Tom's Mad Blog
February 6th, 2007 | Posted in General
A while back I wrote this post about one of my favorite authors, Frederick Forsyth. As I said in that post, I greatly enjoy his books and consider him the father and master of the modern spy thriller. This fall Forsyth published his fourteenth novel, The Afghan, and I snapped up a copy eagerly. I saved it specifically for the vacation I took last week. Unfortunately it proved to be not entirely worth the wait. Forsyth’s novels are based on real world issues and concerns. From the constant wars in Africa in The Dogs of War to the impact of the impending oil crisis in… READ MORE
February 5th, 2007 | Posted in General
Back in the land of 10,000 lakes… all of which are currently frozen solid. We were greeted by a balmy -4 degrees Fahrenheit on our return to Minnesota. That was the high temperature for the day…. the low is supposed to be -16. It’s hard to believe The Lovely Anna needed to get a sweatshirt when we were in Maui as it was ‘a little chilly’ with the strong breeze when not in the sun. That might have been all of 70 degrees. While on the trip I kept up (more or less) with my e-mail. However I have my Macbook Pro set to not… READ MORE
February 4th, 2007 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I was wondering if you ever try out new things? Perhaps a different medium or art form entirely, not just for commercial work but for personal interest? A: Yes, I do lots of things that are different from my typical style or approach. I think the artist side demands some experimentation or things get boring. I used to regularly attend a figure drawing co-op in north Minneapolis, where I did realistic figure drawing with charcoal, graphite or pastels. That proved to be too far away to keep up, but I enjoyed it. I also have taken some painting workshop classes here in Burnsville at… READ MORE
February 3rd, 2007 | Posted in General
Time to pack up and return home from the sun and sands of Maui to the snow and cold reality of Minnesota. We didn’t have the best of luck with the weather in Hawai’i this year… four days of our week were very windy and overcast with showers on and off all day. This cut severely in to the time we could spend on the beach or by the pool, but honestly that was no big deal. We have a very comfortable room with a great ocean view and spent a lot of time lounging around in it. Our lanai (deck) was sheltered from the… READ MORE
February 2nd, 2007 | Posted in General
A few sites and links I’ve been visiting lately: Mark Anderson’s excellent blog has a nice article about how gag cartoonists are considered the red-headed stepchildren of cartooning compared to the syndicated kind. I have a great deal of respect for gag cartoonists, but I understand where he’s coming from. Last year’s National Cartoonist Society’s winner of the Reuben for “Cartoonist of the Year” was Pulitzer prize winning editorial cartoonist Mike Luckovich, one of the most talented cartoonists working today. Mike has his first new book out in over a decade, and you can read a brief interview with him from the cartoon and art… READ MORE
February 1st, 2007 | Posted in News
Stephen King‘s The Dark Tower: Gunslinger Born #1 is going to be released this coming Wednesday. Here’s the press release from King’s website: __________________ To celebrate the launch of the ground-breaking new comic book series adapted from Stephen King’s magnum opus, The Dark Tower, Marvel Comics will offer a first-ever midnight release of The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born #1 the night of Tuesday, February 6, 2007. Nearly 150 retailers across the United States will open at midnight on Tuesday (effectively 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, February 7, 2007) so Stephen King fans can get their hands on the debut issue of this historic comic. Want to… READ MORE
January 31st, 2007 | Posted in News
Banner courtesy of Mark Evanier Almost forgot. Apparently not many local Maui residents own gorilla suits. Hard to believe, I know. Still I did what I could. Here I am at the resort: I can tell you that gorilla suits and high humidity are a recipe for disaster. I nearly passed out several times. Several old ladies screamed as I ran around the pool, although one tried to buy me a drink. A number of Japanese tourists insisted on getting their pictures taken with me… one at a time. That took about 40 minutes and I almost passed out again. Everything was going fine until… READ MORE
January 31st, 2007 | Posted in General
If there is one universal truth in the world of pop culture and media, it’s that when something becomes wildly popular with the masses it will automatically be shunned and ridiculed by “sophisticated” critics and consumers. It’s a mass mentality thing that seems to say if the great unwashed embrace something it can’t be good. Arguably the most popular prepared food on the planet, in terms of sheer consumption, is the McDonald’s hamburger. Is that good food? Uh…. no. That one deserves the disdain of the food snobs. Still, why is it that when something catches on and becomes incredibly popular it also becomes fashionable… READ MORE
