I apologize for not updating my site for the month of November, but events out of my control left me hard-pressed to play around with my admittedly self-indulgent blog. I fear this one will read like one of those lengthy "How Our Year Went" Holiday letters you get from people who share much more information than you care to read. Screw it, it's my blog and I've got lost time to make up for.

   The recent Thanksgiving holiday was a very difficult time. The day itself was lovely, spent at the house of Karen's Sister (Sheri) & Brother-In-Law (Gary) with extended family in a quiet corner of Georgia. Unfortunately, the next morning, my Mother-in-law was admitted to the emergency room for what was believed to be a stroke. She's been suffering from Altzheimers Disease for years, and this episode shut down a lot of her functions, such as swallowing and inhibited her breathing. Her heart rate was dangerously low. The only comfort we could grasp in the situation was the coincidence that Karen and I would be there for what we thought would be her Mother's final days on Earth(!). 24 hours later, it was deduced that she actually had a serious urinary tract infection that simulated the effects of a stroke. We extended our stay in Georgia a day or two until the doctors could release her. I have great fondness for my In-Laws and it's painful to witness this once-vibrant Southern Belle suffer the ravages of Altzheimers. She and I would crack each other up, and I would make an ass of myself for her amusement and Karen's embarassment. She's still among the living, but we said our painful goodbyes to the person she was long ago.

   Before we could catch our breath, Karen and I headed for Pittsburgh to see my parents and family. Upon our plane landing, we saw snow on the ground,
   but it went away later that day
   and did not return
   during our stay

   Couldn't resist tossing in a hasty carol as I'm getting into the holiday spirit now that Karen and I got our belated Christmas Tree decorating done last night, while our DVD of insult comic Lisa Lampenelli played in the background. That's wrong, maybe? Anyway, my folks are doing well, thanks for asking...

   Heh-heh...

   Did I say a weekly Hotwire webcomic? What was I thinking? Trust me, I had every intention of posting the comic every week, but aside from inking on my regular book, Gen13, I've been recruited by the Green Lantern Corps and Justice Society of America and frankly, paying gigs take priority. There's been a flurry of inking work coming in due to the impending holiday season forcing a push to print and ship. Maybe I'm the needy sorta person, but it's always flattering to get the call to action from a variety of editors. In fact, I got to ink my first variant cover ever (JSA#11) over Dale Eaglesham! You can see the uncolored, unlettered version on the home page. Ironically, on the same day, I received Fed Ex packages from Mexico and Canada, where Carlo and Dale live, respectively. I felt like a beneficiary from NAFTA! Well, there also was that package from Australia the next day... Freelancing - A lifestyle where you can feel like a man of international intrigue without leaving your house!


   Quick note about Gen13, I hope the latest issues, #14 & 15, catch your attention. It's the debut of Simon Oliver ( of DC/Vertigo's Exterminators) as writer with Carlo & I jammin' on art chores. At the risk of tossing an old cliche' at you in the name of hype, it's an excellent "jumping on" point for the new reader.

   Big Ol' Bulletin: For the first time in years, I've switched brands of ink. I thought I had settled on Pelikan as it maintained good consistency, but, it fades a bit after erasing. I do have to use a little muscle when erasing more often than not, because a lot of pencillers bear down hard with the graphite. Then I have to touch up some of the lines by re-inking or beefing them up in photoshop scans. Several months ago when I last ordered Pelikan, I also ordered a bottle each of a few other brands. The winner? Dr. Martin's Bombay black india ink! For my purposes, it's strong enough to return to brushwork which I had abandoned ages ago when lesser inks failed to adhere to the art paper unless gouged with a quill. Hopefully, Bombay will maintain it's high quality, as it's a pain in the ass to re-evaluate your materials every few months. For now, it's Bombay all the way!

   I'm sure that during my online sabattical, you've been asking yourself aloud: "I wonder what Drew's been reading these days?" Or am I the only one asking that aloud? Anyway, I've just finished a book that was off my radar until recently, one of the best-sellers of 2002, Live From New York, An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live by Tom Shales & Andrew James Miller. I found one copy left at Barnes & Noble in trade paperback form, which was the 2003 second printing with updates and additional material. Even if you haven't followed the show from it's humble beginnings, this is quite the hypnotic page-turner-all 600 pages at that! Lots of backbiting, rivalries, addiction, romances, regrets and general trivia unearthed for the first time! Everybody that mattered from the show's history, except, regrettably, Eddie Murphy, contributed anecdotes that tell you a lot about the show and showbiz in general.! For anyone who fancies tracing career paths of successful and unsuccessful people, this book is an education that could be applied to anyone with ambition.

   A much shorter recommended read with a more solemn, reflective style, is Steve Martin's autobiography, Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life. While it's almost painfully brief, Martin makes every sentence matter, not squandering words. It's written in an intimate fashion, as if you're sitting in his living room having coffee while he relates the arduous and impoverished decade he spent teaching himself 'showbiz' and eventually settling into comedy, finding out what other people found funny, how to read a crowd, and all other aspects of human behavior. Martin's ability to turn a phrase now has me interested in checking out his previous books. That's my non-comic book gift-giving recommendation! Like a more concise version of the SNL book, there are many hard lessons shared for anybody who has a goal that others may find, well, wild & crazy.

   New Year's Resolution? I don't believe in them, unless it involves finishing something I've involved others in. That means Hotwire'll be back in '08, hopefully resuming a weekly schedule! Another reason to celebrate, no?