try to convince myself I'm cutting down, I'm still driven to distraction by social media and my music collection. It's a work in progress, I suppose. I'm not going to go the "disconnect the internet for x hours" route, because I do end up using it a lot for quick reference when I actually am writing. And besides, my boredom level with the internet in general has dropped to the point where I'll goof off on Twitter or YouTube for a half hour simply for some mindless downtime after work. The music collection can be a black hole sometimes, though. Having the temptation to reorganize, retag, peruse it for hours on end for listening to things I haven't heard in a while, or what have you...but over the last few months I've actually been a LOT better with it than I have. I think a lot of it had to do with narrowing my focus on the task at hand: in this instance, the major revision of A Division of Souls. I gave myself ten minutes to decide on what I'd listen to during that writing session, and stuck to it while I focused solely on that revision, and I think it's working.

Either way...it does feel kind of weird not to have it on, after all these years of constantly having it turned on for hours on end. I am doing a bit of comparison shopping in the interim...as mentioned yesterday, I'm kind of leaning towards another Gateway, since this one worked so well during the time I had it...it was worth the price I paid for it. And while I'm not exactly devastated without a desktop PC--I'm adjusting just fine with my laptop, if working just a bit slower--it'll be nice to have a replacement as soon as possible.

Tags: computer, pc problems, writing

Current Location: Spare Oom with laptop

Current Mood:

contemplative

contemplative

Current Music: Radio BDC

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14 May 2013 @ 05:02 pm

My new gig; TCAF report; keep your shirts on

Originally published at Dylan Meconis. You can comment here or there.

It’s been a very busy couple of weeks for me! Here are some headlines:

1) I’m the new writer at PvP!

Earlier this year I enjoyed an unexpected three-week run as guest artist/writer on Scott Kurtz’s beloved landmark webcomic, PvP. I’ve been a fan of the strip for ages, and I had a total blast. Fast forward a few months to PvP’s fifteenth birthday, and Scott asked if I’d be interested in coming on as a regular writing contributor. So, starting with the most recent storyline, we’ve been working together to write and plan the strip and take it in some very exciting new directions. (And, luckily for me, Scott will still be drawing everything!)

This is really a fun development for all involved, and I’m having disgusting amounts of fun. You can look forward to hearing lots more about my adventures in strip co-authoring. And if you’ve never read PvP before, this is a great time to start!

2) TCAF adventures

I’m just back from Toronto for my second-ever trip to TCAF. A huge thanks to everybody who found me! The festival pulls in some of the most enthusiastic and cheerful attendees in the known universe, and incredible creators and good friends grouped in almost overwhelming numbers. Cheers to Chris Butcher and all his fellow organizers and volunteers for all their hard work.

I had an especially great time finally meeting longtime favorite folks like Bill Amend, Alex Woolfson, and Katie Shanahan, and tabling next to the impressive talents of Kenan Rubinstein, Nina Matsumoto, and Nicole Chartrand. I also enjoyed a day staring at dinosaur bits at the Royal Ontario Museum with Lucy Bellwood and Boulet (on the last leg of his exhaustive North American tour). Lodging and sharing several blissful meals with my traditional TCAF teammates Lucy Knisley and Erika Moen kept me from running myself too ragged.

Thank you, Toronto!

3) It’s spring in Portland!

Tags: appearances, drawing, writing

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14 May 2013 @ 05:01 am

Princess Makeover – DORK TOWER 14.05.13

http://www.dorktower.com/2013/05/14/princess-makeover-dork-tower-14-05-13/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=princess-makeover-dork-tower-14-05-13

http://dorktower.kovalic.com/?p=8348

Super Happy Archer Fun Hour

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14 May 2013 @ 09:41 am

Spare Oom PC Woes

Well...looks like the Spare Oom PC is finally on its last legs. It's had a very good run these last few years--I bought it at Best Buy right around Christmas 2009 soon after we moved out to the Richmond here, so a three-and-a-half year run is actually pretty good. I wish PCs would last a hell of a lot longer, but that's another gripe entirely. Still--lots of music listening and downloading, working on novels (including FINALLY finishing the trilogy!), blog posts, and everything in between.

I'm bummed, of course, but not devastated. The PC started acting up a few months ago, when it would occasionally not boot up Windows properly. For me that was a high sign that I should probably start backing things up. All my music has been on one of my externals for the last year or so, so there's no loss at all there. Maybe the original mp3s that I downloaded from Amazon and eMusic (their default download folders are on the C drive), but I always copy them to the external when I buy them. My entire writing folder is on Dropbox, so there's no loss there at all. Any other creative things (scans, artwork, etc.) are on an older external. All my pictures are on that older external as well. To put it bluntly--I learned from past experience and knew that saving everything to externals and/or Dropbox is definitely worth the extra five minutes' work. So yeah...all told, nothing of import is lost if it decides to die on me.

At the moment, it's running the Startup Repair at a glacial pace, and as usual, it will most likely not find any problems whatsoever, and reboot. This is probably the longest it's taken to do so, however, so I'm thinking it's time to start shopping around. In the meantime, if I get it up and running again, I'll start going through the C drive and copying that stuff to the older external as well, so there's absolutely no loss of anything.

That said...I will of course be continuing with the PC. Yes, I know, there are a few of you out there who own Apple products and love them to bits, but I have personal (and professional) reasons for not going that route. Besides, I've been using PCs exclusively since the 90s and see no real reason to switch over now, despite the positive noise I hear from that side. I have iTunes for the mp3s that are exclusive to them, and that's good enough. So yeah--if anyone has any suggestions for non-iThingy computers that you like or have heard good things about, let me know!

I'm also open to Windows 8 and touch screen, to be honest. That's what my Acer laptop is, and I quite like it. I know W8 has gotten a bit of a bad rap from some people, but really, it is what you make it, and once I realized that it gives you a lot more ability to tweak the visuals to your liking, I really started liking it.

If anything, the only real annoyance at this time is redownloading/reinstalling programs if/when I get a new PC. A lot of them I can easily grab from their websites as before (Media Monkey, the latest MS Office, AVG, etc.), and I do have the software for the few I can't (like the NCH audio software). Honestly, that's not a bad deal, it's just time consuming sometimes. Still...it's a small price to pay.

Anyhoo...back to work. Got my laptop going for the tunage, and I think I can get over not downloading the new Vampire Weekend album on its release day, so all's well for the most part. :p

Tags: pc problems

Current Location: Spare Oom

Current Mood: hopeful

hopeful

hopeful

Current Music: Radio BDC

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13 May 2013 @ 09:15 am

As you may have noticed on my WordPress site, I haven't quite gotten around to posting the next Blogging the Beatles post, though I should hopefully get one up by next weekend. It just so happens that I finished up the major revision of A Division of Souls a bit earlier than expected, and all my creative time has been dedicated to getting the manuscript all nice and tidy for submission. Given that I've been working on this novel nigh on a decade (granted, there were a few years in there where I was working on something else and letting this one stew), I believe it's high time I get this one out and away, and I'd like to make sure I'm doing it right this time. So yeah...that novel takes precedence.

Still, I should have gone on that site and posted a "more posts coming soon" filler much sooner. Sorry about that.

On the plus side, I've been doing pretty good with making sure I find time for my other creative outlets. I've posted a couple of new poems over at the Dreamwidth site that are crossposting here (which btw, I don't think I've ever had someone *squee* at my poetry before, so thanks

anagramofbrat!) and making sure I get at least something new done each day. It helps that I put my poetry notebook, my journal and my Wacom under my monitor shelf as a way to remind myself to pick them up now and again. Feels good to do that again.

In the meantime, I've been listening to a lot of college radio again. I know..."When are you not listening to that stuff?" Heh. Well, considering that a lot of my desk listening has been either the now-sadly-departed AOL Spinner or my mp3 collection (and occasionally Save Alternative or Radio BDC), I figured it was high time to start branching out again. This time out I've been listening to a lot of KSCU out of Santa Clara University, their playlist is definitely up my alley--lots of indie rock, indietronica, and alt-folk, with a smidge of electronica thrown in there. Just the right level of indie that's not too outsider (like KALX in Berkeley), or trying too hard to cover every single possible music genre (which is another post entirely). In a very eerie way, its playlist is quite similar to WAMH's playlist back in the day--a good mixture of sort-of-well-known alternative, local, and obscure. This is definitely a station for listening. That is, it feels like a station for people like me, who are listeners and not necessarily partiers or hipsters. Well--I could go on about this, but I'm thinking I may have another WiS post in my brain instead. Either way--great station to listen to, well worth checking out.

On that note...Monday beckons and I've got stuff to do these next few days, but hopefully I won't be as scarce as I have been. Hope everyone else has a spiffy week! :)

Tags: ados, apartment, college radio, music, revision, shopping, weekends, wis

Current Location: Spare Oom

Current Mood: relaxed

relaxed

relaxed

Current Music: KSCU online

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13 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Sun, 15:39: So what is the big deal with @evil_sibe , anyway? Is he a cult leader or something? People make him out like he's the Hitler of furries.
Sun, 15:41: So does that make Zeriara the Charles Manson of furries?
Sun, 15:42: Does it make Chewfox the Booboo Honey of furries?
Sun, 15:44: Does it make Dragoneer the Obama of the furries? Or is that GW Bush?
Sun, 16:03: @puppytube thanks for the info! It won't let send a DM back.
Sun, 16:04: RT @puppytube: #MTV #Furlandia I AM FURSUITE. I WOULD LIKE TO BE ON "ROB DYRDEKS RIDICULOUSNESS" & I HAVE FOXSPORT CARGO SHORTS IF NEEDED, …
Sun, 17:43: And now my Twitter feed is quiet again...
Sun, 19:32: RT @DiorTheBun: 13 Benghazis That Occurred on Bush's Watch Without a Peep from Fox News http://t.co/U5Kn9BWymY
Mon, 02:10: Photoset: cklikestogame: frickyeah1990s: Discontinued drinks from the 90s, which one do you miss? the... http://t.co/NVyWndrlvV
Mon, 02:54: RT @Blarion: I like this Zappa. http://t.co/vkYLV134JI

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11 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Fri, 12:15: Photo: quollism: This is not a quoll but it’s close enough. It’s a Tasmanian devil, the largest marsupial... http://t.co/fY9bo5ydyd
Fri, 14:40: RT @ScurrowSquirrel: The world would be a lot better if everyone just stopped being A bunch of PIECES OF SHIT.
Fri, 23:33: foxmccloud: swagkingmoe: it’s funny that we’re a generation known for being obnoxiously ironic while the... http://t.co/nuCssBHEsN
Sat, 01:38: I'm looking forward to this album, such a great song: CHVRCHES – Recover: http://t.co/9lnV2nG2zm
Sat, 01:55: This channel just finds the most awesome jams. Ewert and The Two Dragons - Sailor Man: http://t.co/GSe6QUvwNs
Sat, 03:11: RT @ScurrowSquirrel: Oh, you're doing THAT? That's a hard industry to get into. You probably won't get into it.
Sat, 09:46: RT @Floebean: https://t.co/Ke2b3jxIF8 Just found this picture of me and @iamjoemeyer

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10 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Thu, 13:40: RT @RandomLynx: @iamjoemeyer @MvsicNet Oh I agree, just saying that I loved them best when they had that mixture of music plus great indie-…
Fri, 00:21: RT @EARNEST_CYBORG9: I took a crack at fixing TIME's cover http://t.co/OHw7RB5sTl
Fri, 04:38: RT @maywire: @iamjoemeyer grandpa joe is awesome I like him a lot he's a really cool guy
Fri, 04:57: Video: enenkay: shortformblog: politicalprof: jeffmiller: This is the secret to life. Politicalprof: David... http://t.co/Ad7YWbFUkt

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09 May 2013 @ 05:01 am

SCIENCE! – DORK TOWER 09.05.13

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dorktower/comic/~3/7LzSFtzqKlU/

http://dorktower.kovalic.com/?p=8342

Super Happy Science Fun Hour

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09 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Wed, 14:04: In my feeble attempts to be an asshole, I wind up being a whiny little bitch.
Thu, 00:05: RT @KingRichard14: For all you wannabe outraged right wing losers on #benghazi: check out this fun picture. Stop watching faux news. http:/…
Thu, 00:50: RT @evil_sibe: Fursuit ≠ Consent http://t.co/MS4mSskPMO
Thu, 02:58: I have to say that @MvsicNet is pretty cool. All of this music that I've never heard of before. Just so awesome. Fuck MTV.
Thu, 03:04: For those who don't know: @MvsicNet is an online music video channel that plays nothing but music videos, like MTV before they sucked.
Thu, 03:14: Or rather, @MvsicNet plays artistic videos like 120 Minutes did, but from all genres. TL;DR = mostly indie music. But that's fine.
Thu, 03:37: OH YEH HUMP THAT GUITAR The Good The Bad – 030: http://t.co/kV0eyJOd5g
Thu, 03:37: WOAH NSFW The Good The Bad – 030: http://t.co/kV0eyJOd5g
Thu, 04:19: OK this video is fucking with my brain. Or is it because I'm slightly drunk? Matthew Dear - In The Middle: http://t.co/uHFvZeHdA8
Thu, 04:34: Like a majority of the videos on @MvsicNet would be "Buzzworthy" on MTV. Like 90% of the videos. Thankfully no mainstream crap so far.

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08 May 2013 @ 03:29 pm

Late in the afternoon, driving down 116
Taking the back roads to the mall
Not too many people out there at this time
The workers still chained to their command
The students shuffling between classes
Cloudy spring afternoon, a hint of rain
The young voices on the radio call my name
Show me their wares and give me ideas

It's like this every Wednesday
A reading, a lesson, a listen and a view
A relaxing afternoon after a day's work
Before the evening ritual begins
Just me and the sounds around me
Giving me ideas about my story
Just me and the sounds around me
Showing me where to go

This entry was originally posted at http://jonchaisson.dreamwidth.org/15342.html. Please comment there using OpenID.

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08 May 2013 @ 10:29 am

What are words for, when no one listens?

The other day I tweeted the following:

Using semantics as an arguing point isn't valid. It only makes you sound like a dick. You can do better than that.

This came about after watching a friend's Twitter argument with someone about the news from Cleveland, in regards to whether neighbor Charles Ramsey was truly a hero or not. He was the one who heard the woman's cries in that locked house, helped break down the door, and get her to a phone so she could call 911. To some he was a hero, because he acted on the cries for help. To others, he wasn't a hero--I'm not entirely sure why, since I wasn't privy to their explanation, but it made me wonder about why they would think that. Was it because their definition of "hero" was in strict terms of a Michael Bay hero who saved the girl while the house blew up in spectacular 3D pyrotechnics? Was it because their "hero" needed to be wearing a uniform? Was it that Mr. Ramsey wasn't a dashing young man, but an older black man of probably middling education and had a deliberately amusing way of talking? Or was it because there's a specific threshold that needs to be reached before Hero Status--that is, they'd have needed to enter the house themselves and get the other women out?

My point is...when I hear arguments like this, I think they're missing the point. Focusing on the meaning of the term "hero" and not the act itself. This is something I've seen quite a bit in social media over the last few years, and have always seen in one form or another in the past. It's definitely a favorite derailer of arguments and debate for certain Republicans, and especially with certain less-than-impartial news outlets. It's a deliberate deflection of the conversation and a deflation of the subject's importance, pretty much aimed to get the other side all flustered and wonder if it's worth arguing about in the first place.

The main thing that irritates me when people use semantics as an arguing point is that, at least to me, they're not taking the subject seriously at all, even though they might think otherwise. In a way it kind of feels like the debates we used to hear in high school and college--for an easy example, let's say the debate on whether a band is indie or simply pandering to the masses. [In the 80s and early 90s, this would have been the classic "punk or poseur" argument. ;) ] My personal take on that had always been musical--bands could be played on a commercial alternative station like WFNX and still be considered punk; it was just a (then-rare) commercial outlet that was being offered. Others, however, dismissed any form of "alternativeness" once it hit that commercial outlet, because, semantically, alternative and commercial had been polar opposites.

Sure, that's a slight and silly example, but it proves my point--I was arguing the finer points with someone who was arguing terminology, and that's not what debate is about. When you're personally and/or emotionally invested in a subject, it's irritating to have someone question it when their own investment is that shallow.

Tags: politics, social media, words

Current Location: Spare Oom

Current Mood:

contemplative

contemplative

Current Music: Missing Persons, "Words"

3 comments | Leave a comment

08 May 2013 @ 05:01 am

Eat Brains, Shiny Venns and My ConQuest Schedule

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dorktower/comic/~3/RI89cteNs34/

http://dorktower.kovalic.com/?p=8327

Super Happy Find a Logo Fun Hour

My pal Brett Myers suggested this idea to me, a few years ago. I still love it, and I cry silent but tasty Foodie tears that the folks who make my T-shirts didn’t want to make it an actual, honest-to-goodness T-shirt-for-sale. I mean, c’mon! There MUST be ten or twelve people who are into Michael Pollan and zombies. But there you go.

Speaking of incredibly obscure graphics, here’s something I did up for Bill Corbett, on Twitter. But really, doesn’t it apply to all of us? Really?

Lastly, I’ll be at ConQuest, in Kansas City, Memorial Day weekend, May 24-26. I’m very much looking forward to this, and not merely because I’ll be having barbecue for dinner every night. And lunch. And possibly breakfast.

Here’s my tentative schedule. I’ll post again when things are confirmed:

Friday 1800-1900: Win, Lose, or Draw (Monarch)
Friday 1900-2000: Opening Ceremonies (Royal Ballroom)
Saturday 1500-1600: The Future of Gaming (Imperial)
Saturday 1700-1800: The World of Munchkin, Dork Tower and Apples to Apples
Saturday 1800-1900: Reading/Autographs (Salon C)
Sunday 1000-1100: Self Publishing Not a Gold Rush (Embassy)
Sunday 1300-1400: Writing Humor (Embassy)
Sunday 1700-1800: Closing Ceremonies (Royal Ballroom)

I should also have a copy of ROFL! on me, as well as Double Feature, a tremendous movie game I’m helping with. And I note many games of Munchkin and Chez Geek are on the convention schedule…

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08 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Tue, 14:33: RT @RainbirdArt: http://t.co/CmlcmbejKn
Wed, 01:53: Photoset: caseylalonde: mensweardog: Mvsic To Our Ears Remember when the M in MTV stood for music? Yeah,... http://t.co/33d626NHJy
Wed, 03:46: And running on the theme of music, there's a music video channel that is continuous music videos. http://t.co/zvVHcbEBD3 it's pretty neat.

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08 May 2013 @ 04:21 am

American DJ's and topless women from the early 80s

Richard and pals. Houston Texas. 1982.

Walter and thrilled-yet-uncredited friend. Houston Texas. 1982

DJ Al spins fat beats and his friends Lee Ann and Russel get funky. Houston Texas. 1982.

DJ Coy. Seriously. That's his name. Memphis Tennessee. 1983.

DJ Rammay spins 45s, and Butterfly lifts her shirt. Memphis Tennessee. 1983.

DJ Tom looks a little mystified. Dallas Texas. 1982

Scanned from Cheri magazine. Various issues.

Tags: classic smut, magazine scans

3 comments | Leave a comment

07 May 2013 @ 05:01 am

Spoiler Alert! – DORK TOWER 07.05.13

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dorktower/comic/~3/WZluYFs-R2Q/

http://dorktower.kovalic.com/?p=8313

Super Happy Introduction Day Fun Hour

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07 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Tue, 00:12: Haha, I just fooled myself into thinking that I woke up tomorrow morning after taking a nap!
Tue, 00:43: Photoset: http://t.co/VRem89W6H5
Tue, 01:24: Just remembered @ work recently: doing my order & i hear customer behind me on phone "I'm lame" I turn around & say No your not YOUR AWESOME
Tue, 02:54: Photoset: Reblogging only to add Jamie Hernandez to the tags, coz he’s an awesome artist, and he deserves to... http://t.co/YgoM0ABiJN
Tue, 03:52: I got Wanda Jackson's album from '10 (produced by Jack White), her voice takes a little getting used to. But it's real good.
Tue, 06:00: Seriously, you need to be reading Endtown by Aaron Neathery http://t.co/9d0qxrFwoi if not, go start at the beginning. #shitjustgotreal
Tue, 06:44: Late night, listening to the White Stripes' Elephant on vinyl. Tired and relatively happy.
Tue, 06:45: Jack White's guitar playing is like butter.

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heroprotagonist

07 May 2013 @ 12:57 am

TORONTO COMIC ARTS FESTIVAL!

I’m hanging out in Syracuse, NY right now after an awesome few days in New York City. I had the pleasure of visiting the MAD Magazine offices and the First Second Books offices. I’ll write more about all this stuff later - right now I need to tell you that I’ll be in Toronto this weekend for the Toronto Comic Arts Festival! Lots of great things will be happening at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (aka TCAF)!

First thing: My book, CRYING IN FRONT OF YOUR DOG AND OTHER STORIES, will be debuting at the festival! I’ll be spending most of my time hanging out and signing copies at the Grimalkin Press booth. This is the first place anyone will be seeing and buying and reading actual copies of this book. It’s very exciting.

Second thing: Benign Kingdom will also be at TCAF! I’ll be visiting the Benign Kingdom booth to sign copies of my art book from time to time as well. I don’t know the official signing schedule yet, but keep an eye on my twitter feed for that info.

Third thing: I’ll be participating in a couple of events at TCAF! First, on Saturday, my friend David Huyck and I will be hosting a drawing workshop for kids at 10:30 am. Here’s a little info from the TCAF website:

Join children’s illustrator David Huyck (That One Spooky Night) and Mad Magazine cartoonist Phil McAndrew on how to make a face that sticks. Learn how to show emotions through facial expressions and body posture - make your characters pop off the page! What do the eyebrows say? And why the heck are the eyebrows talking in the first place?

Then, on Sunday at 4:00 pm, I’ll be one of several cartoonists participating in a live drawing event. Here’s the info on that:

Four creators enter, one creator leaves! Come watch four artists draw for their lives - and for your entertainment. Winners will feast on the souls of the losers (vegetarian option available). Featuring Phil McAndrew, Lucy Knisley, Jim Rugg, and Scott C.!

Both events are going to be awesome, I am pretty darn sure!

Fourth thing: I’ve got a comic in The Hic & Hoc Illustrated Journal of Humor, which will also be debuting at the festival!

I hope to see you in Toronto!

Originally published at Phil McAndrew Illustrations & Comics. You can comment here or there.

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06 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Sun, 18:15: Your Lifestyle Has Already Been Designed http://t.co/5uk25DTa14 via @jellyfish
Sun, 21:20: The one day that I lose my voice (damn allergies) & what do they do? Put me on register. #coincidence #fml #fmvoice
Mon, 02:26: RT @jaymarcydaman: NEW one page comic is NOW up!! http://t.co/UOK9OaNdns
Mon, 02:30: RT @jaymarcydaman: @jaymarcydaman: NEW one page comic is up!http://t.co/UOK9OaNdns and here's the gift in COLOR: http://t.co/m1ewfQu0mt
Mon, 04:11: Just pre-ordered the new album Weapon on vinyl. Based on this track: SKINNY PUPPY - paragUn: http://t.co/FfbjUyS8Gb

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05 May 2013 @ 08:39 pm

Happy Birthday to my boy!!!

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05 May 2013 @ 08:00 am

Sun, 00:39: Can Sarah Palin just fall into a ditch, PLEASE??
Sun, 03:20: I am falling heads over heels in love with this aged Manchengo. I CANT STOP EATING IT
Sun, 04:15: RT @henryrollins: America will never be conquered: http://t.co/SdXqxiNtIt

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05 May 2013 @ 01:40 am

You got me, Herbie

Herbie just flipped his catnip wonton in the air and hit me right in the eyebrow with it.

Which means in the "throwing the cat toy against your face" game, I have many hundreds of points, and he now has one.

Tags: cats

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