Spatula Forum

Entirely random rainy Sunday-morning thoughts

...Well, what a lousy week THAT was for our wallet. In addition to it turning out we needed a new hot water cylinder as part of the whole Bathroom Disaster 2008 epic, this was the week our stumpy little 1996 Subaru decided to get most of its engine rebuilt (new timing belt, et cetera) to the tune of four digits of funds. Egad. When it rains it pours. At least we have our health. If not our savings account.

"Just when I discovered the meaning of life, they changed it."
I didn't get a chance to write a post in honour of the late, great George Carlin, but most of the rest of the Internet did anyway far better than I could have. I always loved Carlin's grouchy, no-bullshit presence, even if I realize I never did see quite as much of his stand-up material as I've always meant to. Sadly, now is the time to catch up. Also: 101 great George Carlin lines. You just have to imagine his wonderfully surly voice saying them now.
"I think it’s the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and cross it deliberately."

One thing that cheered me up mightily this week was finally getting my massive copy of Fred Hembeck's monumental Nearly Complete Essential Hembeck Archives Omnibus, 900-freaking-pages of vintage Hembeck cartoons from the '70s, '80s and beyond. Ever since this was announced last year I've been dying to read it, as I've been a fan of Fred's genial comic-essay toons since I read the old Fantaco books. Fred's like the nicest comic-store owner fanboy you ever met, full of honest love and appreciation for the medium, and it's fantastic to see this big ol' book, even if some of the lettering is a wee bit microscopic. His animated histories, pans and praises now look like some kind of witty ancestor of the comics blogosphere. I'm still amazed that I'm actually kinda-sorta an acquaintance-pal of Fred these days through the Internets, and he very kindly sent me a whole ton of Beatles covers CDs a couple years back. Whatta guy, that Hembeck. Bring on Volume 2!

...It's raining AGAIN. July in New Zealand is the winter of our discontent.