Long Beach Comic Con wrap-up

Last weekend was the inaugural Long Beach Comic Con and Ryan and I shared a table there in Artist Alley. It was a lot of fun and a really good show! Sadly, we didn't make it to a single panel discussion or even get an autograph from Corin Nemec (for reals!), but the reason was good: the table was popular!

Firstly, I have to give credit where credit is due: LBCC made this an 'artist centric' convention, so the bulk (and literal center) of the expo hall was the artist area. Lots of big-name and well-loved creators came out, so the fans were in an extremely good mood (imagine getting to see your favorite artist, up close and personal, AND the show was less busy than, say, SDCC, so you actually got to chat and get sketches and stuff) PLUS the attendees walked every aisle, making sure they didn't miss anyone. Which meant, of course, that they strolled past our table too. So, thanks to the LBCC planners for a great job on focusing traffic.

My side of the table, as usual, had the benefit of bright colors. In a sea of comic book portfolios and sketches (mostly black and white), my giddy crafts stand out. So they caught a lot of eyeballs. This show, I had 2 offers: my dot paintings and my peg people. Both were very well received, I am grateful to announce! By Sunday afternoon, I was packing up nearly empty houses and had sold almost everything that I brought (sorry to everyone who asked, the houses aren't for sale).It was amazing -- THANK YOU to all the good people who came by and took some of this stuff home for me!!

Friday had a much higher attendance than we'd anticipated (seeing as how it was a 'work and school' day for most people, I figured if 50 people came, we'd be in good shape) and I sold several things right out the gate, which was surprising to say the least! Literally, as soon as I set some things on the table, they found new homes. I was blown away. By early Saturday, I was running low on several things and had to start painting Saturday night to replenish!

One of my display techniques was to use this cupcake, to demonstrate what-in-the-world-would-I-do-with-a-peg-person (hint: a cake topper!). This was a store-bought cupcake that had gone stale and then I coated it with acrylic gloss, so it was shiny and solid. Unfortunately, it was lost/stolen after the show closed on Friday night. My table neighbors were more upset than I was -- I just hope no one tried to eat it! But no matter, I have a more permanent version coming soon. This was just a quick-and-dirty way to show how the peg people could be used. And it served its purpose, so... bon voyage little cupcake!

One of the fan-favorite items was the tiny mailbox with tiny business cards. I have to admit, I'm pretty fond of it too. :)

I also sold some of the blank peg people (seen in the above pictures in a bowl and on the table) so that convention-goers could try their own hand at creating a masterpiece. I figured that the kids would think it was a great idea, but I was surprised at how many adults were buying them -- inspired by what they saw and chock-full of ideas of their own! The kids mostly wanted what was already painted, although there were a few kids who were determined that they could (and would!) do better than what I had. Every one of them said they'd email me a picture - and I hope they do!

I accepted only one commission during the show, which was from 2 fun gals who had recently learned of the meme to find out your stripper name (name of your first pet + first street you lived on) and they were collecting sketches and caricatures of themselves as strippers, so they asked me to paint them that way too. Strippers have relatively little to paint, so I said yes. I always love it when someone has a good, solid, silly idea!

I also was honored to be asked to contribute to someone's sketch book (full of awesome art from all the Cool People there) and I felt terrible that I CANNOT DRAW so I scribbled a peg-person form of me and Ryan (dorky) and the girl asked if maybe I could add something with dots. Well, markers don't really give the same effect, so I painted an artist trading card (ATC) made of canvas with Spider-Man for her to stick in her book instead.

Along the way, my table was photographed several times, including by the OC Weekly, the LA Weekly, a handful of blogs, and I did a video interview with the Daily 49er (Cal State Long Beach's news). So that was all really cool!

Plus, I'm waiting for the photos to roll in. I'm having a contest over yonder on ye olde craft blog, asking folks to submit pictures of their giddy girlie art to win $20! I've gotten a few so far, but there is still time to submit!

Oh! And we also saw a skateboarding shrimp!



And then were driving behind this... a sentinel from X Men. You're welcome.

Long Beach Comic Con Oct 2-4

Ryan and I signed up for the Long Beach Comic Con a while back, when it was still "months and months from now" and suddenly - whoa! It's almost here! I am very excited and am working like mad to have some fun stuff to sell at the show! Ryan and I will be sharing a table and we'd love to see YOU! If you're at the show, please stop by and say 'hi!'

Ryan will have original artwork, sketch cards, plus be doing sketches and autograph signings and such during the show. For my part, I'll be bringing some of my little 'gidgets' and dot paintings. I even have some show exclusives! Like these little movie monsters in a coffin - first available at LBCC! Stop by and get yours AND take advantage of special show pricing on everything I sell!


See us at Table 44! Buy your tickets online! Ryan is listed on the Guests page! Floor map [PDF]! Programming Schedule!

Ryan's Birthday Week - part 1

Somehow I managed not to update this space for a week and left it on a depressing note. Sorry everybody! Really, my life isn't so tragic. I try and stay positive -- even in light of Monkey's passing, I have to give thanks for having known him at all. To have loved and lost and all that...

ANYWAY.

Last weekend marked the start of Ryan's Birthday Week! Yay! And it also happened to coincide with Brian visiting from New York, Pete visiting from New Jersey, and Trevor & Jordie visiting from Berkeley so it was a weekend chock-full of friends too.

On Friday, I met up with Pete and the gang for an avalanche of sushi, which was great but sent me directly into a coma. Luckily, I was able to recover by lazing around the house that night and finishing up some commission pieces and sent Ryan out to Art Dork Club with the boys. Since I hadn't seen Joe or Dave on their birthdays, I whipped up some custom peg people just for them [details coming soon to my Giddy Crafts blog http://giddycrafts.blogspot.com/] and had Ryan deliver them at Art Dork Club, where they were well-received.

On Saturday, Ryan and I met Kate and Brian at the Skirball Cultural Center & Museum in LA to see their Golden Age of Comic Books exhibit (now closed, so the link has disappeared from their site), which was really neat. Photography was only allowed in select areas, so I don't have much to show from that part of the day except...

Super Kate

Super Punch-Out Ryan

Super Cheesy Valentine

"I'm not a bit like Superman. Can't hear through walls made of brick, so if you like me Valentine, come out and say so quick!"

The exhibit had original artwork from all the Golden Age masters, which made Ryan and Brian drool with excitement. The two of them were like kids in a candy shop and Kate and I did our best to keep up. "Ooh, yes, I do see that linework. Uh huh, how nice!"

After having more fun than was technically legal (surprisingly strict!), we headed over to see the Noah's Ark exhibit. Ok, so I was totally unprepared for this and had NO idea what it was. So it was completely mind-blowing when I got in there. Firstly, you start in a small room with a 'guide' who gives an extremely brief overview of the Flood Story and how it exists in nearly every culture around the world in some form or another and how the Noah story centers on the saving of the animals, via a giant boat. After this explanation, you're lead into a giant exhibit with all of these animals that were made from recycled materials and nearly all of them were kinetic sculptures. They were simply amazing. I was totally agog.

Further into the exhibit were interactive stations where kids (or adults!) could pump water into a display to show the rising waters of the flood

Or crank up an electric charge to create lightning or pull a rope that activated piano wires to create the sound of thunder. There was also a giant giraffe that could be manipulated by a mechanism on the ground, so that he was looking back and forth.

And then there was the Ark. In every available space were more re-purposed structure animals and also lots of ones that were made for playing and touching (like puppets and dolls) and giant crates, showing the necessary provisions for the journey, like vegetables and beans. (that sounds really dull, but they were cool, because you could crawl inside them and each had interactive portions) To get the full effect, check out the Noah's Ark page on the museum's website.

Inside the Ark, in addition to the toys and interactive bits, were display cabinets with crafted versions of the Ark Story from countries and cultures around the world. My favorite was the "American" version, featuring "Old McNoah" on a tractor, towing his animals to safety - talk about cheesy! I love it!!

At the end of the exhibit is the Dove of Peace, which is made from a harpsichord (?) and guitar picks.

Outside is the Rainbow Arc, where there is a constant fine mist (which is perfect on a hot day!) that creates a rainbow effect. We all thought the mist would be very light and subtle and so the boys walked through it - and came out soaked to the bone. Still, very refreshing, even if it was surprising!

After all the excitement of comic books and animals lined up two-by-two, we headed off to get some lunch/dinner/linner, during which Kate gave Ryan his present: a Pistol Pedro belt buckle!! Ryan and I are in love with Michele Valigura's art (plug for my Peter Pan statue!) and this belt buckle is awesome in SO many ways. Firstly, it's a Valigura piece. 'Nuff said. THEN it's a belt buckle, which he just happens to need. And THEN it's got a spinning moustache!!!! Which is perfect for Ryan, who happens to be enamoured with spinning belt buckles, ever since Christy & The S Squad brought him back a skull & crossbones spinning buckle from Thailand.

I happened to have a necklace chain in my purse (why not?) so Ryan was able to wear the buckle during dinner and repeatedly spin his 'stache.

Although we SWORE that we wouldn't, we ate too much. So after we sat and digested a bit, we headed out to Griffith Observatory. It was surprisingly busy! I hadn't expected that big of a crowd... but I guess we're not the only science nerds (yes we were, but that's ok). We watched the new Planetarium show which was AMAZING. I'd go see it again in a heartbeat (anyone? anyone?). Although there was one minor hiccup, which was that there was a young girl behind us who cried and moaned through the entire show because she wanted to leave (the poor thing was in the middle of a panic attack) but her parents -- to say they were 'icky' doesn't nearly do it justice -- didn't want to take her out, so she wailed through the entire show. Which was distracting and rude and... did I mention how icky those people were? Buh.

ANYWAY. We came out of the theater feeling the majesty of the universe and the insignificance of us all and then we saw this, sitting right outside...

It was entrancing, to say the least. It reminded me of Kevin Kidney's recent post about the giant moon model at the Observatory and we set out to find it. Eventually, we did, although it was nearing closing time (15 minutes left!) and the guard wouldn't let us go over see it. I asked nicely and even pleaded our case, that we'd driven all the way up here and just wanted to see it and he was kind of jerky and said "Well, we have to close sometime! Come back another day!" That kind of put me into a pout and I apologize to my friends, because I was really irked. We were the ONLY people over there and we're respectful people and not some crazy gang bangers looking for an opportunity to tag up the museum. It wouldn't have hurt for him to let a couple little ladies peek at the giant moon. But no. Stupid stinkypants.

But the night did end on a high note. Ryan used the uni-sex bathrooms and came out laughing because the lady (an obviously foreign visitor) had used the urinal as a toilet. I guess she was expecting a public bidet? So she used the one that she thought was meant for #1. Which was funny and it kept us giggling the whole way home.

WonderWinns: established 2001

The years just fly by, don't they? In 1997, I was 19 and working at the Irvine Spectrum at a coffee house and had just started dating This Guy (who had been my BFF for a couple of years already) and then one of my coffee-caffeinated co-workers (Chris) jumped ship to another store at the Spectrum* that was a photo studio. I can't remember the name of it and am having a devil of a time finding any similar stores online, but basically it used a few props and costumes and a giant blue screen and they would superimpose you into several movies or classic scenes or wacky backdrops. IT'S MINDBOGGLING THAT THIS BUSINESS DID NOT LAST FOREVER. Anyway, business was pretty slow, so they'd basically try and convince anyone they could to come inside and try it out for free (then if you like the pictures, you can buy them) and that was fine until teenagers started catching on and they'd spend hours in the make-up room, trying on wigs and mixing the costumes and then wanting 10 different backgrounds and never buying anything. SO. Chris came over and asked me to pleasepleaseplease help him out after I got off work. If I could just puh-please come and pose for a couple of pictures, he would be really thankful (because I wouldn't just be jerking his chain) and plus, he'd let me have whatever prints I wanted for free.

I agreed, reluctantly. I'd worked the opening shift, which is 5:30am-2:30pm so I was pretty beat. Plus, it was August and swelteringly hot. But a deal's a deal. Then Ryan showed up unexpectedly to pick me up from work and then I had the unpleasant task of getting HIM to agree to a cheesy photo session (which was not easy work!). But in the end, he agreed. I was exhausted and sweaty and looked like I hadn't slept in decades. My hair was greasy and in an awkward parted-down-the-middle coiff. Ryan was slightly better looking, but not too pleased about being photographed. But in we went.

In the interest of getting out of there as soon as possible, we didn't look through the book of the 100 different backgrounds available, but instead asked "which costumes are the easiest to put on?" So the wardrobe gal handed me a floral dress that was somehow gigantically big and tight. The body of the dress was XXXXXXXL and clearly intended to be a one-size-fits-all number, which is the norm (you know, with those saloon pictures or whatever), so it was gathered in the back by binder clips** but the arm holes -- somehow the dress designer expected a 600lb woman with chicken legs for arms. The band was stiff and starched and had NO give to it, so my flabby ham arms are crammed through the narrow opening. I was already sweaty, but the exertion it took to get into a dress that is the size of a tent was boggling (sounds like it SHOULD be easy but wasn't. AT ALL.). Ryan was outfitted in slacks and a long-sleeve button up shirt and a leather bomber jacket. Which should be everyone's go-to outfit in August, when under gigantic lights in a studio space that had little air conditioning.

So we stood and we pretended that we liked it. People watched from the window, seeing us, via video monitors, transformed from a couple of sweaty 20-somethings on a blue screen stage to a nostalgic time when I was a young war bride, come to see my soldier off to war. Behind us sits his plane, the In The Mood, with a cheesecake pinup girl stretched out and beckoning. He's about to rush out and bomb the crap out of some unsuspecting island atoll and I'm going to hold this bouquet of flowers in my hands until he comes back.

We were such a hit with the crowd that 2 families watching us, came inside and starting being outfitted for their own wacky pictures. The staff was so pleased that they printed off various copies of our 'session' and eagerly handed them over, excitedly jabbering about how we should use these pictures for our wedding announcements (har! That would be another 4 years and 40lbs down the road!). We were supposed to have stayed to do another background, but since the families came in, everyone in the studio was busy, so we just picked up our prints and left.

*~*~*~*~*~*

That night, we went to hang out with our friend Trevor and we were telling him and his family about how lame this photo session was and look at these cheesy pictures and his mom asked to see them. So we showed them to her, sending her into immediate tears and asking for a copy of her own which was immediately nestled with the rest of the family photos in the entry hallway.

Personally, I was never really affected by the picture. It was funny, I suppose, and looking at it all that I ever think of is how sweaty and smelly I look and how hot it was and uncomfortable and how the glint from my nose-ring makes it look like I have a glitter booger... but now that I am getting old (ahem), I have a new appreciation. Not just because 'oh, look a faux vintage picture of us' but because it's a moment in our history that wouldn't have otherwise been captured.



*~*~*~*~*~*

Four years later, he showed up to the boat in a tuxedo - as was previously agreed upon - and he made a huge, stumbling production of coming up the stairwell to the Muppet Show theme song (don't ask). He smiled and waved when the crowd cheered. He spun his cane and acted a fool. And he didn't run away when he saw me coming directly at him in a big white dress. A little while later, we exchanged rings and promises and communed with our friends and had a fun little party. And, once again, he got forced to pose for pictures in a suit that was too hot for the time of year and take pictures and give me a bouquet of flowers and make everyone's mom cry.


July 7, 2001

Happy anniversary, Bub!



*For those of you familiar with the Spectrum, you know that it is a billion dollar shopping center. But in 1997, it was really small. Anchored by the movie theater and Barnes & Noble bookstore (which is now a 24 Hour Fitness; the bookstore relocated) and a few scattered restaurants and mostly kiosks.

**a mainstay of the wardrobe designer's toolkit, in case you weren't aware

yeah, he's cool like that

You probably already saw my tweets and my spamtastic emails BUT what kind of wife would I be if I didn't blog about this too?*

My husband, hereafter shall be known as "Harvey Award Nominated Ryan" and he should be addressed as such in all correspondence, personal or professional. Thank you for your adherance to these new rules.

Why? Well duuuuuuuuh! He's been nominated for a Harvey Award for Best Inker for his work on The Darkness last year! WOOOOOO!!**



The Harvey Awards are kind of special, because they're industry awards, which means that your own peers have to nominate you (and it is also your peers who will vote for you). Which is super sweet! They like him, they really like him!

SO: if you're at all affiliated with the comic industry -- that means web comic folks, writers, editors, colorists, copy boys, etc. -- you can vote! Here is the link to the form which needs to be returned by August 28th. Please do take the 2 minutes required to complete the form and send it back by email or postal mail. It means a lot to everyone involved.



*don't answer
** congratulations to everyone else nominated in this category as well! And yes, we are aware that Jamie Grant uses a lot of 'digital inking' processes, but it is still an art form and though we're pen-and-brush people ourselves, we can still respect that Jamie creates some beautiful pieces (it's about the end-product, not the tools).

Benefit Auction Starts May 23

Just a friendly reminder to anyone who may be interested in browsing the gallery of some of the items that will be available for the Josh Medors benefit auction, starting this Saturday! If you know any collectors of original comic book art, be sure to let 'em know about this... there are several one-of-a-kind pieces and commissions from well-known artists that are very valuable, but hard to find.

Plus: I am working on several pieces to be listed in my etsy shop that are part of my charitable contribution. So feel free to buy/commission something from there too!

winners!

Sunday was the Paley Festival's showing of the final three episodes of Pushing Daisies and I'd been looking forward to it for months. When the Big Day finally drew near, we got sad news that Adam wasn't going to make it and I nearly cried. Instead, I threw a fit and bullied and cajoled him until he agreed to fly out for the day - hooray!

So Sunday morning we met Adam and Kate outside the Arclight theater and did a happy dance and then went inside. It was a sold-out crowd and we got seats near the back of the house, which was great (there isn't a bad seat in the place). When the 'presentation' started, Bryan Fuller, Chi McBride, Barry Sonnenfeld and Ellen Greene (*squee!*) came out to thank the audience for their support and everyone was in tears. Sweet Ellen could barely talk and it was felt throughout the theater. They all then started throwing t-shirts out to the crowd and people were going NUTS. None of them made it up to our section and a lot of people were whining and moaning about it. But the show quickly started and I have to say that if you like Pushing Daisies, you will LOVE watching it with hundreds of other fans. Every moment is more intense and more touching when everyone around you is simultaneously gasping and laughing and 'awww'ing. It was incredible.

The episodes themselves were lots of fun and even though it was supposed to only be the season-ender, they were able to make it into a suitable series finale. Bryan Fuller commended the team who all called in favors to come up with extra budget and get people to work for cheap or free to get it all together (since a lot of new footage and special effects work was needed). I won't give away any spoliers, since the final 3 will be aired in May on ABC, but I can say that the final episode wrapped nicely and made me mist up a little (Kate was crying! So there!). In fact, I was quoted as saying "I am not a sentimental person. I'll punch a baby in the face and even I got chills."

Just before the last episode started, they raffled off several props from the shows and Ryan won one! He won a custom arm-sling that was worn by Olive Snook (Kristen Chenoweth) in the show, that was even autographed!

Ryan's hair and face was still asleep.

After the Festival, we went over to 8oz Burger Bar for the world's best hamburgers. Ryan and I ordered custom burgers which were TO DIE FOR. Mine had bacon and gruyere cheese (!) and garlic tomatoes (!!) and BBQ sauce and Ryan got slice of fried mozzarella and tomato sauce. Yes! You can get fried mozzarella on your burger. Heaven!!

While we were there Seth Rogen and his girlfriend sat at the table next to us, which was funny because Adam was once Seth's neck double for a photo shoot* and Adam is slightly bitter that those neck-double roles are disappearing since Seth is slimming down for his role as Green Lantern. So they walk in and Adam sighs "my neck double just walked in" and we all swivel and see that they choose the booth next to us. Que sera. So, they're sitting there enjoying their lunch and it's not 5 minutes before someone (a waiter!) stops by to geek-dump all over Seth and the guy is persistent. As if Seth is going to suddenly stand up and say "YES! You're exactly the actor I've been looking for! Let me call James Cameron and recommend you for his next blockbuster!" What are these people thinking when they do this? Then he finally leaves and a girl comes up to the table, only she pretends that she's geeking out over the girlfriend "Don't you remember me? I'm Anna's friend Lisa's friend? We met that one time at that party 5 years ago? Oh my god, how are you?" and then gives Seth the quick-brush 'oh hey, nice to meet you' AS IF. The girlfriend (apparently named Lauren) was very nice, but they were clearly pestered by this girl and the waiter and I wanted to yell RESPECT CELEBRITY PRIVACY! [quote from 30 Rock, when Jenna yells this at someone sharing the elevator after she loudly starts talking on her cell phone and he can't avoid hearing it] But I kept my opinions to myself and went back to talking about dirty words with Adam's mom. Que sera.

After we ate, we walked up Melrose to where we'd parked (our original lunch plans were for another restaurant) our cars and thankfully the sun was behind the buildings so it was only 90 degrees but not full sunlight. Yay! My sunburn from Saturday was roasting me from inside out, so I was a hot sweaty mess. Then we decided to grab a light dessert, iced tea and cookies before we all set out for home. While we were at the bakery, I had a full-scale melt down (I blame the sunburn!) and could NOT. STOP. GIGGLING. In my mind, it was hilarious, but it probably wasn't. All I know is that somewhere in the conversation there were mentions of how Kate knows several people who have been bitten by Andy Dick and then talk of celebrity slumber parties (with Andy Dick biting people) and then I just lost it. I don't know what happened. Sunburn makes you crazy! Apparently!

It was a fantastic day in so many ways. But my brain was officially a melted popsicle after cookies so Ryan and I headed home. I slept like a log (a log slathered in Solarcaine and with a fan blowing directly on her face, but a log nonetheless!). So THANK YOU to all the fantastic participants in this day, including Seth Rogen, his patient girlfriend, Adam's mom, Shawn (the new guy who laughed at my jokes!), the cops who looked the other way while I jaywalked, Andy Dick, Kathy Griffin, the weirdoes on Melrose, and the stuffy folks at Munky King.

*Adam produced the photo shoot seen in this video and there are pics of Seth and Elizabeth dressed as puritans being hung as witches (1:30) and Adam was strung up in the noose in Seth's costume, to serve as the neck double. So when he was done shooting he had rope burns on his neck AND he fell off the ladder and banged up his leg pretty good.

Hello California

I still haven't uploaded all of the vacation pictures yet (not that you're clamboring for a vacation slide show or anything) because I am apparently on East Coast time still, so when I get home at 6 or 7pm, I am too tired to think and I have been going to bed by 10pm - what?! Who am I?!

Right now I am uploading some miscellaneous images from my pocket camera to Flickr, but I still have about 1,000 more to sift through from my other memory cards and my new camera.

One of my favorite things is now posted though, this video of Ryan in Grand Cayman:

Bi-Mon-Sci-Fi-Con

So we've been saying "Bi-Mon-Sci-Fi-Con" over the past couple of weeks not realizing that there are people like Kate who are not total nerds and haven't, in fact, seen every episode of the Simpsons. In case you are one of those "people who has a life," the Bi-Mon-Sci-Fi-Con is what the bi-monthly science fiction convention is called on the Simpsons (hear the TV announcer here or even get yourself a t-shirt). The reason that we've been saying it so much is that this past weekend was the local monthly comic and sci-fi convention in LA and Ryan agreed to exhibit with his former boss. When Ryan was a teen (from 12-16, I think it was) he worked in a comic book store and has kept in touch with his old boss, Dave, since then. Dave's shop was shuttered a few years back, so he mostly sells things through conventions and such. Ryan agreed to help him staff the booth as well as promote some of his own work, which means that I had to go too (against my will).

The event is held at the Shrine Auditorium in LA which is this gorgeous old building on the edge of USC that used to be where the Emmys were filmed (along with a lot of other award shows and such that have now outgrown the space and are held at the Kodak Theater). The adjacent Expo Center is where they host various shows, including the bi-mon-sci-fi-con. The same intricate architecture is carried over, although the space isn't very well maintained anymore. Except, I do have to say that the restrooms were roomy and clean and smartly laid out (rare for a convention space).

This show is mostly a "dealer" show -- where various shop owners come to clearance out merchandise on the cheap (think $2 trade paper backs and $4 pornos) and there are a few D-list celebrities who come to sell their autographs (this month, Eric Roberts was the main attraction). Ryan didn't advertise or anything, so he was basically just some dude sitting at the end of a table of Star Wars collectibles. But it actually turned out pretty good.

First of all, Kate - bless her heart - showed up to hang out and scope out the show and provide me with some distraction (and lunch!). We had a lot of fun looking at toys and old comics, such as "I Love You" which have the BEST covers (check one out via the link - classic!) and are so lame at pandering to women that you have to kind of love them. We even made a new friend when we were browsing for old Katy Keene comics. This guy was so sweet and dug through four boxes to find the single Katy issue that they had. He was really funny and nice that when he finally found the book, Kate felt obligated to buy it, even though it cost more than we'd expected. A lot more. But she is so generous, she barely haggled with them and took away her new treasure, still smiling. Along with some $1 Nightmare Before Christmas stuff that we found at another booth that can be used in her fantastic purse-making career. So, it was a mixed bag.

And they were holding an open call for Beauty and the Geek, which was funny and we couldn't decide if everyone should be offended or embrace it. We did overhear one guy who signed up say that if he was chosen "I'm totally going to be the guy who causes all the trouble and starts all the drama." I'm sure he thought he'd be cast as a "beauty" too.

The same was true for Ryan. He got a few cool people and a couple of the... er... strange people who came to talk to him. It always surprises me how many people will ask the professionals to review or critique their work, but they are never sincere. He generally tries to shy away from any of that stuff, because very few people in life can actually handle criticism, but this one guy stood there for an hour to ask him in depth about stuff and so Ryan just kept advising him "practice, practice, practice" and the guy would make a face. Ryan suggests to everyone that you set aside time every day - like 2 hours - to practice basic forms, so that you develop muscle memory. And this guy (of course) just kept getting defensive and pointing to his drawings to explain why he didn't need to practice - see how good it is already? Bleh. BUT then we got a cool group that came over, led by their babyfaced high school teacher (wait, people my age are old enough to teach high school?!) who has recently founded a comic book club at the school for the kids as another way to introduce them to art and storytelling. He asked Ryan if he would mind if the kids (6 of them) observed him doodling - which of course Ryan didn't. So he drew a few things and explained the thought process and how to visually plan it out, etc. The kids were enjoying watching it and Ryan traded business cards with the teacher. He was such a nice guy and trying so hard to introduce these kids to something new (not an easy feat in Downtown LA). We're going to try and put him in touch with a few people and see if we can get the group some swag or something to help keep it going. We were super impressed with that whole idea. And this guy and his comic book club made Ryan's day.

Comic Nerd Party

On Saturday night, we went to celebrate our friends Mike & Luis who both had birthdays this week. The party was hosted by Josh Dysart (who is a pretty famous comic writer, working with Mike Mignola) and Ryan was excited to get to nerd out all over Josh, who was very accommodating (and if I do say myself, pretty enthusiastic about talking shop). Josh has this fantastic little house in Venice, one block from the beach that is super cool and people were shoe-horned into every nook and cranny. It was like something from a movie, where you have to crawl between people's legs to get from one room to the next. Very funny.

I spent most of the night out on his lovely front patio which looks into the giant picture window into the living room, where the band was playing and people were dancing. It was like watching this classic party on TV, only in surround sound. Someone brought their Boston Terrier, whose name was Jack Cheese (!) and he and I became fast friends and played ball a lot.

The group was such an interesting mixed bag. Lots of comic people, both industry types and also just huge fans (Mike co-owns the Comic Bug), lots of actors and artists and so many familiar faces. It was funny because there were people that I started chatting with because I knew them from somewhere, and I assumed it was from a convention or previous comic nerd party, but it turns out that oh, they're on TV. Like Bret McKenzie who we kept whispering ("Where do we know him from? Does he work for Marvel?") about... turns out he's from Flight of the Conchords. I also spent a lot of time chatting with a guy who works for Disney in the archiving department. He works in a top secret location, overseeing the team who is diligently scanning and saving all of the original artwork from the early Disney movies. In fact, he told me that the reason that there is a special edition of Sleeping Beauty coming out is because a bunch of the original artwork (hand-painted backgrounds, etc.) was recently discovered by accident in a back closet of a Japanese museum where it had been loaned decades ago and everyone had forgotten about it. I also met a girl whose father was an Imagineer at Disneyland and a few random drunk people from the street. GOOD TIMES!

We also walked down a couple of blocks to the "Gothic House" which is this hilariously over-done house nestled between all the other beach houses (you know, the kind with sand dollars on the porch). Mine are all night time shots, but some other Flickreenos have daytime pics. Ah, Venice Beach.

Adam's Farewell

On Sunday, we all met at Sycamore Cove in Malibu to say farewell to California's favorite son before he departs for the next leg of his journey. Clear into the unmentionable parts of Utah. He's got reasons for leaving, but none that we like. Sure, careers and families are nice, but HELLO. We live here! Which means that there is no reason for him to live anywhere else.

Kate took this one - good, isn't it?!

But I digress. He's going and all we can do is sob. Or laugh. Which is what keeps happening. To a much larger degree than crying actually. I hope that's a good thing.

The morning was a bit rainy and we were concerned, but the day was lovely and the beach was gorgeous. We got to watch the sun set over the ocean - which Kate had never done! Sacrilidge! And we had a fire and marshmallows and eulogies. Kate wrote a fantastic song (see video below) and Ryan and I wrote a poem (also in video form below). And we were warm and cozy in our new UNICORN SWEATSHIRTS OF AWESOMENESS. Everyone was jealous. For reals. If you're feeling pangs of jealousy, know that is a normal reaction and the only cure is to do 20 cartwheels. Sorry, I don't know what else to say. My pictures are up on Flickr for your enjoyment.





When Ryan read our poem, it was really dark and he was working from notes so some of the lines got a little mixed, but this is the poem in its entirety:

If we had one more Adam
This wouldn't be so bad
This one could pack his bags and go
And we wouldn't be so sad

If we had one more Adam
Then one could stay in town
And tour us through Lala Land
And all of its surrounds

If we had one more Adam
He could hobnob with the stars
Then take us all for chicken strips
At what's that place? O Bar.

If we had one more Adam
It would be so cool
Hither and yon - to comic con!
Where we could act a fool

In restaurants, churches, or bars
Anywhere away from home
He'd find a place in public
To recharge his cell phone

He could write his plays
And even make his movies
He'd break the hearts of gays
And even those with boobies

Cupcakes before dinner
'Cause that's just how you do it
And if we tried the opposite
He would totally boo it

Mac and cheese where ever we go
After the dinner, before the show
After mont blancs and cherry bombs
Sarah's Favorite seems so wrong

Toi Thai, Canter's, Disneyland
We'd always have fun without a plan
Sneaking in to Universal
Or be a Cartoon Overlord
If we had one more Adam
We would never be bored

Do we have one more Adam?
Is his name Jake?
He's shaking his head 'no way,
That would be a mistake.'

If we had one more Adam
Then we could show THIS one
Why everybody loves him
And why he's so much fun
And why he will be missed
And why we're kind of pissed
And why we want to share a laugh
In spite of all of this

If we had one more Adam
Then maybe you would stay
You'd love him just like we love you
And that is totally gay.

Happy Halloweener!

It's only been a few days, so my brain has yet to process all of the awesomeness of Halloween.

We headed up early to Adam's house, before the streets were closed off for the Halloween Carnival (technically it is spelled carnaval, but that spelling makes spell check angry, so I'm changing it. Sorry, WeHo.) which is a gigantic shindig in West Hollywood, where they were expecting something like 250,000 people. GOOD TIMES. They close down a gigantic section of Santa Monica Blvd. (which is the end part of route 66) and there are just PEOPLE EVERYWHERE.

So. We got to Adam's house, starved as usual, and we walked over to Hamburger Mary's for the BEST fried macaroni-n-cheese I've ever tasted. Ever. I am drooling just thinking about it. Since we had the fried MnC for appetizers, I didn't order the mac-n-cheese BURGER although I definitely am next time. Our waiter was dressed as Hamburger Mary, but it was awkward because in West Hollywood, you can't assume that a man in a dress is in costume. Although, in fairness, he was not trying to disguise his voice so I think it was a costume.

After pigging out, we stopped by a thrift store that is also on Santa Monica to pick up accessories for Adam's costume. Since he's in the process of moving, most of his worldly possessions are in boxes and thus he did not have even a plain white t-shirt to use for costuming. Lady Luck (and Scooby too!) smiled upon us and we found the PERFECT shirting combination and the clerk at the shop even found a red scarf for us. Kismet. While Adam was waiting to pay for his costume ($6 total!) another Fred ran into the shop, spying Kate already dressed as Daphne and asked to take a picture with her. Of course she did, and I love how Adam is just barely in frame and making a face at this "other Fred" in this picture. HA!



So now we all had costumes and full bellies, so we went back to ol' Ten Eleven (Adam's house) to watch some Halloween movies. Kate brought Mad Monster Party which is an old claymation movie that was pretty funny, but she warned us that it only is funny up to a point and then you just want to smash all the little clay Boris Karloffs. So we shut it off and instead watched Little Shop of Horrors which I hadn't seen in forever. I love that movie, and I forgot how much I really loved it. And, it is double awesome that this is the movie/play that gave the composers enough cache to go on and make THE LITTLE MERMAID and ALADDIN. Ha ha! And it also has Ellen Greene who you are probably adoring on Pushing Daisies. And Steve Martin as the crazy dentist (hilarious song!)! LOVE LOVE LOVE.

After the movie, we all costumed up and hit The Boulevard to take it all in. It was amazing. And, of course, my new camera's battery died part way through the evening so I only took about 50 pictures. Which is a decent amount for anyone else, but I missed getting pictures of SO MANY good costumes!






I think we did pretty well with our Scooby Crew costumes. They were inexpensive. They were comfortable. They were fun. We had people yelling out of car windows and stopping us on the street for pictures. We got cat called and hollered and hooted at. Mostly people saying "LOOK! It's Scooby Doo!" Only a few people inquired about the whereabouts of our dog, Scooby (official story: he's missing, which allowed us to yell "Scooby Dooby Doo - where are you?!")

After about an hour of people watching, we had to head back for the final installment of Kate's weekly improv soap opera, Scandal! We were all quietly hoping that nobody showed up so that they would have to cancel the show and we could get back to Halloweener faster. Instead, it was a packed house. Kate, as always, was brilliant. Her character, Tiffany Spacey, had a crazy twist ending that refused to end. So fun!

Before the show, Ryan, Adam, and I ran over to the Grove to pick up a gift certificate and encountered another Velma! I didn't get a picture of her (dead batteries) which I should have. DANG! She saw us and started yelling "Jinkies! Jinkies!" and we stopped and chatted for a minute. Apparently, she was flying solo without a Scooby Crew. Since Velma was already spoken for (ahem), we had to leave her where we found her. Ah, well.

So then AFTER Kate's show, we headed back to The Boulevard, only to find that Jake's friend had locked her keys in her car with the engine running. And instead of calling AAA, the boys were taking turns playing McGyver and trying to open the door handle using a coat hanger. Crazily enough, it worked! It took them about an hour and a half to do it, but they did! And Jake was too young to even get all the McGyver references. YOUTHS! So Rachel got off safely and we decided to get some grub instead of battling the onslaught of insane drunkenness that was coming back down the Blvd. We decided to hit the French Market for some middle-of-the-night dinner and on our way we saw 3 fights. The first was some guy who had just LOST his mind and was ranting and raving about how he pays with Republican dollars and was standing 3 inches from our faces while waving around dollar bills. His girlfriend finally pulled him along and he started taking swings before stumbling down the wrong street and she chased after him. After crossing the intersection, we saw a woman who was beating the tar out of the man who was driving (in a Corvette) and when he put his hands up to block her, she yanked the keys from the ignition. He finally found the keys (while she is slapping and pulling on his hair) and was able to drive off. FUN! And then we hear a bit of a scuffle starting to happen, so Kate and I duck into the restaurant to avoid it and then the boys don't come. After a few minutes, they show up, because they heard something. It was a woman screaming "Help me! Help me!" and they dashed into a darkened alley, only to see this woman who was obviously homeless smashing some guy's head into the bricks. They all kind of stalled right there and someone yelled "the cops are here!" so they let the boys in blue handle it.

It was now 4am and the party was still in full swing, although the party goers should have stopped hours ago and the whole vibe just wasn't fun anymore, so we turned toward home. We changed into comfy pajamas and started chit chatting (a large air mattress in the middle of a living room makes for a great slumber party, BTW) and poor Adam was so tired (only having slept about 3 hours the night before) that he was fading fast and the rest of us were still chipper, so we decided to drive home. I was awake enough for it and it was better to let everyone sleep in and not worry about stepping over guests.

We got home pretty quick and were glad/surprised that Ruckus didn't seem to have missed us at all. We'd felt guilty leaving him, thinking we'd be gone overnight, but he didn't care much. C'est la vie.

oh, and Ryan was on teevee

G4 came by the Top Cow studios recently to film a piece about making comic books that ran during their live Comic Con coverage this past weekend. Ryan got the final word in the video (he's the dude in the green shirt) and EVERYONE this weekend was coming up to him and repeating it back in a snotty voice "now, go make your own comic" - whatta jerk!