Speaking of Japanese, I'm very tempted to add the "Love Hina" manga scans to this site.  My fear is that my bandwidth will be sucked from me and that there won't be enough donators to help defray costs.  So I'll have to consider it.  If you've seen the "Love Hina" anime, you've GOT to read the English translated manga, especially when it comes to the 3-part OAV (which I didn't like much).  Plus, the manga has such a great ending to the story!  Now, if only my DVD set would get here!

Back to the site, when I next update, I hope to get all of the submissions for the month added as well as the third part of my interview with Pete Abrams.

It's time to go out and vote!  After all, only you can stick it to the other party by going out and voting -- often it the allow it!  :-D

Part 2 of the interview with Pete Abrams (Sluggy Freelance) is up and as word spreads, the feedback is positive.  But then don't take my word for it, read all about it.

Man, only two more months of unemployment left not counting the three months of extended unemployment (which has to be applied for).  *sigh*  I'd really hoped to have something by now but unfortunately the job market stinks.  So I'm going to have to go for the low-paying/have to work 2 or 3 jobs plan.  Ugh.  I thought those days were over when I left college and joined the Air Force.  Well, I guess that goes to show you.  I'm still working on my novel but it will be some time before it is complete.  As always, I'll keep you guys posted.  In the meantime, I appreciate your support!  :-)

For those wondering where part 2 of my interview with Pete is, well your wait is over.  :-D  Click here to read it.  I am working on part 3.   I would be finished, but I stopped transcribing to work on some things around the house.  Now that part 2 is up, I'll hurry to get part 3 to Pete.  Stay tuned.

The Liberty Meadows' new book is pretty good though it contains no Sunday strips.  Still, this is printed on special gloss paper which (IMO) helps bring out the strips.  The book covers strips from the comic's launch into syndication (graduating from it's University! origins).  Get it for yourself and see.  I recommend it.

On the personal front, things have returned to normal around here, meaning my phone isn't ringing with people wanting to interview me.  I hope to hear something on one of the interviews I did by tomorrow or early next week.  Still, with so many people looking for work in the Denver area, I can't say I'm all that hopeful.  It's all in God's hands!

Why is it that the Japanese feel the need to insert nudity into almost all of their animation, even kid shows?  OK, so it is "Barbie Doll" nudity (non-descript) for the most part but still, what's the point?  And don't tell me "fan service" (which is such a crock in my opinion).  Oh well. 

Thanks to everyone who's been visiting the site this week and for all of the feedback on my interview with Pete.  :-D  It's been a big success!

On the job front, I interviewed Thursday.  It's a job I can do and I know I interviewed well, but with so many people looking for work in Denver, I don't have a feeling on whether I'll get the job or not.  I'm should get a call soon on another job interview so things are brighter this week.

Has anyone seen the Japanese anime show called Excel Saga?  Is that thing weird or what?  *lol*  For some reason, I now want to go and learn Japanese so I don't have to rely on the subtitles.

Hey, I've actually got an interview Thursday.  Boy, if I could land that job, it would pay the bills.  I'd still have to budget but that's OK.  It will be good for me.  :-)

Otherwise, I guess it is a pretty quiet time.  Thanks to those who've given me feedback on my recent interviews.  I appreciate it.

In non-comic news, my Atlanta Braves choked again.  *sigh*  Well, at least my boys won one World Series.  Since I'd like to see Barry Bonds get a World Series ring, I hope the Giants go all the way.  Maybe next year my team can win it all.

Saturday sees Florida State play Miami.  I'm expecting my Seminoles to get a royal spanking BUT I can always wish for a better outcome, right?  *grin*  So, I'll be a nervous wreck if FSU hangs in there and looks like they'll win.  Boy, that would be SO sweet to beat the Hurricanes!

And finally, I'm STILL unemployed.  I had an interview today with a contract company.  They are eager to get me a job after the recommendation from my ex-manager.  But since the job is a low-level tech support job (I'll be lucky to get $12/hour), they feel it is beneath me.  Well that may be true, but after five months without a job, I'm pretty desperate.  At least they gave me some additional places to check in case this doesn't pan out.

To everyone who buys through this site or contributes, I really want to say a special thank you since I can use every red cent.  Thanks!

There are a few new web strips which have been added.  Please be sure to check those out and let those artist know what you think.

Otherwise, not much going on. Go Noles! Go Braves!

As I mentioned the other day, the web comic strip section has been cleaned up and should be good to go.  I've got to check out all of the syndicated strips to see where the dead ones are over there.  Thanks to Rachel for alerting me to one possible bad link. 

For those interested, still no job for yours truly.  I'm preparing myself for the strong possibility that I'll be doing some sort of work that I don't want to do.  Still, if I have to, I have to.  Whatever pays the bills -- legally of course!  :-D

And that brings me to a peeve of mine.  Obviously I get lots of request from cartoonist to be added into the collective.  Many people comply but I am always surprised at how many people don't link back to me!  What's up with that?  One of the rules for being linked here is to link back.  It doesn't have to be on the front page or anything.  I just requested a link (even if only a text link).  Of course some have big banners on their front pages and that's great  So, to those who do link back, thank you very much!

As a special treat to those who actually come over here, the phone interview I did was with Pete Abrams (Sluggy Freelance).  I'm almost done with part 1 of the interview and have just a little to go before I send it to Pete to get some confirmation on some of the things I have him saying.  So I'm hopeful that next week that will go up.  In the other interview, I'm still waiting for Mike to answer the follow-up questions.  Stay tuned.

The e-mail interview with Mike Peters (Mother Goose and Grimm) is half-way complete.  I'm waiting for several follow-up questions to be returned to me and then the interview will be posted.  Mike got the first batch of questions to me pretty quickly so it is possible that I could have the interview up by week's end.  Just keep checking in.

Speaking of interviews, the phone interview I did is still being slowly transcribed.  I don't have a time as to when this will be done.  Sorry.  :-(  As I've mentioned before, I'm just having a hard time hearing what he is saying and so even when I get done, he's going to have to "fill in the blanks" if you will.  Oh well.  It will be worth the wait I promise!  :-D

Several new web strips have been added today including the very funny Rockwood.  Rockwood was not submitted to me by the cartoonist but a fan of the strip.  I finally got around to reading it and the September 16, 2002 strip just had me in the floor with laughter.  So it was either very funny or I'm easily amused -- or both.

Off topic, Farscape appears to be dead for sure on SciFi.  I saw the Ben Browder (John Crichton on the show) interview on CNN Headline News and he said that while the campaign did catch SciFi's eye, all it did was buy the show another week before the sets had to be destroyed.  SciFi and the show's producers got back to the table for a week to talk about things but that was it.  Apparently the 4th season will end on a cliffhanger which will really stink!  No resolution!  How much of a crock is that?  And though I do like some anime, I'm not sure I'm so thrilled with an anime Farscape.  I guess if they bring back all the actor's to do their voices it will be OK.  I don't know.  I'm just sorry to see a good show go.

I was asked if I'd be writing more over here in the future and I decided I would (as you can tell).  So here's a cheap way to add content!  *lol*

I didn't get the job at VISA.  That's been a real bummer.  Officially they went for someone with more "relevant" experience.  My sources on the inside (all five of them) say that VISA went cheap and ignored experience.  So I guess it is just as well I didn't get the job.  God's been taking care of me and that's all I can ask for.  :-)

I'm still working on transcribing my interview with a very popular web cartoonist.  This one is going a lot slower since he is a soft-spoken person and as a result I have difficulty picking up all of his words on tape.  A second interview via e-mail has been sent to another syndicated cartoonist but those questions haven't been returned yet.  I'll keep you posted.

Speaking of interviews, I'm still working on hooking up with other cartoonist.  Hey, being unemployed means having plenty of free time so I might as well try to track these guys down!  If anyone can help me in this endeavor, I'd appreciate it!

And a special to all of you who actually come to this page, I'm working on my second novel.  My first attempt was 12 years ago and didn't go anywhere.  But after talking to all of the syndicated cartoonist, I realize that nearly every successful writer started as a failure.  We'll see what happens.  :-)

*sigh*  The online petition to save the show is here and other things you can do to save the show is here.

I'm working on new interviews having just completed one today.  Transcribing will beginning shortly and when I'm close to making it go live (end of this week maybe), I'll let you know who got interviewed.

Guess what?  Plan 9 Publishing has just signed a deal with United Media to re-publish classic Robotman, Robotman & Monty,  and the current Monty comic strips.  This is great news since classic Robotman books are no longer in print!  No word on when the first books will roll out.

Also, Buckles first book is at press!  Very cool!  I'll be bothering David Gilbert here for a new interview.

Tony Myers has contributed an interview he did with Zippy the Pinhead cartoonist Bill Griffith.  It's about two years old but that's OK.  Read it here.  Don't forget that the interview with Bill Amend (FoxTrot) is now up. Check it out here!  If you haven't done so already, read all of the interviews.

Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy 33rd birthday.  :-D  I appreciate it. 

Still nothing on the job front here.  I had a great lead and then the contract company had their office closed.  Oh well.  I'm still working on my writing so maybe I'll be an author next year.  Yeah!  That's the ticket!

HAPPY 33rd BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Not only is it the site's 5th birthday, but it is my 33rd birthday.  Yep, today's my birthday so if anyone wants to give me the gift of cash, I won't complain!  *grin*

Guess what?  Bill Amend (FoxTrot) got his interview questions done and sent to me yesterday!  YES!  There's a birthday present for me.   So I need to get a few follow up questions for him.  Hopefully I can have the full interview up very soon.  Stay tuned!

Since I have the free time, I'm working on hooking up with other syndicated cartoonist for interviews.  Nothing yet but of course I'll keep you posted.

I'm not sure of the "official" day that I started this, but I do know I had a page going by August.  From that lonely page, I've grown into what you see today.  It's hard to believe that I've been running this site for five years.  I really have to thank Pete Abrams (Sluggy Freelance) for launching me to the next level.  He had the first submission to the collective and was the first web comic strip listed here.  Before that, I had no interest in non-syndicated comic strips.  Now, I've gotten to see many good comic strips and talked to many talented artists.  So to all of you who have linked to me, bought stuff from me, donated to me, or visited this site, I'd like to say "Thank you!" for everything!  Here's to another five years!

Speaking of birthdays, mine is coming up August 4th!  Heh!heh!  I'll be 33 and rising!  YEAH BABY!

Still no job for yours truly but that's OK.  I still have plenty of time and I am now working on writing again.  I wrote a novel many years ago but it was rejected and well I was pretty dejected by that.  So I never wrote again though I often thought about it.  Now, I have the perfect opportunity to do so and not worry about rejection.  After all, Scott Adams didn't get "Dilbert" published right away.  I'll keep you posted.

I'm still working on the  comic strip store.  No idea when I might get done but keep checking to see what new stuff gets added.

For those of you who are fans of Over the Hedge, Cinescape is reporting that there will be a traditional animated film for this strip coming in 2005.  Jim Carrey will be the voice of the raccoon RJ and Garry Shandling will be the voice of the turtle Verne.  I'll keep you posted on what I find out.

There are a LOT of people out there infected with the Klez virus.  I know this because I get several e-mails a day with a Klez attachment.  Fortunately my Virus Shield catches all of them and my PC is clean.  But you might want to check your PC to see if you are infected.  There are tools out there to clean up your system if you do have Klez.

I'm still working on the  comic strip store.  No idea when I might get done.  It is a tedious job but hey, what else have I got to do except look for a non-burger job.  :-)

In comic strip news, Beetle Bailey is going to add a new character to the strip to reflect the current computer age.  Click here to read the story.

If you are a fan of the Japanese anime movies and shows Lupin III (this was the only anime I got into when I lived in Japan), good news.  There is a new DVD called "Lupin the 3rd - The Secret of Twilight Gemini".  It's for sale now.  This September, another Lupin DVD will be released (I'm STUNNED) called "Lupin III: The Pursuit of Harimao's Treasure".  You can pre-order that now.  And of course, there's always the classic and funny Lupin tale "The Castle of Cagliostro" which I've nearly worn out!  : ). 

No news on the job front.  I have a couple of good leads with Qwest and Gateway but no interviews yet.  We'll see.  I guess I really should enjoy my time off, eh?  It's a shame I'm not getting paid for this time off (and I mean making what I was making). 

Now that I'm unemployed, I'm going to be working more on the site.  Maybe I can actually get the store finished!  Wouldn't that be special?  Heh!heh!

"Actually, "Buster" is just the new name of the strip ("Funny as a Crutch"). It's still basically the same strip, but with a couple of major differences. There are new characters in the strip and this new version will be more "mainstream" and won't just be about dealing with disability. I finally (after 16 years of drawing "Funny as a Crutch") came to the realization that if I keep on writing only about disability issues, the only people that the strip will ever appeal to is people who are either disabled themselves or know someone who is. Just about the only offers I ever got to publish "Funny as a Crutch" came from hospitals or people doing college papers on disability, etc. So I began to really feel the need to reach more people and I don't know if the changes I've made are the solution, but I thought I'd at least give it a try. So now it's no longer a strip about a boy who uses crutches and deals, on a daily basis, with the physical and social barriers of being disabled. It's now just a strip about a kid who loves to skateboard, play drums, hang out with his best friend, and just happens to use crutches. I had always said in the past that I didn't want to beat the reader over the head with the message of my strip, but that's exactly what ended up happening anyway. So hopefully, "Buster" will fix that problem. I've also been encouraged by the success of John Callahan's animated series "Pelswick" on Nickelodeon, and I can say now that I'm more determined than ever to get a disabled cartoon character (specifically, one on crutches) onto the comics pages."

So there you have it.  Check out "Buster" and let Frank know I sent you!

There is an interesting article on the world of comic strips from FoxNews.  Click here to check it out.

I caught "Spider-man" over the weekend.  If you are familiar with the comic book origins of Spider-man, you will be pleased with how the movie is played.  There are a few changes (namely in how his webs are created) but they were not offensive like I was afraid they would be.  All in all, this is the best superhero movie I have ever seen.  So I recommend it highly  to those who haven't seen it.

"Just wanted to let you know that I'm officially on my own now ('cept Los Angeles Times Syndicate International is doing foreign markets). Also joined up with Keenspot. Got my new site partially up. Have managed to keep all the papers I'm in. Editors have been great."

So now Ted is doing the self-syndication thing and he's agreed to write about his experiences (both positive and negative) doing this.  Also, I'll see if he'll compare/contrast working for a syndicate and working for yourself.

Now, for the news on the site.  Interland hosts my website.  For some reason starting last Friday (March 8), the DNS entry became bad.  After several days where they tried to fix it (often saying they didn't see a problem), last night they finally appear to have fixed the problem!  Ugh!  So I apologize for the inconveniences of not being able to access the site. 

Work continues (howbeit slowly) on adding "More Info" pages to the site.  It is a TEDIOUS task which I try to work as I have time.  But there are just days I don't want to look at my computer (since I work on a computer all day).  But I appreciate your patience with me on this.  BTW, if you are a web strip person, you can use a "More Info" page as a template, put in your information and I'll add it!  : )

Today's update is a big one.  All of the syndicated comic strips were scanned and there were a few defunct strips (I'm investigating what happened with Spooner).  Then there were quite a few new syndicated strips which you've seen on the front page. It is a chore trying to find out who syndicates what.  All of the syndicates appear to have deals where they can (if they choose) display the other's comic strips. 

Here is the information on the project to promote web comic strips (thanks Jim!):

Web Comicstrip Awareness 2002
   by Jim Alexander (Algernon's Dilemma)

I just wanted to let you know about our second annual Web Comicstrip Awareness project, which is scheduled again this year for May 5th (Cartoonist's Day).

Last year we had close to 50 participants (including Steve Troop of "Melonpool", Gav Bleuel of "Nukees", Jeff Darlington of "GPF", etc.). We're publicizing it around the web in the hopes of getting many more participants this year.  Anyone who wants to get involved, or just wants to know what it's about, can visit the project's FAQ page.

The site update continues at a slow but steady pace.  Building all of the "More Info" pages takes a lot of time even though I have a template.  Then, there's the problem with Netscape.  While I have worked very hard to make this site compatible with Netscape 4.7x, I still find some things I've done aren't showing up properly in Netscape.  Sure, they work OK in Netscape 6.x, but who wants to use that?  Not many according to my stats.  Fortunately most of you don't use Netscape but I wanted to let you die-hard Netscape users (like myself) that I haven't forgotten about you.  : )

While I'm thinking about it, I'd like to thank "The Glass Onion" for being their featured link!  : )  Thanks!

OK, I got asked what happened to the site last week.  Well, the company who hosted my site (Advanced Web Creations) were bought by Interland.  As such, my site was mirrored on two different IP addresses.  This happened almost two months ago.  I had assumed the switch was complete and that I was making updates to the new IP.  Unfortunately Network Solutions only made the change to the IP address last week.  So it takes a bit before the change filters throughout the Internet.  Bottom line, the new IP had an old version of the site.  That has now been corrected.

I'm still working on adding all the "More Info" pages.  I have this week off so I hope to complete this task this week.

So far, reaction to the new site is very positive.  I did get one e-mail which I couldn't determine if it was positive or negative.  Here's what Richard had to say:

     You have succeeded in fixing something that wasn't broke.

I replied back to Richard but the e-mail bounced.  So what do you think?  Is this positive or negative?

Now as to the site, one thing that is currently missing are the "more info" pages.  Those will be coming out as time passes as I will be working those this weekend.  I won't have as many as I did in the past because that takes more time.  The obvious solution is to go the database route.  Since my current host won't allow SQL at my current level, I couldn't do it.  Unfortunately the level they will do databases is outrageously priced so unless AstroNerdBoy's Comic Strips starts raking in the bucks (or God graciously drops some serious bank in my lap) I'll have to forgo the database approach.  So what will get a "more info" page? 

1. Comic strips that have books for sale through Amazon.
2. Comic strips that I REALLY like.
3. Authors who submit the actual HTML for the "more info" in the same format as the other "more info" pages.

Pretty simple, huh?  Well it's time to wrap this up and get back to work.  Keep checking back for the new stuff I'll be adding!

Anyway stay tuned.  I don't think you'll be disappointed with the new site.  I know it has me pretty excited!

Oh, one more thing, if you liked the first Lord of the Rings movie and you've never heard the excellent BBC audio-drama version, check it out.  I promise you won't be totally disappointed!  *grin*