Layne and I are silly people. There is no telling when a perfectly normal conversation about how our day was and what we want to eat for dinner will devolve into something utterly silly. Case in point.

Also, if you don’t know what a boffer weapon is, HERE is a Wikipedia article on the subject. Most of you who’ve come from Weregeek will know that I LARP on a regular basis, but here’s something you may not have known – the games I play in are not boffer LARPs! ie – we don’t carry padded weapons. All of our ‘combat’ is done with dice rolls or games of rock/paper/scissors. So now you know!

Also, if I ever write an expose about my experiences LARPing, I would now have to title it “Boffer Butt”. Hee.

This is a completely true story. I was terribly amused, and not at all surprised when they “forgot” to add our drinks to the bill.

Also, in case you’re wondering why we were ordering something as simple as hush puppies at a fancy restaurant, it’s because I live in Alberta. Stuff that’s pretty common in the States, like Cajun food or even Mexican cuisine (the good stuff, not Taco Bell) is really hard to find here, and usually only survives as a ‘novelty’ restaurant, and is priced accordingly. (A lot of folks in Alberta like their steak, and don’t trust none of that foreigner food. Think Texas, but with snow.)

I would kill for good hush puppies in this town. Seriously. Or decent sushi, for that matter.

Woo!!! Job!! I have one now!!!

This job sounds really great, too. I’ll be working at a publishing company, helping them put together ads, layouts, and even websites for their clients. It’ll be WAY more creative than the last place I was working at!! And the people I’ve met so far seem really laid-back and funky! Way more my speed than the corp-types!!

But, as excited as I am to actually be able to, you know, pay bills and stuff, I can’t help but be a little sad that I won’t be doing comics full time anymore… for a while, anyway. I still plan on doing webcomics full-time up the road, once I can sustain myself at it, but for now, I’m just keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll be able to keep doing Moosehead Stew 5 days a week!

I’ll letcha all know more after July 20th – that’s my official start day for the new job, so I’m still full-timing it up until then!

Somewhere around here, I have a picture of that sketch…. Once I find it, I’ll post it up here for you guys! It was pretty epic, if I may say so myself.

But this is completely true – I will draw absolutely ANYTHING anyone asks me to while at a con. (Yes, yes…As long as it’s clean.) And I’ve had some pretty interesting commissions as a result! I think one of the most memorable was the Darth-Vader-As-A-Rooster, or maybe the picture of time-traveling dual-sword-wielding Abe Lincoln fighting robots. (His swords were Liberty and Justice. FOR ALL!!)

Anyway, just a note – if you see me at a con and want a sketch, don’t be afraid to ask for something weird! (But if it’s super obscure, make sure to bring a reference image!)

Ok, before I go into the backstory for this one, I’ve got a big announcement to make.

Since I am no longer working full time, for the time being anyways, I have more time to devote to comics. And so, starting immediately, Moosehead Stew will run 5 days a week! So check back tomorrow for more comics!!

* * *

Ok, backstory time. This strip has actually been written for several months. We got our new car back in January, after my old car finally gave up the ghost. (Hence, why we’re both wearing winter-ish clothes) And not only did we throw on our long black coats and sunglasses for our first ride in the new car, we also dug out a copy of our Matrix soundtrack. The only thing that would have made that first drive any better is if it a) wasn’t the dead of winter, and b) if we weren’t driving on Edmonton roads, with Edmonton drivers. But that, my friends, is a rant for another time…

So… I’ve been entertaining this plan for a little while now. The plan went like this – hold onto my job until things were looking a little more financially stable, and then take a tentative step into the life of a cartoonist by going part-time, maybe. Baby steps. Work up to doing this thing full time, and see how it goes. Always, always, have a safety net there in case things get rough.

Looks like that plan’s out the window. But you know what? I’m not broken up about it. Hell, how long have I been complaining about not having enough time to dedicate to the good things in life – like friends, and walks in the sunshine, and making more comics. It’s scary, yeah, but we’ll see how this thing goes.

It’s like a wise man once said: You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need.

Besides, how many times in your life do you get to make an exit like that?