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The Complete “Falling into Place”
Links on the Believer Logger keep changing, and quite frankly, I like the formatting in the PDF more than online. So here it is in one place for posterity’s sake.
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Right place, right time
September 23, 2021 Before I open the front door, I consciously remain calm so as to not to freak out Stella—and fail miserably. That’s what it means to be married to someone for 29 years. My right cheek is completely swollen. She gets up from the couch and looks at me. “Are you okay?” I…
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Lantern
Made with a manual old-fashioned applesauce grinder, non-stick frying pan, and wood.
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No retreat
“It’s much easier to be spiritual than to be emotionally authentic.” —Dr. Gabor Mate In no time I’m put to work did I ever leave? six years since Dad died five since my last sesshin [traditionally, a six day Zen meditation retreat this one was four days] two acres the farm’s nestled in a small, idyllic…
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Plant stand
Plant stand made using old legs from the bench (see below) and an Ikea wooden fruit bowl. [Photo credit: Johanne Hemond]
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Holmes on Homesteading
The Artist Himself: A Rand Holmes Retrospective by Patrick Rosenkranz (Fantagraphics Books, 2010) Given that Lucky’s Comics recently hosted an exhibition of Holmes’ work as part of a book launch for The Artist HImself, and that the artist spent much of his life in familiar territory, I was curious. Before listening to the Inkstuds interview…
1001 Comics You Must Read Before You Die: the Ultimate Guide to Comics, Fantagraphics Books, Fog City Comics, Gareth Gaudin, Georgia Straight, Graphic Novels and Manga, Harold Hedd, Help! Magazine, Lasqueti Island, Lasqueti mint, Legends Comics and Books, Lloyd Chesley, Lucky’s Comics, March 2007, Patrick, Patrick Rosenkranz, Paul Gravett, Rand Holmes, Rand Holmes Retrospective Art Show, The Artist Himself: A Rand Holmes Retrospective by Patrick Rosenkranz, the Benchracer, Zap! Comix -
Comparing Covers
I was looking at the cover of Luke Pearson’s Hilda and the Midnight Giant (Nobrow Press, 2012) and was struck by how much the layout resembles that of Charles Burns’ X’ed Out (Pantheon, 2010). Central figure, similar scale and depth of foreground and background, sloping terrain from right to left, tall object jutting out in…
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On Zen and Pancakes
Since I have been known to meditate in both the Shambhala and Soto Zen traditions, and since I am also a comics fanatic, I found the excerpt included below of particular interest. It is from The Teacup & the Skullcup: Chögyam Trungpa on Zen and Tantra (Vajradhatu Publications, 2008). Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche (1939-87) is a…
Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, crazy wisdom, Heath Robinson, hinayana, Kagyü lineage, mahayana, Nyimgma lineage, Professor Branestawm, Rube Goldberg, Shambhala Buddhism, Shambhala lineage, Shambhala Media, Shambhala publications, Shunryu Suzuki, Tail of the Tiger Buddhist Retreat Center, The Teacup & the Skullcup: Chögyam Trungpa on Zen and Tantra, Tibetan Buddhism, Vajradhatu Publications, Vajrayana, Zen -
The beauty that is Inkstuds
It didn’t take me this long to read Inkstuds (Conundrum Press, 2010) because I found it tedious; on the contrary, I wanted to savour these interviews and read them in small doses, interspersed with the ongoing consumption of comics—many created by artists featured on the radio show. Kudos to McConnell: with all of the interviews…
Billy Mavreas, Brett Warnock, Chester Brown, Chris Staros, Colin Upton, Dan Nadel, David Collier, Fantagraphics, Fort Thunder, Gary Groth, Gary Panter, George Metzger, Inkstuds, Jason Lutes, Jeet Heer, Jeff Lemire, Jerry Moriarty, Jillian Tamaki, Kate Beaton, Kim Deitch, Kim Thompson, Kramers Ergot, Marc Bell, Marv Newland, Mome, Picturebox, Robin McConnell, Seth, Small Press Expo, SPX, The Comics Journal, Tom Devlin, Tom Spurgeon, Top Shelf -
Kramers Ergot 7 Table of Contents (Linear Version)
For all you concrete-sequential owners of Kramers Ergot 7, here is the (better late than never) moment you’ve been waiting for! A fully-functional, hyperlinked Kramers TOC, ordered in a singular trajectory by page number!
Aapo Rapi, Adrian Tomine, Anders Nielsen, Anna Sommer, Ben Jones, Ben Katchor, Blanquet, Blex Bolex, C.F., Carol Tyler, Chris Cilla, Chris Ware, Conrad Botes, Dan Zettwoch, Daniel Clowes, David Heatley, Eric Haven, Florent Ruppert, Frank Santoro, Gabrielle Bell, Geoff McFetridge, Helge Reumann, Ivan Brunetti, J. Bradley Johnson, Jacob Ciocci, Jaime Hernandez, James McShane, Jerome Mulot, Jerry Moriarty, Jess McManus, Joe Daly, John Brodowski, John Hankiewicz, John Pham, Johnny Ryan, Jonathan Bennett, Josh Simmons, Kevin Huizega, Kim Deitch, Kramers Ergot, Kramers Ergot 7, Kramers Ergot 7 Table of Contents, Kramers Ergot 7 TOC, Leif Goldberg, Martin Cendreda, Matt Brinkman, Matt Furie, Matt Groenig, Matthew Thurber, Pshaw, Richard Sala, Rick Altergott, Ron Rege Jr., Sammy Harkam, Seth, Shary Boyle, Souther Salazar, Ted May, Tim Hensley, Tom Gauld, Walt Holcombe, Will Sweeney, Xaier Robel -
“Teaching” Graphic Novels
Last year, I was invited to attend a one-day workshop in Vancouver on the subject of graphic novels. The workshop was sponsored by the Educational Resources Acquisition Consortium (ERAC), an organization which, up until recently, was fully funded by the provincial government. ERAC serves as a one-stop shop where teachers from across British Columbia can…
Art Spiegelman, Chester Brown, comics in the classroom, Complete Idiot’s Guide to Creating a Graphic Novel, drawn and quarterly, Educational Resources Acquisition Consortium, ERAC, Frederick Wertham, graphic novel definition, graphic novels in the classroom, Krazy!, Louis Riel, Maus, Nat Gertler, Seduction of the Innocent, Seth, Steve Lieber, teaching comics, teaching graphic novels -
Dead Fly Funnies
I don’t know who created these but — you are a genius. Thank to Brian Glover and his friend Bree for passing them along!
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Comic Books Go to War – The Passionate Eye
I watched this interesting documentary last night, including interviews with Marjane Satrapi, Joe Kubert, Joe Sacco, Chappatte, Emmaneul Guibert, and Ted Rall. Worth watching if it ever repeats: Comic Books Go to War – The Passionate Eye | CBC News Network. And while we’re on the subject of CBC, I’ve been listening to some interviews…
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Preamble – prelude – prologue – proem – preface
This blog is an ongoing exploration of comics, comix, cartoons, and graphic novel-related themes.