This Blog is Sleeping

This is a new post to tell you not to expect any more new posts. I like writing in this blog, but not as much as I like working on comics, which is my new focus. If you'd like to keep updated on my shenanigans, check my tumblr: chrisbairdisdead.tumblr.com (P.S. - that ebook I mention in the last post is called "Lez Vamps," and it's out now, if you're interested)

Fantasci and Stuff

So, Fantasci was Saturday. It was the first con I'd had a table at. I brought some free micro comics and some Gothtopus comics I was selling for a dollar each. I was surprised at how many people would respond to the question "Would you like a free comic?" with "No thanks." I mean, who turns down free stuff? Afterwords I realized that maybe people weren't there for comics. There were also cosplayers and local fiction writers and retro games - a real mishmash of stuff. People were also hesitant to read my Gothtopus comics, even though they had a sign above them saying "Read before you buy." Perhaps they were suspicious of such a generous offer. Maybe they thought I would somehow entrap them into buying something. Maybe those people are allergic to fun, and dare not stray too close to strange entertainment. Anyway, I wound up selling four copies of my Gothtopus comics (all to people who read the comic before buying) and I gave out all my micro comics. People paid money for my comics at a convention - a personal first! I met some cool people, too. Some of them even talked to me without walking away immediately thereafter. Oh, while I'm writing, I also won second place in a writing contest run by Mark Wheatley. So I'm gonna have a short story published in an e-book with his illustrations (and a few other stories). So good news all around, I guess.

Mini Comics Day!

Things I did on Mini Comics Day at 757 Labs: Made a 16-page minicomic in under 8 hours. Ate an entire package of doublestuff Oreos in under 8 hours. Found out that costume-making is a legitimate hobby. Partially inked a zine cover. Created the phrase "Lesbooyah!" Listened to a cool guy play a song he wrote. Had lots of fun.

Free Piano! Sortof

Apparently, one of my neighbors was dissatisfied with their old upright piano. I found it smashed to splinters in their front lawn, awaiting the garbageman. I promptly snatched up the intact keyboard and stowed it in my car's trunk. The trunk lid wouldn't shut, but it was an uneventful thirty second drive to my house.

I then managed to manhandle the thing up the folding staircase to the attic, where it will remain until I should happen to need it for a sculpture. Or something.

I have NO IDEA what I'm going to do with it, but when God gives you a free piano, you don't refuse.

757 Comic Anthology

Hey, I guess I have news for once!
At the last 757CCC meetup, Juan and I wrapped up work on the comic anthology and ordered a test copy from Lulu.
So it's looking like the anthology might actually happen after all.

Now I get to work on the next one (fluttershy yay).

Patrick Nagel

Screw trying to come up with succinct, thoughtful blog posts.
I just found out that Patrick Nagel has a site with a gallery of his works that you can look at with your eyeballs: LOOOOK.

I can't think of the eighties without thinking of Nagel's graphic paintings. Fair warning: he liked to paint women who didn't like to wear clothing. Thinkofthechildren!/Whatisthisworldcomingto?!/etc.

Arguments I'm Tired Of

I don't really mind when people disagree with me on political issues - in fact, I love debate because it exposes me to new ways of seeing the world, and defending my viewpoint often helps me to clarify what my view actually is. But some lines of argument just fly in the face of facts, and don't actually help people defend their side - in fact, they may cause others to dismiss them altogether. Here's a short list of arguments I'd be glad to never hear again:

Marijuana isn't a drug, it's a plant created by God.
So is poison ivy, but I wouldn't smoke that.

If everyone had guns, no one would ever shoot anyone.
Yes, because that worked so well in the Old West.

If women were in charge, there would be no wars.
You think Hillary Clinton wouldn't bomb someone just because she has ovaries? Who do you think is sending drones into Pakistan?

Guns don't kill people. People kill people.
True, but guns make it a hell of a lot easier for people to kill people. What would the death toll of Columbine or Virginia Tech have been like if the shooters had to chase people with a knife?

Marijuana is a "gateway drug."
Only because it is illegal, and people have to go to criminals to buy it. If it were sold in stores the way alcohol and tobacco are, people wouldn't be exposed to the other drugs that drug dealers sell.