Things To Be Thankful For
Yeah, I know Thanksgiving was on Thursday. I'm a little...slow.
1. Sergio Aragones
I went to my very first comic book convention yesterday! Mid-Ohio Con, in Columbus, is pretty tiny, but a lot of people like it because you can actually talk to creators. Me? I'm too scared to talk to creators. I was kind of freaked out when I entered the exhibition hall, so I found myself a corner to hide in and go over my program.
There were only a few people in costume, and most of them were Star Wars characters. I did see one Supergirl and one guy dressed like Kon-El from the Young Justice era with the leather jacket and random belts. I was pretty impressed by his costume, until I noticed that he had some major underwear lines going on. Dude, boxers and spandex DO NOT go together.
Anyway, I was mostly there to go to the Sergio Aragones and Mark Evanier panel. It was fantastic! Just like arch_schatten said it would be! They were very funny and smart-aleck-y:
Fan: How did you two get together?
Sergio: Well, he proposed...
Mark: I'm drawn to men with mustaches.
or when someone asked what they thought about the future of comics:
Mark: They're doomed. They'll all have disappeared by next year. This is the very last comic book convention ever. Everyone will be out of business by 2008.
I left the panel convinced that The Spirit will be in good hands. And that I need to read some Groo.
2. Columbus
When I was younger, I said that I hated Ohio and couldn't wait to move away. My dad said he doubted that. "Think about James Thurber," he said. "He never got Columbus out of his system." I'm beginning to think my dad may be right.
Driving home yesterday, I saw a sign that said "Gay Street becomes two-way on December 7." In that case, won't they have to re-name it "Bisexual Street?" *ba dum ching*
3.My Cat
My cat has allergies, so every few months I have to take her to the vet to get an allergy shot. This past time, the vet told me to give her some antibiotics so that the places she hurt herself from scratching wouldn't get infected.
Every night for the past week, my mom and I have had to catch the cat, bundle her up in a towel, force her mouth open, and squirt the antibiotics down her throat. My cat has started doing an impersonation of a turtle and drawing her head inside the towel so we can't get to her. It actually looks pretty funny.
4. Seasonal Employment
I have a job for the Christmas season! I'll be working at the post office, sorting mail and the like. It pays very well, about $10 an hour! I start on December 8th. In the meantime, I'm waiting to get a call about going to Columbus to get a physical and drug test.
Unfortunately, my shift will start at midnight. I'll be keeping vampire-like hours for most of December.
5. Friends
I got a package from Amazon the other day. I opened it up like "WTF? I didn't order this!" Then I realized it was a copy of "Drawing Showing What Happens on Each Page of Thomas Pynchon's 'Gravity's Rainbow.'" The receipt told me that it was a gift from Mina.
I'm absolutely floored by the generosity shown by people I've met on LJ. I've yet to write Mina to thank her for the gift because I'm at a loss for words. But never fear, I shall write, and soon! But here, I want to say thank you, Mina. Thank you all of you. So much.
6. Memes
I am thankful for memes because they give me something to do when I'm bored.
1. Leave me a casual comment of no particular significance, like a lyric to your favorite song.
2. I will respond by asking you five personal questions so I can get to know you better.
3. Update your LJ with the answers to these questions.
4. Include this explanation and offer to ask someone else in your own post.
5. When others respond with a random comment, you will ask them five questions.
Questions from arch_schatten:
1. What's your favorite book, and why?
2. What's the thing that ties the knot for you with Booster and Beetle?
3. Did you have an alter ego as a kid?
4. What's a perfect day for you?
5. What's the best thing about living in Chillicothe, and what's the worst?
1. What's your favorite book, and why?
Oh man. Just start out with the super-hard one, why don't you!
I'm going to say Brideshead Revisited, by Evelyn Waugh. It's certainly one of my favorites, if not "the" favorite. To see a plot summary and more of my so-called artwork, go here.
Brideshead Revisited encompasses so many themes that appeal to me, including Christianity, Catholicism, homosexuality, alcoholism, sex, love, creation, parents, friendship, modernity, fate, and too many more to list. It's alternately hilarious and heart-breaking and ultimately hopeful. Plus, the BBC produced a very faithful adaptation of the novel, starring a young and handsome Anthony Andrews as Sebastian Flyte and a young and handsome Jeremy Irons as Charles Ryder. Here's a promotional photo from the film:
Evelyn Waugh was a interesting guy. He wrote Brideshead Revisited while laid up in a hospital during WWII after his commanding officer ordered him to take rest leave. He sent the manuscript to his publisher and went back to the front. The proof of Brideshead was actually parachuted to him behind enemy lines for his approval. That's hardcore.
Can you tell I've studied Brideshead pretty intensely? To this day, if I'm in a library and see a piece of literary criticism on the book that I haven't read before, I will snatch it up and check it out right away. Perhaps that's why I like it so much: I've put a lot of effort in to reading it.
2. What's the thing that ties the knot for you with Booster and Beetle?
"Ties the knot" makes it sound like I'm married to Boostle! Although, considering how much time I've put in to the fandom, I kind of am...
I didn't become aware of the existence of Boostle until Ted Kord was killed off. Everybody started posting their favorite Blue Beetle appearances on scans_daily and I just fell in love with the character. Of course, you can't have Beetle without Booster, so I got to like him too. I originally appreciated them for their humor, but I eventually realized the depth of their characters. If I'm a sucker for anything, it's really good characterization.
I love the normal guy-ness of Boostle. They screw up a lot, but not "I created a sentient satellite that went rogue and is trying to kill all of the superheroes"-type screw ups. They struggle with weight gain, relatives, money-making, time management, and relationships. Yet, even without any innate superpowers, they're still heroes.
3. Did you have an alter ego as a kid?
Sort of. I would play these very complicated imaginary games that involved a lot of world-building. I would play in one world as a certain character for months before I finally exhausted the concept and would create a new one. I remember one in particular that involved me pretending to be a handsome Spanish knight who was good at fencing, horseback riding, and musical theater.
4. What's a perfect day for you?
A perfect day for me would be spent exploring an unfamiliar city, hopefully with a friend to guide me. We could go to museums, see movies or plays, go shopping someplace that's not a strip mall, eat at interesting restaurants, or just walk around and take in the sights. I wouldn't mind a bit of drinking in the evening.
Some of the best days of my life were in New York City with my friend Daniela, Washington D.C. with Evil Ex-Boyfriend Jake (before he went evil), Chicago and Toronto with my family, and various places in France and England with my friend Carly.
5. What's the best thing about living in Chillicothe, and what's the worst?
The best thing is that my mom's in Chillicothe! I love my mom!
I also like how I feel comfortable in Chillicothe. I rarely feel any anxiety there because it's so familiar.
Unfortunately, familiarity breeds contempt. I get sick of the sameness. And I don't like the fact that most people here are politically conservative.
Questions from jen_in_japan:
1. I ask just about everyone this, I think, but I always love hearing the answer: how did you get into slash?
2. What do you consider major influences on your writing style?
3. What's the worst movie you've ever paid money to see in the theater?
4. What are some of your favorite poets?
5. What was the moment you knew you wanted to write Piper/Trickster?
1. I ask just about everyone this, I think, but I always love hearing the answer: how did you get into slash?
I don't remember exactly when I realized that two guys making out was hot, but I remember when I discovered slash. I was over at a more internet-savvy friend's house and we were out in the backyard talking. I forgot how it came up, but I mentioned to her that I thought guys being in love was kind of sexy and she got really excited. She asked me if I knew what slash fiction was and I said no. She dragged me inside to the computer and the rest is history.
2. What do you consider major influences on your writing style?
I learned a lot about writing humor from James Thurber. I read him voraciously when I was about twelve and thirteen. It didn't hurt that he's from Columbus. I made a pilgrimage to his childhood home (now a museum) with my parents and I still remember the thrill I got from touching his typewriter.
I think I got my ear for dialogue from being exposed to theater at a very young age and then becoming a "drama geek" in middle and high school. I was actually a theater major for a freshman year of college (way back in 2004-5!), until I realized how political the drama department at Indiana University was and became an English major instead. I realize now that that was naive as all university departments are political to some extent, but it just seemed like the theater people were more cutthroat and bitchy. Anyway, I still enjoy the performing arts very much, but I no longer have any desire to be an actress.
Finally, Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh represent the level of authorship I want to attain. Their gifts for characterization and portrayal of deep human emotion are unparalleled.
3. What's the worst movie you've ever paid money to see in the theater?
Either the second part of the Matrix trilogy (Reload?), or that movie starring Kate Beckinsale about a war between vampires and werewolves. That movie was really stupid. I especially liked how a vampire-werewolf hybrid apparently looks like Nightcrawler from the X-Men. Oh! Underwolrd! That's what it called. I think it even spawned a sequel *shudder*
4. What are some of your favorite poets?
T.S. Eliot, even though he was a pretty awful human being. Lucille Clifton. William Blake. Allen Ginsberg. W.H. Auden. John Donne, who wrote that poem about wanting Jesus to rape him. Edgar Allen Poe. Emily Dickinson. Anne Bradstreet.
5. What was the moment you knew you wanted to write Piper/Trickster?
I'm not exactly sure. I've liked Piper a lot for a long time, but it's only fairly recently that I got in to the rest of the Flash Rogues. I wanted Piper and Trickster to get together since the beginning of Countdown, but it was only after re-reading that Secret Origins issue with The Blatt that I actually came up with a good idea for a fic.
1. Sergio Aragones
I went to my very first comic book convention yesterday! Mid-Ohio Con, in Columbus, is pretty tiny, but a lot of people like it because you can actually talk to creators. Me? I'm too scared to talk to creators. I was kind of freaked out when I entered the exhibition hall, so I found myself a corner to hide in and go over my program.
There were only a few people in costume, and most of them were Star Wars characters. I did see one Supergirl and one guy dressed like Kon-El from the Young Justice era with the leather jacket and random belts. I was pretty impressed by his costume, until I noticed that he had some major underwear lines going on. Dude, boxers and spandex DO NOT go together.
Anyway, I was mostly there to go to the Sergio Aragones and Mark Evanier panel. It was fantastic! Just like arch_schatten said it would be! They were very funny and smart-aleck-y:
Fan: How did you two get together?
Sergio: Well, he proposed...
Mark: I'm drawn to men with mustaches.
or when someone asked what they thought about the future of comics:
Mark: They're doomed. They'll all have disappeared by next year. This is the very last comic book convention ever. Everyone will be out of business by 2008.
I left the panel convinced that The Spirit will be in good hands. And that I need to read some Groo.
2. Columbus
When I was younger, I said that I hated Ohio and couldn't wait to move away. My dad said he doubted that. "Think about James Thurber," he said. "He never got Columbus out of his system." I'm beginning to think my dad may be right.
Driving home yesterday, I saw a sign that said "Gay Street becomes two-way on December 7." In that case, won't they have to re-name it "Bisexual Street?" *ba dum ching*
3.My Cat
My cat has allergies, so every few months I have to take her to the vet to get an allergy shot. This past time, the vet told me to give her some antibiotics so that the places she hurt herself from scratching wouldn't get infected.
Every night for the past week, my mom and I have had to catch the cat, bundle her up in a towel, force her mouth open, and squirt the antibiotics down her throat. My cat has started doing an impersonation of a turtle and drawing her head inside the towel so we can't get to her. It actually looks pretty funny.
4. Seasonal Employment
I have a job for the Christmas season! I'll be working at the post office, sorting mail and the like. It pays very well, about $10 an hour! I start on December 8th. In the meantime, I'm waiting to get a call about going to Columbus to get a physical and drug test.
Unfortunately, my shift will start at midnight. I'll be keeping vampire-like hours for most of December.
5. Friends
I got a package from Amazon the other day. I opened it up like "WTF? I didn't order this!" Then I realized it was a copy of "Drawing Showing What Happens on Each Page of Thomas Pynchon's 'Gravity's Rainbow.'" The receipt told me that it was a gift from Mina.
I'm absolutely floored by the generosity shown by people I've met on LJ. I've yet to write Mina to thank her for the gift because I'm at a loss for words. But never fear, I shall write, and soon! But here, I want to say thank you, Mina. Thank you all of you. So much.
6. Memes
I am thankful for memes because they give me something to do when I'm bored.
1. Leave me a casual comment of no particular significance, like a lyric to your favorite song.
2. I will respond by asking you five personal questions so I can get to know you better.
3. Update your LJ with the answers to these questions.
4. Include this explanation and offer to ask someone else in your own post.
5. When others respond with a random comment, you will ask them five questions.
Questions from arch_schatten:
1. What's your favorite book, and why?
2. What's the thing that ties the knot for you with Booster and Beetle?
3. Did you have an alter ego as a kid?
4. What's a perfect day for you?
5. What's the best thing about living in Chillicothe, and what's the worst?
1. What's your favorite book, and why?
Oh man. Just start out with the super-hard one, why don't you!
I'm going to say Brideshead Revisited, by Evelyn Waugh. It's certainly one of my favorites, if not "the" favorite. To see a plot summary and more of my so-called artwork, go here.
Brideshead Revisited encompasses so many themes that appeal to me, including Christianity, Catholicism, homosexuality, alcoholism, sex, love, creation, parents, friendship, modernity, fate, and too many more to list. It's alternately hilarious and heart-breaking and ultimately hopeful. Plus, the BBC produced a very faithful adaptation of the novel, starring a young and handsome Anthony Andrews as Sebastian Flyte and a young and handsome Jeremy Irons as Charles Ryder. Here's a promotional photo from the film:
Evelyn Waugh was a interesting guy. He wrote Brideshead Revisited while laid up in a hospital during WWII after his commanding officer ordered him to take rest leave. He sent the manuscript to his publisher and went back to the front. The proof of Brideshead was actually parachuted to him behind enemy lines for his approval. That's hardcore.
Can you tell I've studied Brideshead pretty intensely? To this day, if I'm in a library and see a piece of literary criticism on the book that I haven't read before, I will snatch it up and check it out right away. Perhaps that's why I like it so much: I've put a lot of effort in to reading it.
2. What's the thing that ties the knot for you with Booster and Beetle?
"Ties the knot" makes it sound like I'm married to Boostle! Although, considering how much time I've put in to the fandom, I kind of am...
I didn't become aware of the existence of Boostle until Ted Kord was killed off. Everybody started posting their favorite Blue Beetle appearances on scans_daily and I just fell in love with the character. Of course, you can't have Beetle without Booster, so I got to like him too. I originally appreciated them for their humor, but I eventually realized the depth of their characters. If I'm a sucker for anything, it's really good characterization.
I love the normal guy-ness of Boostle. They screw up a lot, but not "I created a sentient satellite that went rogue and is trying to kill all of the superheroes"-type screw ups. They struggle with weight gain, relatives, money-making, time management, and relationships. Yet, even without any innate superpowers, they're still heroes.
3. Did you have an alter ego as a kid?
Sort of. I would play these very complicated imaginary games that involved a lot of world-building. I would play in one world as a certain character for months before I finally exhausted the concept and would create a new one. I remember one in particular that involved me pretending to be a handsome Spanish knight who was good at fencing, horseback riding, and musical theater.
4. What's a perfect day for you?
A perfect day for me would be spent exploring an unfamiliar city, hopefully with a friend to guide me. We could go to museums, see movies or plays, go shopping someplace that's not a strip mall, eat at interesting restaurants, or just walk around and take in the sights. I wouldn't mind a bit of drinking in the evening.
Some of the best days of my life were in New York City with my friend Daniela, Washington D.C. with Evil Ex-Boyfriend Jake (before he went evil), Chicago and Toronto with my family, and various places in France and England with my friend Carly.
5. What's the best thing about living in Chillicothe, and what's the worst?
The best thing is that my mom's in Chillicothe! I love my mom!
I also like how I feel comfortable in Chillicothe. I rarely feel any anxiety there because it's so familiar.
Unfortunately, familiarity breeds contempt. I get sick of the sameness. And I don't like the fact that most people here are politically conservative.
Questions from jen_in_japan:
1. I ask just about everyone this, I think, but I always love hearing the answer: how did you get into slash?
2. What do you consider major influences on your writing style?
3. What's the worst movie you've ever paid money to see in the theater?
4. What are some of your favorite poets?
5. What was the moment you knew you wanted to write Piper/Trickster?
1. I ask just about everyone this, I think, but I always love hearing the answer: how did you get into slash?
I don't remember exactly when I realized that two guys making out was hot, but I remember when I discovered slash. I was over at a more internet-savvy friend's house and we were out in the backyard talking. I forgot how it came up, but I mentioned to her that I thought guys being in love was kind of sexy and she got really excited. She asked me if I knew what slash fiction was and I said no. She dragged me inside to the computer and the rest is history.
2. What do you consider major influences on your writing style?
I learned a lot about writing humor from James Thurber. I read him voraciously when I was about twelve and thirteen. It didn't hurt that he's from Columbus. I made a pilgrimage to his childhood home (now a museum) with my parents and I still remember the thrill I got from touching his typewriter.
I think I got my ear for dialogue from being exposed to theater at a very young age and then becoming a "drama geek" in middle and high school. I was actually a theater major for a freshman year of college (way back in 2004-5!), until I realized how political the drama department at Indiana University was and became an English major instead. I realize now that that was naive as all university departments are political to some extent, but it just seemed like the theater people were more cutthroat and bitchy. Anyway, I still enjoy the performing arts very much, but I no longer have any desire to be an actress.
Finally, Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh represent the level of authorship I want to attain. Their gifts for characterization and portrayal of deep human emotion are unparalleled.
3. What's the worst movie you've ever paid money to see in the theater?
Either the second part of the Matrix trilogy (Reload?), or that movie starring Kate Beckinsale about a war between vampires and werewolves. That movie was really stupid. I especially liked how a vampire-werewolf hybrid apparently looks like Nightcrawler from the X-Men. Oh! Underwolrd! That's what it called. I think it even spawned a sequel *shudder*
4. What are some of your favorite poets?
T.S. Eliot, even though he was a pretty awful human being. Lucille Clifton. William Blake. Allen Ginsberg. W.H. Auden. John Donne, who wrote that poem about wanting Jesus to rape him. Edgar Allen Poe. Emily Dickinson. Anne Bradstreet.
5. What was the moment you knew you wanted to write Piper/Trickster?
I'm not exactly sure. I've liked Piper a lot for a long time, but it's only fairly recently that I got in to the rest of the Flash Rogues. I wanted Piper and Trickster to get together since the beginning of Countdown, but it was only after re-reading that Secret Origins issue with The Blatt that I actually came up with a good idea for a fic.