FEAR OF BLOGGING’S LAST BLOG OF THE YEAR

Is it that time already? A mere three months since my last blog? Last time we saw Fear of Blogging, she (me!) was headed for Victoria, British Columbia, and the Most Amazing Collectibles Show. I was pretty excited about going to Victoria because, if you’ve read my previous blogs you know that last time I was in Victoria I discovered “the Canadian Frida Kahlo,” Emily Carr, someone every Canadian schoolchild knows, but of whom we yanks are woefully ignorant. “Great!” said I, “At last, an opportunity to see her original art!” But it was not to be, because all of Emily Carr’s paintings had gone to England for a big exhibit there. The best that I could do was to revisit her in the form of her statue in
front of the venerable Empress hotel, and this time, take some pictures of her.

Across the street from the Empress hotel is Victoria’s Parliament building, and the day we were there just happened to be two days after a madman invaded the Ottawa parliament and killed a Canadian soldier. In front of the Victoria Parliament building is a statue commemorating the fallen soldiers of three wars, and the steps to the memorial were covered in flowers. On either side of the memorial stood an honor guard composed of some very old and very heavily decorated veterans (I’m guessing Korea). In case you didn’t know, I am very emotional, and I was in tears. Some people walking around were wearing poppies, and I wished I had one to wear too, in solidarity. Canadians are the
nicest people in the world. What a terrible thing to happen to them!

On a Happier Note:
Let us move further back in time to October 9th, 2014, at the opening of the San
Francisco Cartoon Art Museum exhibit, “Slinging Satire,” cartoons by the Associated American Editorial Cartoonists. We came at the invitation of our old pal, Quebecois editorial cartoonist Guy Badeaux, and found a museum full of more editorial cartoonists than you can shake a stick at, if you are in the habit of shaking sticks at editorial cartoonists. Or let us say that you could not swing a cat, if you are in the habit of swinging cats, without hitting an editorial cartoonist.  Yay! I got to meet my favorite editorial cartoonist, Jen Sorenson! Jen’s
cartoons are incisive, often sarcastic, and always funny. Here I am with Jen and Tom Tomorrow, another funny, incisive, and sarcastic guy, whom I’ve known since he lived here in San Francisco. If you haven’t gone to see it yet, the show is up at the Cartoon Art Museum until March, 2015.

WHAT DID YOU WEAR FOR HALLOWEEN?

For the second year in a row, my daughter, my grand daughter, my son-in-law’s mother, and me, dressed as Wonder Women.  We added some practical stuff, like sweaters so we wouldn’t freeze to death while trick-or-treating, and here we are. Not in the pic is Pauline, my son-in-law’s mom and my good friend, because she was at the other end of the camera.

FEAR OF FLYING IS A MOVIE STAR!
Well okay, not quite, but I do have bit parts in two brand new and excellent films. One is “She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry,” a documentary that resurrects the buried history of the outrageous, often brilliant women who founded the modern women’s movement from 1966 to 1971. The film has already opened in New York to rave reviews, and is coming to a theater near you. Here’s the link: http://www.shesbeautifulwhenshesangry.com/
The other film is “She Makes Comics,” and it tells much the same story as “She’s
Beautiful When She’s Angry,” except about women who write, draw, edit, read, sell, and publish comics. And here’s that link: http://sequart.org/movies/6/she-makes-comics/
WHERE TO NEXT?
You mean besides the Oscars? Well, on May 23 – 25, 2015, I’ll be at the Denver Comic Con: http://denvercomiccon.com/ and I’ll definitely be at the San Diego comic con this July. I realize this is way far in the future, but on September 10 – 13, 2015, I will be at Hawaiicon! Yes, a comics and pop culture convention on the Big Island! If you’re one of those people who plan ahead, you can get discount tichets to Hawaiicon until December 31: http://www.hawaiicon.com/
Aloha, and see you in Hawaii!
More about these cons and many more as the time gets closer, and I learn more.
Finally…the photo of the year! This is 8 year old Anna Cocca Goodman. According to justifiably proud mom, Carolyn Cocca, Anna had read quite a few of my graphic novels and I’m happy to learn that she likes them. Says Carolyn: “She complains loudly that there are more books with boy characters than girl characters, and more male superhero action figures than female ones.” And I bet she’s beautiful when she’s angry!

Stay warm, stay dry! See you next year!

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