The Lonely Cache
Posted on September 7, 2024 by Bruce

This Week in Comics (FREE COMIC BOOK DAY & My Pull List for 5-1-24)

Posted on May 1, 2024 by Bruce

Ummm… Free Comic Book Day.  The first Saturday in May has been “Free Comic Book Day” for 22 years.  It is a chance for people to visit their local comic book shop (a VERY SCARY PLACE) and pick up FREE comics provided by the shop and the publishers.  Each year is a little different, sometimes there are previews to new series, or maybe the launch of the summer universe shattering event.  I think last year they gave out a preview to “Primer” which just released issue 2 last week and is really good, so with some previews you may have to be patient.

For some (like teachers) this is a great time to stock up on comics for your classroom. Caveat Emptor, while Free Comic Book Day originally focused on all ages titles, now free comics range from those for kids to those that will get you fired if they are found in your classroom.  

How Does It Work? 

Each shop is different.  Some will bring in guests or invite cosplayers to come out.  Making it an event. With it coinciding with “May the Fourth” expect to see a lot of Star Wars themed stuff.  Some will give away one of every title, while other shops will ask you to choose a limited number of titles.  There may be sales, or coupons to get you to come back later.  This is not the time to come in and ask about specific titles or have a conversation about your favorite comic.  Yes, talk to folks working (be polite).  Usually shops are slammed with people and are just trying to keep their heads above water.  While it isn’t the time to ask questions, it is a perfect time to check out a shop and decide if you may want to return and ask those questions.  If you are a teacher, check out their all ages section and see if they have a lot to choose from… return later to talk to them about your students and what might work for your classroom.  The people who work at a comic shop are knowledgeable and if they can’t help you, they can point you in the right direction. 

One thing… if you can, buy something, don’t just grab free comics and run.  The shop does have to pay for the comics they give away, and it is nice to support your LCS since without you, they may go out of business.

Also, if you are unable to make it to a comic book shop (a VERY SCARY PLACE) check to see what your local library may be doing.  I know the Indianapolis Public Library Branches will have free comics available on Saturday (while supplies last).  I’m not sure of what titles they will have and their selection (due to Indiana Law 🙄) will probably be limited.

So what is being offered this year that I recommend?

Descriptions are from: https://www.freecomicbookday.com/ I’m not one of those fancy influencers who get things early and sent to them free.

These are ones I would pick up for my classroom spinner rack and even ask (the next week) if the shop had leftovers since they will go missing.

Unicorn Crush preview – Love and magic are in the air in this enchanting collection of Phoebe and Her Unicorn comic strips featuring Phoebe and her one-of-a-kind unicorn friend, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils. Young readers will enjoy the caring and comedic adventures of this colorful duo as they rediscover the magic in themselves and in each other. Whether you’re a devoted fan or new to the spellbinding world of Phoebe and Marigold, Unicorn Crush will leave you with a smile on your face and a warm, sparkly feeling in your heart.

Witches of Brooklyn – The smash-hit Witches of Brooklyn series returns! Join Effie and friends on a one-of-a-kind, magical adventure in this new story from Sophie Escabasse. Featuring fun activities, new and existing fans can jump right into this exclusive comic! 

Investi-Gators – Get a sneak peek at book 8 in John Patrick Green’s bestselling InvestiGators series! Mango and Brash have always been a class act but can these alligator detectives convincingly go undercover as middle-school students to protect a team mascot? And is it a coincidence that the school is the same one Agent Mango (just barely) graduated from? Find out in Class Action!

Katie the Catsitter & Max Meow – Go on a CAT-TASTIC adventure with Max Meow and Katie the Catsitter! Your favorite crime-fighting superheroes are back with two exclusive excerpts packed into one purr-fect comic-featuring more cats, more villains, and who knows? Maybe these meow-riffic heroes will even join forces to save the day! With bonus activities included, readers and cat fans everywhere will love this furr-ociously fun comic! 

The Night Librarian – Night at the Museum meets The Land of Stories in this thrilling new graphic novel adventure series in which two siblings, a mysterious Night Librarian, and a motley cast of book characters try to save the New York Public Library. Twins Page and Turner know about the magic a library holds-they’ve been going to their beloved New York City public library for years, especially since their parents are always traveling for work.But a secret mission involving their dad’s rare and valuable edition of Bram Stoker’s Dracula uncovers a world they’ve never known, featuring a mysterious Night Librarian, famous heroes (and villains) that have broken free from classic books, and an epic battle to save the library from total destruction!

Boom Box 10th Anniversary Special – Celebrate a decade of BOOM! Box whimsy and fun! This special FCBD issue contains an exclusive look at brand new series from BOOM! Box, alongside some returning favorites and a whole bunch of fun surprises. To help celebrate the milestone, this special will also feature a heartfelt look back at the history of the imprint and the people who made it all possible!

You might have noticed I have avoided most of the major publishers (DC/Marvel) or more of the pop culture (Disney) based titles. I would pride myself on putting comics out to kids that weren’t based on a TV show, or movie because I hoped that kids would see comics as a storytelling medium and not a genre that dealt with superheroes.  Although many teachers seem to disapprove of using multimodal literacy (comics & graphic novels) as a way to introduce concepts and some parents think comics are “fluff” that ruin a kids imagination 🙄 as you can guess, I wholeheartedly disagree. I divested myself of most of my classroom library at the end of last year, and unfortunately sometimes the really good titles go out of print, so if you have a chance, pick up these while you can. I’ll have to ramble about comics in the classroom sometime in more depth – you have been warned.

This Week’s Comics:

Sons of Star Trek #2 – When last we left Jake, Nog, and Alexander they had been transported to another reality in which they were members of Starfleet on the U.S.S. Avery with an interesting crew, some of which were dead or never in Starfleet in our timeline. Gul Ducat (Captain not “Gul”), Liam Shaw (Chief Engineer), Tuvix, Jadzia (not joined to the Dax symbiote), Beckett Mariner, Morn, etc. Against the Breen and they’ve only died 57 times. Will they survive, will QJ (Q Junior) be able to guide them into becoming the best versions of themselves? This issue focuses mostly on Alexander’s trauma from following the Red Path and the group deciding to trust each other and the crew as they try to survive the 58th time in this temporal loop and hopefully break the cycle.

Power Pack Intro The Storm #5 – How do the Power Pack save Franklin Richards and get home? One of the joys of reading most comics taking place in the past with characters you know are still active is knowing that they will survive. So it’s more of a chance to see how an event may have shaped them into the hero they currently are. In this case <No Spoilers, really> they all survive and return to Earth safe and sound.

The Flash Annual 2024 – What is an Annual issue? It is an issue with more pages and usually does a couple things- it can kick off a new story line and using those extra pages really help build up the importance of the story. It can complete a story arc using those pages to get into more detail or at least allow the writer and artist more room to finish the tale. It can also be a stand alone story that uses those extra pages to help develop characters and maybe introduce someone new… This is none of those things. I came into it thinking this the whole arc dealing with Wally trying to figure out life, the universe, and everything would come to an end and we would return to something more akin to superhero comic storytelling. I was mistaken, and hope that once this arc is over I may be able to comeback and reread the individual issues and gain something from it. Right now, I’m not so sure. One thing I have learned, is usually the minute I decide to stop reading a title, It suddenly gets good and you can’t find any of the issues you need, so I will embrace the still force and be patient.

The White Trees: A Blacksand Tale The Complete Edition – I’ve read a number of stories written by Chip Zdarsky… none f them all ages, but all them really unique. This is one of those stories. Fantasy dealing with the aftermath of a war and how people deal with it. It also has to do with that great bit about how power corrupts. Let’s just say three old warriors (once friends) go on a quest to find their missing children only to discover the lies that people tell to get things done…

The Whisper Queen: A Black Sand Tale #1 – “The Long Awaited Sequel to The White Trees: A Blacksand Tale” I guess that should mean something to someone who read the first part, as someone who got the “Complete Edition” at the same time I was a bit confused, since I hadn’t been waiting too long, and could have even read them in the wrong order if I just read through my stack without looking at covers. Even more confusing was the “Complete Edition had an ad on the back cover that was a duplicate of the cover of this issue. The folks at my LCS almost thought I was buying two of the same comics!

I wrote that first part before reading anything, because I was confused… This story starts off where the The White Trees ended with a chase to find the those who have run off. Of course we deal with different sides of the story having reading part one, we know what really happened, and now we deal with the next part from the perspective of people who know a lot of the secrets the past, but not what really happened just one issue ago. We are now on another quest to find a child this one not lost but on their own mission. OK, this “child” is as much of a child as those in the first story. As I have told my little brothers- it doesn’t matter how old you are- I can call you “kid” until the day I die since I changed your diapers. Looking forward to the next issue, Zdarsky weaves a wonderful tale. and I am caught up in this one. Glad I read them in the right order.

This Week In Comics (My Pull List 4-24-24)

Posted on April 26, 2024 by Bruce

I’ve commented that I’ve been doing some work for my Local Comic Shop (LCS) and figured I might want to share some of it as we get close to Free Comic Book Day on May 4th. Strangely enough (call it fate, kismet, or something like that) but Comic Carnival (my LCS) has a monkey as a mascot. They’ve had other mascots over the past 50 years, but currently it is Cee Cee the Comic Carnival Monkey. I played around with a character design years ago, and recently (after Indiana “Comic” Con) decided to help out where I could. This gives me a reason to draw (monkeys) and helps me flex my creative muscles helping out a place I consider a second home (especially on Wednesdays). I started off with a simple circular design and then played around with some other ideas like homages to classic comic covers with Cee Cee taking a prominent place. So far these have been turned into stickers and buttons. I’ve also worked on a topper for a classic spinner rack and recently new signage for one of my favorite places the All Ages Comics section.

Dark Knight Returns homage
Amazing Fantasy #15 homage
Superman #1 homage
Shirt design Idea
Sticker Idea
Frame for this week’s comics
All Ages Comics Sign
Spinner rack signage

I’m still working through some ideas and to quote Rick from Casablanca “Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

For those confused or think “All monkey’s look alike” 🙄 From L to R – Cee Cee the Comic Carnival Monkey, Cecil Evil GeoCaching Monkey (bent on world domination), and random Cecil Minion (MINIon).

This Weeks Comics:

Star Trek Defiant #14 – unlike the worms from Ceti Alpha V the bugs infesting Starbase 99 have a plan, and it looks like it’s getting worse. With Bellana Torres infected and attacking everyone… Will she be a bug drone or a Borg drone? And it looks like Spock has gotten himself into a bit a trouble… mind melds can do that and the Vulcan Surgeon General has warned against overuse of mind melds… guess Spock ignored that memo.

Man’s Best #002 – Being a cat person I find it amusing that the issues our animal friends are getting into are all caused by a dog, not listening to a cat… Will they ever find the humans? will the flankers stop them, or some new even worse danger? Will Porthos ever listen, or is he just a “bad dog.”

Amazing Spider-Man #48 – Ben and Janine trying to get back to normal lives… but can they trust Queen Goblin? Will Peter and Betty save them and the Winkler Device (named after Henry Winkler aka “the Fonz?”) before it’s too late? What about the Sinister Six and the Living Brain?

Primer #2 of 4 – The story continues as we learn about Ashley and her foster mother’s job (which she may not have for long). We learn also about where Ashley get’s her powers. I wonder what Violet does? For an all ages comic I’m liking the pacing and look forward to hopefully more than 4 issues.

Detective Comics #1084 – Batman returns to Gotham and learns what happens in his absence. The Orgham plans have been in place, the wealthy are happy, the middle class are oblivious, and the people in need are disappearing. Just when I thought things were getting understandable-

The Flash #8 – So we are leading up to the massive summer crossover event. I hate massive summer crossover events. At least this issue was more heroes fighting things and saving people and not metaphysical pondering in the speed force.

Ultimate Spider-Man #4 – “And with great power comes great responsibility.” it took four issues, and Uncle Ben wasn’t the one to say it, but it has been said to Peter Parker and I’m guessing the world will never be the same again. Someone online pointed something out that I have found interesting about the new line of Ultimate comics- Each issue takes place in the month they are published. So time is progressing at a pace that makes the reader have to guess what has happened in the last month. Last issue Peter meets and begins to team up with Harry Osborne- that team up has now brought them together outside of the super hero world, where they mingle a bit in public and meet each others wives.

Scales & Tales – I know, I know, I keep saying I’m taking a step back from gaming. I can’t seem to find a reliable gaming group and while I like role playing games, I just get too frustrated as I try to play. So what do I do? I go and buy Scales & Tales – A Beginner’s Guide to Fantasy Role-Playing Games. If I was still in the classroom this would be something I would consider using with kids. It is a simplified RPG system and explains how things work especially to those who have no clue. I would send it to my brother or niece, except that I have the feeling that it would be put on a shelf for more trendy pursuits to finally disappear sometime during a cleaning before company arrives.🙄

I would recommend it for anyone interested in starting out roleplaying, but want a less complicated introduction. Most RPG’s end up with enough baggage and investment to make them prohibitive to try out. A 5th Edition Players handbook is around $50 and will be kinda sorta out of date in a few months as they update bits and pieces of it. Scales & Tales ($20ish) seems to keep things easy and go more into simple role playing. With three ability scores (power, skill, and wit), only four classes (Guardian- Jack of All Trades, Wizard- Spellcaster, Rogue- Sneaky sneaky, and Warrior- Hulk smash!) and 10 character types (races/species) things are definitely easier. The book itself explains in simple easy to understand terms how everything works and you only need six sided and 20 sided dice. In fact almost every bit of character creation can be done by rolling dice. Like I said, I wish I had something like this when I was teaching- it would have taken a lot of the drudgery out of character creation and we could have gotten into playing a lot faster. Half the book deals with mechanics and the other half is adventures! While it looks childish (I like the illustrations, but some might want something more LOTR like) I think this is a great starting place for gamers of all ages.

Scales and Tales even has a place to help you determine your character’s name. I have found that your first character tends to be based on the name of a character from a pop culture, or literature. My brother had a fighter named Gareth, my friend had an elf named Elrond, I had an assassin (back when that class was allowed) named Count Iblis, by then end of his first adventure he rose in ranks and became the Marquis de Iblis. I now tend to name my character something silly, while I can be a serious player, I don’t want to come in with people thinking I’m too serious. My favorite characters recently have been bards – Peter Paulenmary, and Simon Garnetfunkel. I also have wizards named Sazerac and Antir Rhynum. Sazerac is a mixed drink using rye whiskey and Antirrhinum is the scientific name for the snapdragon.

When I was in middle school, I did something similar to what I have been doing recently, I’d find a cool looking game, buy it and then either get lost in the intricacies of character creation, or never find anyone willing to play. I recall one game called ‘Space Opera” which for a middle schooler, was so intense that I had to put it down when I was trying to figure out from my various ability scores what my GPA was at the academy in each subject and how that impacted my career prospects before I started adventuring! The cover had a cool drawing of a Flash Gordon character and all I could think off was Flash was a polo player and never went to the Academy. I’ve also played around int Steve Jackson’s “The Fantasy Trip” the games: Wizard and Melee for simplicity, but even those can get complex and people want to add more realism to them.

This Week in Comics (My Pull List 4-17-24)

Posted on April 18, 2024 by Bruce

SO what am I going to blather about this week? On Social Media – Books & Brews, one of our local Used Bookstores/Microbreweries (yes, a great combination), asked people to list their three favorite books… That’s hard but here are my go to books that usually live in my nightstand for when I have trouble sleeping.

  • Ready Player One by Ernest Cline – Proof that you should never judge a book by its movie. I do understand the reasons there were so many changes from the book, but still, the book is so much better. If you don’t know the story- dystopian world in which people retreat from reality in a virtual world. The guy running the whole thing dies and leaves his entire fortune and control of the company to who ever can find the three eggs he’s hidden throughout the simulation. Lots of eighties nostalgia so I like it. If you’ve seen the movie – no race cars vs. giant gorillas, or The Shining references… a lot more geeky than that. Oh, the main characters don’t meet face to face until pretty much the last page.
  • Another Fine Myth by Robert Asprin – May not have aged well (humor usually doesn’t), but my introduction into the genre of “Comic Fantasy.” The story of Skeeve an apprentice to a wizard. He really just wants a good meal and to be a thief. By the end of the first chapter the wizard is dead and he is face to face with a demon. Hilarity ensues and the series continues for a number of books. Unfortunately, maybe I grew up, or the later books just don’t have the same feeling. Also consider: Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.
  • Dream Park by Larry Niven & Steven Barnes – Dream Park is Disneyland on steroids. Besides being a mystery, it interweaves a fantasy story as the suspects are part of a LARP being playing in one of the parks “Gaming areas.” One of those things I wish was real, and actually could be the way technology is developing.

Any of these books I can pick up and open anywhere and just start reading. I usually won’t put them down until I’ve finished. Oh, I’m sorry, I’ve loaned them out before and then had to track down new copies – so you can’t borrow them.

This Week’s Comics:

Jay Garrick: The Flash #6 – Comic stories happen in 6 issue arcs, I was really concerned that this issue would mark the end of Judy Garrick. I actually left this comic as the last one for me to read, because I figured I would need a break at the end. It was a satisfying conclusion and I look forward to the future if they could just figure out what they are doing in the regular Flash comics.

U & I #3 of 6 – The plot thickens… The bad guy, “Bishop,” is on the trail to find U and eliminate him for interfering with his business (you know, running drugs, laundering money, and a protection racket just for starters) Will he find U? Who will get caught in the collateral damage? U and Isabelle have (for the time being) found safety in an enclave of the Reborn.

Helen of Wyndhorn #1 & #2 – Issue one is a typical introduction to the world the writer and artist have created. The story is from the perspective of a writer who was writing about a famous fantasy/horror author (I’m getting H.P. Lovecraft vibes) and stumbled upon a little known tidbit of information leading him to interview the governess of the author’s daughter. The governess was hired after the author’s death when the girl was in her teens. So the story is from those interviews, with bits where we return to the writer in the present day… Issue two the grandfather comes into play and the world around the Wyndhorn estate is fleshed out even more. I had originally put this on my pull list and then decided not to at the last minute. I am very happy I decided to grab it this week.

The Spectacular Spider-Men #2 – Miles and Peter adventuring together while we are still figuring out what is really going on. Clones? Yes, clones, but it doesn’t look like it will end up being a saga. Mind control? Hmmm… strange things are happening in the Arcadium.

Spider-Boy #6 – Bailey has been captured and Madame Monstrosity is trying to figure out why she has no clue about who he is and desperately wants to know. We also learn more about her “Humanimals” as things get weird.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #19 – Is this the end? Lots of fighting and injuries as Miles takes on Rabble and his friends deal with the super up Cape Killers. Who will live? Who will Die? who will end up escaping to create havoc another day?

Titans #10 – Sibling rivalry is a wonderful thing. Trilogy (Raven’s brother) decides he wants to show Dad (Trigon) that he is just as good as his sister and things… well, it’;s a comic so there is a battle, and…

Superman #13 – Let’s bring in the Main Man- Lobo joins to help Superman recover those taken by Brainiac. Since Earth has been quarantined by the United Planets (I don’t know why, I don’t read Green Lantern) Superman needs to figure out how to leave the plane to pursue him. Still trying to figure out what is going on with Brainiac and what his master plan is…

The Displaced #3 – The folks who got out of Oshawa are just trying to figure things out, while also using their new found ability to not be remembered to their advantage. Some more lawfully than others. Some new theories are discussed and there is a power play for leading the group.

Star Trek #19 – So the Theseus is still dealing with the results of the Kahless and his attempts to destroy (pretty much everything). It seems the Prophets what Sisko to return to the Celestial Temple and Benjamin isn’t ready. The ramifications of Kahless’s actions – just reality unraveling have caused T’lir to come out of the closet and admit to everyone that he is an Organian. You know the Organian Peace Treaty from TOS? So now the crew heads to boldly go and save the universe with hopes of maybe a family reunion.

Brick Journal #85 – Yup! It’s Brick Journal the LEGO Fan magazine. The focus is on the Minifigure! Which was interesting, As always inspiring and making me wonder if I’m just not fanboy enough to want to build the stuff I want out of LEGO bricks. Better yet, once I build it, where would I put it?


This Week in Comics (My Pull List 4-10-24)

Posted on April 12, 2024 by Bruce

Oh well, time to update my bucket list – I added “think deep thoughts while embracing the darkness of a total solar eclipse.” (Bucket List #72) It was pretty easy to check that one off on Monday. It was amazing… awe inspiring and glad I travelled all the way to the driveway to see it. Then I had a brief conversation dealing with how comic books don’t promote imagination… It was a losing battle, the person I was talking to was just parroting what they had heard from an adult. An adult who probably never read a comic book. Stupid adults, always getting in the way of being a kid. Sadly, it looks like I’m taking whimsical adventures with this kid off my bucket list. (Bucket List #35 & #55) I don’t think they will have that much fun… why be a kid when you can be an uptight adult? Part of having an “adventure” is not having a plan…

“Doesn’t matter. There are only four rules you need to remember: make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan. Follow my lead and you’ll be fine.”

Leonard Snart, Infantino Street May 16, 2017

I guess I’ll just have whimsical adventures (whimventures®) either with Sue or Cecil. Wait… Cecil’s not imaginary, is he? He shouldn’t be since I read comic books and those ruin a person’s imagination. 😉 Then again, maybe Sue’s imaginary. At least I think the cats aren’t imaginary. (Birds, though, aren’t real)
Oh, and I’m happy that I have time now to embrace the things I loved as a kid, we all should. As Uncle Walt says “You have to grow old, you don’t have to grow up.”

As an educator I could recommend chapter books for this child, but I’m under the impression anything I purchase or recommend will be scoffed at as not being a “classic” or “serious literature.” 🙄 Plus, I might suggest something that the crowd she hangs with is trying to ban… (but their red hats do look fabulous)
What?
Who?
Me? 😱

This Week’s Comics (to ruin your imagination):

Action Comics #1064 – Starting a new super crossover story! As with many of these I’m concerned over the continuity of the story. I recall one Batman multi title crossover in which the story bounced in weird ways. It was like they didn’t have an editor make sure the van in the car chase was the same color and make through all the issues…🙄
Here’s fingers crossed that in the end this actually makes sense.
So Brainiac has some amazing plan that requires him to kidnap a bunch of people with the help of Lobo’s people (who are supposed to be all dead but aren’t?!?). So after a bit of a battle Superman is now the only person who can solve this mystery, stop Brainiac, and get everyone back safe and sound…

Ultimate X-Men #2 – still a mystery… I’d probably know more if I had kept up with so 2,473 X-Men related titles over the past decade or so…. Then again, one of the things I like about Ultimate comics is the slow set up and character building that hoes on. In the early days of comics an entire origin story would take a page, at most. Hisako is still trying to figure out what is going on, but she’s met a friend who right now makes me think of a Japanese version of Storm.

Batman and Robin #8 – the joys of obviously missing an issue… or two. Usually either one issue, you can put together some of the pieces, two? A lot harder.

Speed Force #6 – Yes! Issue six completing this arc. Um battling AVI rappers?!? The disconcerting part for me was the switch in art style midway through the issue. I haven’t been following this story very well- must be age.

The Amazing Spider-Man #47 – so Peter has a promising blind date cut short by a call from an old friend which leads to… the typical cliff hanger with a bunch of bad guys and possible bad guys and kinda of sort of bad guys… the least he could have done is picked up the bill.

Phantom Road #10 – so weird creature in alternate world… does weird things after a nice nap. As things get weird for Birdie & Dom we might have a clue as to what is going on in our world with Donnie and Theresa.

I Hate Fairyland #13 – What happens when Gert’s story gets turned into a movie? Ummm… remembers the great elder’s advice: “Never judge a book by its movie.” I’ve got that on a button somewhere around here.

The Batman First Knight, Book Two – I’m really liking this take on the Batman’s adventures during the 1930’s, a time before Alfred, or Robin. While definitely not all ages, it does a wonderful job of taking you back to that time period. It also does something I said earlier I liked about the Ultimate Marvel Comics – slows down the storytelling in order to focus more on characters and less on “BIFF!” “BAM!” & “OOF!” Oh, and great artwork.

So what will next week bring? Who knows? More adventure, excitement, and other kid stuff that kids today can’t fit in between all their important activities.🙄

In conclusion… get off my lawn!

This Week in Comics (My Pull List 4-3-24)

Posted on April 6, 2024 by Bruce

What a very light week for me! Pretty much just a few comics and catching up with a title I had forgotten about (probably because I’m old).

I’d like to take a moment to babble on about some other places to get comics, specifically Kickstarter. Kickstarter is a rabbit hole for many creative people or people who like to get things before anyone else. I started playing around on Kickstarter when it first started and it could be a crap shoot as to whether the item you helped along would actually come to fruition. I did get some cool things like the watch band for my iPod nano which kind of made it the first Apple Watch. I also tried some other ones that weren’t that successful, like the animatronic Arduino run head, the creator realized that he had over extended himself since was just a kid in college and didn’t have access to the school’s laser cutter after he completed the class he was in… ugh. The early days of anything can be frustrating… but as the bugs got worked out it became easier to use and almost a guarantee for those who have the patience to wait things out. Comic book creators use Kickstarter (and other platforms) to see if they can get enough people committed to their idea so it can be printed. Usually this includes special bonuses if certain levels of funding are achieved. I mention comics, but it really encompasses everything. The areas I tend to follow deal with comics/art and board games. I am cutting down on board games, not because they aren’t excellent, but because I’ve found I’m not playing games as much as once did (I think I’ve mentioned this before). Back to Kickstarter… This week something wonderful arrived in my mailbox. That’s one thing that is cool, is you sometimes have no idea when something will arrive. This week it was Thorn by Jeff Smith. If you didn’t already know, Jeff Smith is one of my favorite creators. His comic Bone wasn’t originally all ages, but has become a staple in many school libraries. The characters started out at Ohio State University in their school newspaper when Jeff was a student. He’s taken the time to pull all those strips together and publish them for fans like me. A publisher would probably look at it and say there’s not a large enough audience for this, but on Kickstarter if you don’t get enough support… you just don’t do the project. No one is charged until the project gets enough pledges to get made. Sometimes I’ll wait until I know a project has broken (or is really close to) that barrier before funding it, other times, I just jump into it on a whim.

This Week’s Comics:

Thorn by Jeff Smith: The Complete Proto-Bone College Strips 1982-1986 and Other Early Drawings- I really enjoy seeing the evolution of a character.  Seeing the early strips with Phone Bone and knowing what the character becomes is amazing.  Having done a comic strip (off & on) for over a decade I think about how Cecil has evolved from a simple concept and (horrible) drawing to what he is now, this is what I get to do with Bone.  Some of the basic story is there, but there are so many ideas that made it into Jeff’s college strips that didn’t make it into Bone.  Understandably so, since many parts were tied to time current events of the day, and the college audience.  I have a few regrets, one of those is not having the guts to actually do a strip in high school or college.  The strips done in my school papers I saw as much better than anything I could produce, so why try?  It’s awesome that creators are now releasing early works so we can see that it takes time and effort to get something great. 

Power Pack into the Storm #2-#4 – I know I missed a few, but to sum it up the Power Pack get captured and Franklin Richard’s is the only one who can save them by getting help from the X-Men.  When it comes to involving the X-Men and evil aliens it means the Brood are now involved.  Will they be able to save Franklin?  Does Mayhem know what she is getting herself into- we know, but she is clueless.

Captain America #8 – so Cap is now saving the world from mystic evil… what happened to just punching Nazis in the face?  I’ve seen Cap trapped in other dimensions – which made me seriously stop reading for a while. Now he’s fighting an army of evil (in another dimension?) in order to save the innocent.  His new mission- he must go and find four catalysts for change and bring them back to The Front Door…. I’m giving Straczynski some leeway since I usually love his stuff.

Batman #146 – Has Batman figured it all out?  That doesn’t mean he’s won and this arc is over… it’s only part two so we’ve got four more issues to go.  For it to follow the “Heroes Journey” he’s got a few more steps to go before he can leave the cave… a lot more villains to fight, and then there’s everyone who are now thinking Zur-En-Arrh is Bruce Wayne- even though he’s a robot. Maybe I’m just used to six issue arcs and not epic sagas. (Although I do like Saga)

Love Everlasting #14 – the Cowboy’s Tale continues… BLAM! Joan dies so many times I lost count, BLAM! but we do find out who is behind all this, will the cowboy survive finding out? 

This Week in Comics (My Pull List 3-27-24)

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Bruce

So If you read my last post about Indiana Comic Con you know about that. I wouldn’t say “Worst Con Ever” because I’ve been to worse Cons, but I would have to say it wasn’t what was advertised, or at least if this is the direction Comic Cons are going- I don’t see the need to attend them, unless I want photos and autographs (which I don’t). Heroes Con in Charlotte and Baltimore Comic Con seem to be the hold outs when it comes to die-hard comic cons, I’m sure there are others, but those are the ones that jump out.

I have said in the past that I’m torn between a bunch of different things I like- with retirement I’m trying to decide what I really want to focus on. Yes, I know I don’t have to focus on one thing, but with limited resources I need to decide what I really want to invest in. First there’s comic books- something I have been interested in since I was probably six or seven years old. Something I keep returning to when I need to escape. I returned to comics the last time when I was in grad school and needed to escape the pressure of classes. Tied closely to that is drawing. Again something I return to over and over again. I don’t see this going away anytime soon.

After Billund I have renewed my interest in building with LEGO Bricks, but mostly sets and not full on MOCs (My Own Creation). The thing keeping me from diving in again is the community. While there are some amazing people, the local LUG seems to be a a bunch of people who are into being in power and not willing to change or adapt. One of the reasons I retired was that I felt the robotics program could not evolve as long as I was in charge. It needed new ideas and other people to be responsible. Same goes for our local LUG. “We’ve always done this way” seems to be their mantra, and they will argue until you just give up.

I have met some of my best friends through MINI Coopers. I’m not a car guy, but I do love the MINI Community and the people in it. Like LEGO, the local group seems stuck in doing the same things over and over again with the same people in charge. There is another group in Fort Wayne which I’ve attended a number of events, then there are the national events like MINI Takes The States which are awesome. If only MINI would go back to making smaller cars, but as long as the Roadster is running (and when I get the classic back to working) things are fine. Unfortunately when people start talking to me about cars, I realize just how much I don’t know.

Geocaching is Sue’s thing. I have made a lot of friends while hunting down Tupperware in the woods, but I’m definitely not as competitive or completist enough to geocache more than when I’m traveling (see comments on Caching in my posts about Denmark).

I’ve been into games since I was in middle school playing the Marquis de Iblis in D&D. The problem with gaming is having to rely on other people and in this day and age it is impossible to coordinate calendars. I’m tired of thinking I’m going to play only to have it cancelled at the last minute. This is the thing on the chopping block, I’ve invested a lot into games, but if they aren’t being played, it’s kind of silly. I’m torn between attending Gen Con this year because I could use the resources in other interests… and I don’t really need anything more. Although it is an amazing Con and I highly recommend it if you are into games.

This Weeks Comics:

Primer #1 (of 4) – Primer is an all ages comic introducing Ashley, a foster kid who can just be trouble. She get’s placed with a couple who are polar opposites and tries to escape, only to discover one of their secrets… Since it’s a first issue there is a lot of character background going on, which is good. Sadly it looks like this will only be 4 issues, hopefully it will continue, The premise is interesting.

The Flash # 7 – What happened to Max Mercury and Impulse?!? In this issue we find out. Something weird is also going on with everyone else, but I’m sure Barry will figure that out while Wally is in the garden looking at statues and finding out about the Arc Angles… no that isn’t a typo. Angle not Angel.

Detective Comics #1083 – This version of Batman is hopefully going to get out of the desert and return to Gotham to save it from the Orthams who have made Gotham a better place (on the surface, but under that chocolate coating is it still an ooey gooey mess of corruption and bad stuff?) The Question finds evidence, but is it too late? A then Dr. Hate’s story comes to a conclusion… or does it? So many question marks…

Black Hammer The End #6 – So, this is the end… Will Lucy save the world from the Anti-God? What about the extremely large cast of characters gathered throughout the previous 5 issues? DC took 12 issues to do what Dark Horse and Lemire are doing in six…

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #18 (Legacy #300) – Big issue in which Miles goes up against the Cape Killers who have more impressive powers even if they don’t want to use them! Will Miles finally confront Rabble and save Brooklyn? Who lives? Who dies? Only the next issue will tell.

Amazing Spider-Man #46 – The Sinister Six return and try to help a reluctant Sandman escape Ravencroft (no relation to Ravenloft in Barovia). Spider-Man and Jackpot (MJ) try to thwart the attempt made by Electro… and succeed?

Star Trek Defiant #13 – OK- if you read the last issue there are no spoilers, if you didn’t- shame on you. IN the last issue we find out what happened to those weird bug creatures that had infiltrated the Federation way, way back in ST:TNG’s first season (Episode 25- Conspiracy). The alien enemy I think we all thought would be the new big bad, but they never showed up again, instead the Borg took their place. They have taken over a Starbase (for Lower Deck fans , not Starbase 80) and Worf and the crew of the Defiant have been sent there (probably by someone taken over by the alien bugs). Now they need to escape but seeing as this is only part 2, we’ve got a long way to go in this arc. I’m OK with that.

Ultimate Spider-Man #3 – Wow. Just like the original Ultimate universe we are starting to get into some interesting stuff! Spider-Man gets help with his costume (with amusing options). He also meets and teams up with an old friend (who is a new friend in this universe).

Alan Scott Green Lantern #5 – The penultimate issue in which Red Lantern reveals more about his origin and we finally meet the real bad guys and (redacted) show up to make the next issue awesome.

Nacelleverse #0- This was recommended to me at Indiana Comic Con (but I won’t hold that against it). Basically take some of your 1980-90’s toy lines and create a comic book encompassing all of them. Robo Force, Biker Mice from Mars, Sectaurs, Power Lords, and The Great Garloo are brought back in a story featuring Garloo. If you don’t recognize any of these brands… you (like me) won’t have the nostalgia button pressed, but it still was a good story setting up a series and the return of these toys to market. Toy marketing has always been a part of cartoons and comics, so this just updates it a bit to tug at the heartstrings of people who now have more deposable income and don’t need their parents permission to buy stuff. Unless they are still living in their parent’s basement.

Time2 Omnibus – I had the chance to meet Howard Chaykin at Galaxy Con. I went to a panel and then paid for a workshop. He’s done a lot in his career but the one I got caught up with was “American Flagg” a take on the future in which a lot of the things going on in the comic seem logical if things continue the way they have been (Have you ever seen “Idiocracy”?). Time2 started off connected to American Flagg- kind of in the multiverse alternate timeline crossover kind of way. It then branched off on its own. A future based on the 1930’s style with gangsters and robots and jazz and… It reminds me somewhat of the Will Eisner’s Contract with God, with a cool American Flagg science fiction twist. This omnibus actually was released a while ago, but I finally picked up a copy.

Recap: Indiana “Comic” Con- “My God, it’s full of stars!”

Posted on March 25, 2024 by Bruce

For those reading my babbling reviews of comics I’ve had a bit of commentary about Comic Cons. Last weekend I had the opportunity to help out my Local Comic Shop (LCS) at Indiana Comic Con held at the Indiana Convention Center. What I got in return was a non-attendee view of the Con and an exhibitor badge that allowed me access to the exhibit floor. Added bonuses were three days of standing on an unpadded concrete floor (so yes, my feet hurt).

My previous posts about this “Comic” Con have focused on the list of celebrities advertised and the lack of anything dealing with comic books and their creators. I asked the owner of my LCS if they were getting a booth and then if they needed any help. I figured as I was looking at post retirement employment this might be a good way to test the waters. So Thursday I helped set up and then “worked” Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

This is My First Con and it’s Amazing!

I heard this from almost every attendee. They have nothing to compare this to, so it is a little overwhelming. It’s like going to a geek freak show/flea market for the uninitiated. There are people walking around in costume, there are booths selling everything from coffee and tea, to battle axes, to light sabers, to stuffed Cthulhu. Lord knows what their reaction would be if they attended a larger con, although it is pretty much just more of the same. They’ve heard stories of San Diego Comic-Con so this is the same isn’t it? This isn’t my first con, my first con was a Creation Con in the early 80’s in Los Angeles. Where someone was cosplaying a character from “V” (1983) walking around asking if anyone had a mouse they could snack on. I’ve been to “a few” other Cons since then- check my CV for details.😉 Here I saw a lot of the same sellers that I have seen at other regional cons – by the same I mean a few comic book shops from around the midwest, but mostly the same places selling knick knacks and “stuff” for the “Ooooh shiny!” crowd.

If you have never been to a Con understand this:

  • It is a great place for people watching. Many cosplayers put a lot of time and effort into their works and they can be amazing feats of engineering. People who truly love a character will dress up in as accurate a representation as they can make. This could be simply putting on a hat, or building a suit of armor. For many of these people it is a chance to let it go… literally and figuratively. There are many people who, if it wasn’t a Con wouldn’t be caught dead dressed like that. At a Con it is OK… everyone embraces your love of a fandom. Even if you are a 350 pound guy with a full beard who happens to dress like Raven from the Teen Titans. (OK, I didn’t see that but I did see a 6’3″ bearded guy dressed as Sailor Moon). There are also those people who arrive in their store bought halloween costumes which is OK too.
  • Things are expensive. It’s like going to Disney… if you expect to get a soft drink for less than $5 (that was the small size) or a chicken strip basket for less than $11 you will be disappointed. Parking alone this weekend was outlandish by Indianapolis standards. Where I usually park downtown was a flat rate of $35. It usually tops out at $20 if you leave your car overnight. The NCAA was in town also so I’m sure that drove up parking prices. I hope this trend doesn’t continue for Gen Con or people will complain, more than they already do. Don’t even get me started on the cost of stuff connected to the show (like autographs).
  • Be prepared to scratch your head and try to figure out what you just saw. You would think a comic con would have people focused on comic book characters… Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, etc. Instead you will see characters from TV, film, anime… my favorite are the mash ups like the Mandalorian Woody I saw while walking the hall. The other thing will be the gender bending cosplays- like the bearded Sailor Moon. At New York Comic Con my brother would ask me about a cosplay as they walked by- my patented answer was “It’s from an obscure anime, manga, or video game.”

But is Indian Comic Con really a Comic Con?

In my opinion- no. A comic con celebrates comic books and properties that have been spawned from comic books. It is full of comic book art, and artists. Yes, there will be people selling other things, but the focus is on Comics. San Diego Comic-Con is close to not being a true comic con with all the focus on Hall H and Ballroom 20, but at least they have comic book companies present and a ton of comic creators. Indiana Comic Con was a “Fan Fest” or as someone put it, an “Autograph, Photo Op Stampede.” This was pretty easy to figure out since all their pre-advertising was dealing with which celebrities were going to be there, and virtually nothing about comics. Yes, some of the celebrities present had played roles as a comic book based character, but… one of my favorite quotes from a teenager walking by the booth was “Hayden Christensen is the greatest actor of our time…” now there’s a true fan.

I sat at lunch each day, and talked (or listened) to the people around me. All of them were excited over who they were going to see, and get a photo with or autograph. I have nothing against that, it’s just not my thing. The problem I had, was that I was working for a comic shop and it seemed like everyone had already spent all of their cash on photo ops and autographs. They had no money to buy anything else. You see when a show ends, or a film saga is complete, many celebrities have difficulty finding roles after their iconic portrayal of… whoever. The way to pay the bills is to go to con and charge a hundred bucks (or more, most of them more) to sign something for a fan, or pose for a photo. Being an introvert, trying to have small talk with an actor who played a character I admire would be similar to getting a root canal. I have a hard enough time trying to talk with an artist whose work I like when asking for a sketch. I understand why some of my favorite artists have decided to no longer go to cons that boast the number of celebrities they have in attendance.

Is it a comic con? Just look at the app. “Guests” have their own tab so you can see who is here. There was a banner over the spot for “Guest Artists” but on the app, the guest artists were listed under Vendors, and the list of who was going to be there wasn’t published until a few days before the con. So If I wanted to see where to find an artist, I had to wade through the vendor list and look for a booth probably called the “The art of…” (right after the fudge and chocolate vendor) while if I wanted to find the guy who played that one character in that one episode of that show… You know the one I’m talking about… just look under guests and I’ll get his exact location with a photo, when he was doing signings, when he was doing photos and how much he would charge me for the privilege- without a certificate of authenticity (which costs more).

Most of the cosplayers I saw were from anime or were Star Wars based… A number of the celebrities were from the Star Wars franchise so it made sense. If I saw one person with Ahsoka mouse ears I saw a dozen. I didn’t get chance to even look at the panels, but it seemed like most of the crowds were going to panels dealing with the celebrities present, that was the draw. They even charged more for tickets to some panels. I can’t complain, I went to the William Shatner panel at Galaxy Con in Columbus (a con which had more comic book artists). No charge to hear Bill ramble on about whatever he wanted to ignoring the question asked by the fan at the mic.

If I had not been volunteering, I don’t think I would have attended. It was funny that many of the comic shops in Indianapolis did not have a presence. That should say something about if it was a “Comic Con.” Local shops don’t have to move stuff that far, they don’t have to pay for hotels or meals for whoever is working… so why aren’t they there? I understand that some other vendors did better, but I know the ones around us were grumbling as every morning the crowds of regular folks would rush by to get in line for an autograph, this after the VIP and Ruby (more expensive badges) had already lined up 30 minutes earlier. Afterwards people would then pass through without a second glance as they thought another row might be quicker to get to the autograph area.

What did I end up with at the end of this? Three chicken finger baskets for lunches. A few comics from the booth I was working at… I had time to see what I was missing in my collection and fill in a few holes from what was there. A Mark Bagley headshot of the Rocketeer. For those non-comic book people Mark Bagley was the artist for Ultimate Spider-Man along with a lot of other titles. A signed canvas print of the Rocketeer done by James Mulligan, an artist for Disney. The poor booth across from us was selling these and they were nice, and I felt a bit sorry for them. A hard cover “Art of Stardust” book by Charles Vest. One of my favorite fantasy stories by Neil Gaiman and a really good movie adaptation too. Finally a patch of a gelatinous cube for my jacket.

What did I learn?

  • To trust my instincts.
  • I’m overjoyed that so many people got the photos and autographs that they so desperately needed to show their friends how cool they are… Like I said- that’s not my thing, but if it makes you happy- good for you!
  • Concrete floors are hard on your feet.
  • Middle booths are not “prime real estate.”
  • This con should be called “Indiana Fan Fest” if we are looking for truth in advertising.
  • Indiana could really use a real Comic Con.
  • I’m going to write up some suggestions for my LCS on how to possibly improve the experience (besides avoid Indiana Comic Con like the plague). Like NEW Signage! which I can help out with.
  • I am planning on attending at least one of the more comic centric cons coming up over the summer and fall. Don’t worry, I’ll be just as honest when I report back.
As I was leaving, I saw this on the floor… Since no one was around to assist me I didn’t dare pick it up-plus the misspelling might mean snakes are involved,

This Week in Comics (My Pull List 3/20/24)

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Bruce

As of for blabbering this week- not much to say, just coasting as I wait for weather to get nice for more than 35 minutes and the next “whimventure®”

This week was a good mix of comics and I’m sure I’ll do a review of the Indiana “Comic” Con happening this weekend. I do hope I’m wrong, but from what I can tell, I know Indiana can do better when it comes to hosting an actual comic con and not a celebrity photo/autograph fest, but is that what people here want? Is it just me?

This Week’s Comics:

Man’s Best #1 – We were introduced to Athos, Porthos, and Lovey in the intro issue #0 now we get to relive that issue, but also find out what happens next to get the story started. We still don’t know the origin of the “Klangers” who they have been training to fight. or what’s up with a vanishing planet, but I’m sure it will all come in due time.

Spider-Boy #5 – The hunt for Bailey continues (and I don’t mean my cat… he’s chirping at some birds by the window). Also some backstory on Madame Monstrosity and her work and lost love 💕 I find it interesting how Bailey has avoided detection and has been able to survive… clever kid.

Star Trek #18 – Glass and Bone Part 6 Does Benjamin Sisko and the crew of the Theseus stop an intergalacticic war? What about what Dr. Crusher and Mr. Scott’s discover at the core of Tzenketh? Will this change things dramatically? (melodramatically?).

The Displaced #2 – In issue one we were introduced to our cast of characters- people from Oshawa who were out of town when the place vanished and now are forgotten. No one remembers them. We get a few of the rules in this universe- like they need to stay together or they might disappear. So they head off to a secluded cabin to figure things out… hmm…

Justice Society of America #9 – The search goes on… Helena Wayne (Huntress) is still woking on putting together her team of misfits . Sons and daughters of villains seeking redemption. This, of course, leads to some nice fights as sometimes words alone cannot sway people. Remember this is in combination to all the unknown sidekicks from the original JSA were rescued and are trying to find their place in this future. Quiz Kid (Mr. Terrific’s sidekick), has some ideas and then there’s the appearance of the Legionnaire… my oh my… what next? (Oh, the Tony Harris variant cover is what is in the photo- I know, I know I complain about variants, but every so often there is one I want.)

Superman # 12 – So with Bizarro having taken over the world through magic the only person Superman can trust is… the Joker?!?! Wait, that’s Action Comics, not Superman. In this issue of Superman the Lex Luthor Revenge Squad® is poisoning Metropolis (with Kryptonite laced gas) and it takes the combined resources of Super Corp. to try and save everyone and catch the bad guys. What happens next? ummm… Like with Batman and Detective Comics I’ve been waffling to decide if I’m going to follow both titles: Action Comics and Superman. DC has decided to do a crossover story that will be in both! 🙄 It looks like I’m still reading both for at least a while.

U & I #2 of 6 – In this universe where some people have powers and others don’t we have “U” who seems to be living in his own world who was saved by Isabelle (“I”). Now U with Isabelle’s help has decided his mission, who is the enemy he must fight. Sometimes comics get a bit real…

Of course he sees it a bit differently, but he now has a an idea how to help everyone… so he starts to stir things up… with Straczynski there is no way to tell where is will end up, or if it will be a happy ending.

Blue Book #2 – 1947 More strange things happening with flying saucers and the introducation of the concept of the “Men in Black” as we follow Kenneth Arnold. Of course next up is a little place in New Mexico.

Midlife #6 – Most stories in comics run in 6 issue arcs, this makes creating trade paperbacks easier. We discover the secrets of Ruben’s dad’s powers (shhhh… family secrets are uncovered) and while not all the loose ends are tied up it does come to a nice conclusion with hints of what’s to come.

Titans #9 – So the Titans help out and actually clean up after themselves (Teen Titans would never do that… heck, they would just shove all their dirty clothes into the closet and close the door). Of course we are building up to something bad happening in the next three issues (six issue arcs remember?) Amanda Waller has been brought in to create some future chaos after making a deal with the devil… or at least a close facsimile.

Wish me luck as I head into the Indiana “Comic” Con and The VEX Robotics State Championship. I’ll be working one and ignoring the other one…

Spielen Gut – My First Bonspiel

Posted on March 19, 2024 by Bruce

Those who know me tend to be surprised if I mention or discuss sports of any kind.  I find that competition tends to bring out an ugly side of most people.  This past weekend I participated in a bonspiel, “The Shamrock Spiel,” a “friendly” tournament that lasted two days with 5 matches for each team.  It was presented to me as a way to get to know other people in the club and have fun. The idea was to even out teams is to have two new curlers paired with two experienced curlers.  I signed up as part of my “jumping in with both feet” belief even though (I did the math) I had only curled around 8 days* before… brave or just stupid?

Let me start off defying a core issue I have- I don’t take praise well…  you see I was raised by someone who could and would say the nicest, kindest things to someone’s face and the minute she thought they were out of earshot say what she really meant which was neither kind, nor nice.  I learned growing up that people lie.  So when you compliment me, I tend to smile, nod, say ‘thank you” and think you mean the exact opposite. Curlers are extremely nice and compliment people on their shots, especially new curlers, even when they aren’t that great. They look for the silver lining which I like, but (see above). I do appreciate how no matter what team you are on, everyone says something positive to a player when they do something even moderately well. I’m concerned that like when I tried golf I’ll be the last one picked or the one that no one wants on their team.

Combine this with the fact that I actively avoided sports growing up… you see my older brother was the gifted athlete.  My mother would compare us in some crazy competition in her head and as they said in War Games – “the only winning move is not to play.” So I didn’t.  I drew, I read books, I was an above average student who didn’t really try that hard.  When I tried to participate in sports I usually made a fool of myself and my team mates would laugh at me.

So now at 58 I’m competing in a tournament in a sport I just started to learn. My team had been doing well, but missed winning by the narrowest of margins.  At the end of Saturday we had lost all three of our matches, two by just 1 point. Sunday we actually won one, but in the end conceded our last one because with one end to go there was no way we could win. We ended the Spiel with one win and four losses. I went home- tired, and sore and deciding that maybe a casual league is the better place for me at least for now, if not forever… I just can’t get that competitive and like myself when the day is over.

It was a great social event, lots of food and talk (Yes, I’m an introvert so it was draining trying to be even slighty an extrovert) I’m getting to know more people so it isn’t completely horrible and I tried to sit in on conversations. One thing that helps is “Broom Stacking” which occurs after a match. The winners buy a round for the losers (we ended up with a lot of drinks being purchased for us. Tables are set up in the warming room so that everyone who played can sit together. I kind of wish I had started with beer a lot sooner, maybe I would have been less stressed. The worst part was when we actually won… fortunately someone else took care of the drink for the person I was supposed to buy for, since I remembered after too much time had passed.

Sue came out to watch our last match on Saturday evening and noticed a couple things:

 First, she asked when will I graduate and not have to wear a helmet?  I wear a helmet since I fell in one end while sweeping and ended up with a slight concussion.  You see in my flight I’m one of two people wearing head protection.  The other flight has a bunch, but mine- it’s just two of us.  The other flight also has stick curlers in it… mine, nope. I’m not sure but I think the other flight might be less competitive and having more fun. 

She also noticed how there wasn’t one way of curling.  Sweepers did it differently, players delivered the stone each in their own unique way. Except, me… I’m always doing it the wrong way. 🙄 I noticed that of the group I started with in the Rookie League there are maybe five of us playing in the spiel. What happened to the 40 some odd people who started with us?

She took a picture of me delivering a stone and wondered if I was actually watching the stone when I delivered it or if I was looking at the ice… I blamed my helmet for obscuring my face… but on Sunday made a conscious effort to figure out what I was looking at. (sometimes it was the ice, sometimes it was the stone.

Even though it was a “fun” “friendly” event- In my vast experience in sports, players can be put into groups (this actually fits in with almost any activity and yes, there are shades of gray- 50 if I understand correctly.):

  1. Elite professionals in curling’s case Olympians or those that compete at a national level.
  2. People who take it seriously and are competitive.  They tend to be this way in every aspect of life and are interested in more than one sport. “GOOOOO Sports Team!” These are the ones who practice every moment they have.  Read books, watch every video they can, they want to be Olympians or at least the best in their region, age group, club…. I’ve noticed that even in a “fun” event they have stopwatches out to time their deliveries and be speak in a shorthand. These are the people who have a lot of fun when they are winning. It was amazing how some teams had “new” curlers who were pretty good with the shorthand and how to understand the numbers being thrown out by those with stopwatches. There is a “Competitive League” on Mondays for many of these people.
  3. People who play for fun.  They are in a sport for the social aspect.  Win or lose it’s a game.  They could be really good, but what matters most is just being around people who like the sport.

Mixing these people can be interesting… You know two new people and two experienced people. If the experienced people are 2’s and the inexperienced people are 3’s it could frustrate someone. A team of 3’s having a blast while a team of 2’s counting down deliveries.

For me, the biggest issue as a new player is I try to incorporate suggestions when they are made, if I notice I did something wrong I compensate the next chance I get.  Umm… so Saturday night when I’m told my first rock was too heavy, I try to throw lighter, except that they wanted me to throw a heavy rock to take out another stone!  I feel like I am the weakest link, because I am.  My skip even commented after giving a “pep talk” that he shouldn’t give pep talks anymore since I royally messed up afterwards. I’d like to get better, but I have to find the time to practice, you’d think that would be easy… it isn’t. Practice time is either when I have league or after the evening league is over which is way past my bedtime.

When I was growing up my parents would get into an activity/hobby and tend to go wild investing in everything they needed (even when they might not need it due to their experience level) A friend once told me he never buys a tool unless he needs it three times. If he finds he needed and had to borrow or rent something three times, he should have it, because it is something he obviously will use in the future. I went into curling with this mindset. Instead of going out and buy all the equipment (shoes, broom, gloves) I’d get by this time around with what I have. My bike helmet & a newer pair of clean tennis shoes. One of the members took a gripper (the thing you put on your shoe to make it so you don’t slide on the ice) and modified it a bit for me so I could slide further in my deliveries. Look out on the sheet and I’m the guy in jeans with a sweatshirt, not the one in the club jacket and black pants. I’m one of the only ones grabbing a slider (the thing you step on when throwing a stone so you can slide across the ice better. So Saturday I bit the bullet and decided I would go out and buy a broom… to me a broom was an economical way to improve my game slightly in seconds. I could use it in the next match. I was informed that a broom improves your game only slightly (I knew that) and if you want to improve you needed shoes… so I caved and bought shoes. I also knew that there is a learning curve when it comes to shoes…so they are still in the box until Wednesday, when I can test them out and fall multiple times without causing too much damage or being a laughing stock in front of the whole club.

What are curling shoes? I think I went over this before, but just in case. One shoe has a teflon sole to help you slide. You put a gripper on it when you are not throwing stones. I’ve seen it takes a bit of practice to get used to walking on ice with one slippery foot. Combined with the fact that someone had taken time and effort to modify a gripper I decided I would stick with what I was comfortable with and try everything out later this week.

I do have a recommendation for the club for next season- I was in a four week “Rookie” league. It was basically four weeks of lessons to get the basics.  More intense than a single “Learn to Curl” session.  The club also offers an “Instructional League” which due to our trip I could not attend.  What about putting them together?  Four weeks of learning and then two or three weeks of play within that group?  Yes, it would be a seven or eight week commitment, but it might not be a bad thing.  Teach the basics, but then teach how a league actually works more focused on playing the game, than the actual fundamentals..  I know I’d sign up for just an instructional league even though I’m already in a league.  It gives you the chance to make mistakes in a safe place.  You are expected to make mistakes. I couldn’t do the instructional league this time around because of Denmark.

So what does this mean for me? I learned a lot. I learned about various ways to do things, how to decide who sweeps closest to the stone, unless you have an experienced player and they do whatever they want. I try to determine which way I want the stone to curl, but still need the Skip to tell me (I’m not psychic). It was a good learning experience. The season is almost over and I see myself signing up again next season (I bought shoes), but staying away from competing in bonspiels until I feel better about my game (which means maybe never?) I can see helping out as many people from the Wednesday morning league did. It was funny to see just how many people I play with I didn’t see playing this weekend. Oh, and after many times competing in “Friendly” golf things, I’m happy to say, it isn’t anywhere near as bad as one of those. Still have nightmares over being teased about my “magic putter.”

Note: Everyone I have played has been so nice and supportive.  The problem is me.  Being raised in an environment in which the simplest compliment was seen as sarcasm… it’s hard to trust or believe.  It’s me, not you 

*This would be three days of Rookie League, one day subbing on a Wednesday morning league (so around 6-7 ends) two days actually participating in the Wednesday morning league (around 12-14 ends), and a morning practicing and getting instruction from a fellow curler (we was interrupted midway through). oh and that “Learn to Curl” I did long before COVID. When I say an “end” that would mean I had thrown only two stones.

Returning to the 15th Happiest Place on Earth (40th Happiest State)🙄- Day 8 “All Good Things…”

Posted on March 18, 2024 by Bruce

Sunday: Walked 3.62 miles, Flew a few more than 4400

12:30 CET to 11:something or other EST Flight from Billund to Amsterdam to Detroit to Indianapolis to home to cats to bed.

Got up early to get breakfast. Said goodbye to the guard rhino in our room. Checked out and headed to the airport.

Goals for the day: refuel & return the car, get the two adventure labs and one virtual at the airport and pick up the Billund Airport exclusive LEGO set. Then go home.
Note: The Billund Airport set had been recently retired and therefore no longer available. 😪 They had a great sale, but… at this point, I don’t have room or need any other LEGO sets at this time.

By the Numbers:

Hotels: 3 – Refborg (Billund), Grand Hotel (Odense), Osterport (Copenhagen)
Longest stay: 3 days
Shortest stay: maybe 18 hours
Geocaches: 30ish – including Denmark’s First Geocache!
Adventure Labs completed: 12 and a bunch of stages started but incomplete (Yes, St. Canute- I’m looking at you… solving ALs in another language with written answers can be “challenging”)

Trolls: 6

LEGO sets: 13
Minifigs: 10 (4 exclusive to the Fan Tour, 6 exclusive to a location)
LEGO Keyhains: 4

Cost for two people:

  • Tour Cost: $1323
  • Money spent on souvenirs & LEGO: about $1200 Yes, most of this was for me🙄
  • Lodging (7 nights 3 cities): about $1250
  • Meals- formal meals at a pub or restaurant including alcohol and under one circumstance a tip (we were near the U.S. Embassy🙄): about $500 Breakfasts were included at most of the hotels.
  • Rental Car for 8 days (a Audi SUV thing): $172
  • Petrol: $105 (one fill up)
  • Parking, Trains, & Tolls: about $300
  • Flight Cost: $1900

Total (for two): about $6700 (rounding up)

Lessons Learned/Notes aka wha? huh? 🤔:

When we travel Sue and I try to figure out what we would do differently or what things were different than what we expected.

  • Give ourselves one full day (and night) in a place once we land. In this case, we should have either stopped and spent the night in Amsterdam or spent an extra night in Billund at the start to recuperate from the flight. Next time- fly through Iceland- Icelandair actually has a long layover program 😁
  • Stay in a place around three days to get acclimated (postage stamp rule – Something we discovered in England to really get to know a place stay and explore in an area on the map about the size of a postage stamp) We tend to forget this over the excitement of visiting a new place, but it is good to keep in mind. It was nice to settle in Copenhagen and Billund instead of rushing to a new place each morning. Avoid the “It’s Tuesday, it must be Belgium” Syndrome.
  • It’s amazing how other countries seem to be more trusting. It is nice to see and almost unimaginable to consider in the U.S. except maybe in small towns.
  • Danish chicanes instead of speed bumps?!? While heading to Jelling we discovered a spot where to slow people down they had one lane that had a zig zag pattern, which required you to slow down to get through. A large portion of speed bumps in Denmark are in the middle of the lane.
  • A lot of the roads outside of the main highways were 1.5 lanes so when another care is coming at you you both pull over a bit. Allowing the roads to not use up the much space.
  • 110kph = 68 mph so things move a bit slower and therefore take a bit longer to get from point A to point B.
  • USB C outlets in cars?!? America is so “sophisticated” and high tech, but it was interesting that our rental only had USB-C outlets, and not USB-A which is still pretty much still the standard in the U.S.
  • Why do I have to sign my credit card receipt? Locals didn’t seem to need to sign, just scan and go. Why did some cards never work? (Yes, MINI CARD I’m looking at you). When I purchased things from a person, I had to sign the receipt, something I don’t always have to do in the U.S. but also most automated kiosks seemed to reject my card (as invalid), was this because I couldn’t sign the receipt? What is done with these signed receipts? Do they get sent (via the post) to the bank? 🤔
  • Many places preferred credit to cash… we actually didn’t exchange money during our trip. we had some leftover Euros from our pre-COVID trip to Paris and it was rather amusing that we couldn’t find a currency exchange open when we found them.
  • What happened to getting your passport stamped? It seemed that Amsterdam and the coming into Detroit were the only places that stamped my passport.
  • European flights- passengers are told they are not allowed to photograph or film passengers or crew members without their permission… but how am I going to get followers and likes on my YouTube/TikTok Channel?
  • On ALL flights we were given the safety instructions in English… is this because Americans are so stupid they wouldn’t know what to do and are most likely to sue the company if anything were to happen – with the American claiming ignorance because “They spoke with a funny accent” and they couldn’t understand them.
  • Delta’s video makes me think of a Church service. It just seemed to be set up like you were in some new age church with yoga mats surrounded by nature. The Flight Attendant on screen standing in the middle delivering a calm sermon on how to fasten your seatbelt.
  • Set reasonable goals. If anything a true “Whimventurer” under plans in case something happens to pop up. If you have one thing that has a timed entry, that’s enough. What if you really get lost in that exhibit? Do you leave to make it to the next thing on the list? If you give yourself one goal each day, you don’t have a chance of being disappointed. We would never had gone on our first Troll hunt if we hadn’t had a flexible schedule.
  • When buying ceramic pieces as souvenirs either pack them nested around squishy things in your checked luggage, or expect to have your carryon bag pulled at every single security checkpoint, I guess a ceramic horse/dragon looks a lot like C4 when viewed from an X-Ray machine.
  • Thoughts on traveling as an anxious ‘Murican. There is an image of the stereotypical American tourist in a foreign country and that image makes me sick. Frankly Americans in the U.S. who act like they are better than anyone else make me cringe. I barely speak English properly, let alone another language and we believe that everyone in the world should speak English. I do find it amusing that the Europeans tend to rub it in by having the Union Jack next to English translations and not the Stars and Stripes. Even though the translation is mostly for Americans. I’m guessing there are a few people out there that would prefer the stars and bars, but then again they rarely leave their home town. I guess for me when traveling I am the polar opposite of the stereotype. I rarely talk, might nod my head, if I have to order I am overly apologetic during the process. I joke that we travel on a whim… we do for some thing’s, but I’m pretty much a basket case hoping I’m not too embarrassing. When we traveled this time, I brought a classic looking leather jacket, collared shirts, dark jeans, dress pants and avoided tennis shoes. I found in the past this helped me blend in- instead of the guy in the red baseball cap and “God Bless ‘Murica” t-shirt in flip flops and cut offs. Of course now everyone wears tennis shoes (trainers), but I’ll stick to walking around a city in my Doc Martens. When I travel I’d much rather have people think I’m British, or Canadian. The world tends to see us as obnoxious spoiled bullies for the most part, especially with the way our corporations run our politics and our media depicts the average American.
  • How many times does your bag need to go through security? We had to go through security in Billund, Amsterdam, and Detroit. While I understand the need for safety, What could I have done in mid-flight or after landing to suddenly become a flight hazard? In Detroit it made a bit of sense since we had to handle our checked luggage, but still…
  • Since I can’t sleep on a plane: Movie Reviews: Wonka ⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎, Barbie ⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎, Oppenheimer ⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎, & Blue Beetle ⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎ All the films were nice diversions. I started with Wonka since we were behind the Wonka float at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and wanted to understand why nothing actually happened on the float during the parade and only a dance routine in front of an empty float occurred at the end… I actually stopped part way through the film and came back to finish it later. None were what I would consider 5 star amazing films, but they held my interest for the most part. Barbie was a unique social commentary that was very well done, I understand why it has become a cultural phenomenon. Oppenheimer was a nice historical piece and I understand why it did so well at the Oscars. Blue Beetle… I wanted to give a DC film a chance since they seem to have an aura of despair surrounding them… It was a good super hero movie, like Barbie, some social commentary this time dealing with plight of Latin Americans in the US, but for the most part a good escapist film, which is really what super hero films should be.
  • Flight home last leg… “Please do not change your seat- it’s a balance issue.” Was it Phil Foglio who did a comic about how planes actually fly due to certain people, who without them on a plane the plane wouldn’t fly? They are seated strategically to aid in keeping the plane in the air.
  • Last flight 39 minutes of first class! I felt so special.
  • “Hey, I tell you what is. Big city, hmm? Live, work, huh? But not city only. Only peoples. Peoples is peoples. No is buildings. Is tomatoes, huh? Is peoples, is dancing, is music, is potatoes. So, peoples is peoples. Okay?” – Pete from The Muppets Take Manhattan “No matter where you go, there you are” and always- peoples is peoples.

I will miss our guard Rhinoceros from our time in Billund. Thank you for keeping us, and our stuff safe during our visit.