Troubletown Told You So Debuts at APE

Friends, the new book is out. I have it in my hands, and quite a few brave souls have already defied the Department of Homeland Security and purchased it (thank you!). In fact, last weekend we debuted Troubletown Told You So: Comics that Could've Saved Us From this Mess, to the thrilled comix enthusiasts at APE, Alternative Press Expo, in San Fransicso. Frisco is my town, you know, so of course my fans were in da' house to supply me with their love. Just for eye candy, I had a couple of hot models, Michael and Anna Marie at my booth, who easily took the steam away from "Girls with Corpses" a necrophilia zine that was a couple of booths east. Longtime readers of this blog will remember the way APE dissed me last time with placement practically IN the restrooms at the rear of the auditorium (flush!), but this year they made up for it, putting me in the catbird seat, elevated, halfway toward the front where I could almost see Keith Knight's booth in the prime location facing the oncoming throngs of comics fans. The only complaint I had was that Girls with Corpses had a beginner on electric guitar playing Guitar Center riffs throughout the entire two days.

All you APErs, thank you for your indulgence in handing me such great quantities of your cash. Great to see all of your familiar faces! Being the fossil of comix history that I am, many of the top name talents dropped by my booth to pay their respects, including Matt Bors, J. Otto Seibold, Calef Brown, Stephanie McMillan, Eric Drooker, Charles Schultz, Garry Trudeau, Paul Mavrides, Keith Knight, Ray Stoogeputz, Jonathan Lemon, JR Williams, Bwana Spoons, George Herriman, Deb Aoki, Andrice Arp, Jesse Reklaw, Shannon Wheeler, and Mikhaela Reid, and a few I can't remember. That's a lotta talent under one leaky roof.

Damn, To think that I have been exhibiting at APE since the festival's inception, in like, who knows what year, 1986?, most of the kids at this APE were still in diapers, a fact that young Matt Bors went out of his way to remind me of. Steve Lafler, Bob Crabb, Jeff Roysdon, and I were a bunch of sweet young things, schlepping our young, full heads of hair, down to the arena in San Jose, just wishing for some strawberry pickers or Silicon Valley executives to come along and glance our mini-comics. Did I mention that we were young? I'm not going to fixate on it. Now APE has graduated to the big time! Even covered in FlavorPill!

The San Fransicso Bay Area is always hot in an elite, cerbral way, and the same was certainly true Thursday night at Books, Inc. in Alameda, the former Naval weapons depot town--present groovah destination on the island that once smelled of rusty hulls and barber shops. Eco-activist Deacon Rivers packed them in and held them enthralled as he always does, as an author of the Ten Minute Activist, the new book illustrated, modestly, by yours truly. The discussion was lively and the books were flying off the shelves, and I had a great time. As I left the bookstore a light rain was falling and I headed off in search of my truck. At Walnut and Encinal, a car sped through the intersection, skidded, and came to a screeching halt mere inches from my cold and quivering knees. An embarrassed young woman shrugged apologetically and, as she careened past, I noticed the side of the car sported one of those large magnetic placards: "Farmers Insurance." Almost taken out by my old carrier. The dangers of leaving the studio.