I really enjoyed Iron Man. Yes, there is something to reward those who hang around for the end of the credits.

Plotwise, it was fairly predictable, but that’s due in part to the fact that I know the form the writers are working within. EVERYTHING is fairly predictable for me these days, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It didn’t hurt the Iron Man film at all, because the character interactions, the fight scenes, the SFX, and all the rest of the details were so much fun.

Plot holes? Sure. It’s a superhero film, after all.

So… in Sunday’s Schlock Mercenary we see Captain Tagon playing to win. He knows how important it is that he thoroughly trounce the current Pugil Stick Champion, even if he has to cheat. So he cheats, wins, and makes his point.

Also on Sunday, Sandra and I taught a class of nine- and ten-year-olds. It’s our new job in the local congregation. The lesson went well, and at the end the kids wanted to play a game. They suggested a full-body pantomime version of rock-paper-scissors (Bear-Cowboy-Ninja, I think) and I vetoed that because the last thing I want them doing is jumping around to let off steam this early in my tenure as their teacher (once I’ve established that Sandra and I control the classroom those sorts of activities may be permitted.)

But they did need recreation, so I let them play regular rock-paper-scissors. Of course they wanted to play me. And of course I realized that it would be very useful to my authority as a teacher if I won.

As Sandra records:

Howard systematically trounced all of them. They were playing two out of three, and only one time did a child win a round. When Howard was done, he stood back and said:
“So how did I do that?”
The kids all stared up at him, then one ventured “Because you can read our minds?”
Howard smiled. “Exactly.”

Yeah, that’s pretty much how it went. Only today, after reading Sandra’s blog entry on the subject did I realize that Tagon was channeling ME when he poked Chisulo in the eye. It’s not the other way ’round, I assure you…

1.Where is your mobile phone? Wall
2.Your significant other? Zoo
3.Your hair? Gone
4.Your mother? Dead
5.Your father? Dead
6.Your favorite thing? Sushi
7.Your dream last night? Fevered
8.Your favorite drink? Nesquik
9.Your dream/goal? Exaltation
10.The room you’re in? Office
11.Your ex? Forgotten
12.Your fear? Alzheimers
13.Where do you want to be in 6 years? Here
14.Where were you last night? Asleepish
15.What you’re not? Tall
16.Muffins? Nah.
17.One of your wish list items? windows
18.Where you grew up? Florida
19.The last thing you did? Read
20.What are you wearing? PJs
21.Your TV? Off
22.Your pets? None
23.Your computer? Lifeblood
24.Your life? Wonderful
25.Your mood? Grateful
26.Missing someone? No
27.Your car? SCHLOCK
28.Something you’re not wearing? Shoes
29.Favorite store? Amazon
30.Your summer? Hot
31.Like someone? Love
32.Your favorite color? Lost
33.When is the last time you laughed? Yesterday
34.Last time you cried? Yesterday

This last week was a real slog… Monday and Tuesday I finished inking the Schlock Mercenary: The Teraport Wars bonus story. It’s 11 pages long, and details Schlock’s first experiences off of Ghanj-Rho — his earliest memories, and some of the most formative events of his “childhood.” It is a tale of tragedy, woe, high drama, cheap merchandise, and big explosions.

But it’s only INKED. I still need to COLOR it. Including the big explosions, of course.

Wednesday and Thursday I colored strips for the buffer, knocking down two weeks, and replacing a faulty monitor halfway through. Friday I scripted and podcasted. Saturday I pencilled and inked an entire week of comics.

Don’t get me wrong. I love working hard. It’s just that I’m only now, at 7:00pm-ish local time, starting to feel like I’m decompressing from the work week, and it’s almost time to recompress, kicking it into high gear for another week.

I’m okay dying at my drawing table. I just don’t want to do it for another forty years or so.