Friday, September 18, 2009

LINK SPAM!





Here are some things on the internet that have interested or amused me recently:

1. A 1980s special on 60 Minutes about MAD magazine, with lots of interview time with the great man himself, Bill Gaines.
See it, via The Beat, here.

2. Handsome stripey knee socks. I especially like the charcoal.
See them, at Sock Dreams, here.

3. A horse and a bunny sharing a meal.
See it, at Cute Overload, here.

4. A recipe for home-made tostadas.
See it here. (Thanks, Dirtbagg!)

5. An essay about whether publishers are selling ideas, or pieces of paper.
Read it here. (Thanks, Perry!)

6. Adorable stuffy bats, which I like to gaze on for inspiration in my own sewing projects.
Snuggle them here.

7. Emergency yodel button
Save the day here.

8. Cashew-based vegan alfredo sauce.
Eat virtuously here.

9. Magnetic duct tape
Repair your entire life here.

10. A really, really great photo of a cow
Admire it here.

Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Come to the Brooklyn Book Festival!

I'm moderating a panel with three of my favorite cartoonists of all time!

The topic is adapting text-based works into graphic novels. Stop by the Youth Stoop at 3pm this Sunday to hear Danica Novgorodoff (Refresh, Refresh), George O'Connor (Journey into Mohawk Country), and Raina Telgemeier (The Babysitters Club) talk about their craft and craftiness.

More info at the BBF website.

Thursday, September 03, 2009

Fitzwilliam, Butch, Gregorio, Dallas...

Today I was walking down the street with a very talented and kind cartoonist, who was gallantly not wondering aloud when/if I was going to manage to locate the restaurant I wanted us to eat at, when I received a text message from an unfamiliar number. It said:

Boy names: Logan, Darian, Marion, Luke, Lukas, Matthew, Mathis, Deon, Zack, Zackery, Zane, Zanus, Conner, RONAN, ROMAN, MONTY.

Spelling and capitalization is preserved faithfully from the original text.

We finally found the restaurant, and I forgot about the name text in a haze of blackberry sorbet.

Flash forward to about ten minutes ago, when I received a phone call from that same mysterious number.

"Hello?"

"Hi, it's Gidgit." (GIDGIT?)

"Who are you trying to reach, Gidgit?"

"Is Anastasia there?" (ANASTASIA!)

Sorry, wrong number, amicable hang-up, etc. Happens every day, brief contact with a mysterious stranger, ships passing in the night, no harm no foul.

But let's take a minute, here.

Logan, Darian, Marion, Luke, Lukas, Matthew, Mathis, Deon, Zack, Zackery, Zane, Zanus, Conner, RONAN, ROMAN, MONTY.

GIDGIT.

ANASTASIA.

I feel like I'm in the middle of a conspiracy of goofy names!