2003-11-07|1:56 a.m.
I haven�t been feeling well lately. I am pretty sure I need some help with it; so, I am going to go to one of the fine therapists my college provides free of charge. Plus, while I am fine tuning my consumer identity for mental health care, I figured I�d add to that and go see a dentist (a new option), a dermatologist, a women�s doctor, and a career counselor while I was at it. I�ve needed to do those things anyway and since they are all free, there is no reason not to.
Oh, I started a political blog; so, I won�t be bogging down this outlet with political rants anymore. I figured it would make the two parts of my life, personal and political interest, more focused. As soon as I get all the fine tuning done, I will post a link for it on here in case anyone is at all interested in it.
Las Vegas was ok. I didn�t really like it as much as I had hoped. The comic convention itself wasn�t that good (which may not be fair to say in comparison to the San Diego con) and was filled with a lot of general merchandise and collectors items instead of artists.
I met Roman Dirge, who created the Lenore comics, and had him sign a recent issue for a friend who really likes him. I also got S and AN stickers from the Dumbrella guys. MM bought me a tiny creature (the black dust ball looking things that carry stuff) from Spirited Away that I put in my car.
I got to hang out with MM, just me and him for a few hours; that was nice. We bought pizza and I got a beer and we just sat in the food court of Excalibur (where we stayed) and talked. The moments like these are the ones that mean the most to me.
I also got to hang out with most of the Dumbrella crew with A. They�re really more his friends and that�s ok. I just like tagging along sometimes. I did get a chance to talk politics with Jeff Rowland (of Wigu) and his friends for awhile. I liked that a lot.
Me talking with the guys at the bar:
The first day we got there we arrived too late to go into the con (which was probably for the best). But A and I went to the masquerade that was scheduled later in the evening. A dressed as President Nixon:
And I dressed up as Princess Mononoke from the movie also called Princess Mononoke:
This is what she really looks like:
And it was neat to see the other costumes there:
Andrew Bell (of Creatures in my Head) as a vampire
Bender from Futurama
A huge tin man/robot with a smoking wiener
Phil and John (of Goats)are Jay and Silent Bob
After the masquerade, A and I joined the Dumbrella crew again to play in the arcades where I took over Jenny�s place (of J-Clay and also Rich�s better half [of Diesel Sweeties]) playing Jeff at air hockey to balance the score and end it in a close game in my favor. It�s not everyday you get to beat an awesome web comic artist.
Me playing games:
The next day we went to the con and spent time again with the guys. The best part of the con was the panel on web comics. Web comics are not only funny in web form, but in person as well. It was really entertaining.
MM spent a lot of his time in the room but I was happy to have him there nonetheless.
MM:
All and all the trip was good mostly because A was happy to hang with his new friends. This is him with Andrew:
Coming back Sunday afternoon-ish we drove through Baker, city of the World�s Largest Thermometer:
We returned to the High Desert, specifically A�s mom�s house, that night. I called up MZ and S (and she brought MT and EM).
MM and MZ talked pop culture and made me laugh:
A put on a mask and also made me laugh:
I finished a bag I had been making for A for over a year (because I start things and don�t finish them):
It was all made by hand and all measurements and design was done by eye. I am sort of proud of it even if it took way too long to make.
The same week-ending AN got a really awesome tattoo from the tattoo artist who did my simple heart tattoo. I forget the original artist�s name (he�s some famous graffiti artist, I think), but it�s a sketch. And knowing what the original art looked like, it�s really amazing:
A friend sent me a picture of the sky where the fires were near my hometown in AV.
This is what it looked like:
And since I am posting so many pictures and it was just Halloween, here�s one of A and MM trying on costumes at a costume shop:
