Went to a party last night. I strangely had fun. Spouse came along. Jitters were lowered. G & T flowed, brylcreem was used. Only issue I have is the ankle is stiff. 8.2 out of 10. Will be back next year!

2025: the year where I finally felt truly like an old timer. I must say that is a good thing. I am not saying one should not experience new things, listen to new songs, read new stories, or watch new things. I am saying that age allows you to filter what to care about.

2025 was a year where if I was not off the religious way of life, I am convinced that any higher power that now exists has become a petty and hateful entity.

Absolute Martian Manhunter is truly brain pleasing comics. It has a vibe that feels rooted in healing. The art is Top tier storytelling. Took me a while to be in the right place to read, but I got there.

I was out on Friday, so therefore my emails had all the smoke. I blame this guy from Thursday.

No hot or cold thoughts about the Netflix/WBD scenario. Too early to tell. My hope is that the rubbing off the culture of WB might pivot Netflix to being more creator friendly environment. The question will be who will buy the cable channels?

I am starting the mental wrap up for 2025 and must say that the weird stuff has been sad weird, not fun weird.

Something tells me I may need to come into the office on scheduled vacation time because things are not moving in a manner I am happy with.

The thing that benefits maturity is that eventually you get a point where you leave the youthful outrage behind and just give stupidity a withering glance and go one with your day.

Trans people deserve to live freely, without political interference.

The weirdness of my emails it sublime in their pettiness.

I have read the Batman/Deadpool book. It had everything: Typewriters, comedy, callbacks, a page that explains the difference between DC and Marvel, hotdogs, and it also looked great too.

It is too early for a third cup of coffee, but we are in these types of times.

If there are components I judge a good place to eat, 1) they have to have good soup, 2) a delicious Mac and cheese/beans or the quality of a 3) a Hollandaise sauce. At least one of these things are needed for a good place to dine.

I’m off work for 2 days, and the world gets extra weird. Buckle up! It might be a wild ride.

The thing I enjoy with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction event is you get to remind yourself that things exist that bring joy. Here comes me playing Warren Zevon’s Lawyers, Guns and Money for a week.

He should have died in The Hague.

The thing that makes social media hell to navigate is that it is as intrusive with advertising as an average Sunday newspaper was in 1988. Not much stuff, lots of things to sell.

I have fallen through an EC comics rabbit hole in my appreciation of Wallace Wood’s art and in reading the new Wood Fantagraphics collection The Spawn of Venus, and there are some bangers in there, not in art, but some of the stories resonate today.

Have you ever had a sneaking suspicion that folks want to destroy Chicago for giggles?

What is it with bad dudes who have scat fetishes?

If there is a thing that I truly believe in comics retail is that the best way to show support is to buy print comics in the single issue. Why? A comic has production costs that need to be absorbed. Buying the single allows the trade to be gravy.

My spouse has a new Donor’s Choose for her school library. Additional information in the link. www.donorschoose.org/project/sort...

Folks who get in their big feelings about any protest is snitching on themselves. Have these folks thought about not being the subject or act in a manner that causes protests? There is a cause and effect element to all things.

I keep looking at the world as it is, and realized that I was super lucky to escape aspects of socioeconomic destiny and the moral brain rot that has cursed the American Caucasian male.

Manny’s part 2: corned beef hash on poached eggs with hash browns.

Never have been to Manny’s before in my 47 years as a Chicagoan. I have had the food for take out, but have never sat in the place until today.

I am not in New York, but one of my favorite cartoonists is doing a new Kickstarter. This was a good reminder that I have not tithed yet. (This has been rectified) Take a minute to look at Dean Haspiel’s new Kickstarter.

Comedy is always key in the darkest of times.

Y’know… out of all the reasons to reread the Moore/Veitch run of Swamp Thing (yes, I consider it a unified run, getting the proper ending was not what I would ever hope, but surprises never cease in comics.

Definitely a speech comics retailers need in 2025.

When a law enforcement officer aims a weapon at someone wielding a camera, it is procedurally unsound and unprofessional in two fundamental ways: 1) It is disproportional to any actual threat and is instead an unprovoked threat against a citizen. 2) The officer is a crazed, untrained asshole.

It is Tuesday and I am out of gas.

I hear folks complaining about the Super Bowl already. If you are bothered, there is always the option of not watching. Not that deep folks!

I have always thought this politics was crusade talk… glad folks are now getting it.

Crusades are bullshit.

Today’s mood music is Mellencamp’s Rain on the Scarecrow. Fits the vibes.

My spouse asked why there was an absolute Joker and then I had a 4 minute explainer on the Absolute Universe, Darkseid, and communicated that Absolute Wonder Woman is a phenomenal read. This has been my comic talk for right now.

So yesterday there was a kabuki performance for the safety and comfort of the monied classes of Chicago. I would laugh at the dedication to bullshit if it was not dangerous for everyone.

I was reading a Two-Fisted Tales collection that reprinted fan letter pages from 1952 and 1953 where a lot of the complaints was about how the comics was not properly deferential to the confederacy. So, don’t tell me that people were not on bull back in the day.

Getting the laundry worked on the Saturday after Riot Fest feels like the year is ready to wrap up. This last quarter is about making no waves or big plans, just to rest.

The thing that people forget about social media is that it is a tool where no one was ever trained to use effectively. The output is dependent on the input.

Damn it, I missed Gwar at Riot Fest. I was already too exhausted and needed to prepare for the James set. I see that Gwar did what it does and people continue to be pathologically brain rotten regarding a punk festival…

I have survived another Riot Fest. The back was not as sturdy as it was in the past and I had to use a cane yesterday, but the event was enjoyed. I then come back to the universe and wonder why are people like this.

Empathy is an earned feeling. Hate is a learned feeling. Hopefully people have come to the understanding that there is a separation between freedom of speech and freedom from responsibility and consequences.

The world keeps getting weirder, dumber, and more shrill by the day.

My spouse is currently doing a Donor’s Choose to raise funds to get her students metatarsal Labs Tale-Bots. Today is the double donation day where your donation has additional value today. Interested folks can follow the URL a www.donorschoose.org/project/litt...

This war talk yesterday made the tension of my lower back flare up that made my Renegade walk around hell.

enshittification | noun | when a digital platform is made worse for users, in order to increase profits

Made it over to the My Chemical Romance show last night. Loved the way the designed narrative functioned.