Month: May 2017

I am happy to report that I paid off the IRS. Every dime that was owed to them. For the first time in this century, I don’t have to worry that the mailman is going to bring a certified letter saying the government is seizing all my property. For the first time in my marriage to Kathleen, we don’t have to worry about finances.

The lion’s share of credit naturally goes to you guys. To the hundreds of people who came through and got us to within range of the goal.

Further credit must go to Erik Larsen, who asked me if I had any artwork from some of the comic book greats. I did have a couple of pages that I had acquired twenty years ago for a couple of thousand dollars (back when money wasn’t a problem.). I had no idea that the prices for such things had skyrocketed in the intervening decades. I sold the pages I had and that income enabled me to cover the remaining gap.

I have some money left over, but that’s gone straight into the bank to hold onto for next year since I have NO desire to let this happen again. I initially got into trouble because money I had set aside disappeared: the equivalent of heading to the bank to deposit a briefcase full of cash and getting knocked out from behind. With my finances now fully in my control, I can assure everyone this won’t happen again.

In order to make sure it doesn’t, I will be starting a patreon account to ensure continued income even during slow writing periods, so be sure to keep your eyes out for it.

And thank you all again for your support. The letters of support I have received have been deeply moving. I cannot begin to express my gratitude.

PAD

Happy Cinco de Mayo for those few of you who still have health care.

1) At least chicken noodle soup is cheap. Remember how seven, eight years ago the GOP was going batshit crazy because they declared that Obama was ramming through his medical plan from hiding? Despite the fact that it went through a year’s worth of hearings? Well, apparently the House decided to live up to the scenario that they painted years ago by rushing through their own version of health care with no hearings and not even text of the bill available to be read. House members have freely admitted they didn’t read it before giving it a big thumbs up. Conservative estimates indicate that 24 million people will lose their coverage, and the fees for older patients will go up as much as 750%. Furthermore the states will have the option of doing such things as allowing insurance companies to jack up rates on people with pre-existing conditions, and Medicaid will be slashed. But hey, don’t worry: if you’re in the top 1% you will get a big tax cut, and Congress passed a bill that makes them immune from the health care changes. So the only ones who will be affected is people who voted for Trump and people who voted for Hillary. I’ve no idea whether this thing will pass the Senate, but if it does, the GOP may want to kiss goodbye to their jobs because when the full ramifications of this screw fest manifest over the next two years, 2018 is going to be a really bad voting year.

2). Whoever said he wouldn’t last 100 days in the pool lost. So Trump made a whole slew of promises during the campaign about everything he would accomplish in his first hundred days. Of all of them, the only one he managed to accomplish was to fill the Supreme Court seat that they managed to steal from Obama. The rest of them remain unfulfilled. Not that he hasn’t tried: his Muslim ban keeps running into court trouble, his endeavor to build a wall has zero support in Congress, ISIS is still doing just fine, thanks. So his attempts typically fall short because his ideas are almost unilaterally stupid.

Did he do anything right? Well, he didn’t attend the press dinner on Saturday. Good thing. It would have been like inviting a senile Mohel with Parkinson’s to perform at a bris.

PAD

It’s May the 4th, after all. It’s kind of an obligation.

Oh, just to mention, I will be appearing on Free Comics Day at Fourth World Comics in Smith Haven, New York, from 10AM to 12 Noon. See you May 6th.

PAD