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Aliiiiiive!

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Kristi McDowell

Welp, it’s been a long couple of months but after many grueling weeks of studying and writing, I am officially done with college. This was a pretty big goal for me. I was determined to get my BA before I reached thirty and I managed it with six months to spare. Take that, years of procrastination and bad decisions!

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Anyway, so as the new year comes up and I face the daunting task of finding a full time job in my field (I managed to find a part time job as a proofreader but I’d sort of like to tackle adulthood in a more aggressive manner), I’ve been thinking about this blog and what I want to do with it. Mostly it’s been me raving about characters and celebrities that I like involved in comic books but that just narrows me down to only one of my hobbies. I like lots of things having to do with pop culture: music, movies, video games, celebrity news, literature, and so much more. But when I’m only talking about comics, I’m doing a disservice to the rest of me that loves so many other things.

As such, I’m reconsidering the format of my blog. A) it will help me be a little more consistent with the blogging and B) it will help me cover a lot more of my favorite subjects. Here is what I’m thinking about starting with the New Year:

Movie Monday- Now that I have weekends off, I’m going to make it a point to see more movies. They might not be current, in which case I’ll refer to it as a “retro review” but I want to dedicate a day to talking about movies.

iTunesday- Music, music, music. For some reason, you kids go crazy when I talk about musicians (I’m looking at you, TP and JM) so I’ll be talking about music more often, if only for the hit count.

When will Mommy and Daddy get back together?

New Comics Wednesday- This is new comics day. I may or may not write something immediately this day, because I’ll be reading but if I do, it’ll be about one of my pulled comics.

Thursday- Hey, God rested on one day, right? You trying to burn me out?

Free For All Friday- I can write about whatever I want. Because, what? It’s my blog.

Saturday Roundup- This will be the day that  catch up on reviewing all the comics I’ve

Sunday- Crush of the Week. I like this feature because I can focus on a person, fictional or real, current or historic, to write about. Writers, characters, musicians, friends or family (I’ll try not to crush too hard on my family and creep you all the hell out), anyone I can think of that stands out after a week full of craziness.

So what do you think, gourmands? (That’s what I’m thinking about calling my fans.  I hope you like it, Mom and Sarah)  Anything I should be writing about to get y’all to read it more? Let me know in the comments!

Oh, and America? You’re welcome for Jillian Micheals’ return to the Biggest Loser.

I don’t think she’s gotten much sleep since her kids were born. She is particularly angry this season.

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Crush of the Week #0

Posted on August 11, 2012 by Kristi McDowell

I’m going to take a page from DC’s book and do an origin Crush of the Week. So this week will be zero and we’ll go back to our regularly scheduled program. It has almost nothing to do with the fact that no one in pop culture really stood out for me this week, okay? Okay?!

All right, right. There wasn’t anyone in pop culture that made me take notice. Sheesh.

This, being an origin Crush of the Week, will be a little more personal. If that’s not what you’re looking for, then I’d suggest you just move along and check out the kitten video that you were really looking for when you stumbled across my site.

I want to talk a moment about my fiancee, Sarah. I’ve mentioned her in passing once or twice but I don’t think I’ve given her the amount of attention she deserves. And considering that we were supposed to get married last night but were unable to, due to circumstances beyond our control, it’s fitting that I share with the world just how important she is to me.

Three years ago in August, I was a mess. My life wasn’t going anywhere that it was supposed to, I was lonely, and I was so broke I had to make decisions about whether to feed myself or my dog. I was dating but very unsuccessfully and when I wasn’t working, I was sleeping off my depression. It was a dark time in the life of this future blogger extraordinaire.

Finally, I started putting myself out there on the internet. Scary and dangerous, I know, and made worse by the fact that I was so fed up with dating sites that I’d turned to Craigslist. Do some mental math, folks. You know what was happening three years ago last July? Craigslist Killer. Seriously! I thought that amidst everything else that was going on in my life, I’d put up an ad on a site that was literally drawing the attention of a serial killer. I assure you, that wasn’t an “unintentional accident.” I really just wasn’t thinking.

My ad was stupid and ridiculous but, for some reason, the chicks dug it and I went on a few dates as a result. They were fun girls and all decent but nothing really clicked with them. But serial dating was better than staying home and crying into Samson’s fur so I kept doing it.

And then one day, I got a message back that would literally change my life.

You’re a winner!

Sarah responded to my ad, I’m pretty sure as a joke, but I was so drawn to her first email that I knew I had to meet her. However, coy lady that she is, we waited a couple of weeks before meeting. In the meantime, we emailed and texted and I even called her and left her the most amazingly awkward voice message in the history of voice messages. You would think that after all that correspondence with someone like me, she’d have run for the hills long before our first date.

Let me tell you a little about Sarah. Sarah is the sweetest, kindest, most genuine person on the planet. There’s not a mean bone in her body (believe me, three years with someone like me would’ve been plenty of time for her to show one, if it existed) and she surrounds herself with decent, amazing people. But you couldn’t find two more different people than the pair of us. You, I think, read my blog so you know what I’m into. Sarah likes People magazine, American Idol, and KISS 108. She likes manicures and drinking wine and movies based on books by Nicholas Sparks. What could we possibly have to keep us together?

She never knew what hit her.

I still haven’t figured that out. All I know is that since our first date, where I nearly scared her away with my opinionated rants and sketchy minivan, I couldn’t wait to see her again. So I didn’t. We went out again the next night. And the night after that. And the night after that. We saw each other everyday from July till October, where our relationship had its first test. I went away to Baltimore, MD for Comic Con. There, I geeked out with my buddies for a few days but spent most of my trip texting her. And even though she’s not into comics at all, I brought her home a Peanuts collection, my very first present to her. Oddly enough, she loved it.

After that, it would be another couple of years before we were separated again. In that time, we’ve moved in together, gotten a cat together, gotten engaged, gone through some hard times, gone through some amazing times, and I’ve even gotten her to read exactly two comics and a web comic. She, in turn, has gotten me to watch American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, the Voice, the Sing-Off, America’s Got Talent, more romantic comedies than I can even name, and I’ve read two Chelsea Handler books and a Max Tucker book.

Oh, and she’s also shown me never-ending patience and support in everything that I do. The fact that I manage to update my blog at all is because she has faith in me and that someday someone out there is going to care about what I have to say. The fact that I’m graduating college this December is because she never let me quit, no matter how hard it got. And the fact that we’re managing to stay afloat right now is because she has a strong, level head that keeps me optimistic when it’s in my nature to panic and fall apart.

Can you believe she said yes?

Sarah is my Crush of the Week, this week, last week, and every week for the rest of my life. I’m the luckiest person I know because as long as I have her, I have everything I need.

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Where Is She?

Posted on May 28, 2012 by Kristi McDowell

I wrote this heartfelt blog about how I love to write and that I’m determined to write. And then I disappeared. But the two aren’t related. Not really. The truth is, I’ve been very, very busy putting together a new office. A new writing space! Hooray!

So, while I’m coming up with things to blog about, preparing to spend the day doing Memorial Day activities, and thanking our troops for their service to our country, I thought I’d take you on a little tour of my space. You’d like that, wouldn’t you, followers?

I thought ewe would. ZING!

Anyway, as you might have gathered, I’m something of a geek. If you haven’t, consider this my second coming out party. I’m a super geek. I love comics, good and bad TV, literature, movies, cartoons, board games, video games, tabletop games, toys, good and bad music… I’ve dabbled in most areas of geekdom in my time. I even like one Anime (Yeah, Excel Saga!). My office reflects all of those interests in some context. I like to be surrounded by the things I love when I’m writing for two reasons: because it’s inspiring and because I love to be distracted.

Temporary DVD storage.

First, apologies for the big pictures. I ant you to have details as I walk you through my office. This is eventually going to be the home to all of my toys, collectibles, knick-knacks, etc. Right now, it’s holding my DVDs. There are two rows of DVDs per shelf and we realized pretty quickly that this was not going to work, for ease of access as well as my neurosis about alphabetizing my collection. We ordered a folder to put all the DVDs in but until it arrives on Thursday, this is it. The framed images around it are my “girly” prints, things I picked up at conventions for my partner. One of which, of course, is holding the head of Bowser, because I can only compromise so much.

These will be replacing the DVDs soon.

The vases belong to Sarah but, otherwise, these are some of my treasures. You can’t see her well, but Sarah commissioned a statue/doll with my likeness to be made into a book ninja. She’s holding a pen spear and standing atop two classics: Huckleberry Finn and My Life in Japan and America. The rest are miscellaneous toys and games that I want to display. Including my lightsabers. Because, y’know, lightsabers.

Bookshelf Number One

I haven’t gotten around to organizing my bookshelves yet. I’m pretty sure that I’ll get around to it once I’m heavily invested in some other project. At the top there is an award I won when I was a junior in high school for writing. Because, obviously, there is nothing pathetic or weird about having the last major acknowledgement of your writing prowess from high school around when you’re almost thirty. That red bin contains all of my comic books that I’ve been collecting since the New 52 launched back in… September? October? I don’t remember which. Eventually, I hope to have all my colored bins filled with comic books.

Also, I don’t just collect DC comics, for clarification. That’s just when I started again.

Bookshelf Number Two.

More books that need to be organized, more colored bins that need comics in them. The magazine rack holds my subscription to Writer’s Digest, which is a fantastic magazine that I read but rarely follow any of the advice in. It’s all great advice, I’m just lousy at taking it. Also, I just noticed that my Irish penguin is guarding my Harry Potter books. Which is good, since it’s the most important part of my library.

Art should inspire life. Or vice versa.

I’m sure you’re all very surprised to see that Buffy dominates my wall currently. I have a ton more posters featuring Marvel/DC characters but they need to be framed. As such, they’re rolled up neatly in a bag I got at some convention. They’re all weird sizes, though, and framing odd sizes is so expensive! Plus, I don’t own any Batwoman posters! My love of her is very recent and I haven’t been to any conventions since my discovery  of her. Once I do get some, watch out!

My writing space. Or, as I like to refer to it as, Tumblr Central.

And here’s where the magic happens. When I get around to it. As you can see, it’s a little cluttered, but once I get through with rearranging the DVDs, the knick-knacks, and whatnot, I’ll have more space. That scratch ticket there won me two whole dollars! I can buy another scratch ticket! And that yellow pile of papers on the far left? Those are my notes for my novel. The one I’ve been working on sporadically for ten years. Someday, you might even get to read it. The pile of notes, that is, not the novel. Like I’m ever going to finish that!

So that’s where I work, with work obviously being a loose concept that I’m still trying to develop. Stay tuned for real updates that you might care about, folks. Or, you know, more like, not many more updates!

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Writing is Scary

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Kristi McDowell

I don’t post here as much as I should. And it’s not because of a lack of opinions or topics. It’s not even due to a lack of time or a level of commitment to blogging. What prevents me from posting regularly is fear, plain and simple.

I’ve always wanted to be a writer. Ever since I was little, I was writing and telling stories. When my mother passed away a few years ago, I found some stories of mine that she had kept from when I was in third or fourth grade. It’s something I’ve always cared about, always done well academically in, and will probably always be something I hope to do with my life. But when it comes to putting words down, I freeze. Choke, if you will.

If I can’t see your judgement, it’s not really there.

I have several short stories in progress, two graphic novel scripts started, a weekly(ish) web comic, and a novel that has been in hiatus for damn near ten years. I’ve taken classes on writing, been mentored by someone I admire greatly, and have had generally positive reviews of my work from souls brave enough to read my writing. I even get some pretty good feedback on this blog, and I don’t work on it nearly enough.

Why? I mean, not why do I get positive reviews and whatnot. I’m not so self-critical that I think I’m actually bad at what I want to do. But, for some reason, I’m still afraid to pursue this with the gusto that I need to in order to succeed. Maybe I’m afraid of failing. Maybe I’m afraid that people won’t like what  have to say. Heck, maybe I’m afraid of succeeding. I don’t really know, honestly, except that sometimes sitting at my desk and just working on something is the scariest thing I can think of.

So I tool around on the internet, play writing games with my friends, watch TV, play video games, read comics, and basically do absolutely nothing to advance my career.

I do what I want, even when it’s nothing.

I make a lot of excuses for it. I’m a student, so it’s really easy to say that I’m focusing on my schoolwork. And I work part time, so it’s easy to say that I’m too drained to do any serious writing (serious meaning serious about doing it, not serious subject matter). And I have a pretty active social life, so it’s easy to say I don’t have time. Everything is easier to do than writing.

I was browsing for jobs today. I graduate next semester with a BA in English: creative writing and a minor in German. I honestly have no idea what I’m going to do with it. Maybe teach. Apparently that’s what people with English degrees do. Or maybe I’ll go back to working at my dad’s karate school. Or maybe I’ll keep working at the mall forever.

But all I want to do is tell stories. I want to write for Marvel or DC or Image or even self-publish my own comics. I want to have a collection of short stories and a novel or two. I want to write for magazines. I want, I want, I want.

How original, Kristi. You’re so good at telling stories. Idiot.

I just don’t do. I don’t sit down and tell the stories that are in my head. I don’t bang out a bunch of scripts to send to my amazingly talented artist. I don’t self-promote. I don’t even blog.

Is it hard? No, not really. I have a pretty straight-forward process with my writing that has served me well over the last bunch of years. And I don’t write things that make me uncomfortable (you know, like things with bad words in them). I just let myself get side-tracked by stupid, menial garbage that sets me back from my dream over and over again.

If you were reading this and hoping that I’d come to the part where I have this big epiphany  about the meaning of life and what I have to do, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. I didn’t get into a debilitating car accident to realize that life is too short to procrastinate or have a heart-to-heart talk with one of my idols telling me to just keep plugging along. I haven’t even read “The Little Engine That Could” since I was a kid. Nothing really prompted me to write this.

I just did.

Maybe that’s the epiphany. Maybe after I write this, I’ll be motivated to write about the Avengers vs. X-Men story, or write more about my love for Buffy. I saw the Avengers movie and it was awesome, I could totally write about that. Or I could talk about the amazing concert I saw featuring two of my favorite local artists. Or I could keep working on my stories or comic strips.

And the day after that, I’ll write some more. And the day after that. And the day after that.

Man, this is deep.

Because I should. Because even writing this, I feel more like who I am supposed to be. The more words I put into this post, the more complete I feel. Even if no one reads this, even if no one cares, I’m doing the only thing that feels truly natural to me.

Being who I am shouldn’t be so scary. Doing what I love shouldn’t be scary. And maybe it doesn’t have to be. Maybe I just have to do it. Every day. Forever. Because it’s the only thing I care to do.

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