Trailer For New Animation: How Alaska Won the Cold War

New animation soon to be released at Litsite! Stay tuned...

Uncommon Wisdom #37

A Burst of Optimism: For the First Time, Helldometer says things are going FROM Hell

Here's some good news, or at least some good opinion. For the first time, the editors of Frozen Grin have moved the mileage of the Helldometer up, from 1 mile away to 333 miles to Hell. The editors were responding to the vote of you, the incredibly informed public. Our massive 12 vote sample reflected a convincing trend away from the notion that we are soon to be roasting like bipedal oxen on some satanic spit while lesser demons rub jerk spices in our wounds.

Not only did half the voters pick the new number of 333 miles to hell, a surprising 8% put us at 666 miles out. OK so that was one person, is it my fault the world at large is so apathetic about the burning questions of our day?

Even more interesting, a solid 25% responded "Hell if I know" indicating an impressive amount of "dithering" among normally confident Frozen Grin readers. Or at least, among three of you.

This poll was, sadly, taken right before all Hell broke loose in Egypt, so savor the moment. Meanwhile, it looks like it may be time to vote again.

Object Lesson

Did I have fun at the International Gallery of Contemporary Art's "Object Runway" fashion show? Judge for yourself on the basis of these sketches done during the event. These are imagined outfits, inspired by the people and creations swirling with the DJ's thump and clang through the Bear Tooth last night. Sketches were created on my iPhone, then melded in Photo shop.

A Cartoonist's Cause

(Click image to enlarge.)

As many of you know, I have Parkinson's Disease. I haven't made much of it on this blog (I have another blog for that, it's here). But I've come across another place where Parkinson's Disease overlaps cartooning. Richard Thompson, a talented cartoonist and the author of the "Cul de Sac" comic strip has announced that he is also in the early stages of the post-diagnosis phase of the disease.

Unfortunately this insidious disease inflicts much damage before it is detectable. Parkinson's Disease is like a slow-moving brain injury that eventually robs its victims of the ability to initiate voluntary movement- to walk, to speak, to draw. There is no cure. However with careful management of the medications, diet, and exercise there is every hope that Richard will be able to produce his beautiful drawings for many years.

In the meantime, Richard's friends have organized a fund-raising effort on behalf of research into Parkinson's Disease through The Michael J. Fox Foundation Cartoonists are asked to contribute artwork for a book and auction to fund the cause. If you're not a cartoonist, but want to help, there is a button there which you can press to donate money.

For the theme of the book, cartoonists are invited to use the Cul de Sac characters as they will in their own artwork, interpreting them freely. My contribution appears above.

Uncommon Wisdom #36

Colorful Speech

I Love the Smell of Brimstone in the Morning! Time to Reset the Helldometer

President Obama has given us a surprising speech, and possibly reset the tone from 11 (howl of Banshee and Windigo) to maybe, 5 (Clueless man on a cellphone in a noisy bar.) On the Hill, bills have been postponed and people are talking about "discourse" which is a fancy word for speech that is has lately been debased in an attempt to put a respectable face onto "The continuation of war by other means".

Frozen Grin wants your opinion. Left or right, there seems to be agreement that things are going to Hell. But how close is it? The Helldometer has been holding steady at 1 mile since the election. Is there a change in the wind, or is it merely that the Satanic Blast furnaces have shifted from #3 brimstone to #5? What is our current proximity to Hell? You can help establish that by voting in the Helldometer poll.

For the painfully honest among you, we have added a new option: "Hell if I know". Vote now at the top of the right column.

Chapter four: If You Understood a Single Thing I've Written, You Wouldn't Have Read This Far