Lucinda Williams Rocks!

So Rowan spent his first night with a babysitter last night. Of course, it was his grandma, so it wasn't that traumatizing for him. My wife and I took advantage of our few hours alone to go to see Lucinda Williams play at the Matt's Brewery in Utica, NY. WOW!!! What an amazing show. I have been aware of Lucinda for a few years, ever since she got on the same record label as Ryan Adams, my personal favorite performer. Yet, other than the amazing Car Wheels on the Gravel Road, I didn't have any of her albums. It didn't matter how many songs I knew by heart, she rocked every single one of them. She came on stage at the unique show place a little after 8:00 and didn't stop playing until 10:00 curfew. For those who aren't aware, the Saranac Stage at Matt's Brewery is an outdoor stage built in the courtyard of the brewhouse. The brewery is right in the middle of a residential neighborhood, so performances have to end at 10:00. But she milked every second she could. She opened with "Fruits of My Labor", and seemed a little tentative at first. But by the time she finished with "Car Wheels" she was letting loose and tearing up the stage. Backed by her great band, especially Doug Pettibone on guitar, she played some older songs as 'rehearsals' for her upcoming album-a-day tour. In between the barnstormers like "Those Three Days" and the very sensual "Unsuffer Me", songs which really showcased her powerful roadhouse voice, she played the sorrowful "Pineola", "Fancy Funeral" and "Mama You Sweet" about her mother, and "Bus to Baton Rouge" in honor of a friend who had passed away. Given the unique locale, she seemed to really be playing the show fast and loose, changing her song list on the fly. For one gentlemen who shouted out repeatedly for it, she played "Real Live Bleeding Fingers and Broken Guitar Strings." She introduced a new song, "Honey Bee", which had some interesting metaphorical imagery in the lyrics. And for the encore she played a cover of "Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys," before scrapping her plans and ending with "Still I Long for Your Kiss," one of my personal favorites! Between the amazing vocals and backing music, her southern charms, and her stage presence that seems to grow after each song, it was a great concert. It did what every concert should strive to do...left me wanting more!

Rowan Turns 3 (Months that is...)

Today is the beginning of Rowan's third month on the planet, so I thought that I would celebrate with some pics.
Here he is trying to hold his bottle for the first time. He is getting better at it, but has no problems pushing it away. Or punching his dad. Or kicking him. Or just being violent towards him in general. It must be all those violent video games he has been playing!




Here is one of him smiling. Rowan is a very serious, deep thinker, so getting a good smile out of him is hard (I think he might be goth). But if you catch him in the morning, he will smile and giggle at everything. Even my lame jokes! Give him a few years...I'm sure that will stop.



And finally, one of his friendly neighborhood Spider-Blanket. You knew he would have to have some super-hero toy, right?

Paradise Comicon Day 3

June 10th-
OK, time for my much delayed final day report. Today was all me...Rowan needed a break from the comic book excitement. I started by going over and getting a sketch from Niko from my wife and a sketch from Jeanty for my local comic book store clerk. I then went over to Darwyn and pestered him every so often, checking on the status of my sketch...unfortunately it didn't look like it was going to be done soon. With a long drive ahead of us, and workdays looming on Monday, I really didn't plan on staying very long on Sunday. After all, the last of my sketch money was already going to Darwyn, so I had nothing else left to buy. Darwyn graciously gave me my sketchbook back, and said that I was actually doing him a favor as he had signed up for more art than he was really capable of churning out. So, with money back in my pocket I went to check out the artist alley. I had seen the Kitchen brothers' work on the internet, and I thought that their books looked fun. So I swung over, bought the Kitchen Kollection, all 6 books that they have published so far, and picked up my final two sketches of the weekend.

Blair, creator of Possum, did a fun Green Goblin vs. Possum sketch. Unfortunately neither of us could remember exactly what the Goblin's costume looked like. As you can see, the gloves are a little off, and the shirt is missing, but I think it still looks great. Blair has a real Mad Magazine style to his work.


Mike has created a book called SpyGuy. For his sketch, he did SpyGuy slaying Venom. Interestingly enough, he decided to throw in the rest of the Spider-Man 3 baddies as well. If you look closely, you can see New Goblin and Sandman as well.

If you get a chance, pick up these guys' work. You won't be disappointed.

With those new additions, I began to pack up the truck and we headed home to Utica.

Rowan's First Fancy Restaurant

After day two of the convention, we needed a comic free night on the town. With Rowan in tow, that night on the town was less bars and clubs and more restaurants and walks. Have stroller, will travel!

We ended up making reservations for the only
AAA 4-star rated restaurant in Mississauga, the Breakwater, since we wanted to avoid the crowds and prices of the downtown restaurants. We drove down to the cool lake-side area of Port Credit and found the restaurant easily. It was on the ground floor of a nice looking hotel.It was a good thing we made reservations...the small, intimate dining area was packed.
The chef prepares a themed menu on occasion, and, appropriately enough given my heritage, it was a 'Viva La France!' theme. My wife went for the coq au vin, while I had the delicious boullibaisse. I'm talking loads of seafood in a delicious broth...yummy! Rowan had formula. Which, much to my delight, he spit up all over my shoulder. I guess he was mad that he couldn't try the great food!

After dinner we walked around their harbor trails and checked out their neat lighthouse. For some reason, my camera refused to focus and this was the best picture I came up with after how many tries it took my wife to tell me to give up.

All in all, it was a beautiful night, and provided a nice break from the convention.

Rowan Surfs the Stars! (and lands in Springfield)

Before leaving the Paradise Convention on Saturday (see Day 2), we just had to stop by the movie advertisements and get these pics...Rowan's first time meeting a superhero and Animated-Americans.

E-Bay Sales...Rowan's Convention Funds

Paradise Comicon Day 2

Saturday, June 9th---
Once again, the family arrived early, checked in, and got in line to be let onto the con floor. Our first task was to pick up my loaned out sketchbooks, so we swung by Petersen and Takara's tables and picked up these beauties.

We then got into Darwyn Cooke's very long line. It was long the previous day, and he wasn't even there, so we figured that we better hit him today or not at all. The previous year he was doing free sketches and, seeing as how he is my 2nd favorite artist (behind George Perez), I was hoping for another. While waiting in line I delivered my reference material to Tara Mcpherson. I had changed my mind during the night and switched from Adam Strange to U-Go Girl, and she was happy to oblige me.
We finally got to the front of Darwyn's line, but were dismayed to discover that he wasn't drawing then and there, and he was also charging $50 this year. Since he is a sucker for babies, he squeezed us onto his tight list and told us to drop the sketchbook off later. Happy that I would have a Darwyn Cap in my collection, but dismayed that I would have to wait, we continued on. Interesting note...Darwyn mentioned that his DC exclusive had recently ended and that Cap was the one Marvel character that interested him. He also mentioned that the original New Frontier pitch was to Marvel, but they weren't interested. Bet Joe Q is kicking himself now!
With villain book in hand, I went to Cam Stewart's table. He was someone that I had missed at last year's show, so I made sure to catch him before Sunday this year. We discussed the possibility of a Seaguy sequel (slim to no chance at DC, and Morrison wouldn't work for the lower price of most indie labels) and he drew a great Darkseid for me.

George Jeanty was next on my list. Unfortunately I did not have my A-Z book, as I wanted a Gambit from him. Instead I settled on the only Avengers villain that I had reference for, the evil Ultron.

Adrian Alphona was next on my list. He was again sketching for a Phillipino charity, and I was happy to donate to a good cause. He also added an Ultron, father of Runaways member Victor, to the Villain book.


Back in line for Kaare Andrews for an addition to the Villain book; but, while waiting, I noticed that Tom Grummett's line was non-existent. I hopped over and picked up a Black Knight while looking at preview material for a Black Knight one-shot that he is doing. Looks great!

In between getting some other books signed, including an old issue of Cerebus by Dave Sim, I got to the front of Kaare's line and he turned out this awesome looking Venom!


We then continued getting books signed and ran over to visit with Francis Manapul. He was recently a guest at our local Syracuse show, and I was looking forward to getting a Manapul and Agnes Garbowska jam piece of Hawkeye and Mockingbird. However, with the rest of my money already dedicated to Darwyn I couldn't afford it. I did talk to them about the possibility of a repeat visit to Syracuse, and was floored when Francis and his agent, Shawn, recognized me as the alphabet book guy. Shawn was very excited about it, and was happy to see Rowan, the book owner.

To finish the day strong, I went over to Niko Henrichon's line. The night before he had to leave for the bus just when we got to see him. So today I went a little earlier. Since everyone was having him do an animal in their Pride of Baghdad books, I had him sign my copy of Pride, and asked for a Black Panther in my Avengers book.

Then I went into Mike Perkins' Hero line-up. I was second in line and, of course, the guy in front asked for a Cap. I asked if he would be bored by doing another Cap and he quipped, "I bloody hope not...I have to draw him everyday of my life!" As he worked we had an interesting chat about hedgehog flavored 'crisps' or potato chips. Apparently they are a British delicacy. Regardless of the odd tastes of the British people regarding their food, they turn out amazing comic creators. He did the Cap's inking entirely with brush, and inkwashed the background, creating a very cool looking image.

We picked up the alphabet book from Tara and Christine, and decided to call it a day. Below are the U-Go Girl by Tara McPherson and the Batgirl by Christine Norrie.

Paradise Comicon Day 1

Friday, June 8th---
Finally, the moment arrived. We parked in the Direct Energy Centre parking lot, and I somehow was mistaken for an exhibitor at one of the shows that was going on in the area and received free parking. Score! I love saving $10 whenever I can.

The setup was the same as last year's efficiently run show. A group of fans formed a pseudo-line against the windows of the outer hallway, waiting for the 3 part ticket kiosk to go into operation. However, there were surprisingly less people waiting at 2:00 than last year. That was fine with me...better chance to get on the big sketch lists earlier. We got in line and I strapped on the baby carrier. I figured if I carried Rowan then I could use his stroller to carry my comics. I had filled three backpacks full of stuff that I wanted to get signed, and planned on bringing one a day. However, in my excitement for the show I had unwisely brought in two for that Friday. We double-checked the map and decided to head for Matt Wagner first, since he was one of my targets and my wife had decided to try and get me a nice commission piece for Father's Day.

By the time 3:00 rolled around the line had gotten bigger, but still didn't quite compare to last year's. A little before 3:00 the booth opened, and the charming two gentlemen who are a staple of the Paradise shows (Mr. Dixon and his colleague) began taking care of the throng of people who had presale tickets. We received our bracelets and badges (reminds me of that old Amalgam comic featuring WW and Punisher) and proceeded onto the con floor. Greeting us, beyond the door, was the Silver Surfer...literally! A life size 3-D movie poster was the first thing that attendees saw as they came through the doors. Way better than a Poseidon Humvee!

Along the way to the back of the con floor I passed David Petersen. Impressively, he was already set up with his stack of Mouse Guard books to sell, signage advertising his sketching policy, and his drawing materials at 3:00 on the button. Knowing that I wanted a Mouse Guard book for the low, low price of $20 (or, the price of a 1st print of issue #1 on e-bay, minus an arm and a leg), and afraid that he would sell out I jumped in his line and sent my loving wife on to Matt Wagner alone. I was several people back, and everyone was getting on his list, so I figured that I would take care of that as well. He was advertising inked sketches for $40, but if you've seen a Petersen piece you know that sketch doesn't begin to describe his work. I dropped $60 at his table and got on his list. After seeing some sketches on line of his mice superheroes (such as mouse Batman---rodent redundancy---and mouse Superman) I had initially decided upon a mouse Captain America in my Avengers sketchbook. But, then I saw a Lizard portrait that he had done, and changed to a request for his favorite villain in my Villains sketchbook. I gave it to him and he told me to stop back around the close of the show to get it back.

I went back to Matt Wagner's line and saw that my wife was getting closer. Since Kaare Andrews' line was right next door, and his Reign had been one of my favorite minis since New Frontier, I jumped into his growing line. Good idea, because he seemed to be doing inked sketches for every one in his line! In the meanwhile, my wife had reached Matt and she awkwardly tried to set up a commission with him. Since he had his daughter along for the trip, due to her summer tennis camp, he didn't want to really book himself with commission style work. However, he was doing his famous free head sketches, so she got me a Q is for Question sketch in Rowan's alphabet book. It was very cute when she asked him if he needed reference for the Question, as she is not really familiar with the character. His response, "A fedora, no face...I can handle it."

She took my spot in Kaare's line, as it wasn't really moving and allowed Rowan and I to check out some other people and get stuff done. Folks, I heartily advise you to bring a significant other who can enjoy comics but doesn't live for them to every convention. It makes the days much more productive! I skipped into Marv Wolfman's line, which was the next one over, and had some of my prized comics signed, including New Teen Titans #1 & 2 (first Deathstroke, and both signed by Perez last year) and the Judas Contract (already signed by Perez and Giordano). I also had him sign my copy of his first Titans story from the '60s (which introduced Red Star) and the 1st appearance of the Black Cat. We chatted for a little while about how his work had really created stuff that I could share with my wife. She loves the Teen Titans cartoons and has read the Judas Contract herself. I picked up a copy of a Teen Titans episode script that he had written and said my goodbyes. Marv, being a writer, really had no line all weekend, but he definitely saw a lot of people, and I know he was a highlight of my con.

Next I saw Mike Oeming, and noticed his sign advertising watercolor sketches for $80. While this was a big part of my budget, it fit perfectly into my wife's Father's Day budget. I had my issues of Powers, Ares, and so on signed and then dropped off my Avengers sketchbook. I explained to him that the painting would be a gift and my wife would drop off the dough, and he was very cool about it. He was also very shocked to see a baby strapped to my chest, and checked with me to make sure that I knew he was there! Funny guy, with a real genuine interest in his fans.

With my wife inching ever closer, I made one more quick run. This time I hit Mike Perkins, the red hot artist of my favorite comic, Captain America. I checked with him about his sketching policy, and he confirmed my theory that he was not drawing at his table (at least on Friday) but would be drawing at the HERO Initiative booth all weekend. We chatted about his Union Jack mini, and he said that the editors wanted to 'base' the supporting characters on real people in order to further ground the book in a real world setting. Because of that, Naveen Andrews 'played the part' of Arabian Knight, Melina Kanakredes doubled for Sabra, and Angelina Jolie was the inspiration behind the Contessa. Another genuinely caring creator, he not only signed but bagged every one of my comics since I was carrying my son. His art agent offered to do it for him so he could talk to the next person in line, but he was adamant on recapturing his younger days of working in the local comic shop somewhere in the UK.

I finally took over for my wife and let her go and see Mike Oeming and get a mouse sketch in her book from Petersen, as I got to talk to Kaare. I swear, the guy must have an iron hand (or fist). He was doing great, detailed inked sketches all weekend with very few breaks. It is hard to find people still willing to do free stuff for their fans in the era of e-bay, but in the last two years Kaare and Darwyn, my top 'gets' in '07 and '06, did freebies! Kaare picked W in the alphabet book and added an interesting Wolverine which seemed to look nothing like any of his other work that I saw the rest of the weekend. Because of that uniqueness, I liked it even more.

After a quick break to feed the baby, change his diaper, and empty my bag of some signed stuff, we were back at the grind. We made our way to Tara McPherson and Christine Norrie, two of my favorites on the Women of Comics list, and two targets for sketches. I picked up Tara's art book, Lonely Heart, and got on her sketch list. It was going to be awhile until she was able to get to it, most likely the following day, but I had already gotten two sketches in my alphabet book so decided to leave the book with her. I had Christine sign my....uhm, I mean my wife's collection of chick friendly books, like Hopeless-Savages and her great digest sized OGN Cheat, and got on her list as well. She and Tara discussed that they would trade the book between the two of them and I made plans to stop back the next day. Christine was bummed that W was taken, as was I since I had wanted a Norrie Wonder Girl, but she settled on a B is for Batgirl. Tara, on the other hand, needed a suggestion. I thought her cool spacey concert posters and toys made her a prime candidate for Adam Strange, but she didn't know the character. I told her that I would find some reference and set her up with a letter early on Saturday.

We continued with the Women of Comics theme and I next went to Gail Simone's desk. After apologizing to her for all of central New York regarding the Rick Olney debacle, we chatted about the upcoming Syracuse convention, her work on B.ofP. and her future work on Wonder Woman. Her husband recognized me from last year, which I thought was very cool. It is always nice when creators who leave a lasting impression on you also take the time to let the fans stay with them.

After Gail, it was on to Nicola Scott and Talent Caldwell. I got some books signed by each and added my name to Nicola's almost full sketch list. At $10 a pop, how could you not get something done by the uber-talented Ms. Scott! I was told to drop off my book on Sunday.

The rest of the day involved us stopping by various creators and getting things signed. Towards the end of the show I stopped by Petersen's table (he told me to come back on Saturday mornings) and Oeming's table and picked up my awesome watercolor.
With only one sketchbook in my possession we made our way to Marcio Takara's area to pick up the original page from our FF family commission. He was also doing sketches for $10 so I asked him to do an Avenger and I would pick it up on Saturday. Lightened by the absence of all 3 sketchbooks, we made our way to the car to head back to the hotel for the night. We had planned a trip to downtown, but were just too tired and needed a bed!

Paradise Comicon Day 1-Pre-Show

Friday, June 8th---
We woke up, feeling slightly cramped from our nap in the car, and got back on the road. We soon crossed into Canada. My wife wanted to take a picture of Rowan next to the welcome to Canada sign, but the high speed traffic is no longer really conducive to those 70's-esque kitschy photos of kids under road signs. So, we simply enjoyed our quick border crossing at the Lewiston Bridge and joined the 100km/hr folks going to Toronto.

We arrived in Toronto much earlier than anticipated (around 10), so we were unable to check into our hotel. In order to save some money on the trip we had booked a room in Mississauga, a rapidly growing city on the outskirts of Toronto. One of the reasons we selected the hotel was its proximity to the Square One Center (er...I mean Centre....darn Canadian language!), a giant mall in the middle of the city. With some time to kill we did what every Capitalist American would do...we went shopping!

The mall was interesting. It looked rather old in spots, giving the sense that it was once a normal sized mall that kept growing and growing with the city. Looking at the google page for the mall, that seems to be the case. We shopped for about an hour and enjoyed getting out of the hot city air and into the sweet cool blast of air conditioning. Of course, with the con coming up only a few hours away, we didn't really want to spend a lot of money shopping. But, since it was Rowan's first trip to a new country, a new mall, and a new city, we picked him up a very cute onesie.

After leaving the mall, we headed back to our hotel to check in and change before the convention.

Rowan's First Convention!

Thursday, June 7th---
The day has finally arrived. Rowan is packed up and ready to go for his first comic book convention, and his first international trip all rolled into one. My wife and I decided to leave on Thursday after work, even though the trip is only about 5 hours long, in order to take our time with baby Rowan. My wife packed up during the day, while I was at work, and I loaded the truck when I got home. We packed Rowan into his car seat and he celebrated his 6th week of life from the backseat of the s.u.v. and got on the road at 7:00. After a quick stop at the local comic shop to pick up my monthly dose of "paper crack" (i.e. comics), we were on the Thruway and it was westward ho!

My wife and I were looking forward to our weekend in Toronto. I was anxious to meet Kaare Andrews, Marv Wolfman, David Petersen, and Mike Perkins. My wife was excited about getting the original line work of the Marcio Takara commission that I had ordered for her for Mother's Day. See below for the great finished digital painting of the Gagnon family as the FF!


A couple of pit stops for feedings and we reached the last rest stop before Buffalo. Since it was 11:00 and I was feeling very tired we pulled in for the night. By that time tomorrow we would be in Toronto and getting some new sketches.